The Electro Treasure Compass glowed faintly with purple light, its needle pointing toward a stretch of coastline.
Waves lapped gently at the shore, occasionally splashing Lu Chen's shoes. Aside from the rhythmic sound of the sea, everything around them was still and quiet.
The two walked at a leisurely pace. Lu Chen glanced back at the figure silently following behind him.
Raiden Ei tucked a wind-blown strand of hair behind her ear, her clear eyes gazing off into the distance without saying a word.
"Doesn't this place look like the Serpent's Head coast?" Lu Chen paused. "For a second, I thought we were back in Inazuma."
"How could you tell?"
Raiden Ei caught up, falling into step beside him.
"You can't hide what you're thinking from me," Lu Chen said calmly.
After everything they'd been through together, they understood each other too well. He could tell she wasn't missing the land of Inazuma so much as she missed the people in it.
"I'm thinking about those in Inazuma," she admitted with a slight shake of her head.
Lu Chen recalled that the Serpent's Head was north of the Grand Narukami Shrine. Back then, he'd even enlisted Kitsune Saiguu's help to solve the puzzles in that region.
He really did miss those days, adventuring through Teyvat.
At least, back here, he wasn't alone. And if treasure chests could appear in this world, didn't that mean he might be able to "farm" in the real world too?
Lu Chen motioned for Raiden Ei to pick up the pace.
With their unhurried steps and relaxed pace, they looked less like treasure hunters and more like a couple out for a walk.
This stretch of beach had rocky cliffs and muddy flats. The further they went, the more rugged the path became. As they approached the destination, the lights behind them faded into a hazy blur.
The Electro Treasure Compass began to pulse with light, its needle swinging erratically. They were close.
Although the compass only pointed to a general area and required manual searching, Lu Chen still found the target quickly.
On the mudflats, a cluster of pale blue, jelly-like creatures were bouncing around.
"Hydro Slimes?"
Lu Chen's voice broke the quiet, and the Slimes noticed him.
These gelatinous, round-bodied creatures—barely combat level five by looks—started bouncing toward him in unison.
Kind of cute, actually.
"Be careful." Raiden Ei stepped protectively in front of him.
"Hold on, wait..." Lu Chen gently pulled her aside. He wasn't scared—he'd just been caught off guard by the surprise.
He'd just seen a real Genshin Impact monster in the flesh.
[Due to instability in the Teyvat Gate, elemental creatures from Teyvat may appear in the real world.]
So that's how it was. Thinking about it, if characters and even treasure chests could cross over, it made sense that Slimes would too.
Slimes were low-tier elemental lifeforms in Teyvat, essentially living clumps of pure elemental energy.
If there were this many Hydro Slimes gathered here, did that mean the elemental density in this area was particularly high?
Lu Chen rolled his wrist and borrowed Raiden Ei's Musou Isshin.
"You sure you can handle it?"
Seeing the slight furrow in her brow, Lu Chen sighed, "Look, I'm not what I used to be—but I'm not helpless either..."
Ei really did worry too much.
That said, Lu Chen stayed alert as the Hydro Slimes swarmed him.
His level was low—he had no strength to speak of. He was basically starting from zero again.
After activating the Real Teyvat System, he could now view his character panel. While the max level was 90, his current level was only...
Lv5.
And these Hydro Slimes? They were all Lv10.
So... he was the actual noob here.
Holding Musou Isshin, he couldn't channel Electro, but the blade was solid and sharp—good enough for this fight.
As one of the Slimes leapt toward him, Lu Chen reacted instinctively, dodging and slashing back in a fluid motion.
The blade pierced the gelatinous body, and the Slime burst like an overfilled water balloon. It instantly deflated and vanished, leaving only a puddle of sticky liquid behind.
Lu Chen turned back and shot Raiden Ei a proud grin. She couldn't help but chuckle and shake her head.
The once top-tier swordsman of Inazuma... now squaring off with Hydro Slimes.
...
Under the night sky, Lu Chen leaned on Musou Isshin, panting as he surveyed the soaked battlefield.
Every last Hydro Slime had been taken care of.
Their attack patterns were basic, their speed slow, and though they were five levels higher than him, they weren't much of a threat.
During a break, Lu Chen opened up his system panel:
[Lu Chen]
[Level: Lv6]
[Attributes: Intelligence 7 | Charisma 6 | Strength 4 | Agility 5]
[Base Stats: ATK 82 | DEF 60 | Crit 5 | Energy Recharge 21]
[Skills: None]
[Items: Electro Treasure Compass]
[Primogems: 190]
That "grueling battle" had bumped him up to Level 6, but his overall stats still looked... sad.
Getting back to peak strength was going to be a long road.
He collected the leftover Slime goo on the beach. He didn't know what it could be used for, but since it could be stored in the system, it probably had some use later.
All Teyvat-related materials could be stored.
[Slime Condensate x12]
"If fighting these elemental creatures makes you stronger..." Raiden Ei mused, "You could actively seek out more monsters from Teyvat."
"I was thinking the same." Lu Chen nodded. Since this world didn't have Adventure Rank or separate character levels, all EXP likely came from monster kills.
The coastline probably had a near-endless supply of Hydro Slimes. He could farm them for levels whenever he had time.
If only I could hit max level just by grinding Slimes...
And thus, a future novice village butcher was born.
(Also known as: Slime Slayer.)
"By the way..." Lu Chen walked over to the spot where the Slimes had gathered. The chest should be around here somewhere.
"Hm? What is it?"
He glanced at her and asked tentatively, "Ei, could you beat Electro Slimes?"
According to elemental mechanics, same-element attacks had no effect—so the Electro Archon might actually be helpless against her own kind.
Raiden Ei shot him a look.
"A foolish question."
...
The spot where the Slimes had been was now partially submerged due to the rising tide, and the water had already reached mid-calf.
A corner of a wooden chest jutted out from the muddy shore. It looked filthy, waterlogged, and half-moldy.
"Wow—what a surprise. A normal treasure chest!" Lu Chen deadpanned, feigning excitement.
Raiden Ei laughed at his sarcastic performance.
[Normal Chest]
[Primogems ×10]
[Traveler's EXP: Raises character level by 1]
[Attribute EXP Book: Choose +1 to Intelligence, Charisma, Strength, or Agility]
[Slime Condensate ×10]
"What am I gonna do with all this Slime goo..." Lu Chen muttered as he stored the contents into the system.
Aside from the Primogems, what caught his eye was the Attribute EXP Book.
Stats like Intelligence and Charisma didn't exist in the original game—this must be unique to the Real Teyvat System.
Unlike standard combat stats, these values were low, so each point must be precious—and probably very valuable.
"If this is what a normal chest gives, I wonder what kind of crazy stuff a Luxurious Chest would have..."
As he gazed up at the starry night sky, dreaming of what was to come, Lu Chen and Raiden Ei began making their way back home.