"Not only the environment, but the people in the distance also seem like truly living beings. They can even react to La Signora's appearance. This place seems even more real than the dreams guided by the Akasha."
Nahida said with emotion. Such a realistic scene made Nahida immediately think of the dreams that the Sumeru Akasha could create. However, for the dreams created by the Akasha, Nahida could still clearly know that they were not the real world. Yet in this Simulated Universe... if one were to enter here without knowing the truth, Nahida felt that she might truly mistake this place for the real world.
(Scaramouche: Interesting. To be able to make even Dottore say such words, it seems this world is truly very real.)
(Alhaitham: Ms. Nahida, as the incarnation of a branch of the Irminsul, is still astonished by this world. This is enough to prove the reality of this world.)
(Lyney: Fortunately, the Teyvat Forum seems to be bound to consciousness. Cloud Retainer can still start a live stream after entering the Simulated Universe.)
(Charlotte: Yes, I was worried before that after Cloud Retainer and the others entered the Simulated Universe, we might not be able to see the live broadcast. Thank goodness!)
(Diluc: Those people in the distance can also interact with La Signora. If we entered this world in a different way, perhaps we might really mistake this place for reality.)
(Albedo: Just the things currently displayed have already proven the advanced nature of the Simulated Universe.)
(Faruzan: Yes, for Ms. Herta and them, even if you want to be unconvinced, you can't.)
(Barbara: But why is the world built based on La Signora's consciousness Mondstadt?)
(Kaeya: It seems La Signora has a deep connection with Mondstadt.)
"Strange, La Signora seems to not see us." Cloud Retainer saw La Signora ignoring them and interacting directly with the people entering and leaving Mondstadt, then pushed her glasses and said.
"This should be Lord Takagi's ability." Nahida looked up at the sky.
As expected, the next moment, Takagi's voice sounded beside Nahida, Dottore, Lisa, and Cloud Retainer.
[I had the AI robot give you an invisible state. La Signora will not be able to see you during this time. Not only La Signora, but the other people in Mondstadt, and even the monsters, won't be able to see you.]
"This is Lord Takagi's voice! Does that mean we are just spectators this time?" Cloud Retainer looked at the monsters that suddenly appeared around her and murmured.
"These monsters... seem to be no ordinary monsters. And are they heading toward Mondstadt?" Lisa furrowed her beautiful brows and said.
"These are monsters that have transformed after being corrupted by the Abyss. There are also pitch-black Riftwolves directly from the Abyss. So that's how it is; Lord Takagi intends to have La Signora face the initial battles after the cataclysm of Khaenri'ah. If she faces these enemies, La Signora will probably be quite emotional," Dottore said.
As if to prove what Dottore said, when the pitch-black demonic beasts appeared, La Signora rushed toward these beasts with an expression of hatred. For a moment, biting cold ice continuously flowed from her hands, falling toward the enemies before her. In an instant, large swathes of enemies turned into ice sculptures.
But even so, the pitch-black demonic beasts and the monsters corrupted by the Abyss seemed endless. No matter how many ice sculptures La Signora had created using the power of ice, there were always stragglers rushing toward her. After some time, La Signora's offensive eventually slowed down. It seemed only a matter of time before she would be devoured by the demonic beasts.
(Kamisato Ayaka: These unseen demonic beasts are so strong! Did La Signora face all of these before?)
(Dainsleif: After all, they are demonic beasts from the Abyss and those corrupted by its power. The difficulty of these demonic beasts far surpasses the monsters currently existing on the Teyvat Continent.)
(Dehya: Although I don't like the Fatui, I have to say that the power displayed by this La Signora is really strong. If I were in her position, I would probably have been taken down by those demonic beasts long ago.)
(Candace: Even though she is still holding on, if nothing unexpected happens, she will soon be defeated.)
(Tartaglia: Although I don't get along with La Signora, her power is not that simple. If I'm not mistaken, she should be about to use her trump card.)
As if to prove Tartaglia's words, seeing that the ice seemed unable to freeze any more enemies, La Signora chose to temporarily abandon the ice and regain the flames she had suppressed for a long time. Along with the overflow of massive Pyro energy, La Signora once again transformed into the form of the Crimson Witch of Flame, attacking the solemn pitch-black demonic beasts with scorching flames.
"Unforgivable, unforgivable~!"
"Just like this, let me burn you all to ashes one more time."
La Signora spread her hands, and terrifying flames turned into butterflies flying toward the surrounding demonic beasts. Those small flame butterflies just landed on the demonic beasts, instantly melting a large hole in their bodies. Not only that, but even the demonic beasts that had been frozen by the ice also turned into ashes under the Pyro energy overflowing from La Signora's body.
(Arlecchino: As expected, she still used this power.)
(Paimon: So... so scary! This arrogant woman has become even stronger! But didn't she use ice? How did she become someone who uses fire again?)
(Lumine: This woman is much better at using fire than ice, but this posture of hers... why does it feel like she's fighting with her life?)
(Alhaitham: La Signora seems to be directly enduring the Pyro energy with her body. If she continues fighting like this, her life will indeed be threatened. Moreover, using power in this way should consume more vitality than the Delusion that Dottore previously took out would consume.)
(Kaveh: Hiss... The Fatui Harbingers are really ruthless. Could it be because they know they are fighting in the Simulated Universe, that's why they are so calmly using this forbidden power?)
(Alhaitham: Looking at the emotions she showed earlier, it shouldn't be entirely so. This woman truly hates those demonic beasts immensely!)
(Dehya: Indeed. When those demonic beasts appeared earlier, her eyes clearly showed hatred toward them.)
(Kujou Sara: This act of seeking revenge even at the cost of self-destruction... This woman's behavior is very consistent with the Path of Destruction. Could it be that this woman can really see the Aeon of Destruction through this battle and step onto that Path?)
......
"La Signora's emotional fluctuations are abnormal. She seems to be unable to distinguish between reality and illusion." After a while, Nahida, who was watching the battle, suddenly spoke.
"Can't distinguish between reality and illusion? Could it be that she's treating the Simulated Universe as the real world?" Cloud Retainer asked.
"Probably completely sunk into hatred. This is understandable; after all, these pitch-black demonic beasts killed someone important to her. And now she has been using this frantic flame power for a long time. It's normal to fall into such a state," Dottore smiled. He didn't feel particularly worried about La Signora's condition. On the contrary, he was very happy to be able to obtain the data he wanted through her battle.
"Takagi mentioned that if one's mental state collapses, the person in reality will also collapse. If she continues like this, will she really be okay?" Nahida murmured.
"Takagi should have noticed La Signora's condition," Lisa said, looking up at the sky.
Outside the Simulated Universe, Takagi rested his hand on his chin, frowning slightly as he looked at La Signora's body. With his current sensitivity to energy, he could naturally sense the situation with La Signora. Up until now, he hadn't attracted the gaze of The Hunt, nor had he attracted the gaze of Destruction.
Could it be that she still needed to continue fighting for a while longer? But if this continues, this woman won't actually go crazy in here, right? Takagi thought to himself. At this time, Takagi was already starting to hesitate whether to temporarily cut off La Signora's connection with the Simulated Universe. He didn't want anyone to have any problems because of testing.
"I'll give you five more minutes. If you still can't succeed, I can only let you rest for a bit first," Takagi looked at La Signora's face and muttered to himself.
As if La Signora heard Takagi's voice, both her body outside the Simulated Universe and her consciousness inside couldn't help but tremble. Although she was somewhat unable to understand Takagi's words at the moment, she instinctively didn't want this battle to end like this. She suddenly raised her head and glared at the pitch-black demonic beasts in front of her.
"Unforgivable! Only you from the Abyss are unforgivable! You must be burned to ashes!"
La Signora roared and suddenly spun her body quickly, enveloped in scorching flames. In an instant, she charged toward the demonic beasts like a whirlwind. In just a moment, several demonic beasts were swept into the flame tornado and turned into fuel. But when the pitch-black beasts huddled together and collided with the flames, the speed of the raging tornado was forced to stop.
"Not enough, not enough!" Seeing such a situation, La Signora shouted frantically and began to squeeze out the little remaining power in her body with all her might.
Just then, the space around La Signora fell into a state of pause. Before La Signora could figure out the reason, she felt a dizzying sensation. When she came to her senses, she found that she had arrived at a space she had longed for.
"A night sky adorned with endless stars. That boundless pillar of light. Here... did I really come here?" La Signora blinked and turned to look behind her. She quickly saw Takagi's figure within her line of sight.
Seeing La Signora look over, Takagi smiled and nodded at her. Seeing this, La Signora also smiled. After entering this universe, she had escaped the frantic state she had fallen into due to hatred. Likewise, the scene of the previous battle and the words Takagi said were also recalled by her.
"Fortunately, I arrived in this space before Takagi pulled me out of the Simulated Universe. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have been able to see the Aeon and step onto a Path. After everything is over, I'll find a way to thank him," La Signora murmured to herself, looking up at the Aeon slowly revealing its form from the pillar of light.
"An Aeon I've never seen before. Is it the Aeon of Erudition? No, it should be the Aeon of The Hunt." La Signora looked at the gigantic figure resembling a centaur, who seemed to be drawing a bow and nocking an arrow, her body trembling uncontrollably. She couldn't tell if it was from excitement or because the Aeon before her was too shocking.
...
"As expected, La Signora had the chance to see the Hunt Aeon, Lan." Takagi looked at the massive Aeon in the distance and chuckled. He was truly happy. After all, among the famous people in Teyvat, not many had the qualifications to see Lan. Even for La Signora, Takagi was worried that because the target of her revenge wasn't Abundance, she wouldn't be able to see the Hunt Aeon.
"The Aeon of The Hunt... that's the Star God symbolizing revenge that you once mentioned, Lord Takagi, right? I'm very curious; an existence as great as an Aeon needs a target for revenge... He must also be an Aeon, right?" Dottore asked.
Hearing this, Cloud Retainer, Lisa, and Nahida couldn't help but be startled.
"Although your intelligence is 3, your mind works quite fast, Dottore." Takagi glanced at Dottore, who looked like a curious child, and chuckled. Dottore involuntarily twitched the corner of his mouth, but in the end, he smiled broadly at Takagi, not daring to show any sign of anger.
"It's fine to tell you; you'll know sooner or later anyway. That's right, the Hunt Aeon Lan's target in the hunt across the universe is indeed an Aeon. And you know this Aeon. He is the Aeon of Abundance," Takagi nodded and said.
"The Abundance Aeon Yaoshi?! Why would an Aeon seek revenge on Abundance?" Cloud Retainer looked utterly confused.
"Since the Abundance Aeon is a god of utmost goodness, he shouldn't have made enemies with other Aeons, right?" Lisa murmured doubtfully. If The Hunt merely wanted to destroy Abundance, Lisa could still understand. But to say that Abundance and The Hunt had become enemies, Lisa was somewhat confused.
"That's how it is. No matter how confused you are, the fact that The Hunt wants revenge on Abundance is known throughout the universe. Also, I need to remind you: rather than worrying about why The Hunt seeks revenge on Abundance, shouldn't you be preparing for battle? The upcoming Machine War won't be the small skirmish you saw before," Takagi said meaningfully.
While Dottore, Lisa, and the others were witnessing La Signora's battle in the Simulated Universe, Takagi had already set up the Machine War instance through the AI robot left by Herta. Thinking of the scene where Dottore and the others would face the Aurumatons head-on, Takagi felt great sympathy for what they might experience.
"The Machine War, huh? It seems it won't be an easy battle. But if we can step onto a Path through this battle, then suffering a little is nothing," Dottore said.
"That depends on your own performance." As Takagi's words fell, Lan the Hunt's gaze also landed on Takagi at this moment. Dottore, Cloud Retainer, and the others who felt Lan's desire instantly felt their bodies stiffen, unable to even speak.
Fortunately, this feeling came and went quickly. As the entire space shattered, Dottore, Nahida, Cloud Retainer, and Lisa each returned to their original places. The same was true for Takagi and La Signora.
(Congratulations Host for helping La Signora step onto the Path of The Hunt, receiving one lottery ticket and an increase in Imaginary Energy.)
(Note: By using the lottery ticket, the Host can draw any character template from "Star Rail".)
"The Hunt Aeon is paying attention to me now, I guess. If he knew the Abundance Aeon was also watching me, I wonder if he'd send a piercing arrow my way or something." Hearing the prompt in his mind and feeling the Imaginary Energy growing again within his body, Takagi revealed a satisfied smile. He lowered his head, looking at La Signora on the screen who seemed to be closing her eyes and feeling her new power, and murmured:
"So, let me see what kind of power La Signora of the Fatui Harbingers will possess after stepping onto the Path of The Hunt?"
...Attack...