"Mr. Zhongli, I've long heard of your reputation."
"You also give me a strangely familiar feeling."
Qiu Nian nodded slightly toward Zhongli across the table.
The livestream chat exploded.
[Wait… do they actually know each other?!]
[If Zhongli really is the Geo Archon and he and Qiu Nian both feel familiar with each other…]
[This is getting interesting. Qiu Nian's identity definitely isn't as simple as Childe said!]
[Lore scholars are celebrating!]
The moment viewers saw the two exchange glances and express a faint sense of familiarity, the chat went wild.
"They looked at each other!"
"They really just looked at each other!"
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
Xuehua let out an unmistakable fangirl scream.
"Mr. Qiu Nian, I don't believe I've ever seen you in Liyue Harbor."
"Ordinarily, someone with your bearing would be known to me—even if we had never met."
Zhongli asked slowly.
"That's because I live in seclusion near Jueyun Karst."
"I rarely visit Liyue Harbor."
Qiu Nian replied with a light smile.
"To retreat into the mountains and live in Jueyun Karst…"
"The mists there are thick and few people pass through, yet the scenery is exceptional."
"Mr. Qiu Nian has refined tastes."
Zhongli nodded thoughtfully.
"Haha…"
"Refined taste might be an exaggeration."
"In truth, you could say my seclusion was somewhat forced."
"If life had not compelled it, who would willingly retreat to such remote mountains?"
Qiu Nian said with a helpless smile.
"I see."
Zhongli nodded again.
The chat shifted to a new topic entirely.
[Listening to Zhongli and Qiu Nian talk is such a pleasure. Their voices are amazing!]
[Who voices Qiu Nian?!]
[My ears are getting pregnant!]
[Zhongli's voice is deep and steady.]
[Qiu Nian's voice is also calm but different.]
[Yeah, both speak slowly, but the feeling is totally different.]
[Qiu Nian sounds like a relaxed young gentleman with a slight mature tone, while Zhongli's voice feels reassuring.]
[Two walking male charms—handsome and with amazing voices. Completely unfair!]
Soon the chat began analyzing the difference between their voices.
Seeing that the conversation had paused, Tartaglia stepped in.
"Allow me to introduce him."
"This friend here is someone connected to the underworld."
"A consultant of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor—Mr. Zhongli."
Tartaglia gestured toward Zhongli.
"Well, in Liyue, businesses like Wangsheng Funeral Parlor inevitably interact with certain… underworld dealings."
"And the Fatui have always enjoyed working with friends who walk in the shadows."
Tartaglia continued.
"Walk in the shadows…"
Paimon murmured, suddenly feeling uneasy.
"Pleasure to meet you both."
"I've heard of your deeds in Mondstadt."
Zhongli greeted Lumine and Paimon calmly.
"Underworld… shadows… sending people off…"
"Wait!"
"Does that mean the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is some kind of… organization…"
Paimon floated in the air, clutching her chest as her imagination ran wild.
"Yes, exactly as you guessed."
The moment Zhongli said that, Paimon jumped backward in fright.
"The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is responsible for funeral rites."
"We guide people peacefully into the afterlife."
Zhongli explained.
Paimon blinked in confusion.
"Haha, did you mistake Mr. Zhongli for an assassin?"
"While many of the Fatui's acquaintances are indeed assassins, Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is not involved in such work… at least not on the surface."
Tartaglia laughed and clarified.
"On the surface…"
Lumine tilted her head.
"Indeed, only on the surface."
Qiu Nian took a sip of tea, looking amused.
"In a certain sense, Morax could also be considered an assassin."
"After all… he killed himself."
He spoke casually.
"Well, they are people of the underworld after all. Some things are better left unsaid."
"Anyway, I brought you here to meet Zhongli because…"
Tartaglia paused dramatically.
"Because I have a way for you to see the Exuvia of the Geo Archon."
Zhongli finished the sentence for him.
"What?!"
Paimon was shocked.
"Lu Xun meeting Zhou Shuren, huh."
Qiu Nian's mouth twitched slightly.
"Well, no need to be surprised. Under the orders of the Tianquan, Ningguang, the Geo Archon's body has already been hidden away…"
"But first, let's hear what Zhongli has to say."
Tartaglia waved his hand.
"Though Rex Lapis is known as the ancestor of the adepti, he is ultimately still one of them."
"Looking at Liyue's thousands of years of history, adepti departing from the mortal world has been an inevitable trend."
"The era has changed. Living in Jueyun Karst, you must have noticed this as well."
Zhongli explained calmly.
"That's true. The adepti are gradually leaving Liyue."
Lumine nodded.
"As you can see, the age of the adepti is fading, while the age of humanity is slowly emerging."
"In the past, whenever an adeptus departed, a grand memorial ceremony would be held."
"That is Liyue's tradition."
"But this time, even the Qixing have neglected this tradition."
"That is truly disappointing."
Zhongli turned slightly, a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone.
What a seasoned actor.
Why the Qixing neglected the ceremony—Morax probably knows better than anyone.
Qiu Nian thought to himself.
Then he suddenly felt like teasing the old dragon.
Even though he himself wasn't exactly young either.
"Actually, I have another way for you to immediately meet the Geo Archon."
As he said this, Qiu Nian glanced at Zhongli.
Zhongli froze briefly.
Then he looked at Qiu Nian with a slightly strange expression.
The look clearly seemed to say:
Don't say it.
"What way?"
Paimon asked eagerly.
"I'm joking."
Qiu Nian smiled.
Perhaps the players on the parallel Blue Planet wouldn't notice anything funny about this line right now.
But in the future…
They would realize just how hilarious this moment actually was.
"You…"
Lumine and Paimon both gave him exasperated looks.
"But after all, this is a case involving the murder of a god…"
"And the real culprit hasn't even been found."
Lumine turned back to Zhongli.