The Weapon Master Shall Never Die Bare-Handed in Genshin Impact [423]

Just as the group was about to reach Mt. Tianmen, they suddenly spotted someone collapsed on the ground up ahead—a man holding an iron pickaxe, completely motionless.

“A miner!”

Lumine rushed forward and gently lifted the unconscious man from the ground.

“Hey! Are you okay?”

She lightly patted the miner’s face, which was pale and haggard. “Can you hear me? Can you open your eyes?”

“One plus one is...? Two plus two?”

Even though he was clearly on the verge of collapse, the miner still muttered with a strange persistence, “Let me… get up…”

“I can still... dig…”

As soon as Lumine touched him, he stirred—struggling to rise again.

His hands were covered in blisters from gripping the pickaxe. His body showed signs of overexertion—congestion, bruising, and exhaustion so severe that the whites of his eyes were streaked with red. It was clear he hadn’t rested in days.

Everything about him screamed that he had pushed himself past the limits of human endurance, only now finally collapsing.

“Dig what? You’re on the brink of death!”

Lumine scolded him, then gave him a light knock on the forehead—just hard enough to knock him out again.

“Ah! Traveler, what are you doing?” Paimon cried, alarmed.

“He’s clearly under some kind of influence,” Lumine explained as Jia Changjiang and the others caught up. “He kept trying to get up—had to knock him out so he could rest.”

The miner now lay still, no longer fighting to rise.

“He... really is one of the miners from the Chasm,” Kun Jun confirmed after a close inspection.

“He was probably being controlled somehow,” Lumine added. “That’s why he kept trying to keep digging.”

She flexed her wrist after the strike—she’d held back, of course. Still, even if unconsciousness mimicked sleep, the kind caused by a blow wasn’t exactly gentle on the body.

“Let’s get him to the nearest camp so he can rest,” Jia Changjiang said, hoisting the miner up over his shoulder.

Once they arrived, they laid the miner out on a padded mat. Zhongli knelt beside him to examine his injuries.

“Blisters on both hands, bruises across the body, and minor abrasions—his arms show signs of hematoma…”

Zhongli glanced over the miner’s condition, then looked up at Lumine. “He’s clearly been working nonstop for quite some time.”

“Lumine, there should be emergency medicine and bandages in the supply kit. Could you fetch them?”

“Got it.”

Zhongli personally cleaned and dressed the miner’s wounds, his movements so practiced and precise that even Lumine looked a little surprised.

But then again… for someone who had survived the Archon War, it would be strange not to know basic first aid.

“Zhongli... how’s he doing now?” Paimon peeked in from the camp entrance, her voice cautious as if afraid to disturb the injured man.

“He’s stable,” Zhongli nodded. “Nothing too serious. The wounds on his hands are the worst, but with some time to recover, he’ll be fine.”

“Mostly, he’s just severely overworked.”

“That’s a relief... Wait, Mr. Jiax—what are you looking at?”

Paimon’s gaze drifted to Jia Changjiang, who was holding the miner’s pickaxe, examining it closely.

“The damage on this pickaxe looks recent—and pretty severe,” Jia Changjiang said. “I wonder what exactly he was digging.”

“If he was forced to dig, then maybe the other miners are also being controlled… and they’re still out there, digging away at something,” Lumine speculated.

“Let’s let him rest here for now,” Zhongli said as he stood. “Old Dai and the others should catch up soon—they’ll find him. I’ve marked the path along the way.”

“So... what is going on up ahead?” Jia Changjiang muttered as he stepped outside, frowning.

He’d long since run out of Genshin knowledge to rely on—now he was mostly in the dark.

“I have... a theory,” Zhongli said quietly, glancing toward Kun Jun.

But Kun Jun acted as though he hadn’t noticed Zhongli’s look. Instead, he regarded the group calmly and pulled a few crystals from his pack.

“It’s thanks to all of you that my thoughts have become clearer,” Kun Jun said. “If not for your help, I probably wouldn’t have come this far. These crystals—I picked them up at a market. They’re just ordinary minerals, but the quality is quite rare.”

He placed one crystal into each of their hands—even Paimon received a small piece.

“They’re so pretty!” Paimon held hers up to the sun, watching the light refract through it. “It sparkles with all these different colors!”

“And this one is for Mr. Zhongli.”

Kun Jun offered the last and oldest-looking piece to Zhongli.

Zhongli inhaled deeply.

“You... don’t like it?” Kun Jun asked, tilting his head.

“No…” Zhongli shook his head and accepted the gift. “I just didn’t expect to receive something like this at a time like this.”

“I’ll take good care of it.”

“Glad to hear it,” Kun Jun smiled. “I’ll go check out the stones nearby. Once we’re ready, we can set out again.”

“Kun Jun, you really do seem like a rock spirit sometimes…” Lumine teased. “You’re way too into stones.”

Kun Jun rubbed his head sheepishly. “Who knows? Maybe I was a stone spirit in a past life.”

“Ores are the crystallization of the earth—the sediment of time. Being around them is... calming.”

He turned to leave. “You all get some rest. Just call for me when we’re ready to move on.”

“Okay,” Lumine nodded. “I’ll come with you! I’ve developed a bit of a thing for stones too!”

“Some gemstones are really valuable!”

With Paimon in tow, Lumine followed after Kun Jun to go rock-hunting.

But no sooner had Kun Jun walked away than Zhongli’s expression turned solemn.

“Zhongli,” Jia Changjiang said, catching the change in his face. “Judging by your look, I take it you’ve already figured out who—or what—is inside Kun Jun?”

“…Yes,” Zhongli admitted. His voice, usually so steady, carried a rare trace of sorrow.

Jia Changjiang scratched his chin. “You want to talk about it now? If not, I won’t press.”

Zhongli sighed. “Forgive me. I will explain... in time.”

“No problem.”

Jia Changjiang clapped him gently on the shoulder. “I trust you.”

---

This is a fan translation of 武器大师在原神绝不死于徒手 by 徐人双 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!