Keqing looked around at the others again, but everyone nodded—the situation was the same for all of them.
"Everyone, there's no need to worry anymore. I'm here this time to repair the bridge. Once the repairs are complete, the Ministry of Civil Affairs will also assign two more Millelith squads to this area. Your safety will be guaranteed."
She spent a little more time walking around Mingyun Village and finally arrived at the easternmost edge of the village, at the foot of Dragonspine. It was clear that she had more than just the bridge in mind—she was taking this opportunity to plan out a potential new route for the future.
"There's already a road on the mountain. As long as we level out this steep slope, we can link them up..."
"To get rich, build roads first."
Keqing nodded slightly. "That's quite the saying."
When she returned to the valley's exit of the village, the elder she had spoken to earlier came rushing over, flustered and panicked.
"Lady Keqing! Something terrible has happened!"
"What is it?"
"The Noctilucous Jade—all of it is gone! All the jade we stockpiled since the bridge collapse, even the huge batch we had in storage—it's all disappeared!"
Upon hearing the news, the other miners erupted in alarm.
"Then we worked for nothing? Are we still going to get paid?"
"Paid? We should be grateful if they don't make us pay for the losses..."
"How are we supposed to explain this?"
"We were only trapped in our quarters for one night and one day—how could all the Noctilucous Jade just sprout wings and fly away? I don't believe it! I'm going to check the warehouse!"
"I just came from there. Gone is gone... no point checking again."
"There's no way Hilichurls could've taken it, right? They don't have the brains to recognize the value of Noctilucous Jade!"
"Someone must have colluded with the Hilichurls!"
"What kind of nonsense is that? Humans and Hilichurls can't even coexist, let alone cooperate!"
"You youngsters have clearly never heard of the Spirit-Luring Flute. With that flute, you can control even ghosts—so what are some beastly Hilichurls in comparison?"
Whirr—!
The crowd was in uproar once more.
The Spirit-Luring Flute—just from the name alone, even if they hadn't heard of it before, anyone could guess its purpose. If someone blew it in a crowd, wouldn't everyone turn into puppets?
In Teyvat, Archons exist, and so do ghosts, immortals, and monsters.
Many local legends sound unbelievable at first, but over time, some threads of truth tend to surface. Some even compiled statistics—turns out half of Liyue's myths turn out to be real!
It wasn't fair to call the miners foolish—how could one not believe in these things?
"Everyone, remain calm! I, Keqing, in the name of the Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing, swear to bring the thief who stole the jade to justice! You miners are not to blame for the loss, and I will explain the entire situation to the Ministry of Civil Affairs. You will not be held accountable."
The name of the Qixing carried weight, and the crowd quickly quieted down.
"As for this so-called Spirit-Luring Flute, the Ministry of Civil Affairs has catalogued and verified the existence of such items—it is pure fiction!
"The Hilichurls you speak of are often manipulated by Abyssal beings like Abyss Mages and Abyss Heralds—intelligent entities with the ability to command them. Their appearance also matches the shadowy figure seen damaging the bridge. Clearly, something is afoot."
"I knew it! Abyss Mages can talk like people!"
"I've heard of Abyss Heralds too! Now that you mention it, the thin, lanky shadow we saw on the bridge that night did resemble that!"
"Who was the one who brought up the Spirit-Luring Flute? Just wanted to freak everyone out!"
"It was Old Liu!"
Old Liu scratched his head sheepishly. He'd wanted to show off his knowledge but was now being called out by the Qixing themselves. "It was just a guess... just a guess..."
"I knew it. No matter how bizarre monster theft sounds, it's still more believable than that flute nonsense."
"If the Hilichurls only trapped us, it must be because the Abyss Order feared Rex Lapis would purge their base. That makes a lot more sense now!"
"Rex Lapis bless us!"
"Rex Lapis bless us!"
The elder who had first spoken to Keqing remained unshaken. Perhaps he had seen too many storms in life—so long as it didn't involve his job, nothing could faze him.
He had some standing among the miners—a minor team leader of sorts. Seeing the crowd settle down, he promptly shooed them back to work.
As he walked away, perhaps feeling the distance was enough, he muttered under his breath, 'So this Keqing lady who wants us to work an extra hour every day... maybe she's not so heartless after all…'
Hoo—
Whether it was the added complication or hearing that mutter, Keqing let out a slow breath.
"Let's go. To Wangshu Inn. Don't forget to bring that tree."
"Hold up. Let me unlock that teleport waypoint first."
"Teleport… waypoint? You mean that pillar?"
Victor Wang easily completed the unlock and clapped his hands. "Yeah, that pillar. All you need to do is touch it while wrapping your spirit in elemental energy, and you can teleport to another waypoint. Want to give it a shot?"
There were plenty of these pillars in Liyue—two of them were in Liyue Harbor alone. Their bright glow and ornate designs had captivated many a child over the years.
But in the end, it was just a pillar. After all, even floating stones could float, and sunken ones could sink...
Keqing pressed her hand to the waypoint with skepticism, maintaining a degree of alertness in case Victor Wang tried something while her attention was diverted.
A moment later, she pulled her hand back. "Are you messing with me?"
"Of course not..."
"This thing only accepts elemental energy. As soon as I touched it with my spirit, it bounced me off."
"You need to wrap the spirit with elemental energy—"
Keqing cut off Victor Wang's excuse with a glare. "That's exactly what I did. Why don't you teleport and show me?"
"Wouldn't that look too much like I'm trying to flee the scene?"
"If you can actually teleport, I'll even pay for that tree myself."
Seeing Victor Wang hesitate, Keqing let out a sharp scoff and began walking toward the broken bridge.
"Keep up!"
…
By the time Victor Wang returned to Wangshu Inn carrying the tree, it was already lunchtime. The inn was still lively and cheerful, completely unaware that Rex Lapis had already been 'assassinated'.
"That's the Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing? Something big must be happening if she took time out of her day to handle this personally."
"Yuheng's time isn't that precious. When it comes to work, she often deals with minor matters herself."
"Did you forget today's the Rite of Descension? She's not supposed to be here right now."
"Ah! That's right. My memory's failing me."
The wandering merchants, ever the fastest at spreading news and spotting opportunity, recognized Keqing the moment she entered the inn, and chatter broke out instantly.
"Who's that kid following her with a whole tree on his back?"
"Looks like an adventurer. I've seen him practicing swordsmanship across the river these past couple of days. Definitely not an amateur."
As soon as Biyu spotted Keqing, she rushed forward to greet her. "Honored guest! Are you here to dine or to lodge?"
"Where's your innkeeper?"
"The innkeeper…? He's upstairs…"
"Hmm."
Keqing cast a sideways glance at Victor Wang and made her way toward the elevator.
"What's that supposed to mean? Wasn't there some rumor that this inn is connected to the Qixing? Could there be… a business opportunity?" a shifty-eyed merchant whispered to his companion.
"Commercial matters are under the purview of the Tianquan, Ningguang. There's no need to overanalyze Yuheng's movements."
"You're wrong. Real wealth lies in land deals. If the innkeeper's in trouble, I'll sell everything I have just to take over this place!"
"Hahaha, if that's the case, then let the best man win!"
Tension flared instantly, though those who really knew the situation couldn't help but smirk in secret.
When the elevator reached the upper floor, Huai'an spotted Keqing immediately.
"Lady Keqing, what brings you to Wangshu Inn? Are you here to eat or stay?"
"I need a room."
"Certainly!"
"On the way here, I caught this guy cutting down a tree near the border of your property and Mingyun Village," Keqing gestured toward Victor Wang. "He said you sent him. Is that true?"
"Yes, yes! He's an adventurer from Mondstadt. Name's Victor. He was kindly helping us fix the stairs and lanterns."
"So that's why it took all morning to chop a tree. I see you got caught."
Huai'an chuckled and gave Victor Wang a nod. "Guest, did you manage to chop the tree down?"
"It's downstairs."
"Good, good. Let's eat first, then. Just get the lanterns fixed before dark. As for Lady Keqing, please register at the front desk."
"Is my usual room still available?"
"Uh… I think… I think someone rented it out. But the other rooms are nice too. Perhaps take a look?"
After leading Keqing to a remote room, Huai'an made sure they were alone before closing the door behind them.
"Lady Keqing, is there some pressing matter?"
"I was just planning to stay a few days while repairing the bridge in Mingyun Village… but as luck would have it, a huge stash of Noctilucous Jade was stolen. It's likely the work of the Abyss Order. Get this information to the Ministry of Civil Affairs right away. And although it may not do much, keep an extra eye on the jade transport convoys for the time being."
"Understood."
"Also, that person downstairs—he's from Mondstadt? Do you have more detailed intel?"
"He's a high-level adventurer. According to his Adventurer's Certificate, he hasn't been outside Mondstadt since becoming one. He's strong in combat and apparently skilled at fishing… that's about it."
"Sounds normal enough… but he arrived here six days ago. And the bridge at Mingyun Village was also destroyed six days ago. And today, he just happened to be waiting on the only path I had to take… Suspicious…"