In the end, Annie naturally didn't release the ancient demon god Azhdaha.
After all, before the decisive battle, she'd only promised to set him free if he managed to crush Miss Yun Jin or beat her. But in the end, he'd done neither. All he'd managed was one last thrash of his tail before they both died together.
So at most, that counted as a draw!
So, since Annie thought the fight had been just barely entertaining enough and didn't plan to continue, he had no choice but to keep slumbering underground and go through the long process of rebirth, which would likely take hundreds or even thousands of years.
After the fierce duel ended, Azhdaha still trapped beneath the seal, and Yun Jin resurrected on the spot despite being sliced into several pieces by his tail, Mr. Zhongli had thought it over and found himself with nothing to say. So he simply slunk off.
After all, he still held the position of a consultant at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor and needed to return to Liyue Harbor to oversee matters related to the Geo Archon's "send-off" ceremony. His schedule was packed, and he didn't have much time to linger here on Mt. Hulao.
In short!
Neither he nor Annie told Yun Jin who he really was.
And Yun Jin, still caught up in the excitement of defeating a demon god and the frustration of her careless defeat, truly believed he'd come by chance—that he'd only come to Mt. Hulao because he needed to make preparations for the ceremony and gather certain materials. So she didn't ask any further questions.
?
Night fell...
At that moment, at the mouth of the mountain valley that lay east of Mt. Hulao and south of Qingyun Peak, along the main road to Jueyun Karst,