"What's the matter? Are you surprised to see your dear little doctor standing on my side?"
"Tingyun"—or rather, Phantylia—raised a hand, observing the expressions on the faces opposite her with great interest. Confusion, disbelief, anger... yes, that's the look!
"My dear benefactors Allow me to reintroduce myself. I am the Lord Ravager, Phantylia. My original purpose on this trip was to let this Xianzhou collapse from within, to self-destruct... but now"
Phantylia glanced at Wende, who stood behind her as stiff as a corpse (a state he had achieved by electrocuting himself), and a satisfied smile spread across her face.
Although her plan to have the Xianzhou tear itself apart had been bungled by those idiots from the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus, forcing her to take matters into her own hands, it was still... a nice change of pace after being the mastermind behind the scenes for so long.
Besides... even if she were to completely [Destroy] this entire Xianzhou... its value wouldn't amount to a fraction of the person standing behind her.
---o---
Real World
"Wait!? Tingyun is a Lord Ravager??"
Sister Guoguo stared at her computer screen in utter disbelief as the in-game Tingyun walked over to the enemy's side.
Was... was she hallucinating? What the hell was going on?! How did her gentle, witty, and adorable Foxian girl turn into a Lord Ravager!
[WTF! What just happened!]
[Huh? No way! My wife! My WAIFU!]
[F*CK! What a plot twist! I know some people pointed out Tingyun's strange behavior in lore analysis videos, but this isn't just 'strange'! This is a mutation!]
[I can't accept this! Aaaahhh!]
[I don't care if you're a Lord Ravager! You're still the wife I love most!]
The viewers in the livestream chat were still freaking out, and Sister Guoguo was slowly processing the fact that Tingyun had transformed into the Xianzhou's biggest villain.
Actually... she should have noticed it before. This Tingyun's behavior had been completely off! She must be an impostor!
"Brothers, let's not jump to conclusions yet. Maybe the Lord Ravager just disguised herself as Tingyun. Our wife is still out there!"
After calming down the animals in her chat, Sister Guoguo clicked to continue the story with a heart full of anxiety, praying for a miracle.
Then, under "Tingyun's" next action, every single viewer and player who reached this scene... collectively entered a state of Blood Rage!
"HOLY SHT! What did you fcking do to my Godfather!"
Seeing Wende walk over to "Tingyun" at her beck and call, Haihai, who was still lost in the beautiful fantasy that the real Tingyun was fine, instantly exploded like a startled puppy, unleashing a torrent of curses at the "Tingyun" on his screen.
"So you're the one called Phantylia! How dare you lay your hands on my Godfather! And you're controlling him! Fine, I'll remember you. When you become a boss, I'm going to bring a team to beat you ten times a day, TEN TIMES!!!"
[Phantylia, I (sound of clappers) will (Cybertronian language) your (the language of birds and flowers).]
[My Dao Heart is shattered! I'm succumbing to my inner demon! I demand to see a video of this woman getting furiously f**ked to death by my Godfather within 24 hours!]
[No! NO! Godfather, why! Why have you left me!]
---o---
Meanwhile, across the ocean.
Kakaya, streaming on YouTube, arrived at this fateful platform before tens of thousands of her "Melancholy Ghosts" and fans.
When she saw Tingyun walk to the other side, the beautiful memories of their time together came flooding back. She couldn't help but lean back in her chair, clutching her head in agony.
"Oh! NO!!! miHoYo, why are you doing this again..."
[Quick, quick! Summon the Thousand-Herrscher Legion! The judgment is about to begin!]
[It's comin'! It's comin'!]
[Hurry, hurry! I'm ready to savor the taste!]
[Huh? What are you guys talking about?]
[Oh, don't worry, we'll savor your reaction too!]
While Kakaya was still reeling from the fact that Tingyun was a Lord Ravager, sharing her thoughts with her viewers, she took a deep breath, slapped her cheeks, and encouraged herself to bravely continue watching.
"You can do it! There won't be any gut punches. We'll beat this woman, and the real Tingyun will be waiting for us. That's right!"
After comforting herself, Kakaya clicked to continue the story with a resolute look in her eyes.
Then, Wende walked over to Tingyun's side like a soulless puppet.
"OH!!! NOOOOO!!!"
Kakaya's defenses were instantly shattered, and she sank into the depths of the sea.
[Ahhh~ that scream. So satisfying!]
[Jiǔ jiǔ jiǔ! (It must be miHoYo's fault!)]
[It's definitely miHoYo!]
[So satisfying! So delicious!]
"Wuwuwu, pls! miHoYo, don't do this! Why are you doing this! That's Wende! How could you be so heartless..."
Sunk to the bottom of the ocean, Kakaya covered her face in anguish, sobbing uncontrollably.
Meanwhile, somewhere else.
A hot-tempered American bro, upon seeing this scene, was instantly overcome with rage. Ignoring the comforting words from his chat, he punched his computer monitor clean through!
"AAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!"
[God! What happened!]
[Oh! Why would they do this! What did our beloved Mr. Wende do to deserve this?]
[Oh, SHT! What is this shtty plot! My Wende! Our Godfather! Is being toyed with by an impostor! This is a humiliation!]
"Sigh... they're at it again."
Marshmallow covered his face in agony, an expression shared by thousands upon thousands of other players.
On that day, all miHoYo players recalled it once more. That past... nightmare of being dominated!
On that day, a name was added to the players' kill list... and that name was...
"GUAAAA!!! PHANTYLIA! I WILL KILL YOU! A THOUSAND TIMES! IS NOT ENOUGH!!!"
"I swear to slay this beast!"
"I f*ck—"
(This streamer has been banned for inappropriate language.)
The Super Moderator: I can't keep up! There's no way I can ban them all! The entire f*cking player base is cursing! Phantylia! You deserve to die! Aaaahhh!
---o---
Standing behind Phantylia, preparing to find an opportunity to switch to his five-star state and finish her off, Wende's body suddenly went stiff...
[Emotion Value increased by 10,000]
[Emotion Value increased by...]
[Increased...]
"?"
What's going on?
Wende froze on the spot, his eyes filled with confusion. But then, he remembered his own actions just moments ago...
Oh! So this is how you farm Emotion Value... In that case...
Looking at the petite "Phantylia" in front of him, a confident smile appeared on Wende's face.