"Quick, dodge!"
The moment the words left his mouth, everyone scattered in a panic.
The water shockwave slammed into the rocky beach like a cannonball, blasting a deep crater and sending debris flying. Even Venti, watching idly from afar, was caught in the aftermath.
A small stone hurtled toward Venti at high speed.
But just as it was about to hit him, it stopped mid-air, less than half a meter from his face—frozen, as if time had paused.
A soft breeze gently lifted the stone and lowered it into Venti's open palm.
Down below, the young men were thrown into disarray by the frog phantoms' attacks. Though none were hit directly, the scene was a complete mess.
Venti watched the low-level chaos with boredom, idly letting the stone float from palm to palm.
Huh? Where did Lu Chen go?
A thought struck Venti, and he turned his gaze in another direction—then laughed out loud.
This guy had actually taken advantage of the chaos to sneak around behind the Hydro Mimics.
Thanks to the others attracting all the attention, Lu Chen's flank maneuver went completely unnoticed. When Venti caught sight of him, Lu Chen even flashed him a cheeky victory sign.
"That's so you."
Old fox.
...
Lu Chen understood that Hydro Mimics had limited intelligence and tended to prioritize targets closest to them. While the others were busy being chased around by the frog mimics, he'd already crept behind the monsters.
The wild boar mimic had already shrunk noticeably from the Harbinger of Dawn's earlier strikes. Seizing the chance, Lu Chen stabbed it in the rear with his blunt sword.
The Hydro Mimic's body was more solid than expected—his sword met real resistance.
After the sneak attack landed, the boar's watery face twisted in rage.
It turned on Lu Chen, instinctively preparing to charge.
But Lu Chen twisted the sword inside its form, churning up a splash of water before yanking the blade free. More water gushed out as the boar's mimic shrank even further and began moving sluggishly.
Finish it while it's down!
His strength may have diminished, but his swordsmanship muscle memory hadn't. Gripping the blunt sword with both hands, he brought it crashing down onto the boar's head like a thunderbolt.
A wet, explosive cry rang out—and the water-formed boar dissolved on the spot.
Water rained down like a storm. Lu Chen shielded his eyes, but his hair still got soaked.
A salty tang lingered in the air. It must've been ocean water.
He wiped his face and turned to check on the others.
Things didn't look good. Each time the frog mimics fired their water shockwaves, the ground cracked open with deep craters. The sheer force kept the young men on the run—none dared stand still.
Thankfully, the frogs took long pauses between attacks, offering brief moments to catch their breath.
Lu Chen crept toward the frogs' flank again. Interestingly, the young man with glasses seemed to realize what Lu Chen was trying to do. He subtly slowed down and edged closer to the frogs to draw their focus.
Smart guy. Lu Chen mentally gave him a thumbs-up.
As the young man moved, one of the frogs fired a shockwave straight at him. At such close range, the water was even faster—but he was both daring and precise, already mid-dive before the blast hit.
The water shockwave missed. Right then, Lu Chen lunged forward.
He raised his blunt sword high and swung down with all his might. With only 4 stamina, this was the only way he could unleash a heavy blow.
Simple, but effective—the strike shattered the frog phantom in a single hit.
Unlike the boar, the frog had high attack but low defense.
Water exploded outward, and the mimic collapsed into a puddle on the ground.
Nearby, the glasses-wearing youth couldn't help but cheer from the ground. "Nice!"
The others turned toward Lu Chen like they'd just seen a savior.
"It's him!"
"That guy with the sword!"
"He took out two of them by himself!?"
Lu Chen's surprise attack had flipped the tide instantly. Of the three Hydro Mimics, only one frog remained.
Seeing a chance at victory, the group began preparing to surround it under the young man's command.
Still, no one dared to charge recklessly. They kept their distance, watching with caution.
At that moment, Lu Chen found himself wondering something else. He glanced over at the young man from afar.
Even after all that tumbling, his glasses were still perfectly in place. Incredible.
...
Shaking off the stray thought, Lu Chen turned to face the last frog mimic.
But its next move made him tense up.
Instead of firing another water cannon, it faced him directly—and crouched low.
Then it leapt into the air.
Lu Chen looked up. He knew this move. The creature would dive down from above like a bursting water balloon, delivering a massive splash damage attack.
They were less than five meters apart—dodging this hit wasn't possible.
With his current, weaker body, there was no way he'd survive the splash. This was the closest he'd come to death since arriving in the real world.
Real danger awakens human potential—Lu Chen had always believed that. At this moment, his Intelligence stat of 8 kicked in.
His brain raced. The frog plummeted like a cannonball, but to Lu Chen, everything felt like it was moving in slow motion as he searched for a way out.
He had two options: take the hit and hope he survived long enough to heal with the Traveler's Set, or avoid it before it landed—but he wasn't fast enough...
What if he jumped?
That's how you dodged this move in the game.
But he wasn't Xiao—he couldn't leap dozens of meters in one go.
Wait, Xiao was Anemo. Wind Element...
...
Elsewhere, Venti watched the fight below with quiet interest.
When he saw Lu Chen in danger, he didn't move to help.
Lu Chen had told him not to interfere, and with that pride and confidence, it was better to respect his wishes.
Venti wasn't worried. If Lu Chen couldn't handle a monster like this, then he wouldn't be fit to bear the burden of reopening the Gate of Teyvat.
He even imagined how Lu Chen would respond.
A small smile played on his lips as he murmured, his voice melodic like a poem.
"The four seasons turn, the four winds never cease..."
"Fly."
"Like the birds."
...
Lu Chen's Vision glowed with a brilliant green light. In the split second before the frog crashed down—in the most dangerous moment—he tapped into the elemental energy within him.
When mortals face uncontrollable trials, and their "desire" burns at its peak, the archons' gaze descends.
This is the origin of the Vision.
Lu Chen felt light as a feather. He leapt high into the air, easily evading the crashing splash beneath him.
The jump felt like flight—he soared even higher than the frog had moments earlier.
He was flying.
A swirling Anemo field had formed beneath him, lifting him into the sky. Within this zone, he could ride the wind itself.
And then it clicked—this was Venti's ability.
[Skill Unlocked: Song of the High Sky]
[Summons wind in harmony with poetry and song, lifting all things from the earth and dealing 437% Anemo AoE damage]
Suppressing his excitement, Lu Chen looked down at the frog mimic—its entire body swept into the air by the vortex.
Chaotic Anemo energy tore through its fragile form, and the sky looked like it was raining.
When the effect of "Song of the High Sky" ended, the frog mimic plummeted to the ground and collapsed into a spreading puddle across the rocky beach.