The Liyue Qixing's Stance

As soon as they pushed open the door, they were greeted by a table laden with food and wine.

It was Paimon's first time seeing a spread like this, and she could barely stop herself from diving straight in.

Just as she was about to dig into the food on the table, a wave of murderous intent made her sense that something was wrong.

Paimon turned and found Zhong Baiye glaring at her, practically radiating murderous intent.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

Paimon hurriedly apologized, patted the pastry she had already picked up, and put it back.

"It's just some food. What a cheapskate."

As Paimon put it back, she muttered under her breath.

But everyone present had a Vision and could hear her clearly.

Zhong Baiye felt he hadn't taught Paimon enough of a lesson today and was ready to deal her a heavy blow.

Lumine also knew Paimon had been in the wrong. Rather than stopping Zhong Baiye, she closed her eyes, unable to bear watching Paimon's fate.

"All right, all right. It's only some food."

At that moment, Childe stopped Zhong Baiye with a smile.

"Why don't you sit down first?"

Hearing Childe, Zhong Baiye stopped going after Paimon and found a seat with Lumine.

Only then did Zhong Baiye notice that someone besides Tartaglia was seated there.

He had heard a familiar voice outside the door earlier. Now that he looked, he saw that the person seated there was indeed Rex Lapis-Zhongli.

Zhongli recognized Zhong Baiye as well, and the two exchanged nods of acknowledgment.

"Let's get down to business."

Childe said nothing more about what had just happened and went straight to the day's topic, gesturing toward Zhongli beside him.

"Allow me to introduce Zhongli, a guest consultant at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. He's the person I mentioned who can help you solve your problem."

Paimon looked Zhongli over.

"I thought he was an assassin. He looks so cold. It's scary."

Lumine said nothing when she saw Zhongli, but she wondered whether the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor wasn't in that particular line of business. How could Zhongli help them?

Zhong Baiye said to Childe, "Mr. Zhongli and I have known each other for a long time. I never imagined he'd be able to help us."

Childe was a little surprised that Zhong Baiye knew Zhongli. He glanced at Zhongli, who nodded to confirm it.

Childe didn't dwell on it. After a moment's thought, he continued, "Have you considered what the key to this incident is?"

Without giving it much thought, Paimon casually replied, "The monsters, of course. They're everywhere outside right now. Once we deal with them, Liyue Harbor will be safe."

Childe neither agreed nor disagreed. He merely smiled.

Lumine and Zhong Baiye exchanged a glance and nodded at each other, then Lumine spoke.

"The key to this incident should be Rex Lapis, shouldn't it?"

Before Childe could answer, Zhongli spoke up beside him.

"Rex Lapis is Liyue's guardian. Those monsters recognize only his authority. Now that something has happened to him, it is only natural that they would emerge to wreak havoc."

With that, Zhongli picked up the hot tea beside him and settled into savoring it.

Seeing that Zhongli had no intention of continuing, Childe added,

"Rex Lapis is indeed the key to this incident. But I've received word that the Liyue Qixing seem to have hidden his remains. What we need to do now is find them."

Lumine didn't quite understand why they needed to do that, so she immediately asked Childe.

"Why do we need to find Rex Lapis's remains?"

Tartaglia merely smiled without answering. Instead, Zhong Baiye explained the reason to Lumine.

"Because Rex Lapis wouldn't die so easily. He must have left some contingency behind that can resolve this incident."

Hearing this only made Lumine more confused.

"In that case, the Liyue Qixing should be able to use his contingency to resolve this themselves. Why do we still need to find his remains?"

Zhong Baiye thought about it but couldn't work out the reason either. Seeing this, Childe answered.

"Do you know how the current Liyue Qixing feel about the adepti?"

When Zhong Baiye and the others fell silent, Tartaglia continued.

"The current Liyue Qixing are different from their predecessors. They believe the adepti have hindered Liyue's development. The people of Liyue shouldn't rely on the adepti's power, nor should they remain bound by them."

At this point, Childe seemed to think of something. He paused for a breath before continuing.

"Rex Lapis was the first adeptus. If the current Liyue Qixing used the contingency he left behind, they would consider it relying on the power of the adepti. That would go against their beliefs."

At last, Zhong Baiye and Lumine understood the reason.

Lumine and Paimon also recalled that Keqing seemed much the same, showing little respect for the adepti.

By all rights, the people of Liyue should have held the adepti in great reverence, yet the Liyue Qixing didn't think particularly highly of them.

They wanted to overcome this crisis through their own strength and prove that Liyue could still stand tall in the world without the adepti.

For them, then, relying on the contingency Rex Lapis had left behind was out of the question.

But Zhong Baiye and Lumine were different from the Liyue Qixing. He could use the power Rex Lapis had left behind to resolve this incident, with no need to consider the Qixing's feelings.

After all, countless lives in Liyue Harbor were at stake. If the Liyue Qixing failed, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Besides, to outsiders like Zhong Baiye and Lumine, the adepti and Liyue had long been one. Whether they relied on the adepti's power made no difference.

Thinking of the Liyue Qixing brought Keqing to Lumine's mind.

"Keqing must be in a difficult position too. Relying on Rex Lapis's power would mean denying their decades of effort, but if they don't, Liyue could face a terrible disaster."

Paimon hadn't thought that far ahead. Instead, she asked another question.

"I understand why we need to find Rex Lapis's remains now, but how can this assassin... oh, no, I mean Mr. Zhongli, help us find them?"

Rather than answering Paimon's question directly, Tartaglia began explaining the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to her.

"The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is a traditional institution in Liyue. 'Wangsheng' means passing on, so they handle the arrangements after each person in Liyue dies."

Paimon immediately understood and exclaimed in surprise.

"Doesn't that just mean they do things for dead people? That still won't help us find Rex Lapis's remains."

Seeing Paimon's clueless expression, Zhong Baiye pressed a hand to his forehead and explained, "Rex Lapis is also one of Liyue's people. He just happens to be an adeptus."

Childe smiled and said to Paimon, "In the past, whenever Rex Lapis descended, a Rite of Descension was held for him. Under the present circumstances, naturally, we must hold a Rite of Parting for him."

Zhongli, who had been absorbed in savoring his tea beside them, spoke up then as well.