After Jingliu finally blended into the group, the atmosphere became much more natural.
At the very least, it was no longer painfully awkward.
Everyone was chatting and laughing again.
"You were never this lively back in Snezhnaya."
The Cryo Archon had never seen Su Ran this animated while he was in Snezhnaya.
Even among the Harbingers who got along well with him, none seemed to share this kind of rapport.
"That's because I was matching the organization's atmosphere. The Fatui are such a serious group. If I started causing trouble all the time, wouldn't I be the odd one out?"
People who don't fit in tend to get ostracized.
Though admittedly, there were a few Harbingers who got along quite well with one another.
"...But you already caused plenty of trouble."
The Cryo Archon covered her forehead.
This guy had stirred up quite a few incidents in both Inazuma and Liyue.
And the enormous crater outside Snezhnaya City still hadn't been filled in.
If someone accidentally fell into it—
There'd be no need for rescue.
They'd practically be buried on the spot.
The hole was so large that an ordinary person falling in would fit perfectly.
"Slander. I barely did anything."
"The giant crater outside the city says otherwise."
Su Ran fell silent.
That one had indeed been his doing.
"But Columbina shares responsibility for that. I was only proving that my inventions are the real deal!"
Building a floating cannon wasn't easy.
Not only had he increased the firepower—
He had also reduced the size.
That was clearly a weapon beyond the technological capabilities of the era.
How could anyone question it?
"I can testify to that! The boss's inventions are amazing! I was chatting with Cocolia last night!"
Serval raised her hand enthusiastically in support.
Although she had no idea where the Luofu was, the Belobog Network System installed in her head could still connect home.
Last night she had even been showing it off to her younger brother.
"Then why haven't you contributed more to Snezhnaya's development?"
The Cryo Archon looked at him resentfully.
Her eyes were full of grievance.
She had been the first girl to know him, hadn't she?
His help had benefited Serval's hometown.
Yet everything he had done for Snezhnaya amounted to a few Synesthesia Beacons and a giant hole outside the city.
"I didn't bring Ningguang or Raiden Ei here, did I? You're still Number One in Teyvat."
Cryo Archon:So I really am first! He still cares about me!
Compared to Ningguang and Ei, she immediately felt much better.
Even Su Ran thought the comparison was fair.
Bringing Ningguang and Makoto to Herta Space Station had been for practical reasons.
It wasn't a vacation.
Bringing the Cryo Archon here, however—
That was purely for fun.
By comparison, she had indeed won.
And won big.
"You've done so much for the universe. Haven't you done anything for your own homeland?"
The name of Genius Society Member #85 had spread throughout the cosmos.
Even she had heard plenty.
Yet such a famous figure had apparently done nothing to advance his own homeworld?
Jingliu found that rather surprising.
To this day, no one had managed to locate Su Ran's homeland.
All anyone knew was that it belonged to a civilization not yet connected to the stars.
"I have. It's just that Teyvat hasn't reached the stage where it's ready to interact with outside civilizations yet."
Opening Teyvat to the wider universe was indeed one of Su Ran's long-term plans.
"Though Teyvat isn't actually my homeland. My homeland is from—"
Su Ran suddenly stopped.
"From where?"
The Cryo Archon was curious.
Serval was curious.
Even Jingliu was paying close attention.
"You're all this nosy?"
Su Ran looked helplessly toward the phantom hanging in the sky.
At this rate, he would end up seeing Fuli more often than Nous.
"If you're this interested, how about giving me an Emanator blessing? Maybe if I'm in a good mood, I'll tell you."
The phantom in the sky flickered noticeably.
As if it were confirming something.
Soon afterward, an indescribable sensation appeared in Su Ran's mind.
It was a message from Fuli.
"Still refusing to use punctuation, huh..."
In Su Ran's opinion, deciphering Fuli's messages was genuinely exhausting.
Without punctuation, they were harder to read than traditional Chinese text.
"What is that?"
Following his gaze, Jingliu looked up and noticed the phantom.
"A peeping tom."
Fuli's excessive attention was giving Su Ran a headache.
Sometimes he felt like running back to Teyvat.
Perhaps there he could finally avoid being watched.
"You tolerate someone observing you like that?"
The phantom looked ordinary enough.
It didn't seem threatening.
Jingliu genuinely couldn't understand why Su Ran simply endured it.
In fact, he almost seemed resigned to it.
"You mentioned an Emanator blessing. That's a Aeon?"
Even as a Genius Society member, attracting this level of attention from an Aeon seemed absurd.
Jingliu was shocked.
Receiving even a single glance from an Aeon was extraordinarily rare.
Even Xianzhou generals weren't guaranteed to receive a glance from the Hunt.
Yet Su Ran's attitude suggested he had been watched for a very long time.
That figure in the sky...
Fuli, the Recollector?
"Yeah. Last time, I almost exposed a secret while inside a girl's memories. Ever since then, Fuli's been paying special attention to me. This definitely isn't the first time."
Still hoping I'll reveal it, huh?
"So your secret is important?"
Curiosity was human nature.
Exploring the unknown was instinctive.
Unless someone had grown old.
Yet although Jingliu was old, her mentality had become much younger recently.
And because of that—
Her curiosity had awakened as well.
"It's hard to explain. I suppose it's important. It's like how the ultimate answer to the universe is forty-two. You could say it's important, but it's also just a number. Yet at the same time, it's the ultimate secret of the cosmos."
The moment he said that, Su Ran immediately felt that more than one Aeon was paying attention.
Nous had looked over too.
Was the Erudition afraid someone was trying to poach him?
Apparently not.
Because after a brief glance, Nous immediately withdrew its attention.
But Fuli remained.
"One hand pays, the other delivers. Visit my dream tonight, and I'll tell you."
Su Ran addressed the phantom directly.
A moment later, Fuli's projection vanished.
Only then did everyone around him realize—
The way they were looking at him had completely changed.
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