Chapter 271

Not many people can get in touch with the connection between Luo De and Mondstadt.

They are easy to find if you look for them.

Furthermore, they also have the trait of being quite hostile toward Luo De and the desert.

The search range was further narrowed.

Luo De couldn't be bothered to deal with them, so he told Nadixa the general situation, had her keep an eye out for any big fish behind these people, and then continued working as a guide.

As for Zhongli, this big client who is generous with his spending.

Duoli was not stingy.

Not a single mora of the money meant for Zhongli was lacking; she fully fulfilled the landlord's courtesy she spoke of.

"The supplies in Kawanyi are still too few."

"If you were at my Qasazhalai Palace, I guarantee you'd be a hundred times more comfortable than now~~"

When mentioning her own Qasazhalai Palace, Duoli couldn't shake off her pride and satisfaction.

"That's also great."

Zhongli was very pleased with Duoli's business philosophy.

Out of the Liyue people's custom of returning gifts.

Penniless, he gave Duoli several contact methods.

These are the connections he accumulated while serving as a guest official in Liyue Harbor.

As for Zhongli,

These mortal connections, aside from letting him earn money to spend, have no other major use.

But for Duoli,

This is a great opportunity to expand her wealth.

Thus,

In an atmosphere where both sides were extremely satisfied with each other, the three of them left Kawanyi together and embarked on the road to Hope City.

"Huh?"

Compared to his calmness in the rainforest region, as soon as he left Kawanyi, Zhongli looked astonished at the flat road ahead.

When the gods were still walking the earth,

Zhongli had also once come to Xu Mi.

At that time, the Xu Mi desert and rainforest region had not yet formed an opposing situation, the sand defense wall had not been built, and between the desert and rainforest there were many passages that could connect.

Yet no passage was as wide and flat as the one under their feet now.

Based on many real-world issues of faith, culture, and region,

Although the vast kingdom under the joint rule of the three gods appeared harmonious, internally there were still significant divisions.

The concrete manifestation.

Namely, the rainforest region and the desert region each built vast cities and infrastructure, yet no one was willing to put effort into the roads connecting them.

"Divine rule unification also has its benefits, right?"

Luo De knew what Zhongli was surprised about, and he replied with a smile.

"That's indeed the case."

Zhongli nodded, acknowledging that statement.

During the period of triple god rule, Xu Mi was wonderful.

Under the protection of the three powerful gods, national strength was unprecedentedly strong, to the point that even the Grass Dragon King, who could flaunt his might in other countries, was forced to submit.

But it is precisely the issue of the three gods' faith.

It brought to Xu Mi a hidden danger that is nominally unified but actually fragmented.

This point is quite similar to Inazuma, which also allows belief in multiple gods.

Or rather, it's still that Sea Guardian Island that Luo De scolded before.

Back then, under their urging, the Sea Guardian Great God Aoluobasi, knowing his days were numbered, led his people to invade the land of the Thunder God, and was finally beheaded by the then body double Lei Dianying with a single sword, ending his life of wandering and fleeing.

It is also precisely because of Aoluobasi's voluntary death.

When the rebels of Sea Guardian Island were crushed by the shogunate army, the Electro Archon at that time did not launch a bloody purge against the defeated Sea Guardian Island, nor did she place the island's people under the population controlled by the Island Thunder God; instead, she allowed them to continue living on Sea Guardian Island and to continue believing in Aoluobasi.

And such mercy.

In return, after the contemporary Electro Archon Lei Dianying issued the lockdown and eye-hunt orders, the perpetually impoverished Sea Guardian Island raised the banner of justice, using the extremely absurd pretext of resisting the eye-hunt order to rebel again against the Thunder God, and, under the meddling and deception of the Snezhnaya people, they dismantled the seal Lei Dianying had placed on Eight Brews Island, releasing Aoluobasi's resentment, turning the original land of fish and rice into a land of constant rain and thunder, a demonic realm, where almost all the island's inhabitants were tormented to death by the Archon's resentment, leaving only a few fish and shrimp with high resistance to the Archon's resentment or far enough away still alive.

Xu Mi's situation is also very similar to that of Sea Guardian Island.

Due to differing faith.

During the time when the Great Merciful Tree King had passed and the Little Auspicious Grass King was imprisoned, the Academy that governed all of Xu Mi launched an inhumane persecution of the desert people, blockading the sand defense wall, education, and survival resources separating the two worlds, continually stoking their conflict, allowing the spread of extremist radical believer rhetoric, and even tolerating Duo Tuolei, this disgrace of the Academy, conducting horrific human experiments on the magic scale disease in the desert, completely indifferent to the desert people's lives or deaths.

And such a situation, comparable to ethnic opposition,

has never occurred in other countries with highly unified divine rule.

This is also why Luo De has always advocated letting Nadixa, who has revealed her divinity, establish divine authority, so that her orders truly have the power to be enforced and prohibited.

At the same time, the Great Merciful Tree King and Luo De, who have both experienced this, find their thoughts remarkably in agreement.

That is, Sumeru currently needs only one deity.

The resurrected Great Merciful Tree King just needs to be a trump card and constantly assist Nadixa as her aide.

Such an approach, paired with Luo De's plan to use strict measures in these chaotic times.

It can be said that the effect is remarkable.

「Next step. 」

「That is, gradually dismantle the sand-prevention walls, completely connect the desert and rainforest, and further promote their great integration. 」

Luo De's ideal is very far-reaching.

It's just that Duoli always likes to splash cold water on him.

"I'm afraid you won't see this accomplished even in your death."

What Duoli said is the truth.

The rift between the desert and rainforest areas is deep.

Don't just look at there being a Hope City where both sides cooperate; this cannot fundamentally resolve the faith-based conflicts and past grudges.

Those tribes that did not respond to the call to go to Hope City, and those scholars who openly sided with the Grass King's divine edict, are the best examples.

"As long as someone inherits this ideal and persists, this will surely be realized sooner or later."

Luo De stood with his hands on his hips, laughing confidently.

"Alright."

Duoli spread her hands, no longer continuing to mock Luo De's ideal from the side, and softly said: "I hope your ideal truly has a day of realization."

After passing through the flat big road of Kawanyi, the next stop is the now completely renewed A Ru Cun.

Gazing at the buildings far away that were utterly out of place with Teyvat's style, Zhongli paused his steps, observed carefully for a while, then said to Luo De: "Is this designed by you, young friend?"

"Not entirely."

"I merely gave suggestions; the true designer is Ka Wei."

Luo De didn't claim credit, speaking frankly, and mentioned Ka Wei.

This guy's designs in A Ru Cun can be said to have experienced a second spring; the practical buildings he designed, after the blockade of the rainforest and desert was completely lifted, instantly attracted the attention of many big merchants from the rainforest area.

Previously, when he was impoverished, he could go many days without receiving a single invitation.

Since then.

Every day he could receive several quite good employment offers.

However, after Ka Wei weighed his options, he still decided to reject all these invitations and focus on the design and construction of Hope City.

"Ka Wei is indeed a very good architect."

"My Ka Sa Zha Lai Gong was designed and built by him, and I am very satisfied."

Duoli also joined in praising Ka Wei with a couple of remarks, then temporarily parted ways with Luo De and Zhongli.

This trip out wasn't for fun; she came to discuss business.

Among them, A Ru Cun and Hope City, the two places she is deeply tied to, are the most important destinations of this trip.

After parting with the ever-interjecting Duoli,

Luo De and Zhongli's ears became much clearer, and they became more interested in touring the newly renewed A Ru Cun.

The village entrance guard post still remained.

But this time they were no longer the grown-up hawks, nor the village guards Luo De knew, but the mercenaries previously captured by Luo De under the name of the Red King and brought back to A Ru Cun.

Although they were initially forced, they now appear to willingly enjoy working in A Ru Cun.

No one slacks off, nor does anyone exploit their authority to extort benefits like the guards at Kawanyi.

Everyone is working diligently.

"When the granaries are full, people know etiquette."

"Mr. Zhongli, don't you think this is correct?"

After passing the village entrance guard post, Luo De laughed and said to Zhongli, who was curious about everything like a baby:

The desert mercenaries are infamous for lacking integrity and contract spirit, being bandits.

Especially these mercenaries captured by Luo De are those who make a living as bandits.

These mercenaries, lacking integrity and labeled as hopeless by both rainforest and desert peoples, once in A Ru Cun able to eat and drink their fill without risking their lives, instantly changed like a different person—not only improving their previous crudeness, but also willing to shed hot blood to protect their current livelihood.

"Indeed not bad."

Zhongli, with an inscrutable expression, glanced again at those mercenaries working meticulously, then turned his attention to the hygiene regulations posted on the bulletin board.

Including requirements such as boiling water before drinking, washing hands before and after meals, not eating while sitting on the ground, etc. —a bunch of rules that were never explicitly stipulated in Sumeru, let alone all of Teyvat—made him involuntarily raise his eyebrows.

"These were set by you, young friend, right?"

Unlike the chaotic Sumeru desert, Liyue also has similar unwritten customs, they just aren't written down like this.

But Zhongli still felt that many of these clauses seemed to come from Luo De's hand.

His feeling was not wrong.

This hygiene regulation was indeed compiled jointly by Luo De and several scholars of the Raw Theory Faction.

There's nothing to deny about this.

Luo De directly admitted: "Yes, some clauses were proposed by me based on experience, but when the hygiene regulations were first promulgated, the villagers' execution was poor, and Kantisi specifically defined many punitive measures before it gradually took effect."

"Not bad."

Perhaps even Zhongli himself hadn't thought of that.

From the moment he stepped into A Ru Cun, he has been repeating these three words.

Whether it's the clearly laid-out hygiene regulation notice, the trash cans every few meters, or the gender-separated public toilets that you can't see elsewhere.

These made Zhongli, full of interest, not stint on his praise.

And upon seeing A Ru Cun's extremely modern-style school, he even rare ly gave a thumbs-up.

"Good, very good, excellent."

"Compared to Liyue's private school, your designed school and teaching model are quite good."

That's visible.

Zhongli's interest in this educational model he had never seen before is not ordinary; judging from his detailed inquiries, after returning to Liyue he will likely initiate reforms to Liyue's current educational model.

Besides that.

Besides Zhongli still having the idea of copying it to Liyue, there were also Fei Lu Shan's designed fully automatic irrigation sprinkler mechanism, alchemical potions that can improve soil fertility, and many other items.

Among them, the various farming mechanisms led by Fei Lu Shan and participated in by the Academy were the things Zhongli inquired about the most.

All the way here.

The still-unsatisfied Zhongli and Zhongli waited a moment at the village entrance, then after Duo Li came to meet up, the three set off again.

Similar to the road from Kawanyi to A Ru Cun.

The road from A Ru Cun to Hope City needs to be built wider and flatter; the carriages and pedestrians on this stretch are incessant, giving quite the feeling of that trade route between Liyue and Mondstadt.

However, because the route is too distant.

Even if the Academy exerted all its strength to build it.

But in such a short time, they still couldn't complete this project that has high construction requirements and a long route.

Adding money doesn't help either.

Manpower is just that limited; you can't speed it up even if you want to.

Pedestrians and merchants traveling between Hope City and A Ru Cun had long been accustomed to this; when the road was cut off, they immediately and tacitly chose to take the rugged side path, moving as fast as possible.

From time to time.

Not far away, sharp explosive sounds that make the ground tremble constantly can be heard.

Anyone with a clear eye can tell upon hearing that someone is blasting rocks.

Those who know this is the Academy's mountain‑opening road‑work see little change in the pedestrians' expressions; they continue walking steadily, thinking only of quickly leaving this bad road and hurrying to the repaired main road at the other end.

Thus, after proceeding slowly while playing along the way for two days.

Luo De and company finally arrived at the main road at the other end.

Standing on this road.

Looking back.

One can still see the shattered remnants of the stone mountain blown to pieces; this also makes Luo De involuntarily click his tongue at Klee's destructive power, while also secretly rejoicing at the wise decision to invite her to blast the mountain.

If it weren't for Klee's bouncing bombs, the progress of this road's construction would at least be several times slower; unlike now, when only another three to five months are needed to successfully join the dragon.

"Mr. Zhongli, Hope City is just ahead."

When the majestic city walls came into view, Luo De smiled and introduced them to Zhongli.

But just as his words fell, a strong gust of wind suddenly attacked from behind Luo De.

That was a sky‑blue great sword.

Accompanying it was a blue‑haired woman with a face full of anger; looking at her furious expression, it seemed she would not rest until she had cut Luo De down today.

(End of chapter)