Liyue – Guili Plains.
This area was a flat, open expanse, known for its numerous ancient ruins nearby—which naturally meant it was also home to more monsters than usual.
That made them a potential safety concern for road construction.
Still, that was just how the wilds were. Once roadwork began, there would be Millelith soldiers standing guard, along with a whole team of Geo Vision holders.
Regular monsters wouldn't dare get close. And if they did, they'd just be asking to get beaten up.
So, monsters didn't really count as a major threat here. A more realistic concern was that many of the nearby ancient ruins were old and decaying, and could collapse.
"Stop holding my hand already. I want to get up on that ruin ahead to take a look!"
Keqing was visibly annoyed, trying to pull her hand away. This annoying guy not only insisted on holding her hand…
…but had even gone as far as removing her gloves—claiming he couldn't feel how soft her skin was through the fabric—and interlocked their fingers all the way here… Seriously, how shameless could he be?
On the left side of the road ahead, there was a crumbling ruin. Its upper structure looked unstable, with a potential risk of collapse.
It was the perfect excuse to finally shake off his grip and ease her now-sore hand.
After holding hands with Nolan for so long, her initial fluster and curiosity had pretty much worn off.
"Up there, huh?" Nolan scratched her pale hand with his finger, giving her no chance to break away. He smiled, "Let me teleport us there."
"You… Do you just enjoy holding girls' hands or something?!"
Keqing was helpless now. Her cheeks reddened slightly as she huffed in protest. She truly didn't understand why Nolan enjoyed this so much.
The white lace hem of her skirt fluttered by his side in the breeze as he calmly replied:
"Prolonged physical contact will help your body get used to me. Once you're used to it, you'll stop resisting more intimate gestures.
"I think it's an excellent way to build emotional connection."
"What do you mean more intimate gestures, you lecher!"
Keqing's twin lavender ponytails swayed in the wind as she scolded him, giving him an embarrassed pinch.
"Hehe."
Nolan didn't deny it—he was that kind of guy. He gave her hand a gentle tug, pulling her toward him.
As she fell forward, he caught her in his arms—and the two vanished from where they stood.
Under the brilliant blue sky and sunlight cascading over the ruins on the low hilltop, a young man and woman appeared atop the structure.
"Hmph!"
Keqing hadn't expected to be pulled into his arms like that. She quickly shoved him away and crossed her arms over her chest, pretending to be composed as she hurried off to inspect the site.
[Keqing Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 300 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.9 (360/900)]
Seeing her so focused on her work, Nolan didn't want to interrupt. Instead, he extended his spiritual perception to scan for potential hazards nearby.
Under the sweep of his spiritual sense, nothing could hide—whether above or below ground.
He quickly finished his survey of the ruin they were standing on and found no particular dangers. But in the distance, something caught his attention.
He looked up toward a nearby ruin close to the main highway. While it was only occupied by a few weak hilichurls and posed no threat...
...his spiritual perception revealed something unusual: beneath the surface ruin was an expansive underground space—one that even extended beneath the planned roadway.
So many years had passed… who knew how stable that underground area was anymore? What if, someday, a heavy transport vehicle passed over it and the road collapsed?
"That protruding section here is at risk of cracking. I think we should deal with it," Keqing said, standing at the edge of the ruin. Her smooth black tights hugged her legs as she looked down and realized the road ran just below.
If it broke off, it could pose a serious risk to travelers.
"Oh? How do you want to handle it?" Nolan asked.
After all, this was an ancient ruin. It likely had archaeological value, and demolishing it might be a waste.
As the Yuheng of the Qixing in charge of public infrastructure, Keqing had already considered such details. She tapped her chin in thought.
"Let's mark it down for now. Once the hardened road reaches this area, I'll have the workers build several supporting Geo pillars underneath it."
Structures created through Geo energy were relatively low-cost.
Nolan judged, based on his own experience, that such reinforcement should be sufficient.
Of course, even on flat ground, unexpected things could happen. The best way to stay safe was still to stay alert.
He gazed toward the distant ruins and added,
"I noticed that ruin has a large underground space. It stretches quite far—might be best if the road detours around it during construction."
"There used to be a lot of treasures there. Many adventurers have explored the area before. But nowadays, it's much quieter. Aside from monsters looking for shelter, not many people go there."
Keqing was also aware of the underground chambers beneath that ruin, but she didn't know just how far they extended.
If the area beneath the road is hollow, then yeah—it definitely needs to be avoided.
"Let's go mark out the boundaries of the underground space beneath the ruins. That'll help the construction crews reroute in advance."
Keqing spread her purple Wind Glider—its shade matching her hair and outfit perfectly—ready to glide straight over.
"With me here, what do you need a glider for? I'll take you."
Nolan grabbed her gloved hand and naturally pulled her into his embrace. Even as the edge of her glider brushed his face, he didn't care in the slightest.
"You… you never miss a chance to take advantage of me!" Keqing sighed and pressed her hand to her forehead. Left with no choice, she put away her Wind Glider. She was already used to his shameless behavior by now.
Luckily, no one else was around. If anyone had seen Nolan pulling this kind of disrespectful, disgraceful stunt—one that undermined the dignity of the Yuheng Star—she would've had him arrested on the spot!
Nolan had no idea Keqing was seriously contemplating doing just that. He held her waist gently, leaning closer to breathe in the sweet scent coming from her lavender hair brushing against his cheek.
Without a sound, the two vanished from where they stood.
When they reappeared, they were already deep within the ruin ahead. Their sudden arrival startled the monsters resting there.
"Ya!"
Familiar monster cries echoed as a group of creatures emerged from the surrounding rubble.
One of them—a small hilichurl wielding a wooden club—stepped out from behind a cracked wall and spotted the intruders in its territory.
Without any hesitation (or awareness of the massive gap in strength), it leapt into the air and swung its club downward.
Nolan's brow arched. Wind swirled around him, about to reduce all the monsters to ashes—
But before he could act, a series of shimmering blue threads shot out from the air itself. With a sharp "whoosh," they wrapped around the airborne hilichurl—and the rest of the monsters too.
Before the creatures could react, they were bound together like a cluster of helpless packages.
"Hm?"
Both Nolan and Keqing were momentarily surprised, then looked instinctively toward the low wall to their left.
A familiar figure slowly emerged from the air.
Her short, angled hair was a mix of deep blue and black, cropped just to the neck. Her fair, elegant face was framed by a sleeveless, skin-tight outfit that revealed her chest, snow-white shoulders, and most of her back.
It was—Yelan.
Holding the aqua-blue threads in her fingers, she looked at Keqing, who was still nestled against Nolan's chest, a playful smirk curving her lips.
"Well, well. This is rare. The esteemed Yuheng Star looking just like a shy little girl snuggled up in a man's arms."
"Yelan!"
Keqing flinched instinctively, caught off guard at being seen. But since it was already too late, she couldn't afford to look flustered.
Otherwise, Yelan might seize the moment and use it against her later. So, she forced a calm tone to hide her embarrassment.
"Ahem. What are you doing here?"
As she spoke, she subtly pinched the back of Nolan's hand—her way of signaling him to let go already.
Yelan had expected Keqing to be a bit more rattled, but seeing her composed response, she didn't press the issue. After all, she hadn't come to tease them—well, not just to tease them:
"Someone spotted a massive fish in the river up ahead. I came to check it out, make sure it wasn't going to cause trouble for the locals."
She glanced at the seven or eight bound hilichurls and added, "I figured I'd use some 'bait' to lure it out… and ran into you two by chance."
The white half-cape draped over her pale shoulders fluttered in the breeze, its sleeve brushing gently against her hip.
"Uh… what kind of fish needs monsters as bait?" Nolan, now wisely letting go of Keqing, asked curiously.
Seeing him release her without making things worse in front of Yelan, Keqing let out a barely noticeable sigh of relief.
Even as the Yuheng Star, with authority and prestige, she was still a girl—and being seen like that by someone she knew was very embarrassing.
[Keqing Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 320 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.9 (680/900)]
"According to eyewitness reports, it's most likely a Red Akai Maou—enlarged for some unknown reason. If you're curious, you're welcome to come check it out.
"To be honest, I've never seen a Akai Maou over three meters tall before."
Yelan leapt lightly down from the wall. Her long, straight legs swayed rhythmically with each step, heels leaving faint marks on the ground as she approached them.
"Since it's on the way anyway, let's mark the boundaries of this underground space and then head over to take a look."
Nolan, sensing there might be a good opportunity to earn some Adventure EXP, could already smell the scent of an upcoming event worth exploring.
Ever since he reached Level 100 that day and cleared the final two floors of the Spiral Abyss using the "Sword God" avatar, Nolan had earned over a million Adventure EXP.
But after that, he hadn't found any other good places to grind EXP.
[Adventure EXP: 1,075,261]
He wasn't sure how strong the "gigantic Akai Maou" Yelan mentioned would be, but since it was along the way—even a few EXP points would be better than missing out.
After all, leveling up now required a full ten million EXP. Who knew when he'd gather that much?
Though he hadn't found any ideal EXP-farming locations recently, Nolan did discover that the Dragonblood spatial trait he gained after collecting the "Bloodjade Branch" was quite useful.
The "Dragonblood Gemstones" it produced could be used to absorb energy and train. He tested it and found the results very promising.
Each gemstone was about the size of a rice bowl, and he could completely absorb one in under ten minutes.
[Level: 100 (100,000/10,000,000)]
The effect was equivalent to gaining 100,000 EXP. Not bad at all—unfortunately, only one gem could be produced per month.
"Mm." Keqing folded her arms and nodded, showing no objections.
"Come to think of it," Yelan said bluntly, "I've heard you have pretty close relationships with quite a few girls. So, is this outing with Keqing today supposed to be some kind of secret rendezvous—something you don't want the others to know about?"
She made no effort to be subtle.
Like most people, she wasn't a big fan of playboys. But surprisingly, she didn't particularly dislike Nolan, even though he had helped both Liyue and herself.
Maybe it was because, despite being a bit of a flirt, he was actually a genuinely good person.
That didn't stop her from casually throwing it out there though—partly to give Keqing a friendly heads-up. After all, she knew the awe-inspiring Yuheng Star had little experience when it came to romance.
As a colleague and friend, it was only right to offer a gentle warning. Just in case Keqing got tricked by this overly charming man.
"Haha, we're on duty today—this isn't a date," Nolan replied casually.
He wasn't trying to hide anything. Keqing already knew he was close with other girls. She'd even caught him on the Jade Chamber with Ningguang, Hu Tao, and the others. With how sharp Yelan's intelligence network was, she'd probably figured it out too.
Seeing no reaction from Keqing, Yelan figured she must already be aware of Nolan's relationships. Since she clearly didn't mind that her partner was involved with other women, Yelan naturally had no reason to care either.
Tsk... Ningguang and Keqing—the two most powerful among the Liyue Qixing, overseeing economy and land—and this guy had won them both over. He might just be the most powerful man in Liyue now!
[Yelan Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 300 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.6 (200/600)]
Yelan gave Nolan an impressed glance. Despite having two of Liyue's most powerful women as lovers, he never once used their authority for personal gain.
That earned him a fair amount of respect in her eyes.
Thinking no more of it, she casually asked what their current task was.
Nolan and Keqing didn't hide anything and explained their plan to build a highway linking the three nations. They were here to perform the final hazard inspection.
"Not a bad plan. I'll wait here for you then," Yelan said, already familiar with Liyue's current development goals.
Bicycles, elemental steam engines, automobiles—Ningguang had said those were all brought in by Nolan and Lumine. She couldn't even imagine how far their world had progressed.
There were just so many new, astonishing things.
"Mm."
Nolan nodded, then worked with Keqing to quickly pinpoint the full underground range of the ruin using his spiritual perception.
After confirming it, they marked it clearly on the ground.
(End of Chapter)
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