Chapter 29

"Let me go check on her!" Paimon flew inside, then exclaimed in surprise: "Huh? What's that smell?"

The lingering fragrance of flowers still hung in the air from Lumine's body. The golden-haired girl flushed crimson at the remark and fled into the bathroom clutching her clothes.

"Hmm? She needs a bath after healing too?" Paimon was utterly baffled.

Meanwhile, Lu Lin checked over his quest rewards.

[Ding! Quest: A Healer's Benevolence completed. Rewards: 500,000 Mora, 100 Points, 100 EXP, Residence Entry: Spear Mastery]

[Spear Mastery]: Enhances the user's spear technique talent — grip becomes steadier, spear arts flow with fluid precision, achieving unity between person and spear.

The quest hadn't been particularly difficult, so the rewards were fairly modest, but at least it came with a Residence Entry — that was already quite good.

As for who to give it to — Xiangling didn't have any entries yet, and she happened to train with a spear, so it was a perfect fit!

The next few days passed in relative calm.

News of the Geo Archon's assassination had spread throughout the entire city, but ordinary citizens, beyond their shock and grief, showed no extreme reactions.

The Fatui's sphere of influence within the city had been compressed to the Northland Bank, making it nearly impossible for them to stir up any real trouble.

The Qixing then announced in timely fashion that the Rite of the Descension would be held by the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor at Yujing Terrace — anyone wishing to bid the Archon farewell was welcome to attend.

Preparations for the Rite of the Descension had indeed begun in advance; it wasn't something cobbled together just to appease the adepti. Lu Lin had arranged for Ningguang and the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to coordinate proactively and handle the relevant arrangements.

Since he already knew the correct answer in advance, he naturally wasn't going to wait until Zhongli felt compelled to step in and organize his own send-off. Being proactive about it would also make Zhongli — the soon-to-retire "executive" — feel a little better about the whole thing.

That said, the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor still sent him to handle the specific details. Organizing your own funeral — it seemed there was simply no escaping that.

Since Lumine wanted to meet with the Seven Archons to ask about her brother, Lu Lin arranged for her to help the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor prepare the items needed for the Rite of the Descension, giving her a chance to get acquainted with Zhongli.

He knew Zhongli wouldn't have any truly useful information — and even if he did, he wouldn't say it — but this was something only Lumine could ask for herself. It wouldn't do any good coming from him.

Lu Lin kept to his usual routine: during the day he shuttled back and forth between the training ground and the workshop, and at night he spent shameless, carefree evenings in the Serenitea Pot with either Xiangling or Hu Tao.

Why not Ganyu?

Ganyu had been completely occupied these past few days. Cloud Retainer had taken on a mortal guise to observe life among the people of Liyue Harbor, and was staying at her home during this time — she had to accompany her master.

It was fortunate that Ganyu had found time beforehand to replace the bed in her room. If Cloud Retainer had arrived to find the old one, it would have been very difficult to explain.

She could hardly say she'd broken it herself, could she?

If that got out, the running jokes about her weight — beyond the one about rolling down the mountain — would gain yet another story about her breaking a bed.

She knew Cloud Retainer's mouth all too well!

Then, on one particular day, a fully armed fleet returned from a long voyage and docked at Liyue Harbor. Every Liyue local knew at once: the South Cross Fleet had come home.

The leader of the South Cross Fleet was a woman named Beidou, whose prestige in Liyue was second only to the Liyue Qixing.

This bold, spirited woman — known by the title of Dragon King — hurried off the ship and made straight for the Jade Chamber.

It was widely said that Beidou, the South Cross Fleet's captain, and Tianquan Star Ningguang shared a close relationship — that Ningguang was the power behind the South Cross Fleet, its secret patron.

Both parties flatly denied this. Ningguang maintained that she had simply chosen Beidou as a person worth backing, while Beidou insisted their relationship was purely one of mutual cooperation, with no hierarchy between them.

What was undeniable was that the two did get along quite well.

Close as they were, it was still exceedingly rare for Beidou to skip the post-voyage drinking and head straight to the Jade Chamber the moment she stepped off the ship. Ningguang knew her temperament well enough — if she'd come here instead of going to drown her sorrows in wine, something very urgent must have happened.

As it happened, Lu Lin was also present. The three of them shut the doors and talked for a long while.

Two more days passed, and at last the day of the Rite of the Descension arrived.

The ceremony was not elaborate, but the crowd of attendees was enormous. The Geo Archon held an incomparable place in the hearts of Liyue's people, and so they all came to see him off on his final journey.

Had Yujing Terrace not been limited in space, even more would have come.

Zhongli's expression was solemn as he walked through the entire ceremony with Hu Tao and Lumine's assistance — and Lu Lin, watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but twitch at the corner of his eye.

Organizing your own funeral and enjoying it this much — old man, you truly are one of a kind!

The adepti in attendance shared his sentiments exactly.

Others might not recognize Zhongli, but the adepti had known him for thousands of years — there was no way they couldn't. Besides, they had never believed the Geo Archon could be assassinated in the first place.

Now it was all clear: the old man simply wanted to retire.

The Rite of the Descension concluded smoothly. Rex Lapis's divine vessel was escorted back to the Golden House by the Millelith.

The Golden House was the only mint in all of Teyvat, heavily guarded at all times — it was indeed an excellent place to store Rex Lapis's divine vessel. Ningguang had hidden it there previously as well.

Shortly after the ceremony ended and the divine vessel was returned, an orange-haired young man strolled unhurriedly into the Golden House.

It was none other than the Eleventh of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers — Childe, Tartaglia.

He had been searching for the location of Rex Lapis's divine vessel all along, but Lu Lin's targeted suppression of the Fatui had made it nearly impossible to make any headway.

It wasn't until the grand Rite of the Descension, when the divine vessel made its public appearance before being returned to the Golden House, that he followed it all the way and finally found the right place.

"So that's why I couldn't find it anywhere — it was hidden here all along. But... a place this important, and there are no guards?" Tartaglia entered the Golden House, ignoring the Mora strewn across the floor, and frowned.

All of Teyvat's Mora originated here. This should have been the most heavily defended location in all of Liyue!

His instincts told him something was wrong, but he had watched the divine vessel being brought in with his own eyes. For the sake of finding the Gnosis, he would charge into a dragon's den if he had to!

"You've come at last — Fatui Harbinger, Childe." When he stepped into the main hall, a bright, easy laugh rang out.

A strikingly handsome young man of elegant bearing stood quietly at the center of the hall. Beside him was the very divine vessel Childe had been searching so desperately for.

"You? We've met at Yujing Terrace. Who are you?" Childe recognized Lu Lin but knew nothing about him.

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lu Lin. I've heard that Childe enjoys a good fight — I've come to seek your guidance."

"Oh? You even know that about me. It seems you know me quite well." An alarm immediately went off in Childe's mind.

His enemy knew him inside and out, yet he knew nothing about the person standing before him — that was a very dangerous sign!

"I know that you've been searching for Rex Lapis's divine vessel. The item is right here — come and take it if you want it."

"Fine! As you wish!" Childe was a man who lived for battle. Faced with Lu Lin's provocation, his fighting spirit surged — he drew his weapon without hesitation!

Lu Lin drew his sword and launched himself forward, clashing fiercely with Childe.

This was a fight he had deliberately sought out — a way to test the results of his intensive training over this period.

Keqing and Ganyu had been dedicated sparring partners, but they were people close to him; a life-or-death struggle was out of the question. To gain an accurate understanding of his own strength, he needed an opponent he could fight with everything he had.

Childe was exactly the right opponent for that.

After the Rite of the Descension, Childe finding his way to the Golden House was inevitable. With a Harbinger personally tailing the escort, the Millelith could never fully conceal their movements.

So Lu Lin had decided to have a proper fight with him.

Lu Lin's progress had been remarkable. With the System's enhancements, mastery of Cryo, Pyro, Geo, and Electro elemental powers, and intensive training under Ganyu and Keqing, he was a far cry from who he had been before.

But Childe was still a Fatui Harbinger, trained by the mysterious and powerful Skirk — his combat ability was not to be underestimated.

The two traded blow for blow in a fierce and intense exchange!

At the start, Lu Lin was inevitably at a disadvantage. He lacked real life-or-death combat experience, and against a battle-hardened veteran like Childe, gaining the upper hand was difficult — simply holding his own without losing was already no small feat.

But the disadvantage was only temporary. [Keen Intellect] gave him unparalleled comprehension — every move Childe threw at him that didn't kill him became fuel for his growth.

The battle lasted nearly half an hour. Childe grew increasingly uneasy as it went on — how was this person getting stronger with every passing moment?

He knew dragging this out was no good. After a fierce offensive that pushed Lu Lin back, he seized the opportunity to dart to the divine vessel and reached inside.

Hmm? Nothing?

The Gnosis he expected wasn't there. Childe spun around, furious: "You tricked me?"

"I didn't trick you at all. The divine vessel hasn't been touched by anyone — it simply means what you're looking for was never inside it." Lu Lin spread his hands.

"Ha, who'd believe that!" Childe let out a cold laugh and activated his Foul Legacy: Raging Tide!

The Foul Legacy transformation was his last resort — and his most dangerous one!

But Lu Lin showed no fear. He raised his sword and charged forward, and the two clashed again. This time, however, the situation was no longer one-sided — they fell into a deadlock!

What Lu Lin had lacked was combat experience, not raw strength. Now that the experience gap had been filled, he was no longer afraid of Childe even with the Foul Legacy active.

The transformation placed an enormous strain on the body and couldn't be sustained for long. Eventually, Lu Lin caught an opening and struck, forcing Childe back to his normal state.

"Well, well, well. I didn't expect Liyue to have someone as formidable as you. This trip wasn't a waste after all!" Childe said in a cold voice, breathing hard.

"You flatter me." Lu Lin smiled calmly.

"But do you think it ends here? I didn't want to drag innocent people into this, but things have come to this point — Her Majesty the Tsaritsa's mission must be completed, no matter the cost."

Childe reached out, and five replica All-Immunity Talismans appeared in his hand.

"My original backup plan was to use a large number of replica All-Immunity Talismans to awaken the Hydro Archon Osial, who has been sealed away at Guyun Stone Forest.

I didn't expect you to send people to destroy the Yaoguang Shoal base where we were studying the talismans and confiscate every last one — leaving me with only these five. That alone would not have been enough to break through the Geo Archon's seal.

Fortunately, I have another way. Have you ever heard of Beisht?"

"Beisht — Osial's wife, the sea monster Beisht?" Lu Lin asked with a furrowed brow.

"Exactly. I sent people to make contact with Beisht, who dwells in the deep sea. With our combined strength, plus these five All-Immunity Talismans, it will be more than enough to break the seal!"

Childe flicked his fingers, and the All-Immunity Talismans surrounding him vanished into the void. At the same moment, an intensely ominous and malevolent aura surged in from the direction of the deep sea!

Beisht had arrived!

Lu Lin had no time to spare for Childe. He left the Golden House and gazed into the distance toward Guyun Stone Forest.

In the distance, a murderous aura shot into the sky. Dark clouds gathered, blotting out the sun and sky. Enormous tentacles thrashed across the surface of the sea, and two godlike monstrous figures rose from the waves.

The Hydro Archon Osial — and his wife, Beisht!

During the Archon War, Osial had been suppressed beneath Guyun Stone Forest by the Geo Archon Morax with a massive stone spear, imprisoned for thousands of years. Beisht had fled to the outer seas and never returned.

Now Beisht had quietly returned from the outer seas, and together with Childe's intervention, they had pried open the seal at Guyun Stone Forest and successfully freed Osial.

One could only imagine the depth of hatred Osial had nursed after thousands of years of imprisonment — and today, that towering fury was about to be unleashed upon the people of Liyue!

The situation was extremely dire!

"I don't know whether you took the Gnosis or whether the Geo Archon simply never died — but faced with a crisis capable of annihilating Liyue, either the Geo Archon steps forward to suppress them personally, or you use the power of the Gnosis. You have no other choice!" Childe stood behind Lu Lin, a hint of satisfaction in his voice.

But Lu Lin remained unruffled. He said calmly: "Can you guess why I sent people to destroy your base at Yaoguang Shoal where you were researching the All-Immunity Talismans? Do you think that was an accident — just a coincidence?"

Those words sent a chill through Childe. He snapped his head up and demanded: "You knew all along that the All-Immunity Talismans were meant to awaken Osial?!"

"If I knew you were planning to awaken Osial, and even destroyed the base where you were researching the All-Immunity Talismans — do you think I would have made a few extra preparations?"

Lu Lin walked away from the Golden House with unhurried strides. His calm voice drifted back on the wind.

"Tartaglia — let me show you the strength and resolve of Liyue's people in defending their home."

* * *

Mt. Tianheng.

The moment Beisht surfaced and broke open the seal at Guyun Stone Forest, the Jade Chamber had already begun moving toward the sea, ready for battle!

Atop the Jade Chamber, Ningguang stood facing the wind. Behind her, the Adeptus of Three Eyes and Five Manifestations and Lumine had both arrived, their expressions grave.

"So that's the Hydro Archon? Just looking at it makes it hard to breathe!" Paimon stared at the monsters rampaging in the sea, her face pale with fear.

"The pressure of an ancient Archon is something ordinary people can barely endure. Even among the Millelith, only battle-hardened elites can remain unaffected. This battle will be harder than we imagined." Ningguang said gravely.

"From the look of things, it seems you were prepared for this?" Cloud Retainer asked.

She had noticed that since Beisht's appearance, the Liyue Qixing had shown no panic or disorder, and the Millelith's mobilization was proceeding in perfect order — as though they had anticipated this battle long in advance.

"With the Geo Archon's passing, we did make preparations in advance to deal with any crisis that might arise. But we will still need the help of the adepti."

"Speak freely."