Seeing this, Qiu Nian's body also began to radiate a divine power—white tinged with crimson.
However, unlike when he fought the God of Obscuration—
His eyes and hair showed no glowing changes.
"D-Danger…?"
Paimon stared at Venti's back, muttering blankly.
Danger…?
How could they possibly be in danger?
Lumine was just as confused, her expression dazed.
"…"
Venti said nothing.
He simply clenched his teeth, still shielding Lumine and Paimon behind him.
One hand slowly tightened.
There was a legend—
From the early days of the Archon War, around 3,500 years ago—
A primordial god had appeared.
That god carved a bloody path across Teyvat.
Slaughtering over a hundred gods.
Nearly half of all gods that existed at the time…
And then—
That ancient god arrived in Liyue.
A great battle erupted between him and the old man.
After that battle—
The god vanished without a trace.
Venti had once asked about it.
But the old man seemed intent on hiding the truth.
No matter how he asked—
He could never get an answer.
After becoming the Anemo Archon—
Venti traveled across Teyvat.
In some places where gods had fallen—
There were still traces of that mad god's power.
And now—
Though he couldn't fully see through the young man before him—
He could recognize it.
That same power.
Nearly identical in origin.
And what that implied—
Was obvious.
Meanwhile—
The moment Venti released his divine power—
Qiu Nian had already stopped advancing.
"…Hm."
"It seems Morax hasn't told Barbatos about me yet."
Qiu Nian frowned slightly as he looked at the hostile Venti.
But what surprised him was—
Even though Barbatos' divine power felt somewhat unusual and not fully unleashed—
Qiu Nian could still estimate it.
Nearly twelve points.
The scene turned strangely tense.
On the snow-covered ground, cold winds howled.
On one side—
Venti stood, surrounded by pale green divine power, eyes glowing, filled with hostility.
Behind him—
Lumine and Paimon stood, completely bewildered.
On the other side—
Qiu Nian stood calmly, having already halted his steps.
"W-What is going on?!"
Xuehua stared at the cutscene, equally confused.
She had expected another classic "PV misdirection."
Maybe Qiu Nian and Venti would chat casually.
Or pretend not to know each other.
But she never imagined—
They would look like they were about to fight!
The chat exploded.
[Venti protected Lumine and Paimon?!]
[Why does Venti feel like Qiu Nian is dangerous?!]
[What is Hoyoverse cooking?!]
[The bard stopped pretending?!]
[I'm crying, he protected us!]
[Wait, I'm so confused…]
[Aren't Venti and Zhongli old friends? Even if Venti hasn't met Qiu Nian, he should've heard about him!]
[Exactly, so what is happening?!]
[Are they about to fight?!]
[Venti's eyes and braids are glowing—he's serious! Even Signora didn't trigger this!]
[Please don't fight—I love both of them!]
"W-Wait a second!"
"Is there some misunderstanding between you two?!"
Paimon finally reacted and hurriedly flew in front of Venti, waving her hands frantically.
At the same time—
Lumine ran to Qiu Nian's side, shaking her head at him.
"…You two are both our friends!"
Paimon insisted, nodding hard.
Venti frowned, one hand touching his chin.
"…You're friends with him?"
He looked at Qiu Nian again, still wary.
"W-Well—uh—!"
Paimon got so anxious she almost couldn't speak clearly.
Then suddenly—
Her eyes widened.
"Guixu isn't just our friend!"
"He's also friends with Morax!"
"…Guixu?"
"…The old man?"
Venti froze.
The divine power around him instantly dissipated.
The glow in his eyes and braids faded.
Guixu—
Morax's old friend.
And yet—
The same being who had slaughtered over a hundred gods?
How could that be possible?
He had heard Morax mention the God of the Stove, the God of Dust—
And also a primordial god named Guixu.
All were his old friends.
But he had never once connected that Guixu—
With the legendary mad god who slaughtered countless deities.
Because—
The Guixu Morax spoke of…
And that blood-soaked figure from legend—
Were like two completely different beings.
Seeing this, Qiu Nian also dispersed his divine power.
"…Phew…"
Lumine finally let out a long breath.
She still didn't understand why mentioning Guixu and Morax resolved everything—
But at least the misunderstanding was cleared.
"So… what just happened?"
Xuehua still looked completely lost.
The chat continued wildly speculating.
[They almost fought…]
[Maybe Venti only heard of Guixu but never met him? So seeing a mysterious ancient god in Mondstadt triggered hostility?]
[That actually makes sense.]
[Also timeline-wise—Venti is about 2600+, Guixu is 6000+. When Guixu left, Venti wasn't even an Archon yet.]
[Real question—if they actually fought, who would win?]
[Probably Guixu—even injured, he's insane.]
[But Venti is still one of the Seven.]
[Honestly? Two old actors. Both are hiding things.]
[If they fought at full strength, Dragonspine would be gone.]
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