bookbashuk Chapter 1197 Dvalin's Unwillingness
Chapter 1197 Dvalin's Unwillingness
……
In short, during the standoff at the Wind Dragon Ruins, Dvalin used almost all his strength, unleashing fierce winds powerful enough to flatten mountains, but to no avail.
Seeing that its ranged attack was ineffective, it suddenly swooped down and slashed fiercely at the rock shield with its claws covered in sharp scales. Each collision produced a crisp "crack" sound, and the dragon claws were almost worn flat, but it was still useless.
In the end, it simply abandoned its techniques and used its massive dragon body to directly ram the rock shield, attempting to shatter this "obstructive barrier" with brute force.
No matter how Dvalin attacked, Zhongli's rock shield was ridiculously thick and harder than anyone could imagine.
Tvalin grew increasingly anxious and desperate with each battle.
It even felt that even if it razed the entire Wind Dragon Ruins to the ground, it might not be able to break through this damned shield!
Zhongli was on the defensive the whole time. He never wanted to be enemies with Dvalin, but Dvalin got carried away and wouldn't listen to any explanations. He only wanted to tear him to pieces to pay for Barbatos's life.
"Enough! Lord Dvalin!" Zhongli spoke up again, "There's no point in continuing the fight. We should talk about serious matters!"
But at this moment, Dvalin was already overwhelmed by anger and frustration, and an extreme idea was growing wildly in its mind.
Since we can't win, we might as well die together!
"Damn it! Since I can't break your shield, I'll take you down with me! I'll explode with you!"
Dvalin let out a desperate roar, and the wind elemental power around him began to surge wildly, the original blue light gradually becoming dazzling.
Its massive dragon body even began to tremble slightly, clearly preparing to detonate itself and end the battle by taking everyone down with it.
When Zhongli saw that Dvalin was really going to self-destruct, his expression changed instantly.
He knew he had to take action!
"Listen! I'm not here to provoke you!" Zhongli's voice suddenly became authoritative, no longer the kind words of persuasion, but carrying the unique oppressive feeling of the Rock God.
Before he finished speaking, he suddenly raised his hand and waved it lightly in the direction of Tvalin.
In an instant, a mountain flew in from nowhere and firmly pressed down on Dvalin's massive dragon body.
Just like how the Buddha used the Five Elements Mountain to suppress Sun Wukong, it rendered Tvalin unable to move.
Dvalin's surging wind elemental power was instantly suppressed, and the entire dragon was trapped.
It struggled desperately, roaring and twisting its dragon body, but the mountain seemed to be an extension of its body, and no matter how hard it tried, it did not budge.
This is the first generation of Geo Archon, far superior to Dvalin, the second generation who has only recently inherited the name of Anemo Archon.
Zhongli slowly walked up to the pinned-down Dvalin, looked down at it, and his tone returned to calm.
"Now, can you calm down and listen to me?"
Dvalin continued to roar angrily, its dragon eyes filled with resentment and hatred, but its struggles grew increasingly futile, and in the end it could only writhe its body in vain beneath the mountain.
Zhongli looked at the gradually quieting Dvalin and sighed softly.
This is his "negotiation technique." When dealing with such an irritable and stubborn person, reasoning is useless. The only way is to first use absolute power to suppress them and calm them down before discussing the rest.
……
When Zhongli watched as Dvalin's struggles gradually subsided, and the anger in his dragon eyes faded, leaving only resentment and vigilance, he knew that Dvalin had finally calmed down completely.
He slowly controlled the rock elemental force, which reduced the weight of the mountain that was suppressing Dvalin, but he did not remove it completely to prevent Dvalin from going out of control again.
Then, Zhongli walked to Tvalin's head, bowed slightly, and began to formally apologize.
"Lord Tvalin, I know that no amount of explanation can make up for your pain regarding what happened back then."
“I admit that in order to fulfill my promise to Shao Yun, I indirectly hindered your efforts to rescue Lord Barbatos. This was indeed my ‘aiding and abetting’ that led to an irreparable tragedy.”
"I express my sincerest apologies to you for this. I do not expect you to forgive me, but I need to make my stance clear."
After hearing Zhongli's apology, Dvalin's enormous dragon eyes twitched slightly, but he turned his head away, turning it to the other side of the ruins, not even sparing Zhongli a glance.
Clearly, the knot in her heart hadn't been completely untied, and even if she accepted the apology, she didn't want to easily make eye contact with the "indirect culprit."
Zhongli looked at Tvalin's childish appearance and didn't know what to do.
He suddenly remembered that when Hu Tao was angry in the past, she would also ignore him like this, and he would have to coax her with all his might, even confessing what he had done wrong, in order to appease her.
This tactic can still be used against Tvalin.
So, Zhongli cleared her throat and began to recount her past.
"Actually, I have regretted my decision countless times since then. I always thought 'Liyue is the most important,' but I neglected the bond between friends, which led to Lord Barbatos's fall and caused you to suffer so much pain."
“During this time, I’ve been reflecting on my stupidity every day. If I had thought things through more back then, if I had been able to find a way to balance the situation in Liyue with saving Barbatos, perhaps everything would have been different.”
"Now, I just hope to make up for the mistakes I made. I'm sorry."
His words were full of regret, sincere and without a trace of falsehood. Although Dvalin still didn't want to look at him, he slightly pricked up his ears, and his dragon tail twitched gently.
Clearly, Zhongli had taken his words to heart.
After a long while, Tvalin reluctantly turned around and gave a muffled snort.
"Hmph, at least you still have some conscience. But I haven't forgiven you!"
Of course, it's no use even if Tvalin continues to be angry.
The dragon was still trapped under the mountain that Zhongli had brought. Even if it was unwilling, it couldn't move at all and could only obediently go down the steps.
Seeing that Tvalin had calmed down, Zhongli immediately asked the question that had been of most concern to him on this trip.
"I have a question... Where should I begin? After Barbatos died, did Mondstadt take any countermeasures, besides making you the Wind God?"
Tvalin, who was trapped under the mountain brought by Zhongli, reluctantly answered the question: "There is indeed one thing, the plan to resurrect Barbatos."
……
The timeline shifts to a day after Barbatos' death, in the same Stormterror's Lair area of Mondstadt.
Dvalin's enormous dragon body is lying on the ruins of a broken pier.
Its head drooped slightly, its huge dragon eyes half-open and half-closed, as it mourned Barbatos's death.
It could never accept the identity of "Aeolus". In its heart, the only Aeolus in Mondstadt was Barbatos, who did nothing but drink and always protected the freedom of Mondstadt.
While Tvalin was immersed in grief, Jyn Gunnhildr was struggling to climb up the broken pier.
Seeing Dvalin lying on the pier, Qin bowed slightly and greeted him respectfully, "Lord Dvalin, or rather, Lord Wind God? I apologize for disturbing your rest."
Her voice was very soft, as if she were afraid of disturbing Tvalin, who was immersed in grief.
Dvalin, who was lost in his memories, heard a familiar voice, slowly raised his head, and looked at Qin with his huge dragon eyes.
When it recognized the familiar figure before it, it suppressed its grief and greeted it in a low, hoarse voice:
"You are, Jyn Gunnhildr? Acting Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius. Hello, it's been a long time."
Qin breathed a slight sigh of relief when she saw that Dvalin still recognized her.
She straightened her body, solemnly performed a standard Knights of Favonius salute, and said sincerely:
"Lord Wind God, I apologize for disturbing your rest again. I have come to discuss some important matters with you regarding the current situation in Mondstadt."
When Dvalin heard the title "Lord Wind God," his massive dragon body trembled slightly, and he felt a strong sense of resistance.
"Just call me by my name, Dvalin. Please don't call me the Wind God. I am merely a servant of Barbatos, and have never been the Wind God."
In its view, the title "Wind God" belonged to Barbatos, and it was not worthy of it.
Qin was taken aback for a moment, then realized Tvalin's feelings and quickly corrected herself on how she addressed him.
"Very well, Lord Dvalin. I have come to report to you on the recent situation in Mondstadt and hope that you can make a decision for us."
Dvalin looked at the harp and remembered Barbatos's dying words to it: "Guard Mondstadt."
Although it is still grieving the loss of Barbatos, and although it has no idea how to govern a country.
But for Barbatos, for the sake of protecting the land that Barbatos guards, it must pull itself together.
It slowly raised its massive head, took a deep breath, and spoke in a much firmer tone than before:
"Although I don't know how to manage Mondstadt or how to deal with those complex situations, Barbatos entrusted me with the safety of Mondstadt before he died."
“Since it trusts me, I cannot let it down. Tell me, Jyn Gunnhildr, what problems is Mondstadt facing now, and what can I do to help?”
These words warmed Qin's heart, and half of the weight that had been hanging over her was lifted.
But when it comes to the "resurrection plan," Qin still finds it difficult to bring it up.
Although Tvalin was reluctant to be called the god of wind, resurrecting Barbatos was, after all, a major event.
Jean was still worried that Dvalin was just saying it, and that he would still refuse to cooperate with the plan because he was attached to his identity as the "second generation of the Wind God".
If that's really the case, then everything I've done has made me an outcast.
After hesitating for a moment, she decided to test Dvalin's attitude first, and asked softly, "May I ask, Lord Dvalin, if we can resurrect Lord Barbatos, you..."
When Dvalin heard the words "resurrect Barbatos," he showed not a trace of "attachment to his identity."
"As I just said, I have never been a wind god, but merely a servant of Lord Barbatos."
"There is only one Aeolus in Mondstadt, and that is Barbatos!"
"As long as he can be resurrected, I'm willing to do anything, even if it means sacrificing more than just cooperating with the plan. Just tell me, what do you need me to do?"
……