Although Xiao felt that Yucheng was being disrespectful toward a god, he was disparaging Mondstadt's god on Liyue's territory. As an adeptus of Liyue, why should Xiao concern himself with that?
Still, if what Yucheng said was true, this god of Mondstadt sounded rather frivolous. His behavior seemed a little like that of Rex Lapis...
At that moment, an image surfaced in Xiao's mind: a mature man in an extravagant uniform strolling through Liyue's streets with a pet bird, admiring flowers, listening to music, sipping tea, and appraising antiques.
Xiao struggled to push those images out of his mind. No, no, no. Lord Rex Lapis must have some profound, unknown purpose behind those actions.
"Oh, right. If you truly don't have the time, Adeptus Xiao, you can prepare a feast here and wait during Liyue's Lantern Rite."
"Why?"
"The Anemo Archon loves lively gatherings, because wherever things get lively, there's good food and wine. Every year during Liyue's Lantern Rite, he comes to Liyue to freeload on food and drink. Rex Lapis knows about it too."
"Lantern Rite..." In truth, Xiao hated Lantern Rite most of all. He thought it was merely a time when humans filled Liyue Harbor with glowing rubbish. Moreover, on the night of Lantern Rite, the gods suppressed by Rex Lapis throughout Liyue would unleash extraordinary amounts of resentment and residue in their half-dreaming, half-waking state. This created an enormous workload for Xiao, requiring him to perform [Bane of All Evil] and fight throughout the night.
Still, after the fighting ended, when he watched the sky lanterns people lit illuminate the night sky and the nearby sea, with Liyue Harbor kept safe through his efforts, a peculiar, inexplicable feeling would rise in Xiao's heart.
"Then... what is the second condition?"
"The second condition is to wait until the time is right. That perilous place is fraught with danger. You need to wait for a few dependable companions to go with you. Don't be so quick to refuse. Even at your peak, there will still be times when you're powerless.
"Go fulfill the first condition first. As for the second, I'll tell you when the time is right. Just wait patiently. Bosacius is already dead. Waiting a little longer won't make any difference. All right, that's that. It's time I left too. Qiqi, let's go."
With that, Yucheng took Qiqi's hand and headed downstairs, leaving Xiao alone. Although Xiao wanted to ask him to stay longer, he could not find an excuse on the spot. In that brief moment of distraction, Yucheng and Qiqi had already disappeared from the top floor.
Xiao looked at the plate of almond tofu on the table, which had long since gone cold. After much deliberation, he finally sat down and ate all the almond tofu, one bite at a time.
Yes, even completely cold, the almond tofu still had the same texture, just like those [sweet dreams] of the past.
The owner, Verr Goldet, had been watching Yucheng and Qiqi from the shadows. The instant she saw them coming downstairs, she put on her usual welcoming smile. As Yucheng and Qiqi passed the front desk, she bowed to them as well. "Please come again."
Once Yucheng and Qiqi were gone, Verr Goldet merely gave a meaningful glance, and the innkeeper, Huai'an, who stood nearby, dashed up to the top floor. By then, however, the top floor was already deserted, with only an empty plate left on the table.
Huai'an swiftly searched the top floor for anything suspicious and any clues, but found nothing besides that empty plate. He could only take it downstairs and explain the situation to his wife.
After hearing her husband's explanation, Verr Goldet took advantage of a quiet moment to write a note, using the front desk as cover. She tucked it into a messenger pigeon's pouch, then released the bird.
The messenger pigeon flew off in the direction of the Jade Chamber.
The pigeon flew over the Guili Plains, crossed Mt. Tianheng, passed through Liyue Harbor, and headed straight for the Jade Chamber high in the sky. It finally landed in one of the Jade Chamber's pavilions, where a staff member assigned to the task deftly removed the note from the pouch on its leg, then released it.
The staff member jogged over and handed the note to Baiwen, one of Ningguang's three secretaries. Recognizing the style of the note, Baiwen knew it was intelligence from Wangshu Inn and immediately passed it to Ningguang.
After reading it, Ningguang could not help frowning. The note contained only a few brief lines: An unidentified young man accompanied by Qiqi, Bubu Pharmacy's herb-gathering child, went up to the top floor carrying a plate of almond tofu and remained there for fifty minutes. Please verify the young man's identity. This was followed by details of the unidentified young man's height, build, hairstyle, clothing, and other features.
Wangshu Inn was a property under Ningguang, the Tianquan. Naturally, its staff, innkeeper, and even its owner were all Ningguang's people. They all knew that the inn's top floor was reserved specifically for the Conqueror of Demons. It could be said that Wangshu Inn existed to make it easier for Xiao to subdue demons.
Wangshu Inn provided Xiao with intelligence on monsters throughout Liyue, and Xiao then went to subdue them. Their cooperation was very pleasant. It could be said that it was precisely because of the Conqueror of Demons that Liyue enjoyed its current state of general harmony and stability.
It was also because of the Conqueror of Demons that Ningguang dared to station only a small number of Millelith at a place as important as Wangshu Inn to maintain order. The main force of the Millelith remained stationed at the Golden House, The Chasm, and within Liyue city.
Thus, nothing concerning the Conqueror of Demons was a trivial matter, especially now that someone of unknown identity had spent nearly an hour on the top floor. Nothing like this had happened in years. It had to be reported to Ningguang.
After reading the note, Ningguang handed it to Baixiao and ordered, "Give this note to Yanshang Teahouse. Have them investigate the person described on it. I want all his information."
"Yes." Baixiao quietly withdrew. Ningguang sat in her chair with a troubled expression, thinking, What is going on today? This morning, Ganyu asked for leave and her wages, and this afternoon, the Conqueror of Demons held a secret discussion with a mysterious person for an hour. Did these adepti and illuminated beasts all agree to do this today? Could this also be Cloud Retainer's doing?
At that moment, a certain adeptal bird cultivating in seclusion in her abode suddenly sneezed for no reason, forcibly interrupting her meditation. Cloud Retainer opened her eyes in confusion and carefully examined her entire body, but found nothing unusual.
"How strange. Could someone be speaking of me?"
"Master, what's wrong?" At that moment, a tall, full-figured, white-haired woman with a cool expression appeared before the adeptal bird.
"Ah, Shenhe. One is fine. One merely sensed some ill intent just now. Since one's secluded cultivation has been interrupted, one shall seek out an old friend for a divination. Since one will not be in the abode, you need not remain here attending to one either. You may descend the mountain and spend some time traveling the mortal world."
With that, without waiting for Shenhe to agree, Cloud Retainer rose into the air and flew out of the abode.
Shenhe was speechless. Suddenly feeling hungry, she also left the abode, intending to pick some Qingxin nearby to fill her stomach. Yet after searching the nearby mountains for ages, she could not find even a single berry, let alone any Qingxin.
How strange. There had been plenty of Qingxin on Mt. Aocang before. How had they all vanished at once?
Shenhe was not yet an adeptus and still needed food to satisfy her hunger. But there was no food on Mt. Aocang, and drinking water alone would not fill her stomach. Did she really have to leave the mountain?
Standing high on the mountain, Shenhe gazed toward distant Liyue Harbor and made up her mind. Since I'm leaving the mountain, I might as well go somewhere farther away.
Before you continue