At Wangshu Inn in Liyue Harbor, above the stage, little Shenhe was on the verge of death, barely holding off the monster with her mother's exorcism dagger, her blood flowing, her strength fading.
Below, the audience felt as if they were right there in the scene. Filled with righteous fury, they raised their fists and drew their swords, wanting to leap into the image and help little Shenhe fight the monster.
"At this rate, little Shenhe will be eaten by the monster sooner or later. Where are the adepti? Why haven't they appeared yet?"
"At a time like this, no one but an adeptus can save little Shenhe."
"Storyteller, don't hurt Shenhe!"
"Let Shenhe's adeptus master appear already!"
"Even though I know little Shenhe won't die, seeing her wounded by the monster and growing weaker by the moment is still painful."
"By the law of averages, Shenhe definitely won't die. The storyteller can't kill her off in this story. So this is a sweet story."
"As long as there's no tragedy, everything is fine."
If the story were true, then based on the present timeline, Shenhe certainly wouldn't be eaten by the monster. She would defeat it.
But in the projections above the inn, little Shenhe was barely clinging to life, covered in horrific wounds that would not stop bleeding. Though she had the exorcism dagger to protect her, she could be devoured by the terrifying monster at any moment.
So the audience concluded that the adeptus who would save Shenhe was about to appear.
...
Now, in a corner of the inn, as Shenhe watched these scenes, her heart was finally stirred. Her adeptus heart began to waver.
But for some reason, though her heart was filled with sorrow and sympathy for her younger self, she could not shed a single tear.
Beside her, Hu Tao watched the projections, watching Shenhe face the monster. She said seriously, "Shenhe is so badly injured. Why hasn't her adeptus master appeared yet?"
"By the way, which adeptus is Shenhe's master?"
Keqing hesitated. "Cloud Retainer. One of the oldest adepti in Liyue Harbor."
Cloud Retainer had not only Shenhe as a disciple but also Ganyu.
Hu Tao said, "Cloud Retainer? Then why hasn't she appeared yet?"
"Do you think it's possible that the one who saved Shenhe wasn't an adeptus at all, but someone else?"
In the previously circulated version of the Divine Damsel of Devastation, the little girl Shenhe had slain the monster. But now it seemed that Shenhe, a little girl, could barely defend herself, let alone kill a terrifying monster.
That was why many believed that the one who helped slay the monster must have been Shenhe's master, Cloud Retainer. But from start to finish, there was no evidence that Cloud Retainer had killed the monster. Even the storyteller had not confirmed it.
So Hu Tao raised the question.
Keqing considered this. Though Hu Tao was often frivolous, what she said made some sense.
She turned to Shenhe. "Sister Shenhe, after hearing these stories, do you remember anything?"
Across from her, Shenhe's adeptus heart had been shaken, but her expression remained as indifferent as ever. Only her brows were tightly furrowed.
"I… truly don't remember."
She wanted to remember, but no matter how hard she tried, those memories would not come. She could not remember who had helped her defeat the monster.
Could it really have been her master?
The next moment, everyone turned back to the stage. The storyteller was drinking water again. He was about to continue.
...
On stage, Li Mo slowly raised his cup, took a small sip, and set it down. He resumed telling the story of his fifth life.
As he spoke, the Electro projections above the inn shifted once more.
Little Shenhe gripped the exorcism dagger, struggling to hold off the monster. But her arms and body were covered in wounds. She had lost too much blood. Her face was deathly pale. Even her consciousness was beginning to blur.
By now, Shenhe had given up all hope in her father. She wished desperately that a powerful adeptus would descend from the heavens, strike down this monster with a single blow, and save her.
But it was only a fantasy. No adeptus appeared. No hero appeared. Soon, Shenhe would lose consciousness completely.
Then, even the exorcism dagger in her hand would be useless.
The next moment, the scene shifted.
The person who appeared this time was not little Shenhe, nor her father, but the little boy named Li Mo—the one who had often done commissions with Shenhe before her mother died.
Little Li Mo had waited two days in Liyue for Shenhe, but she never came. So he followed the path through the forest and over the hills, and after asking several villagers, he finally found Shenhe's home halfway up the mountain.
He knocked on the door. No answer.
"Shenhe—are you home?"
No response.
He pushed the door open and looked inside. The room was bare—no furniture of any value, no people.
No—in the corner, Li Mo found a middle-aged man.
"Excuse me, are you Shenhe's father? Is Shenhe home?"
But the man had lost his mind. No matter what Li Mo asked, he only muttered the same words over and over: "Back mountain, cave… back mountain, cave… sacrifice…"
Little Li Mo did not understand, but he caught the words "back mountain" and "cave." His heart tightened.
According to the villagers, this was Shenhe's home. This man was likely her father. But from his mental state, it was clear he had become a complete madman, capable only of babbling.
Had something happened to Shenhe's family?
He did not know, but he knew that the "back mountain" and "cave" the man kept muttering were his only clues.
Without a moment's rest, Li Mo rushed out of Shenhe's house and ran toward the back mountain.