On the official road from Qingxu Pool to Dunyu Ridge, a group of four walked in silence.
Chongyun walked at the front, with Orion beside him, while Shenhe and Skirk followed behind.
The reason for this arrangement was simple: Chongyun felt that facing an aunt he wasn't very familiar with, this seemingly sunny, cheerful, and joke-loving uncle-in-law seemed much easier to talk to, and they were of the same gender.
Unless facing a love rival or being in Chengdu, most of the time when men and women gather, men subconsciously create scenarios that make it easier to talk to other men, a feeling similar to 'you called me brother, so what else is there to say?'
As for why Chongyun felt uncomfortable facing Shenhe, the reason was also simple: after he called Shenhe 'auntie', Shenhe just stared at him, saying nothing, just staring.
Of course, this wasn't because Shenhe was aloof, nor was it because Shenhe was imitating her unlucky master's wide-angle bird face; it was simply because she didn't know what to call Chongyun.
Having lived alone for so long, she only knew her master and a few senior martial uncles. She barely knew that those who started earlier than her were 'senior sisters' and those who started later should be called 'junior sisters.' This was the limit of her understanding; anything beyond that was an unknown domain.
And when Chongyun called Skirk 'Second Aunt', Skirk also stared intently at Chongyun.
Due to Skirk's overwhelming gaze, a child as strong as Chongyun felt completely uncomfortable. As his pure yang body consumed too much energy and his body temperature rose, he apologized and ran off to eat ice cream to suppress his pure yang body.
Skirk also took this opportunity to come to Orion's side. Orion knew that she might be about to express her dissatisfaction. It was understandable that a blooming young girl (?) would be unhappy being called a married woman.
But Skirk was a polite person after all; she certainly wouldn't make things difficult for someone's child in front of them, which is why she waited for Chongyun to leave before coming to complain to Orion.
"Why am I 'Second Aunt'? Do I look very childish?"
"??? Why would you ask me such a question?" As expected of a highly skilled disciple trained by Surtalogi, she truly couldn't be judged by common sense. Skirk's single question left Orion completely bewildered.
Skirk gave Orion a sidelong glance: "Then what do you think I should ask?"
"Do you know what it's like when you ask me this question now?"
"Like what?"
"It's like if I declared myself king, took advantage of you, and said I'd crown you and Shenhe as princes, you the elder prince, and her the second prince..."
Mid-sentence, Shenhe suddenly interrupted: "Why am I the second prince?"
"The point is that I'm taking advantage of you! Shouldn't you first complain that I'm a generation above you?!"
The conversation couldn't continue. Orion felt that anything he said was useless; instead, Shenhe and Skirk inexplicably began to find common ground.
Is this right? Are Skirk and Shenhe the kind of people who can chat so openly?
What Orion didn't know was that Shenhe was simply instructed by the True Lord to try and integrate into human society, so she was merely trying out the True Lord's conversational techniques.
And the oblivious Orion had already decided that if he ever encountered Kaedehara Kazuha and he suddenly started collecting other people's hats, he would slip away and live in a different Teyvat.
Because that would mean this place had been invaded by fan creations.
Skirk and Shenhe calmly exchanged glances, then looked at Orion and asked, "So, was there anything wrong with my question?"
"No, nothing, I mean... very good, keep it up, your sense of being alive is getting stronger."
Watching Chongyun eat an ice pop in the distance, Orion also beckoned the two mysterious Cryo women to continue their journey together.
He could only be grateful that this kid Chongyun hadn't been rude enough to call Qiqi 'Third Auntie,' otherwise he might have had to report to the Millelith's prison.
Returning to the present, Orion looked at Chongyun walking beside him. As the weather grew hotter, Chongyun seemed to rely heavily on ice pops.
His ice pops were not the same as the ice cream Orion ate every night. Chongyun ate proper ice pops, the kind where there was a chance to have another one after finishing.
Oh, perhaps there wasn't much difference in saying that; Orion sometimes had another one too.
But that's not important.
Orion patted Chongyun's shoulder: "Is this your pure yang body?"
Chongyun, hearing this, showed an incredibly shocked expression. He grabbed Orion's arm: "You know about this physique?! How amazing, to be able to tell at a glance... Then, do you know how to control this physique?"
Orion smiled wryly and waved his hand: "I can tell, but I can't suppress it. A physique isn't a disease; it's part of your body. What you need to learn is to utilize it, not expel it."
Chongyun, having calmed down again, sighed heavily: "Alas... I understand that principle too, but I just can't suppress this physique. As an exorcist, when I face weak evil spirits, those ghostly entities can't even get close to me. So I just go to the homes of those who need exorcism, and the defilement automatically dissipates..."
"Isn't that pretty good?"
"How is it good?! Everyone thinks I'm a charlatan because I just sit there and don't even get a chance to use my exorcism techniques."
Orion rubbed his chin: "Then why don't you report to the Millelith and go expel monsters? Like that Hydro Abyss Mage just now."
"I've tried; powerful monsters in the wild are rare, and the others are all under the Millelith's control."
Orion didn't react at first, but quickly realized: of course there would be few monsters in the wild. Xiao cultivates the land with high intensity every day; how many could he leave behind?
But then he thought, could he introduce Chongyun to Xiao as an apprentice, then have Xiao take Chongyun to cultivate the land, and then report to the Millelith to have them pay Chongyun a salary subsidy?
It seemed feasible.
So Orion said to Chongyun: "How about this, I'll think of a way for you? Let you intern under a strong person; maybe it can solve your predicament, though that strong person might have a strange personality."
Chongyun's eyes lit up when he heard this. He still thought Orion was his uncle-in-law, so he naturally listened to Orion: "Tell me! I'm not afraid of difficulties!"
"Very good, a teachable child. That strong person's name is Xiao—"
"You called me?"
"Holy crap!" Xiao's sudden appearance beside him startled Orion.
Orion clutched his chest, looking at the suddenly appearing Xiao with the same expression as Chongyun, thinking, 'Good heavens, if I don't activate my perception, you guys who appear and disappear like ghosts will scare me to death sooner or later.'
Instead, Shenhe, who had been watching from behind, spoke first: "Conqueror of Demons?"
Xiao turned to look: "Oh, it's the little one from Cloud Retainer's side. Why are you with them?"
"Master told me to descend the mountain to Mundane World Trial of the Heart," Shenhe said concisely.
"Tempering your heart in the mortal world, huh." Xiao was silent for a moment, then turned to Orion and said, "Never mind... And you? Why did you call me?"
Orion grinned: "How about I find you an assistant?"
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