Chapter 243: Immortals' Symposium

The little fellow is not old, but his skills are not bad.

Savoring the fine tea Yaoyao had sent over, Rosaline gazed thoughtfully at her back.

The house they were sitting in used Liyue's most traditional agarwood door, its heaviness far surpassing that of a normal door.

Normally, opening such a heavy door requires two adults to push together, one on each side.

Yet Yaoyao, still shorter than the door bolt, can pull it open with one hand effortlessly.

As an executive of Snezhnaya.

Although Rosaline is a witch by birth, having lived for several hundred years, her gaze remains vicious and sharp.

Yaoyao's steps are light, her breathing smooth and steady; when she holds the tea tray, the tea in the cup doesn't ripple at all—clearly a sign of considerable martial prowess.

Luo De also chimed in: 'According to Liyue's martial arts ranking, she's probably around third rank.'

It's not much different from the martial arts rankings of other countries.

The people of Liyue divide martial practitioners into nine levels, from low to high: ninth rank to first rank.

Among them, ranks below sixth are collectively called 'unranked'; sixth to fourth rank are considered 'second-tier', relying solely on one's martial arts is enough to earn a decent living; third rank means one can alone in the wilderness clear out monsters; second rank means one can single-handedly take on elite-level monsters and respond to large-scale monster swarms; reaching first rank, this is the level of a martial arts master who has entered the hall in Liyue's populace, the emblematic figure being the president of the Liyue Adventurers' Guild, Sister Lan; even without a Vision, she can easily crush monsters of the Hillhill King tier.

But this is merely a folk classification in Liyue; the figures used as emblems for each rank are merely some modestly famous martial artists.

Masters like Yelan, hidden in the shadows and obviously possessing strength far surpassing first rank, are left unnamed on the list.

As for immortals and half-immortals, there's no need to mention them.

Those who transcend the mundane.

There is simply no basis for comparison.

Luo De also heard this classification from Zhongli.

A child like Yaoyao, who at under ten can match third-rank skill, if spoken of would be enough to make those who call themselves martial arts masters drop their jaws in shock.

Moreover, this is without Yaoyao using any magic implement.

As the beloved disciple among Liyue's immortals, Yaoyao is dearly loved by all the immortals; she usually carries the protective magic artifacts gifted by them, and when she unleashes her full power, she can not only instantly slay enemies but also unleash Liyue's strongest immortal art, 'Call the Parents'! No matter where she is, as soon as her danger is sensed, the immortals who have shattered gods will arrive instantly to guard her safety.

While Luo De and Rosaline were speaking,

Then a faint footsteps came from outside the door.

Soon after,

The Ping Laolao whom Luo De and Venti had previously bumped into on the street now walked in, supported by Yaoyao.

Hey~, long time no see~~

Old friends reuniting, Venti smiled so hard his eyes nearly disappeared.

You're still as unrestrained as ever.

Ping Laolao instantly saw that she and Venti were old acquaintances, showing no trace of the usual restraint when meeting a deity, and with a smiling face she said to Luo De and Rosaline: 'Honored guests, my poor welcome is my fault.'

It's nothing, nothing, Granny, you're being too polite.

Today Venti came to find Luo De, not only to avoid Rosaline but also to bring Luo De to visit the immortals.

This is the promise he made earlier.

After they were seated,

Yaoyao promptly served tea to Ping Laolao, then topped up the tea cups for Venti and the others, and afterwards returned the harp that Venti had previously taken out.

Venti didn't reach out to take the harp, but instead smiled and said: 'Just consider this a welcome gift from your big brother.'

Take it, this guy is stingy; he barely managed to give a gift, so you'd better seize this opportunity.

Seeing Yaoyao hesitate a bit, Ping Laolao teased Venti lightly, then had Yaoyao put away the harp sent by the Wind God.

Gift-giving upon first meeting.

The unprepared Luo De felt around his person and after a while managed to pull out a fist-sized azure-blue crystal.

This is the Nightmoor Stone he picked up in the underground mining area.

After being appraised by Zhongli.

It is the highest-grade Azure Water tier among Nightmoor Stones.

It's purely decorative, with no special function—just meant to look good.

In Liyue,

A fingernail-sized Azure Water Nightmoor Stone can sell for a hundred thousand Mora; the piece Luo De holds could easily sell for tens of millions of Mora, and if processed into jewelry or artwork, its price could increase severalfold.

Originally Luo De planned to have someone work on this Nightmoor Stone, making a few pieces of jewelry to bring back as gifts.

By now Venti has already presented a great gift.

He also felt embarrassed to produce something worthless just to get by.

Seeing this,

Rosaline raised an eyebrow and also produced something to give Yaoyao.

A Snezhnaya specialty, unavailable elsewhere.

Compared to Luo De's Nightmoor Stone gift, Rosaline's present is far more practical.

It's a packet full of candy.

The outer packaging is not transparent, so you can't see what kind of candy is inside.

Among the three gifts, Yaoyao liked this packet of candy the most, and her thanks to Rosaline were the sweetest.

It's clear she is doing her best not to let her attitude show any difference.

But the involuntary intimacy when speaking with Rosaline still gave her away.

This also caused Rosaline to adopt a victorious pose, the corners of her mouth lifted high and unable to be lowered.

In the matter of how to amuse a child,

Rosaline appears quite adept at it.

"Yao Yao, go play first; Grandma and these older brothers and sisters still have things to say."

After Yao Yao finished receiving the gifts, Granny Ping let her leave first.

At first glance.

It seemed as if she brought Yao Yao here just to ask for gifts.

But since the recipient was the likable Yao Yao, naturally no one would mind this.

"Let's go, Liu Yun, Li Shui, and Xue Yue have been waiting for you all for a long time."

Just as Yao Yao stepped out the door, Granny Ping rose and invited the three of them.

"Ah?"

"Are those three immortals also here?"

Luo De stared, then turned his head to glance at Wen Di, who seemed to have known about this all along.

The two exchanged a glance.

Wen Di met Luo De's doubtful gaze and said, "I remember telling you I would take you to hang out with them, right?"

"Is she coming along too?"

Luo De turned his head without hesitation and directly asked the question.

"Mm——"

Wen Di looked hesitant for a moment, then turned to Granny Ping to seek her opinion.

Before Granny Ping could speak,

Luo Shalin immediately resumed her arrogant demeanor: "How come? Are immortals' gatherings not welcoming to an outsider like me? Or do they really, as you said, beat me up over disagreement, this Snezhnaya envoy?"

"Hehe——"

"Honored guest, you're just joking."

Granny Ping didn't take offense at the aggressiveness in Luo Shalin's words, still smiling: "Liu Yun and the others have excellent personalities; they would never lay hands on guests. If you want to go, just come with us."

Having come to this point,

Rosalyn also stopped wasting words, together with Luo De and Venti, following behind Granny Ping, they left the manor and headed straight to the most renowned teahouse in Liyue Harbor, Heyu Teahouse.

To be honest.

Luo De hadn't expected that.

The immortals' gathering would be held in a teahouse inside Liyue Harbor.

Even more unexpected was that.

Xiao was there as well.

After several days apart, seeing each other again, Xiao stared at Luo De, appearing still somewhat nervous.

The other three immortals also appeared in human form.

Unlike the half-immortal Yanfei that Luo De had met, there was no trace of their adeptus beast form on them.

Furthermore, there was no trace of an immortal's aura on any of them.

When Luo De and the others arrived.

The three were even arguing about something unknown, while only Xiao sat quietly aside, silent.

"Is this the mortal the Geo Archon spoke of?"

"Hmm, with the Anemo Archon accompanying him, it seems correct."

"Gēchén, why didn't you bring Yāoyāo along?"

"Huh? Who is this?"

The three immortals exchanged words back and forth; even before sitting down, the atmosphere was already tense.

Venti was an old acquaintance of theirs, so he casually sat down among them, seamlessly joining the topic they had just been discussing.

After Luo De and Rosalyn briefly introduced themselves, they also found a seat and sat down.

After Xiao and Granny Ping also took their seats.

A gathering of immortals worthy of being called the highest standard in Liyue officially began.

Zhongli was not present.

The host of this gathering appeared to have been changed to Granny Ping.

At the outset she went straight to the point: "Everyone, all are present; I'm sure you've all received the Geo Archon's dream message, right?"

Dream message?

Luo De suddenly had a bad premonition and instinctively wanted to get up and leave.

But just as he was about to stand, Venti beside him pressed him back down.

He then sent a voice transmission with a mischievous grin: "What's the rush? The old man merely told all the immortals what you said, letting them decide for themselves."

A minor application of Anemo elemental energy.

It can ensure one's voice cannot be heard by others.

"No, what does this have to do with me?"

"Couldn't they just discuss it among themselves?"

Hearing Venti's words, Luo De felt as if sitting on pins and needles, but he still had a bigger question: "Why did you bring her along? Are you planning to advertise this to the world? Aren't you afraid the Snezhnayans will leak this ahead of time?"

"We're just brainstorming together~~"

"The old man stepping down is no small matter."

"The people of Liyue are accustomed to the Geo Archon; changing to a new god will inevitably bring unforeseen chaos, so we must try to find a solution that satisfies both sides."

Venti said this.

Only then did Luo De realize.

The people sitting in this quiet private booth, besides those from Liyue, actually also included people from the other three nations.

Moreover, they are not gods, but people who hold great influence in their respective countries.

「Zhongli really found himself a big task」

Luo De was muttering to himself, and the immortals had already begun discussing various situations.

Luo Sha Lin, who had not previously known that Liyue was preparing to change gods, first showed a surprised expression; facing the immortals' discussion, she couldn't utter a word.

As the center of the topic, Xiao even lowered his head, not knowing what he was thinking about there.

「The matter of the Subduing Demon Great Sage succeeding the Sovereign is no small affair. 」

「We ought to guard Liyue Harbor during the succession ceremony, to deter troublemakers. 」

This is the suggestion of Xue Yue Zhu Yang Zhen Jun.

He was also the first to point out that the immortals feared that mortals in Liyue Harbor might develop divided loyalties after the Geo Archon's position changes.

Li Shui Die Shan Zhen Jun was even more concerned about Xiao.

「The Subduing Demon Great Sage is constantly busy with battle and has never had experience governing a state. 」

「If all authority were returned to the people, it might cause deceit from below and deafness from above; by then, the Subduing Demon Great Sage alone might not be able to cope. 」

In his view.

That is, returning power to the people is acceptable, but not entirely.

This is the focus of their discussion this time.

As for the immortals,

Replacing the Geo Archon's seat with Xiao is not exactly a good thing.

After all, the Geo Archon's position is burdened with heavy duties, still needing to worry about Liyue's safety, and offers none of the freedom of being an immortal.

Considering Xiao's constant warfare nature.

On the contrary, they think it would be good to let Xiao free himself from the combat that accumulates karmic burdens over the years.

So they discussed and discussed.

They then began to study how to let Xiao more easily undertake the position of the Geo Archon.

「This matter is not a problem. 」

「As long as the Subduing Demon Great Sage does not intervene, merely looming above, no matter how mortals scheme against each other, it can still maintain a baseline of restraint. 」

Liu Yun Jie Feng Zhenjun was not worried about what Li Shui Die Shan Zhenjun said.

She also did not voice her own opinion.

「The Sovereign once said that the little friend from Sumeru has experienced a period of human rule, and Snezhnaya has also once undergone a change of divine rulers; I do not know what your views on this matter are—perhaps you could share a bit, so that we may have a reference. 」

Liu Yun Jie Feng Zhenjun's words were extremely courteous.

As soon as the words fell,

The immortals who had just been loudly discussing possible situations relying on their millennia of experience all fell silent at once, focusing their gaze on the two.

Rosalyn, who always strives to be strong,

「Snezhnaya differs from your Liyue; under the leadership of Her Majesty the Queen, even minor disturbances cause no trouble. 」

Rosalyn's words were very brief.

Which amounted to saying nothing.

Now not only Luo De, but the immortals' gazes toward her grew a bit displeased.

They came to consult opinions, not to listen to boasting.

Thus they shifted their focus to Luo De, whom Zhongli had specifically recommended.

This time,

Luo De did not disappoint them.

Sumeru's human rule was a failure, and Luo De explained it thoroughly.

By the way,

he also analyzed Mondstadt's successful human rule once more.

He had already told Zhongli these points once before, but not in such detail.

The immortals listened very attentively.

By the end of his speech,

there was no need for Luo De to give a summary.

They themselves concluded the root cause of turmoil that returning power to the people would bring.

Deserving a beating.

It sounds absurd, but actually it makes considerable sense.

Luo De also listened to their conclusion with a mixture of laughter and exasperation.

But speaking frankly,

it truly is deserving of a beating.

Mondstadt has the Lawrence family's past as a warning; if anyone later wants to cause trouble, thinking of how the Lawrence family ended up makes one have to consider whether they can withstand the wrath of the Wind God's return.

As for Sumeru, there's no need to say more.

If anyone in the past few centuries had dared to beat the Great Sage, Sumeru would not have ended up ruined by the Academy like this.

「Insightful. 」

After uttering a word of praise, Luo De refrained from interrupting further, silently watching the immortals as they launched another round of heated discussion on how to periodically check Liyue's human rule, while he inwardly sighed: "A deep foundation is good—whatever happens, someone can step in to provide a safety net."

(End of chapter)