[Location: Mt. Hulao – Spiraling Path]
[Time: 5:45 PM]
The air on Mt. Hulao was thicker, heavier with elemental particulates than anywhere else. Huge, glowing chunks of amber dotted the landscape like oversized gemstones, trapping everything from squirrels to Hilichurls inside.
"Don't touch them!" Paimon squeaked, floating high above the path. "If you get stuck, Paimon can't pull you out!"
I walked up to one of the large amber deposits. It hummed with a low resonance. To my [Elemental Sight], it looked like a dense knot of Geo energy.
"Interesting," I muttered. "It's not just rock. It's living earth. Adeptal bio-alchemy."
[Great Sage]
Composition: Highly concentrated Geo element infused with floral enzymes.
Effects: Traps targets in a suspended animation state.
Edibility: High.>
My stomach growled. The dragon instinct—specifically the [Gluttony] aspect of my personality—was flaring up.
"Raiden..." Aether warned, seeing the look in my eyes. "Don't."
"Just a nibble," I said. "For science."
I reached out, my fingers hardening with [Dragon Scales], and snapped a jagged shard off a flower-shaped amber growth. I tossed it into my mouth.
Crunch.
It was hard, harder than steel, but my jaws were designed to crush bones. I chewed.
"He... he ate it," Paimon whispered in horror.
"Hmph. Tastes like oranges and wet cement," I critiqued, swallowing.
[System Notice]
Absorbed Adeptal Amber.
Analysis complete.
Acquired Intrinsic Skill: [Geo Resistance] (Small).
Acquired Ability: [Crystallize Shell] (Can generate a thin layer of amber armor).
"Not bad," I grinned, wiping crumbs from my lip. "A decent snack."
Suddenly, a muffled shouting came from the large amber block ahead of us.
"Help! Someone, get me out of here!"
Aether drew his sword. "Someone's trapped!"
He struck the amber. Clang. It barely chipped.
"It's too hard!"
"Move," I said, stepping forward. I focused Geo energy into my fist—mimicking the frequency I had just eaten. "[Steel Strength] + [Impact]."
I punched the amber. Instead of shattering, it dissolved, the energy structure destabilizing because I injected my own disruptive mana.
A man tumbled out, gasping for air. It was a Treasure Hoarder, looking terrified. "Thank you! Oh, thank the Archons! I thought I was going to be a statue forever!"
"You're a thief, aren't you?" Paimon crossed her arms.
"I—I was just sightseeing!" the man (Li Dang) stammered, then scrambled away before we could question him further.
"We should have left him," I muttered. "He would have made a nice decoration."
[Location: Mt. Hulao – Summit]
[Time: 6:10 PM]
We reached the peak. A small pavilion overlooked the sea of clouds.
"Who dares destroy my amber mountains?!"
The sky darkened. A massive crane with feathers of red, brown, and gold descended, flapping wings that stirred up a gale.
Mountain Shaper.
"It is one thing to trespass," the crane squawked, his voice sharp and irritable. "It is another to vandalize my garden! Speak, mortals, before I encase you in stone for a thousand years!"
Aether stepped forward, holding up the Sigil again. "We didn't mean to offend! We came to bring news from Liyue Harbor!"
"News?" Mountain Shaper scoffed, landing on a rock. "What news could warrant such destruction? Unless the ocean has dried up or the sky has fallen, I do not care!"
"The sky hasn't fallen," I interrupted, stepping beside Aether. "But the Lord of Geo has."
Mountain Shaper froze. His long neck snapped toward me. "What did you say?"
"Rex Lapis is dead," I said bluntly. "Assassinated at the Rite of Descension."
The reaction was immediate and violent.
Mountain Shaper flared his wings. The ground shook violently, amber spikes shooting up from the earth around us.
"LIES! BLASPHEMY!" he shrieked. "Rex Lapis is eternal! How dare you speak such filth in my presence!"
"It's true!" Paimon yelled, hiding behind my leg. "We saw it! And the Qixing have locked down the harbor! Moon Carver sent us to tell you!"
"Moon Carver..." Mountain Shaper paused, the rage simmering but not fading. "Moon Carver sent you? He believes this?"
"He does," Aether said firmly. "He told us to find you and Cloud Retainer."
Mountain Shaper looked at the sky, letting out a cry of pure anguish. "To think... to think the day would come. The mortal world... has it become so bold? So treacherous?"
His sorrow turned cold.
"If this is true... If the Qixing are complicit... then Liyue Harbor will pay. I will turn their city into a graveyard of amber. I will preserve their treachery in stone so that history never forgets!"
"Wait!" Aether shouted. "We don't know who did it yet!"
"It does not matter!" Mountain Shaper roared. "Mortals were entrusted with the harbor, and they allowed a God to fall! They have failed!"
I stepped forward, releasing a pulse of [Dragon's Haki]. It wasn't enough to overpower him, but it was enough to make him listen.
"Listen to me, Bird-Brain!" I snapped.
Mountain Shaper looked affronted. "Bird... brain?"
"If you march down there and start turning people into lawn ornaments, you're doing exactly what the enemy wants," I growled. "You want justice? Fine. But don't be stupid about it. Group up with the others. Wait for the facts. Don't act like a wild beast."
Mountain Shaper stared at me, his beak clicking. "You speak with the arrogance of a Dragon... yet you are young. A hatchling."
"I'm a Dragon who knows how to solve problems without throwing a tantrum," I countered. "Will you wait? Or do I have to eat your amber garden until you calm down?"
Mountain Shaper huffed, ruffling his feathers. The threatening aura receded.
"Very well. I shall... contain my wrath. For now. I will convene with the others."
He looked at Aether. "You mentioned Cloud Retainer. She dwells on Mt. Aocang. Be warned... she is even less fond of interruptions than I. And she has a particular temper."
"Great," Paimon sighed. "More angry birds."
"Go," Mountain Shaper commanded, turning his back to us. "Leave me to my grief."
[Location: Traveling to Mt. Aocang]
[Time: 7:30 PM]
Night was falling as we descended the mountain.
"That went... okay?" Aether asked, unsure.
"Better than expected," I said. "He didn't kill us."
I checked my internal clock. [Great Sage] was running simulations on combat scenarios against Adepti.
Conclusion: Current win rate against Mountain Shaper without Evolution: 12%.
Reason: Lack of flight capabilities and insufficient magical output.
I needed to get stronger. I looked at my hand. The amber shard I ate had given me a slight boost to defense.
"Cloud Retainer is next," Aether said, looking at the map. "Moon Carver, Mountain Shaper... Cloud Retainer. They all seem so... distant."
"They're immortal," I said, kicking a stone. "When you live forever, humans start looking like ants. They die too fast to matter."
I thought of Akari. Of my past life.
I won't become like that, I promised myself. I will remember what it's like to be small.
"Hey!" Paimon pointed. "Look at that mist! That must be Mt. Aocang!"
"Cloud Retainer..." I mused. "She's the one who likes mechanics and cooking, right?"
"Cooking?" Paimon's eyes lit up. "Did someone say food?"
I smirked. "I have a feeling the way to her heart isn't through a Sigil of Permission. It's through her stomach."
I activated [Predator]'s analysis mode on the surrounding flora. Lotus Heads, Matsutake, Bamboo Shoots.
"Aether, start gathering ingredients. I'm going to teach you how to cook a meal fit for a Goddess."
[System Notice]
Quest Updated: [Custodian of Clouds].
Objective: Prepare offerings for Cloud Retainer.
Raiden's Plan: Use [All of Creation] to create the perfect "Jewelry Soup".