Meeting Mona's scrutinizing gaze, Mu Yang had already devised a plan.
To prevent her from probing further, he decided to reveal his Adeptus identity to her.
Otherwise, Mona might go to her master for answers, which would be troublesome for him.
For the current Mu Yang, the Witches' Coven was a hassle.
He knew too little about them—mostly just fragmented bits of information.
He didn't even know what they looked like.
Moreover, based on the Fontaine version he'd played before transmigrating, it seemed they were being elevated in significance.
So, until he had the strength to overwhelmingly surpass them, Mu Yang preferred to avoid contact with the Witches' Coven.
His own secrets were too many.
With this in mind, Mu Yang disclosed his Adeptus identity to Mona.
Though he spoke the truth, he only told half of it.
He mentioned that a friend well-versed in divination had once warned him.
His fate was a special one, entwined with great causality.
"It's probably to prevent others from prying, so they placed such a restriction on me."
In the end, Mu Yang pushed the blame onto Moon Carver.
"Moon Carver… that name sounds familiar…" Mona pondered for a moment.
Recalling the obscure divination texts from Liyue's ancient records, she realized it was him!
When it came to divination and Moon Carver, all Mona could think was: Liyue's ancient language is so hard to read…
But if that was the case, it made sense.
Mu Yang was an Adeptus with a unique fate.
And he had a friend like Moon Carver.
No wonder her skills couldn't see through him.
Mu Yang apologized to Mona, saying he hadn't warned her in time and nearly caused her harm.
Mona hurriedly waved her hands. "No, no, no, it's my own lack of skill. I acted on my own and caused this situation…"
Her tone had become somewhat deferential.
Mu Yang made a three-point agreement with Mona.
His current worldly identity was merely that of a Liyue merchant.
She should treat him as she had before, without being overly formal.
Moreover, regarding his identity, he hoped Mona would keep it confidential and not tell a third party.
Mona nodded in agreement.
In just one day, Mu Yang had saved her twice.
She naturally had to honor her benefactor's request.
Besides, she was the one who had forcibly divined in the first place, so the responsibility was hers.
Mu Yang didn't want his identity exposed for two reasons.
First, as mentioned earlier, Sumeru's current factions were complex and intertwined.
Revealing himself too early would disrupt his future plans.
Second, Mona currently resided in Mondstadt.
For now, Mu Yang didn't want his Mondstadt friends to know his Adeptus identity.
That card was still useful for later.
For now, the people of Mondstadt only needed to remember:
Mu Yang was a mercenary who had helped Mondstadt.
After clearing things up, the two arrived at The Steambird's Sumeru branch.
Mona was there to collect her manuscript fees.
As for the meal earlier, she insisted on repaying Mu Yang.
Though Mu Yang repeatedly said it wasn't necessary, Mona paid him back and began planning how to spend the rest.
She turned to him. "Mu Yang's identity is a merchant, right? Do you know 'Lord Sangemah Bay'?"
Mu Yang said he did. "What, looking to buy something not available on the market?"
Mona explained that she had previously bought items in Sumeru through proxies.
The proxy had mentioned that name, and she remembered it instantly.
Mu Yang secretly chuckled to himself—Was it because her name is so long too?
"I heard she has a lot of rare and unusual treasures. I want to see if there's anything related to astrology."
"Mona, you're really passionate about astrology," Mu Yang remarked sincerely, then shifted the topic.
"Let me be clear—her stuff is very expensive."
His meaning was obvious: take it easy and make sure to keep enough for living expenses first.
Mona nodded. "Okay, no problem."
So, Mu Yang led Mona toward one of Dori's outposts.
He had notified Dori before coming from Liyue.
So, Dori should be in Port Ormos now.
Dori's fame stemmed from the vast variety of her goods.
As long as it could earn Mora, she could get it for you.
For example, at this point in time, privately selling canned knowledge was illegal.
It could get you arrested by the Akademiya.
But Dori didn't care about that.
Mu Yang knew his business partner's personality stemmed from her childhood experiences—her sister's death.
Dori's sister had died from an illness.
It wasn't an incurable disease.
But the herbs required for the cure cost millions of Mora.
And they could only be obtained by negotiating with wealthy merchants or collectors.
They simply weren't available on the market.
The Dori family couldn't even afford decent furniture—how could they comprehend millions of Mora?
All Dori knew was that her sister would always smile to comfort the family, telling them not to fuss over her.
It wasn't until her sister's death that Dori found a crumpled prescription under her pillow.
In that moment, she realized what her sister had been doing, sobbing under the moonlight each night.
Only in the dead of night did her sister dare to take out that prescription and look at it.
On it was the unreachable hope of [survival].
From that moment, Dori silently resolved:
She would earn lots and lots of Mora.
So she'd never again see her loved ones wear sorrowful smiles.
So she'd never lose anything to a lack of Mora again.
She carefully tucked her sister's prescription into her pocket.
Unbeknownst to her, a pocket already held a Electro Vision.
Mora was her obsession.
This obsession was so great it drew the gaze of the gods…
Many in Sumeru called Dori a shady merchant, but she didn't mind.
Mu Yang didn't care either.
From Dori's attitude toward her benefactor, Alice, it was clear she had her own moral bottom line.
Besides, everyone had their own aspirations, and Mu Yang wasn't one to judge others' life choices.
As long as Dori cooperated honestly and didn't try to scam him in business, they could get along just fine.
Mu Yang and Mona arrived at the outpost.
The guards let them through immediately.
Normally, meeting Dori wasn't so simple.
At the very least, someone unfamiliar like Mona wouldn't easily get to see her.
After all, her goods were varied, including illegal trades.
But Mu Yang was Dori's business partner, so his status was different.
"Oh, my dear partner, I've been waiting for you."
"Strolled around Port Ormos for so long—come up with any Mora-making ideas yet?"
Dori emerged from the tent, noticing Mona as well.
She lowered her glasses slightly. "And this is… an astrologer?"
"My friend, Mona," Mu Yang introduced.
Mona extended her hand. "Hello, Lord Sangemah Bay."
"Ahem, since you're Mu Yang's friend, just call me Dori. What do you need?"
Mona explained her request—she wanted to see goods related to astrology.
"You, come here," Dori beckoned to one of her subordinates.
A burly man approached, bowing respectfully. "Lord, your orders?"
The contrast was so stark that Mu Yang found it hard to keep a straight face.
Perhaps this was the power of wealth moving mountains.
Dori instructed him to take Mona to where the astrology-related goods were stored.
Then she turned to Mu Yang, asking if he'd come up with any money-making ideas.
Mu Yang pulled out a small mechanical sparrow. "Of course I have."