Leaving aside whether the questions would be leaked or not, Richard had only promised Ningguang that if things reached a point of no return, he would step in to help.
Likewise, if his intervention affected how the Qixing were graded in the eyes of the Geo Archon, Richard would not take responsibility for that either.
In fact, Richard already knew that very soon, Liyue and the Qixing would be facing their great exam.
After all, the seal over the Guyun Stone Forest was already on the verge of collapse. With its current strength, the Fatui Harbinger Childe only needed to use the power bestowed upon him by the Tsaritsa, combined with the Delusion's might, to easily shatter it and release the vortex demon god Osial, who had been sealed by Morax during the Archon War.
If things moved quickly, Richard thought they might even see the true form of the millennia-old demon god by this very afternoon.
Lumine and Paimon had already set out for the Fatui base, investigating their "Delusion research" based on the intel Ningguang had provided.
This was, of course, deliberately guided by Ningguang; her purpose was to make them firmly believe the Fatui harbored ill intentions, plotting chaos to seize the Geo Archon's Gnosis.
"Can the Delusions really break the seal set by the Lord of Geo?" Ningguang asked.
Richard didn't answer directly, instead saying: "At this point, it doesn't matter whether the Delusions have that much power or not. Once they're used, Osial will definitely come out."
In Zhongli's calculation, even without Childe, Osial would have broken free one way or another, because this was the "great exam" he had prepared for Liyue.
He wanted to see how Liyue would act when facing a crisis without him, whether the Qixing could truly shoulder that responsibility.
"So the Archon isn't really dead, right?" Ningguang pressed.
"As good as dead."
Ningguang: "?"
To be precise, the Geo Archon was in a superimposed state of both life and death. If the Qixing performed well, then it would mean he was "truly dead."
But if they fell short… it was possible he'd "resurrect," deal a heavy blow to the just-released Osial, and seal it again, reminding everyone who really ruled Liyue.
Just as Ningguang was about to ask more, Baiwen hurried in, looking anxious as though she had urgent news to report.
But because Richard was present, Baiwen glanced at him and didn't immediately speak.
"It's fine. He's not an outsider," Ningguang waved her hand. Richard clearly knew more than she did, as the "student" facing an exam.
In some sense, Richard was like an invigilator. And since he was the examiner, there was no need for Ningguang, the candidate, to hide her steps.
Showing the examiner her problem-solving process might even earn her some subtle hints.
"It's the Adepti. They've left Jueyun Karst and are nearly at the city gates. Lady Yuheng and the others are already at the gates preparing to receive them…"
Baiwen had phrased it mildly. Rather than "receive," it was more like "stop them outside."
The Archon's assassination had clearly rattled the Adepti, and since the Qixing had yet to find the culprit, their patience was wearing thin. Now, coming together likely wasn't just for "pressure"; if handled poorly, it could turn into a "coup."
Without doubt, the contradictions within Liyue had been pushed to the brink by someone's manipulation.
"I see." Ningguang instinctively glanced at Richard.
Richard's face showed a look of recollection.
"The Adepti, huh? I've always had a decent relationship with them, but even I couldn't talk down Adepti in a fury. Ningguang, don't look to me for that."
Ningguang pressed her lips together, resting her hand on her chin, thinking briefly before ordering Baiwen: "Leave the Adepti to Lady Yuheng. You focus on monitoring the Fatui inside the city. Do not let them stir up further trouble."
"Also, notify the Millelith to enter wartime readiness. Mobilize every force available to ensure immediate response to orders."
Her commands spread quickly from the Jade Chamber, and in moments, Liyue Harbor entered a state of high alert.
The Fatui within the harbor were all contained, and even foreign spies hidden in Liyue were rooted out.
With calamity looming, all potential risks had to be eliminated.
Watching Ningguang command with such order, Richard nodded. Her response was indeed the best option under the circumstances. Had he been in her place, he would not have done much better.
Of course, if Richard had been in her position, he might have preemptively broken the seal himself, telling Osial that times had changed, and it had better obediently go back to prison, or else suffer the consequences.
Unfortunately, that approach only worked when one had absolute power. Liyue, at present, did not.
Even with its armies and Adepti, against a demon god, even a weakened one, Liyue still fell short.
Seeing Ningguang busy, Richard walked out onto the Jade Chamber's terrace and gazed down. Even from afar, he could see elemental power flickering within the Golden House.
Blue Hydro, golden Geo, pale Anemo, and finally, overwhelming purple Electro blanketed the entire treasury.
"They've started. Looks pretty intense," Richard said. Though high above, it was as if he could see everything within the Golden House.
"Hm? They've stopped. Did they discover the Gnosis isn't in that husk?"
Since it wasn't his problem, Richard enjoyed watching like a theater. After a moment's thought, he condensed his power into a jade pendant, asked Baixiao to deliver it to Ningguang, then vanished from the Jade Chamber.
The next second, Richard appeared at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, just as Zhongli was outside negotiating with the Millelith.
The subject was clearly Childe. Given how close Zhongli had been to him recently, and how Childe had been footing Zhongli's expenses, suspicion was inevitable.
With the worsening situation and Ningguang's orders to eliminate instability, it was natural that the Millelith came knocking.
Only because Wangsheng had deep roots in Liyue, both official and underground, was Zhongli spared from being thrown in prison by his own people.
Richard almost wished to see that scene: the Geo Archon jailed by his subjects, what a sight that would be!
"Hey, you there. You don't look local. Come register," a Millelith soldier called, spotting Richard.
Richard's smile froze. 'This fire spreads to me, too?'
Thankfully, he was prepared. He produced a checkbook that Ningguang had given him.
Don't get it wrong, he wasn't bribing anyone. This checkbook doubled as an ID, with the Jade Chamber's emblem impossible to counterfeit.
The Millelith captain, seeing the emblem, didn't even ask questions; he just ordered his men to move on.
"The Adepti are here. Osial should be appearing soon, right?" Richard said, walking up beside Zhongli, waving toward Hu Tao, who clutched her staff while peeking nervously from inside.
"I am but a mortal now. I cannot predict the outcome," Zhongli replied, though when he noticed Richard's changed clothes, he gave a meaningful smile.
"Lumine said she saw you at the Jade Chamber."
"I was there, you know that. Wait, what's with that expression?"
"People say the Jade Chamber, ever expanding, represents her ambition; it's the second most important thing in her life. Even if she abandoned her Tianquan seat, she wouldn't abandon the Chamber. But it seems they're wrong. The Jade Chamber is the third most important."
"What's first and second?" Richard asked, knowing Zhongli had baited him.
"Second is Mora. First is you. There's an old saying: 'Nothing is harder to repay than a beauty's favor.' I'd say the troubles awaiting you will be far trickier than those facing Liyue Harbor."
That Zhongli still had time to tease showed the situation was under his control.
Suddenly, Richard felt the ground shake. The clear sky darkened, the sun hidden by storm clouds, wild winds sweeping the harbor. The once-calm Guyun Sea churned violently, waves battering the docks.
With wind and strange power, massive waterspouts rose, tossing ships like toys, vessels capsized before they could even mount a counterattack.
Lightning split the sky, revealing a dreadful silhouette.
Its owner was none other than Osial, the vortex demon god once crushed beneath Guyun's depths by Morax.
'At last, freed.'
"So that's Osial? Besides having too many heads, it doesn't seem special," Richard said. To him, this ancient god wasn't even as "cute" as Dvalin.
As for its power, it is probably within the range of the Qixing and Adepti.
Maybe slightly beyond. But manageable.
"You really put effort into this exam," Richard sighed.
"This is only part of it," Zhongli said, gazing toward the sky where Adepti and mortals clashed with the leviathan.
"Liyue, the land that walks with gods, has it prepared for the next era? I must create an opportunity to observe, and then decide."
At the Jade Chamber, Adepti unleashed their might while mortals fired giant ballistae. Guizhong Machines launched massive bolts into Osial's heads, drawing its pained roars.
Annoyed, several heads combined their energy, firing a beam skyward. Moments later, countless blasts rained like meteors onto the Jade Chamber.
Though it held, its protective arrays were disabled, and the Guizhong Machines were destroyed.
Now, without its defenses or weapons, the Jade Chamber was no longer a threat. The Adepti's ferocity could not pierce Osial's core.
And Adepti power wasn't infinite; eventually, exhaustion would hand victory to the demon god, leaving Liyue to burn.
The scales tipped toward Osial.
Elsewhere, Childe watched from a hill, thinking: 'At this point, surely the Archon will show himself? He won't let Liyue fall… right?'
On the Jade Chamber, Ningguang frowned. Their side was faltering, Osial far stronger than imagined. Without a breakthrough…
Her hand touched a golden jade pendant Richard had given her. If she shattered it, he would come.
But… had the time truly come?
Ningguang did have one more method. With it, Osial could be defeated.
But the cost was steep: the Jade Chamber itself. Like Morax once pulled a star from the heavens, she could bring the Chamber down like a meteor, crushing Osial with overwhelming kinetic force.
The Chamber would be destroyed, but Osial gravely wounded.
One option: the pendant, summoning aid.
The other: her life's work, sacrificed.
The choice was obvious.
"For all these years… this is the first time he's given me a pendant of his own accord…" Ningguang whispered, stroking it, resolve hardening.
"Everyone, I… have another plan."
"I will sacrifice the Jade Chamber."
Her words shocked all, even the reclusive Adepti who knew well the Chamber's importance to her.
But Ningguang didn't feel as sorrowful as they expected.
Thinking carefully, trading the Chamber for Liyue's survival was a bargain.
Besides, unlike the Chamber, the jade pendant in her hand was irreplaceable.
"After all, the Jade Chamber can always be rebuilt. But this pendant, I waited over twenty years for it…"
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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