Yun Yan arrived where Xue Yue was staying. With a sweep of her divine sense, she saw the child sitting quietly, lost in thought. It seemed she was earnestly reflecting on her actions.
Yun Yan smiled gently and pushed the door open.
"Master Yun Yan!" Xue Yue turned around abruptly, and upon seeing the familiar figure, she cried out and rushed forward. "Are you alright, Master?"
Yun Yan gave a soft "Mm" and affectionately stroked her head.
"That's great, I thought..." Xue Yue raised her head, her eyes glistening with tears.
"It's alright now. You need to remember this in the future. Think things through before you act, no matter what you do. Don't be impulsive," Yun Yan said softly.
"I understand. I'll be more careful in everything I do from now on," Xue Yue nodded.
"You know your place. Right, this spatial ring was given to you by your shīzūn, Yun Han. He also said that from now on, you're to address him as 'Island Lord' when we're outside."
Yun Yan handed the ring that Yun Han had given her to Xue Yue.
"Understood." Although she didn't know why Yun Han had said that, Xue Yue didn't ask questions, simply nodding in agreement.
Taking the spatial ring, she used her spiritual sense to examine its contents. Inside were various pills for cultivation, along with two jade tokens, one for life-saving and the other for communication.
Xue Yue's face immediately lit up with joy, knowing that Yun Han had forgiven her.
Half a month later, Yun Yan and Xue Yue stepped into a teleportation array. They intended to return to Liyue Harbor, as per Yun Han's instructions.
Liyue Harbor, within the Bu Tian Pavilion, a flash of teleportation light appeared, and the two figures materialized inside the room.
There was a teleportation array set up here before, which is why Hu Tao and Xue Yue were able to teleport back.
As soon as the Bu Tian Pavilion opened, Keqing, Hu Tao, and the others, having received the news, hurried over.
"Yun, it's wonderful to see you're alright," Keqing said with a smile upon seeing Yun Yan.
"Yun Yan, Yueyue, I missed you so much, I was so worried about you," Hu Tao rushed forward and hugged Xue Yue, rubbing her face against hers.
"Hu Tao, can't you read the room?" Keqing pulled her away.
"Oh, what's the big deal? We're all familiar with each other," Hu Tao glared at her, dissatisfied.
"Thank you all for your concern," Yun Yan smiled.
After a round of pleasantries, everyone departed.
Later, Zhongli even came to offer his condolences and apologized for not being able to act in time. Yun Yan knew that Yun Han had already spoken to him, so she said that it wasn't Zhongli's fault, it was her own problem.
What surprised Yun Yan was that Xiao came at the end, but only to express his gratitude to her. If it weren't for Yun Yan's outburst that day, Xiao might have been completely consumed by the karmic debt.
Yun Yan smiled and said it was nothing. In her heart, she thought that with Zhongli present, how could Xiao possibly have gotten into such a situation so easily.
On the other side, Yun Han was preparing to go to Inazuma when he received a message from Venti, saying that Lumine wanted to see him.
Yun Han then went to Angel's Share.
When he arrived at the tavern, Venti was already smiling and gesturing to Yun Han with a wine glass.
Although somewhat speechless, Yun Han still ordered a glass of cider and walked over.
"Say, who were you fighting with that day? The commotion was so huge, weren't you afraid of disturbing that one?" Venti gestured towards the sky.
"Just sparring with Morax." Yun Han casually set up an illusion array, then said.
"Ehe, so what was the result? Did the old man win or lose?" Venti suddenly seemed very interested.
"This one, I slightly prevailed." Yun Han took a sip of his drink with a calm expression.
"Oh my, oh my, this is incredible! You actually managed to beat that old man known as the God of War." Venti widened his eyes, his face filled with amazement.
"Slightly prevailed, nothing to make a fuss about." Yun Han rolled his eyes at him.
"Tsk, you…" Venti pouted.
As they were talking, Lumine pushed open the door of the tavern and entered.
"There, your main target has arrived," Venti gestured.
Paimon was the first to see Yun Han, who had dispelled the illusion, and flew over, saying, "Long time no see, the singing bard, and...Yun Han."
Lumine also brought over two glasses of juice, handing one to Paimon before sitting down on the other side of the table.
"Yun Han, you're so strong, so I want to ask you something. Do you know about my brother's whereabouts?" Lumine asked directly.
Yun Han took a sip of his drink, glanced at her, and said, "I do know some things, but are you sure you want to know?"
Lumine felt uneasy upon hearing this, but after a moment of hesitation, she nodded.
"Alright." Seeing this, Yun Han waved his hand and set up the illusion again. Then, he stared into Lumine's eyes and said, "Your blood relative, Aether, his current identity is the Abyss Prince."
"The Abyss?" Lumine was taken aback.
"Yes."
"The Prince, even?"
"That's right," Yun Han nodded.
Lumine felt completely bewildered. The person she had been searching for all this time was actually the boss of her enemy camp?
"Actually, he has another identity: the prince of the now-destroyed Khaenri'ah. One of his goals is to restore his kingdom, and he may stop at nothing to achieve it. He also seeks revenge on The Heavenly Principles."
"The Heavenly Principles?" Lumine felt a sense of familiarity.
"The god you encountered when you first arrived in this world, The Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, is the representative deity of The Heavenly Principles."
Yun Han shared some information he knew from before.
"I see," Lumine understood a little, but still didn't grasp why Aether would become the Abyss Prince.
"There are some things you need to ask him yourself, I don't know the specifics," Yun Han said directly, seeing her doubts.
"Thank you," Lumine expressed her gratitude.
"It's nothing, but I have a question," Yun Han looked at her.
"What is it?"
"If one day, Aether and I were to confront each other, would you choose to help him, or help me? Or would you choose to stand by and watch?" Yun Han posed a question that made Lumine fall into deep thought.
Lumine was stunned on the spot.
"You don't need to answer right away. Give me your answer when you know the reason. But I hope you won't stand against me. Because, in your journey, you will see his actions countless times, and perhaps you'll have conflicts with me." After Yun Han finished speaking, he drank the last of his apple cider, stood up, paid the bill, and left.
Lumine was still pondering Yun Han's words, then glanced at Venti, only to see him slumped on the table, pretending to be dead as if he was drunk. She immediately realized it was useless to ask him.
Leaving Angel's Share, Yun Han stretched lazily and subconsciously walked towards the cathedral.
On the way, Yun Han glanced at the corner beside him, where a golden-haired figure flashed by.
Yun Han ignored it and continued walking.
Entering the cathedral, he saw a familiar white figure praying. Yun Han didn't disturb her but sat to the side, quietly admiring her.
After an unknown amount of time, perhaps it was the end of her shift, Barbara finally stopped praying.
And Yun Han left the church as well.
Beneath the statue of Venti, he saw the figure with golden hair and a cloak again.
This time, the figure spoke to Yun Han first, "Perhaps we can talk, sir."
Yun Han didn't stop walking, but replied, "Dainsleif, the Twilight Sword of Khaenri'ah, I think you should be looking for his blood relatives, not me."
Dainsleif was surprised that he knew his identity, but still said, "You do know who he is, so I think we have something to talk about."