"Found you!"
Seeing the figure sitting leisurely by the riverbank, Keqing's spirits lifted.
She swiftly condensed a Thunder Stiletto and hurled it forward!
A feather-shaped spike shot toward Bai Ge's back at lightning speed.
Keqing had calculated everything perfectly: one stiletto to pull Bai Ge away, then—before the Electro Slimes could catch up—two more stilettos to disengage and drop aggro.
Just right. With her current elemental reserves, she could manage about three or four Thunder Stilettos at most.
But what Keqing never expected—
Was that her flawless three-step escape plan would fail at the very first move.
A massive greatsword—bright yellow at the center, jet-black along both edges, looking almost like a door panel—came crashing down on her Thunder Stiletto!
Pa—!
Under the heavy blow of the Lithic Greatsword, Keqing's precisely formed Thunder Stiletto shattered!
"What?!"
Keqing cried out in shock as she was in the middle of using the stiletto to reposition.
Her rapidly advancing body abruptly halted—like a ghost motorcycle slammed to a stop mid-drift.
The always decisive Yuheng Star lost her balance and tumbled across the ground.
The yellow and purple Electro Slimes immediately closed in again.
"Hm?"
Bai Ge, who had countered instinctively, looked over in confusion.
Good grief—at a glance, he saw Keqing tickling the Electro Slimes with her attacks!
"Wait, why is Keqing here? And why is she getting boxed in by a bunch of Electro Slimes?"
Bai Ge was baffled.
But seeing Keqing dodging left and right within the slime horde—clearly struggling, yet still trapped in their crackling electric net—he knew this wasn't the time to ask questions.
If he didn't help Master Keqing now, the next thing unfolding would be an R18 cutscene!
Bai Ge immediately grabbed his sword and rushed over!
Meanwhile, Keqing—thrown into a disadvantage by that earlier mistake—found herself under heavy pressure.
Yet as the proud Yuheng Star, adversity didn't break her spirit. On the contrary, it ignited her fighting will.
"So that slacker Bai Ge isn't just some powerless civilian… In that case, I can't let him look down on me!"
With that resolve, Keqing thrust her sword forward.
Side-slash into spinning cleave.
Crouch, pivot, circular sweep.
Using the momentum, she leapt upward—twisting two and a half times midair—two crescent slashes crossing to form a circular cross in the sky.
Then a short-range blink dash—Lion's Roar switched hands—followed by a sharp, explosive thrust with her left!
In one fluid sequence, the elegant and nimble Yunlai Swordsmanship was displayed to perfection!
Even the large group of Electro Slimes surrounding her was forced back. A single-handed sword was wielded with the sweeping dominance of a two-handed greatsword.
However—
Amid that smooth, flowing assault, Keqing overlooked something.
A large Electro Slime had leapt high into the air at some unknown point—and was now descending directly above her!
Only when the light was completely blocked did Keqing realize the yellow Electro Slime was crashing down like Mount Tai itself!
"Ugh… damn it!"
Watching the rapidly enlarging shadow above her, Keqing bit her lip in frustration.
There was no time to dodge this attack.
She raised Lion's Roar, bracing herself to take it head-on!
And just as the Electro Slime was about to slam down—
A breeze carrying a faint, refreshing mist swept in, along with a gentle voice that somehow sounded extremely punchable.
"Well, well—if it isn't our Yuheng Star, Lady Keqing? Didn't expect you to fall this hard after just a moment apart. Getting surrounded by a bunch of Slimes, huh?"
"Ah well. Since you are my boss, I'll reluctantly step in and help."
As he spoke, that mild tone gradually turned firm and commanding.
"Get lost!"
With those words, a blazing greatsword engulfed in raging flames streaked across Keqing's vision like a meteor tearing through the night sky!
Scorching heat surged forward!
Keqing felt the fine beads of sweat on her forehead evaporate instantly. The searing wave baked her fair cheeks, making them burn.
Right in front of her delicate nose, the stench of singed fur lingered in the air.
As for the large Electro Slime that took the hit head-on—
Under the violent Overloaded reaction caused by fire meeting lightning, it was sent flying like a baseball smashed by a full-force home run!
This was Diluc's elemental skill—
Searing Onslaught!
The reason Bai Ge claimed to have "fate" with Diluc was simple: the very first weekly sign-in he ever obtained had been Diluc's elemental skill.
And—
"You stay right here. Don't move—I'm going to buy you an orange!"
After casually tossing out a sentence Keqing couldn't possibly understand, Bai Ge swung the heavy Lithic Greatsword and charged into the Electro Slime horde like a raging whirlwind.
The blazing two-handed sword kept swinging, recreating Diluc's signature light-speed E–A combo in the real world.
Two casts of Searing Onslaught.
Two heavy cleaves.
Followed by consecutive spinning charged attacks—
The perfect Lithic greatsword style, empowered by Lithic Fortitude from sign-ins.
Under Bai Ge's precise control, every Electro Slime was forcibly gathered in front of him.
Elemental particles poured into his body nonstop!
Combined with the energy recharge provided by his artifacts—
Bai Ge leapt high into the air, facing the clustered Slimes below.
"Hereby pronounced—judgment!"
From the greatsword, a proud phoenix of flames soared forth!