The Raiden Shogun's long hair whipped in the gusts that tore through the battlefield.
Her eyes widened as she watched the clash unfold— a scene that could have been ripped straight from the Archon War itself.
On Zhongli's shoulders she saw the courage of mortals raising their blades against gods,
and the spirit of one who would not bow.
Indeed— though he was Morax, the oldest of the Archons, in this moment he looked like nothing more than a man: spear in hand, straining to drag a god from the heavens down to earth.
But could mortals truly slay divinity?
Su Ran's strength was overwhelming.
Zhongli fought as if ready to die.
Yet while Zhongli's experience was vast, the gulf in raw power was even greater.
Su Ran did not even need to move.
The eight floating cannons at his side were enough to force Morax back, leaving him with no chance to counterattack.
The Shogun felt a strange relief.
Back then, she had been felled in a single blow.
She hadn't needed to suffer this much.
Zhongli, however, regretted ever agreeing to this duel.
This wasn't a battle.
It was humiliation.
Better to have accepted prison from the start, than to struggle so pathetically.
He hadn't even forced Su Ran to raise a hand.
The man simply floated above, gazing down.
Another meteor crashed— only to be instantly locked on and shattered by the cannons.
Those eight weapons…
viler than any god Zhongli had ever faced.
Attack as defense.
Destroy the foe's blows, and no shield was needed.
Only half an hour had passed.
One man stood unscathed, barely expending any strength.
The other had already burned through more than half his power.
At this rate, he would be whittled to death.
Never had Zhongli imagined that he, the immovable rock, would be ground down by attrition.
"Your energy bar's already half empty, right?"
Su Ran's sudden question left Zhongli blinking in confusion.
But before he could parse the words, the Shogun felt a wave of power she recognized.
That strange force—the same one from Tenshukaku— flared again as Su Ran gathered Imaginary energy.
Thorns erupted, binding Zhongli in an instant.
The Shogun knew then: the battle was over.
For Morax's life now hung by Su Ran's whim.
The moment the thorns coiled around him, Zhongli knew as well.
His strength was sealed away, leaving him nothing but prey.
If you had this move all along, why not use it earlier?
Why let me be beaten so miserably first?
Now, though, words were meaningless.
"With just this much strength, you dare call yourself the Geo Archon? You can't even best me!"
Su Ran descended from the sky, looking down at the bound man.
With a thought, he dragged all three of them back to Tenshukaku's front gates.
For Zhongli, retirement plans were forgotten.
He wasn't even sure if he could return to Liyue alive.
"Your power is truly formidable. I, Zhongli, was simply outmatched."
Feeling the alien thorns constricting him, he could only sigh helplessly.
Surely Su Ran could see— no mere mortal could wield a stone spear and summon falling stars.
It wasn't that he was weak.
It was simply that his opponent was too strong.
But if Su Ran refused to acknowledge his true identity, what could he do?
"Guards! Take him to the cells. Lock him beside that rebel."
Two of the Orobashi warriors hauled Zhongli away.
When his figure finally vanished from sight, the Raiden Shogun voiced her doubts.
"So… that really was Morax? Don't tell me you plan to frame Inazuma for imprisoning the Geo Archon?"
Liyue was a mighty nation.
Not even she had ever considered provoking them.
Even without Morax, Liyue could still be crushed in her eyes.
But Su Ran—he was supposed to be a Fatui Harbinger.
To imprison the Archon of another land on Inazuma's soil…
Wasn't that going too far?
"Ahem. General, you must realize—the Rite of Descension is coming. What happens if they cannot summon the Geo Archon this year?"
The Shogun pondered.
"Liyue would fall into chaos?"
She did not know much of foreign affairs.
But even she had heard of that grand ceremony.
"No, no! His retirement plans would be ruined. The Fatui still want his Gnosis, of course, but without him to guide the transition, Liyue will truly become a nation without its god."
And what chaos would follow then…
"But Morax is here. Can you not just take his Gnosis directly?"
He was right here, in Inazuma.
Why worry about such things?
The Shogun knew little of Snezhnaya's schemes.
But Su Ran was a Harbinger. Surely he had some connection.
Then again…
Hadn't he just slain another Harbinger not long ago?
…Was he truly one of them?
Inside the prison, Beidou lay sprawled on her cot, chewing on a stem of grass and staring at the ceiling.
Being locked up didn't bother her.
She had supplied the rebels with goods— that much was fact.
Prison was fair enough.
But how long would this last?
Footsteps echoed down the corridor.
She turned her head, and blinked in surprise.
Zhongli was being shoved into the cell beside hers.
Only a barred wall separated them.
"Mr. Zhongli? You got locked up too?"
Beidou grinned wide.
In a foreign jail, seeing a familiar face from home— it was oddly comforting.
Zhongli: …
Do you have any idea I came here for your sake?
"And what landed you in here, Mr. Zhongli? Don't tell me… you also got caught sneaking supplies to the resistance?"
At least that would make sense.
Zhongli now understood why Beidou had been imprisoned.
"No. They accused me of impersonating the Geo Archon himself. That's why."
Beidou shook her head, smirking.
"Well, in that case, you really don't have anyone but yourself to blame."
Zhongli: Never in all my years have I suffered such indignity…
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