The Jade Chamber plaza, which had just been tranquil and beautiful, was now a complete mess.
Ningguang's high-priced transplanted trees, the Glaze Lilies she hired people to carefully cultivate...
The opulent white jade floor, the rockeries built with exotic stones not far away...
All were dismantled cleanly by Xiao with a few casual swings.
Watching her Jade Chamber become like this, at that moment, Ningguang's blood pressure surged, her vision went black, and she almost fainted.
If the Jade Chamber was damaged for the sake of Liyue, Ningguang would be heartbroken, but she would have nothing to say.
But now...
This unwarranted disaster!
These were all Mora!
However, the one who did these things was the Vigilant Yaksha, who had tirelessly maintained Liyue's peace for thousands of years.
Moreover, it was she who had asked Xiao to demonstrate the Trident.
Ningguang fell silent.
She seemed to have lost all her luster.
Presumably, if it weren't for her inherent nobility, when alone later, Ningguang would be rolling around on her bed, crying out for the Jade Chamber.
"This... I apologize!"
The usually aloof young adeptus's face was now flushed beyond words.
"I will compensate for these losses!"
Ningguang pursed her lips, forcing herself to accept everything that had happened, and smiled with difficulty:
"No need... It was also I who asked the Vigilant Yaksha to demonstrate, and the Vigilant Yaksha was not aware of the Trident's situation."
"Besides, the Vigilant Yaksha works day and night to slay demons for Liyue. Such a small loss does not require the Vigilant Yaksha to compensate."
Ningguang was not being polite. Although she was heartbroken that the Jade Chamber had been messed up, Ningguang was incredibly wealthy.
For Ningguang, repairing it was merely a matter of time. As for how much Mora it would cost...
Apologies, that number truly wasn't worth Ningguang's attention.
She could close her eyes and count to five, and she would have earned back the lost Mora.
Otherwise, did they really think the legend of her owning half of Liyue's commercial territory was an exaggeration?
In Liyue's commerce, Ningguang took fifty percent of the Mora, the remaining thirty percent went to the General Affairs Department.
The final twenty percent went to other merchants.
What's more, Ningguang had already connected with Jiang Xuan. With the foundation of another world, picking up even a few scraps was enough to earn 140 times over.
Just like the dye business Ningguang discussed today, seemingly in jest.
If Jiang Xuan really agreed, and the supply chain got on track,
These dyes, made purely from flowers, would definitely sweep through all the tailors' shops in Teyvat.
At that time, a huge amount of Mora would flow in again.
Thinking this, Ningguang's somewhat melancholic mood also brightened.
Xiao was about to say something, but Ningguang grandly waved her hand.
"There's no need for the Vigilant Yaksha to dwell on these small issues with me. What's more important now is, how does this Trident feel to the Great Sage?"
Seeing that Ningguang's expression was not feigned, Xiao also slightly eased his embarrassment.
He activated his adeptal energy to pull out the Trident, intending to show it to Zhongli.
However, thinking of Zhongli's current identity, Xiao remained silent for a moment before saying softly:
"This weapon is very, very heavy! Holding it, it's like holding a mountain."
"I have probed it with adeptal energy. The structure of this weapon is incredibly tough. In my opinion, it should be impossible to break it in Teyvat."
Saying this, Xiao paused, then glanced at Zhongli seemingly inadvertently, and continued:
"But I imagine, the Geo Archon can certainly break this weapon!"
"..."
Zhongli pursed his lips and took over the conversation:
"In my opinion, even the Geo Archon cannot break this weapon."
Hearing Zhongli say this, Xiao was evidently surprised, but considering Ningguang and the others were still present, he forcibly restrained his emotions.
Zhongli rose and walked to the Trident, secretly permeating it with his divine power. A golden light flashed in his eyes, showing a hint of admiration.
"The material of this weapon is difficult to identify. I even feel that it is a weapon that grew directly from heaven and earth."
"The Vigilant Yaksha is right; this weapon indeed cannot be broken in Teyvat."
In fact, it would be quite handy for fighting Archons during the Archon War...
Zhongli, of course, did not voice this last sentence.
Glancing at the Trident again, Zhongli nodded slightly.
"Basically, purely in terms of weight and toughness, this weapon is much stronger than the Vigilant Yaksha's Primordial Jade Winged-Spear."
"Its destructive power should also be very great, given its weight."
"But if we look at it comprehensively, it should be comparable to Miss Keqing's Lion's Roar."
"After all, the Primordial Jade Winged-Spear is imbued with elemental laws, a true divine artifact, and provides a greater martial power boost to the Vigilant Yaksha in Teyvat."
Saying this, Zhongli shook his head again, avoiding making definitive statements.
"But this is just my current personal opinion. Jiang Xuan said that weapons can also be enchanted, and I'm not sure what 'enchantment' means."
"I imagine it means giving weapons some unimaginable abilities. If so, then the strength of this weapon would be even further increased."
"However... it's not suitable for widespread deployment, as not everyone possesses strength like the Vigilant Yaksha."
With that, Zhongli returned to his seat.
Ganyu also finished recording the details of the Trident and nodded to Ningguang.
The latter immediately spoke:
"Since that's the case, please put away the Trident for now, Great Sage."
Xiao remained silent. After putting away the Trident, he glanced at the mess on the ground again.
He still felt a bit guilty.
However, Zhongli's earlier evaluation of the Trident still made him very happy.
At least he now had another powerful weapon, and in the future, when dealing with monsters, he wouldn't always have to use the Primordial Jade Winged-Spear.
The Primordial Jade Winged-Spear was a gift from Zhongli, so Xiao naturally wanted to cherish and preserve it every day.
"Next, then..."
Ningguang rubbed her temples, deliberately ignoring the messy ground, and said softly:
"All the wood blocks received today are to be sent to the dock. Uncle Tian is temporarily in charge there, and there's also a workbench there."
"First, break down all the solid wood into planks. Choose a portion to continue dismantling and quietly introduce it into the timber market tomorrow."
"The other portion will be temporarily stored for future contingencies."
"In addition, Keqing, I'd like to ask you to select a suitable area in advance for planning later, to place the soil from that world and plant the seeds and saplings I brought back."
"Also... Ganyu, your glass."
Ningguang turned to Ganyu, thought for a moment, and then said softly:
"As for the glass, send it all to the dock. Uncle Tian will arrange for someone to watch over it. We still need to inspect the condition of this batch of glass."
"Once confirmed, we can consider pricing and dumping."
"Also, Ganyu, burn some of the sand using Jiang Xuan's method, and burn the other portion using our Teyvat method."
Ganyu and Keqing nodded repeatedly, their hands swiftly recording Ningguang's words.
Zhongli, however, exchanged glances with Xiao, then rose and left one after the other.
Ganyu and Keqing, engrossed in their recording, naturally didn't notice.
But Ningguang's eyes lit up with a faint glow, thoroughly confirming some things.
Looking at Liyue Harbor, which was still brightly lit late into the night, Ningguang's eyes were full of tenderness.
At this moment, she was more convinced than ever.
In the time to come, Liyue would develop rapidly, becoming the true uncrowned king of Teyvat.
After descending from Liyue Harbor, Xiao waited at the peak of Mount Tianheng.
He wasn't looking at the Jade Chamber; instead, he was staring at Jiang Xuan's temporary residence at the foot of the mountain.
A moment later, Zhongli's footsteps startled Xiao.
He was still wearing the same close-fitting dark brown robe, no different from how he had been during the day.
"Geo Archon."
Xiao greeted him respectfully.
Zhongli nodded slightly and said softly:
"Come with me to Jueyun Karst."
Naturally, Xiao would not say much about going with Zhongli.
After nodding, he added:
"Geo Archon, Mr. Jiang Xuan doesn't seem to be home."
Zhongli gently closed his eyes and connected to the Liyue Earth, perceiving for a moment, and found no trace of Jiang Xuan.
Even his aura had disappeared from the foot of Mount Tianheng.
Zhongli withdrew his divine power and said calmly:
"I understand. Jiang Xuan has entered his world."
"Now?"
Xiao was a little surprised.
"It's night now... Geo Archon, nothing will happen, right?"
Zhongli gently shook his head and said indifferently:
"Generally speaking, he knows how to protect himself in that world better than we do. No need to worry."
"Perhaps there were some things he had to do immediately. In any case, he will protect himself."
"Now, we will go to Jueyun Karst first."
Hearing Zhongli say this, Xiao said no more.
He soared with the long wind, following Zhongli to Jueyun Karst. The howling strong winds did not affect their five senses.
Xiao understood what Zhongli wanted to do; it was nothing more than finding a flying adeptus.
Seeing Zhongli in a good mood, Xiao rarely asked a question.
"Geo Archon, are we looking for Mountain Shaper or Cloud Retainer?"
"Cloud Retainer, of course!"
Zhongli answered without hesitation.
He knew Cloud Retainer's personality all too well after so many years of interaction.
She wasn't a bad person, but she was too straightforward and couldn't keep a secret.
Xiao also expressed his full agreement with Zhongli's decision, but in his heart, he inexplicably felt a sense of foreboding.
Shaking his head and dismissing that feeling, he replied with a "Yes," and Xiao added:
"Is the Geo Archon planning to meet the adepti as Zhongli?"
Upon hearing this, Zhongli fell silent for a moment, his voice faint, dissipating into the air with the strong winds.
"Let it be so. There's no need to hide anymore..."
...
Jiang Xuan naturally didn't know that Zhongli, because of his appearance, no longer planned to hide his identity from the adepti.
Just as Zhongli thought, he had very important things to do.
Things that absolutely had to be completed today.
Things he couldn't sleep without completing.
He was only thirty-odd monsters away from completing the achievement quest. If he didn't finish grinding them today, Jiang Xuan would be incredibly annoyed.
Fortunately, the monster grinder was incredibly fast at spawning monsters at night.
In the hour or so since Jiang Xuan returned to the MC world,
He had already ground out thirty-two monsters.
And all sorts of materials had also been collected in a chest.
At least, he wouldn't be short on bone meal in the future.
He cleaved a witch in the monster grinder with a single sword, and to his surprise, it dropped redstone dust and sugar.
Jiang Xuan immediately picked them up with a beaming smile.
Sugar was irrelevant; the main thing was that redstone dust was too useful.
But it was also very precious.
Jiang Xuan had killed at least seven or eight witches, and only managed to get six redstone dust in total.
However, Jiang Xuan estimated that if Ganyu were to kill these monsters, the probability of dropping good items would be much higher.
Lost in thought, Jiang Xuan subconsciously wanted to pull out a stone sword to kill monsters.
But when he reached for it, he realized he had no stone swords left.
"Tsk, it's the last monster, and you pull this stunt on me?"
Jiang Xuan pouted, grumbled, then turned and walked to the workbench, synthesizing another one.
After finishing this, Jiang Xuan turned around to find a green Creeper had fallen from the monster grinder.
It was staring at him with wide eyes, head tilted.
Jiang Xuan chuckled.
"Interesting, the last one is a Creeper. What, do you think I'll be foolish enough to go up and hack you?"
He casually pulled out a wooden bow, nocked an arrow, and aimed at the Creeper.
He didn't shout any slogans, just casually drew and shot, and the Creeper fell.
Vaguely, Jiang Xuan saw something drop.
But before he could get closer to observe,
The system's rigid, mechanical voice echoed in his mind again.
"Ding, Monster Hunter, achievement unlocked!"
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