"Xiangling was here last night?"
"He was." Skirk answered Orion's question concisely.
Orion frowned: "What did he come here for?"
"Not sure."
Orion nodded and began to ponder.
He didn't know exactly what Xiangling had come for, but he was certain that he hadn't just visited yesterday.
The dried traces of Elemental Power on the ground showed three different levels from three days.
Three days, Xiangling came three times, and each time for a significant duration.
Combined with the water element traces from the Mondstadt inn earlier, a bold hypothesis appeared in Orion's mind.
"No way... surely not?" This idea was too abstract, to the point that it somewhat shattered his stereotypes about the game characters' personalities.
He couldn't possibly be coming here every night to... gather material, could he?
Orion didn't find an answer, but the matter had already taken root in his mind like a wedge.
He looked up and asked Skirk again: "What about Barbara and Amber?"
Skirk looked up at the sky: "Did you turn on the thirty-times speed?"
"I did."
"Then they'll be here soon, handle it yourself. I told them these past two days that you were busy and not in the Strange Domain. Good luck." Having said that, Skirk ran back to his room.
Orion:...
Trembling, he arrived at the room where Barbara provided treatment. As soon as he opened the door, Two pretty white hands, one from the left and one from the right, immediately grabbed his ears.
"Mr. Priest, getting bold, aren't we?" Barbara's scent drifted from the left.
"You haven't needed us to break the curse for days; do you think that since the last full moon has passed, you won't transform anymore?" Amber's voice came from the right.
Orion couldn't refute them; they had been working hard every morning to, well... help him resolve his troubles.
Orion felt nothing but gratitude toward the two of them and would never get angry at them.
Furthermore, the way they cared for him in their own unique ways was completely different from the women of the past three days who only treated Orion like freshly squeezed fruit juice!
Orion could feel that these seemingly reproachful words were filled with tender care.
So, Orion pulled them both into his arms and immediately put on a much more relaxed look: "Ah... I feel like the pain of the last three days has dissipated so much..." (referring to the actions of Lumine and the others who disregarded his wishes as a male)
It was just a simple exclamation, but unexpectedly, Barbara and Amber exchanged glances and both revealed expressions of horror.
"Has the curse really worsened in the last three days?"
"Eh?"
"What should we do, Barbara? Is the usual hugging and stepping no longer effective?"
"Ah?"
"You're right... Amber, let's do the same thing as that day! (After the time he transformed into a giant wolf)"
"Ah? Which day? What are you two talking about?"
"Okay, let's do that!"
"So, what are you guys talking about?!"
Good news, he got to kiss both of them today.
An hour drifted by, and Orion sent the fully dressed duo out of the Miliastra Wonderland, vanishing himself while savoring the lingering aftertaste.
Amber and Barbara ran away quickly.
(Current progress: did some things while undressed, kissed, but didn't take the final step. As for what was done, it depends on what you can imagine; everything that could be touched, was touched.)
...
In the Immernachtreich, the thirty-times time dilation was kept active.
In a room filled with Zen, Fischl and the Sanzomon sat opposite each other on two meditation cushions.
Amy had been sitting in meditation here for some time.
A moment later, she opened her eyes: "National Preceptor, my heart is as still as stagnant water."
"Good." The Sanzomon, dressed in black monk robes, nodded in approval.
The Sanzomon was very satisfied with the owner of this Immernachtreich.
After three days of special training, it knew this Damselette, with whom it had fought together, like the back of his hand.
He was a genius.
He was the person who had earned the most energy from the Master, besides itself.
Unlike Lumine, who was always the first to rush in and the first to fall, barely obtaining any loot.
It had heard from the Master that whenever he went to this Damselette's home, the Matriarch of his house would drag away an exhausted soul.
The Sanzomon had always thought it was due to a woman's insatiable age, but now it seemed that wasn't entirely the case.
What was insatiable wasn't the age, but the genes!
This Damselette, with a bulging backpack (referring to the excessive loot obtained from the raid), was brought back to the Immernachtreich by it immediately after regaining consciousness, just so it could teach this Damselette with the doctrines of Joyful Zen and guide him onto the right path.
"Princess, your performance these past few days has been excellent. Compared to an incompetent apprentice like Lumine, your actions are the true posture of an excellent royal."
"You must know, what restricts you from continuing to kill enemies is not that you are exhausted, but that your backpack capacity is full!"
"Yes! As the National Preceptor says!" Fischl had been very ashamed after regaining consciousness, but after being brought here by the National Preceptor and having those demonic sounds constantly preaching Zen in her ears, Fischl's heart was now calm.
—The facts are exactly as the National Preceptor says. Judging by the combat power of my knight, I alone cannot fully suppress him, so forming an alliance is very important.
—Based on my observations over the past few days, only the court astrologer, Mona, and the royal maid, Noelle, can compete with me, so the candidates are self-evident!
—However, what does the National Preceptor mean when she says I don't just carry one backpack, but actually have two more to pick up loot? Do I still have much to learn about my own body?
What Fischl didn't know was that, in fact, Eula was the only person so far who had unlocked all three backpacks. Others had unlocked at most two.
Watching Fischl enlighten herself, the Sanzomon was even more satisfied, and it began to chant:
"Sitting in oblivion, Zen in the Immernachtreich, the heart is still as water; the backpack is full, realizing the mysterious sound. Forming an alliance to resist the strong enemy, only with three bags can one understand the depth of the cave."
"Her Highness the Princess has already formed her own circulation, and the Dao rhythm flows. It is a pity that my Joyful Zen belongs to Buddhism. Buddhism and Daoism seem the same but are actually opposite. Daoism emphasizes 'Being,' pursuing the 'One' as the origin of all things, while Buddhism emphasizes 'Non-being,' where the arising and ceasing of conditions all come from a 'Zero.' But in you, Dao and Dharma merge; 'One' and 'Zero' seem to be able to harmonize."
"Is the National Preceptor talking about male-male relationships?"
"...I am talking about binary code."
The Sanzomon coughed twice and continued: "In short, my meaning is, although I am often used by the Master to study Daoist methods, I am, after all, a follower of Buddhism. Apart from Joyful Zen, I don't have much to teach Your Highness."
"Therefore, after much thought, I believe that besides the dual cultivation technique 'Five-Mind-Contemplation Dual-Body Method' that I taught you, you also need to be taught a Daoist supreme technique."
"Oh?" Fischl was overjoyed upon hearing this. After secretly learning the dual cultivation technique from the National Preceptor behind Orion's back, she discovered the power of this technique after fighting with Orion.
As she continuously refined the powerful energy in her backpack, her use of Elemental Power became increasingly handy!
All of this was thanks to the selfless contributions of the National Preceptor and Orion.
And now, was the National Preceptor actually going to teach her a new technique?
The Sanzomon inserted its slender jade hands into a pair of abysses, rummaged around, and then took out a scripture from its bosom.
"This is a supreme Daoist technique bestowed by the Immortal Lord of Desire and Passion, named'Slaanesh...' *cough*, named 'The Edict of the Blissful Immortal,' take it..."
"Hold on a minute!" At this critical moment, Orion suddenly appeared and snatched the book that the Sanzomon was handing over.
He flipped through it briefly, then fiercely slapped the Sanzomon on the chest: "What kind of things are you teaching my Amy when you have nothing better to do!"
Unexpectedly, this very form of address instantly broke Fischl's state of meditation: "Don't call me Amy!"
Orion had once again saved a girl who was about to fall into the abyss.
Today's outcome was a victory for Orion.
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