The meeting at the Jade Chamber—
Ryen didn't know the exact details of what they were discussing.
He only knew that Ningguang and Keqing were constantly busy, and the lights in the Jade Chamber stayed bright throughout the night.
With the Rite of Parting over and the Cryo Archon arriving the very next day, her visit would likely take a day or two to fully address.
After that, they'd still need to convene the Qixing Assembly and issue the first batch of official human-led governance orders.
Having all Liyue Harbor's public officials sign new contracts was also a complicated task.
All things considered, Ningguang and the others wouldn't get a break for at least half a month.
But Ryen couldn't just slow down world development because they were busy.
He'd watched the whole Rite of Parting play out like a good drama. Now, it was time to return to expanding the world.
Ryen needed the Millelith to explore ancient ruins in the underworld, and he also needed to disperse a large number of people to expand further into the world.
Currently, even though they'd finished exploring the End and Nether dimensions, Minecraft's world was truly endless.
By comparison, everything they'd done so far was still small-scale.
In fact, their total exploration wasn't even one ten-thousandth of the world.
Ryen wasn't sure what future mods might be added, but the best strategy was to prepare in advance and scatter bases across the land.
No matter which new module was introduced, materials could be sourced locally on the spot.
Just like with the current Modern Firearms Mod—
If they hadn't already explored so many mineshafts in advance, gathering all the necessary resources would've taken over a month.
On top of that, the Knights of Favonius from Mondstadt who had joined would need to be assigned work.
Ningguang also seemed interested in recruiting another thousand people for development efforts.
This batch could be trained together.
As for Teyvat's affairs, to Ryen, they were just light-hearted entertainment.
Fun to observe when there was free time.
After all, based on his current self-assessment of power, even Celestia would have to tread lightly around him.
There was no force that could truly threaten him—this entire world was like an amusement park.
And if someone really irritated him?
Well, he could just flip the table and stop playing—punch someone into zero HP like a child's toy.
The day after the Rite of Parting—
Ryen, along with Ganyu, Hu Tao, Klee, and Nahida, was ready to set off on their journey—a little family trip.
Venti, having nothing better to do, also wanted to tag along, but Ryen shooed him away.
This was a family outing. Adding Venti would just make him the awkward third wheel!
Moon Carver and Cloud Retainer had already headed to the Minecraft world—checking in on things.
Ningguang and the others, after all, couldn't help but worry about the Millelith stationed there.
The Minecraft world was far more dangerous than Teyvat.
The Millelith, who were used to slaying monsters with one strike, now had to deal with Minecraft's creatures far more cautiously.
Ryen had asked Madam Ping to create some space items imbued with adeptus domain techniques,
allowing them to store their dragons and supplies inside—so they could travel light.
With Xiao acting as their personal transport shuttle, they arrived at The Chasm in no time.
Compared to when Ryen had last been here three months ago, the Chasm now felt eerily quiet.
Most of the miners and Millelith had already been withdrawn.
The few remaining personnel weren't even required to venture deep inside—
Just some light exploration around the outer perimeter was enough.
Stretching lazily, Ganyu and Hu Tao held the hands of Klee and Nahida—a sense of a family spring outing filled the air.
Ryen chuckled and patted Xiao on the shoulder.
"Thanks for the ride, Xiao."
"It's nothing."
Xiao, as always, was not great with words. He simply shook his head and remained silent.
"Are you planning to head into that world to find Cloud Retainer and the others, or are you staying here in Teyvat with Zhongli?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao thought for a moment and replied:
"Remnants of Osial's power have yet to be completely purged. I'll stay in Teyvat and take care of those."
Ryen nodded slightly and said softly:
"Don't forget about your karmic debt. After handling it each day, go find Zhongli—I left him a set of enchanted golden apples."
"Even though you have a Totem of Undying, there's no need to actually die every time to clear your karma, right?"
Then, Ryen leaned in and whispered in Xiao's ear:
"Each enchanted golden apple weighs over a hundred tons—you probably can't lift it, right?"
Xiao was stunned for a second, then quickly shook his head.
"Physically, no—but with my adeptal strength, it should be fine."
"Nope."
Ryen gave Xiao a meaningful look.
"You can't lift it. Zhongli will have to feed you."
"L-Lord Morax?!"
Xiao's face turned visibly red, and he clearly started to panic.
"Having the Lord of Geo personally feed me… that would be far too improper!"
"It's fine! Zhongli won't mind."
Ryen waved his hand with a mischievous grin, clearly enjoying himself.
"I've told you already. What you do with that info is up to you."
Glancing at the time, Ryen turned and led Ganyu and the others toward the Chasm.
"We're heading off now. If all goes well, we'll be back in a few days."
Xiao was still caught up in the mental image Ryen had painted for him, but hearing that Ryen was leaving, he quickly responded:
"Take care, Mister Ryen."
Ryen waved behind him, and with that, he and Ganyu's group disappeared from Xiao's sight.
Xiao stood alone in the wilderness. The swirling wind around him seemed as turbulent as his own thoughts.
"…Zhongli feeding me an apple?"
…
"Ryen, what did you say to Xiao just now? He looked kind of… unsettled."
Ganyu tilted her head, looking curiously at Ryen.
Ryen shrugged, his tone laced with mischief:
"Oh, I just gave Zhongli something to do. Whether or not things go as I imagined—who knows?"
"Tch… What a shame. If I could have seen that scene with my own eyes, I'd die with no regrets!"
Hu Tao and Ganyu exchanged glances—they both had a strong feeling Ryen was definitely up to no good.
"I feel like Ryen's really been influenced by Venti lately… He's starting to act more and more like him."
Hu Tao muttered under her breath.
Ryen raised an eyebrow, just about to respond.
By then, the narrow tunnel around them began to open up, and a bright light appeared in the distance. The grass and trees also grew more vibrant and lush.
Nahida grew visibly more excited. She could already feel Sumeru's leylines responding to her presence.
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