"Bang!!"
The sound of raging wind exploded around Torrey's ears. Intense pain spread from his back throughout his body, overwhelming him. Stimulated by the agony, Torrey felt his entire body lose sensation, and he collapsed uncontrollably onto the ground.
As the vortex sword dissipated, Torrey felt his life force draining away. Yet, unwilling to surrender, he gritted his teeth, forced his eyes open, and looked up at the girl before him. He struggled to stand, but after several failed attempts, he finally lost consciousness completely.
"Hmph... To endure an attack of this magnitude, even with timely treatment, would only result in a vegetative state, barely clinging to life. For a person, that's likely more agonizing than death..."
Ying watched everything with cold detachment. Only after the wind wall dispersed did the coldness in her eyes soften slightly, replaced by a deeper worry.
"Lumine, wait for me, I'll be there immediately..."
With that, Ying turned around and ran back the way she came, towards the Fatui soldier manufacturing plant.
Along the way, Ying repeatedly tried to contact Paimon, but unfortunately, it wasn't yet time for communication. She could only comfort herself inwardly.
"Hoo..."
Don't worry, Lumine isn't so easily defeated. Besides, she has Paimon with her. No fool would target them instead of the weaker me...
Thinking this, Ying soon returned to the entrance of the manufacturing plant.
Without time to think, Ying pushed the door open and ran inside.
"Who's there?!"
"Someone come and take this intruder down... Ah!"
A few scattered Fatui soldiers tried to apprehend the girl who had trespassed, but their fate was to be easily knocked down by an impatient Ying.
"Lumine! Paimon! Where are you?! Can you hear me?!"
Ying searched around, calling out continuously. However, after a thorough search, there was no response. The entire manufacturing plant was eerily quiet, without a hint of activity.
"Strange, why haven't I encountered any other Fatui since the guards at the entrance? And based on the time, Lumine should be here by now..."
The thought sent a shiver of dread down her spine. Ying immediately channeled her Electro element and sprinted towards the exit. She grabbed a Fatui soldier who was trying to escape the plant but was too slow. Drawing the Skyward Blade, she pressed it against his throat and coldly demanded,
"Where are Lumine and the others? Speak!"
"I... I don't know..."
"One last chance. If you tell me, you can leave. If you don't, you'll be buried with this building..."
As she spoke, Ying applied slight pressure, and the Skyward Blade pierced the soldier's skin, drawing a trickle of blood.
"I, I, I really don't know! Scaramouche... Ah! No! Scaramouche only ordered us to gather our forces and ambush them in the forest ahead. I was just on guard duty!"
Seeing the soldier's ashen face, Ying confirmed he wasn't lying and stopped questioning him, kicking him outside.
The soldier, seeing he was safe, scrambled to his feet and fled, not thinking of reporting Ying to his superiors.
Recalling the soldier's words, a flicker of doubt arose in Ying's mind.
"It seems Lumine and the others were ambushed by Scaramouche... But how did he know our plan?"
After much thought, Ying shifted her suspicion to the young Torrey.
"Torrey... Were those all just a show for me? But he succeeded, so why would he do something so illogical..."
Shaking her head, she dismissed the thoughts she wasn't good at processing. She turned and walked outside, using Anemo to soar into the sky.
Raising one arm above her head, she slowly condensed a vortex sword. As Ying's power accumulated, the vortex sword grew larger and larger, quickly expanding from the size of a palm to far larger than Ying herself, capable of engulfing the entire base below.
As if to accentuate the scene, the weather overhead suddenly changed dramatically. The bright, sunny sky was obscured by countless dark clouds within moments, and soon, rain accompanied by lightning began to lash the land.
Ying was momentarily stunned by the sudden transformation, a feeling of impending doom creeping into her heart. She looked at the vortex sword, now a swirling mass of Anemo and Hydro, and lowered her head to gaze at the base obscured by its light. With a serious expression, she declared,
"Scaramouche, your fate will be the same as this building..."
With that, Ying swung her arm forward, and the colossal vortex sword plummeted. Upon impact, the building, unable to withstand the powerful Anemo energy, cracked and splintered, deep fissures spreading outwards.
The once sturdy base seemed like a thin sheet of paper against the vortex sword, torn to shreds.
In less than a few seconds, all that remained of the building was a gaping crater in the ground.
"Ding!"
Mission complete. Rewards have been distributed.
The system's notification reached Ying's ears the moment the structure was destroyed. However, Ying didn't show the expected smile. Instead, she lowered her head slightly, opened her inventory to check the received rewards, and said with a hint of dejection,
"Next time... I should try not to trouble them..."
While Ying regretted her actions, Paimon's voice echoed in her mind.
"Ho... Host..."
"Paimon?!"
Upon hearing the familiar voice, Ying first rejoiced, but quickly sensed something was wrong.
"What's happening? Why is your voice so weak? And that sound of clashing weapons, are you in danger?! Where are you right now?!"
Ying bombarded her with questions, her voice laced with worry and tension.
"For... forest..."
Paimon's words were broken, her rapid breathing a testament to the immense pain she was enduring.
"Hold on, I'm coming right now!"
As soon as she spoke, Ying, disregarding the risk of being struck by lightning, immediately flew higher, hoping to use the vantage point to locate Paimon. However, the relentless rain from above severely obscured her vision.
"Damn it..."
Ying gritted her teeth, suppressing her anxiety. She closed her eyes and concentrated, having no other choice but to rely on her intuition, which she normally considered unreliable.
"Swish swish..."
After a short while, a gentle breeze broke through the gales and lightly brushed against Ying, causing her, who should have been unaffected, to pause slightly.