Back in Liyue Harbor, Su Ming was reflecting on the battle he had just finished.
Although his Elemental Power resistance had practically decided the outcome from the start, he had at least gone all out once. He was a bit stronger than he had expected.
Limited by his current strength, there weren't many techniques he could perform from the Swordplay Inheritance: Jingliu. He couldn't even use the strongest move, [Floreat Moon], yet; the energy consumption was far beyond what he could currently provide. Even the move he just used, [Moon On Glacial River], had drained nearly half of his internal energy.
"As expected, I'm still a long way off from being truly powerful."
"I have the techniques and the combat experience. All I'm missing is energy."
"Hopefully, the System will have some surprises for me soon."
"Forget it, it's late. Time for bed."
"Tomorrow Lumine and the Old Man will start preparing for the Rite of Parting. That's when I can make my move."
"Right. I'll head over to Yuehai Pavilion first thing in the morning."
With that thought, Su Ming utilized Bukujutsu and flew back to his residence. But the moment he stepped through the door, he froze. Standing right there was a mature, tall woman with a high ponytail and red-framed glasses, staring straight at him.
Su Ming: "..."
I must have opened the door wrong.
He silently closed the door and opened it again.
Huh? Still there? I must be seeing things. Let's try one more time...
Just as he tried to close it again, a hand blocked the door. The pressure wasn't great, and Su Ming was confident he could force it shut if he tried.
However, he didn't dare use any force. Because standing on the other side was none other than Cloud Retainer in her human form.
As the saying goes, one feels soft-handed when taking from others. This naturally applied to Su Ming. After all, the Mora in his pocket had been "borrowed" from Cloud Retainer's private stash. At least for now, it seemed she hadn't noticed.
Calming himself down, Su Ming looked at Cloud Retainer, who was staring back at him with "kindly" intent. He gave an awkward greeting.
"Oh, Master! What brings you here for a visit?"
Cloud Retainer sneered. "What? Am I not allowed? If Ganyu hadn't told me, I wouldn't have known you came down the mountain."
"You've certainly grown capable. What, did you recover some of your power and decide to just abandon your Master?"
"Leaving is one thing, but not even a word?"
"Don't give me excuses. Didn't you lead that Traveler to Wangshu Inn to invite the Conqueror of Demons back? Why didn't you have him bring a message to me?"
Su Ming let out a nervous laugh. "Well, how about you let me inside first, Master?"
"Hmph."
Cloud Retainer snorted. Though the anger hadn't faded from her brow, she stepped aside and let him enter.
Once inside the courtyard, he discovered Lumine, Paimon, and Shenhe whispering among themselves.
"Shenhe, your Master actually looks like a person!"
"Hey, Lumine! That's rude! But wow, that bird can actually turn into a human!"
"Well... I've seen it a few times, but Master rarely shows herself in this form."
Even though the three were being as quiet as possible, Cloud Retainer heard every word perfectly.
"This Adeptus can naturally take human form! Is a mere transformation technique so extraordinary to you mortals?"
"Wah!" Paimon shrieked, hiding behind Lumine. "That woman heard us, what do we do?"
"Impudent! Which woman!?"
Seeing Cloud Retainer about to lose her temper, Su Ming rushed forward to soothe her. "Easy now, Master. They didn't mean anything by it. Please, calm down."
"Begone! This Adeptus still has a bone to pick with you! And do you truly think I would deign to be angry with these mortals over such trivial matters!?"
Cloud Retainer huffed and sat down at the stone table in the courtyard.
Only then did Su Ming lean over to Shenhe to ask what was going on. "What happened? Why is Master here?"
Shenhe spoke slowly. "Master arrived not long after I returned. She said that while chatting with Ganyu, she heard you had asked to borrow a house."
"She has been in her human form since she entered the courtyard, asking where you were."
"I intended to keep it a secret for you, but Lumine and Paimon arrived shortly after."
"Paimon was a bit too talkative and let your whereabouts slip. She even spent quite a while praising your strength in front of Master."
Su Ming sighed, casting a resentful glance at Paimon, who was looking back at him with an innocent expression. Though the little thing often lacked common sense and was driven by food and money, she wasn't malicious.
Lumine likely thought the same. After all, when they first met, Su Ming had already activated the System and possessed power far beyond his former self. Thus, Lumine saw no reason to stop Paimon. To Lumine, praising a disciple's strength in front of their Master seemed like the most appropriate thing to do.
What they didn't know was that in Cloud Retainer's eyes, Su Ming had always been the poor disciple who had excellent comprehension and great cooking skills but was never able to truly step onto the path of cultivation.
Now, that same disciple had suddenly gained immense power and descended the mountain without a single word. One could only imagine what Cloud Retainer was feeling.
"Su Ming... what exactly has happened to you?"
After a long silence, Cloud Retainer's voice softened into one of concern. In her mind, for Su Ming to suddenly gain such vast power, something must have gone wrong.
Although she had once heard Rex Lapis mention that Su Ming hailed from beyond the Sea of Stars and was not of this world perhaps possessing some unknown talent his years of diligent cultivation and his desperate thirst for power were undeniably real.
Cloud Retainer still remembered the dejected look on Su Ming's face years ago when he learned he couldn't use Elemental Power. Rather than believing her disciple had suddenly attained enlightenment or recovered his original strength,
she was more inclined to believe her foolish disciple had made a deal with some entity, sacrificing something for power. Otherwise, why would he descend the mountain so suddenly without saying a word?
Why wouldn't he even visit her once he arrived in Liyue Harbor? She knew her disciple's trouble-avoiding personality all too well. Jumping into the middle of the current events in Liyue Harbor was far too suspicious.
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