Hearing this, Lora's face flushed slightly. She waved her hand, clearly embarrassed.
"Oh—come on, 'the most perfect god' is a bit much. You're making me blush. Out of all Teyvat, which Archon's followers would praise their own god like that?"
Well… Zhongli's lot didn't count. Every single one of his followers was an unrepentant Rex Lapis fanatic.
Qiqi tugged gently on Lora's hand and looked up at her. Her small face was serious and earnest, so adorable it was almost unfair.
"Qiqi also thinks big sister is the most perfect," she said solemnly. "Your looks, your voice, your personality… everything is the best. The very, very best Qiqi has ever seen."
Her slightly stiff voice was unwaveringly sincere, and it only made Lora feel more flustered.
"Alright, alright, that's enough!"
Lora rubbed her warm cheeks. She wasn't thick-skinned enough to listen to praise like that without reacting.
"We're basically done here anyway. Let's head back to Liyue Harbor."
"Mmm! Okay, back to Liyue Harbor." Qiqi nodded and continued leading the way.
Seeing the group preparing to leave, the Millelith didn't try to stop them. They smiled, waved them off, and wished them a smooth journey.
On the way back, they didn't retrace their original route. Instead, they continued forward, passed through Nantianmen, and headed toward Liyue Harbor via the direction of Dunyu Ruins.
However, just as they reached the outskirts of Tianqiu Valley, several Hydro Whopperflowers suddenly sprang out ahead of them.
Behind the Whopperflowers floated a Hydro Abyss Mage, wrapped in a blue Hydro elemental barrier.
"Miss Lora, be careful!"
At the instant the Abyss Mage and Whopperflowers appeared, Rhodeia stepped in front of Lora and Qiqi protectively. She raised her hand, drawing upon the nearby lake.
The water surged upward, condensing into several pillars that slammed into the Hydro Whopperflowers and the Abyss Mage behind them.
But when the water finally settled, both the Hydro Abyss Mage and the Whopperflowers looked completely unharmed.
Lora almost imagined the word "Immune" popping up over their heads.
"Uh…"
"Miss Lora, this one is dangerous. Please be careful!" Rhodeia stared at the Hydro Abyss Mage warily, preparing to unleash a stronger attack. But just as she lifted her hand, Lora stopped her from behind.
"Miss Lora?"
Rhodeia froze, turning back in confusion.
Lora let out a quiet sigh. "I'll handle this. You're not his opponent."
Rhodeia's expression darkened at those words. As Lora stepped forward, before she could make a move, a soul-like figure radiating icy cold suddenly shot down from the mountainside to the side, plunging straight into the cluster of Hydro Whopperflowers.
In the next instant, Cryo elemental power erupted, wiping out the Whopperflowers in one blow.
Then another figure descended from the sky, landing in front of Lora and the others. She held a polearm in her right hand and an ice talisman in her left.
The icy spirit flew back to her side, and together they faced the remaining Hydro Abyss Mage.
Taking in the mature, well-built figure before her—the long white hair and the red ribbon—Lora immediately recognized her.
"Shenhe?"
Shenhe turned back in surprise when she heard her name.
"How do you know me?"
"Uh… well…" Lora blinked, unsure how to explain. As she was still thinking, the Hydro Abyss Mage suddenly launched an attack at Shenhe. Lora hurriedly shouted, "Shenhe, watch out!"
The Hydro Abyss Mage moved incredibly fast, closing the distance in the blink of an eye.
Shenhe reacted just as swiftly. Without even turning around, she sidestepped the attack. The icy spirit surged forward, releasing Cryo elemental power, while Shenhe spun her spear and shattered the Abyss Mage's Hydro barrier with a single strike.
Once its shield was gone, the Hydro Abyss Mage was completely helpless against Shenhe. It fell quickly under her assault.
After dealing with the Abyss Mage, Shenhe walked over to them. Lora tilted her head slightly to look up at her—she was even taller than Lora herself—and greeted her with a smile.
"Hello, Shenhe."
Qiqi was still too small to comment on, but Lora and Rhodeia were practically a pair of top-tier scenic attractions.
"Who are you, and why do you know me?" Shenhe asked, her expression puzzled as she studied Lora closely. "And you… there's something unusual about your aura."
As she spoke, Shenhe bent slightly and leaned closer.
Lora blinked, then smiled. "I… heard about you from other Adepti. You're Shenhe, Cloud Retainer's disciple."
"Adepti?" Shenhe paused, then glanced at Qiqi standing beside Lora, realization dawning on her. "So you're also an Adeptus? My apologies for my discourtesy. May I ask your Adeptus name, Senior?"
Lora gave Shenhe a very strange feeling.
Shenhe could tell that Lora wasn't human. If she were an Adeptus, that would make sense. Shenhe herself had always trained under Cloud Retainer and rarely interacted with other Adepti—there being Adepti in Liyue she didn't know was perfectly normal.
"I'm not an Adeptus," Lora shook her head.
"Not an Adeptus?" Shenhe looked even more puzzled. Not human, not an Adeptus—then what was she?
A monster? But Shenhe sensed not the slightest trace of malice from her.
Shenhe was extraordinarily sensitive to hostile auras. This was not something ordinary concealment techniques could disguise.
"My name is Lora Chaya," Lora said calmly. "This is my attendant, Rhodeia. And this is Qiqi."
"I'm… her little sister," Qiqi added softly.
"Right. She's my little sister," Lora echoed without thinking.
Seeing the two of them holding hands, Shenhe was momentarily taken aback.
"I've heard my master speak of the title 'Savior from Distress.' You are her elder sister?"
So even an Adeptus could be someone's little sister… and still claim she was not an Adeptus?
"Ah… well…" Lora scratched the back of her head, clearly at a loss for words.
Taking Lora's hesitation as confirmation, Shenhe's expression softened with understanding.
"I see. The Adepti of Liyue all have their own dispositions and ways of walking the world. I understand."
Understand…? Lora blinked at Shenhe.
This girl had… completely misunderstood.
But in just a few lines of conversation, Shenhe had already made up her mind: Lora was an Adeptus—simply one who concealed her identity and chose to wander the mortal world for her own reasons.
Lora could only think, with a trace of helpless amusement, that perhaps one day she really ought to ask Zhongli for some sort of "official registration."