#uhhhhhh can i get a beesechurger

[m1d-45]

new sprouts

summary: chongyun in liyue, what will he find? the devil, maybe. god? certainly.

word count: ~1.7k

-> warnings: uh. injury? blood mention. minor spoilers for chongyun lore?

-> gn reader (you/yours)

taglist: @samarill || @thenyxsky || @valeriele3 || @shizunxie || @boba-is-a-soup || @yuus3n || @esthelily || @turningfrogsgay || @cupandtea24 || @genshin-impacts-me

< prev || < masterlist >

chongyun ran as quickly as he could, weaving between the scraggly trees. the ground beneath him shook, shards of geo biting into the sandbearers around him. the vishaps were quick, more vicious than usual. he wasn’t here for them, having simply been going for a walk, but it seems like his day was about to be far more eventful than he expected.

he pulled himself up into a tree to avoid an attack, the branches shaking as the vishap ran into the trunk. he wasn’t strong enough for this, not by a long shot, not when they were clearly enhanced by whatever malicious energy was in the area. he’d be better off calling in the millelith, or an adepti to deal with the source of energy.

the vishaps clawed at the tree and he looked around, frantic. he didn’t have nearly enough elemental energy in his vision to pull off a big attack yet, and liyue was far more favorable to the vishaps’ claws. he couldn’t run, he couldn’t climb, he’d have to hide, but where?

he climbed higher into the tree, balancing precariously on slightly too small branches. the tree was close enough to a cliff he could jump to it, maybe making it to the top before the vishaps if he was quick enough, but what then? what if there was nothing up there? half the cliff was obscured by the leaves anyway, what if it was an impossible climb? what if-

the tree shook again, something cracking loudly, and he jumped for the cliff before he could think. he slipped a few inches, but was able to find holds easily enough, pulling himself up the rock as quickly as he could. still, it was steep, and he could hear the scrape of claws below him rapidly approaching. there was a dark crack in the cliff halfway between him and the top, but there wasn’t any negative energy bleeding from it. it looked thin enough the vishaps couldn’t get in, and as he got closer he saw light coming from it… with only a moment’s hesitation, he climbed inside.

he could hear the vishaps clawing at the entrance but didn’t try to turn back, pulling himself deeper. one reached deep enough to cut down his side, tearing through his clothes, but he didn’t focus on that. the crack led somewhere, he could see the room open up, he just needed a few more feet to get there. he reached for the edge, his fingers stinging where he’d scuffed them, and pulled. the stone walls bit into him, as if found their best to keep him out, but with a final push he was free, falling to the floor.

chongyun took a moment to breathe, vision pulsing as he cooled himself down. adrenaline pumped through his body, persistent even through his breathing exercises. his head spun, the coolness of the cave doing little to help. he should look around the cave, make sure he’s safe, but he didn’t sense any dangerous energy. the vishaps had stopped tearing at the entrance, and he could only hope it wasn’t because there was an alternate entrance.

wind ghosted over his face, something soft brushing his nose. he opened his eyes, met with the surprising sight of a geo crystal fly. they were normally skittish, fleeing from anything that moved… how strange.

he sat up, the crystalfly fluttering away as he turned. the cave was big, roughly circular, lush plants growing along the walls. light fell through cracks in the ceiling, lighting up the wings of crystalflies as they flew lazily, an impossible amount of life sustained by so little resources. in the center of the room was a stone pedestal, sides too uniform to be natural, a woven bowl of vines sitting atop it.

a quick glance with elemental sight revealed an obvious abundance of elemental energy, dendro lining the walls and floor. what was surprising was the fact that the stone beneath it, including the pedestal, contained far more geo energy than normal. behind the vine wall in the center was something brimming with energy, all seven elements flocking to a core he couldn’t make out.

was this was the vishaps were so protective of? if he felt for it, the core was giving off a peaceful aura, stronger than his own yang, but it was suppressed. the vines, perhaps?

he tried to stand and gave up just as fast, his side burning with pain. he pulled his first aid supplies from his inventory, checking the damage. the cut was shallow, thankfully, stretched down most of his side. he was lucky he’d gotten as far in as he did, or who knows what would have happened.

several crystalflies flew over as he patched himself up, watching curiously. he tried not to pay attention, focusing on keeping his hands steady, but it was hard not to be curious. while most of the crystalflies were geo, there were some anemo and dendro ones as well. it’s strange, this cave is strange, and he can’t tell if he should run for backup or try to deal with it himself.

he pools cryo in his hand and presses it to his side to help dull the pain, stumbling to his feet. the crystalflies stay around him as he slowly walks for the vine bowl. but they knit closer as he approaches, forming a bubble to hide the core from him.

“oh, come on…” he reached for the vines, but thorns sprouted in an instant. he tried to freeze them with his vision but they were resilient, refusing to die. when he pulled his hands away, the frost melted in the next moment, quickly returning to bright green. it was like they absorbed his cryo, feeding it into the core. for what it’s worth, the vines seemed to loosen slightly, at least slightly weakened. so to access the core, he’d have to…

he should probably leave, go find the millelith or call in an adeptus, but something about the core drew him in. he should feel afraid, that he was so attracted to something he couldn’t even see, but… archons, he couldn’t just leave.

he took his hand from his side, placing both on the area he’d frozen prior. the thorns had disappeared at some point, allowing him to press directly onto the vines themselves. with a deep breath and a quick reassessment of his injury, he drew on his vision once more.

within a few moments, his wound began to ache again, but he didn’t pay it any mind. he kept his breath measured and the flow of cryo smooth; a slight sting when he fully inhaled wasn’t anything. he needed to get to the core, irrationally so, something about it drawing him in. it couldn’t wait, he couldn’t stop, his injury would be fine as long as he kept going.

crystalflies began to land on the vine shield, drawn to either the core or the energy he was pouring into it. whatever it was, it was important, important enough that the bubble only began to recess once his vision began to flicker. he leaned on the stone pedestal, breathing heavily, fumbling for a popsicle from his inventory. the vines unknit reluctantly, revealing several layers of elemental energy. first hydro, frosted over in one spot by his cryo. then a thin film of geo, crumbling away, and finally a blue sheen of anemo. so many elements, all refusing to react with each other…

the anemo faded into pale mist, his popsicle nearly falling from his hand in shock. the core of this cave, the thing the vishaps were protecting, the thing drawing him in so strongly… was you?

you, the imposter? you were what the world wanted to defend so fiercely?

…what he had wanted to find so desperately?

he bit another piece from his popsicle, moving his hand from the stone back to his side to soothe the growing pain. he was torn, conflicted about your presence here. you were clearly well taken care of, without a speck of dirt on your skin, but.. you were supposed to be hated. you were the imposter, right? yet all this life, these elements, the vishaps just outside- it shouldn’t be possible. there already was a creator on the throne, and they wanted you dead and gone, but the only thing capable of keeping this cave alive-…

for the first time in his life, chongyun got chills.

(the weather is good in liyue. unusually so. the sun is warm and the breeze is cool, the waters lapping gently at the shore. it’s as if the world can finally breathe, relaxing from the tense storms of the past few months. people find themself with a bit more mora than they had before, or perhaps they find something long lost.)

(the adepti look down from the clouds, glancing at each other in unease. hooves meet the ground in nerves, hands tensing, ready to reach for weapons.)

(the elements are calm in liyue. for the past few months, they’d needed to call in the assistance of the anemo archon to relieve the winds that wanted to rage. the stone has settled, the key lines calm.)

(“what do we do?” nothing. “what did we do?” nothing. red ropes lay tight, a gloved hand set on a mask, both ready to fight against whatever storm comes after this calm.)

(the earth is at ease in liyue. the tianquan steps out of her jaded chamber, yuheng at her side. she watches her city, the port, the taste of imported wine still sweet hours later. the night is cool, the moon reflecting off the waves in rippling lines, and yet both are tense.)

(“perhaps the creator has calmed?”)

(a shake of the head, a twist of the lips.)

(the crystalflies fly calm in liyue. relaxed, happy, content. nobody knows why; nobody but one.)