"Set up a little stall by the bridge and tell stories every day. I guarantee it'll get lively," Lora said to Sophia with a smile.
"How about I tell the stories, and you perform them?" Sophia replied. "I know you're quite good at acting."
"Be humble. A little more humble!" Lora made a tiny gesture with her fingers. "I only know a little."
Apep, standing behind them, cut in, "A little? Back when you tricked us into believing Greater Lord Rukkhadevata was a tree, your acting looked like more than just a little."
"But I was a tree to begin with," Sophia said, turning back to her. "Irminsul is a tree too."
"Agreed!" Lora raised her hand from the side.
Nahida looked at Lora, then at Sophia. After a moment's hesitation, she walked up to the newly returned god and said, "Greater Lord Rukkhadevata... now that you're back, about governing Sumeru..."
Sophia ruffled her hair and said, "Silly child, matters like that should be left to humans, of course. If you try to handle everything yourself, how could you possibly have the energy? Did you shut down the Akasha?"
Nahida nodded. "Yes. I already gave the Dendro Gnosis to the Fatui. Without it as an energy source, the Akasha could only be shut down."
"The Akasha is a tool that integrates human wisdom. The Gnosis only supplied it with power. The system has existed ever since it was created, so as long as it has an energy source, it can keep running. Whether that power comes from the Dendro Gnosis or not doesn't matter."
Sophia shook her head and spread her hands. Green motes of light drifted from her palms and melted into the space around them.
With the Sanctuary of Surasthana at the center, her power instantly covered Sumeru City, then continued spreading outward.
Lora could sense it gradually taking hold across the entire nation.
Soon, Sophia said to Nahida, "All right. I've modified the Akasha's operating system so that the Ley Lines across Sumeru can supply it with energy. It only needs a tiny amount to keep running for a long time."
"As expected of you, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata!" Nahida looked at her with admiration.
Sophia crouched down and rubbed her cheeks. "You can do it too, you know. You're just still too young. Once you grow up, you won't be weaker than me. You might even become stronger."
"I am the sunset, and you are the sunrise."
"We are gods of the old era now."
From the side, Lora said, "Hey, hey, I'm not old yet."
"Not old? You're already several thousand years old." Sophia turned back to look at her, her expression slightly teasing.
"Thank you, but I'm forever eighteen," Lora shot back.
The group stayed in Sumeru City for a while. Faruzan did not even need to go looking for Alhaitham, as he had already rushed back on his own.
Sophia and Nahida took the opportunity to announce the Akasha's restart to the two of them. From now on, they could use its power to handle official work. After Sophia's modifications, the system would not repeat its past mistakes, and it would greatly improve the daily lives of Sumeru's people.
Now that was the proper way to use technology.
"Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, if you're leaving all the work to Faruzan and me, what will you and Lesser Lord Kusanali be doing?" Alhaitham was the kind of person who asked questions whenever he had them, even when he was facing Sophia and Nahida.
Sophia smiled and shook her head. "We won't be doing anything."
Alhaitham: "..."
She reassured him, "Don't worry. With the Akasha's help, things will be much easier than before. The coming era belongs to humans. Although we gods still exist, humans must rely on their own strength to govern their own nation."
Faruzan nodded. "Yes, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata. You're right."
Alhaitham glanced back at her, his eyes seeming to ask whose side she was on.
"Mhm. Work hard, stay disciplined, and make the institution proud." Lora nodded along from the side, fully agreeing with Sophia.
That was exactly her method.
Her target just happened to be a dragon instead of a human.
No real difference.
After seeing Alhaitham and Faruzan off, the group was just about to set out for Liyue when a sudden scream came from the sky. Immediately after, a dark shadow fell from above and smashed right in front of everyone.
"What is that?" Nahida frowned and grabbed Sophia's clothes.
Apep twitched her nose. "I think I sense something familiar."
Lora looked at the figures moving in the dust, frowned, and took a few steps forward to clear it away.
Once the dust scattered, their true identities appeared before everyone.
It was Zhongyue and Lumine, with Paimon lying on the ground beside them.
The scream just now had come from her.
"Uh... that's quite the entrance," Lora said, laughing as she looked at the three of them.
"It's because Paimon suddenly started moving around. She threw off my flight path." Zhongyue climbed up from the ground and patted the dust off her clothes.
Paimon was still dizzy. Lumine shook her a little before she finally came back to herself and protested, "Paimon just got blown around by the wind! Paimon didn't do it on purpose!"
"What brings you here?" Lora asked, looking at them.
"We sensed a change in Sumeru, so we came over." Lumine looked at Lora, then at Sophia beside her. After a brief silence, she said, "Is she Greater Lord Rukkhadevata?"
Sophia smiled and nodded. "Yes, that's me."
"So you really came back to life?" Zhongyue looked at her in disbelief. "No need to ask. This must have been Lora's doing."
"Correct. Your reward is one tanghulu. Redeem it at your own shop." Lora snapped her fingers.
Zhongyue: "...Get lost!"
"Ah! I recognize you!" Apep suddenly spoke from the side. She walked forward and stared at Zhongyue. "You're the Geo Dragon Sovereign of Liyue, aren't you?"
"You..." When Zhongyue saw Apep, she instinctively took a step back. Her instincts told her this person was dangerous.
"This is the Dendro Dragon Sovereign, Apep. I guess you could call her a former colleague of yours," Lora said, introducing them.
Zhongyue's expression froze. Then she quickly took several more steps back. "How did you..."
"I turned her into a human," Lora added, as considerate as ever.
Apep looked at Zhongyue and gave a cold snort. "Dragons these days have no dignity at all. To think you ended up like this. If the former Geo Dragon Sovereign knew, I can only imagine what he would think."
"You turned into a human too, didn't you?" Zhongyue shot back.
Apep said, "I'm older than you!"