Zhongli's Guidance / The System's Limits

At this point, there was no way he could fail to see how the idol felt about him.

It was just that, for the moment, he did not seem to know how he should respond to those feelings.

Because if Yin Kong claimed he did not like her at all, that would clearly be deceiving himself.

After all, Ono Yoko was not only extraordinarily beautiful; more importantly, even amid the chaos of fame and fortune, she had managed to hold on to her true self.

Before crossing over, Yin Kong and her would not have belonged to the same world in any sense.

Yet if he were to respond to her feelings, he felt as though something was missing.

Perhaps it was the feeling called having his heart flutter.

Yin Kong did not feel for Miss Yoko what he had once felt at first sight, or in those heart-pounding moments, for Keqing, Ganyu, Shenhe, Hu Tao, Yelan, Xianyun, Eula, Ei, Yae Miko, Ayaka, Kokomi, Nahida, Nilou, Clorinde, Furina, Grandma, Keke, Round Shark, Hoshimi, and Yae Eve.

Because if the people before him now had been those characters he loved wholeheartedly, Yin Kong would have agreed without hesitation. He would not have had the time or inclination to think about all this messy nonsense.

Just then, Yin Kong's phone suddenly rang, breaking the silence.

To his slight surprise, the number displayed belonged to Fei Yingli, whom he had met earlier that day.

Zhongli's Guidance

"Lawyer Fei?"

Yin Kong was quite surprised. He had never expected this renowned lawyer to call him so suddenly at such a late hour.

"It's me. Please forgive this abrupt call."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the lawyer quickly explained her reason for calling.

"It's like this. I've also gathered some legends about Chinese monsters, including the Painted Skin you mentioned..."

Hearing the faint rustle of paper documents being turned on the other end of the call, Yin Kong's expression grew even more surprised.

This lawyer's ability to get things done was a little too impressive, wasn't it?

After all, the internet of this era was nowhere near as developed as it would be in the future.

If nothing unexpected had happened, even Baidu and Google did not exist yet. Finding legends from another country was no easy matter.

Of course, Yin Kong was also glad that he had not made anything up at random. Otherwise, would this not have been incredibly awkward now?

"So, Lawyer Fei, did you encounter something you couldn't understand?"

Fei Yingli asked, "Is there any way to deal with a Painted Skin?"

Fei Yingli fell silent for a moment before speaking again.

"What I mean is, among all this material, I don't seem to have found any records on how to deal with this kind of monster..."

Well, well, so you too—

Hearing Fei Yingli's tone shift from its usual crisp decisiveness to hesitant stammering, Yin Kong finally understood.

Did the little story he had casually told during the day really have that much destructive power?

Not only had it frightened Sato and Takagi, the two detectives, but even this prominent lawyer had been scared?

In his impression, Fei Yingli should not have been this timid... right?

Yin Kong became somewhat uncertain.

After all, he suddenly remembered that although Ran had the combat ability to tear ghosts and monsters apart with her bare hands, the moment she encountered an enemy that seemed like a demon or ghost, she would immediately be frightened limp and completely lose her ability to fight.

So Ran's problem had actually come from her mother, Fei Yingli?

Still, the old saying applied: see through it, but do not say it aloud.

Though the answer had vaguely surfaced already, Yin Kong naturally did not reveal anything on the surface.

After a brief moment of thought, he directly repeated what he had told Sato and Takagi earlier.

"I have a few Imperial Coins. They are said to have once received a god's blessing and should be effective at warding off evil. Lawyer Fei, whenever you have time, just come to Cunning Rabbit House to pick them up."

Fei Yingli immediately recalled that the materials she had found did indeed contain records of ancient copper coins being able to ward off evil.

At last, she breathed a sigh of relief and said sincerely, "Then I'll have to trouble you. Thank you so very much."

Just as Yin Kong thought the matter was over, he heard Fei Yingli ask, "Then, would Cunning Rabbit House happen to be convenient right now?"

"Ah, right now?"

Perhaps hearing the surprise in Yin Kong's voice, Fei Yingli also realized that she had seemed a little too eager. She immediately coughed and explained, "Ahem, don't misunderstand. It's Kuriyama. After hearing about these things, she's been so scared that she can't even sleep properly. I'm doing this to put her at ease."

Yin Kong understood inwardly, but did not expose her.

"Of course. Lawyer Fei, just call me when you arrive."

After hanging up, Yin Kong shook his head with an amused smile.

He really had not expected that great lawyer to have such a side to her.

Seeing him put down his phone, Paimon immediately flew over and said smugly, "Just now, Paimon came up with a super amazing new idea!"

Yin Kong raised an eyebrow and deliberately put on an unconvinced expression.

"Really? It's not another terrible idea, is it?"

As Teyvat's King of Ideas, Paimon's ideas had the classic duality of divine inspiration and utter madness.

Most of the time, they were terrible ideas that made people laugh or cry, like using the Guizhong Machine to launch someone onto the Jade Chamber and then pretending they had fallen into the water while searching for a legendary fairy.

But occasionally, when the Traveler was helpless and despairing, she would find the one correct road leading into the future.

"What terrible idea? Paimon is super, super smart! Paimon only has good ideas, never bad ones."

Paimon protested first, but she had no intention of keeping them in suspense and immediately said, "It's simple. Since Miss Yoko can't live with us, why not have her live next door?"

Paimon's little calculations were clicking away.

"That way, Paimon can play with her anytime too!"

Ono Yoko froze for a moment and realized that it really was not a bad idea.

Yet even as she breathed a sigh of relief, a faint sense of disappointment arose within her.

After settling the future arrangements, sleepiness gradually appeared on Ono Yoko's face.

The troubles she had faced today had been more numerous than all those she would usually encounter in an entire week.

Now that the taut string in her heart had finally relaxed, she naturally felt exhausted in both body and mind.

Seeing this, Paimon immediately said, "If Miss Yoko is tired, you should get some rest early. We can slowly discuss everything else later. After all, we'll be neighbors from now on."

After Paimon took the idol to wash up, Yin Kong followed his usual habit and went to the quiet room.

Of course, now that Zhongli, the Geo Archon, was here, Paimon, the teacher who had "reluctantly" taken on the role, could naturally retire.

Zhongli was also somewhat surprised by Yin Kong's request for guidance.

After all, in his impression, the Traveler had always possessed a combat style uniquely his own.

"However, since you have asked, I naturally will not be stingy. I will teach you everything I know, but—"

Hearing the hesitation in Zhongli's tone, Yin Kong hurriedly asked, "But what?"

"It is simply that I am not entirely certain whether you can truly learn it, Traveler."

Zhongli paused, seemingly worried that Yin Kong might misunderstand, and immediately added, "Of course, I do not mean that your talent is insufficient. Rather, I can sense that your current condition is somewhat unusual."

With Zhongli's keen perception, he had naturally noticed long ago that the condition of his current incarnation was extremely unusual.

He neither felt hunger nor fatigue. Though he still had limits to his stamina, he only needed to rest for a few seconds for it to fully recover.

Even if he was injured by accident, so long as his health did not completely drop to zero, he could continue fighting without any effect.

Even if he fell, a few bites of food would instantly restore his combat ability.

"It is practically a perfect fighting machine. Unfortunately, excessive stability also brings drawbacks."

Zhongli used himself as an example.

"In theory, Genshin Eyes have no inherent superiority or inferiority. From the moment they are born, they are equivalent to granting authority to their holders.

It is the different understandings and applications of Elemental Power held by each wielder that create the gaps in strength between them."

Yet clearly, with the Geo Archon's mastery over Geo Elemental Power, even if he possessed only an incarnation—or even a mere wisp of consciousness—he could still easily bring the authority of a Genshin Eye to its limit.

"But in reality, not only the power of my Genshin Eye, but my martial skill, spirit, and even my control over the elements have all been severely restricted.

I presume they will only recover after the Traveler helps me upgrade each of those talent skills one by one."

Otherwise, no matter how weak this body was, a single Vortex Vanquisher from Zhongli could have sent the level fifty-nine [Chameleon Witch] straight away.

Yin Kong suddenly understood and also breathed a sigh of relief.

"So, Mr. Zhongli, you are worried that unless I unlock talents, I will have no way to learn and master new abilities?"

Zhongli nodded lightly in understanding.

"Because the condition of your body seems very similar to mine, Traveler, I had this concern. But now, it seems I was merely worrying unnecessarily."

The System's Limits

Yin Kong briefly described how he had successfully raised the level of his Normal Attack talent through practice.

After listening, Zhongli nodded thoughtfully.

"From the sound of it, you can both enjoy the effects of these items and avoid being bound or restricted by them—

I see. Rather than pursuing immediate gratification, Traveler, you chose to train diligently. As expected of you, you remain so extraordinary, with lofty aspirations and far-reaching ambitions."

Yin Kong clearly felt undeserving of Zhongli's lavish praise.

After all, his original reason for training was nowhere near as lofty as Zhongli had praised. He merely wanted to save some Mora and materials.

Seeing this, Zhongli smiled faintly, his tone calm.

"Once a person becomes accustomed to shortcuts, returning to the proper path of steady, grounded effort becomes little more than a fantasy."

The system's character development was indeed fast. So long as one had enough resources, a few taps of one's fingers could raise any "character" to a level that even made Zhongli take notice.

But was such speed truly without a price?

It was like Sumeru's Akasha Terminal. Once a person developed the habit of only passively receiving knowledge, their curiosity would diminish without limit, and they would almost completely lose their creativity.

The system was the same.

Zhongli could almost state with certainty that although Yin Kong was different from "characters" like them, if he chose simple and crude leveling methods such as Experience Books, his ability to grow on his own would rapidly decline.

Until he no longer had the strength to break free from the system's shackles.

"The system's power has limits. Level ninety is the limit for us [characters]. Perhaps a method to break through that ceiling will be found in the future, but it would likely only raise that ceiling, not remove it entirely.

I imagine that is not all you seek, Traveler?"

Yin Kong finally understood and nodded.

"As expected of Mr. Zhongli. Your insight is truly sharp."

Judging from Crow Feather Demon Blade Pill's performance, level ninety should already be extraordinarily powerful.

After all, the Oni Warrior, who was below level eighty, had nearly wiped out all the demons and monsters in Tokyo through the aftershocks of battle alone.

How powerful, then, would a level ninety character be?