"Many thanks for your assistance, Conqueror of Demons."
Xiao felt slightly awkward. He had nearly failed the quest entrusted to him by the Anemo Archon.
"It is of no matter. I am the Yaksha, Xiao, should you face difficulty within Liyue, call upon my name."
With these words, Xiao leaped into the air, transforming into a wisp of Anemo, and departed.
Diluc scanned the surroundings once more, confirming there were no anomalies, before carefully retrieving the purple-black Jade Ring containing his sister's soul.
"R... Ro..." he called out to the ring, his voice trembling.
The Jade Ring flickered almost imperceptibly, yet Diluc saw it clearly. He called out several more times, but this time, the ring offered no response.
Diluc carefully tucked the ring close to his chest and turned to leave, heading back the way he had come.
He needed to return to Mondstadt and consult with Venti, hoping the Anemo Archon might have a solution.
With his sister's soul's safety at stake, even revenge seemed less urgent now.
-
Guili Plains.
The Traveler and Paimon had just teleported from Dragonspine. Noticing Lumine's subdued mood, Paimon took the initiative to bring up the topic of traveling to Inazuma.
"Traveler, Inazuma is across a vast sea from here, and it's currently under the Sakoku Decree, meaning it's closed off to the world. Plus, there are Raiden Shogun's storms raging on the sea!"
"If we want to go to Inazuma, maybe we should ask Zhongli first? He knows so much—he might even know how to get there!"
Lumine nodded, setting aside her recent experiences on Dragonspine.
Just as she was about to teleport to the nearest Teleport Waypoint, she heard Paimon's gasp.
"Ah, it's Master Diluc!"
Lumine glanced around and indeed spotted a crimson-clad figure on the road a few hundred meters away.
"Traveler, let's go say hello!"
The pair hurried toward Diluc.
As they approached, Diluc noticed Lumine and Paimon heading his way.
A sudden glint caught his eye, and he hurried toward the pair.
Before Lumine and Paimon could speak, Diluc cut in:
"I didn't expect to find you here. I heard you can use those ancient devices to teleport back and forth. Is that true, Lumine?"
Taken aback by Diluc's urgency, Lumine nodded immediately.
"Excellent. Could I ask you for a favor?"
"Diluc, what kind of question is that? We're friends—of course I'll help!"
Diluc drew a purple-black jade ring from his chest and handed it to Lumine.
"This is..."
"Rola's soul is inside!"
Paimon gasped, stumbling backward and covering her mouth. "What?! This is actually..."
Diluc explained:
"The Abyss creature that attacked Mondstadt... when it killed Rola, it also took her soul. I tracked it all the way here, fought it, and managed to retrieve this jade ring containing Rola's soul..."
Before Diluc could finish, Lumine interrupted:
"You encountered that bastard?!"
"Yes, thanks to Liyue's Conqueror of Demons."
Hearing that Xiao had also intervened, Lumine immediately pressed for more information:
"Was the fiend vanquished?"
"No, its concealment skills are formidable. It escaped."
"Traveler, I implore you to teleport back to Mondstadt immediately with this Jade Ring and seek out Barbatos. This ring is of Abyss origin, and every minute Rola remains inside increases the danger!"
Lumine's face turned grave. Diluc had entrusted her with such a vital task, a testament to his complete trust in her. Moreover, this was Rola's soul—no mistakes could be tolerated!
"Rest assured, I will succeed!"
Paimon stared at the Jade Ring, her small eyes beginning to redden again.
"Hey, Rola! Rola, can you hear me?"
The Jade Ring flickered once more.
Paimon exclaimed excitedly:
"Rola responded! She's really in there! sniff Traveler, let's go find Venti right away!"
-
Player World.
Chen Xiyao had just been climbing Dragonspine, but due to her inexperience, she kept freezing to death multiple times.
The live stream viewers were starting to get headaches, flooding the chat with directions for the correct path.
But whether it was her poor sense of direction or the thick fog shrouding the mountain, she stubbornly stumbled onto an utterly bizarre route—one no sane person would ever take.
"Ugh, Chat, it's so cold here! My HP's draining faster than usual!"
"Let me see where I can climb down... Hmm, this way seems like—Ah, shit! I fell!"
For some inexplicable reason, she suddenly plummeted into a crevice. After her character died from the fall, her new character, Diluc, immediately began losing HP rapidly.
In a panic, Chen Xiyao suddenly spotted a pile of firewood nearby. She immediately activated Diluc's Skill to set it ablaze.
Seeing her character's health stabilize, she finally relaxed.
[My god, the streamer's gameplay is giving me goosebumps!]
[I can't understand how she manages to get lost on such a straight path!]
[Verdict confirmed: the streamer is hopelessly directionally challenged. Not just in-game, but probably in real life too.]
[Hey, Little Fruit, look behind you! There's a wooden sign with a faint glow—go check it out!]
[What? An easter egg in this forsaken place? The streamer must be the first to find it—after all, who else would navigate like her?]
Chen Xiyao bristled at the chat's accusations of being a terrible navigator. "What do you mean I just 'strayed off course'?" she retorted. "There was clearly a treasure chest right there! Isn't it normal to get lost after opening it?"
"A wooden plaque?"
Chen Xiyao steered her character toward the plaque. The screen prompted her to interact, and she clicked immediately.
The plaque read:
Mondstadt's great heroes, Rola and Noelle, visited here
(The charcoal lettering is faded, suggesting it was written long ago.)
On the back of the plaque was written:
Diluc of Mondstadt visited here...
(The charcoal script remains sharp and clear, likely written within the past few days.)
Chen Xiyao fell silent.
The usually lively chat abruptly stilled, the audience speechless.
[Holy shit! I literally just left this area! Mihoyo, you're ruthless! ! !]
[Yeah, "Great Heroes"... Rola truly was a great hero of Mondstadt. sniffle]
[We players all feel this way. I can't even imagine how heartbroken Master Diluc must have been when he saw this. What must have been going through his mind as he added that final line?]
[Sigh, streamer, you can continue broadcasting. I'm going to have a cigarette first...]
[This wooden plaque must have been erected by Amber back when Rola and Noelle entered Dragonspine to rescue people. Back then, they were heroes to those they saved; now, they're heroes to the entire city of Mondstadt!]
Chen Xiyao's mood also dampened.
Damn you, Mihoyo!
She gazed at the plaque's crude handwriting and a drawing even her three-year-old sister could do better. Her eyes welled up again.
"Ugh, I can't believe it. I'm even using Diluc—this is just too fitting, isn't it?"
Exiting the plaque's view, a new quest suddenly appeared on the screen—a golden one.
Chen Xiyao, who had been exploring the open world after completing her previous tasks, immediately perked up.
The Interactive map hadn't appeared yet, and with the map being vast and incredibly realistic, exploring every corner was a daunting task. When this quest popped up, the live stream immediately erupted into excitement.
[Watt?! There's a hidden quest here?!]
[Okay, I admit I was a bit loud earlier. Streamer, choosing this path was absolutely brilliant!]
[Streamer's already on the move!]
[I left the gas on in my Serenitea Pot! Gotta dash!]