The Alcor sailed swiftly and steadily across the sea…
Meanwhile, Su Yuan was deep in thought—if Kazuha and Beidou were ever to fall under the control of the Eerie, what would the conditions for their corruption be?
After all, the conditions for death rewind had clearly changed dramatically.
It was no longer possible to test through trial and error like before—they had to prepare ahead of time and prevent it from happening altogether.
"If it were me," Beidou spoke after some thought, "you all know the kind of person I am—straightforward and bold. If I ever found myself in a situation that made me feel stifled or frustrated, I might just fall into Eerie corruption because of it…"
"You've both said it before," Kazuha added slowly, "the Eerie power likely stems from the negative emotions of people."
"But there are also objective, external factors that can cause someone to fall into Eerie corruption."
"After the first Vision Hunting Decree ended, I let go of the past and stopped dwelling on what had happened—let those memories drift away with the wind."
"After all I've been through, my state of mind has grown much more balanced. I believe I have enough confidence to say that I won't fall into Eerie corruption because of my own internal issues."
"That's true! Kazuha's always been such a free-spirited guy!" Paimon nodded in agreement.
Both Aether and Su Yuan nodded as well, finding Beidou and Kazuha's reasoning quite sound.
In the next moment, Kazuha slowly raised his head, gazing at the sky.
"It won't be long now… the rain's coming—and it'll be a heavy one."
"Haha, if Kazuha says it's going to rain, then it's definitely going to rain!"
Beidou chuckled and said,
"That kid's ears are sharp—he can hear even the slightest breeze or rustle of grass."
"His weather prediction skills are way more accurate than Xu Liushi's, who's been on my crew for ages!"
"When Kazuha first came aboard, Xu Liushi was even worried that he'd steal his job!"
As she spoke, Beidou pointed toward the very top of the lookout post, where a man wearing a red bandana stood—that was Xu Liushi.
"Well, since it's going to rain, we might as well not stay out on the deck. Let's head inside the cabin early!"
Sure enough, not long after everyone entered the ship's cabin, heavy rain began to fall.
Su Yuan looked out through the cabin's glass window and saw the sky outside covered with thick, dark clouds.
Fierce winds howled, torrential rain poured down, thunder and lightning cracked through the sky—it was pitch-black all around…
The sea's surface had turned turbulent and violent.
Everyone on board could feel the Alcor rocking and swaying heavily on the waves, like being on a roller coaster or a pirate ship…
Paimon, having never experienced anything this intense before, was already terrified.
She clung tightly to Aether's shoulder, shivering as she spoke in a trembling voice:
"Beidou, last time when we sailed to Inazuma on your ship—even when we passed through the lightning storm set up by the Raiden Shogun—it wasn't nearly this crazy…"
Beidou also revealed a slightly serious expression and spoke with a hint of confusion:
"The ships sailing between Liyue Harbor and Fontaine usually follow this very route. It's been tested and proven by countless people—the currents and weather along this path are supposed to be relatively stable. So how are we running into such a violent storm?"
"Even throughout my entire seafaring career, I've almost never encountered a situation like this…"
"If we were venturing into unknown territory and sailing through uncharted waters, then running into something like this would make sense…"
"But this route has been traveled by countless people. Its stability and safety have been proven over time—this kind of situation really shouldn't be happening…"
"Wait, Beidou, what did you just say—'almost never'?"
Su Yuan caught onto the keyword and asked, "So even if it was rare, you've still encountered something like this before?"
"That's right, Su Yuan. The last time I experienced something like this was when I encountered that Abyssal Leviathan—known as 'Haishan'…"
As Beidou spoke, she suddenly realized something.
Without hesitation, she braved the storm and rain, rushing out of the cabin and onto the deck—
She looked into the distance ahead—and sure enough, she saw an enormous shadow!
"Heh… sorry about this, Su Yuan. First time riding on my ship, and you already have to deal with something like this…"
Beidou glanced back at the others who had also followed her out onto the deck, and gave an apologetic smile.
"Don't worry. The Alcor has been specially reinforced with top-grade materials—it's more than capable of handling a beating. You all just stay in the cabin and rest. I've already slain one Abyssal Leviathan before—so naturally, I can slay a second one! Leave this kind of small matter to me!"
"No… Beidou," Su Yuan spoke up, eyes narrowing.
"That Abyssal Leviathan up ahead… it feels familiar to me somehow…"
Faced with Beidou's words, Su Yuan shook his head.
"Yeah, Beidou… this Abyssal Leviathan might not be so easy to deal with this time…"
Aether also looked forward with a serious expression and said, "I can sense an eerie aura coming from it…"
"Oh? So this is what eerie energy feels like…" Kazuha looked ahead and nodded.
"No wonder this Leviathan gave me such a strange feeling…"
Su Yuan looked toward the massive sea beast with concern.
Why would a monster corrupted by eerie power appear along the route from Fontaine to Liyue?
Could it be that something serious had already happened in Liyue?
"Beidou, we might not necessarily have to fight this Abyssal Leviathan under eerie control…"
After analyzing the situation for a while, Su Yuan spoke up:
"From what we know so far, monsters corrupted by eerie power don't retain their own consciousness or intelligence…"
"If there's no one controlling them from behind the scenes, they usually act purely on instinct…"
"Judging by the current situation, it hasn't noticed us yet. We could just alter our route a bit and sail around it…"
But in the next moment, Su Yuan felt a sharp knock on his head—Beidou had smacked him hard!
"Su Yuan, that kind of thinking just won't do!"
"Your first reaction to danger and challenge is to avoid it? That's not the spirit of the 'Crux Fleet,' nor is it the spirit of me, Beidou!"
Su Yuan didn't know what to say—he rubbed his head and replied,
"I was just thinking of everyone's safety... being cautious isn't wrong, is it? After all, we're not just dealing with an ordinary sea beast, but one that's been corrupted and controlled by eerie power…"
"Haha! Even if it's been tainted by eerie corruption, in the end, it's still nothing more than a mindless beast!"
Beidou laughed boldly and said without a hint of concern:
"Didn't you say it yourself, Su Yuan? Eerie creatures are weak against physical attacks!"
"And the ballistae and cannons on my ship? Yeah, they're not just for show!"
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