Balladeer watched Albedo tinkering with bottles and jars, momentarily at a loss for words.
This was his first time fighting an alchemist; were all alchemists like this?
"Heh heh, I'll show you that external objects are not something to rely on!"
Balladeer sneered a few times, forcing the Geo element within him out.
"External objects? To me, this is truly my own power," Albedo responded faintly, feeling the elemental power of the world surging towards him.
"A Vision, or a Delusion, in the end, aren't they also external objects?" Albedo touched the bright yellow Geo element Vision at his waist, sighing with immense emotion.
Perhaps, only the power alchemy brought him could be considered true power!
"You talk too much. I no longer wish for you to live!" Balladeer said sinisterly.
"Hiss~"
The surrounding air rippled as Balladeer, no longer holding back, began to fully unleash his aura.
The surging elemental power even dyed the surrounding golden yellow a bright purple, and countless newly grown green grasses were pressed down.
"Sixth Seat." Albedo's expression turned solemn. Only now did he realize that what had come before was merely child's play.
The current Balladeer truly lived up to his position as the Sixth Seat.
"Phew... I hope I can suppress him," Albedo gripped his sword hilt, muttering a few words.
As Gold's proud creation, his strength was naturally not something the Fatui's Sixth Seat could compare to.
However, that was when he was out of control. Now, he had to maintain his sanity while also stopping the Fatui's Sixth Seat.
Albedo felt uncertain.
"Whoosh——"
With that thought, Albedo pulled out a flare gun from his waist. He pulled the string, and a dazzling, loud red signal flare shot into the sky.
He was never one to be pedantic. If he wasn't confident, he would call for backup.
The Fatui's Sixth Seat could still be detained in Mondstadt.
Balladeer looked up at the signal flare. Although the red light was somewhat dim under the Golden Tree's glow, the loud whistle echoed through the sky.
The sound alone was enough to attract many people's attention.
Balladeer clasped his hands together, and a massive dark purple lightning blade condensed, which he then swung horizontally. A huge purple curtain appeared, leaving Albedo with no escape.
"So strong!" Albedo felt the fierce aura rushing towards him, and the Vision at his waist glowed brightly.
Albedo took a step forward, and a massive amount of Geo elemental power surged into the earth, instantly raising a wall as if made of jade.
"Bang!"
The wide and swift lightning blade struck the jade wall, barely cutting through it before falling silent.
Just as Albedo was about to catch his breath, he suddenly felt his hair stand on end. He quickly blocked with his sword and saw Balladeer, who had instantly appeared, rushing straight at him.
His speed was so great that Albedo could even see Balladeer's afterimage.
"Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma, rise!"
In a hurry, Albedo planted an Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma at his feet. The Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma, like a stone flower, bloomed and, upon sensing its creator's aura, rose towards the sky.
"Boom!" A huge collision sound erupted. The Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma, which had just lifted Albedo, was directly shattered by the surging Electro elemental power, and Albedo was also sent flying.
Fortunately, the Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma had first absorbed some of the impact, and then the Insulating Potion provided protection. The power of this strike had already been largely dissipated.
"Ha… a Harbinger is not to be underestimated," Albedo gasped as he got up, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and looked at the equally panting Balladeer, saying with a smile.
Although he appeared to be at a disadvantage, this was within Mondstadt's borders. Moreover, he had called for reinforcements, and every second he delayed, the situation became more favorable to him.
Furthermore, after their recent exchange, Albedo already understood that the Fatui's Sixth Seat could not force him to lose his sanity.
"Now, it's my turn!" Albedo felt the creations that had just condensed beneath the earth, among which was the Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma.
Generally, Albedo could only control one Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma, but the one beneath the earth was in a dormant state.
Gritting his teeth, Albedo could still barely condense another blooming Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma.
"This is the moment of birth!"
Looking at Albedo's blood-stained, upturned lips, Balladeer instinctively felt that something was amiss.
"Hiss!" He once again turned into a flash of light, wanting to rush towards Albedo. But Balladeer stopped just as he flickered.
Because the earth began to churn.
Under Calx's command, a tide of earthly creations surged.
The solid ground seemed to turn into an ocean in a storm, rolling and squeezing in all directions. Not only that, but the Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma beneath the ground also became exposed in the churning.
The Abiogenesis: Solar Isotoma came into contact with Albedo's Elemental Burst power and began to Bloom wildly.
Countless flowers of life and death exploded on the surging earth. Each flower of life and death could create a large crater and, naturally, leave scars on Balladeer.
The churning of the earth stopped, but Albedo did not relax at all. He knew the advantages and disadvantages of his Elemental Burst better than anyone.
If it were some miscellaneous soldiers, it would be fine, but against a powerful enemy like a Harbinger, the DMG that the flowers of life and death could cause was uncertain.
As expected, on the distant, restored calm ground, a purple elemental shield stood prominently.
As the elemental shield shattered, a disheveled Balladeer emerged from within.
Even with the protection of the elemental shield and his puppet body, Balladeer was still somewhat uncomfortable.
The flowers of life and death, while unable to truly endanger his life, could certainly cause DMG.
At this moment, a large section of the curtain behind Balladeer's hat was missing, and his black and purple attire was torn in many places.
The exposed body was also covered in scars. It seemed that taking Albedo's Elemental Burst head-on had not been easy for him either.
"Phew…" Balladeer clutched his wound, looking at Albedo with some apprehension.
He had initially thought that a mere Knights of Favonius squad leader would be an easy capture, but he had unexpectedly stumbled.
"Balladeer, isn't it? If you're smart enough, you'd know you can't deal with me in a short time."
"Likewise, I can't deal with you either. Be sensible and leave," Albedo said, putting away his weapon and rubbing his temples.
His head was a bit muddled now. If he continued to fight at such high intensity, Albedo might lose control of himself at any moment.
If he truly lost control, let alone the Sixth Seat before him, probably not many people would be left in all of Mondstadt.
"Haha, I admit you're right." Balladeer chuckled a few times. What Albedo said was true.
He alone was enough to hold him back. If more reinforcements arrived, he might truly be left behind in Mondstadt.
However, there weren't just the two of them here.
"Groundhog, can you understand those things? There's a ready-made translator here now, you know."
Balladeer's gaze swept into the distance, speaking to the empty space far away.
"Kid, how do you know we won't team up with this blonde and kill you?"
Frostfall and Torrent emerged from the Abyss Passage, brandishing their arm blades fiercely.
"You can try, try to deal with me before the Knights of Favonius arrive." Balladeer grinned, then continued:
"This Golden Tree belongs to Mondstadt. Having stirred the grass and alerted the snake this time, do you think it'll be easy to get close next time?"
"Now is the best opportunity! And, do you think that blonde will cooperate with you?"
"Don't forget, you Abyss Monsters are the common enemy of humanity. And I, coincidentally, am not human."
The two Apostles looked down at Albedo not far away. Although he was trying his best to hide his inner guard and shock, the hand placed on his waist and his uncertain gaze told Frostfall and Torrent the answer.
The Abyss Order was ten times more dangerous in the hearts of Teyvat's people than the Fatui.
If the conflict with the Fatui could be described as an internal human conflict, then the struggle with the Abyss Order was a struggle between two different types of beings.
At least ninety-nine percent of the people on the entire continent believed this.
"Alright, as for whether you can get what you want, that depends on your ability."
Frostfall looked at the large group of Knights of Favonius at the foot of the mountain and made her decision.
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