The conflict everyone anticipated never materialized.
The pink-haired girl turned out to be surprisingly easy to talk to. After Noldrei explained the situation and promised to provide appropriate compensation, the locals were understanding of the trio's circumstances.
Now, the epicenter of the incident was being handled by Fu Xuan and Elysia.
After using the locals' Synesthesia Beacon, Elysia was also able to communicate with them normally.
However, Noldrei and Mobius were temporarily required to stay within a designated courtyard, with dedicated personnel watching them whenever they came and went.
It wasn't for any particularly nefarious reason; it was simply that the destruction the three had caused upon their arrival was so immense that a certain observation period was necessary. Even ambassadors from different countries on Earth would have dedicated personnel from the host nation keeping an eye on them.
The young woman assigned to liaise with Noldrei was named Qingque, and their primary method of communication was...
Mahjong? The locals, the Xianzhou people, called it "Celestial Jade."
'Why is even this kind of thing cosmically synchronized?'
Noldrei was beginning to wonder if he was still on Earth after all, or if he'd actually crossed over to some other unknown place.
But no matter how he observed the celestial coordinates, he couldn't find a single point of overlap with Earth.
"Qingque, when will your Matrix of Prescience be repaired? Do you need my help?"
Noldrei just wanted to get it fixed and leave as soon as possible. It would be even better if they could repair the Cosmic Juggernaut Train here as well.
"Um... I don't know. We've never encountered something like this before. Even if an enemy were to attack the Matrix, our Master Diviner would have known in advance and made preparations."
Qingque was still agonizing over which tile to discard.
Although she didn't know the origins of these people, after a brief period of interaction, they had been very frank in their offer of compensation. They had also been very understanding and accepted the Xianzhou's handling of the situation, showing no complaints despite being temporarily confined to this large courtyard.
The overly normal exchange surprised the Xianzhou leadership and even added a layer of suspicion.
It was only after confirming that these people knew nothing of the Xianzhou's history that they were able to relax, more or less.
At least they weren't villains here for the secrets of long life.
Qingque still had a clear memory of Noldrei's interrogation by Fu Xuan.
Fu Xuan had asked at the time: "Are you certain you didn't crash into the Xianzhou for the secret of long life?"
Qingque still remembered Noldrei's expression back then. It was one of bewilderment, confusion, and even a touch of strangeness.
He had said, "Isn't the first step into the cosmos a great leap in human lifespan? It's only natural for everyone to live for several hundred or a thousand years. Otherwise, the universe is so vast, you'd die before you even found what you were looking for. How could you promote the development of your civilization then?"
It was an expression that was both matter-of-fact and perplexed.
He genuinely couldn't comprehend why the Xianzhou would be so protective of some secret to long life.
This guy truly believed that the average human lifespan in the universe had to be at least a thousand years to even qualify for interstellar travel.
There was an invisible generation gap between them, a gap that had left even Qingque a bit dumbfounded at the time.
Even Fu Xuan had seemed confused.
It wasn't all bad, though. At the very least, the Xianzhou people were certain that these newcomers didn't care about the so-called secret of long life.
"What a shame..."
Noldrei lamented that he wouldn't get a chance to study the local aliens' computers.
He could understand their technological protectionism. What if a guy like him was here to steal their tech? The Xianzhou would be at a loss then, wouldn't they?
This complication forced Noldrei to remain in this foreign land.
And Qingque could only "entertain" Noldrei by finding people to play mahjong with him.
She heard that the incident had alarmed the central authorities of the Xianzhou, and they were urgently deliberating on a suitable course of action.
What surprised Qingque the most was this guy's formidable ability to roast things.
"This courtyard structure of yours is inefficient in terms of space utilization and inconvenient for management, yet you insist on maintaining this style of architecture with flying eaves and bracket sets. You can already control the weather, so why keep this kind of housing, which was a necessity for the rainy season? You could just build whatever you want."
Noldrei's complaints weren't without reason, but was Qingque the type of person to think about such things?
She didn't know why these traditions were preserved either. Perhaps it was simply to maintain a sense of identity, a connection to the Xianzhou people's homeland, with some cultural philosophy embedded within.
"I don't know either. That kind of thing is best left to the professionals. You're definitely not going to get an answer from me. Why don't we discuss the compensation? I think if you can offer something suitable that the leadership finds useful, that should be enough."
"Repairing the Matrix of Prescience is a bit troublesome, but it's not like we don't have backups. Maintenance is still pretty quick."
Qingque's hand, which was drawing a tile, paused. Her eyes suddenly lit up, clearly having drawn an excellent tile.
Noldrei also thought of a good idea and said, "Do you need MANTIS technology? I can increase the lifespan of your Xianzhou people to tens of thousands of years. How about that as compensation? I see you're already out here in the universe. This would surely be the icing on the cake for your civilization, right?"
Her hand, which had been about to play a tile, suddenly froze. She stared blankly at Noldrei.
Even the two Divination Commission employees who had been roped into playing mahjong were dumbfounded.
'Bro! Do you hear what you're saying?!'
Qingque was on the verge of a mental breakdown. She was starting to suspect that these people had truly come to the Xianzhou with ill intentions.
He continued his sales pitch enthusiastically, "MANTISes are gene-altered warriors produced by a special Honkai factor native to our world. They have the advantages of high combat power, strong regenerative abilities, and long lifespans. It's an excellent technology that even allows them to maintain their original human appearance."
"Although the success rate is a bit low, and it's a high-risk form of human modification, those are minor details compared to the outstanding results of the MANTIS project."
"I see you're still troubled by lifespan issues. How about we exchange technology, and I help you repair your Matrix of Prescience? I'd also like to know what your arrays run on."
"We can achieve mutual benefit and create a glorious future together!"
Qingque's head was already spinning. She was just here to play mahjong!
What tens-of-thousands-of-years lifespan? What MANTISes? Why did it all sound so absurd?
"Why do you look so pale? Don't you like the MANTIS technology?"
"Well then, how about the digital immortality method? Letting people live on as data constructs, supplemented by biomechanical bodies, would also grant them an immeasurable lifespan."
Thinking that Qingque was worried about the high risks of the MANTIS project, Noldrei proposed the excellent alternative of digital modification.
Thanks to the many good things left behind by the Previous Era, Noldrei had plenty of valuable bargaining chips to trade.
Qingque was already growing hesitant. She was contemplating finding someone else to watch these guys.
After a moment's hesitation, she asked, "Brother Noldrei, are you perhaps related to the Aeon of Abundance? Or... are you really here to subvert our Xianzhou?"
Qingque's expression immediately turned serious. "Let me be clear. If you don't answer that properly, I'll have no choice but to turn against you."
The confused Qingque's words only made Noldrei even more confused.
Why wouldn't someone want to live longer?
What is going on?!
Aren't the people of this Xianzhou the same as Earthlings?
If you people aren't even going to pursue long life, how am I supposed to secretly indoctrinate you with the philosophy of Proliferationism?