Upon hearing the explanation on screen, Lumine's expression turned instantly cold. She moved in a flash to the Doctor's side, intending to capture him directly.
The Doctor had naturally anticipated her move and, without a trace of panic, pointed to a spot in the distance.
"If I am caught, then the villagers of Higi Village will truly be beyond saving."
These words immediately made Lumine freeze in place. She looked into the distance and indeed saw a group of villagers dressed in Inazuman attire. Lumine gritted her teeth, remaining silent.
Although these people, whom she didn't even recognize, were far from being comparable to Ying in her heart, she still couldn't attack.
It wasn't that Lumine cared about their lives, but rather that she knew Ying certainly would.
Inside the Spiral Abyss...
The Doctor's voice was not loud, but it reached Ying's ears with perfect clarity.
She suddenly stood up, her eyes red as she stared at the Doctor's retreating figure, and said through gritted teeth,
"You're dead..."
Seeing Ying suddenly stand up, Lumine frowned slightly and gently pushed the Doctor beside her.
"Move away, Ying. I'm going to teach this scoundrel a lesson."
The girl Doctor nodded in understanding and slowly walked to a teleportation gate not far away, watching the unfolding drama with a smile.
Seeing Lumine looking at her with such hostility, Ying couldn't help but reveal a hint of sadness.
Taking a deep breath, Ying used her elemental power to temporarily stop the bleeding from her wounds. Then, she looked at Lumine's face.
"Lumine, don't worry. I will definitely restore you."
The moment their gazes met in the air, both moved simultaneously, vanishing from their original positions.
*Bang—!*
Their fists collided, and both Ying and Lumine were pushed back. Lumine was the first to regain her footing and quickly moved forward, launching a whip kick.
Seeing that she couldn't dodge in time, Ying quickly brought her arm up to block at her side, using the momentum to fly backward and dissipate much of the force.
However, as soon as Ying landed and before she could catch her breath, a gust of wind whistled past her ear. Forced to react, Ying immediately clenched her palm and conjured a stone wall to her left, blocking Lumine's storm-like barrage of attacks.
?!!
Seeing the stone wall, Lumine was startled. She clearly hadn't expected the Doctor in front of her to know such a move. Her mind instinctively linked it to Ying, and she forcefully shattered the stone wall.
"You know Ying's moves too? What did you do to Ying?!"
Ying instinctively opened her mouth to clarify.
"Huh? I wasn't harmed."
Ying didn't know that her words, when heard by Lumine, would become drastically different.
"Heh heh heh... just a little bit of physical research. After all, someone who can wield multiple elemental powers without a Vision, any scientist would be curious, wouldn't they~"
After hearing these words, Lumine felt a wave of dizziness wash over her. Her entire mind buzzed, as if it were about to explode.
"You're looking for death!"
A surge of fury rose from the depths of her heart. Lumine's body turned into a bolt of lightning, charging towards Ying.
"Huh?!"
Seeing Lumine suddenly go berserk, Ying dared not be careless. She also used Electro to accelerate herself. The two bolts of lightning chased each other on this level. While ensuring she maintained a certain distance from Lumine, Ying also began to ponder the Doctor's words from earlier.
Changed Lumine's vision... So, in Lumine's eyes now, I must appear as the Doctor. And when Lumine heard my words and suddenly went berserk, it must have been due to hearing the modified words...
If it's truly as he said, then how can I possibly awaken Lumine...
At this very moment, a sharp pain shot through Ying's wound, causing her to momentarily freeze.
Lumine seized the opportunity, instantly appearing before her and conjuring an Anemo vortex directly towards Ying's head.
Damn it!
Ying hurriedly leaned her body back, buying herself a moment, and then conjured an Anemo vortex to counter.
The two energies collided, instantly creating a gale. In a short while, Ying's Anemo vortex was shattered by Lumine's. The powerful recoil sent Ying uncontrollably staggering backward dozens of meters, a trickle of blood escaping the corner of her mouth.
Lumine flicked the residual element from her hand and looked at Ying coldly.
"How much of Ying's ability have you stolen?"
"I..."
Ying didn't know how to respond, fearing Lumine would misunderstand something again. But this situation couldn't continue. She could only remain silent, thinking to herself,
Lumine, I'm sorry...
*Whoosh!*
The next second, Ying vanished from her spot. Accompanied by a gust of wind, Ying reappeared beside Lumine, bringing her elbow down forcefully.
Lumine reacted swiftly, raising her arm to block the blow. Her other hand clenched, and she delivered a punch towards Ying's abdomen.
Seeing the attack coming with great force, Ying quickly dodged to the side, grabbed Lumine's wrist in return, and with controlled strength, drove her knee into Lumine's abdomen.
"Ugh..."
Lumine grunted in pain, stumbling backward. Ying seized this opportunity, rapidly closing in, and unleashed another whip kick, sending her flying.
She had intended to knock Lumine out while she was vulnerable, but to her surprise, Lumine steadied herself and floated in mid-air.
She can do this too?!
Ying was slightly shocked, thinking to herself that this was not good.
As expected, in an instant, numerous Anemo blades materialized around Ying, targeting her before flying at her with great speed.
Ying hurriedly deployed a barrier in front of her to block the dense onslaught of attacks. However, Lumine precisely seized this opening, instantly appearing behind her. Ying, sensing this, quickly turned around, but before she could defend herself, she was kicked in the chest from the side.
The immense force sent Ying crashing against the barrier. Lumine pressed her advantage, directly drawing a silver sword and thrusting it towards Ying's throat.
Ying's pupils constricted. She hurriedly grabbed the sword hilt with both hands and began to struggle with Lumine. However, inferior to Lumine in all aspects except combat experience, she was instantly at a disadvantage.
As a last resort, Ying instinctively pushed her leg forward, attempting to create distance, but Lumine, having anticipated this, instantly released the force, her body lightly retreating. After avoiding Ying's kick, she spun around, and the silver sword swept out, slashing across Ying's shoulder and drawing a bloody gash.
Ying's body stiffened on the spot. She clutched her shoulder, looking at Lumine with disbelief.
Although she knew that in Lumine's eyes, she wasn't herself, yet when she was actually cut by Lumine, she couldn't help but feel a sense of grievance.
After the silver sword's sweep, Lumine's brow furrowed. She had struck the opponent, yet she didn't feel as happy as she had imagined. Although the opponent had mocked her after being cut, she inexplicably felt a pang of pain, and heartbreak...
Was she angered by his words?