Northland Bank.
The bustle of all Liyue Harbor naturally couldn't escape the notice of the Northland Bank.
But today, the bank itself was unusually solemn and quiet.
On the third floor, inside what used to be Tartaglia's office, two new figures had appeared out of thin air.
One wore a resplendent ice-blue robe, crowned with crystalline frost, a scepter in hand radiating bone-chilling cold.
Yet her expression was unlike her frigid aura—her lips always carried the faintest smile.
Behind her stood a sharp and imposing woman with short, gray-white cropped hair, hiding a pair of strange black-and-red eyes. She stood silently, one step back, with restrained respect.
The princess raised her hand slightly, strands of frost swirling down.
"The winds of Teyvat… are shifting."
Arlecchino murmured, ears filled with the noise from below.
Though a thousand voices buzzed, all topics converged into one—
Cultivation.
"Your Majesty… shall we change the plan?"
Arlecchino asked softly.
The Tsaritsa gave no answer. She simply turned, gliding back to sit at the office desk.
At that moment, hurried knocking rang out. In a flash, Arlecchino was already at the door.
But before she could even open it, Rosalyne barged in, dragging a nervous Debt Collector with her.
Her gaze flickered with a trace of distaste upon seeing Arlecchino, but she masked it quickly, ignoring her, and led the flustered man before the Tsaritsa.
Bowing deeply, she reported:
"Your Majesty, the Fatui who failed the trial… has returned."
She then stepped aside, silent.
As fate would have it—Tartaglia and the others had been taken to Mount Shu in the morning. Not long after they left, the Tsaritsa and Arlecchino had arrived in haste.
They had even witnessed that grand spectacle of sword flight across the skies.
Though she regretted missing the assessment herself, hearing an account of it now would do.
The Tsaritsa's gaze softened as she looked upon the trembling Debt Collector.
"Don't be nervous. Have some water first."
She tapped the table lightly, and a glass of warm water floated into the man's hands.
He hurriedly accepted, bowing in reverence.
"Many thanks, Your Majesty!"
He downed it in one breath, his anxiety fading somewhat even under the gaze of the Ice Archon and two Harbingers.
"Sit. Speak."
She pointed at the chair opposite, motioning also for Rosalyne and Arlecchino to sit.
"Tell us everything you saw and experienced within Mount Shu."
The Debt Collector nodded gravely.
"Yes!"
He began recounting.
"At dawn, I and two other collectors, Ambeta and Rhodes, followed Lord Tartaglia to the designated place."
"Soon after, Mount Shu disciples arrived—Ningguang, Keqing, Ganyu, and others…"
He struggled to keep his composure, but no words sufficed.
The soaring Qingluan that blotted out the sky, its aura alone eclipsing even the Tsaritsa before him.
The beasts roaming the land, hundreds of meters tall as if commonplace.
Mountains piercing the heavens like pillars holding up the sky.
How could one describe such a world?
He stammered and faltered, frustrating both Rosalyne and Arlecchino, who frowned throughout.
Were he not the only one who had returned with knowledge, Rosalyne would have struck him already.
The Tsaritsa, too, saw he could not narrate coherently. With a helpless gesture, she suggested:
"Very well. I will ask, and you will answer. Is that acceptable~?"
The man flushed with shame, but nodded quickly.
"First—Tartaglia and the two others. They did enter Mount Shu as disciples, correct?"
He nodded, then hesitated and shook his head.
"Lord Tartaglia passed the Heart-Testing Array and was accepted as a formal disciple.
But Ambeta was made only a menial disciple, and Rhodes remained behind to learn martial arts."
"A menial disciple? What difference is there?"
The Tsaritsa tilted her head curiously.
"There is, Your Majesty," he explained eagerly.
"Before the trial, we overheard from Baiwen and the others some details of Mount Shu's hierarchy.
At the summit is the Sect Master—supreme ruler and strongest of all.
Below are the Seven Sacred Elders, second only to him, though they have yet to return to their posts.
Next are the Peak Masters and Inner Elders.
For example, Morax and Barbatos now serve as acting Peak Masters of Dragonhead Peak and Morning Sun Peak.
Adventurer Alice is an Elder of the Hall of Discipline.
These three are all at the late stage of Spirit Transformation."
At this, Arlecchino's eyes gleamed faintly.
"And the Sect Master himself—how strong?"
The Debt Collector swallowed hard, trembling.
"It is said… he stands at the pinnacle of Return to Void.
Only one step away from merging with the Dao and ascending as an immortal…"
The three exchanged silent glances.
Morax was already at late Transform God.
And Mount Shu's Sect Master, Jiang Yan, had reached the peak of Return to Void…
What kind of power was that?
The man pressed on.
"They say the outer sect alone houses dozens of gods,
the strongest two greater even than the highest Archons—
all captured and bound by the Sect Master himself.
According to Secretary Baiwen, the Mount Shu itself… is ten times the size of Teyvat.
A world he created with his own hands.
Today, he appeared for but a moment, yet the heavens and earth bowed.
As though the entire cosmos was small before him.
I… I felt he could destroy Teyvat with ease."
The Tsaritsa frowned deeply, lips sealed.
"The Sect Master—Jiang Yan, was it?"
Arlecchino whispered, as if etching the name into memory.
But the Debt Collector blanched in terror.
"Lady Harbinger! You must not speak his name!
I heard Baiwen and the others say—
anywhere in Teyvat, even across the Sea of Quanta—
if his name is spoken, he will sense it, and cast his gaze upon you.
He is one of the Unnamable Ones.
Thus, they dare only call him 'Sect Master'—never by his true name."
Arlecchino's eyes flickered complicatedly.
"Such a feat… can truly be done?"
The Debt Collector wiped the sweat from his brow.
She exhaled, forcing herself to move on.
"Continue."
He nodded quickly.
"After the Peak Masters and Inner Elders comes the Sect Master's sole direct disciple—Klee.
Her master is Elder Alice of Dragonhead Peak's Hall of Discipline.
It is said this Klee is the one never to provoke—
the Sect Master's only student, bearing a divine constitution.
Even without artifacts, her strength rivals the Archons.
With the treasures granted by her master, she could annihilate all the gods of Teyvat.
Her cultivation: mid-stage of Refining Essence into Qi."
The Tsaritsa glanced at Rosalyne, who stiffened at Alice's name but dutifully recorded notes.
"Beyond her are two more with divine constitutions—though not direct disciples, their status is unique.
The Traveler, Lumine, and Paimon.
Both exceedingly powerful.
Others, too, possess rare physiques—Keqing, Shenhe, Yae Miko…"
But before he could list everyone, the Tsaritsa raised her hand gently.
"No need for so much detail. Tell us only who demands particular caution."
The man paused, thinking, then spoke softly:
"Four, Your Majesty—Ganyu, Xiao, Lisa, and Baizhu."
The Tsaritsa inclined her head, signaling him to continue.
"Ganyu is the chief disciple of Tongtian Peak, closely tied to the Sect Master.
She often speaks in his stead, almost his voice.
Her cultivation stands at the peak of Refining Essence into Qi.
With artifacts and spells, even an Archon could not withstand a single blow.
Most crucially, she has a spirit beast—a Qingluan skilled in speed, at the early stage of Spirit Transformation."
The Tsaritsa sat in silence, while Rosalyne nervously scribbled notes.
"Second is Xiao, chief disciple of Dragonhead Peak's Hall of Discipline.
Also peak Refining Essence into Qi, but entirely focused on combat.
In raw might—stripped of artifacts—he surpasses even Ganyu."
"As for Baizhu—though only mid-stage Refining Essence into Qi, he is among Mount Shu's greatest alchemists, second only to the Sect Master himself.
His pills can raise the dead, mend flesh and bone, or turn mortals into martial masters."
The three fell into a thoughtful silence.
The Tsaritsa murmured:
"Baizhu… that is the physician of Bubu Pharmacy, is he not?"
"Yes, Your Majesty," Rosalyne confirmed.
The Tsaritsa nodded lightly.
"Reach out discreetly. Say the Northland Bank wishes to invest.
If he refuses, let it be. But cultivate a relationship."
Rosalyne bowed in assent, noting it carefully.
They knew too well the value of an alchemist.
Even scraps from his hands would be treasures beyond price.
An alchemist must never be made an enemy.
"And the last one?"
The Tsaritsa asked, eyes narrowing, while Rosalyne tensed with curiosity.
She had once been effortlessly subdued by Lisa in Mondstadt—yet knew nothing of her true strength.
Now, perhaps, the truth would be revealed.
But the Debt Collector's eyes flickered with fear.
After a long hesitation, he gritted his teeth and whispered:
"It is said… she cultivates demonic arts."
"Demonic arts? What kind?"
The Tsaritsa leaned in, intrigued.
The man's voice dropped to a grave murmur:
"None dare say clearly. Even Baiwen and the others spoke of it only with dread.
But I heard whispers… that Lisa's cultivation requires souls—
the refining of living spirits."
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