Chapter Forty-One: Lu Mingze: Am I Losing My Mind?

Lu Mingfei had no knowledge of alchemy, nor was it likely that he ever would. But… could he not simply copy it? The structure of the Divine Eye had already been parsed by his Mirrored Eye—he could directly reconstruct it using elemental power, imitating it exactly as it was. Whatever the Divine Eye’s structure, he could replicate it. Even if he couldn’t make an absolute copy, a rough facsimile was well within reach. After all, he was copying from the answer sheet.

Moreover, his Mirrored Eye differed from Ling’s; his bloodline was stronger, so the Eye’s abilities were greater, allowing him to accomplish much more. The same incantation, in different hands, would yield different might. Ling was strong, but Lu Mingfei was a monster.

A Divine Eye attuned to lightning gradually took shape in his palm. Its internal elemental structure was still riddled with flaws and would require further refinement over time, but this was not something that could be accomplished quickly.

“It’s done. I’ve finished looking,” he announced.

“Mm, did you discover anything?” came the question.

“Not really,” Lu Mingfei replied. “I just made another Divine Eye modeled after this one. I’ll polish it later—after some observation, I should be able to grasp its deeper meaning.”

“You didn’t discover anything, then… huh?” Furina stared at the image transmitted from Lu Mingfei’s side, at the lightning-element Divine Eye in his hand, then at Clorinde’s Divine Eye in her own. After a brief comparison, a storm of thoughts erupted in her mind.

You actually made a Divine Eye!

Wait, no, that can’t be right. How could you just create one like that? Shouldn’t it just be a superficial imitation? It can’t be a real Divine Eye, can it?

But… there seemed to be genuine lightning elemental power swirling inside his Divine Eye. Why? How?

“By the way, I did notice something. There are a lot of markings in your Divine Eye that aren’t related to elemental power,” Lu Mingfei mused, resting his chin in his hand as he examined the Divine Eye. “Its structure doesn’t seem designed for wielding elemental power. It appears to have some special function, maybe even a side effect for the user? I can’t be sure what that function is for.”

He continued, “Here’s what I’ll do: you wait there for a while, and I’ll see if I can remove the useless structures from the Divine Eye, and create a new one purely for channeling elemental power.”

“Um… good luck with that,” Furina replied.

“Once I’ve constructed a new Divine Eye, I’ll send you the elemental blueprint. You can draw it and see if Neuvillette can use water element to forge one for you. That way, you’ll be able to wield elemental power—perfect!” A brilliant, confident smile bloomed on Lu Mingfei’s face; he was immensely proud.

“I don’t think that’s possible, is it?” Furina’s expression grew strange.

Though Neuvillette was powerful—a Dragon Sovereign of Water—creating a Divine Eye was not something an ordinary person could do. For Lu Mingfei to accomplish this, the news would hit Teyvat like a nuclear explosion.

Lu Mingfei’s dominion was broad, encompassing even the realm of alchemy. Though he didn’t personally know how to use alchemy, the skill existed in his arsenal; he simply didn’t know how to wield it or what it was for. Earlier, when he changed the shape of the key at his aunt’s house to ask for money, that had been a basic application of alchemy, albeit its most superficial level.

But Neuvillette of Teyvat was different; his authority was pure water, with no connection to alchemy. He couldn’t construct a Divine Eye directly.

“That’s true,” Lu Mingfei realized, murmuring to himself. “Right, you can’t make out the diagrams I send you. If you could, maybe there’d be a chance. It’s a shame—if only you could see them clearly.”

“Hm? What did you just say?”

Lu Mingfei paused, a sudden sense of crisis rising within him. He replied, “…See elemental power, of course. I can’t see people, but can’t I see elemental power? You’re the Hydro Archon; you should understand this better than anyone. Sensing a person and sensing elements are different—elemental forms are easier to perceive.”

“Is that so?” Furina sounded doubtful. She felt that something was off.

“Of course. If I couldn’t perceive elements, how could I replicate a Divine Eye? But I can only see them relatively clearly. I can’t yet copy every detail, and there are still many flaws in my Divine Eye—you just didn’t notice them.”

“Oh…” Furina replied softly. She had thought that Lu Mingfei could see her, but on reflection, she realized she’d been overthinking. If he truly could see her, then she should be able to see him as well—their perception was mutual, with similar clarity.

Their visions were a two-way bridge, not a one-way street. If either side muted the connection, the other would lose all means of communication.

But perhaps that was for the best. If Lu Mingfei really could see her, then just now, wouldn’t she have been…

Oh—she flushed with embarrassment.

On the other side, Lu Mingfei, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, furrowed his brow once more. The Divine Eye plan had failed; Furina’s hope of growing stronger had been dashed along with it. Was there any other way?

His communication with Furina was currently limited to the spiritual plane; there was no way to send any object or power through.

How frustrating!

What should he do?

Lu Mingfei stared at the lightning Divine Eye, sinking deep into thought. Soon, an entirely new idea dawned on him:

Since the Mirrored Eye could analyze and replicate, there must also be incantations that could influence others’ minds. Perhaps he couldn’t use such an incantation not because the ability was absent from his skillset, but simply because he didn’t know how.

Before using alchemy to construct a Divine Eye, he hadn’t even known he could use alchemy.

“Furina, hold steady for a while. I’ll see if I can find another way to help you grow stronger. Trust me, I promise I won’t let you down,” Lu Mingfei said with determination.

“Mm, I believe in you.”

…

Returning to reality, Lu Mingfei looked at the little devil before him, who was glaring at him with a dark expression, and asked bluntly, “Let me ask you something. Do you know of any incantations that can influence others’ minds? What do they do, and what power do they require?”

“…”

The little devil didn’t answer. He simply stared at Lu Mingfei, wondering if this unfamiliar brother of his had been possessed by someone else.

But his final conclusion was… no.

This guy hadn’t changed at his core. He’d just undergone a tremendous transformation in a short time. He’d been watching Lu Mingfei closely and could tell it wasn’t an act. He truly believed he was communicating with someone from another world.

If that was the case… then was it possible Lu Mingfei really had contacted such an existence—just one he couldn’t sense?

And if so… then did that mean his own perception was inferior to Lu Mingfei’s, his mind weaker?

Oh no. Was he going mad, too?