“But… I’ve spent all these years using Stanley’s name.”
Stanley, finally finding someone he could confide in, began to speak of the guilt he had buried deep within his heart. After witnessing Lord Barbatos himself, telling Jia Changjiang seemed trivial by comparison.
He poured out everything he had held back for so long, finishing with a question filled with uncertainty:
“What… what am I supposed to do now?”
“Am I meant to keep lying to those kids?”
“Stanley was a hero, but I’m just a fraud. I… don’t deserve to use his name.”
Stanley’s voice trembled, the cracks revealing his lingering fear. Years ago, he had buried the name Hans Archibald alongside the real Stanley in the Ashen Sea. But today, Lord Barbatos had taken Stanley’s soul home.
And now, Stanley wondered: what about him?
What was he supposed to do?
“Do you want to know the answer to that question?” Jia Changjiang asked suddenly.
“I… I do, but I don’t know it,” Stanley admitted, his words heavy with hesitation.
Jia Changjiang stood up, walked to Stanley, and looked down at him. “Then keep going. Keep living as you are.”
Stanley looked up, meeting Jia Changjiang’s gaze. The fire in his eyes was so intense, it felt like it could scorch him. Stanley winced and lowered his head again. “I’m not really Stanley. I was just an ordinary adventurer back then…”
“Enough of that self-pity!” Jia Changjiang barked.
He raised his hand, and in his palm appeared the faint, glowing silhouette of a small red seed.
In one swift motion, Jia Changjiang slammed the seed onto Stanley’s forehead.
“Even if you have to crawl, you keep moving forward! That’s the only thing you need to do!” Jia Changjiang roared.
The moment the seed touched him, Stanley felt a connection snap into place between their minds.
His vision went black. In the darkness, Jia Changjiang’s voice echoed like a storm.
“Do you think anyone has the patience to sit here and coddle you with words about courage and strength?”
“Even in front of your parents, even in front of the people you love, you swallow your broken teeth and keep going!”
“If you truly believe you’re unworthy of Stanley’s name… then prove you are! Even if you have to crawl through the dirt, move forward!”
“If you think you’re unworthy, then make yourself worthy! Fight for it!”
“Now, get up and face what you’ve done all these years!”
Stanley’s mind cleared, and he found himself standing before a grand, radiant palace. Inside, a roaring fire blazed endlessly, its light and heat consuming the entire space.
Behind him, there was another palace. But unlike the one before him, this palace was dim and crumbling, its aura dull and lifeless.
“I’m just a mortal. I’ve never thought of myself as superior to anyone. I’ve never claimed to be a prodigy. But I want to see the view from the heights, no matter the cost.”
From the blazing palace, Jia Changjiang’s figure emerged. His eyes burned with the same fire that filled the room.
“The East Wind’s dragon was powerful, but I overcame it.”
“The North Wind’s wolf was a force to behold, and I stood witness to its might.”
“I’ve fought those gifted with divine power by the gods themselves. And yet… it’s not enough. It’s still not enough!”
Stanley watched as Jia Changjiang raised his hand toward the heavens, as if reaching for the sun and stars.
“I want to face greater champions! I want to climb even higher! I will not stop here. What I see now… is not enough to satisfy me!”
Jia Changjiang’s voice was electric with excitement, yet tinged with restraint.
“This world has its Seven Archons, its Vision-bearers, its Archons of old. So many powerful beings. I want to know just how strong they truly are! I want to seize every weapon this world has to offer with my own two hands and climb as high as I can! I… will never be satisfied with this!”
“The only thing I regret is that I wasn’t born thousands of years earlier—during the Archon War!”
Jia Changjiang’s words carried both passion and lament. “How many incredible beings lived during that era? The Archon War ended with the dawn of the Seven’s reign, but imagine… Imagine if I, a mere mortal, could have stood among them during that time! Wouldn’t that be thrilling?”
His voice was wild with excitement but softened with regret. “But time moves only forward. I can’t witness this world’s past… only its future.”
His words were near-mad in their ambition, leaving Stanley both awestruck and bewildered.
“Who… who are you?” Stanley stammered. “Are you… some dark god from the far seas?”
After seeing Lord Barbatos with his own eyes, Stanley was prepared to believe anything.
Teyvat’s coastal nations often whispered of the “Outer Dark,” lands beyond the Seven’s dominion where defeated Archons fled after the Archon War, transforming into dark gods.
Jia Changjiang, without a Vision but wielding such immense power… Could he be one of them?
“Dark god?” Jia Changjiang’s eyes lit up with curiosity. “There are beings like that? Tell me more!”
He leapt from the palace steps, grabbing Stanley by the shoulders. “Are those dark gods… strong?”
“Uh…” Stanley was now the one left dumbfounded.
“You’re not one of them?” he asked hesitantly.
“Of course not! I’m just a weapons master without a Vision—a freak in a world brimming with elemental energy.”
Jia Changjiang smirked, seeing through Stanley’s thoughts. “I don’t think sweet talk will get you back on your feet. So instead, I’ll use the method I believe works best!”
Without warning, Jia Changjiang hurled Stanley into the blazing palace, directly into the fire.
“Take a good, long look at yourself!” Jia Changjiang roared.
“See the Stanley you’ve been living as in Mondstadt!”
—
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!
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