Fine rain fell like silver needles slanting into the sea surface. The distant Mt. Firmament was blurred by the misty rain.
A black-canopied boat sailed on the calm sea. The waves parted by the bow formed crescent-shaped trails spreading to both sides, the spray white and transparent.
"Honored guest, do you know the price you might pay for going to Mt. Firmament?"
Inside the boat, Changli gazed at the man opposite her in casual clothes and spoke solemnly.
"One day inside Mt. Firmament could mean a thousand years in the world outside. Even if you leave immediately after entering, you might emerge aged and frail, with snow-white hair."
"Then you know this price, yet you still boarded the boat?"
Noah countered without answering, leaving Changli speechless for a moment. Then, as if somewhat annoyed and embarrassed,
"Honored guest, I came to persuade you to turn back."
"If I were someone who listened to advice, Jinzhou would have fallen long ago."
Noah did not dwell too much on this topic.
He turned his head to look at the rainy scenery outside the window, feeling that his originally restless mood was soothed by the grandeur of nature—a rare moment of relaxation.
Taking his guitar out from his backpack, Noah smiled faintly at Changli across from him.
"I like to sing when it rains. You don't mind, do you?"
"You're unbeatable, honored guest."
Changli covered her forehead with both hands, feeling completely defeated by the man before her.
She had clearly explained all the pros and cons, including the dangers hidden behind Mt. Firmament, but—
He was actually in the mood to sing?
Changli took a deep breath, her tone becoming heavy.
"Noah, I hope you stop being willful. Jinhsi's physical condition has already deteriorated severely."
"Even if you enter Mt. Firmament and help her find the Sentinel, what then?"
"Back then, the Sentinel struggled immensely just to reverse the flow of time to revive a freshly deceased infant. How could she restore Jinhsi to her prime?"
"The best outcome... would merely allow Jinhsi to linger a few more days in the agony of Overclocking."
Even though Changli still held a sliver of hope, she had to admit: what she described was almost certainly the fate Jinhsi would face.
Reality was always cruel.
Now, the Noah across from her should finally obediently return to Jinzhou with her.
As expected, Noah's movements stiffened.
"Jinhsi's condition has deteriorated severely? Didn't she successfully resolve Scar's reappearance under the Retroact Rain last time?"
Changli shook her head.
"She was just forcing herself to hold on."
Her words rang like a great bell in Noah's mind.
It's over!
He knew Jinhsi's condition had been poor since Scar invaded Jinzhou.
But he had always assumed that with the support of Huaxu Academy and Jinzhou's abundant medicinal resources, her body would gradually improve.
He had never imagined her injuries were continually worsening.
The current situation was far more critical than in the original Wuthering Waves plot.
In the original plot, Jinhsi had only just begun Overclocking before meeting the Sentinel, whereas now, Jinhsi might have been Overclocking for over ten days!
"In that case—"
Noah's expression darkened. He put the guitar back into his backpack, furrowed his brows tightly, and said gravely.
"We must hurry to Mt. Firmament!"
At his words, Changli immediately slapped her forehead.
Great, she had talked for nothing.
The rain gradually lessened. The black-canopied boat docked at the Gaplight Beach of Mt. Firmament. Noah looked up to see a massive red dragon-shaped mountain clearly in view.
Changli stepped off the boat. Sensing the weakened rain, she slowly closed her previously open umbrella.
Her gaze turned to the nearby broken bridge, a sly glint unconsciously appearing in her eyes.
"The bridge into the mountain is broken. Noah, now you should return to Jinzhou with me, right?"
"Changli, don't joke around."
Noah walked to a spherical mechanism, released his Perception to briefly understand it, and soon grasped how to use the "Chronosorter."
Chronosorter—a mechanism created by the Court of Savantae research, capable of mimicking the Sentinel's power over time on a small scale to retroact time and restore specific objects.
Controlling the sphere to rotate, the surrounding time fluctuated and retroacted. The massive broken bridge before him restored itself as if by divine power.
"You... how do you know how to use the Chronosorter?"
Changli was somewhat stunned, but Noah did not answer her. Instead, he quickly ran toward the depths of Mt. Firmament.
Helpless, Changli could only run to catch up with Noah's pace. Her gaze sharpened as she suddenly shouted to him.
"Be careful, Noah! There are Fractsidus members ahead!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
After three gunshots from Static Mist, the three Fractsidus artisans didn't even have time to speak before they were taken out, unable to hinder Noah's steps in the slightest.
Finally, he stopped at a cave entrance. Behind him, Changli breathed slightly heavily, her ample chest rising and falling noticeably.
"Noah, to enter Mt. Firmament, you must pass through this cave entrance, but it has been sealed by an Insulation Barrier."
Changli looked at the solidified Insulation Barrier over the cave entrance, her mood subtly shifting.
Though the Insulation Barrier was crafted by the Court of Savantae and possessed time-stopping capabilities—making it nearly impossible to break by external force—
The Court of Savantae would never place an Insulation Barrier here. The only possibility was the Fractsidus!
But how could the Fractsidus be on Mt. Firmament?
Noah pulled out the auxiliary device sent by Chixia and precisely attacked the surrounding Light-Harvesting Locks.
As the attacks ended, the Light-Harvesting Locks showed no reaction, and the Insulation Barrier did not disappear.
Strange—Noah furrowed his brows.
It seemed the way to unlock the Light-Harvesting Locks was completely different from in the game.
"You keenly spotted the key to opening the Insulation Barrier, but this mechanism's solution is special—not something that can be casually unlocked."
Beside him, Changli shook her head slightly.
"Follow what I say. You need to..."
"No need for that trouble."
Noah strode up to the Insulation Barrier.
"If the path won't open, I'll punch it open."
Switching his role from "Chixia" to "Rover," Noah shook out his hand. Bright, scorching power gathered in his right fist.
He fiercely punched out.
In Changli's shocked gaze, the Insulation Barrier—representing the lock of time—shattered like fragile glass.
"Through the cave, ahead is the time flow boundary."
Noah rubbed his right fist and, unusually, spoke to Changli first.
"You should know that crossing Mt. Firmament's time flow boundary will truly subject you to its time flow effects."
"You have no need to enter Mt. Firmament with me, so please go back."
At his words, Changli's gaze grew complicated.
She truly couldn't understand.
It was a forbidden land that others feared and avoided—why could this man remain calm and proceed without hesitation?
Was he reckless, or wise?
She had never met someone like him; it always felt like he knew many things others did not.
Changli was silent for a long moment before letting out a wry laugh.
"Even a guest of Jinzhou like you can go this far for Jinhsi. As her teacher of many years, how could I shrink back here?"
She raised her head, her gaze becoming resolute.
In the end, she still had to enter Mt. Firmament. This was actually what she desired deep down.
When she learned Noah's location in Whining Aix's Mire, she could have waited for him to return to City Hall before meeting him, yet she chose to go to Whining Aix's Mire herself.
All her attempts to persuade Noah along the way—weren't they also attempts to persuade herself?
She failed to persuade Noah, and failed to persuade herself. In the end, she couldn't let go of her critically ill disciple.
The corners of Changli's lips curved slightly, that calm and composed demeanor—treating the world as a chessboard—returning once more.
"Let's go, honored guest. Even if the path ahead is unknown, I am willing to accompany you to Mt. Firmament."
"You seem to have misunderstood."
The man shook his head.
"I'm going to speedrun Mt. Firmament. If you come in, you'll only slow me down."
"You should go home, Changli."
"You go home."