Golden light filled the room.
The card’s image froze in place.
A robe with golden patterns on a black background, eyes as steady as rock.
Zhongli.
The oldest god of the Teyvat continent.
The Martial God.
Morax.
Weight appeared out of thin air.
Aether’s legs suddenly buckled, his knees slamming heavily onto the wooden floor.
The floorboards let out a groan, unable to bear the burden.
There was no burning sensation like when he inherited Bennett’s power, nor the bone-chilling cold from Eula’s.
There was only pure weight.
The weight of ten million tons of rock pressed through the top of his head into his limbs and bones.
Magic power forced its way through his meridians, widening the channels.
Muscle fibers were torn apart, only to be rapidly restructured within an ochre glow.
Aether gritted his teeth, a hint of blood metallic in his throat.
He pressed his hands firmly against the ground, his nails digging into the cracks of the floorboards.
The laws of the Geo element were being etched into his body.
The magic circulation routes of the Jade Shield, the thrusting techniques of the polearm, the perception of the earth.
The amount of information was ten times that of the previous three four-star characters combined.
A full five minutes passed.
The golden light receded.
Aether collapsed onto the floor, exhausted, gasping for air.
Sweat pooled beneath him.
“Traveler!” Paimon dove down from the air, circling him anxiously.
“Are you okay?
You scared Paimon to death!” Aether raised his right hand.
With a single thought…
Ochre magic power gathered in his palm.
Within half a second, a translucent golden shield flowing with ancient runes enveloped him entirely.
Jade Shield.
Aether curled his fingers and tapped the inner wall of the shield.
It made a dull thud.
An extreme sense of security radiated from this thin curtain of light.
“As expected of Rex Lapis.” Aether dispelled the shield and stood up, supporting himself against the edge of the bed.
“That’s not all!” Paimon put her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest proudly.
“The inheritance of the Seven Archons is different from ordinary characters.
Close your eyes and concentrate on looking deep into your consciousness!” Aether closed his eyes as instructed.
The surrounding clamor instantly faded away.
His consciousness sank, falling into a void of darkness.
In the center of the darkness, a faint dark-gold light flickered.
A massive square stone arena floated in the Akasha.
In the center of the arena stood a tall phantom.
His face was obscured, but that silhouette, the black robe with gold patterns, and the stone polearm in his hand were all too familiar to Aether.
Zhongli’s projection.
“Where is this place?” Aether asked within his consciousness.
“Your exclusive training ground!” Paimon’s voice echoed in the void.
“The combat experience of a god is too vast and profound.
Your body can’t fully grasp it right now.
The system has stripped away the Geo Archon’s combat instincts and formed a projection here.
You can come in at any time to spar with him.” Aether looked at the golden phantom standing with the polearm.
A sparring partner?
The Martial God himself acting as a sparring partner?
Aether’s heart raced.
He manifested a Dull Blade and strode onto the arena.
“Please guide me.” Aether held the Sword with both hands, assuming Eula’s starting stance.
The phantom said nothing.
In the next instant…
The phantom vanished.
Aether’s pupils contracted.
A sharp sound of air tearing came from his left.
He instinctively raised his Sword to parry.
“Clang!” The polearm slammed into the Sword blade.
Immense force transmitted through the hilt.
Aether’s arms instantly went numb, and the webbing between his thumb and forefinger split.
The phantom held the polearm with one hand, used the recoil to spin in mid-air, and kicked the end of the polearm with his right leg.
The polearm turned into a bolt of golden lightning.
Aether had no time to react.
A cold sensation hit his chest.
The polearm pierced through his heart.
The conscious space Shattered violently.
Aether snapped his eyes open and sat slumped on the bed, cold sweat soaking his back.
He breathed the real air in gulps, reaching down to touch his chest.
No wound.
No blood.
But the near-death sensation of being pierced by the polearm was etched clearly in his mind.
“Insta-killed.” Aether’s voice was dry.
“Of course!” Paimon floated in front of him.
“That’s the Martial God!
Even if it’s just a projection, it carries thousands of years of combat instinct.
Going in now is just looking for a beating.
However, dying inside won’t affect reality; it only consumes your mental strength.
After dying a few more times, your combat reflexes will definitely improve by leaps and bounds!” Aether wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, but his eyes grew brighter instead.
He wasn’t afraid of death.
He was only afraid of having no path to grow stronger.
“Oh, one more thing!” Paimon leaned closer and lowered her voice, acting very mysterious.
“Paimon just checked the underlying rules of the system and discovered a big secret!” “Speak.” “About Constellations!” Paimon traced a hexagram in the air.
“The characters you pull now only give you their experience and abilities.
But if you pull duplicate characters in future Wishes, you will unlock their Constellations.” Aether nodded.
He knew this.
“Here’s the important part!” Paimon raised her voice.
“When all six Constellations of a character are unlocked, reaching ‘Max Constellation’ status, the system will project that character’s original Constellation into this world.” Aether looked at her.
“In other words—” Paimon said each word deliberately, “at Max Constellation, you can truly summon that character to this world!
A companion with a physical body who can fight alongside you!” The room fell into a deathly silence.
Aether’s heart skipped a beat.
Summoning a physical entity.
C6 Zhongli dropping Planet Befall, C6 Eula nuking everything, C6 Xingqiu with Raincutter.
C6 Bennett…
uh, C6 Bennett could provide Pyro Infusion.
“I shouldn’t think that way.
When Natsu joins the guild in the future, Bennett giving him an infusion and an attack buff…
with Natsu’s destructive power, I’m afraid no one could stop a single punch.” Aether thought of even more possibilities.
If everyone from Teyvat and everyone from the guild fought side by side, the sparks they could create would be unimaginably brilliant.