Chapter 43

“What?!”

Upon hearing this, Jizi froze in shock.

I was just joking—Itachi really are a Pure Beauty Envoy!

“Sister Jizi, is this the legendary Lord Hermes?”

At this moment, March 7 could no longer hold back and stepped out of the train, her beautiful blue-to-pink gradient eyes shining brilliantly.

March 7 glanced at Hermes, then turned her head slightly, studying Jizi with a peculiar expression.

On one side was Hermes, a pure embodiment of beauty she had never seen before; on the other was Jizi, rushing out of the train with unmistakable urgency—March 7 couldn’t help but feel something was deeply off.

Only after stepping out did she realize the Black Tower’s appearance was utterly unlike the doll she had known before, and she instinctively covered her mouth in surprise: “Lord Black Tower is here too?”

With March 7’s emergence, the other train members gradually stepped out one by one.

Except for Star Core · Star, who followed March 7 closely, Walter and Dan Heng merely exchanged polite greetings, remaining calm and composed.

“Hmm, so these are the unnamed guests of this generation!”

Hermes regarded them, his eyes filled with deep admiration.

Though few in number, each one is a dragon or phoenix among men!

Yet even this slight attention from Hermes—

Made Walter and the others suddenly feel as if an infinite river of stars had crushed down upon them!

Though the sensation vanished in an instant, leaving no trace.

Yet how perceptive were Walter and the others?

They would never dismiss it as an illusion.

“So this is an Envoy?”

Walter’s heart grew heavy—he had underestimated the power of beings standing at the apex of the cosmos?

Though Star had just been born, her spiritual perception was astonishingly strong.

But her thinking was entirely different; after regaining her composure, she turned her gaze toward Jizi and grinned mischievously, clearly lost in some strange thought…

“Enough standing around in the starry void—come inside with me.”

Facing Black Tower’s gleaming, eager-to-dissect gaze, Hermes remained unperturbed and issued a gentle invitation.

“Then I’ll postpone studying Itachi until next time.”

Black Tower spoke as if nothing had happened, then scrutinized the unfamiliar star system: “I’d like to see what’s so extraordinary about this place that captured your attention for so long.”

…

On another front, Buer’s arrival had begun to subtly shift the entire Teyvat’s situation.

For instance, Babylons of the Witch’s Guild, staring at the tangled mess of fate, fell silent for days, trying to unravel its threads—only to finally snap: “Why has fate turned into such a tangled mess?!”

Similarly, numerous astrologers, like Mona, nearly had their Dao hearts shattered by this situation…

Beyond these innocent bystanders utterly confused by the chaos, the Worldly Administrators who knew the truth each bore their own burdens.

Mondstadt.

After leaving the Sky Island, Barbatos returned here and gathered his people to prepare for the coming tasks.

In Diluc’s tavern.

Facing Diluc’s long-hoarded fine wine, Barbatos, unusually, did not drink heartily; instead, he poured himself a cup and savored it slowly, his emotions complex.

The Geo Demigods of Teyvat are all lovers of their people.

Barbatos was no exception.

As a close associate, he understood Teyvat’s condition better than even Morax.

He had once believed Teyvat’s chance of salvation was negligible, so he had adopted a laissez-faire attitude toward Mondstadt’s citizens.

After all—

If the world was going to perish, why not let them enjoy their freedom?

As long as they didn’t fall into depravity, Barbatos felt he could accept anything.

But then, unexpectedly, the Great Benevolent Tree King returned, bearing power from beyond the heavens…

The situation had changed!

Not only that—they had gained a tremendous opportunity, destined to serve under an unimaginably great being…

This should have been good news.

But when Barbatos returned to Mondstadt, he saw only rampant laziness and drunkenness everywhere…

Barbatos was instantly overwhelmed.

Under these circumstances, when Mondstadt finally joins them, won’t they be thrown out on the spot?

Soon after the true leaders of Mondstadt arrived, Diluc sealed the tavern completely.

Lisa immediately set up a barrier to prevent leaks.

Yet seeing their Wind God Barbatos’s complex expression, they all felt a sudden dread.

Could it be that Mondstadt was about to sink tomorrow?

Watching Barbatos still lost in thought, Diluc finally couldn’t hold back: “Lord Barbatos, has something major happened?”

Captain Qin also showed signs of concern.

She had assumed that with the Wind Dragon incident over, Mondstadt would soon return to peace.

But facing Mondstadt’s lax, nearly decadent atmosphere, she felt utterly drained.

Sitting in the acting captain’s seat, she was constantly on her feet—handling endless trivial matters, constantly scheming against the Fatui, and often personally leading teams to clear out Hilichurl tribes outside the city…

She wanted to delegate, but there were simply no reliable people to help!

“Lord Barbatos, what exactly has happened?”

Qin could no longer hold back.

If another Wind Dragon incident occurred, she feared she would collapse under the strain.

She had already exhausted herself dealing with the aftermath of the Wind Dragon incident!

Barbatos set down his cup and spoke with complex emotion: “A few days ago, the Sky Island summoned all of us Worldly Administrators to a meeting!”

“What?!!”

Upon hearing the Sky Island had convened, everyone nearly shouted in shock.

What did it mean for the Sky Island to hold a meeting?

A similar event had occurred five hundred years ago.

The result: a black beast tide swept across Teyvat, several Worldly Administrators were replaced, and even Wind God Barbatos was gravely wounded and fell into slumber—only recently reappearing!

Diluc and Captain Qin knew this history well—legend said Mondstadt had nearly been wiped out then!

Now that the Sky Island was convening again…

“Don’t jump to conclusions.”

Barbatos shook his head, cutting off their speculation; his expression held a trace of joy, yet also an indescribable distress.

Then, without concealment, he recounted the meeting’s details, and sighed: “What do Itachi think—when that great being sees Mondstadt filled with drunkards, what will his reaction be?”