"So this Barbatos fellow is quite proactive when it comes to protecting his own statue."
Jiang Yan thought to himself as he climbed higher into the sky.
The mysterious force that had deflected Stormterror's tempest—sparing the Anemo Archon's statue from destruction—could only belong to the wind god lurking in the shadows: Barbatos.
Without hesitation, Jiang Yan plunged straight into the black tornado that had swallowed Lumine.
An ordinary person would have been torn apart the instant they entered such a violent vortex.
But both of them were Anemo users. Barely, they managed to protect themselves within the chaos.
The black tornado hurled them straight through the clouds.
The abrupt contrast—from pitch-dark turmoil to bright blue sky and white clouds—made their eyes ache for a moment.
With their Wind Gliders spread, they slowly descended through the cloud layer.
"Jiang Yan… why did you rush in like that?"
Lumine looked at him, her clear eyes shimmering.
She had seen it clearly—Jiang Yan had deliberately opened his Wind Glider and charged straight into the tornado.
"I was worried something might happen to you."
He spoke honestly, then added,
"Didn't I tell you to watch your safety?"
Lumine's cheeks warmed.
"I… I got distracted for a moment. I didn't have time to move."
Jiang Yan was about to say something when his expression suddenly changed.
"It's here!"
He wrapped an arm around Lumine's slender waist and twisted midair.
Stormterror's gaping maw brushed past them. Its massive body streaked by, the violent wind it generated sending the two of them tumbling several times before they finally stabilized.
"You okay?"
Jiang Yan exhaled in relief.
"Yes… I actually sensed it too."
Lumine's voice grew softer as she spoke.
She had meant to pull Jiang Yan along with her.
But her body hadn't reacted fast enough—so things ended up reversed, with her now being carried bridal-style in his arms.
"Lumine, you're exposed!"
Paimon suddenly popped into view.
"Ah!"
Only then did Lumine realize the wind had flipped up her skirt, revealing a stretch of fair thigh above her knee-high white stockings—thankfully, she was still wearing shorts underneath.
Even so, her face flushed deeply.
She hurriedly pulled her skirt down and covered herself.
Paimon, however, noticed something odd.
"Hey… why aren't we falling?"
She tilted her head.
"Jiang Yan, can your Wind Glider just stay suspended in the air like this?"
As expected of the Traveler's companion—she had unintentionally changed the subject at the perfect moment.
"It is I who bid the thousand-year winds support you, so that you do not fall…"
"Now, imagine drawing that wind together—let it pierce the clouds."
A gentle voice echoed beside the three of them.
It was a voice carried by the wind itself.
At the same time, a sigil of Anemo condensed in front of them.
Jiang Yan felt it clearly—he could control this sigil, gather the thousand-year winds, and shape them into an arrow of wind.
"That voice… who was that?"
Paimon looked around, searching.
"Barbatos," Jiang Yan replied.
"The Anemo Archon?!"
Lumine was stunned.
She hadn't expected to receive direct aid from Mondstadt's god of faith.
"Lumine, you control it."
Jiang Yan motioned for her to stabilize herself in the air with her Wind Glider.
"What about you?" she asked.
"I'll go test Stormterror."
Jiang Yan clenched his hand slightly—as if gripping something invisible.
Lumine didn't question him further. She focused on guiding the condensed Anemo arrows and fired them toward Stormterror.
With Barbatos's assistance, they were always able to stay behind Stormterror as they attacked. No matter how wildly it twisted and soared through the sky, it could never find a proper angle to strike back.
Roar!
Stormterror's cry rang out, filled with frustration.
Its eyes burned with hatred as it glared at them—at them, and even at Barbatos himself—before spreading its wings and flying higher into the sky.
"It's retreating!"
Lumine called out.
"Yes."
Jiang Yan saw it clearly as well.
"Storm King's Barrier."
The moment the words left his mouth, immense Anemo energy erupted from his body.
His Wind Glider beat violently as he shot forward, accelerating toward the fleeing dragon.
For something that could even be used to modify high-precision motorcycles, applying Storm King's Barrier to a Wind Glider was almost trivial.
"Oh?"
Barbatos's voice carried a hint of surprise.
"Compressing Anemo into a single point, releasing it to create overwhelming wind pressure and vacuum… propelling oneself forward."
"At the same time, reducing resistance."
"With speed like this, it's practically equivalent to endlessly triggering acceleration wind rings for a short period."
"He can keep up with Dvalin."
"So this is the ability Boss Jiang Yan possesses… What does he intend to do?"
Barbatos found himself intrigued.
"Boss… Jiang Yan?"
Lumine keenly caught something strange.
"As the owner of the Good Hunter, sure, that's what people in Mondstadt call him—but even the Anemo Archon uses that title?"
She couldn't help but wonder.
"Ah! Jiang Yan's going to crash into Stormterror!"
Paimon cried out nervously.
High above the clouds—
Jiang Yan gripped an invisible greatsword and slammed it down onto a purple-red crystal embedded in Stormterror's back.
Boom!
The dragon, which had been soaring upward, was smashed downward by the blow.
It let out a pained roar and glanced back at Jiang Yan.
Then it beat its wings and fled once more into the sky.
Dvalin believed this power came from Barbatos's blessing.
It had no intention of lingering.
"Tch."
Jiang Yan hovered in the air, irritation flashing through his eyes as he looked toward several points on Mondstadt's land below, each glowing with a strange light.
"The power of the Four Winds' temples… this strong already?"
"I thought that with the world level still low, and the enemy fighting away from its home ground, I might be able to solve this directly."
Apparently—
That had been wishful thinking.
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