Check out my new translation!
***
"Sigh, the world now has one less unfortunate soul." From afar, Victor Wang heard Chang the Ninth's voice, and Hu Tao sighed in response.
"But one more unfortunate person."
"In life, who doesn't suffer?"
"…The Hall Master's insight is profound."
After sending the overly grief-stricken Chang the Ninth back to Qingce Village, and casually enjoying some spicy, crunchy Qingce-style farmhouse dishes, they returned to Wuwang Hill under the bright moonlight.
"Strange, in the daytime the sun shines so brightly yet we can't see it, so why can we see the moon?"
It was Victor Wang's first time spending the night in Wuwang Hill… if you counted his game experience maybe not the first, but he had never noticed before—because it was always like this, as if in eternal night.
"There are many legends in Liyue about why Wuwang Hill became like this, but none with solid evidence. If you ask me, why bother thinking so hard? Nobody lives here anymore anyway."
Casually shaking her head, Hu Tao opened a door to the Boundary and added: "Your body's special. Don't go in this time—just wait for me outside."
As soon as she left, the place grew eerie—gloomy winds, dim moonlight, ghostly cries, flickering ghostfire. The atmosphere suddenly turned sinister.
But looking left and right, nothing had changed. Feeling uneasy, Victor Wang closed his eyes and used Thousand Winds to probe the surroundings. After confirming nothing was there, he simply closed his eyes to rest.
The damp, cold wind brushed through knee-high grass, or slipped past pine needles, making a rustling sound.
"…No, something's off."
Victor Wang's eyes snapped open, staring up at the sky.
In the night of Wuwang Hill, not only could one see the moon, but also countless stars—and even a Milky Way belonging to Teyvat.
Perhaps the mist here was tied to Archons or ley lines. Whatever the case, it was an unnatural phenomenon. But in this mist, you couldn't see the sun—yet the moon and stars were visible. If the mist and moon shared the same origin, or were somehow linked, that was one thing. But at the very least—the sun and the moon were different!
Mona's master had once spoken of the false sky, and Scaramouche had claimed that the stars were a lie. If in Wuwang Hill the sun and the moon behaved differently, could it mean the sun was real—at least not entirely false?
Feels like I've stumbled onto something huge… These clues are scattered, but soon I'll be able to ask Zhongli directly. I'll have to question him carefully.
"…Hm?"
Though Thousand Winds had detected nothing, something seemed to move at the edge of his vision. Dozens of winds swept over the spot—but found nothing.
After hesitating, Victor Wang forced himself to approach. The figure hiding behind the trees panicked and tried to flee.
"Who's there!"
"Don't catch me! I don't want to die yet!" cried a ghostly little girl, running clumsily with short legs, but Victor Wang easily overtook her.
"Are you good or evil?"
"I'm a good ghost! I've never done bad things… please, don't kill me…" The little girl crouched, hugging her head, trembling.
"Then why were you spying on me?"
"I didn't mean to! I was trying to hide but somehow ended up nearby. When I saw you, I got scared too!"
"We'll wait until Hu Tao returns and let her judge."
The girl shook her head violently, terrified: "No no no! She mustn't see me! I don't want to disappear like Little Nine did!"
Victor Wang's guard shot up. Wentian Sword pointed directly at the girl: "You even know about Little Nine—how long have you been following us?"
"Wahhh! Twice—just twice! The last time you came here, and this time! Last time I hid and you didn't notice, but this time I got caught…"
"What do you mean 'somehow'?"
"I know! 'Somehow' means 'things are strange, without reason'!"
"…I was asking what you meant by it."
The little girl scratched her head innocently: "Did I remember wrong? 'Somehow' just means 'somehow'!"
"You're saying—you didn't want to approach us, but somehow you ended up near us?"
"Yes! Exactly that—somehow!"
Looking at the girl's short hair and straight bangs, Victor Wang felt she looked familiar. He carefully asked: "Your name?"
"I'm Qianqian. I've never done bad things, I have no obsession. I just don't want to die. Please, don't hand me to that big sister!"
Qianqian—she was the little girl who appeared in Chongyun's hangout quest.
Victor Wang wondered how Hu Tao would handle such a ghost. Since her only obsession was not wanting to die, the only peaceful resolution might be waiting until she grew tired of living.
"You should go. Quickly. And don't somehow end up near me again."
"Big brother, you're so kind! This time I'll hide far away and won't come near again!" she said happily, waving goodbye.
…Only to circle back two minutes later.
"What's going on? I swear I walked the opposite direction, but without realizing it I…"
"Have you ever had this happen before?"
"Nope."
Could it be… because of me?
Thinking that, Victor Wang left Little Wen at the Boundary's entrance and personally escorted Qianqian away. This time there was no 'somehow' or 'without realizing'—he successfully led her far.
"…Then stay here for now, don't move."
"Okay!"
Thinking carefully, the first night he stayed at Wangshu Inn, he met Little Ming. Then came the corruption at Dihua Marsh, then Little Nine, and now Qianqian. Was this really just luck—or was there something about himself?
Was it some talent, or a special constitution?
While waiting for Hu Tao to return, another evil wind stirred. This time, the intruder made no effort to hide, drifting directly toward him.
When it came close, Victor Wang realized its face was blurred, features indistinct. From its long black hair he could tell—it was a female ghost, a classic White-Clad Specter.
"Hello?"
The ghost didn't answer. Instead, she lunged at Victor Wang as if she couldn't bear a moment's delay.
"Hey now, men and women should keep some distance."
Victor Wang stepped back, attempting to blow her away with Gale Blade. But the moment she touched the wind, her body dissolved into smoke, whipped into a long trail. Yet her head and hands still lunged shamelessly forward.
"If you won't speak, I'll assume you're a malicious spirit… Hmph! Palm Vortex!"
All fear comes from lack of firepower.
Her head dissolved into smoke, sucked into the Palm Vortex. A chilling cold burst forth with a faint, mournful wail as the skill grew unstable.
Alarmed, Victor Wang threw it outward, blasting it apart. The smoke scattered, only to gather again—relentlessly pouncing on him.
"If wind won't work, then fire will!"
He pulled her body once more into the Palm Vortex, then released a particle of Pyro energy. The wails turned into piercing screams—until they faded away completely.
["Wow! So that's a ghost!"]
"You couldn't see Little Nine or Qianqian?"
["Nope! Maybe they didn't want me to see. This is my first time seeing a ghost—I'm so touched!"]
Seriously… I was hoping you'd help keep watch. Victor Wang sighed inwardly. Thousand Winds probably couldn't detect ghosts—after all, wind didn't meet resistance against them.
For the rest of the wait, he had to rely on his own vigilance. Luckily, before long, Hu Tao returned from the Boundary.
"Only one ghost came? Is it because the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is doing such a good job—or is your lure not strong enough?"
"This was part of your plan too?"
"Not a plan, just testing my guess." Hu Tao grinned mischievously. "As I thought—you really can attract wandering spirits. Now I want to drag you into the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor even more!"
"Since I'm already your client, then naturally I'm also the Parlor's, right?"
"Heh, you've learned my tricks. Come on, let's find a place to spend the night."
"Here, in Wuwang Hill?"
"What, isn't it normal for an adventurer to camp outside?"
"But there are ghosts here… and I attract them—wait, you want me to be bait?"
"Of course! Such a rare opportunity—it'd be a waste not to help wandering spirits move on."
In the end, they didn't go far. They settled in the abandoned village where they'd met Little Nine, choosing a clean wall to rest against.
Hu Tao planted the Staff of Homa into the ground, then fiddled with something invisible in the air. Finally, she said: "Just treat this like ordinary camping. Sleep easy. With me here, I won't let them eat you."
Then she muttered, "I'll sleep first," and closed her eyes.
"…Little Wen, keep watch too."
["Mm!"]