"Thinking about it, Osial must be feeling absolutely miserable right about now."
After taking a small sip of tea, Zhongli finally spoke, unable to hide the faint smile tugging at his lips.
He had always been Osial's enemy rather than a friend; the more Osial suffered, the more amusing Zhongli found it.
Especially now that Yuheng-Xing Keqing was exploiting Osial's desire for some fresh air to lure him out—Zhongli found that extremely satisfying.
He had always admired Keqing. The stronger she proved herself, the more at ease he felt entrusting Liyue to these young people.
"Bittersweet, I suppose. At least after being sealed for over a thousand years, he finally got a chance to come out and stretch his legs a little."
Gu Chen couldn't imagine what it would be like to be sealed in the same place for millennia.
If he were locked inside a single room, he'd probably lose his mind within a month.
Let alone Osial, who had been suppressed so completely he couldn't even twitch.
A thousand years like that… pure torture.
But all Gu Chen could say was one thing: Serves him right.
After all, Osial and Liyue were enemies. Only in that one timeline shown in the videos—when Osial realized the might of the Taixuan Sect and chose to join it—did he eventually become one of the righteous Heavenly Venerates.
But video is video, and reality is reality. The two must be kept separate.
You can't deny a good person of this life because of misdeeds shown in a past-life video, nor can you excuse someone's real wrongdoing just because they looked righteous in a video.
Osial was the perfect example of the latter.
"If he really could cultivate the Taixuan Sutra though?"
Wendy—who had just arrived to mooch a meal—suddenly asked.
"Mm." Zhongli pondered for a few seconds, then looked at Gu Chen. "What does the Cult Master think?"
Gu Chen fell silent.
Anyone able to cultivate the Taixuan Sutra was either someone with a perfectly pure and upright heart…
Or someone who had truly resolved to abandon evil and reform.
If Osial could cultivate it, then he must be the latter.
"But just because he practices the Taixuan Sutra doesn't mean he gets to erase all his past sins."
Gu Chen smiled. "What must be atoned for should never be omitted."
"True."
Wendy nodded, propped his right leg up on the stool, then stepped on the stool with that same foot, poured himself a drink, and sighed, "Speaking of which, life is getting better and better for us. Other than being broke, everything's great!"
Gu Chen and Zhongli exchanged glances—and both chuckled.
Zhongli had publicly abdicated. Liyue Qixing and Yuehai Pavilion provided him monthly pension payments.
Even if he spent the entire month's pension, his daily life was unaffected—he just wouldn't be able to make big purchases.
Gu Chen, on the other hand, was ridiculous.
Aside from the generous "gratitude payment" Ningguang had given him last time, he practically had no income.
But—
He had Inazuma behind him.
Dumb-in-love Raiden Ei had to call Gu Chen "brother-in-law."
If he needed Mora, he could ask the Shogunate directly.
Zhongli believed that if Gu Chen merely opened his mouth, Ningguang would happily provide him a mountain of Mora.
So neither Gu Chen nor Zhongli ever needed to worry about money.
Only Wendy remained perpetually broke.
Jean had been joking when she told Wendy he wouldn't receive Mora, and after discussions between the Knights of Favonius and the Church, they had prepared a pension for him—just like Zhongli's.
Wendy, however, refused to accept it.
As the videos continued, more and more problems within Mondstadt were exposed. Many places lacked funding.
For example, choosing a place to build a statue of Dvalin alone would cost a significant amount of Mora.
Dvalin was unhappy that the people of Mond forgot him, but even he didn't think spending Mora on a statue was necessary. At least after watching the videos, Mondstatters remembered him now.
But Jean insisted that this was only temporary—future generations might forget again.
Therefore, she firmly believed the statue must be built, and real historical accounts rewritten into children's fairy tales for Mondstadt kids.
Freedom is good—but it requires boundaries.
Thus, the Knights of Favonius and the Church were currently working on that project.
"I've got a way to make money." Gu Chen said mysteriously.
"Bro, tell me!"
Wendy immediately slid to Gu Chen's side, kneeling and massaging Gu Chen's leg with a shameless grin.
Zhongli nearly punched him on reflex.
"Do you remember when the Lady slapped you?" Gu Chen asked with a smile.
"Huh?"
Wendy blinked, scratching his head.
The Lady had slapped him—he'd been acting back then.
"Does that… mean something?" Wendy asked.
Gu Chen looked at him strangely. "An Executive dared lay hands on a god. Since the Lady is currently serving her sentence in Inazuma, you can demand compensation from the Fatui."
Wendy's eyes lit up. He slapped his thigh. "Brilliant!"
Zhongli looked stunned.
This move from the Cult Master…
How to put it?
Not exactly befitting his lofty status—but undeniably a valid way to make money.
"Cult Master, you don't know how deeply that slap damaged my heart! Sob sob sob! When I think about it, it still hurts! My poor face was swollen! Swollen, I tell you! The Lady had completely lost her memories—she was so arrogant! Too arrogant! Cult Master, you must give me justice!"
Wendy clung to Gu Chen's leg, sobbing dramatically.
Gu Chen: …
I give you an idea and you want me to do the whole job too?
"It's broad daylight—stop daydreaming before you get dementia."
Gu Chen flicked his shoulder, then picked him up and tossed him aside. "If I help you, the Mora is all mine."
"Ahem!"
Wendy cleared his throat. "I believe the dignity of Barbatos, the Anemo Archon of Mondstadt, must be upheld! Especially now that the whole world knows Barbatos was slapped—Barbatos must pursue responsibility from the Fatui!"
Gu Chen: "…"
Zhongli: "…"
Wonderful. Very Wendy.
"Rest assured, Cult Master. You gave me the idea, so I'll give you thirty percent!" Wendy grinned.
"And me?" Zhongli's eyes brightened.
"Did you give any ideas?" Wendy pouted.
"A good brother splits the profits. Besides, I'm the one treating the Cult Master today—you're just freeloading." Zhongli said calmly.
…Fair enough. Hard to argue with that.
"Ten percent. No more. I'm already making you rich." Wendy patted Zhongli's shoulder with a "be grateful" expression.
Zhongli, who knew Wendy far too well, merely smiled.
A free ten percent was still ten percent.
"Have the food brought up."
Gu Chen added, "Prepare several extra portions. I'm sending them to my wives. I'm a family man—understand."
Zhongli froze.
Wendy looked at him like he was witnessing a divine miracle.
No wonder this man became Cult Master—he never let an opportunity escape. One meal, and he doubled Zhongli's expenses.
"…Very well." Zhongli nodded awkwardly. "Speaking of which, I also need to bring some to the Hall Master. Otherwise she'll complain that I forget her whenever I'm enjoying myself."
Gu Chen merely imagined the scene and started laughing.
Wendy thought for a moment, then shrugged. "Well, I don't need to bring anything… actually, never mind! I'll save it for the next meal I haven't secured yet!"
"You—"
Zhongli wanted to scold him.
Forget it. For that ten percent, he'd endure.
Group Chat
[Wendy]: @[Pantalone (The Rich Man)] Pay up.
[Pantalone]: ?
[Wendy]: Do you know how traumatized I was by the Lady's slap? I still bolt awake at night!
Is he deranged?
That happened ages ago. Why bring it up now?
No—why bring it up without context?
Did the Lady or the Fatui offend him again?
[Furina]: At night Wendy sits up screaming: "Is she CRAZY?! Steal my Gnosis if you want—but SLAP me?! And dig out my CHESS?!" (Furina laughing emoji)
[Pantalone]: What do you want? I'm busy.
[Wendy]: PM me. (mischievous emoji)
[Kaeya]: Why do I feel like Wendy has… awakened? (Sucrose questioning emoji)
[Dvalin]: Kid, are you saying Wendy used to be an idiot? (mischievous emoji)
[Kaeya]: Don't over-interpret. (Zhongli Dragon-King smirk emoji)
[Yanfei]: There's no explicit statute concerning slapping a god, but if Mr. Wendy asserts his identity as the Anemo Archon, this becomes a serious case.
@[The Lady] Need a lawyer? I guarantee an extra charge on your sentence! (proud emoji)
[Gu Chen]: You guarantee your client will get an extra sentence? You call that legal practice? (Hu Tao evil-grin emoji)
[Yanfei]: The Lady is already serving life imprisonment in Inazuma. One more charge means the death penalty!
After being sentenced to death, she'll have an even higher motivation to work hard during labor reform to reduce her sentence—striving to return to life imprisonment! She'll put her whole heart into it! (proud emoji)
[Kaeya]: Huh?!
[Childe]: WHAT?! You can do that?! (Paimon shocked emoji)
[Paimon]: Outrageous! (Paimon shocked emoji)
[Ningguang]: …This logic… actually works.
[Osial]: What are you all doing?! Don't wander into dangerous ideas! And stop adding crimes to people at random! (alarmed emoji)
[The Lady]: …
She was speechless.
Beyond speechless—her scalp tingled.
Is this woman really a lawyer?!
The Lady had serious doubts.
"Quit spacing out! Get back to work!" an inspector barked.
The Lady had never been talked to like this.
As a high, exalted Fatui Harbinger—not even the Tsaritsa had scolded her.
But she thought about it… and endured.
She snorted coldly.
She would treat this as humiliation borne for the greater cause—
For the Tsaritsa.
Kujou Sara stood not far away on patrol.
Seeing the Lady, she almost laughed.
She was a general of the Tenryou Commission—trained to maintain composure under all circumstances.
She did not laugh often.
Unless something was truly irresistible.
And seeing the arrogant Lady forced to bow her head?
Oh, that was delightful.
Especially since the Kujou Clan's downfall was largely this woman's fault.
If not for other promising heirs in the family, the Kujous might never rise again.
"Hmph. Serves you right."
"Her—and the Clan Head."
Sara snorted and walked off.
The news of the Taixuan Sect spread rapidly.
On modern Teyvat, once something appeared in the group chat, everyone watching it knew instantly; and even those not currently online would learn in short order.
The establishment of the Taixuan Sect in this life—what did it mean?
It meant that for ordinary people, the path to transcendence no longer relied solely on the rare appearance of Visions.
A new path had opened—and a far broader one.
Visions were too restrictive.
Cultivation was not.
Though ninety-nine percent of people would never reach the second realm in their lifetime, that alone already thrilled them.
After all—the first realm allowed one to leap across rooftops and walls, live to one hundred and twenty, and walk safely in the wild without fearing Slimes or Hilichurls.
Soon, all of Teyvat was singing praises of Gu Chen, the Cult Master of the Taixuan Sect.
The Ordinary-User group chat practically exploded—messages flooding so fast that one could never read the same one twice.
Thankfully, the Ordinary Group was subdivided into regions: Teyvat → Nation → Local Area, so people could chat normally within their own subgroups.
Gu Chen felt the vast waves of faith surging toward him.
It was the faith of all humanity across Teyvat.
When blessed with such power, even mortals gained a trace of divinity.
The accumulated faith of countless people was a terrifying force.
Inazuma's collective wish had empowered Lumine enough to defeat dim-witted Ei.
With the combined faith of all seven nations, Gu Chen felt he could—purely with faith power—solo all Seven Archons at once.
But unfortunately…
For Gu Chen, this force was only a pleasant bonus.
After thinking for a moment, he divided the faith.
One portion was infused into the Sword of All Beings, making this transcendental weapon even stronger.
He now deemed it a Celestial Artifact—a class beyond divine artifacts.
Other portions were purified.
Not as faith, but condensed into pure energy crystals—
Like Teyvat's magic ore.
In Taixuan terms: artificial spirit stones.
Gu Chen knew that with how exposed he had become, he would one day have wives who were not long-lived.
The expansion of the Taixuan Sect and the construction of these artificial spirit stones were preparations for that future—so that his non-immortal wives could also quickly walk the path to longevity.
He did not want to be eternally youthful while his wives turned grey and approached their end.
Just imagining that made his heart sink.
Thus, ever since the episode exposing him as Cult Master aired, he had already begun planning all this.
"Perfect."
He gathered the spirit stones and, in high spirits, decided—since the next video wouldn't update for a few days—
It was time to take his wives out on dates.
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read 60 chapter ahead on P@treon if you're interested: patreon.com/SwipeSage