The expedition of Jiang Yan and Zhongli into the Demon-Sealing Tower officially began.
Everyone on Mount Shu was curious about what might unfold within, but not a soul wanted to step in and find out personally. Every now and then someone would doze off, glance at the sky, and realize several hours had passed. Then, inevitably, they'd remember: several hours on Mount Shu could mean several months within the tower.
Time was terrifying. And wondrous.
Ganyu and Miko had already headed to Jiang Yan's cave-dwelling to enter seclusion.
Aside from Jiang Yan and Klee, they were the only two who could freely enter and exit the place.
With the tea of enlightenment and the Bodhi of inquiry growing ever more vigorously, the spiritual resonance they emitted deepened one's understanding of cultivation immensely.
Ganyu patiently shared her insights before and after tribulation with Miko, hoping to help her break through soon.
Alice, after settling Klee in, had departed again, heading for the Dark Outer Sea.
The daily affairs of Mount Shu had temporarily been handed to Venti—though to be fair, Mount Shu hardly ever had "daily affairs."
Before leaving, Jiang Yan had arranged everything clearly. Besides, the important core disciples were all in closed-door cultivation.
Anything that wasn't an existential threat was trivial.
The outer sect's council could handle it.
And if they couldn't—Neuvillette and Furina would.
Without Jiang Yan around, breakthroughs would inevitably slow—no one lectured, no one guided.
But spellcraft could still be studied independently.
And with the Nine Nether expedition looming, combat arts were everyone's priority.
The news that the inner disciples had entered seclusion spread quickly through the outer sect—
and from there, straight into Liyue Harbor.
Soon, the outer disciples followed suit.
Only a few curious mortals kept spreading the story further.
Mount Shu, once again, slipped into a semi-sealed state.
Meanwhile, the upheavals triggered by the revival of spiritual energy across Teyvat only escalated.
Even in distant Inazuma, Lumine—though not the first to notice it—was certainly among the earliest.
Ayaka cleaved through the last monster and exhaled tiredly.
"These monsters have grown stronger."
Lumine passed her a water bottle. Ayaka downed it in one go, nodding with a troubled look.
"Yes. Hilichurls are still manageable, but slimes, whopperflowers—anything non-humanoid—has strengthened dramatically."
"So spiritual energy really has reached Inazuma."
Hearing this, Kujou Sara frowned.
"That is troublesome. The Shogun remains unresolved, we have no martial arts, and only Lady Yae Miko is a cultivator—and she cannot return yet."
"Now that spiritual energy has spread here, and enhanced monsters have appeared on Ritou…"
"In a little while… we'll be in real danger."
Kokomi let out a quiet sigh.
"General Kujou's view is optimistic. According to my intel, sea creatures have already begun evolving into beasts."
"The ocean is vast, its lifeforms innumerable. If spiritual energy spreads fully into the sea, beasts could turn Inazuma into a literal island."
"And as powerful beasts expand, weaker beasts and monsters will be forced ashore."
"When that happens, landfall will be inevitable. With no martial forces, no cultivators…"
"We're defenseless. The Shogun cannot protect every front alone."
"At worst, we'd have to abandon most of Inazuma, retreat into Inazuma City, and rely solely on the Shogun."
"But if it comes to that… everything we've fought for becomes meaningless. And how long could the Shogun hold?"
Her words cast a palpable heaviness.
Sara gritted her teeth, then looked at Lumine.
"Lumine, do you have any way to temporarily suppress spiritual revival?"
"Hah? You give me too much credit!"
Lumine rolled her eyes.
"Here's the truth: Senior-sister Ganyu's tribulation drew the attention of the world's will."
"They made a mutual pact."
"The world's will needs spiritual revival to evolve Teyvat. That is an absolute law."
"Right now, spiritual revival is the unchanging rhythm of the world—a principle the world will enforces uncompromisingly."
"Even if Celestia tries to stop it, the world will crush her."
"And I definitely can't go against it."
"Resistance is impossible. You can only adapt."
The group fell silent, defeated.
Paimon clapped her hands.
"That's easy, though!"
"If Lumine and I just go kick the Shogun's puppet to death—bing, bang, boom—real Shogun comes back!"
"Then she takes you all to Mount Shu, begs Miko for help, you all become cultivators, and ta-da!"
"Real Archon must have insane talent, right? You guys probably do too!"
"Problem solved!"
It was… tempting.
But Kokomi shook her head bitterly.
"No. The problem isn't only the Shogun. It's the Three Commissions."
"What Inazuma needs is full liberation: the end of the Vision Hunt and Sakoku Decree. Open exchange with Liyue."
"To do that, we must eliminate all opposition."
"I would also love for you to storm Tenshukaku—but we need a decisive, single strike. Not a prolonged series of crises."
"We cannot solve one issue now and face ten later. Inazuma is out of time."
"One perfect strike—erase every problem at once. When you defeat the Shogun, Inazuma must immediately reform to meet Teyvat's new world."
Lumine groaned.
"Fine, fine. How long?"
Kokomi thought for a moment.
"Three days at most."
"Then I'll wait three days."
Lumine slouched off with Paimon. Kokomi called after her, apologetic.
"Sorry, Lumine."
"It's fine. Work entrusted, work fulfilled."
She waved coolly—
then stepped into the tent, grabbed Paimon by the shoulders, and shook her wildly.
"THREE DAYS?! THREE WHOLE DAYS?! I CAN'T SURVIVE IN THIS BARREN SPIRITUAL DESERT!"
Paimon, dizzy, broke free.
"You have tons of spirit stones! Just use them!"
"How could it be the same?! Those are my PRECIOUS ASSETS!"
She clenched her fists indignantly—
then paused, rubbing her chin thoughtfully.
"Actually… every Archon so far is insanely talented—perfect spiritual roots."
"Supposedly, this Raiden Shogun is a sword genius. Maybe she's got a special constitution too."
"She'll definitely want Miko to recommend her to Mount Shu, and with her skill, she'll probably end up a Peak Lord or Elder."
"And if she becomes one—then I, her great benefactor who enlightened her…"
"Hmmm… that investment might pay off nicely."
Whether she had convinced herself or genuinely accepted it, Lumine suddenly grinned brightly.
Paimon scratched her cheek, giving up. Lumine's mood swings were legendary.
One moment sunshine, the next—murder.
Better to think about lunch.
Meanwhile, Alice's sword carried her swiftly across the skies toward the Dark Outer Sea.
In the old days, she had set up teleporters all across the place to make travel easier between Mondstadt and the sea.
This time, she didn't need them. At her speed, Teyvat wasn't large enough to matter.
Thanks to Jiang Yan's earlier rampage, the demon gods lurking around the Dark Outer Sea had all gone silent.
Which allowed Alice to take a vacation, bring Klee to Mount Shu, and return home.
But thinking on it—
it had already been two or three months since they joined Mount Shu.
Surely the demon gods were stirring again?
Alice glanced around briefly, then headed straight for the Witches' base.
As expected—empty.
Not surprising. Her colleagues were monsters in their own right, forced into hermit life only to monitor the sea.
Now that it had calmed, everyone had gone off to pursue their own passions.
World-travelers, researchers, eccentrics.
Maybe that was why the Witches' Order gathered so many absurd talents.
Alice moved through the room easily. Despite no one being around for ages, there wasn't a speck of dust.
Some weird magic, probably.
She flipped open the notebook on the table.
Someone had checked in recently—several, actually.
They looked around, saw no issues, jotted down updates, and left again.
The "logbook" was mostly casual conversation—filled with curiosity and longing toward cultivation.
It was less a record and more… a group diary.
The latest entry, three days prior, had a final note:
A witch named "N" congratulating Alice in advance, as if she knew she'd be the next to show up.
"This girl…"
Alice shook her head, closed the notebook, and headed back out.
She was here—she might as well inspect the sea.
After all, the witches couldn't sense the demons' movements clearly.
But she could.
The Dark Outer Sea was already restless.
Some rather dangerous creatures were no longer behaving.
Alice intended to leave them a "reminder"—
something deep, frightening, and unforgettable.
So they wouldn't keep thinking about causing trouble here.
Again.
To read 220+ future chapters, head over to Patreon:
patreon.com/WhiteDevil7554