Chapter 312: Is this really worth it?

Lei Dianying is a very good student.

He neither refutes nor asks randomly; only when he encounters something he does not understand does he speak those two sentences.

Basically, he is just attentively listening to the Q&A between Leidian Zhen and Luo De.

How to put it.

No comparison, no harm.

Lei Dianying, who always stayed indoors in Inazuma, after personally seeing Liyue's prosperity, even if his will was firm, became obviously dazed and grew much quieter.

Both are gods in power.

Zhongli governed Liyue into Teyvat's wealthiest nation; Liyue Harbor's abundance alone rivals a country, and compared to Inazuma, where famine stems from man-made disaster, the contrast in his heart becomes even clearer.

"Man-made disaster is far more terrifying than natural disaster."

This is Luo De's concluding remark, also endorsed by Leidian Zhen and Lei Dianying.

But acknowledgment is acknowledgment.

Wanting to change Inazuma's system, which has persisted for over two thousand years, is not something that can be done quickly.

The only good news.

That mortals cannot shake Lei Dianying's position; as long as she is willing to change, no matter how the Inazuma aristocracy opposes, a single swing of her naginata silences any dissent.

Of course.

Blindly changing or copying another nation's system may backfire.

Consequently, Lei Dianying grew even more silent; following Luo De's advice to study more, listen more, watch more, and summarize and generalize on her own—since no one could offer guidance—it all depended on how much essence she could absorb along the way.

Just like that.

Luo De, with his dreams in mind, spent three days touring every corner of Liyue Harbor; if time had allowed, he would have liked to bring Lei Dianying to see even farther places.

During that time he also met Yaoyao, who was out shopping with Granny Ping.

This little one has an excellent memory.

Upon seeing Luo De, she immediately recognized him as the older brother who once drank tea and watched operas with the various immortal uncles.

At her call, the immortals scattered around Liyue Harbor who were out playing all came forward.

Among them was Xiao, who had become the new Geo Archon.

He remained as he always was.

He remained a man of few words; the only difference was that he smiled a bit more than before.

The other immortals had all gathered as well.

Except for Fush e, who had been sent by Zhongli to rush to Sumeru.

Speaking of Fush e,

Luo De couldn't help but feel both amused and exasperated.

That former Grand Marshal Tengshe, after being reborn in a puppet's body, first built a shrine to honor his departed comrades; the funds were provided by Ningguang in Liyue Harbor's name, and the site lies on Scarlet Cloud Slope, where every inch of land is precious.

As for himself, he became a grave keeper, daily standing before the statues of his siblings, telling visitors the old tales of the yakshas and immortals.

Fush e especially loves children, always keeping candies and snacks on hand; when his storytelling with the kids gets lively, he throws in some quiz‑and‑reward games.

Before he knew it,

The uncle who looked after the shrine quietly became the most beloved person among Liyue Harbor's children.

Xiao and Fush e began living together.

With his karmic obstacles cleared, he no longer needed to worry about being unable to approach humans.

Thus, to avoid frightening the children, he hid his demon mask, changed into wide‑sleeved robes, and covered those frightening tattoos.

It was also at this time

that his words would grow close, sometimes when he told stories he even needed Fush e to interrupt him.

The immortals would occasionally help out as well.

For example, the True Lord Liuyun Jiefeng would set up some contraptions there to lure people to watch, and Granny Ping would sometimes play the zither, adding a few measures of melody to Fush e and Xiao's stories.

The younger generation would also take part in these affairs.

Yanfei, Xiangling, Yaoyao, plus Ganyu and Shenhe—whom Luo De had not yet met—would, under their respective masters' guidance, lend whatever help they could to Fush e and Xiao's great undertaking.

Among these, Xiangling's grand feast was the most popular item.

Just as Luo De had done in his past life with temple open‑feast festivals, Fush e and company hold a grand gathering each month, free of charge and without formalities—anyone can drop by to visit and to eat.

After holding it twice in a row,

this day became a festival on Scarlet Cloud Slope rivaling a traditional celebration, with adults and children flocking to the little shrine to enjoy the various delicacies cooked over the fire lit personally by the Kitchen God.

According to the immortals,

this was even Guoba's suggestion.

Although no one else could understand what he was saying, Xiangling and the immortals could comprehend him perfectly.

Thus this newly emerged festival in Liyue Harbor came into being just like that.

What a pity.

Luo De's stay in Liyue Harbor was brief—he didn't even manage to catch the festival, let alone catch up with the immortals—before he returned to the passenger ship.

Although he hadn't stayed long, he still found, from the new festival in Liyue Harbor, a place where he could give Lei Dianying a lesson.

"Seeing how Liyue treats those old heroes of theirs, huh?"

Luo De on the ship said, with meaning,

"I have seen it."

Lei Dianying's reply this time was no longer mechanical as before, but carried a touch of thoughtfulness.

And Leidian Zhen simply sighed, saying, "I know what you want to say; this indeed is our mistake."

Luo De's reasoning is very simple.

In the Dark Calamity five hundred years ago.

Inazuma and Liyue both suffered heavy casualties, and the top non-human powers of the two countries were nearly wiped out.

But afterwards.

Liyue's faith in the adepts has remained steadfast over these five hundred years, and each year's Lantern Rite is held specifically to commemorate the adepts.

In contrast, Inazuma.

Back then, Inazuma's Raiden Makoto perished in Khaenri'ah, and Raiden Ei went to support but never returned.

Inazuma's youkai led the shogunate army in a desperate resistance; all the great youkai fell, leaving only the not-yet-mature Yae Miko to preserve the last face of the youkai clan.

After that.

Along with Raiden Ei's withdrawal, the people of Inazuma cleanly severed ties with the youkai, especially the Oni Tribe, which suffered the heaviest casualties; after the leader Oni Chiyo lost his mind due to Abyssal corruption and struck Raiden Ei, the Oni clan earned great merit in battle, yet after the war they fell under the shogunate's purge, causing their population to wither and never recover.

Aside from the Oni Tribe.

The other youkai races fared similarly; if not for Yae Miko inheriting the position of the Foxes' Shrine and becoming the one closest to divinity, after centuries of marginalization Inazuma might have seen hardly any youkai left.

"Not commemorating the martyrs of that year would be bad enough, but instead they carried out large-scale purges and persecutions against their descendants."

"I haven't stayed long in Inazuma, and I haven't had much contact with others."

"But I can clearly sense that you Inazuma people fear the youkai making a comeback and again taking away humanity's power."

"So they chose to forget the youkai and stigmatize the remaining youkai races, making it hard for youkai to integrate into human society."

"Speaking from the heart."

"Do you think this is justified toward the youkai who died in the Dark Calamity?"

Luo De does not sympathize with those nameless youkai; he simply feels it is unfair.

No matter which world's definition you use, Inazuma's youkai can be considered heroes.

Under the leadership of the Foxes' Shrine.

These long-lived races committed no wrongdoing, caused no chaos in Inazuma; instead they drew a boundary with humanity, living in their own world, and ultimately, for Inazuma's safety, they resolutely left the mountains and forests, fighting the monsters to the point of their own homes destroyed and families shattered.

Such sacrifice.

In return, their names were forgotten and their descendants persecuted.

Speaking conscientiously.

When Luo De learned of these things, the first word that sprang to mind was "white-eyed wolf."

"White-eyed wolf?"

Raiden Makoto and Raiden Ei have never heard this term, but they know that whatever Luo De says is definitely not something nice.

"It's referring to you Inazuma people."

"Ungrateful, betraying after crossing the river, repaying kindness with enmity."

Luo De was not at all polite; his words made Raiden Ei frown involuntarily.

After a while.

She did not refute Luo De's words, but sighed, saying, "When I return, I will begin preparing the commemorative ceremony."

Yae Miko is most adept at this kind of thing.

As long as one puts heart into it, it can be done well.

Moreover, holding a memorial ceremony for the youkai, I believe Yae Miko will surely be very willing to see it through.

After saying that.

There was nothing else to say.

Luo De said before that everything depends on Raiden Ei herself to see and comprehend; he cannot guide much.

Thus, the subsequent time on the ship.

Luo De no longer took out the Oneiric Shard; he was either chatting idly with Xingqiu and Paimon, or continuing to repair Raiden Makoto's consciousness.

He is now much more proficient than before, and the repair progress is considerably faster.

At the current pace, it is expected that in about two months the restoration will be nearly complete.

Compared to the initial stage, it is indeed much slower, but this is already Luo De's limit.

A few days later.

Luo De finally returned to Sumeru.

The Oneiric Shard was again in his hand, and he finally had a chance to converse with Raiden Ei.

He had been feeling stifled for a few days.

It did not cause any fluctuation in Raiden Ei's emotions.

After all, she had been withdrawn in the Oneiric Sanctum for hundreds of years, accustomed to days with no one speaking to her.

Such a habit.

Even if she very much wanted to talk more with Raiden Makoto, not seeing her did not cause her emotions to spiral out of control.

Port Ormos remained as it was, nothing much to say.

Even from Luo De's current perspective on the Teyvat continent, this largest port of Sumeru, which once brought countless economic revenues to Sumeru, when Sumeru began to vigorously develop Scarlet King technology and through archaeology obtained many more advanced creations, the facilities of Port Ormos appeared especially outdated.

"No money to repair."

Luo De openly admitted this.

Given Sumeru's economic level, wanting to renovate Port Ormos once more, even if scheduled, would have to wait in line until ten years later.

"Anyway, the basic facilities are still usable, so there's no need to rush."

Luo De's mention of the outdated facilities.

To Xingqiu, Paimon, and even Raiden Makoto and Raiden Ei, it is completely on par with the port cities of other nations.

Especially compared to the remote island.

The remote island itself isn't a major port; its cargo throughput and passenger flow are quite ordinary, and among Teyvat's nation ports it doesn't rank among the forefront; compared to the once-renovated Aomosi Harbor, it has a significant disadvantage.

And such a port, Luo De actually rated it as backward?

「Really unexpected? 」

「The port cities I've seen are far more prosperous than this, even more than Liyue Harbor; not liking this place is quite normal. 」

Luo De spread his hands, then said: 「Even if I don't use those ports of my hometown for comparison, just the new technology used in Hope City over there is something this place can't match. 」

「Hope City. 」

「What kind of city is that place, exactly? 」

Paimon and Ying have heard Luo De brag about Hope City more than once.

But each time they wanted Luo De to describe that giant city in the desert.

Luo De would always make excuses, insisting that they'd know once they got there and saw it themselves.

Such a tactic of keeping secrets naturally pushed Ying and Paimon's curiosity to the peak; they couldn't wait to fly to Hope City right away for a good look.

Leidian Zhen and Leidian Ying, however, appeared much calmer.

Although they were extremely curious about the city Luo De described as a utopia, those who have lived over two thousand years did not feel the same anxiety as Ying and Paimon.

However, the two of them also had their own questions they wanted to ask Luo De.

「With such a huge investment, even incurring so much foreign debt, is it worth it? 」

Luo De had said that before.

For the construction of Hope City, Xu Mi had nearly emptied its coffers.

Later, for the god‑making plan, they borrowed a large sum of Mora from Liyue.

If these investments weren't put into building cities and roads, but instead used for things like renovating Aomosi Harbor, developing military arms, strengthening the Academy's construction, and placed where they see as more useful, wouldn't that be better?

So Leidian Zhen and Leidian Ying inevitably felt some confusion.

Having put in so much, still owing a debt that would take decades to repay, is it really worth it? Upon mentioning this topic,

Luo De's expression instantly turned solemn, and he answered seriously: 「Worth it. 」

He voiced his view.

「Money can be earned again if it's gone. 」

「But the money that Xu Mi brings is the people's livelihood, especially those desert folk who survive by eating dirt; they no longer need to be troubled by wind and sand, need not worry daily about food, and need not even fret in their sleep about making it to the next morning. 」

「Although what we've done now isn't good enough, many, many people still can't live stable lives. 」

「But I, Nadixa, and the Great Merciful Tree King—our three views are in agreement. 」

「As long as it can improve the lives of the Xu Mi people and let them live truly good lives, then no matter how much we spend, it's worth it. 」

Then.

Luo De faced Xu Mi City, smiled, and said: 「We're not just building a city; we'll also carve mountains, cut trees, construct roads that connect all of Xu Mi, spread the new power grid to everywhere people live, and bring convenient tools to thousands of households, no longer just the rich's privilege. 」

「This is what we ultimately aim to achieve. 」

Luo De asked: 「You say, for this goal, is it worth it? 」

(End of chapter)