"..."
(っ-)
"??"
When sleepy-eyed Annie had reluctantly—and only after much pestering from Klee—finally gotten out of bed and been dragged by her to the circular platform right in front of the Jade Chamber, the two sides who had been facing off, and whom little Klee had insisted were just about to start fighting, had already made peace and joined one another. They were chatting and laughing as if they were all getting along splendidly?
At that moment, the Jade Chamber was flying through the air. The sea was already in sight, and they were just about to reach the skies above Liyue Harbor.
"Ah!"
!(;o)o
Then Annie noticed that there were a few people in the crowd she didn't recognize, or who shouldn't have been aboard the Jade Chamber in the first place.
For example: the tattooed punk who'd once gotten into bad habits, tried to sneak a peek in the middle of the night, and nearly been beaten to death by Tibbers; a smiling old lady; and two very, very large divine cranes, each with legs that probably weighed several pounds?
"Strange!"
(⊙⊙)
"Since when were there so many people and animals here?"
(′▽‵)
There were indeed a lot of people around, but calling the others animals wasn't quite right. They were the adepti Cloud Retainer and Mountain Shaper, two of Liyue's mighty adepti. They took on animal forms to distinguish themselves from mortals and show their different status.
After all, Liyue's "Three-Eyed, Five-Manifested Adepti" had quite a history.
It was said that the "Five Manifestations" in their title referred to several abilities only the adepti could master: creating something from nothing and transforming into all things; discerning the nature of all things and understanding the world; the supreme, wondrous art of wandering through dreams; returning to one's