"Halt! You there, on that ship! What is your purpose here? This is a military zone! Navigation is prohibited!"
As the Going Merry sailed along the river into the Guili Plains region, the Millelith soldiers on guard immediately shouted for them to stop.
"Huh? When did the Guili Plains become a military zone?" Hu Tao asked.
"Ningguang set up an alchemy lab here. The area near the coast has been designated as a key protected area," Su Han explained, then walked towards the bow of the ship.
If he didn't show his identity, they might be attacked.
When the Millelith saw Su Han appear, they quickly straightened their backs and saluted.
"So it is Lord Su Han! I was wondering who it could be."
"Yanping, so it's you. No problem, you're doing a fine job. Keep up the good work."
Su Han patted the other man's shoulder and offered a few words of praise.
"Yes, Lord Su Han!" Yanping stood even taller, replying with utmost seriousness.
It was only after Su Han's group had departed that the other Millelith soldiers gathered around.
"Captain Yanping, who was that lord just now? How come none of us recognize him?" one asked in a low voice.
"Him? He's our Liyue's National Treasure. You know this alchemy base? I hear it was Lord Su Han who helped set it all up."
"So he's Liyue's National Treasure! No wonder."
"That's the first time I've ever seen him!"
The soldiers buzzed with excitement.
Upon arriving inside the alchemy base, Su Han felt as if he had walked into Ironforge from World of Warcraft.
Researchers were everywhere, and mechanical parts and rune stones were scattered all over the ground.
"Goodness, it feels like we've arrived at a junkyard. It's so messy," Hu Tao couldn't help but comment, looking at the minerals and machine parts strewn about.
So this is what an alchemy lab looks like.
Zhongli, in contrast, began to wander around with great interest.
Compared to the technology of Khaenri'ah, this place seemed very primitive.
However, what put him at ease was that the things being researched in this base were mostly geared towards civilian life.
When Su Han found Ningguang, she was in Laboratory No. 1, watching the assembly of a train engine.
With Sucrose's participation, the progress was incredibly fast.
It would likely only be a few more days before it could enter the experimental phase.
Looking at the train engine, which was already taking shape, Su Han was surprised. "The progress is this fast?"
"Hm? What are you doing here?" Ningguang's eyes flashed with surprise. She remembered he was at the Jade Chamber not long ago. How did he get here?
Growl.
Just as Su Han was about to answer her, an inopportune sound was heard.
He glanced at Ningguang's stomach.
Her face flushed red. "What are you looking at? I was just too busy at noon and forgot to eat, that's all."
"You really forget everything when you get busy. I don't even know what your secretary Baixiao is for."
"Don't blame her. Someone attacked us last night. Baixiao only just got to sleep this morning."
Su Han held out a skewer of grilled eggplant to Ningguang.
She hesitated for a moment, then parted her cherry lips and took a gentle bite.
The soft eggplant, combined with the specially made sauce, had a surprisingly unique and delicious flavor.
"What is this? The taste is actually quite good."
"It's just a skewer of grilled eggplant. If I'm not mistaken, the attackers were the Fatui, right?"
"It was the Fatui. They attacked at midnight, three times in total. They wanted to infiltrate the laboratory and steal our data, but they were repelled by Keqing."
Ningguang elegantly nibbled on the eggplant. When she mentioned the Fatui, a deep killing intent flashed in her eyes.
She had only just introduced a new street lamp, and it had already made her a thorn in their side.
It seemed that a war with Snezhnaya was inevitable sooner or later.
After watching Ningguang finish the eggplant, Su Han smiled. "Want to go out for a ride on the water? I came here by boat today."
"You have your own boat?"
"Of course. Hu Tao and Zhongli came along, too."
Ningguang thought for a moment, then nodded. "That's a good idea. Let's ask Keqing to come along as well. We can all take a break and come back after dinner."
"In that case, we might as well invite Sucrose, too."
"Are you planning to add her to the group now?"
"Of course. She's already here. Sooner or later, it's all the same," Su Han said nonchalantly.
In reality, he was also afraid that a technology-based mission might appear in the future, and they wouldn't have time to recruit someone then.
Since he was already here, he might as well just add Sucrose to the group now.
Currently, including the newly joined Kaedehara Kazuha, there were eight people in the group.
Adding Sucrose would make nine.
A level one group could only invite ten people.
Leaving the last spot for emergencies was just right. If they wanted to open up more positions, they would have to upgrade the group's level.
A level two group chat could have twenty members.
When Su Han found Sucrose and explained the situation, she agreed to join without any hesitation.
The ability to travel to other worlds, even if only for a short while, was incredibly attractive.
After all, on her own, it would be impossible for her to ever visit another world.
In the Multiverse Mission Group chat.
Sucrose:Hello, everyone. I am Sucrose, from Mondstadt.