Night had fallen cool and clear, like water.
Inside the empty mourning hall, Adrian stood alone, dressed in flawless white ceremonial robes. His expression was solemn and devout as he chanted ancient Taoist scripture, sending the lost soul of Lily on her way.
Her soul had already scattered into the world, yet he still hoped she could find a gentler path in the afterlife.
Shenhe stood quietly at his side. Her beautiful, icy face remained as emotionless as ever, like a glacier—but deep within those frost-blue eyes, Adrian's silhouette lingered.
By midnight, Keqing arrived after a full day of exhausting work. She stepped before the incense burner, lit a stick of incense, bowed deeply to the coffin, then silently stood aside to wait.
Soon, the lingering cadence of the scripture faded away.
Adrian let out a long breath, slipped off the white ritual robe, folded it neatly, and picked up the teacup that had been set aside earlier. One sip of warm tea soothed his throat, raw from hours of chanting.
Keqing walked forward, looking straight at him.
"Today, Ningguang suddenly summoned the Qixing. She announced the Geo Lord's order to reform Liyue's high-interest lending, and forced the Northland Bank to hand over the murderer."
"Oh."
Adrian's response was incredibly flat.
Keqing frowned.
"Boss Adrian, how did you know this would be the outcome?"
Adrian didn't answer. He just looked at her with that faint, fox-like smile.
Keqing felt a spark of irritation flare up and glared at him.
"Once Lily's funeral is over, I'll take you to see the plot on Mt. Tianheng."
Only then did Adrian finally give her the answer.
"Because Zhongli is the Geo Archon."
His voice wasn't loud, but the words crashed through Keqing's mind like thunder.
Her purple eyes flew wide open, overflowing with shock.
"You're saying… Consultant Zhongli… is the Geo Archon Morax? T-That's impossible!"
Adrian smiled.
"Do you really think I'd joke about something like that?"
Her memories raced—every strange detail, every impossible coincidence.
Little by little, that terrifying possibility solidified into reality.
She drew in a deep breath.
"But why would the Archon go work as a consultant for the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor?"
Adrian shrugged.
"How would I know what goes on in that old immortal's head? Just remember this—don't tell anyone. If this leaks, he'll come looking for me first."
Keqing's gaze turned serious.
"If the Geo Lord chose this identity, there must be a reason."
Adrian didn't continue the topic. He went over to a long wooden bench in the mourning hall, sprawled out casually, and within moments… he was asleep.
Keqing looked at him for a long moment, expression complicated, then turned and left, her footsteps light and quiet.
The mourning hall fell silent again. Pale moonlight spilled through the open doorway, quietly watching over the dead and the living.
At dawn, Adrian once again put on his pure white ceremonial robes and conducted a simple sending-off ritual for Lily.
When the rite ended, he built a funeral pyre in the courtyard. He and Shenhe lifted Lily's body together and laid her gently upon the stacked wood.
Adrian sighed softly.
"Life is bitter and long. May your next one be kind to you."
With that, he flicked out a talisman, spiritual energy rippling through it. Flames roared up in response, devouring the body in a blazing wave.
When the cremation finished, Adrian carefully collected the ashes and placed them into a delicate urn.
At first, he considered placing her urn beside her father—Grant.
But after a moment's thought, he shook his head.
"A man like that doesn't deserve to be called a father."
So Adrian loaded Lily's urn onto his donkey cart and rode out to Mt. Tianheng, choosing a quiet hillside with a decent view. There, he dug a grave and buried her ashes.
He didn't bother with a gravestone.
For one, this whole job had already been a losing deal. For another—even if he did erect a stone, who would come to pay respects to such a pitiful, foolish, and powerless illegitimate daughter?
On the way back, the familiar electronic chime rang in his mind.
[System: Congratulations to the host for sending off Lily and helping uncover the truth behind her death. Reward: 40 cultivation points.]
Adrian blinked in surprise.
Forty points?
This stingy System… actually gave him forty in one go?
Is it because I handled both the funeral and the investigation?
A spark flashed in his mind.
If he took on more businesses like this—
Wouldn't his cultivation improve at rocket speed?
At this pace, not only could he break through to Foundation Establishment,
even Golden Core might not be that far off.
And once he reached the Golden Core Realm, his lifespan would skyrocket.
By then, he could properly—and shamelessly—pursue a certain cold, ethereal senior sister.
Adrian thought of Shenhe's long black stockings, her frosty expression, that untouchable immortal aura… His lips curled into a faintly indecent grin.
He was still lost in that beautiful fantasy when a tall figure suddenly stepped out to block the donkey cart.
Zhongli.
Without a word, Zhongli sat directly onto the cart, causing the donkey—Strategy—to shriek in offended protest.
"Boss Adrian," Zhongli said calmly, "I have a favor to ask."
Adrian raised a brow.
"What is it? Your funeral?"
A vein nearly popped on Zhongli's forehead.
"…No. It concerns another old friend of mine—True Lord Copper Sparrow."
"He fell in the Archon War thousands of years ago. Over the ages, the temple built to honor him has crumbled, and the last trace of his soul is about to scatter as well."
"I want you to hold a grand rite for him. Let the people of Liyue remember him, honor him, and keep him from vanishing completely into history."
Adrian didn't answer. He simply rubbed his thumb against two fingers.
The universal gesture: pay up.
Zhongli was silent for a moment, then asked cautiously:
"Shall… the invoice be sent to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor?"
Adrian chuckled.
"Even if you sold Hu Tao herself, that still wouldn't be enough to cover this bill."
Advance Chapters available on P@treon
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