"Qiqi… is flying?"
["Wa-ya-ya-ya!"]
"Stop shaking already!"
The three voices overlapped, and just as they were about to fall, Victor Wang pulled Qiqi up onto the cliff, leaving Little Wen circling nervously in the air, not daring to approach Qiqi.
"A sword… that can fly, and even talk. Amazing." Qiqi reached out her hand toward the Wentian Sword.
["Don't come near me!"]
"Mm…" Qiqi withdrew her little hand in disappointment, tilting her head to ask Victor Wang, "Qiqi was gathering herbs. What happened? Who… are you?"
"This cliff down here was too steep. You couldn't climb up, and you got stuck in a dead loop… those herbs, I've already gathered them for you."
Taking the large bundle of glazed lilies Victor Wang handed her, Qiqi stared at his face for a few seconds before carefully whispering an apology.
Victor Wang froze for a moment, then softly replied, "It's fine. Just a small effort."
Stuffing the herbs into her medicine pouch, Qiqi pulled out a thick notebook, flipping through it quickly as if searching for something. Yet after turning from the first page to the last, she found nothing. Looking up again, she asked, "Your name is…?"
"My name is Victor Wang."
"Sorry… looks like I forgot to write you down last time. This time I won't… I'll write it down right now."
She took out a pen and, with an ancient script that Victor Wang—hundreds of years ago—wouldn't have been able to recognize, wrote down the name 'Victor'. She even sketched a quick portrait beside it, one that at least resembled him. As she did so, she muttered, "If you know how to undo Qiqi's decree, you must have a very close relationship with me."
Close relationship? You were my first full-constellation five-star character!
Too many tears to say it aloud… but setting the game aside, Qiqi was still adorable. Who wouldn't want to bring her home?
"That's right… we're very close."
Victor Wang gradually understood. Qiqi had forgotten whether she knew him or not, assuming they had once been acquainted. The apologies she gave earlier were also because of that.
"Mm. Next time, I won't forget again."
With solemnity, Qiqi wrote next to Victor's name: 'Already forgotten twice. If I forget again, he'll surely be very sad.'
"Thank you for your help. Otherwise, if Master Baizhu found out… I don't know how long it would have taken. Now, I must continue gathering herbs."
"You won't get stuck in another dead loop, will you?"
"No. That kind of situation is very rare. Besides, I'm very skilled, not afraid of wind or sun. It's just… I can't fly. If I could, herb gathering would be much easier." Little Qiqi turned her emotionless gaze toward the Wentian Sword soaring freely in the air, staring until it shivered again.
Unfortunately, the Wentian Sword itself had no ability to carry passengers.
"You have a Cryo Vision. Maybe you could create ice constructs to climb the cliffs yourself."
"Ah, right… someone told me that before, but I forgot."
Qiqi blankly shifted to another mountain to gather herbs.
"…Really can't leave her alone."
After shadowing her for a while and confirming no further accidents would occur, Victor Wang finally returned to Liyue Harbor as originally planned.
By this point, the main questline in Liyue was finally completed, and the two side quests could also be considered resolved.
The next period would be spent consolidating—studying stones and the Runic Stones, developing Geo combat techniques… and swordsmanship, which had already been delayed for many days, would have to wait even longer.
There was also a new main quest: searching for relics of Khaenri'ah.
Victor Wang had thought about this many times, even asking Zhongli about it during their previous conversation.
According to Zhongli, relics obtained in domains were only leylines' projections. What he was meant to find was the relic's true body—an unknown 'Khaenri'ahn Relic'.
Anything concerning Khaenri'ah, Zhongli could not say much. Surely, the other six Archons were the same. Aside from them, was there another way… think harder… there must be another way.
With a try-and-see attitude, after returning to Liyue Harbor, he posted a coded commission: "In need of information regarding 'Khaenri'ahn Relics.'"
All hopes now rested on the North Wing. At the very least, it was an intelligence network spanning all seven nations, and the Wingmaster was an ancient figure who had lived for over a thousand years. What the Seven could not say, perhaps others could. The only worry was that no one might know anything at all.
Next, he purchased ores: white iron, crystal chunks, noctilucous jade, even plaustrite—all brought back to Wangshu Inn.
Locking his door, before starting his research on the stones, he tremblingly removed his mask in front of the mirror… but the five extra eyes were still there.
"Why is this still there…"
A little disappointed… extremely disappointed… deeply disappointed. It seemed he would have to keep wearing the mask.
Rationally, it wasn't too bad. At least he had gained Geo elemental power. Mask or not, as long as he took precautions, it would be fine.
But emotionally—who would want to live forever hiding behind a mask?
After a long silence, Victor Wang sighed.
"Forget it… so which part reverted this time?"
Taking off his shirt, he found that his left hand, arm, and shoulder had returned to human skin, while the rest remained pitch-black.
"Heh… am I being treated like some sealed dark sorcerer?"
Smiling bitterly to lighten the mood, he hid in his room, hammering and tinkering. With lower-value stones, he directly split, crushed, and studied their veins and structures, then tried to imitate them with his own Geo power.
Higher-value stones lasted longer, but after examining their exterior, they too were eventually dismantled for analysis.
Victor Wang was enthralled—what started as tinkering stretched into three whole days.
In general, the simpler the stone's function and structure, the easier to replicate. The denser and more unique its nature, the harder and more energy-draining to reconstruct, but correspondingly, the stronger it became.
Yet stones like plaustrite, with levitating properties, were impossible to replicate. Zhongli's casual remark, "Just make your constructs real," would demand immeasurable effort to achieve.
"So, this is the difference between tangible and intangible?"
When common stones were exhausted, Victor Wang bought Zhongli's recommended collection The Ten Thousand Stones, using the illustrations and descriptions to imagine and construct Geo creations. He even borrowed the resources of Xingqiu's family to obtain a block of Archaic Stone and a piece of Smaragdus Jadeite at great expense.
But upon meeting Xingqiu, he was caught and urged to continue Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword. Remembering his promise from several days ago, he had no choice but to pause his research and draft the manuscript.
"So, this is the true reason why the seven disciples sought to slay the Adeptus Crimsonwing!"
"A twisted, thrilling story… it really draws people in. Luckily your habit is always to write entire volumes at once. If it were serialized, it would have driven me mad."
"But in this tale of Li Sushang being frozen by the Rakshasa clan for five hundred years… the Valkyrie battlesuit, the battleship Hyperion, and even piloting a massive robot named Arhat on the moon to fight enemies…"
Xingqiu's expression grew complicated, at a loss for words.
"You think this part is poorly written?"
"No… it's still pretty good. Just that the style shifts suddenly. Like a classic wuxia novel abruptly turning into a fantasy-tech martial arts novel." Xingqiu scratched his head uneasily. "Honestly, it feels as ridiculous as my A Legend of Sword. Are you sure the publishers won't reject it?"
"Then I'll just hope my reputation helps. Worst case, we'll wait for Inazuma to open and send it to Yae Publishing House. They love this kind of wild stuff."
Victor Wang sighed helplessly. There was no other way. After all, Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword had never been completed. He could only patch and adapt it, making Li Sushang the protagonist for the continuation.
"And that final open ending—Li Sushang boarding the Astral Express to travel the cosmos. Does that mean you plan a sequel?"
"That's the end. I can't keep writing with Li Sushang as the protagonist."
"Such a pity… oh, one more thing! You're not adding illustrations to this novel? With pictures, the sales will be better, and the chances of approval higher."
"Illustrations? Oh, right, right. I'll draw them myself!"
After all, just sketching from the impressions in his mind should work.
Half an hour later, staring at the once-beautiful characters turned into hideous monstrosities by his own hand, Victor Wang gave up.
"Pfft~! Your drawing is as bad as my handwriting!" Xingqiu couldn't help but laugh.
"Hmph, I've captured their spirit at least. The finer work should be left to professionals."
Relying on memory, Victor Wang carefully described the characters of Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword, bundling his failed sketches as references, and sent them all to Albedo.
"Alright, you've finished the book. The good illustrations will come later. For now, let me study my stones in peace."
"Why are you suddenly so obsessed with stones, ignoring the outside world? Ningguang is about to host a bubble-blowing competition, and you probably don't even know."
"Oh? Her secretary mentioned it to me, but when exactly is it?"
"Tomorrow. Registration ends today. Our Bubblegum Squad is all signing up. Will you come?"
"…My bubble-blowing skills can't compare to Hu Tao. If I go, I'll just be padding her record. Better not."
Xingqiu urged, "It's about participation! Even Xiangling has the courage to join. You're the squad leader of the Bubblegum Squad!"
"Where does Xiangling get her confidence? Can she even blow bubbles yet?"
"Haha! She can, but they're pathetically small. Whoever she faces will just get a free win. Still, I hear there are plenty of bubble-blowing masters. The competition will be fierce—Hu Tao might not have an easy win."
"Fine, since it's a squad activity, I'll join. By the way, is Zhongli participating too?"
"He'll be attending as a judge."