Original God, But Chat Group

29. Venti's True Identity!

"Cheers!"

At the Angel's Share, the Dvalin rescue squad back from Gazing Star Cliff was holding a celebration banquet. Though most of them hadn't done much, they'd still witnessed the whole process. After Venti treated Dvalin, the dragon recovered somewhat, regained his status as the Anemo Archon's familiar, apologized to everyone, flew them back to Mondstadt, and then left on his own. Master Lu generously offered to treat everyone to a meal.

After raising their glasses and drinking together, the group, now somewhat acquainted, began to chat.

"I never expected Mondstadt's Dragon Disaster to be resolved like this. It's truly surprising."

"That's right. Thank you so much, Mr. Li Yue, for helping Mondstadt solve the Dragon Disaster."

"And of course, many thanks to you too, Mr. Venti and Traveler. Without your help, we probably never would have found Dvalin."

Grand Master Jean held her wine glass in her left hand and placed her right hand over her chest, expressing gratitude to the three who had contributed to the operation.

Li Yue raised his juice and accepted Jean's thanks graciously.

"I'll take your thanks. It's rare for me to come to Mondstadt, and running into something interesting was pretty nice. I also got a good combat experience out of it."

Though Dvalin's combat strength had dropped significantly due to his madness and the loss of the Anemo Archon's power, he was still formidable. With Venti around as a safety net, he was the perfect test subject for gauging strength.

Among the weekly boss fights, Dvalin was the weakest—but that was the weakened version. No one knew how strong a full-power Dvalin was, but he was likely the strongest force in Mondstadt below the Anemo Archon. Li Yue, who could only use Shikai for now, probably couldn't beat him. After all, that was Demon God-level combat power, and Li Yue had only mastered a few Kido techniques, with his Zanpakuto at the most basic level. Even with Reiatsu on par with Kensei Muguruma's, his combat ability wasn't fully formed yet.

"Hehe, this time we really owe it to Li Yue and the Traveler. Without the Traveler's purification ability, I couldn't have used the Lyre of the Sky to summon Dvalin. As for the fight afterward, honestly, I thought it'd be an incredibly tough battle—since it was Dvalin. But I never expected Li Yue to defeat him all by himself. Is this the power of the Liyue Adepti? Truly amazing."

Venti chimed in, boasting loudly.

Li Yue smiled at Venti and raised an eyebrow, not bothering to explain that he wasn't an Adeptus, accepting the praise. But Ying shook her head.

"I didn't do much. If you hadn't said anything, Venti, I wouldn't even have known I had a purification ability."

This time, Ying spoke on her own, not through the God's Mouth beside her.

"But that was important, wasn't it? Without Ying's help purifying it, the Lyre of the Sky couldn't have been used, and we wouldn't have been able to pinpoint Dvalin's hiding spot."

Venti spread his hands.

"So just accept it—praise from Teyvat's best bard."

"That's right, that's right, Ying, just accept it."

The God's Mouth chimed in while eating, helping Ying with the conversation.

"Fine, then I'll accept it."

Master Lu watched the exchange between Li Yue, Venti, and Ying, then fixed his gaze on Venti.

"The Dvalin issue is resolved, which is good for Mondstadt. But there's one thing I'm curious about."

This young Pyro user scowled like a grumpy cat at Venti.

"Bard, what's your real identity?"

"You know ancient history, you know Dvalin's true identity, you even knew the Lyre of the Sky could summon him, and Dvalin clearly recognizes you. Your identity can't be just some simple bard."

At Master Lu's words, everyone turned to look at Venti.

"Oh yeah! When the Traveler and I met you in the forest before, we saw you with Dvalin. Being that close to him, you're definitely no ordinary bard."

The God's Mouth caught on too, pointing at Venti accusingly, then planted its hands on its hips.

"Spill it. Who are you really?"

"Looks like I can't hide it anymore."

Venti put on a helpless expression.

"Since you've all figured it out, I'll just tell you straight."

Hands on his hips, Venti lifted his chin, looking smug.

"My faithful followers, I am your Anemo Archon, Barbatos!"

Everyone present stared at Venti, stunned. Even Nahida was taken aback.

Wasn't Barbatos supposed to keep his identity hidden? Why was he revealing it now? Was there some deeper meaning?

Under Nahida's puzzled gaze, Venti spread his arms.

"Well? Shocked by my true identity, aren't you?"

Slap—

A hand smacked the back of his head, flipping his hat forward.

"Ow—what was that for~~"

Venti rubbed the back of his head and complained to Li Yue.

"Cut it out. If you're Barbatos, then I'm the Vago Monarch."

Li Yue deliberately shot Venti a contemptuous look.

"Huh?"

Venti looked at Li Yue in surprise, only to get Li Yue pointing a finger at the sky.

"No one knows the Anemo Archon better than me!"

"The Anemo Archon, who brought freedom to Mondstadt, couldn't possibly be a drunkard like you, clutching a bottle from dawn till dusk. Say that outside, and you'd be afraid the Knights of Favonius Church would chop you down."

"Hehehe, just kidding, just kidding."

Venti didn't take offense, smoothly going along with Li Yue's words and dropping his true identity. He was happy to stay hidden anyway.

The group snapped out of their shock.

Right, the Anemo Archon hadn't been seen in ages, but there's no way he'd be some guy who busks everywhere, can't afford booze, and shamelessly scrounges for drinks every day!

Even though they hadn't known Venti long, everyone knew what he'd been up to since showing up in Mondstadt—bushing for tips, then heading to Angel's Share to buy wine. As long as he had money, he'd basically soak in the tavern. If that guy were the Anemo Archon, the Knights of Favonius Church would be in an uproar.

"By the way, I know who this guy really is."

"Mr. Li Yue, you do?"

Grand Master Jean looked at Li Yue curiously. This suspected Adeptus from Liyue should be well-traveled and know more than she did.

"Oh?"

Venti was curious too.

After denying Venti's identity as the Anemo Archon, Li Yue started fabricating one for him.

"Being able to talk to Dvalin and knowing him basically confirms that while he's not the Anemo Archon, he's definitely connected to him. When people think of things tied to the Anemo Archon, the Four Winds Guardians come to mind first—the Wolf of the North, the Lion of the South, the Falcon of the West, the Dragon of the East. He's clearly none of them, but that doesn't mean he's unrelated."

"Because when most people mention the Anemo Archon, they subconsciously overlook one being with an extremely close bond to him."

"And that's the Wind Spirit!"

"Wind Spirit!?"

Grand Master Jean was briefly startled, then her eyes lit up.

"Right, I forgot about the Wind Spirit."

Legend has it that before becoming the Anemo Archon, Barbatos was a tiny Wind Spirit. Later, he ascended to godhood, but the Wind Spirit race still existed, though rarely seen. And as a former Wind Spirit, it made perfect sense for other Wind Spirits to follow Barbatos, didn't it?

"Exactly. Connected to the Anemo Archon, knows the East Wind Dragon, knows the old stories between the East Wind Dragon and the Anemo Archon, and wields the power of wind—your true identity couldn't be clearer!"

Li Yue pointed his index finger, striking a Jotaro pose as he aimed it at Venti.

"The truth is one! You're a Wind Spirit who's followed the Anemo Archon since ancient times!"

30. The Bleach Script Is About to Begin

Thanks to Li Yue's forceful confirmation, Venti's true identity was certified as a Wind Spirit, and Venti himself readily went along with it!

Yeah, yeah, that's right, I'm a Wind Spirit, no doubt! Couldn't agree faster!

And so, the identity of Venti the Wind Spirit was officially recognized by the Knights of Favonius, even becoming a public persona—way better than his previous wandering bard gig.

After the Dvalin crisis was resolved, Li Yue didn't immediately return to Liyue. He stayed in Mondstadt for a while, since going back to Liyue was just a matter of convenience. Anywhere he'd been, he could open a Portal with Enma's Blade, with the spiritual energy cost based on distance. From Mondstadt to Li Yue's place, he could go back anytime.

Li Yue stayed in Mondstadt for two reasons: first, to let Nahida hang out with Venti and learn from him—possibly picking up bad habits—and second, to spar with Dvalin. He hadn't been joking about that earlier. Though his mind was packed with memories of Bleach battles, only real combat practice would let him truly master the power of a Shinigami.

But Dvalin had taken three slashes from Li Yue's Enma's Blade and needed time to fully recover. That gave Li Yue a chance to enjoy Mondstadt first.

So, under the pretext of studying the Anemo element, Li Yue asked Venti, as a Wind Spirit, for an Anemo Orb.

The Anemo element couldn't be directly condensed into constructs like the Geo element. Sure, there were things like the Anemo Hypostasis, Eye of the Storm, and Anemo Slimes, but those were special elemental lifeforms—they dissipated on death and couldn't be sent over while alive.

So Venti gave Li Yue an Anemo Orb, concentrating Anemo energy into a sphere and handing it over. Li Yue then transferred it to Aizen through the Chat Group.

Along with it went a Dendro Polymer made by Nahida. Li Yue was surprised to find she could use the Dendro element, and after praising her as "my daughter indeed," he asked for a Dendro Orb.

In one trip to Mondstadt, Li Yue had gathered both Dendro and Anemo materials for Aizen. This got him thinking—maybe he should try opening Portals more often with his Shikai. He might even land straight in Tenshukaku in Inazuma and run into the Raiden Shogun.

Too bad the Raiden Shogun wouldn't give him an Electro Polymer. And given her current setup, someone like him—without a Vision but wielding special powers—would probably get stuffed into a statue.

Li Yue figured he couldn't take on the Raiden Shogun yet, since she was at the Demon God level. But he wasn't worried. As his Reiatsu grew, along with his Zanpakuto's Bankai and other techniques from Aizen, reaching Demon God level was only a matter of time.

Right now, he was just in Mondstadt. There was still a while before the Inazuma storyline kicked in, so Li Yue wasn't in a rush.

Thus, he spent his time wandering Mondstadt, livestreaming, and chatting with the group.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Mondstadt's main architecture gives me a medieval European vibe, and the scenery's pretty nice too.

Meme Lord: As a nation built on freedom, Mondstadt's overall pretty great. Perfect for a vacation if you've got money—you'll have a blast, since the views are solid.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: That said, with money, isn't traveling anywhere comfortable?

Meme Lord: True, and I'm pretty well-off right now, so traveling's extra nice.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Tch, hearing that's annoying...

Meme Lord: Speaking of which, Shiyu-senpai, how's it going on your end?

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Hah~~ No progress at all!

Kasumigaoka answered Li Yue in the Chat Group while gazing out the classroom window.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Ever since I agreed to help Akise Tomoya write the script, he's been running around every day with his childhood friend and little girlfriend, claiming it's for game creation, gathering so-called material. But aside from a pile of his own inner monologues, he hasn't even got a basic proposal together. So, since I'm not tagging along with their wild goose chase, I'm super free right now~

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: But thanks to Akise Tomoya still having nothing to show, I've got free time to watch your stream, Li Yue-kun, while writing. I'm almost done with the latest volume of my novel.

Meme Lord: Sounds like you've got it easy... What about my godfather?

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Lucia Kuchiki has gone to the Human World.

Meme Lord: So that means Dad's script is about to start?

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Yeah, it's starting.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: So Aizen still plans to groom Ichigo Kurosaki?

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Why not?

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: He's the one who beat you in the end.

Meme Lord: It wasn't Ichigo who beat Dad—it was Dad himself.

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Exactly. The future Li Yue-kun provided matches my predictions almost perfectly. The only difference is the final outcome. With a complete Hōgyoku, I couldn't have lost to Ichigo Kurosaki. It was my own fault that my evolution stalled, giving Kisuke Urahara an opening.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: So this time, you already know Ichigo Kurosaki's limits, you're sure you'll win, and you're just keeping him around to toy with?

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Before, my focus was on Soul Society, its nobles, and the Soul King. Now my sights aren't limited to Soul Society anymore. Ichigo Kurosaki is no longer a threat—he's just a stepping stone for my evolution.

Meme Lord: With a Chat Group around, why bother staring at that unlucky bastard the Soul King? Dad's going to surpass him eventually. None of those Soul Society guys are worth a second look. If anyone's worth paying attention to, it's Yhwach and that Great Monk from the Royal Guard.

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Right. In my world right now, those two are the only ones worth my notice.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Huh? What about that old Captain-Commander, the so-called strongest Shinigami? No need to worry about him?

Meme Lord: Has that old man ever beaten Dad?

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Fair enough, I get it.

Meme Lord: The Captain-Commander is definitely strong, but that old geezer is too rigid. To put it bluntly, he's brainless. In a straight fight, he's at the top tier, but he's way too easy to trick. When he fought Dad, Ryūjin Jakka got sealed. When he fought Yhwach, he Bankai'd and slashed the wrong guy. That old man's too used to crushing everything with brute force, so he has almost no defense against schemes and tactics. He falls for it every time.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Looking at the plot from Aizen's world, that checks out.

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Compared to the Captain-Commander, Yhwach and Tenjirō Kirinji are the ones I need to keep an eye on.

31. Enma's Blade's Bankai is actually that...

One is the Soul King's son, immensely powerful, even possessing future sight, destined to replace the Soul King as the new wedge stabilizing the world. The other is the de facto Soul King, who has wielded the Soul King's authority for millennia, with overwhelming combat strength—he's practically become a rule unto himself.

In the original plot, Aizen never truly fought either Yhwach or Tenjirō Kirinji head-on. At most, during the final battle against Yhwach, he helped Ichigo use Kyōka Suigetsu to deceive Yhwach. There was no real direct confrontation. For Aizen, Yhwach and Tenjirō Kirinji are the true unknowns.