Watching Lumine and Paimon jumping around in the distance, Yu Jin was very confused. Did these two do something bad? Why are they running so fast?
Unlike him, he's upright and fears no shadow!
Yu Jin looked up; no one came to bother him. After a sigh, he decided to bother others.
Then he saw Zhongli taking a stroll.
"Quite idle, aren't we? Is this the part in detective novels where the suspect admires his own masterpiece?"
Yu Jin patted Zhongli's shoulder at the railing on the edge of Yujing Terrace and said.
He gazed into the distance, with all of Liyue spread out before his eyes. It must be said, Zhongli really knew how to pick a spot. From here, one could see all four sides of Yujing Terrace from above, and all eight directions of Liyue from below.
It had the perfect atmosphere for a mastermind.
"Brother Yu Jin, it would be best to speak softly, lest you be taken to the Ministry of Civil Affairs and waste much breath."
Zhongli turned around and smiled at Yu Jin.
"What are you thinking? The melancholy on your face is practically overflowing!" Yu Jin said, waving his hand in front of Zhongli, who was staring intently at Yujing Terrace.
"Hmm?" A shadow flickered before his eyes, and Zhongli blinked, turning back. He said with a hint of worry in his tone, "Nothing, just wondering if what I'm doing is right."
"Right or wrong? You're already dead, there's no use regretting it now." Yu Jin pointed at the avatar's corpse surrounded by the crowd, saying with a hint of schadenfreude.
With Zhongli's death, all factions in Liyue would surely stir. As the saying goes, troubled waters are good for making waves, and Yu Jin was already a bit impatient.
"Indeed, at this point, regret is useless." Zhongli was not a sentimental person; that expression earlier was merely a slight confusion about himself and Liyue's immediate future.
"Hmm..., Brother Yu Jin, do you know the background of the Damselette in white below?" Zhongli looked down and saw Lumine and Paimon fleeing.
Judging by their speed, their strength was not to be underestimated. Not to mention, by their side was the Fatui Harbinger, Childe.
"You don't know? That's Mondstadt's new Honorary Knight, the Adventurers' Guild's rising star Damselette, the helpful role model Damselette — Lumine, and her companion and pet, Paimon!"
"..."
There were too many points of contention; Zhongli didn't know where to start.
"Alright, actually, only the first title is real; the others I just made up." Seeing Zhongli's expressionless face, Yu Jin had to explain again.
"Although I don't know why Lumine is running, she probably just wanted to come and see you."
"See me?"
"To be precise, to see Morax," Yu Jin added.
"Is that so?" Zhongli mused for a moment, then said with a sigh, "The timing is truly unfortunate; it seems to be another new variable."
"Careful! This is the Exuvia of the Geo Archon!"
"It's so heavy, you try! It's easy to talk when you're not doing the work!"
"You guys, they say the Geo Archon isn't made of jade, but this texture is exactly like Shitou."
...Just as Zhongli was lost in thought, the clamor from Yujing Terrace pulled him out of it.
Zhongli looked closely and saw the Millelith pulling the Exuvia away from Yujing Terrace.
The powerful traveler who wanted to see him, Morax's Exuvia, the consultant of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
Zhongli nodded slightly; he already had a way to keep Lumine, this variable, firmly by his side.
"Brother Yu Jin..."
Zhongli turned to look at Yu Jin, but he saw nothing but the empty floor.
Yu Jin had already disappeared to who knows where.
Zhongli clasped his hands behind his back, facing the sea breeze. The slightly briny sea breeze ruffled Zhongli's braid, broadening his mind.
"Alas, alas. Do your best, and leave the rest to fate."
Zhongli shook his head with a bitter smile, sighing. Why did he feel a slight sense of helplessness?
Wasn't the biggest variable right by his side? And the uncontrollable kind at that... It must be said, the Millelith truly were well-trained. Even carrying the massive dragon body, they moved with brisk steps.
Behind the Millelith was Yu Jin, who had followed them all the way. However, they clearly didn't notice the moving bush trailing them.
As they twisted and turned, the scenery became increasingly familiar. Soon, a colossal pavilion and lotus pond, nestled in the mountains like a pill furnace, appeared before Yu Jin's eyes.
The Golden House. As expected, the Exuvia would indeed be hidden here.
"Halt!"
Two Millelith soldiers at the archway crossed their spears, speaking to the throng of their colleagues before them.
Although they had already received the message, the necessary procedures could not be omitted.
"The Exuvia, this is a joint decree from the Qixing." The leading Millelith wasted no words, directly unveiling the cloth covering the Exuvia while also handing the guards the decree from the Qixing.
The stationed Millelith soldiers all trembled at the sight of the Exuvia beneath the cloth.
After a quick scan of the decree, confirming it was in order, one of the armored soldiers returned the decree, saying with a tremble:
"The Geo Archon, is he truly dead?"
The leader nodded, saying gravely, "Most likely. You've seen it. From now on, everyone will be busy."
Patting the guard's shoulder, the leading Millelith then led his companions, who were transporting the Exuvia, into the Golden House.
The Geo Archon's departure was certainly saddening and unbelievable, but now was not the time for melancholy.
With the Geo Archon's death, surely all sorts of devils and monsters would emerge in Liyue. As Millelith, they absolutely could not relax their vigilance at this time.
Crossing the archway, passing through the lotus pond, was the main hall of the Golden House.
After a brief conversation with the manager, Gongming, the Golden House's doors reopened. It welcomed its most distinguished guest in history.
"Phew—, let's put it here! How to preserve the Geo Archon's Exuvia will be up to the alchemists; we should go."
After silently looking at the jade-like Exuvia, the Millelith turned and left.
Where should Liyue go from here? They didn't know, but fortunately, they could temporarily escape for a while, leaving this grand question for the Qixing to ponder.
"Clang—"
The heavy Golden House doors slowly closed. Inside the massive Golden House, only the faint golden glow reflected from the Mora remained.
"Zhongli's prestige is that high?" Yu Jin poked his head out from beside the Exuvia, saying with some surprise.
Liyue and Mondstadt were indeed quite different. Perhaps because Venti started slacking off early, a considerable portion of Mondstadt's people harbored a significant degree of doubt about whether their Anemo Archon was still around.
Naturally, in Mondstadt's daily life, Barbatos's presence was quite weak. Only on festive days would most Mondstadters recall their deity.
But Liyue was different. With Zhongli's death, most Liyuens, besides their sorrow, felt confusion.
Days without a deity, for the former Liyuens, only existed in nightmares, but now the nightmare had become reality.
Without Morax, how would Liyue's future development be determined? What about the circulation of Mora? Who would enforce the Qixing's supervision...? Liyuens, having started as merchants, were not lacking in shrewd minds. A rough thought alone could bring up many impending problems. No wonder their faces showed confusion.
Fortunately, at least one of those problems could be solved now.
Yu Jin looked around stealthily. No one was around, a perfect environment!
"Xiao Huang! Xiao Huang!" Yu Jin kicked the floor, and the clang of metal echoed inside the Golden House.
"Rumble..."
A faint sound was vaguely discernible. If one listened closely, they would find that the sound seemed to come from deep within the earth.
"Clatter!"
The sound suddenly grew louder, but it changed from the original digging sound to the clinking of Mora.
The Golden Tree grew out from underground.
Looking at the golden-glowing fine roots of the Golden Tree, Yu Jin could now proudly declare that Morax's Exuvia would be distributed to every Liyuen!
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