"What kind of brain comes up with this? Using Electro to mimic medicinal properties, maintaining potency while keeping it in an energy state," Dottore muttered, itching to dissect his boss's mind.
The guy's genius designs were endless.
Of course, Dottore wanted to live, so the thought stayed just that—a thought.
He'd heard Reisen had revival tech. The sentient AI Revival was proof, built to develop resurrection techniques. Once completed, Revival, then a strong AI, was shared for research.
In Teyvat, names held power. For Revival to bear that name as a living entity, there was meaning behind it.
Dottore long suspected Revival held the full revival tech data.
No proof, though. As head of the Human Research Institute, his Level 2 clearance was high but capped. Level 1 and top-tier clearance locked him out of some data.
He could access all public records and some taboo human research files, but not everything.
Two days ago, flipping through tech files, he found the original blueprint for the One System, Ten Thousand Minds Machine—shockingly, in the open records, not the restricted ones.
After Khaenri'ah's fall, when the Sustainer's pawn, Traveler Aether, betrayed her for the Abyss, both Celestia and the Abyss's grip on Teyvat hit rock bottom.
With Khaenri'ah's learning machines exposed, Celestia's scrutiny of Reisen's One System, Ten Thousand Minds Machine dropped a notch.
It was ranked akin to alchemy: dangerous otherworldly knowledge, but harmless if not mastered, allowed to circulate. Raiden Ei found this in her Gnosis after adjusting for erosion.
No one had replicated Khaenri'ah's learning machines, let alone Reisen's superior One System, Ten Thousand Minds Machine.
Sumeru's Void System, even more advanced, was unknown to most. Still forming, it needed full maturity and vast knowledge to shine.
Thus, the Akademiya's Sages unanimously voted to hide the Void System, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's creation, and planned to gradually open it to all Sumeru's people, making the nation truly the land of wisdom.
"Stop overthinking, Dottore. Focus on learning," he told himself, rubbing his forehead.
"But I can't do nothing."
Bypassing system surveillance, he took some failed Demigod Project tissue samples. Even failures held value.
"As a researcher, I can't resist. Lord Reisen would forgive me, right?"
…
Reisen, unaware of the lab's events, wouldn't have cared.
He never questioned Dottore's loyalty—just valued his talent.
Failed tissue samples? If Reisen knew, he'd be curious to see what Dottore could make of them.
"Liyue's looking short on supplies," Reisen said, cradling a pink fox—Miko in her transformed state—while listening to a storyteller.
It was their fifth day in Liyue Harbor. Ganyu, as the Qixing's secretary, couldn't babysit them forever.
So, they wandered freely, stumbling on the opening of Three Bowls Portside Tavern, where they sat, eating and enjoying the storyteller.
"How'd you notice?" Miko, as a small fox, perched on Reisen's head, peering around curiously. She saw nothing amiss.
"Food and weapon prices are up. Grain's steady, but weapons? Skyrocketing. And the number of caravans in the harbor's oddly high," Reisen said.
"Should we dig deeper?" Miko, shifting back to her Guuji form, asked.
She went to snoop, her fox charm making info-gathering a breeze.
Soon, she returned. "Got the scoop. Mondstadt's hit by a dragon calamity, cutting their wine and agricultural supplies, so Liyue's food and drink prices are up."
"Weapon prices are spiking because the Chasm's still shut down—swarming with monsters. Some even spotted Khaenri'ah remnants there."
"It's a mess to handle, so ore production's tanked, driving up weapon costs."
"Poor Swordmaster Young Noble, caught in this mess."
"As for the caravans, they're waiting to travel in groups. Liyue's sending a Thousand Rock Army battalion to escort them."
Reisen stroked his chin. "Wanna swing by Mondstadt and check out the chaos?"
"A dragon calamity? You're nuts. That's a top-tier elemental creature," Miko gaped. "Even a lesser dragon could rip you apart."
"Nah, I've got a hunch. I bet Mondstadt's dragon is one of Rhinedottir's masterpieces," Reisen said, shaking his head with a grin. "And you're underestimating me."
He let slip a wisp of his aura—rivaling an LV80+ powerhouse.
Miko's jaw dropped. "You broke through?"
Reisen's mood soured. "Not quite. But after breaking some shackles, I'm stronger than most LV80+ fighters."
Annoyed, he snapped, "So, you in or not?"
"In! Why not? Aside from Deep Sea Dragon Lizards and Geo Dragon Lizards, I've never seen other dragons," Miko said. "Gotta get a good look at these so-called dragons."
"Cool. Let's tell Ganyu we're heading out. Ghosting's bad form."