This was Collei's first time visiting Starsnatch Cliff, and her first time standing at such a great height. She glanced at Cyno, who stood at the very top, then looked at Bailuo beside her, casting an inquiring gaze his way.
"Now is the time when the demon god's aura is at its weakest. I'll confirm this with you once more—after the sealing, you will no longer be able to use the demon god's power. If you do, the remnants of the demon god will react and devour you completely. Even if you stay by his side, it won't help."
Cyno wasn't trying to scare Collei; he was simply stating the truth.
This situation was like the remnants of the demon god enjoying a hot pot meal and singing, only to be suddenly ambushed by bandits. A strange man had been suppressing it all along, and now a young man had come to seal it away.
If Collei were to give it a chance to break free, it would mercilessly consume her entirely. Even if Bailuo stepped in to suppress it, or if the Tsaritsa herself intervened, it would fight to the bitter end.
After all, it was just a remnant now—it had nothing left to lose.
"..."
Collei fell silent.
During her years of wandering, the reason she had managed to survive until now was partly due to the power of the demon god. Although it had tormented her, for Collei, wasn't it also a form of Vision in its own way?
The reason she had agreed so readily last night was because she heard it would be sealed, and she wondered if there might still be a chance to release it later.
But to seal it away completely...
"Tap."
Bailuo's hand gently rested on Collei's shoulder as he softly said, "Make your own decision. Don't let it influence you."
"It?"
Collei was momentarily stunned, but then her expression shifted as she realized who Bailuo was referring to.
The remnants of the demon god.
Collei's face turned pale. She hadn't expected that the impending sealing had already alerted the demon god's remnants within her, subtly influencing her thoughts.
"Please, seal it away!"
It didn't matter anymore. None of it mattered.
The past was just the past. She no longer needed to rely on this thing to survive.
She had a new faith now.
BK201.
The ever-present winds of Mondstadt gently billowed Cyno's cloak as he raised his hands in a prayer-like gesture (similar to the pose characters make when equipping artifacts) and began chanting under his breath.
The gentle breeze grew restless, and the sky above, once so close, began to darken with gathering clouds.
"Hiss—"
A black-purple, flame-like substance was drawn out from the back of Collei's neck, slowly being extracted.
"Ugh... Ahhh!"
Collei collapsed to her knees in agony, her bones creaking and her limbs shaking uncontrollably.
Bailuo had once described the feeling of having the demon god's remnants extracted as being like riding a rollercoaster. She didn't know what a rollercoaster was, but compared to Bailuo's description, this was far more painful.
It felt as though something had taken root deep within her body, and now Cyno was ripping it out.
The black-purple flames merge above Collei, taking the shape of a cobra. It glared fiercely at Cyno, as if it wanted to devour him in one bite.
But the moment it fully formed, Cyno's chanting ceased.
"Clang—clang—clang—clang—"
Four walls of light appeared around the serpentine flames, forming a pyramid that completely encased it.
"Ahhhh—!"
The serpentine flames roared, thrashing against the walls of light. Below, Collei screamed in agony, as if every strike against the walls was hitting her directly. Black-purple ooze seeped from her bandages, sinking into the ground where the sealing array was drawn.
Cyno's hands, which had been held apart, slowly came together, and the pyramid containing the serpent began to shrink.
Amidst the serpent's agonized cries, the pyramid eventually condensed to the size of a sunsettia and sank into the back of Collei's neck.
Collei swayed for a moment before collapsing onto the grass.
The once golden array on the ground had now turned a deep, ominous purple-black.
"Pant... pant... The sealing is complete. I'll head back to Mondstadt to report."
Slightly out of breath, Cyno spoke.
Sealing a demon god was no easy task, especially one that had been entrenched in Collei's body for so many years.
Even as a remnant, after being nurtured within a human body for so long, its power far exceeded that of ordinary demon god remnants.
Fortunately, his efforts weren't in vain. The demon god's remnants had been successfully sealed, and his academic research had gained valuable material.
"You've worked hard."
"It's my duty."
Cyno didn't linger. He had much to do and needed rest. Bailuo offered to lend him the Slime balloon for transportation, but Cyno politely declined.
After seeing Cyno off, Bailuo helped Collei up but didn't rush to wake her. Instead, he checked her condition.
All her vital signs were normal. Cyno's sealing had only targeted the demon god. Despite her earlier cries of pain, she hadn't actually suffered much physical harm. The agony had mostly been feedback from the serpent.
He lifted her arm and unwrapped the bandages. The once gruesome wounds were gone, replaced by smooth, healthy skin with a faint pink hue, a stark contrast to the sickly, dark red tissue that had been there before.
It wasn't just her arm.
Her cheeks, neck, chest, and abdomen—areas once ravaged by the disease—had also mostly healed.
"Was it the array's effect?"
Bailuo glanced at the now charred array, recalling that something had indeed been absorbed into it. He had initially thought it was part of the sealing array for the demon god's remnants, but it turned out to be a healing array designed to suppress Collei's injuries.
Looking down at Collei, who was now resting her head on his lap, Bailuo gently removed a blade of grass from her face and smoothed her slightly disheveled hair.
Having lived with her for so long, he knew all too well what she endured every night.
Pain, torment, unease...
Bailuo had once teased her about crying in her sleep and asked to sleep beside him. It wasn't just a joke—he had seen firsthand the suffering she went through each night.
Only last night, after using Cyno's potion to turn into a cat, had she finally gotten a good night's sleep.
He had done this not only to keep the missionary from discovering her existence but also to ensure she was in the best possible mental state for the sealing.
It wasn't that Bailuo feared the missionary. In his plans, the missionary couldn't learn of Collei's existence too soon, or it would disrupt everything.
Now, Collei was sleeping more soundly than ever, curled up like a baby, her face free of the usual exhaustion and wariness.
Sleep well. Rest deeply. When you wake, there's still a battle waiting for you.