Qi Shu seemed to have died, but the calamity he left behind was far from over. Death continued to spread through the crowd.
"Help us! Who can save us?!"
"Director Hu Tao, Consultant Chen Feng, please save us!"
"We'll buy the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor packages right away! I'll buy two!"
"I'll buy five!"
The crowd pinned their last hopes on Hu Tao and Chen Feng, competing to purchase the packages offered by the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor in exchange for salvation.
Despite the sudden windfall of wealth, Hu Tao's face showed little joy. While clearing the lingering spirits around her, she turned to Chen Feng and asked,
"Chen Feng, can you save the others?"
"The entity currently executing this judgment is the Death God. If I am to fight Him, I will need much greater power!"
Chen Feng explained, then turned his gaze toward the Adepti.
"Could the Adepti lend me their power?"
"What time is it already? You should have just told us what to do!"
Cloud Retainer transformed into a streak of light, flying to Chen Feng's side before continuing.
"Although I don't know your situation, kid, your current physical condition can't withstand our power."
"Fortunately, this Adeptus has crafted many good items in the past. I will lend them to you for now."
With that, Cloud Retainer stuffed several items into Chen Feng's arms, then placed a pair of wings on his shoulders.
"These can bear the burden in place of your body, though I am unsure of their exact limit."
"Chen Feng, if you can't take it, just say the word."
After speaking, Cloud Retainer funneled her remaining Adeptal Energy into Chen Feng. Immediately, her state became withered, feeling as if her body had been completely drained.
"It's not enough. I still need much more."
Hearing Chen Feng's words, the other Adepti exchanged glances, then transformed into streaks of five-colored light, landing near Chen Feng and forming a circle around him. Immediately after, they began channeling their remaining power into his body.
As a massive amount of Adeptal Energy surged into him, Chen Feng's clothes billowed without any wind, and his body emitted a white glow.
But soon, everything fell silent. In the Adepti's perception, Chen Feng's body seemed like a bottomless pit, devouring the Adeptal Energy they continuously supplied.
Seeing this, Ningguang hastily made several hand gestures, then controlled the Jade Chamber to retain a small amount of levitating energy, while funneling all other energy into Chen Feng's body.
Although the Jade Chamber and the Adepti had little power left after the fierce battle, gathering it all into one person still created an immense amount.
However, what alarmed everyone was that all this power flowing into Chen Feng's body was like a stone sinking into the ocean. Aside from a slight reaction at the beginning, there was no movement whatsoever after that.
"We will join in too!"
Finally, the Vision holders also spoke up one after another, then contributed their own power as well.
Although these people were not very strong, their combined strength was still an immense force that could not be ignored.
However, the very thing everyone feared happened. Even after receiving so much power, Chen Feng showed no sign of stopping, and his expression grew increasingly grim.
"Chen Feng, kid, is it still not enough?!"
Cloud Retainer spoke feebly. At this moment, she looked like an ordinary crane, with not a hint of her divine and mystical aura left.
Meanwhile, a malevolent aura erupted from Xiao's body. Because his strength was completely depleted, he was on the verge of losing control over the karmic corruption within him.
If he failed to suppress this malevolent force, he would lose his reason, just like his fallen siblings, and meet his ultimate end.
Xiao knew this all too well, yet he showed no intention of stopping.
He had promised Zhongli to protect Liyue and its people, and for this, he was willing to sacrifice his life.
Xiao was already prepared. If he felt the risk of losing control, he would take his own life before that could happen. Otherwise, no one among the Adepti in their current state could stop him if he were to go on a rampage.
"Conqueror of Demons!"
As if sensing something, Madame Ping suddenly turned and spoke to Xiao.
Xiao merely shook his head at her without saying a word, but Madame Ping already understood Xiao's resolve from this gesture.
Madame Ping was just about to speak in persuasion, but at that very moment, a force radiating a heavy aura surged from underground into the bodies of the Adepti. Instantly, the Adepti looked as if they had consumed a great tonic, their complexions all turning rosy.
It was Rex Lapis who had taken action!
As this thought appeared in their minds, the Adepti's hearts gradually settled.
Sure enough, when the situation reached its most critical point, Rex Lapis would act.
Soon, the Adepti hurriedly channeled the power Zhongli had sent into Chen Feng's body. With such a large amount of energy suddenly pouring in, and coming from the Adepti who seemed to have already exhausted their strength, Chen Feng naturally felt some confusion.
Facing Chen Feng's questioning gaze, Cloud Retainer knew that Zhongli did not want to reveal his presence and had only used them as intermediaries, so she quickly spoke up to explain.
"This is the last little bit of energy we could squeeze out. Is this enough, kid Chen Feng?!"
"Still a little short."
After hearing Cloud Retainer's explanation, Chen Feng did not ask any further questions. Instead, he slowly spoke after assessing his current physical condition.
"What? Still a little short?!"
Upon hearing Chen Feng's reply, the Liyue people present could not help but feel a wave of despair. Even the Liyue Qixing's hearts sank, but Cloud Retainer reacted with surprising composure.
"Still a little short, huh? Alright, nothing else to be done."
"Fellow Adepti, activate the backup hidden energy with me!"
Hearing Cloud Retainer's command, the Adepti reacted swiftly, responding in unison as they tacitly used a portion of their Adeptal Energy to veil their faces.
Seeing this, Zhongli slightly shook his head, then raised his hand again to channel power to the Adepti.
After doing so, Zhongli couldn't avoid feeling a wave of emptiness wash over his body.
Without his Gnosis, his current power was no longer what it once was.
At this moment, Zhongli again sent a massive wave of power to the Adepti. Receiving this force, the Adepti dared not delay; after all, innocent civilians were still losing their lives one by one. They immediately transferred the energy into Chen Feng's body.
"The power is sufficient."
At this moment, Chen Feng spoke in a low voice.
"You may stop now."
Hearing Chen Feng's words, the Adepti all collapsed to the ground, completely exhausted.
"Is it over already?"
Seeing that nothing seemed to have happened on Chen Feng's side, the Liyue people present could not help but ask in confusion. But soon they discovered that the number of deaths had stopped increasing, and finally, smiles of relief after surviving a catastrophe appeared on their faces.
"Great, we are saved!"
Hearing the cheers from the Liyue people, the expression on Ningguang's face couldn't help but relax. Simultaneously, her body was unable to support her, and she was about to fall to the ground, but in the end, she was helped back to her feet by Keqing.
"Thank you," Ningguang said to Keqing, but Keqing only shook her head.
"There is no need to be so polite between us."
Afterward, Keqing again placed her gaze on Chen Feng, her eyes containing complex emotions.
The previous scenes rapidly flashed through her mind, and for some reason, Keqing felt her heart beat a little fast, but she quickly suppressed it.
"Ningguang, after this, can we invite Consultant Chen Feng to take on some important work?"
Hearing Keqing's words, Ningguang smiled and spoke.
"It is rare for you to have such a heart, I support this.
"However, it seems from the current situation that your hopes are slim, Keqing."
Ningguang pointedly gestured to the other side where Hu Tao, who had finally sent away the last batch of lost souls with the cooperation of the Millelith, was now rapidly running towards Chen Feng.
Keqing's body paused slightly, and then she immediately spoke up to explain.
"I simply admire Consultant Chen Feng's talent; it would be such a pity to let his abilities go to waste."
Ningguang smiled again. How much truth was in Keqing's words was a question worth exploring, but from her position, a gentle reminder was enough. The rest was up to Keqing herself.
"I have invited Consultant Chen Feng twice before, but he refused both times, even when offered great rewards."
"Money is not the most important thing in Chen Feng's heart."
Hearing Ningguang's words, Keqing immediately fell silent...
On the other side, the incident finally settled down, and the Adepti rushed to help suppress the evil power within Xiao.
"Consultant Chen Feng, it turns out you're so incredible!"
At this moment, Hu Tao looked at Chen Feng with a strange glint in her eyes, as if she were getting to know him for the first time.
"You've kept this Director in the dark for so long!"
"Where, Director Hu, I also just remembered that I have this ability."
Chen Feng spoke up, trying to defend himself, but his confidence was clearly lacking, and Hu Tao wasn't fooled at all.
"I don't believe you!"
"Come on, tell me everything, what else are you hiding from this Director?!"
"Nothing, really, there's nothing else!"
Hu Tao pressed in on Chen Feng step by step, while Chen Feng kept backing away.
Fortunately, at this moment, there was movement from the other side.
After Xiao's condition had somewhat stabilized, Cloud Retainer slowly walked toward Chen Feng.
"Chen Feng, boy, it's a good thing you intervened this time, otherwise who knows how many innocent victims would have appeared in Liyue."
"However, what exactly is your ability? This Adeptus is very curious!"
Hearing Cloud Retainer's question, Chen Feng and Hu Tao temporarily stopped their playing around, and Chen Feng did not conceal anything, speaking to explain to Cloud Retainer.
"My ability is to make the contents I speak out loud into things that will definitely happen, of course, activating this ability also requires paying a certain price."
After hearing Chen Feng's explanation, Cloud Retainer was immediately stunned.
Good grief, this ability is simply too terrifying, no wonder it consumed so much of their power before.
This kind of power probably already involves the level of laws, right? One really doesn't know what Chen Feng's origins are.
Looking at it this way, it was perfectly normal for Qi Shu to have no chance of resisting Chen Feng; this kind of power was simply insurmountable!
Even Hu Tao, who was standing nearby, wore an expression of astonishment. Although she had guessed at Chen Feng's ability before, she had never imagined it was this powerful.
Suddenly, Hu Tao found herself unable to distinguish reality from illusion. She couldn't tell if the words Chen Feng had spoken earlier were just her own imagination, or if he had truly uttered them himself.
Standing at the pinnacle of the world.
If he truly possessed such an ability, that statement wasn't an exaggeration at all.
Of course, the price he paid was also extremely heavy. To eliminate Qi Shu's influence over Liyue, Chen Feng had nearly drained everyone present.
But even so, one could not deny the sheer power and absolute nature of Chen Feng's ability.
At this moment, Ningguang slowly approached, supported by Keqing. She then looked at Chen Feng and softly spoke.
"Mr. Chen Feng, you've helped us tremendously this time."
Ningguang turned to look at Hu Tao.
"Director Hu Tao."
Ningguang then turned to the Adepti and continued.
"And all the Adepti!"
"On behalf of all the people of Liyue, I express my gratitude to you."
"The Tianquan is being too formal."
Cloud Retainer replied casually.
"This is not the first time we've collaborated. Since Rex Lapis entrusted Liyue to us, it is our duty to intervene when such a great crisis arises."
"That's right, that's right, Ningguang, you don't need to be so formal with this Director."
"Although this Director put in a lot of effort to send those lost souls away this time, this Director also gained certain benefits."
For Hu Tao, every time she helped lost souls return to the afterlife, that world would grant her certain benefits.
This time, aside from the regret of not receiving any money, Hu Tao indeed gained a lot.
"Miss Ningguang, there is no need for such formality."
Although they all said there was no need to be overly formal, Ningguang still solemnly bowed in thanks to the group. She then looked up at Chen Feng and spoke again.
"Mr. Chen Feng, the crisis in Liyue should be resolved now, right?"
Hearing Ningguang's words, Chen Feng nodded.
"It has been resolved. However, just in case, I will go and see those who were not present in person later. There might be some omissions among them."
Ningguang nodded.
"In that case, I'll trouble Mr. Chen Feng to handle it. I will have the others make the necessary arrangements for him."
"That's fine. It's the perfect opportunity to advertise the mahjong and card room we've jointly opened in Liyue."
"Consultant Chen Feng, you must remember to promote the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor as well!"
"Don't worry, Director Hu Tao. I am the funeral parlor's Consultant. How could I not be thinking of its interests?"
Hearing Chen Feng's words, Hu Tao finally nodded with satisfaction.
At this point, Ningguang suddenly spoke.
"Mr. Chen Feng, you have already recovered your memories, haven't you?"
Hearing this, Chen Feng's body stiffened slightly, but he quickly recovered.
"Miss Ningguang has misunderstood. In the heat of the moment just now, I suddenly remembered how to use my abilities. In reality, I still can't remember anything else."
Sensing that Chen Feng was unwilling to continue discussing the topic, Ningguang did not press too hard.
"It seems Mr. Chen Feng and Director Hu are indeed very close!"
Hearing Ningguang's words, Hu Tao's face flushed slightly.
"Ningguang, why are you speaking such blunt truths!"
Seeing Hu Tao's embarrassed expression, Ningguang couldn't help but shake her head. It seemed Hu Tao had already fallen deep into this.
Fortunately, it appeared that Chen Feng was on their side for now, and Hu Tao's feelings should not be spurned in vain.
Only, for some reason, Ningguang felt a faint sense of unease in her heart at this moment...