Chapter 69

"Did we... win?"

The youth was bleeding, speaking intermittently.

"We won, a complete victory!"

"You overthrew the tyrant's rule!"

"You won this war for freedom!"

Barbatos said, his tone carrying a hint of sobbing.

What if he had become a top-tier Archon?

Wouldn't his best friend still pass away?

"Oh my, there’s really not even a scrap left."

Just then, a youth covered in seven-colored light descended from the sky.

He stared at the spot where Decarabian died and sneered.

"What a pitiful and pathetic Archon."

"Who are you?!"

Barbatos held the bleeding Venti tightly and said angrily to the suddenly appearing Jiang Yan.

"Me? Are you sure you don't want me to save him first?"

Jiang Yan pointed to Barbatos’s arms.

. ........ 0

"You... you can save him?!"

Looking at Jiang Yan, who exuded a terrifying aura, Barbatos didn't care about anything else and asked in surprise.

"Of course, but... what can you give me?"

Jiang Yan smiled; he was not a kind person.

"As long as I have it, I can give it!"

Barbatos’s tone was firm.

"Of course you can."

Jiang Yan flicked a Senzu Bean from his hand, which was caught by Barbatos.

"This is?"

Barbatos asked with some confusion.

"Feed it to him, and he will instantly return to his original state."

"But Barbatos, you must owe me a favor."

"This favor will not be easy to repay."

Jiang Yan still had a smiling expression, like a cunning merchant.

But Barbatos couldn't care about that; he was like a drowning person grabbing a straw.

Without any hesitation, he fed the Senzu Bean into Venti’s mouth.

Venti, already in a semi-unconscious state, rolled his throat and swallowed the bean.

*Crack! Crack!*

The blade fragments inserted into Venti’s body seemed to be pushed out by something.

In Barbatos’s shocked gaze, the injuries on Venti’s body recovered at a visible rate.

In almost an instant, Venti returned to an uninjured state.

"Barbatos... I... didn't die?"

Venti suddenly opened his eyes and looked around in confusion.

"Yes! You didn't die!"

Barbatos hugged Venti in surprise; just a moment ago, he had almost lost his best friend.

"What is your name?"

After a while, Barbatos suddenly asked Jiang Yan.

"Me? I’m from Liyue next door. As for my name..."

"You can just call me the Wood Spirit Immortal."

Jiang Yan did not expose his real name, only his title. ===== CHAPTER 170 =====

"The Wood Spirit Immortal... of Liyue?"

Barbatos muttered, then nodded.

"Thank you."

Hearing Barbatos’s thanks, Jiang Yan smiled.

"You're welcome. You owe me a favor, don't you?"

"Yes, as long as it is something I can do."

Barbatos said seriously to Jiang Yan.

His best friend was able to survive thanks to the man in front of him.

So even if it were a difficult request, he would try his best to fulfill it.

"Ha... the favor you owe me is not urgent. I will come to find you when I need it."

Jiang Yan yawned and then said:

"Since the show is over, it’s time for me to go back."

"You can handle the rest yourselves."

After speaking, the seven-colored light around Jiang Yan surged, and the surrounding space trembled slightly.

He shot up and flew into the distance as a streak of light.

"Liyue..."

Barbatos muttered, looking in the direction Jiang Yan flew.

Venti in his arms also stood up, and his radiant appearance made Barbatos daze for a moment.

"Who was that gentleman..."

Venti naturally noticed Jiang Yan, who was talking to Barbatos, and asked.

"Hmm, he said he was the Wood Spirit Immortal from Liyue."

Barbatos said.

"Li... Liyue..."

Venti muttered. Whether as the thousand-wind spirit Barbatos or Venti, he had naturally heard of Liyue, the emerging nation established next to the Mondstadt snowfields.

"Hey! Barbatos, let’s establish a nation too!"

"A nation of freedom!"

Venti opened his arms, looking at Barbatos with shining eyes.

"Establish a nation?"

Barbatos muttered, then his eyes became firm.

"Okay!"

Jiang Yan didn't know how much influence his actions today had on Barbatos, but he was currently encountering some difficulties.

After returning to Liyue Harbor, he began to prepare for the establishment of the Liyue Navy and the Liyue Air Force.

The navy was fine; it was just a matter of shipbuilding.

But for the air force, Jiang Yan encountered a problem.

Jiang Yan’s idea was good, but in Teyvat, where the technology tree had long since gone astray...

...there really wasn't anything that could allow mortals to soar freely in the sky!

Even Guizhong and Cloud Retainer, who were skilled in mechanical arts, had a headache.

"Jiang Yan. Although your idea is quite novel, it’s not that easy to do..." ===== CHAPTER 171 =====

"Jiang Yan. Although this idea of yours is quite novel, it is not so easy to put into practice..."

Guizhong frowned and spoke.

"According to your idea, wanting to make such a large machine would cost an unimaginable amount of materials and wealth, not to mention that you also plan to mass-produce it..."

Cloud Retainer also frowned and expressed her opinion.

"Don't I remember there being Floating Stones? Can't that be used?"

Jiang Yan remembered that a few days ago, Mountain Shaper had mined a kind of stone called Floating Stone from the Chasm, the kind that could float on its own.

The Jade Chamber of later generations could fly because of the blessing of Floating Stones.

"That thing is too rare; even Mountain Shaper only has two or three pieces..."

Cloud Retainer hadn't finished speaking when she widened her eyes.

"No way, you weren't planning on this from the beginning, were you?"

Jiang Yan chuckled and did not deny it.

"You can only ask about that. That kid Mountain Shaper treats those few stones like treasures all day long. It probably won't be easy for you to get them for experiments."

Guizhong said, looking at Cloud Retainer.

"Hmm, let’s go ask first. It’s fine if we can get a small piece for testing."

Jiang Yan said.

"Because what we want to make isn't that big, just something that can carry a thousand people to fly."

"I will tell the Huishan Hall to keep an eye out for news about Floating Stones and try to collect some more."

"Hmm, then Guizhong and I will go ask Mountain Shaper."

Cloud Retainer nodded and walked out with Guizhong.

After the two left, Jiang Yan leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes and pondering.

Whether it was training the air force or the navy, it had to be planned carefully...

After all, even if Guizhong and Cloud Retainer researched it, if the soldiers couldn't fight effectively in the air or at sea, it would still be useless.

This could be seen from Liyue in the plot of his previous life.

Liyue had news about the navy, but only Beidou’s fleet was worth looking at.

But Beidou’s fleet, to be honest, could even be called mercenaries or auxiliary troops; they couldn't be called a regular army.

What Jiang Yan wanted was a regular Liyue army that could dominate the sea, land, and air, and have absolute say in all three.

Now on land, the Millelith, under the blessing of Jiang Yan’s various martial arts manuals, had become the army with the highest combat effectiveness among mortals.

But the combat methods of the navy and air force were definitely different from those of the army.

Even if they were transferred from the Millelith, they would almost need to be retrained.

Jiang Yan closed his eyes and thought quietly...

The next day, the Liyue authorities posted a notice in front of Yujing Terrace.

From today on, Liyue officially established the Liyue Navy.

From today on, the Liyue Navy would begin recruitment.

Men under thirty who were good swimmers were preferred.

This surprised the people of Liyue, who had been recuperating for three hundred years.

There hadn't been any major moves for so many years, and now a new branch of the military was suddenly established.

Was there going to be some major move?

Many citizens even thought that Liyue was about to enter a war.

The Millelith, as the army, had maintained a troop strength of 500,000 for many years.

On this basis, the Liyue authorities were actually going to expand the army.

If this wasn't wanting to fight a war, what was it?

Of course, this branch called the Liyue Navy also aroused the curiosity of many citizens.

"Navy? Does that mean an army that fights at sea?"

In front of Yujing Terrace, someone said.

"Must be, but fighting at sea sounds great."

A young man’s eyes shone, looking very excited.

"Hmph! Kid, war is not a game! People really die!"

There were those who were excited, and naturally, there were those who were worried.

An old man said with a worried tone. ===== CHAPTER 172 =====