A day passed quickly.
As for Qinglan and Yueshu, once Qinglan's altered cognition was removed, all the memories tied to that false perception disappeared as well.
Qiu Nian also subtly guided Qinglan to realize that the rumors about the two of them had simply been fabricated.
In her memory now, she had merely asked Qiu Nian a few questions and walked with him for a short distance.
Nothing more.
Time soon passed—seven days in total.
On one of those days, Qinglan personally came to find Qiu Nian, and together they clarified the rumors.
Thus, the matter finally came to an end.
As for the ten million Mora, Qinglan had already forgotten about it.
Naturally, Qiu Nian did not bring it up either.
In the days that followed, after finishing his storytelling and lectures, Qiu Nian would spend his time with Zhongli around Liyue Harbor, watching operas and listening to music.
Whenever Zhongli's salary was paid, he would immediately invite Qiu Nian to eat at Xinyue Pavilion.
After three consecutive days of dining there—and purchasing a pile of extremely expensive Cor Lapis—
his salary vanished completely.
So it turned out that Zhongli wasn't poor.
He just spent money extremely quickly.
Of course, he still occasionally forgot to bring any money at all.
Whenever that happened, Qiu Nian would appear to pay the bill.
And if Qiu Nian couldn't afford it either, Zhongli would simply have the charges written onto the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's tab.
Surprisingly, Qiu Nian quite enjoyed this kind of life.
It was peaceful.
Relaxing.
Every so often, when some funeral attendants encountered problems they couldn't solve, they would invite Qiu Nian and Zhongli to help.
During that time, Qiu Nian also saw another side of Hu Tao.
Whenever she handled funerals or spoke about life and death, the usual playful energy disappeared.
She became serious.
Mature.
Professional.
After all—
serious matters deserved proper treatment.
Seven days later, one evening,
Hu Tao brought Qiu Nian to Wuwang Hill for the first time.
She believed the adeptal techniques he possessed could help her work.
Because of this, Qiu Nian's salary increased significantly.
Around five million Mora per month.
Standing in that eerie land, Qiu Nian felt a wave of emotion.
"The Demon God…"
"That ancient god was neither an enemy of Liyue, nor truly its ally."
"If he had not cared for the people and willingly refined his own body to stabilize the Netherworld…"
"Even if the Eight Adepti had come again, they would still have been powerless against him."
"Afterward, his divine corpse became the boundary itself—separating the worlds of life and death."
Looking at the ghostly village illuminated by pale spirit flames, Qiu Nian felt genuine respect.
If not for that Demon God,
he would not have been able to help the Captain before.
"And the duty of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor…"
"is precisely to maintain the boundary formed by that god after his death."
"For generations, mere mortals have protected it until today."
"The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor truly has produced talented people in every era."
Qiu Nian smiled faintly.
Then he turned to look at Hu Tao beside him.
It was easy to imagine…
How heavy the burden must be for Hu Tao—
someone so young and playful.
"Let's go, Consultant Qiu Nian."
"You don't need to do much. Just accompany me for a walk."
"If anything happens, we'll deal with it then."
Hu Tao blinked her plum-blossom eyes, holding the Staff of Homa as they walked together.
"During the Archon War, corpses lay everywhere and life was devastated."
"Plagues spread across the land."
"Death devoured the world."
"At that time… the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor appeared."
"With nothing but the fragile strength of humans, they spent countless years pushing death back."
Hu Tao spoke as they walked.
"And after a very long time…"
"Liyue Harbor became prosperous."
"Everyone chased after fame and Mora."
"But eventually, the reckless touched the remnants of death."
"Demonic residue began ravaging the world."
"That was life at its most destructive—and death's final backlash."
Qiu Nian continued her explanation.
Hu Tao suddenly stopped walking and looked at him with surprise.
She hadn't expected him to know this history.
"These things were recorded in the ancient books left behind by my ancestors."
"It's not something worth surprising the Director over."
Qiu Nian smiled lightly.
"I see…"
Hu Tao nodded thoughtfully.
Since Qiu Nian's ancestors had connections with the adepti, it wasn't strange for him to know such things.
After all, he had even met adepti himself.
And he possessed adeptal arts capable of dealing with remnants tied to gods.
Hu Tao felt like she had truly discovered a treasure.
She had already decided—
to bring Qiu Nian to see the true boundary of life and death.
Once he crossed that boundary, he would be able to help her just like Lao Meng and the others.
"Yes… after that, a very, very long time passed."
"Balance was restored."
"The boundaries were established."
"And only then did the Liyue Harbor we see today come into being."
Hu Tao frowned slightly as she continued.
"Because of that…"
"Becoming the Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is something I'll never regret."
Then she straightened up, placing her fists on her hips and smiling again.
"Since you already know all this, and you have adeptal arts…"
"Today I'll show you the real boundary."
"Normally Lao Meng and the others are enough to help me."
"But if necessary…"
"I'll call on you too."
Hu Tao smiled at him.
"The true boundary…"
"Thank you for trusting me, Director."
Qiu Nian replied sincerely.
"Hey, don't say that."
"You're an old friend of Consultant Zhongli."
"I trust your character."
Hu Tao waved her hands casually.
"But…"
"When I told you I'd bring you to the real boundary…"
"You weren't surprised at all."
"You're just like Zhongli—barely any emotional reaction."
"That's strange."
Hu Tao tilted her head.
"You look young, yet both you and Zhongli feel… oddly old."
"Hmm…"
"Perhaps I was simply born that way."
Qiu Nian shrugged.
"Born that way?"
"Then was Zhongli born that way too?"
"That's really strange…"
Hu Tao muttered while thinking.
"Forget it."
"Come with me."
She led Qiu Nian deeper inside.
They passed through layers of ghostly labyrinths and illusions.
Maze-like ruins.
Ghost walls.
Finally—
they arrived at the place Qiu Nian had once visited with the Captain.
The ground was covered in drifting mist.
In the distance stood many translucent souls, whole and peaceful.
Hu Tao greeted several of them before returning to Qiu Nian's side.
"This era is fortunate…"
"But the peaceful coexistence of life and death like this…"
"…was never something guaranteed."
Hu Tao murmured while looking at the countless spirits.
"But still…"
"Becoming the Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is absolutely the right thing."
"And something I'll never regret."
She smiled again.
"Alright…"
"Let's head back, Director."
Qiu Nian said gently.
"Mm, let's go, Consultant Qiu Nian."
"You're one of the people I trust the most now."
"So don't suddenly quit on me someday."
Hu Tao laughed and patted his arm before heading back.
"Haha…"
Qiu Nian chuckled softly.
Watching her back, he shook his head slightly—
and followed.
Meanwhile, on Blue Star's parallel world, forums and platforms were exploding.
The popularity surrounding Qiu Nian was skyrocketing.
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