As the Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing, Keqing was often found on the front lines, handling matters personally. She had traveled across every corner of Liyue.
However, this—land suddenly appearing out of thin air—was something she had never witnessed before.
While Keqing pondered how new land had emerged beside [Wanmin Restaurant], more exclamations rang out nearby.
"What the—!"
"An empty lot just appeared next to [Jade Mystery]!"
"Scared me half to death!"
"Yeah! This is way too weird!!"
As pedestrians continued to cry out over the new empty lot near [Jade Mystery], the same phenomenon repeated again and again throughout [Chihu Rock] and [Feiyun Slope].
And the reason?
Luya was spending Mora to buy land through the system.
To him, it was simply a matter of purchasing plots and converting them into [Yu-Gi-Oh! Scratch Card] shops. Yet to the citizens of Liyue Harbor, it was utterly terrifying. One moment they were walking down a familiar street, and the next, new patches of land appeared out of nowhere. Those unaware thought Morax himself had manifested!
In fact, that was precisely the excuse Luya planned to use later. If anyone asked, he would just say that he bought the land from Rex Lapis. Otherwise, it would be far too complicated to explain—and this was the easiest answer for any Liyuean to believe. Later, he could even ask Zhongli to help confirm the story during the Rite of Descension.
After all, the Rite was when the Geo Archon announced Liyue's direction for the coming year.
...
Besides, Luya wasn't doing anything wrong—he was expanding Liyue's territory, a great blessing! The people of Liyue should be delighted. More land meant more room for people to live. More people meant more prosperity, more Mora, and greater development for Liyue.
Take Dihua Marsh, for example. Formed by the flow of the Bishui River, it was a fertile floodplain and wetland, filled with reeds that rustled in harmony with croaking frogs—a lush, abundant land. If its population grew, Dihua Marsh could develop even further, driving Liyue's overall expansion.
The same applied to Guili Plains, Yaoguang Shoal, Luhua Pool, and Mingyun Village—all promising lands ripe for growth. Nonetheless, these regions lacked infrastructure and were sparsely populated. As such, land there was dirt cheap.
Luya planned to relocate future industries, such as assembly-line factories, to those affordable areas. He would also establish internal transport routes across Liyue. That way, he could both take on transport commissions and move his own goods—a perfect win-win.
...
Soon, Luya bought ten plots of land, each fifty square meters, across [Feiyun Slope] and [Chihu Rock]. Total cost: roughly two hundred million Mora. He had effectively secured prime locations for his [Yu-Gi-Oh! Scratch Card] stores in both of Liyue Harbor's busiest areas.
At that time, many citizens were strolling the streets, only to be startled as empty lots appeared right before their eyes.
"Ah?!"
"What's going on…?"
"Wha… what in the world?!"
"Is this an illusion? Where did that lot come from?!"
Meanwhile, Zhongli wandered the streets like a leisurely onlooker. Seeing all the new open spaces appear, he faintly sensed that this must have something to do with Luya. Yet he couldn't tell how Luya had done it. Creating empty land from nothing—what a formidable ability.
Zhongli had no idea how it was possible; regardless, he couldn't deny it was impressive. If his goal was to see Liyue governed by its people, then Luya was surely a man worthy of that trust.
Not only was Luya powerful, but he also possessed astonishing technological skill.
Entrusting Liyue to him would give Zhongli complete peace of mind. And this year's Rite of Descension would be the perfect occasion to make that announcement.
At some point, Zhongli had already begun to entertain the thought of entrusting Liyue to Luya. Yet seeing so many new lands appear out of nowhere only strengthened his resolve. With more land, Liyue's future could only grow brighter.
...
After purchasing the lots, Luya moved on to the next step—activating the land construction function. He selected the ten newly acquired plots and purchased building modules for all of them.
Building modules were one of the system's functions. By spending Mora, Luya could instantly construct a building—the system would only charge material costs. It was extremely convenient.
For his [Yu-Gi-Oh! Scratch Card] stores, Luya modeled the design after Blue Star's "Welfare Lottery" shops, but infused with more Duel Monsters flair. The storefronts and neon signs all reflected the Yu-Gi-Oh! aesthetic.
According to the system's pricing, each [Yu-Gi-Oh! Scratch Card] shop cost three million Mora to build. With ten shops total, that came to thirty million Mora. Including the land purchases, the total reached two hundred thirty million Mora.
In short, Luya had just opened ten [Yu-Gi-Oh! Scratch Card] shops across Liyue Harbor… and he was quite satisfied with that. With these stores, the scratch cards would quickly help him amass even greater wealth.
Moreover, the prizes weren't just Mora—they included Duel Monsters cards and decks. There were even rumors that Ganyu had scratched a card and won a Vision!
There was no doubt—the scratch cards would sell like crazy. Each one cost five hundred Mora to make and sold for two thousand Mora—a fourfold profit margin.
Having spent two hundred thirty million Mora to open ten stores, Luya didn't think it was too many—they were all in prime locations, after all. He could always expand once he earned more. For now, ten was enough. He still had 1.57 billion Mora remaining.
Next, he needed to restock these [Yu-Gi-Oh! Scratch Card] shops; otherwise, they'd just be empty shells. Luya was browsing the system's shop, leisurely placing orders for stock.
...
Meanwhile, over at [Chihu Rock] and [Feiyun Slope], the townspeople were in complete chaos.
"Holy—!!"
"These stores just appeared out of thin air!!!"
"Oh my mom… this scared me to death!!!"
Just as they were still talking about how shocking the empty lots were, countless new [Yu-Gi-Oh! Scratch Card] shops suddenly materialized across the streets.
The crowd erupted again.
"Hisss…"
"[Yu-Gi-Oh! Scratch Card]?"
"Judging by the name… it must be related to the owner of the [Duel Monsters Specialty Shop]!"
"Right!! And earlier today, Miss Ganyu scratched one and got a Vision!"
"What?! A Vision?! You're not joking?!"
...
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