On the stage of Wangshu Inn, Li Mo merely shifted his thoughts, and all his information appeared in his mind:
[Host]: Li Mo
[System]: Hundred Lifetimes Reincarnation System
[Current Life]: 100th
[Current Mission]: Become a storyteller in Liyue, make Hu Tao cry, make Qiqi cry, make the Raiden Shogun cry… and make the [Lady] of the Fatui cry.
[Storytelling Points]: 104,000
[Characters Already Moved to Tears]: The Raiden Sisters, Qiqi, Barbatos, Dvalin, Shenhe
[Other Items]: Wish x1, Wish Fragment x1
[System Shop]: Staff of Homa, Vision, Musou no Hitotachi…
...
After telling six lifetimes of stories, Li Mo had gradually adapted to the rhythm of his current life. A short life could be told in less than a day. A more complex life took two days or longer.
And before he started telling these stories, the erosion of so many lifetimes had nearly worn him down, even with the system's help. But by telling the stories—by sharing the tales buried in his heart—he had not only moved the audience to tears but also gradually redeemed himself. The tragedies and regrets of the past could slowly be mended.
To be honest, without the system's help during the previous ninety-nine reincarnations, he would have long since fallen apart. Whenever his soul approached collapse, the system would step in to strengthen it. But Li Mo did not thank the system. In fact, he cursed it.
The damn system. While strengthening his soul, it assigned him increasingly tragic missions. It tormented him over and over again. Was that something a person would do?
He was exhausted.
But now, the ninety-nine reincarnations were finally over. As long as he completed his hundredth life's mission as a storyteller, he would reach the end.
In this final stretch, the most critical time, Li Mo grew more cautious. After being recognized by Shenhe, he became even more careful in his storytelling. He would complete this final mission safely.
After finishing the draw and receiving his reward, another system notification sounded in his mind.
[Ding! System analysis complete. The story of the fifth life, "Shenhe," has been fully told. New effect triggered—Fusion! You will now merge with your fifth incarnation's body.]
[Ding! System analysis complete. The story of the sixth life, "Orobashi," has been fully told. New effect triggered—Fusion! You will now merge with your sixth incarnation's body.]
[Merge now?]
When the story of Shenhe's life had ended, he could have merged with that body already. But the damn system had not reminded him. Only after the sixth life did it prompt him to merge with the fifth. Wasn't that a trap?
But it was not a big problem. Since Shenhe had already recognized him anyway, Li Mo did not hesitate.
"Merge with the fifth life's body."
[Ding. Merging begins—]
The moment the system notification sounded, Li Mo's body, sitting on the stage, trembled slightly.
Then, wisps of adeptal energy began to appear around him.
Yes, true adeptal energy. In his fifth life, Li Mo was himself a descendant of an adeptus, with an adeptus's heart within him. By merging with that body, he instantly transformed from a mortal into a true adeptus.
Below the stage, ordinary people could only see faint white mist appearing around Li Mo. They had no idea what it was. But for those who wielded Visions, or for the archons themselves, they immediately sensed the change in Li Mo.
Adeptal energy.
Keqing, seeing this astonishing sight, said in surprise, "Could he be an adeptus of Liyue?"
As one of the Liyue Qixing, Keqing was not particularly familiar with Liyue's adepti. But in managing Liyue's affairs, she inevitably interacted with them. She had some understanding of the adepti who lived in the mountains. But she had never seen this storyteller before.
Hu Tao said seriously, "I've heard that not only Liyue, but even those small islands overseas might have adepti living on them. Adeptus matters are beyond our understanding anyway."
She was not surprised at all. In fact, it seemed only natural to her. Who else but an adeptus could live so long and record so many strange and wonderful stories?
Keqing turned to Shenhe. "You are a disciple of the adepti. Don't you find this strange?"
When Shenhe saw the adeptal energy around Li Mo, she immediately understood that he had regained his past life's adeptus heart. A smile appeared on her face. She was genuinely happy for him.
Facing Keqing's question, she forced herself to remain calm. "I don't know either."
Keqing sighed helplessly. "Fine. As long as he doesn't cause trouble in Liyue Harbor, Liyue welcomes him regardless of his identity."
...
Not only Keqing's group. On the other side, the three Electro sisters and Barbatos all turned to look at Zhongli.
"You said before that he wasn't an adeptus of Liyue. You lied to us."
Ei, in particular, had been irritated with Zhongli ever since she emerged from the Plane of Euthymia. That perpetually indifferent expression of his made her want to slap him to the ground.
But now that she was in Liyue, she could only endure. If they were in Inazuma, she would have already drawn her blade and driven this damn Zhongli out of the country.
Even Barbatos was puzzled. "Yes, old man. Could it be that you're secretly supporting this storyteller?"
Faced with their questions, Zhongli's expression remained as indifferent as ever. Neither happy nor sad.
Looking at Ei's hand reaching toward her chest, his eyes showed no emotion whatsoever.
Zhongli said calmly, "Why would I, Zhongli, need to lie to you? This storyteller is indeed not an adeptus of Liyue. If he is an adeptus at all, he must be a reclusive adeptus from some distant overseas island."
Ei considered this, then took her hand away from her chest. "Hmph. For Barbatos's sake, I'll trust you this once."
Barbatos was pleasantly surprised. "Oh? Am I that influential?"
Ei: "…"
Zhongli remained as indifferent as ever. "The matters between you and me have nothing to do with Barbatos. If you wish to strike, you may strike me directly at any time."
Ei: "…"
She had already pulled her hand back, but now she reached for her chest again, unable to resist the urge to draw her blade. She wanted to strike—even if it couldn't hurt Morax, at least it would vent some of her frustration.