Bai Ye climbed down from Yelan's arms.
He looked around.
Towering walls several meters high surrounded them, with only one path ahead.
Bai Ye frowned.
Then, he activated his Anemo Genshin Eye again and swiftly leaped into the air.
Once he rose higher than the walls, Bai Ye immediately felt immense pressure.
But that single glance was enough for him to see what lay beyond the walls.
A maze.
An endless maze built from walls.
It twisted and turned, with no telling how many paths, forks, or dead ends it contained.
"How is it?"
Yelan asked Bai Ye.
Bai Ye promptly told Yelan what he had seen.
"This..."
Yelan fell into thought.
Just then, the Fatui from earlier appeared in midair as well, then came crashing down like dumplings dropped into a pot.
The Debt Collector landed on his feet, while the Handgunner hit the ground on his back. The Wrist Blade Bai Ye had stuck into him nearly popped out, making Bai Ye's heart jump. If it had come loose, the man probably would not have survived. The other Fatui were slightly luckier than those two unfortunate fellows, but not by much.
"This method of teleportation really is brutal."
Bai Ye commented.
"Yes. Whether the Adepti who designed this mechanism intended it or not, anyone who appears here naturally enters a brief state of weightlessness and loses the ability to resist. Everyone who comes in has to take a fall."
Yelan nodded.
"Thanks for keeping me from taking that fall."
Yelan waved her hand. "It's nothing. Hurry up and figure out how to get us out of here. Otherwise, are we really going to feel our way through this maze inch by inch?"
She looked ahead, frowning slightly.
If Bai Ye could not think of a good solution, they could only use the stupidest method.
"Mm, I understand."
Bai Ye walked to the edge of the wall, wanting to see exactly what kind of design this mechanism had.
At the same time, he communicated with his teacher in his mind.
Before they entered, his teacher had said that this mechanism looked familiar.
"Teacher, Teacher, have you encountered this mechanism before?"
After a moment of silence,
Hagintos's voice sounded in Bai Ye's mind.
"Mm... I don't know. I can't remember. It just feels familiar instinctively, but I truly can't remember how it is familiar."
Her tone was somewhat dejected.
That would not do.
So Bai Ye quickly said, "Maybe you only encountered this mechanism once, Teacher. It's normal that you can't remember."
"No, that doesn't feel right. I'm certain I've seen this kind of mechanism more than once. It feels familiar, very familiar. At the very least, I feel as though I entered this kind of mechanism before. It should have been made by the same person."
Bai Ye placed his hand against the wall.
At the same time, he guided the remnant soul of his teacher.
He could temporarily let his teacher share his senses.
The moment they touched the wall,
Hagintos's tone became even more certain.
"I must have fought against the Adepti who made this mechanism."
"I'm certain of it! It's just that I can't quite remember now."
"Oh, I only have a faint impression left. It seems this mechanism has no other dangers. The walls are simply made of an extremely sturdy material that cannot be broken no matter what, so one can only walk out. I can't remember anything else..."
That really was not good news.
Bai Ye thought to himself after hearing her say that.
This was a mechanism made by an Adepti.
His teacher said she had fought against its creator, which meant they had at least been in conflict.
No.
He needed to hide himself even more carefully from the Adepti.
But the most important thing now was finding a way out.
"Then, Teacher, did you win?"
At that, Hagintos's tone instantly became confident.
"I won. I should have won. At least, among the memories remaining in my consciousness, my Art of Automata was the greatest. No one else's Art of Automata could compare to mine."
"Then how did you break this maze, Teacher?"
"Mm... let me think..."
Hagintos began to think.
Bai Ye began thinking as well.
The two of them rapidly ran through all the Art of Automata they knew in their minds.
Taking shortcuts, forcing it open, escaping...
After considering every possibility.
"I've got it!"
"I've got it!"
Bai Ye and Hagintos spoke at the same time.
Previously, Bai Ye had only muttered in his mind, but this last sentence came out as a shout.
"You found a way to break this mechanism?"
Yelan walked over at that moment.
She had been watching Bai Ye the entire time, seeing him ponder painstakingly beside the wall, and she had been quite worried.
Several times, she had wanted to tell Bai Ye that if he really could not figure out how to break the mechanism, they should just charge through it instead.
After all, she was fast enough on her feet. Spending more time trying would not be a big deal.
But now that Bai Ye said he had figured it out,
That was even more worth celebrating.
"Yes, I've found a way out."
Bai Ye said with a smile.
At the same time, he said to his teacher in his mind,
"Teacher, I'll need your help next."
"Mm-hm."
Hagintos was very happy.
At least she could still provide her disciple with help.
Yelan asked, "What can I do to help?"
"You?"
Bai Ye thought for a moment, then pointed at the Fatui behind them.
"Let's strip off their clothes!"
They would need quite a lot of thread next. Fortunately, they had these Fatui; otherwise, they would have had to strip Bai Ye's and Yelan's clothes.
The Fatui, who had been standing in the back watching the show, all widened their eyes.
The Mirror Maiden in particular clutched her chest tightly.
"You people of Liyue have an old saying: a scholar may be killed, but not humiliated!"
The Debt Collector shouted.
However,
Neither Bai Ye nor Yelan cared about the Fatui's feelings.
They stripped those Fatui nearly bare.
The men were left with a pair of pants.
As for the Mirror Maiden, her outfit was directly turned into a swimsuit version.
"What do we do next?"
Looking at the clothes that had been taken apart into threads, Yelan asked Bai Ye.
"Of course, we'll probe our way out bit by bit."
Bai Ye answered Yelan.
At the same time,
He began dismantling his Handheld Crossbows.
"What are you doing?"
Yelan asked curiously.
"I'm turning these Handheld Crossbows into moving robots, so they can replace us in probing what lies ahead."
Bai Ye dismantled six Handheld Crossbows and assembled them into more than a dozen mobile mechanisms.
With a little Art of Automata and Adeptal Arts added at the end,
More than a dozen pathfinding robots were complete.
Then he tied threads to the backs of those robots, making them easier to operate and retrieve.
I don't know how to navigate the maze, so I'll just walk every path.
With so many Fatui clothes turned into thread, and with the robots retrievable whenever they encountered dead ends, Bai Ye estimated that it would be enough to explore nearly the entire maze.
"You even know Adeptal Arts?"
Yelan asked Bai Ye.
"I know a little."
Bai Ye said indifferently.
There were not many people in Liyue Harbor who knew Adeptal Arts, but there were still some.
It was not much of a problem for Yelan to know.
He placed those robots on the ground.
"Go!"
He slapped the ground and gave a quiet shout in a clear voice.
The robots rushed out, trailing their threads behind them.
The next part required the cooperation of two people.
One person had to operate the robots while sensing their movements and determining whether to increase the exploration range. One person's mental capacity was not enough, but Bai Ye had his teacher.
With two people working together,
It became much easier.
After a while,
Bai Ye pointed ahead.
"Let's go."
He had already found the general route.
Bai Ye walked forward.
Without a second thought, Yelan followed him.
After some time,
The two of them arrived at the exit of the maze.
Looking at the light ahead,
Bai Ye let out a breath of relief.
They could finally get out.
And,
It was not as simple as merely getting out.
Bai Ye had a feeling,
That as long as he walked out, he would gain control of the maze map.
Before you continue