Original God, but the Chat Group

Venti's True Identity!

"Cheers!"

At Angel's Share, Dvalin's rescue party, having returned from Gazing Star Cliff, was holding a celebration feast. Although most of them had not contributed much, they had witnessed the entire process. After Venti treated Dvalin, he recovered somewhat and regained his status as the Anemo Archon's familiar. After apologizing to everyone, he carried them back to Mondstadt before leaving alone. Master Lu generously declared that he would treat everyone to a meal.

After raising their glasses and drinking together, the group, who had become somewhat familiar with one another, began chatting.

"I never expected Mondstadt's Dragon Disaster to be resolved this way. It really was beyond imagination."

"Indeed. Thank you very much, Mr. Li Yue, for helping Mondstadt resolve the Dragon Disaster."

"Of course, we must also thank Mr. Venti and the Traveler. Without your help, we probably would never have found Dvalin."

Grand Master Jean held her wineglass in her left hand and pressed her right hand to her chest as she thanked the three who had contributed to the operation.

Li Yue held a glass of juice and graciously accepted Jean's thanks.

"I'll accept your thanks. It's rare for me to visit Mondstadt and encounter something so interesting. It was quite nice for me, and I also gained some valuable combat experience."

Although Dvalin's combat strength had declined significantly due to his madness and the loss of the Anemo Archon's familiar's power, he was still extremely powerful. With Venti there to cover for him, he was perfect for testing his strength.

Among the weekly bosses, Dvalin was the weakest, but that was Dvalin in a weakened state. No one knew how powerful Dvalin was at full strength, but he should have been Mondstadt's strongest combatant beneath the Anemo Archon. Li Yue, who could only use Shikai for now, probably could not defeat him. After all, that was Demon God-level combat power. Li Yue had not yet fully mastered many Kido techniques, and his Zanpakuto had only seen the most basic applications. Even though he possessed Reiatsu on Kensei Muguruma's level, his combat strength had not fully taken shape.

"Hehe, this time we really owe 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 battle afterward, honestly, I thought it would be incredibly difficult. After all, that was Dvalin. I never expected Li Yue to defeat him alone. Is this the power of a Liyue Adepti? It's truly formidable."

Venti loudly praised him from the side.

Li Yue smiled at Venti and raised an eyebrow. He did not explain that he was not an Adepti, merely accepting the praise, while Lumine shook her head.

"I didn't do anything. If Venti hadn't told me, I wouldn't even have known I had the ability to purify."

This time, Lumine finally spoke for herself rather than letting God's Mouth speak beside her.

"But it's important, isn't it? Without Lumine's purification, the Lyre of the Sky couldn't even have been used. Naturally, we wouldn't have been able to accurately locate Dvalin's hiding place."

Venti spread his hands.

"So accept it—the praise of Teyvat's finest bard."

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

God's Mouth spoke up for Lumine while stuffing herself with food.

"In that case, I'll accept it."

After watching the interaction between Li Yue, Venti, and Lumine, Master Lu turned his gaze toward Venti.

"Resolving the Dvalin crisis is a good thing for Mondstadt, but there is something I'm curious about."

The Pyro youth wore his usual cat-butt scowl as he glared at Venti.

"Bard, what exactly is your true identity?"

"You know about events from ancient times, know Dvalin's true identity, and even knew that the Lyre of the Sky could summon Dvalin. Moreover, Dvalin clearly knows you. Your identity is probably far more than that of a simple bard."

As soon as Master Lu said that, everyone looked at Venti.

"That's right. When the Traveler and I met you in the forest before, we saw you together with Dvalin. Someone who can get that close to Dvalin definitely isn't an ordinary bard."

God's Mouth also caught on. She pointed at Venti, then put both hands on her hips.

"Spill it. Who exactly are you?"

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

Venti put on a helpless expression.

"Since you've all seen through me, I'll tell you directly."

With his hands on his hips, Venti raised his chin, looking thoroughly pleased with himself.

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

Everyone present stared blankly at Venti. Even Nahida was startled.

Hadn't Barbatos said he wanted to hide his identity? Why was he no longer hiding it now? Could there be some deeper meaning behind this?

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

"Well? Are you all shocked by my true identity?"

Smack—

A hand slapped the back of his head, knocking his hat askew.

"Ow, what was that for~~"

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

"Quit messing around. If you're Barbatos, then I'm the Vago Monarch."

Li Yue deliberately looked at Venti with disdain.

"Huh?"

Venti looked at Li Yue in surprise, only for Li Yue to point one finger at the sky.

"No one understands the Anemo Archon better than I do!"

"How could the Anemo Archon who brought freedom to Mondstadt be a drunkard like you, clinging to a wine bottle from morning till night? Aren't you afraid the Knights of Favonius Church will chop you down if you say that?"

"Hehehe, just kidding, just kidding."

Venti was not annoyed. He simply went along with Li Yue's words and gave up on revealing his true identity. He was happy enough to keep it hidden anyway.

Everyone recovered from their shock.

Right. Although no one had seen the Anemo Archon for a long time, no matter how they thought about it, he could not possibly be a guy who wandered around performing for tips, had no money for wine, and shamelessly mooched drinks everywhere every day!

Although they had not known Venti for long, everyone knew what he had done since arriving in Mondstadt: singing everywhere for tips, then coming to Angel's Share to buy wine. As long as he had money, he practically lived in the tavern. If someone like that were the Anemo Archon, the Knights of Favonius Church would explode.

"By the way, I know this guy's identity."

"Mr. Li Yue, you know?"

Jean looked at Li Yue curiously. This suspected Liyue Adepti should have seen and known far more than she had.

"Oh?"

Venti was also curious.

After denying that Venti was the Anemo Archon, Li Yue began making up an identity for him.

"He can communicate with Dvalin and knows Dvalin. That much confirms that while he may not be the Anemo Archon, he must be connected to the Anemo Archon somehow. When people think of those connected to the Anemo Archon, they immediately think of the Four Winds: the Wolf of the North, the Lion of the South, the Eagle of the West, and the East Wind Dragon. He obviously isn't any of the Four Winds, but that doesn't mean he has nothing to do with the Anemo Archon."

"Because whenever people mention matters related to the Anemo Archon, they instinctively overlook one being who is extraordinarily close to him."

"Wind Spirits!"

"Wind Spirits!?"

After a brief moment of surprise, Grand Master Jean's eyes immediately lit up.

"Right, I can't believe I forgot about Wind Spirits."

Legend had it that before Barbatos became the Anemo Archon, he had been a tiny Wind Spirit. Later, Barbatos became the Anemo Archon, but the Wind Spirit race continued to exist, though they rarely appeared. Since Barbatos himself had once been a Wind Spirit, wasn't it perfectly normal for other Wind Spirits to follow him?

"That's right. You are connected to the Anemo Archon, know the East Wind Dragon, know the old history between the East Wind Dragon and the Anemo Archon, and possess the power of wind. Your true identity could not be any more obvious!"

Li Yue extended his index finger, struck Jotaro's pose, and pointed at Venti with one hand.

"There is only one truth! You are a Wind Spirit who has followed the Anemo Archon since ancient times!"

The Bleach Script Was About to Begin

Because of Li Yue's forceful confirmation, Venti's true identity was certified as a Wind Spirit—and Venti very cooperatively admitted it!

Yeah, yeah, exactly. I am a Wind Spirit! Absolutely!

Thus, Venti's identity as a Wind Spirit received official certification from the Knights of Favonius. It was even an identity that could be made public, far better than being a bard.

After the Dvalin crisis was resolved, Li Yue did not immediately return to Liyue. Instead, he remained in Mondstadt, because returning to Liyue was something he could do at any time. As long as he had been somewhere before, he could use Enma's Blade to open a Portal directly there. The spiritual power consumed was calculated by distance, so he could return from Mondstadt whenever he wanted.

Li Yue stayed in Mondstadt for two reasons. First, he wanted Nahida to play around with Venti in Mondstadt and learn herself useless. Second, he could spar with Dvalin. He had not been joking when he said he wanted to spar with Dvalin. Although his mind held countless memories of Bleach battles, only genuine practical sparring could allow Li Yue to quickly master the powers of a Bleach.

However, Dvalin had been slashed three times by Li Yue's Enma's Blade, so it would take some time for him to fully recover. During that time, Li Yue could enjoy himself in Mondstadt.

Thus, under the pretext of studying the Anemo element, Li Yue asked Venti, the Anemo element spirit, for an Anemo Orb.

Unlike the Geo Element, the Anemo element could not directly gather into constructs. While there were things like the Anemo Hypostasis, Eye of the Storm, and Anemo Slimes, those were special elemental lifeforms. Once they died, they dissipated directly, while living ones could not be sent over.

Therefore, Venti gave Li Yue an Anemo Orb. Venti condensed Anemo element into an elemental orb and handed it to Li Yue, who then transferred it to Aizen through the Chat Group.

He also sent over the Dendro Polymer created by Nahida. Li Yue had unexpectedly discovered that Nahida could use the Dendro element, so after praising her as worthy of being his daughter, he asked Nahida for a Dendro element orb.

After one trip to Mondstadt, Li Yue had gathered two materials, Dendro element and Anemo element, for Aizen. This made him wonder whether he should try using Shikai more often to casually open Portals. Perhaps he might directly open one into Inazuma's Tenshukaku and meet the Raiden Shogun.

Unfortunately, the Raiden Shogun would never give him an Electro element polymer. Moreover, according to the Raiden Shogun's current principles, someone like him, who had no Vision yet wielded unusual powers, would probably be built into the statue as well.

Li Yue felt that he could not currently contend with the Raiden Shogun. After all, she possessed Demon God-level power. But he did not care. As his Reiatsu grew, as he unlocked his Zanpakuto's Bankai, and as he acquired more techniques from Aizen, reaching Demon God level was only a matter of time.

He had only just arrived in Mondstadt, and there was still a long time before the Inazuma arc. Li Yue was in no hurry.

So Li Yue simply wandered around Mondstadt while livestreaming and chatting with the group members.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Mondstadt's main architectural style gives me the feeling of medieval Europe, and the scenery is quite nice too.

Meme Lord: As a nation named for freedom, Mondstadt is generally quite nice. It's very suitable for traveling if you have money. You'll have a very comfortable time, since the scenery is indeed beautiful.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Listen to you. Where wouldn't traveling be comfortable if you had money?

Meme Lord: Exactly. I'm fairly rich now, so traveling is especially comfortable.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Tsk, that's irritating to hear...

Meme Lord: Speaking of which, Shiyu-senpai, how are things on your end now?

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

Kasumigaoka replied to Li Yue in the Chat Group while looking out the classroom window.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Since I agreed to help Akise Tomoya write the script, every day he uses making a game as an excuse to drag his childhood friend and little girlfriend around to collect so-called creative material. In the end, aside from a pile of his own inner monologues, he still hasn't even produced the most basic proposal. So unlike them, I'm not running around everywhere, and I'm very free right now~

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: But thanks to Akise Tomoya still being unable to produce anything, I can watch your livestream, Li Yue-kun, while writing in peace. I'm almost done with the latest volume of my novel.

Meme Lord: You really are pretty free... Where's Father?

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

Meme Lord: So Father's script is about to begin?

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Yes, it is about to begin.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Aizen, are you still planning to cultivate Ichigo Kurosaki?

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Why wouldn't I?

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: He defeated you in the end.

Meme Lord: The one who defeated Father wasn't Ichigo, but Father himself.

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Correct. The future Li Yue-kun provided is largely consistent with the future I had anticipated. The only discrepancy is the final outcome. With a complete Hōgyoku, I could not possibly lose to Ichigo Kurosaki. My own actions caused my evolution to halt, which gave Kisuke Urahara an opportunity to take advantage.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: In other words, this time you already know Ichigo Kurosaki's limits and can ensure your victory, so you're continuing to raise him for fun?

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Originally, my attention was on Soul Society, on Soul Society's nobles, and on the Soul King. Now, my sights are no longer confined to Soul Society. Thus, Ichigo Kurosaki is no longer a threat, but a stepping stone for my evolution.

Meme Lord: Now that you have the Chat Group, why are you still watching that unlucky Soul King? Father will surpass the Soul King in the future. No one in Soul Society is worth noticing anymore. If anyone is worth looking at, it's only Yhwach and that Great Monk from the Royal Guard.

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Yes. At present, in my world, only those two are worthy of my attention.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Hm? Isn't that old Captain-Commander supposed to be the strongest Bleach? No need to care about him?

Meme Lord: Have you ever seen that old man defeat Father?

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: All right, I understand.

Meme Lord: The Captain-Commander is indeed strong, but that old man is too rigid. To put it bluntly, he has no brains. His frontal combat power is indeed at the highest level, but he is too easily tricked. When fighting Father, Ryūjin Jakka was sealed. When fighting Yhwach, he used Bankai and slashed the wrong person. That old man is too accustomed to overwhelming others with sheer strength, so he has almost no guard against schemes and conspiracies. He gets taken down easily.

Fat Woman in Black Stockings: Judging from the plot of Aizen's world, that is indeed true.

Hair Gel Man in the Sky: Compared with the Captain-Commander, Yhwach and Tenjirō Kirinji are the ones I need to be wary of.

Enma's Blade's Bankai Was Actually That...

One was the Soul King's son, possessing powerful abilities and even the power to see the future. In the future, he would replace the Soul King and become the new wedge stabilizing the world. The other was the true Soul King in all but name, having exercised the Soul King's authority for thousands of years. His combat strength was also extraordinarily formidable, and he had even become a kind of rule himself.

In the original plot, Aizen never truly fought either Yhwach or Tenjirō Kirinji head-on. At most, during the final battle with Yhwach, he helped Ichigo use Illusion to deceive Yhwach. In essence, there was no genuine frontal battle. To Aizen, Yhwach and Tenjirō Kirinji were the unknown enemies.