Raiden Shogun

The wanted notice from Narukami Island did not just leave Wang Lei dumbfounded; even Kujou Sara was stunned.

Kujou Sara stated that before she had come to Kannazuka, there had absolutely been no warrant for Wang Lei on Narukami Island. Otherwise, she would certainly have recognized him immediately.

Moreover, Wang Lei's movements over the past nine days were perfectly clear. He had done nothing worthy of being wanted. On the contrary, he had rendered great service. Clearly, after Yang Jie's group of five returned to Narukami Island, someone had issued this warrant in an attempt to frame Wang Lei.

But the messenger insisted that the warrant had been personally ordered by the Raiden Shogun. Kujou Sara had no way to deal with that, so she decided to personally escort Wang Lei to Tenshukaku to meet the Raiden Shogun.

She also stated that if Wang Lei truly had committed some grave crime, she would never forgive him. But if he had been wrongfully accused, then his innocence had to be restored.

Wang Lei actually found the matter extremely suspicious. Logically speaking, even if the Kujou Family wanted to renege on his reward, they should not have used such a stupid method. And they had even impersonated the Raiden Shogun to issue a wanted notice.

To be honest, seeing that the Energy Points in his system had already exceeded one hundred thousand, Wang Lei was quite satisfied. His purpose in coming here had been completely fulfilled. Even if he returned now, he would not lose out.

Still, Wang Lei did not want to waste the favorability he had painstakingly built up with Kujou Sara. He definitely had not committed any crime. If he returned now and vanished without a trace, it would practically confirm that he had a guilty conscience. It would become very difficult for him to operate in Inazuma in the future.

So Wang Lei decided to accept Kujou Sara's suggestion and meet the Raiden Shogun. Surely the Raiden Shogun would not just chop him down on sight, right? As long as he had time to react. The system description stated that he could return at any time. At worst, if things really went bad, he could just run.

Because of Kujou Sara's guarantee, Wang Lei was not imprisoned at all on the journey to Narukami Island. They merely confiscated his machete and dagger.

Of course, although system-conjured items could be separated from Wang Lei by quite some distance, that distance was only one or two kilometers. Once they exceeded it, the things created by the system would disappear on their own, and he naturally would no longer be able to harvest Energy Points.

However, some of the Remnants of the Demon God Energy overflowing from the Mikage Furnace had already been absorbed, so it would at least not overflow again anytime soon. He could wait until he had another chance to harvest the rest later, or wait for the Traveler to deal with it.

Inazuma City, Tenshukaku. In Wang Lei's memories of the game Genshin Impact, this was also a deeply memorable place. After all, Wang Lei had once thought that La Signora, one of the Fatui Harbingers, would eventually become a playable character. Instead, she had entered a boss battle here, turned to ashes, and completely shattered any hope of ever controlling her.

Yet upon arriving at the real Tenshukaku, even Wang Lei, who was accustomed to seeing modern skyscrapers, could not help marveling at the exquisite craftsmanship of Inazuma's people.

The entire Tenshukaku could be said to have been built by carving a flat platform and foundation from the upper half of a mountain peak, then constructing a magnificent palace atop it.

As he made his way upward, Wang Lei could fully sense the weight the Raiden Shogun held among Inazuma's people. Perhaps it was just psychological, but the closer he came to the building at the highest level where the Raiden Shogun resided, the more he felt as if an eye were watching him.

Wang Lei had originally thought that even after arriving at Tenshukaku, there would be many procedures before he could personally meet the Raiden Shogun. But unexpectedly, Kujou Sara led him straight to the Raiden Shogun without any obstruction. She had not even restrained his hands or feet.

After the customary announcement of his name and bowing in salute, Wang Lei looked toward Inazuma's deity, seated steadily in the place of honor.

How should he describe her? She looked exactly like the Raiden Shogun in Wang Lei's mind. Except her expression was exceptionally cold, as though she were a god entirely devoid of emotional fluctuations.

But considering that the current Raiden Shogun—or rather, Raiden Ei—had not yet had her personality corrected by the Traveler, and was single-mindedly pursuing unchanging eternity, it made sense. She had secluded herself in the Plane of Euthymia for nearly five hundred years. Naturally, she would not be moved just because Wang Lei had appeared.

At that moment, the Raiden Shogun spoke in an icy tone.

"Wang Lei of Liyue, according to Kujou Sara's report, you resolved the explosion crisis at the Mikage Furnace in Tatarasuna, while also repairing the Ley Line Disorder caused by the Thunder Sakura Tree."

Since he had a way out, Wang Lei was not afraid at this moment. He replied neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Yes. However, regarding the Mikage Furnace in Tatarasuna, I can only say that I treated the symptoms, not the root cause. I merely dispersed the Remnants of the Demon God Energy accumulated within it. If the people of Inazuma continue using ore containing remnants of the Demon God to operate the furnace, similar problems will inevitably arise sooner or later. As for the Thunder Sakura Tree's Ley Line Disorder, that has been resolved. Aki Shrine Maiden from the Grand Narukami Shrine provided great assistance."

The Raiden Shogun nodded after hearing this.

"Very good. Since you have indeed resolved disasters that threatened Inazuma, I shall reward you. But you must first explain why you trespassed into the place where I secluded myself in meditation."

The moment those words were spoken, Kujou Sara was completely dumbfounded. No matter what, she had never imagined that Wang Lei had dared to trespass into the place where the Shogun secluded herself. His audacity was far too great. No wonder the Shogun had personally issued a warrant for his arrest.

Wang Lei was instantly bewildered. When had he ever trespassed into the Raiden Shogun's place of seclusion?

But Wang Lei immediately recalled the strange phenomenon that had occurred near the Statue of The Seven when he had first arrived in Inazuma, and hurriedly explained.

"Honored Raiden Shogun, could there be some misunderstanding here? Today should be the first time I have ever met you. Hmm, no—could it be that I was not dreaming that time at the Statue of The Seven? But I only touched the Statue of The Seven in Kannazuka with my hand."

The Raiden Shogun showed no reaction to Wang Lei's explanation and directly pronounced judgment.

"It seems you understand the situation as well. This is also the first time I have encountered an ordinary God's Eye bearer who could connect to my consciousness merely by touching a Statue of The Seven. You are an exception. Exceptions are the enemy of eternity. Therefore, you cannot be allowed to remain. Rest assured, I will send your reward to Liyue and deliver it to your relatives."

Having said that, the Raiden Shogun rose to her feet. Perhaps Wang Lei was too weak, so there was no need for Musou Isshin, and the famous scene of drawing a sword from her chest did not occur. Instead, Engulfing Lightning appeared directly in the Raiden Shogun's hand as she slowly walked toward Wang Lei.

At that moment, Wang Lei felt as though the air around him had become viscous. Under the godlike pressure of the Raiden Shogun, he could not move even a finger. He could only watch as the Raiden Shogun approached him expressionlessly.

Just as Wang Lei could no longer withstand the pressure and was about to activate the system to return to the Super God Universe, a sly female voice suddenly sounded from behind him.

"Wait a moment. This little brother Wang Lei is not an exception. It is perfectly normal that he can connect to your consciousness. Don't be in such a hurry to act."

Upon hearing that voice, the Raiden Shogun halted her approach toward Wang Lei and murmured, "Yae Miko..."