In her office, Jean was bent over her desk, dealing with paperwork.
Suddenly, a shadow swept across the window.
Jean's head shot up. She stared out the window in disbelief.
A massive dragon had appeared in the skies above Mondstadt, its solitary figure soaring silently through the air to the accompaniment of a bard's music and song.
It was one of the Four Winds of Mondstadt, the [Stormterror Dvalin].
Just last year, he had cast a dark shadow over the land, bringing a calamity of dragonrage.
Under the relentless gales that blew for days on end, countless buildings were damaged, and all of Mondstadt had plunged into hardship.
Economically speaking alone, the Knights of Favonius had seen their revenue fall by nearly half compared to the year before.
All kinds of crops had been affected by the storms. The staple wheat yield dropped, and cash crops like grapes suffered from reduced sunlight and sugar content, leading to poorer wine quality and lower prices.
Merchants, deeming Mondstadt inhospitable, fled in droves.
That was why Jean had been so busy all year.
Though the dragon disaster had been resolved, the aftermath left her buried in work.
The Knights had to repair damaged infrastructure while maintaining the city's basic functions. And with no money, they couldn't raise taxes—citizens were already struggling.
In fact, taxes needed to be lowered to entice merchants back into doing business...
That was also why Jean had taken such an interest in Charlotte when they first met.
If they could use this Windblume Festival to revitalize Mondstadt's tourism, it might bring in a new stream of economic support—and ease the pressure of development.
"...Dvalin..." Jean murmured, stunned by the dragon's sudden arrival.
"Why is he here again? Could it be..."
Her thoughts flashed to an old legend passed down in Mondstadt—the first time Dvalin descended upon this land, the Anemo Archon Barbatos played a melody that drew the dragon close. Thus, the god and the dragon became companions...
And the instrument Barbatos used then was the famed [Holy Lyre der Himmel].
The scene before her now looked just like the story.
Jean stared out the window in silence.
Then, with a sigh, she muttered helplessly, "Lord Anemo, you're far too willful... the least you could do is give me a heads-up next time."
Fortunately, the Knights of Favonius had explained the entire dragon disaster to the public last year.
Everyone knew that the real culprit had been the Abyss Order, and that Dvalin had already returned to his senses.
People weren't afraid of him anymore—otherwise, Mondstadt would've erupted into chaos by now.
—
Just as Jean predicted.
The citizens of Mondstadt were startled when they saw the enormous dragon appear in the sky. But when they realized the wind remained calm and gentle, their panic quickly subsided.
In fact, the locals who had already experienced the disaster were calmer than the clueless tourists—those visitors were wide-eyed with awe and excitement.
A real dragon! Just like the bards' tales! So cool!
Suddenly, Xia Zhi felt someone clutching his arm tightly.
He looked down.
It was Xia Lin.
The little girl was biting her lip, staring up at the sky with wide eyes locked on the glittering, gemstone-like dragon. Her small hands instinctively clenched his arm.
Xia Zhi could feel her body trembling slightly.
Maybe it was because she was seeing the dragon she once admired again after five hundred years and didn't know how to react.
Or maybe she was instinctively afraid—remembering the moment Dvalin's fangs once tore through her throat.
Xia Zhi reached out and gently stroked her head, whispering, "It's okay, it's okay..."
The girl gradually relaxed, whispering back, "Mm..."
He moved his hand from her head to her shoulder, pressing down softly.
The gesture carried a special meaning—akin to how skyborne races shielded their young with their wings.
Sure enough, the girl felt much safer.
She tilted her head and rested her cheek against his arm. Even through his sleeve, she could clearly feel the warmth of his body.
Then, she looked back up at the dragon flying through the sky.
Among the girls, the most excited was Charlotte. She was snapping photos of Dvalin like crazy with her kamera.
This was rare, invaluable material. Definitely enough for multiple headline stories.
It took a while for everyone to shift their attention away from Dvalin and back to Venti's music.
Compared to the past three Windblume instrument competitions, there was no doubt that Venti's performance this year was more beautiful and moving than ever.
He'd even recreated a legendary scene from Mondstadt lore—summoning the sky dragon with his song.
If they didn't know him as the drunkard passed out in taverns half the time, people might've started suspecting he was Barbatos himself.
When Venti finished playing, the audience fell utterly silent.
The judges exchanged glances, and without a word, unanimously gave him a perfect score.
Cheers erupted immediately—everyone agreed it was well deserved.
Venti smiled, holding his lyre, and gave a graceful bow of thanks.
Then, he turned and bowed again—this time, to Dvalin in the sky—before stepping calmly off the stage.
He walked up to Xia Zhi and grinned. "My friend, looks like I've won this one."
Xia Zhi stayed composed. "Not necessarily."
Venti waved a hand dismissively. "C'mon, don't you get how impressive a perfect score is? Even if you're amazing, at best we'll tie. And that's fine by me. You promised if I won, I'd get a hundred bottles of wine..."
Xia Zhi chuckled but didn't argue.
Xia Lin, watching Venti's smug face, seemed dissatisfied. She lifted her head and shouted, "Papa, you got this!"
Xia Zhi smiled and nodded. "Mm, Papa will try his best."
Xia Ci, standing nearby, frowned in thought. "Cousin, it's not going to be easy for you to win..."
Especially now that Dvalin had shown up—it was like a perfectly impartial judge had descended from the sky and given Venti top marks.
Xia Zhi nodded. "Winning doesn't matter. I came all this way to take part, so of course I'll give it my best shot."
Xia Zhen mused aloud, "I remember Mondstadt has a Wolf of the North too... wonder if it's still alive. If you could summon that thing..."
Xia Zhi laughed. "Let's not cause a festival disaster. Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
Next, the second contestant took the stage.
But after Venti's dazzling performance, no matter how good the next player was, their music felt bland in comparison. The applause was polite at best.
The judges likewise gave only participation points.
The contestant smiled wryly and left the stage.
Then came the third, whose performance had much the same fate...
Xia Zhi was the eighth to perform. He still had time.
As he listened to the others, he opened his system panel.
At present, he only had one extraordinary instrument: the [Focus Guitar]. It was a set item, but he needed seven more instruments to activate its full set bonus.
Even with the [Exquisite Pendant] reducing the set requirement by one, he still lacked six pieces. Completing the set felt far off.
Besides, the set was only silver tier—even if complete, it still couldn't match the [Holy Lyre der Himmel].
So relying on the [Focus Guitar] wasn't going to cut it.
He needed something else.
Xia Zhi searched the [Shop] and found a promising guqin.
[Dragon's Call Guqin]
Quality: Platinum
Type: Set Instrument
Trait: Dragon Resonance, Empathy
Effect: When performing with this item, emotions can be infused into the music, allowing listeners to empathize. Music quality +50%, perfect performance chance +30%, effect doubled on dragons.
Hidden Effect: When the two-piece set is complete, set trait activates.
Price: 3000 points.
On the next page, there was a beautiful xiao flute.
[Phoenix Dance Xiao]
Quality: Platinum
Type: Set Instrument
Trait: Phoenix Illusion
Effect: Automatically become a Master of Dance. When performing with this item, music quality +50%, perfect performance chance +30%, effect doubled on phoenixes.
Hidden Effect: When the two-piece set is complete, set trait activates.
Price: 3000 points.
This flute was the matching piece for the guqin. Same price.
3000 points wasn't too expensive for him now.
After thinking it over, Xia Zhi bought the [Dragon's Call Guqin].
The moment he got it, the system voice rang in his mind:
"Host possesses the trait [Exquisite]. Set requirement for [Dragon's Call Guqin] reduced by one. Set considered complete. Activating set trait."
"Set trait [Celestial Melody] activated."
"[Celestial Melody]: Music gains the unique effect of Enchantment. For each second the music continues, the enchantment intensifies by 1%, up to a maximum of 200%."
This was the highest-tier set item Xia Zhi had acquired so far.
Following the rule that set traits exceed their base quality by one tier, [Celestial Melody] was a diamond-tier trait.
He closed the system panel and glanced calmly, from god's eye, at Venti sipping his wine nearby.
With [Dragon Resonance], and [Celestial Melody], the [Dragon's Call Guqin] should have no trouble outperforming the divine Holy Lyre.
One by one, the other contestants performed and left the stage with consolation scores.
Soon, it was Xia Zhi's turn.
Xia Lin released his arm and looked up at him with wide eyes. "Papa, go get 'em!"
"Go Mr. Xia!" "You've got this, boss!" "Good luck, big bro!" "Go cousin!" "Good luck, little cousin!" "You can do it, Master!"...
Xia Zhi nodded with a smile, took out the [Dragon's Call Guqin], and walked toward the stage.
Venti took a swig of wine and did a double take at the instrument in Xia Zhi's hands.
Wait, what?
Wasn't he using a guitar earlier?
Why the sudden switch to a guqin?
Venti had a feeling something unexpected was about to happen.
Onstage, the host was introducing Xia Zhi's background—and mentioned the reason he wore sunglasses was because he was blind.
The judges and audience adjusted their perceptions accordingly.
Compared to able-bodied contestants, they would naturally view him more favorably. Even if his performance matched the others, he'd likely receive higher marks.
Xia Zhi stood center stage, bowed with a smile.
Then he sat cross-legged, resting the guqin on his lap, ready to play.
Thanks to the [Wind Whisperer] skill he learned from Venti and his mastery of stringed instruments, playing the guqin was a breeze.
His fingers moved—and the first note rang out.
The audience and judges found the tone ethereal and entrancing—but Venti and Madame Ping both froze.
Venti murmured, "This..."
Madame Ping gasped softly, "How could this be..."
Cloud Retainer turned to her. "Ping, what is it?"
But Madame Ping didn't answer. Her eyes were locked in astonishment on Xia Zhi, who played effortlessly onstage.
Up in the sky, Dvalin continued to circle.
After five hundred years of slumber, and the torment of a curse, he had finally been freed—and wanted to linger in this festive atmosphere a while longer.
The only regret was that, aside from Barbatos' playing, the other music hadn't been particularly enjoyable.
He'd heard a few performances and found them lackluster. He was about to fly back to his lair when a strange new melody drifted up from the ground.
It was unlike anything he had ever heard.
Soft, gentle—yet it pulled at something deep inside him. More moving even than Barbatos' lyre.
Dvalin decided to stay.
He wanted to hear the whole piece.
Though billed as an instrumental contest, singing was also part of the performance.
Barbatos had sung earlier—he was a bard, after all, it came naturally.
Xia Zhi could sing too. He had [Charming Voice].
This time, he chose to use [Fairy's Voice].
And the song? Same as Venti's—Dvalin's story.
But Xia Zhi invoked the [Empathy] trait.
Dvalin, who once swallowed poison for Mondstadt's sake... who slept for five centuries... who suffered the agony of a curse... who sought help, but found only fear and hatred...
Xia Zhi wove all that anguish and sorrow into his melody.
The dragon in the sky flew slower and lower.
Until, as the final note faded, Dvalin descended from the heavens.
He carefully avoided the buildings and crowds, then bowed his head—letting out a deep, low sound from his throat.
Venti stared blankly at his old friend. "Dvalin... is crying?..."
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