Old Geezer's Identity Exposed, Removing Xiao's Karmic Debt

"Since the Qixing have given me the opportunity to make a graceful exit, I should also know when to back down..."

"After all, the era of Age of Mortal Departure has arrived, and it is no longer appropriate for me to stay in Liyue Harbor."

"As for official business, I believe Qixing will handle it properly."

Ganyu expressed her thoughts in a cold voice, her tone full of determination.

???

Is that what Qixing thinks?

But I heard Baiwen those three guys from Baiwen are working like dogs, complaining all the time, and are just waiting for you to come back.

Yanfei blinked her crimson eyes, but the doubts in her heart did not diminish.

Could it be that Ganyu misunderstood?

Before she could voice her question, a figure suddenly appeared before them, standing proudly like a mountain ridge.

The figure was dressed in exquisite brown clothing, and his golden diamond-shaped dragon eyes released a powerful pressure. His aura was as deep as an abyss and as imposing as a prison, exuding a magnanimous and all-encompassing aura, yet giving people a sense of profound and majestic strength, like the earth that embraces all things.

"Your Lord Rex Lapis."

"Your Lord Rex Lapis!"

"Your Lord Rex Lapis..."

Sensing this aura, Adepti rose and respectfully bowed to the figure.

"The Lord Rex Lapis?"

Mr. Zhongli... is Lord Rex Lapis?

Those Adepti already knew this were naturally not surprised, but those who didn't know were completely dumbfounded when they saw this scene.

Especially Xiangling, the little cook.

Xiangling naturally had a strong impression of Zhongli, a learned Esteemed Guest of the Wangshu Funeral Parlor. Not to mention that Hu Tao was her good friend, Zhongli's pickiness about food was enough to leave a deep impression on her.

In my memory, Zhongli was particularly particular about food. He was not only extremely strict about the ingredients he used, but he also had a lot of experience in cooking. He often gave me suggestions, which greatly benefited and inspired Xiangling.

Therefore, Xiangling often asked Zhongli to taste her dishes, and then improved her recipes based on Zhongli's evaluation.

Sometimes, receiving praise for her food from Zhongli is enough to make Xiangling happy all day.

But unexpectedly...

Mr. Zhongli is actually Lord Rex Lapis?!

No wonder his knowledge is so extensive. He has witnessed the development of Liyue from scratch, and is like a living history book of Liyue. How could he not know about those things that have already happened?

Ganyu, Yanfei, and others were equally shocked.

However, what shocked them was not Zhongli's identity.

Zhongli lived in Liyue Harbor for so long, raising Hu Tao from a baby to an adult, yet his appearance remained unchanged for over a decade.

Those in high positions had long suspected that Zhongli was a reclusive Adepti, but they never expected that Zhongli was actually the Lord Rex Lapis.

To their shock, Zhongli, as the God of Geo, never carried any money when he went out. Instead, he frequently sent bills to the Northland Bank and the Wangshu Funeral Parlor.

Can you believe it?

All the Mora circulating on the Teyvat Continent is said to be formed from the flesh and blood of Morax.

Morax was the entity that possessed the right to mint Mora, the common currency of Teyvat.

How could he not have Mora?

What kind of ridiculous joke is this?

However, this was not the time to worry about that. After realizing what was happening, the women quickly followed the Adepti in bowing.

"No need for formalities," Zhongli said with a smile after looking around at the assembled immortals.

Then, Zhongli turned her gaze to Xiao and said, "Xiao, come here."

Without hesitation, Xiao went directly to Zhongli and respectfully said, "Your Lord Rex Lapis."

"Take this and grip it tightly, but don't grip it too tightly. After all, it's just a stone carrier, and it's quite easy to break." Zhongli took out the Horse Talisman, handed it to Xiao, and gave him some instructions.

"Yes." Xiao heard Zhongli's instructions, took the Horse Talisman, held it in his palm, and gently applied force.

In Setsuna, a faint light emanated from the Horse Talisman, rapidly spreading along the simplified horse head outlined in purple dye.

Once the entire horse's head was filled with white light, the Horse Talisman shone brightly.

A soft white light instantly enveloped Xiao's body, enveloping him completely.

As white light enveloped Xiao, countless wisps of black smoke began to emerge from his body.

The black smoke exuded an ominous aura, accompanied by resentment, unwillingness, hatred, anger, tyranny... countless negative emotions soared into the sky.

As the black mist appeared, Xiao's face gradually became ferocious, as if he was enduring endless pain.

The black mist spread out above the demon, expanding outwards, twisting and writhing as if it wanted to devour everything around it.

But before it could act, the white light from the Horse Talisman spread to its body.

Immediately afterwards, the black smoke vanished into nothingness, just like snowflakes meeting the sunlight.

As the black mist dissipated, Xiao's expression gradually calmed down.

"Your Lord Rex Lapis, that black mist, could it be..." True Mountain Shaper asked solemnly.

"It's the Karmic Debt within Xiao's body," Zhongli said calmly.

"Has the Lord Rex Lapis actually found a way to deal with Karmic Debt?" Moon Carver with some surprise.

Zhongli nodded, then said:

"This stone talisman is called the Horse Talisman. It is a treasure that I borrowed from someone. It can expel all external evil forces from the body and return the body to its purest state."

"Horse Talisman? There are such strange treasures in the world. This ability is really powerful. It can actually remove all external evil forces. Interesting."

Upon hearing Zhongli's words, Cloud Retainer stroked his chin with his right wing and sighed.

"All external evil forces? That Erosion ..." Madam Ping caught the key point in Zhongli's words.

Erosion is a shackle imposed by the Heavenly Principles on all those who live long.

This law causes immortals to gradually lose their memories and forget their past as time goes by.

Until finally losing all their precious memories, the immortals became delirious and eventually went mad, leading to a great disaster.

The Azhdaha was severely Erosion. Over the long years, its power gradually diminished, its form became distorted due to various torments, and its mind became clouded. It attacked Liyue Harbor, which is why it voluntarily allowed itself to be sealed away by the Lord Rex Lapis.

Zhongli nodded upon hearing Madam Ping's words, affirming her idea, "The same applies to Erosion; it can be driven away, and permanently so that Erosion will no longer affect you."

"My Erosion has been completely resolved. The reason I have gathered the immortals today is to remove the Erosion laws that Heavenly Principles has imposed on you."

"That's wonderful, Your Lord Rex Lapis."

"I never thought that the Erosion on our bodies would ever be healed."

"Yeah, I thought it would be like this forever, until I die."