Cremation

(Brain Storage)

"Phew..." Lin Yiyi let out a long breath, lay back on the bed, and continued studying that Teyvat app.

After sending Zhongli and Hu Tao back, Lin Yiyi wanted to invite other people over to visit his world.

After all, he could invite them without limit and without a time restriction. Why not?

This time, after searching around, his gaze settled on the face of a pink-haired older beauty.

Yae Miko

Character Level: Lv. 90

HP: 16053

ATK: 2193

DEF: 569

CRIT Rate: 90.7%

CRIT DMG: 252.8%

Elemental Mastery: 79

Energy Recharge: 100%

Electro DMG Bonus: 46.6%

Weapon: Kagura's Verity

Weapon Level: Lv. 90

Refinement Rank: 5

Normal Attack Talent Level: 9

Elemental Skill Talent Level: 13

Elemental Burst Talent Level: 12

Constellation: C6

Artifact Set: 4-piece Golden Troupe

It was worth mentioning that when Yae Miko used the Golden Troupe artifact set, he could consider switching to an ATK Goblet. Since Lin Yiyi preferred an Elemental DMG Goblet, he had not changed it.

She was also one of the few characters whose talents Lin Yiyi had not maxed out, because he had gotten lazy too.

Since he had this Lady Guuji, he had to mention her other companion as well.

Lin Yiyi then looked at the purple-haired sister.

Raiden Shogun

Character Level: Lv. 90

HP: 18948

ATK (after weapon effect triggered): 2002

DEF: 894

CRIT Rate: 73.8%

CRIT DMG: 200.0%

Elemental Mastery: 19

Energy Recharge: 270.6%

Electro DMG Bonus: 46.6%

Weapon: Engulfing Lightning

Weapon Level: Lv. 90

Refinement Rank: 5

Normal Attack Talent Level: 9

Elemental Skill Talent Level: 12

Elemental Burst Talent Level: 13

Constellation: C6

Artifact Set: 4-piece Emblem of Severed Fate

The only reason Lin Yiyi wanted to bring those two over was because...

The Narukami duo was just too ship-worthy!

But considering that the two of them might not be together, Lin Yiyi decided to invite Yae Miko over first.

And as someone who loved having fun, she would definitely agree without hesitation because of the novelty of another world.

Once she realized how fun this world was, she would return and tell Ei, that blockhead. Tempted by her familiar, Ei could not possibly refuse to come.

Then both of them would arrive in this world together!

That was what Lin Yiyi thought, but when he checked the time, it was already very late.

Remembering that he still had to cremate the deceased early the next morning, all his earlier excitement vanished.

Those two held positions far more noble than anyone before them, whether it was Hu Tao of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor or the young lady of the Yashiro Commission.

Even though Zhongli had once been the Geo Archon, he had relinquished his divine position and become an ordinary person.

Besides, he had only come to spend time with him because Hu Tao was coming.

Unlike Ei and Miko, one was a lofty deity, while the other was her familiar and also held the position of Guuji.

Would people of such high status truly lower themselves to come here?

Lin Yiyi struggled inwardly for a while. After thinking it over and over, he finally gave up.

"Forget it. I'll talk about it tomorrow. I'm going to sleep first."

After taking a shower and scrubbing his clothes clean, the young man changed into a short-sleeved shirt and lay down on the hotel's soft, spacious bed.

The sun rose in the east on schedule, pale golden sunlight streaming through the window as though urging the young man to get up.

The whole room was tinged with a warm glow as the young man slowly opened his eyes.

It was 8:02. The time was about right.

After washing up, Lin Yiyi picked up his backpack, bit into the bread he had bought the night before, and checked out.

Once today's business was finished, the young man would continue his journey.

This journey had never had an endpoint. Wandering from place to place, traveling the world, and seeing all its different facets—that was what he wanted to do.

He waved from the roadside, and a taxi carried him toward the funeral home.

"Little Lin, you're here. Where are your two friends?"

The moment he stepped into the mourning hall, he saw Xu Nian walking toward him.

His face was full of exhaustion, his eyes bloodshot and utterly devoid of light. After toiling day and night these past few days, he looked somewhat haggard.

"They had something to do today, so they won't be coming."

"The earlier we get here, the earlier we can cremate her. After that, we can place the ashes in the cemetery."

The young man explained as he looked around. Nearly everyone had arrived, and they were almost all Xu Nian's friends.

Unfortunately, the old woman had only Xu Nian as her son.

"Anyone born in the Year of the Dragon, Ox, Horse, or Tiger? Come help carry the ice coffin."

Lin Yiyi called over the funeral home staff and transferred the body into another paper coffin, making it easier to send it for cremation later.

Before long, the group set off in a grand procession.

This journey marked a final farewell.

Once the body was sent into the cremation furnace, there would no longer be any trace of her left in this world.

Xu Nian, the mourning son at the back, was undoubtedly the most grief-stricken person there. Losing a loved one felt no different from the sky collapsing, turning the entire world dim and colorless.

Having lost his father as a child, he had been raised single-handedly by his mother. He felt as though his heart had been hollowed out, leaving behind nothing but endless emptiness and loneliness.

Memories were like sharp blades, piercing through our hearts again and again with every wave of longing.

Boundless sorrow battered Xu Nian's thoughts, erupting completely at this moment.

His sobs were heart-wrenching, and tears streamed down like beads from a snapped string, impossible to stop.

"Ding, ding, ding..."

Walking at the head of the procession, the young man held the Three Purities Bell. As he scattered spirit money around him, he shook the bell, opening a new road for the departed.

The clear chime entered everyone's ears, signaling that the dead had embarked on their final journey.

Why was it that, even though this was not his first time doing this, he still felt so miserable whenever he took charge?

To him, today's cremation seemed longer than any before it. He did not know why.

If he had to put it into words, it was because the ones leaving were the parents who had loved their child most dearly.

Listening to the cries behind him, the young man felt something indescribable in his heart. He had no parents, so he understood just how fortunate children with someone to love them were.

When the broad figures of one's parents vanished, the blow dealt in that instant would linger for a long time, perhaps even for life.

All it left behind was longing.

Indeed, people would argue with their parents many times in their lives and have countless conflicts with them, yet their parents would still offer them the greatest and most selfless love.

No matter how mischievous they were or how much trouble they caused, their parents would only beat and scold them. Afterward, they could wipe their noses and go right back to grinning like fools.

So how could one not grieve when they passed away?

Lin Yiyi felt that this final send-off was the longest he had ever experienced. After an unknown amount of time, they arrived at the cremation area.

The staff took the paper coffin carrying the remains and placed it onto the conveyor belt.

"Please wait outside."

Xu Nian crouched on the ground with his head buried against his body. His expression could not be seen, but his body trembled without stop, as if he were trying desperately to suppress his emotions.

Perhaps his heart was filled with sorrow and pain.

At some point, the sky gradually darkened. The young man brushed the dust from his clothes, leaned against a tree, and revealed a trace of indescribable emotion in his eyes.

A faint breeze rose, gently lifting his Daoist robe as though urging him not to be too sorrowful. His silhouette looked so bleak and lonely.

What was the meaning of cultivating for an entire lifetime?

Was it to watch person after person disappear before one's eyes?

The young man sighed and looked toward the chimney atop the building, where wisps of black smoke drifted out.

Those strands of black smoke came from human bodies being burned.

The corpse was burned at high temperatures until all moisture, viscera, organs, and everything else were reduced to nothing. Only brittle, charred bones remained, which were then crushed into ash and placed in a box.

Humans were vast enough to hold up a sky.

Humans were small enough to fit inside a single box.