Riding Hu Tao's Spirit Vehicle

When Bai Ye woke the next morning, Xiao had already left.

Bai Ye had slept incredibly well, even better than he did in his own bed.

Mainly because Ganyu was beside him. As a qilin, a half-adeptus beast, the aura she gave off while asleep brought a bone-deep sense of comfort to someone like Bai Ye, who cultivated Adeptal Arts.

It had thoroughly relieved Bai Ye's fatigue.

Bai Ye looked at the note Xiao had left behind. It said that he had departed, and that Bai Ye could find him at Wangshu Inn if anything came up.

Ganyu woke up soon afterward.

She yawned and stretched.

"Ah~"

Her arms reached high above her head, showing off her lovely figure.

That sleep had been truly comfortable.

Just as she could help Bai Ye sleep comfortably, the aura emanating from Bai Ye made Ganyu feel as though she had returned to Mt. Aocang.

On top of that, Bai Ye had played hypnotic music for her.

Ganyu had gotten an excellent night's sleep as well.

Her whole body felt light, as though she had shed layer after layer of heavy shells.

"It would be nice if I could sleep like that a few more times. Ah..."

She said it without thinking.

Only after saying it did she remember that Bai Ye was beside her. She immediately lowered her arms, her face flushing as red as a boiled shrimp.

"Um..."

What had she just said?!

Wasn't that far too embarrassing?

Bai Ye was only fourteen or fifteen!

But being around him was just too relaxing.

Ganyu had not thought about anything between men and women. She simply felt genuinely comfortable around Bai Ye.

She wanted to stay with him a little longer.

Seeing how embarrassed she was, Bai Ye quickly said,

"Xiao has already left. Let's get something to eat, then continue with our plans."

"Mm-hmm."

Ganyu nodded hurriedly.

Bai Ye began looking around.

The lunchbox he had brought earlier had long been lost during the battle, so they could only eat some wild food now.

Bai Ye was starting to hope the Treasure Hoarders would show up.

Back when he had been out in the wilderness, he had relied on the Treasure Hoarders' "generous donations" to fill his stomach.

After finding several Sunsettias, Bai Ye brought them back.

Seeing that they were Sunsettias, Ganyu breathed a sigh of relief.

Not bad.

Eating these would not make her gain weight.

As they ate, Ganyu said to Bai Ye, "The Demon-Queller has already checked everything from here to Wangshu Inn, so there is no need to investigate monsters or remnants of ancient gods along the way again. The road conditions have been checked as well. I think we can head to Wangshu Inn first to rest up, then continue our work."

"Mm."

Bai Ye agreed with Ganyu.

Xiao had already investigated Ganyu's side of things thoroughly. As for Bai Ye's side, there was no need to investigate at all; everything had to be torn down and rebuilt from scratch, so there was no point looking any further.

After eating several Sunsettias and putting something in their stomachs, the two prepared to head north for Wangshu Inn.

They returned to the main road.

They walked with their heads lowered.

Both of them had recovered their strength, and their steps were light.

As Ganyu walked beside Bai Ye, the comfortable aura around him left her full of energy.

Bai Ye, however, found it rather boring.

"You know, it would be nice if someone drove by and gave us a lift right about now."

Bai Ye could not help saying to Ganyu.

"How could that happen? Why would a vehicle happen to pass by at a time like this?"

Ganyu smiled as she answered.

"Yeah, what are the chances..." Bai Ye was about to nod along.

But halfway through the motion, he heard a rumbling sound.

Wasn't that the sound of an engine from one of the vehicles he had made?

Bai Ye turned to look behind him.

Ganyu turned around as well.

Then, in their line of sight, a vehicle came speeding toward them in an extremely outrageous manner.

Its outrageous driving included, but was not limited to, swerving between lanes, drifting through turns, speeding, and weaving in an S-shape.

It was as outrageous as could be.

Fortunately, there were not many people around that morning. Otherwise, an accident might have happened.

Bai Ye was extremely familiar with the owner of that vehicle.

"Hu Tao, stop!"

He shouted at the vehicle.

Upon hearing him call out, the car that was currently performing a Spirit Vehicle drift immediately came to a stop.

"Who is that?"

Ganyu asked Bai Ye.

"The director of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. She's one of my good friends too. I made that vehicle myself."

"I see."

Ganyu nodded.

The two of them then walked over.

Once they reached the Spirit Vehicle, Hu Tao got out.

Seeing Bai Ye and Ganyu, she said in surprise,

"Wow, what a coincidence! Why are you two out here so early? Don't tell me you spent the whole night in the wilderness?"

Bai Ye nodded. "Mm, we were investigating the land around Guili Plains last night, so we did not go back. Next, we're heading north to Wangshu Inn, then all the way to the border between Stone Gate and Mondstadt. What about you? Where are you going?"

He wanted to see whether he could hitch a ride.

"Huh? What a coincidence?"

Hearing Bai Ye say that, Hu Tao immediately said in delight.

"I received a commission from over there too. They asked me to bring several adventurers back to Liyue Harbor. Bai Ye, do you two want to come with me?"

Now that was convenient.

Hearing Hu Tao's words, Bai Ye thought to himself.

"That would be great."

Bai Ye nodded happily.

Although Ganyu felt a little regretful that she could not keep walking with Bai Ye, she thought he might not have rested enough yet, so it was better to take care of him.

The two of them got into the vehicle.

Bai Ye examined the vehicle he had modified.

Hu Tao had decorated the interior in all sorts of ways too.

There were many Wangsheng Funeral Parlor ornaments hanging inside, while the back of the car was piled with yellow and white flowers.

Several coffins sat on top of the flowers.

"These coffins haven't been used yet. If you're tired, you can rest inside them."

Seeing Bai Ye looking at the coffins, Hu Tao said that to him.

"No need."

Even Ganyu and Bai Ye were not as unfazed by such things as Hu Tao.

"Suit yourselves."

Seeing their reactions, Hu Tao shrugged.

She returned to the driver's seat.

"Come on, Bai Ye. Take a look at how my driving has improved. I'm telling you, I've been practicing hard lately."

Practicing hard?

Bai Ye thought about the driving skills Hu Tao had displayed just now.

"I know you're anxious for Wangsheng Funeral Parlor business, but no matter how little business you have, you can't just crash into people on the road to create more."

He said it to Hu Tao with complete sincerity.

Hearing Bai Ye say that, Ganyu burst out laughing.

Hu Tao clenched her little fist and thumped Bai Ye on the shoulder several times. Then she said, "Hey, hey, hey! Bad driving is bad driving, but you don't have to put it like that. I know I haven't practiced enough yet, so I only drive like this in places where there aren't any people. Once there are people around, I'll naturally slow down."

"Mm."

Bai Ye nodded.

The three of them then sat down in the front seats.

Since there was no gearshift by design, Bai Ye had connected the driver's seat and passenger seat together to keep things simple. The three of them could sit side by side perfectly.

Hu Tao started the vehicle.

As she did, she asked Bai Ye, "By the way, Bai Ye, what do you think this Wangsheng Funeral Parlor business vehicle is still lacking? Is there anything else I should add?"

"Add?"

Bai Ye thought about it.

"Maybe it needs some music? If you played music while driving the Spirit Vehicle, it might have a better effect."

Hearing Bai Ye's words, Hu Tao immediately nodded.

"That's right, that's right! Bai Ye, you must have some kind of device that can preserve sound. Sell one to me. Later, I'll record some music and play it whenever I'm transporting someone. For example, I could find Xinyan and have her record some songs for me."

"Xinyan does rock music, right? I meant we should use something more solemn."

Hearing Hu Tao's idea, both Ganyu and Bai Ye were speechless.

"Is that so..."

Hu Tao thought about it, then admitted, "In that case, Bai Ye, help me with the songs too. We'll settle on a proper price later, and I'll pay you afterward."

"Mm-hmm."

Hearing Hu Tao say that, Bai Ye was delighted at the thought of making another small profit.

At the same time,

he decided that it was about time to add car music players to his plans.

When Yun Jin performed opera and Liu Tiezui told stories, he would ask whether they could record something.

Hehe...

Bai Ye once again imagined himself making money.

Ganyu looked toward Hu Tao.

Hu Tao started the vehicle at that moment.

As she drove, she complained, "He's good at everything except one thing—he's a total money-grubber. Whenever he sees Mora, it's like he has seen his own father. I keep wondering, since he loves Mora so much, why does he have an Anemo Vision instead of a Geo one? As long as he can earn Mora, he's incredibly happy. And he's stingy with himself too. Other than buying Floating Stone, he doesn't have any hobbies that waste money."

"Floating Stone... Bai Ye needs Floating Stone."

Ganyu silently committed that to memory.

If she got the chance, she would help him look for some.

At that moment, Bai Ye came back to his senses. Afraid that Hu Tao would mention Floating Stone again and make Ganyu suspicious, he quickly said, "By the way, isn't Stone Gate guarded by the Millelith? How could several adventurers die there at the same time?"

"That... I've been wondering about it too."

Hearing Bai Ye's question, Hu Tao said in agreement.

"The area around Stone Gate is a garrison zone. There shouldn't be any large monsters there at all. So how those adventurers died really is a very strange matter."

As she said that, her tone grew excited.

"Do you think we might get to play guest roles as great detectives this time?"