"Cloud Retainer, say something already," Mountain Shaper said, looking at her.
"What exactly do you expect one to say?" Cloud Retainer shot him a glance. "Did you not notice that Shenhe's baleful energy has been suppressed?"
"Suppressed?" Moon Carver looked startled and turned to Shenhe. "Come here."
"Yes." Shenhe stepped over and stood in front of him.
Moon Carver examined her carefully, then looked back at Cloud Retainer in disbelief. "Cloud Retainer, so you really did find a way to suppress it."
"Quickly, tell us what happened. Mountain Shaper and I have been thinking about this for ages and never found an answer, yet you solved it before us."
Cloud Retainer hesitated, unsure how to explain it.
"I doubt this has anything to do with Cloud Retainer," Xiao said at last, glancing at her. "Was it Rex Lapis?"
"Rex Lapis?" Mountain Shaper frowned. "But didn't he already say... Unless he came up with some new method?"
"You are both mistaken. It was neither Rex Lapis nor one. Ryou saved Shenhe. He gave her some kind of medicine, and after she drank it, the baleful energy in her body was suppressed." Cloud Retainer looked at Shenhe and gave her a slight shake of the head.
"What medicine?" Moon Carver asked. "We adepti have never heard of anything that could cure Shenhe."
"Moon Carver, that man killed three monsters atop the Jade Chamber with a single palm strike. His strength is no less than ours."
"But no matter what, we owe him our thanks," Xiao said, then looked at Shenhe. "And that red light just now—what was it?"
"it was..." Shenhe quietly explained what had happened.
"You saw the future?" Mountain Shaper's voice was full of disbelief.
Moon Carver said nothing.
Xiao folded his arms and remained silent as well, but his gaze had grown thoughtful.
Cloud Retainer swept a glance over the three of them. "Shenhe returning to normal is a good thing. There is no need to question Ryou further about this. Asking too much will do no good."
"Cloud Retainer is right," Mountain Shaper said with a nod.
"Indeed," Moon Carver agreed.
Xiao glanced at them and said, "Handle it as you see fit. I am going to Liyue Harbor tonight to ask about a few things."
"You're going to Liyue Harbor?" Moon Carver looked surprised.
Xiao merely nodded and left.
"Conqueror of Demons!" Mountain Shaper called after him.
But Xiao was already gone.
Mountain Shaper shook his head. "Really now... If he has something to say, why not say it plainly to us?"
Cloud Retainer looked at the two of them. "Enough. We still have guests waiting outside in the mountains."
"True enough. Come, then. We missed our chance to meet that little hero last time, and one has no intention of missing it again," Moon Carver said as he walked out first.
"Moon Carver, wait for one!" Mountain Shaper hurried after him.
Cloud Retainer watched the two leave, then turned back to Shenhe. "Other than one, do not speak of this matter to anyone else. Understood?"
"Yes, Master. I understand." Shenhe nodded.
Still, when she looked at Cloud Retainer, she hesitated and ultimately said nothing.
Only now had Shenhe fully realized that the image she saw had suggested more than just herself. The thought left her emotions in disarray.
Could Master also end up with Ryou?
Outside, Ryou, Keqing, Lumine, and Ganyu were sitting around a stone table beneath a tree, drinking tea and chatting. When the adepti emerged, they all rose to their feet.
"Greetings, honored adepti," Keqing and Ryou said.
"No need for formalities. Sit," Moon Carver said.
He and Mountain Shaper took human form and sat down. The moment their eyes fell on the teapot, both of them looked mildly surprised.
The tea was of exceptional quality. Its fragrance was rich, and spiritual energy lingered in it—it was clearly first-rate immortal tea.
Next to it sat a bottle of juice and a plate of fruit. The juice also carried spiritual energy and shone with an inviting color, while the fruit was something they had never seen before.
Moon Carver and Mountain Shaper had known Cloud Retainer for ages. Of course they knew what kind of person she was. She had never once entertained guests like this in the past.
Yet lately, she had invited them over for tea again and again, and every time she made sure to show off her immortal tea and fruit. The two of them had long been itching to complain.
Now that they saw these things in person, they both guessed at once that they had most likely come from Ryou.
That only made them more astonished.
These teas, fruits, and juices were no ordinary things. Even among the adepti, they were rare enough to be treasured.
And yet Ryou, a mere human, seemed to enjoy a far more comfortable life than they did. It was hard not to feel a little envious.
"Ryou, these..." Moon Carver began.
"Moon Carver," Mountain Shaper cut in.
Moon Carver coughed awkwardly. "Ahem. One means nothing by it. One is merely curious."
"You really don't need to hold back," Ryou said with a smile. "If the two of you would like some, I can give you a portion."
"Compared to everything you've all done for Liyue Harbor, these things are barely worth mentioning."
"We adepti made a contract with Rex Lapis to protect Liyue. That is simply our duty," Moon Carver said, shaking his head.
"No. To you, it may be duty," Ryou said seriously as he looked at Moon Carver and Mountain Shaper. "But to us, it means something else. People should be grateful."
Moon Carver fell quiet.
After watching Ryou for quite a while, Mountain Shaper said, "One can tell that your gratitude is sincere. For us, that is enough."
"In that case, we'll accept them. One has watched Cloud Retainer show off in front of us several times already. At least now we won't have to envy her anymore."
"Hmph. Cloud Retainer, haven't you been inviting Mountain Shaper and one over for tea lately just to flaunt all this?" Moon Carver said irritably.
"Hmph. One has done no such thing!" Cloud Retainer turned her face aside.
Ryou laughed, then said, "Please, don't get upset. We came today partly to visit all of you, but mostly to see Shenhe. Now that I know she's alright, I can relax."
"If there's nothing else, we should head back to Liyue Harbor. We still have work to deal with."
Cloud Retainer looked at him for a moment. "Ryou, though one does not know exactly what you did to suppress the baleful energy inside her, one is still somewhat concerned."
"Would you allow Shenhe to stay by your side for the time being? If anything happens again, you would be there to look after her."
Ryou hesitated.
He could tell Keqing was still on guard around Shenhe. Even though he had already told Keqing some of Shenhe's story, bringing Shenhe back with them would almost certainly cause trouble.
So his first instinct was to refuse.
Then Keqing spoke first.
"That's fine."
Ryou looked at her in surprise.
Cloud Retainer seemed surprised too, then said to Keqing, "Then one will trouble you with this. As for what happened before, please be understanding with Shenhe. One has already spoken with her."
"I understand," Keqing said with a nod.
"Thank you," Shenhe said to Keqing.
"It's nothing." Keqing shook her head.
Ryou was genuinely surprised to see the two of them like this. That shift in attitude had come a little too fast.
Since when had Keqing become this generous?
Was she plotting something?
After that, Ryou gave the adepti a number of things, and only then did he leave with the others and head down the mountain.
When they reached the foot of the mountain, Shenhe said softly, "Can we leave a little later? There's somewhere I want to go."
"Of course." Ryou nodded.
He followed her as she walked off the path and into an abandoned village.
Shenhe stopped in front of one ruined house and stood there in silence for a long while. After that, she walked farther uphill, where two gravestones stood side by side.
Keqing lowered her voice. "Ryou... are those her parents?"
Ryou gave her a small nod.
Keqing understood at once and said nothing more.
A long time passed before Shenhe finally came back. Her expression had hardly changed, and she quietly continued walking forward.
Keqing watched her for a moment, then stepped ahead to comfort her.
Lumine took the chance to slip over to Ryou's side. Tilting her head up at him, she said, "Find a place for us later. I have something to say to you. Just the two of us."
"Just the two of us?" Ryou looked at her. "What are you planning?"
He thought to himself, Don't tell me you're about to make a move on me out of nowhere.
Lumine leaned closer. "Ryou, you don't want that thing getting out, do you?"
He frowned at her, clearly confused, so she continued, "I know that eye of yours peeked at Yanfei while she was bathing. And that hand of yours touched Hu Tao too. If I tell them about it, what do you think will happen?"
Ryou glared at her. "What nonsense are you spouting? Do I look like that kind of person?"
"I've got evidence." Lumine smiled. "If I spill it, those girls will all come after you. That hand was even moving around right in front of Hu Tao, you know."
Ryou went silent.
That damned hand really couldn't be a little more careful when it was doing bad things? It even left behind a witness.
Seeing the half-smile on Lumine's face, Ryou grimaced and said, "Fine. Tonight at dusk, I'll treat you to dinner at Liuli Pavilion. Happy?"
"That's more like it." Lumine beamed, then walked ahead.
Ryou watched her back with a helpless look.
Usually he was the one blackmailing other people.
How had he ended up being blackmailed instead?
[End of chapter]
[200 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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