Just as Hu Tao stood frozen in place, questioning life while cursing the twisted nature of humanity—
A large detachment of Millelith soldiers pushed through the crowd, swiftly arriving at the scene.
They stared warily at the line of corpses standing motionless before them.
For a moment, silence swallowed the gates of Liyue Harbor.
The eerie atmosphere was enough to make even these battle-hardened elites feel their calves tremble.
In the middle of the night, a crowd of mangled, limbless, even headless corpses quietly standing there…
Behind them, rows of massive, ferocious beasts exuding murderous intent…
Even the boldest horror novelists of Teyvat wouldn't dare to write something like this.
"Um…"
Chongyun raised his hand awkwardly, but before he could finish, the Millelith captain barked out:
"Master Chongyun! Quickly, get away from those corpses!"
"Well, actually…"
Chongyun scratched his cheek helplessly.
"These corpses are fine. Qiqi herded them back."
The captain blinked, startled.
"Qiqi?"
Chongyun stepped aside, revealing Qiqi sitting serenely on a wolf's back, eyes closed in cultivation.
The crowd's confusion only deepened.
"In short, everyone doesn't need to worry. These corpses are harmless."
Chongyun tried to reassure them, but the Millelith still refused to relax.
These things were far too unsettling—especially here, at Liyue Harbor's gates. If anything went wrong…
Should they call an exorcist? Or the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor?
While Chongyun fretted, a squad of soldiers rushed over.
"Everyone! Clear the way!"
A sharp voice rang out—it was Baiwen. The Millelith quickly parted to let her through.
Leading a team of elites, Baiwen hurried to the front. One glance at the gruesome scene and her pupils shrank.
So many mangled corpses at once… the shock rattled her composure. Tonight, she'd no doubt have nightmares.
Still, she forced herself to focus, turning to Chongyun in puzzlement.
"Master Chongyun, this is…?"
With a sigh, Chongyun explained again:
"I was surrounded by a pack of beasts at Jueyun Karst. Fortunately, Qiqi came to save me. She was herding corpses at the time—something taught to her by the Mount Shu Sect Master.
"She said she had to send these poor souls, who died far from home, back to Liyue Harbor.
"As for the beasts, some were ones I killed, and some we ran into on the way back."
The crowd erupted in murmurs.
Their gazes turned fiery as they looked at Qiqi.
A true cultivator! For many, this was the first they'd seen one in the flesh.
Those who knew Qiqi's condition were even more stunned.
A zombie… learning corpse-herding? That was absurd.
Whispers spread louder and louder.
Baiwen quickly pieced things together—she'd heard Ningguang mention that Qiqi had joined Mount Shu.
Suppressing her discomfort, she stepped closer to inspect the corpses.
Most were Treasure Hoarders, adventurers, or common folk.
Their bodies mangled, likely victims of beasts.
Pressing her lips together, she waved her hand.
"Identify them. Notify their families, and inform the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor."
Identify them?
The Millelith exchanged troubled glances.
Missing limbs was one thing, but missing heads? How were they supposed to recognize those?
Grimacing, they moved closer to examine.
Qiqi, silent for a moment, formed a seal.
The corpses obediently hopped onto the carts, lying flat.
Those with identification on them neatly set it atop their chests.
It was almost comical—like they'd "died with ID in hand."
"Thank you, Qiqi."
Baiwen exhaled in relief, curiosity flickering in her eyes.
Aside from Ningguang, Keqing, and Ganyu, this was her first time seeing a cultivator.
And unlike theirs, Qiqi's arts were… decidedly eerie.
Clearly, cultivation did not follow a single path.
Qiqi tilted her head, looking at Baiwen. Then she pointed at the beast corpses.
"Ningguang senior told Qiqi, if I meet beasts while cultivating outside, I can put them down. If I don't need them, I should give them to Liyue.
"These beasts, Qiqi doesn't need. Do you want them?"
Baiwen froze, then her eyes lit up. She nodded quickly.
"If you don't need them, we'll gladly take them!"
Most were only early Foundation-stage beasts, but that alone was precious.
They weren't easy to hunt, and the sheer number was impressive.
Plenty of valuable resources.
And Qiqi's mount itself was a mid-Foundation beast.
This haul would keep the Millelith supplied for a long while.
Qiqi nodded dully.
"Wait for Qiqi. I need to finish absorbing the last bit of yin energy."
She closed her eyes, hastening her cultivation.
The beasts' corpses shimmered faintly with gray-black light, streams of which were drawn into her body like a black hole.
Her aura surged higher, an accidental flicker of pressure making Rosalyne—secretly observing from the shadows—flinch.
That faint aura alone filled her with a sense of danger.
Yet Qiqi wasn't even aiming at her, just… cultivating.
Hu Tao, still hiding nearby, grew more frustrated.
With Qiqi's strength as it was now, she couldn't possibly send her off anymore.
If she tried like before, she'd be the one sent packing.
Just perfect…
Hu Tao fumed.
Not only had she lost a long-time "client," now that very client was about to steal her business!
What kind of hellish cosmic joke was this?!
The crowd, meanwhile, watched Qiqi quietly.
To them, cultivation itself was novel and wondrous.
Time passed. Finally, Qiqi absorbed the last of the yin energy and hopped off her wolf mount.
"One-two, Qiqi. Two-two, Qiqi…"
She went through a few of her self-made calisthenics, testing her more flexible body.
A small smile touched her lips.
Qiqi smiled…
Baiwen and the others blinked in surprise, then felt genuinely glad for her.
For this poor child, being able to recover through cultivation was indeed a blessing.
Qiqi gestured.
Most of the beast corpses obediently marched to the carts, while a smaller number lined up beside Chongyun.
Done, she turned back to Baiwen.
"The extra beasts, Qiqi killed. The smaller group, Chongyun killed. Qiqi promised to help him bring them back."
Baiwen blinked, then nodded.
"Of course. The beasts slain by Master Chongyun rightfully belong to him."
Qiqi thought for a moment, then added:
"Master said Qiqi must go out to herd corpses every night. That's my cultivation. I have to obey Master.
"Every night, Qiqi will bring back those who died away from home. If I meet beasts, I'll bring them too."
Hu Tao's face darkened.
Listen to that!
"Every night" she'd be herding corpses?
Did that mean Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's field business was dead from now on?
Was there no justice left?!
Her Wangsheng Parlor was the only legitimate funeral company in Liyue!
Baiwen nodded knowingly, smiling faintly.
"Don't worry, Qiqi. We'll arrange people to receive you every night."
As for corpses—well, few cared much. In these times, anyone who died in the wild was usually some unlucky rule-breaker.
Liyue would hardly mourn them.
But nightly deliveries of beasts?
That was a windfall.
After all, the corpses showed a pattern—most slain with a clean sword thrust through the skull.
If Qiqi came every night, Baiwen would be overjoyed.
The others weren't eyeing the Liyue-claimed beasts at all.
Instead, their eyes locked onto the ones by Chongyun.
Over a dozen wolves, all early Foundation stage.
A real treasure—just eating their meat would strengthen the body.
Liyue Harbor didn't sell beast meat. But Chongyun's? Surely he wouldn't keep it all for himself.
How could one person eat so much?
Chongyun, feeling the heated stares, grew tense.
Meanwhile, Qiqi tilted her head, then drew her flying sword.
"If nothing else, Qiqi will leave now. I'll come again tomorrow night.
"Also—Master said that since Mount Shu's evolution, the aura spilling out has turned many creatures at Jueyun Karst into beasts.
"The spread isn't stopping. More will appear, and other regions may also see them.
"The strongest beast there has already reached late Foundation."
Baiwen's heart skipped.
"Late Foundation beasts?!"
That was nearly the level of a demon god's kin—utterly beyond their capacity to handle.
"Master said, that beast won't appear casually. As long as you don't explore Jueyun Karst recklessly, you'll be fine.
"If it does show up, Qiqi will deal with it. Don't worry."
After this night's cultivation, Qiqi's thoughts and words flowed more smoothly.
It seemed she was close to a full recovery.
"Then we'll rely on you, Qiqi."
Baiwen breathed easier.
Qiqi shook her head, stepped onto her sword, and prepared to depart.
At that moment, Hu Tao could no longer restrain herself.
With Qiqi's corpse-herding practice now certain, she was destined to keep stealing Wangsheng's business.
Fighting was pointless—she couldn't beat her. Arguing was useless—she couldn't outtalk her. She could only pinch her nose and accept reality.
But once she accepted it, Hu Tao realized there was profit to be made.
There were only so many corpses in Jueyun Karst—or even all of Liyue.
With her identity as a cultivator, Qiqi would surely be sent to herd corpses all across Teyvat one day.
That was opportunity!
If she could team up with Qiqi… partner up…
Wouldn't Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's business spread across the whole continent?
Qiqi could deliver the bodies, but that wasn't a proper burial.
In the end, it was Wangsheng's duty to give the deceased their final dignity.
Qiqi would find the corpses; Wangsheng would provide coffins, embalming, and funerals.
Efficiency up, professionalism up.
Better yet, she wouldn't need to run around hunting for clients anymore.
Even if only a third of Qiqi's deliveries needed coffins and burials, it'd be a massive profit!
Later, they could expand into Mondstadt-special burials, Inazuma-special burials, Fontaine-special burials…
Diversified service structures! Professionalized service philosophy!
Teaming with Qiqi… was a goldmine!
What a flawless business plan—one even Ningguang would admire.
Hu Tao's eyes gleamed with pride. She was a genius of commerce!
Sure, it was odd to pick her old "client" as a partner…
But compared to expanding Wangsheng across Teyvat, what did that matter?
She leapt out.
"Wait, Qiqi! I want to discuss a business partnership with you!"
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