Some people, once you meet them, become unforgettable at a single glance for all eternity.
At this critical moment, Junze gazed at Ganyu rushing toward him, and his mind went completely blank.
The howling wind around them seemed to fall silent in an instant.
Those violet-pink eyes were like a swan's, glancing only once yet so sweet.
The worry revealed within her gaze was equally intoxicating.
As the two rapidly drew closer, the other's appearance etched itself deeply into Junze's mind.
Some things, seen only once at first meeting, are enough to be savored for a long time and remain forever fresh.
In the vast illusion of boundless worlds, adrift and lost,
one encounter, and never forgotten.
For a moment, Junze could not understand how such a peerless person could exist in this world.
Yet when Ganyu pulled him into her arms, when that scent upon her, not of mortal dust yet still carrying the warmth of human life, lingered around him, Junze found the answer.
Oh~
She was Ganyu.
She was never purely a being of the mundane world.
Though she had entered the mortal realm, she herself still drifted beyond worldly concerns.
That was why she could be so transcendent, pure, yet also so gentle and approachable.
As the Beast of Greed, Junze felt only pure goodwill from her.
He found it unbelievable, yet also perfectly reasonable.
For a half-adeptus, such a thing was entirely natural.
Completely different from himself.
As Taotie, he should have disliked someone like this, yet for some reason he was deeply covetous of her embrace.
And at this very moment, Junze experienced, since his birth, a true desire on the psychological level, apart from bodily hunger.
Perhaps what Junze did not know was that although Taotie represented greed, in ages long past Taotie had once been associated with light and the sun.
Only later, amid the complexities of the human world, feeding upon the evils absorbed at birth, did it walk that path.
And the present Junze might perhaps walk a different path.
Of course, the current Junze had no mind to care about such things. He lay in Ganyu's arms and lost consciousness just like that.
His frail body, combined with such weightlessness and lack of oxygen, meant that the still-infant Junze simply could not endure for long.
And Ganyu, after catching Junze, revealed an expression of immense relief.
"Thank goodness I made it in time."
Ganyu looked at Junze, but seeing that his breathing had already steadied, she showed a helpless, faintly reproachful expression. "This child, it was clearly so dangerous, yet he fell asleep immediately."
After saying this, Ganyu stepped upon drifting clouds in midair and descended onto a nearby mountaintop.
As a half-adeptus, riding clouds and mist like this was effortless for Ganyu.
Looking at the child in her arms, she murmured to herself, "Why would this child appear in such a place? What exactly is his connection to the strange phenomena from a few days ago?"
But just as Ganyu was perplexed, suddenly the surrounding clouds churned again, and a figure emerged from within the mist.
Ganyu's heart first tightened.
After all, given what had happened a few days ago, the entirety of Jueyun Karst might not be safe.
However, as the figure in the clouds gradually became clear, Ganyu relaxed.
Because the one flying out of the mist was none other than her master, Cloud Retainer.
"Ganyu, why have you returned? And the child in your arms…"
Cloud Retainer had originally been wondering why Ganyu would appear here now, but upon noticing Junze in her arms, surprise appeared on her face.
Hearing her master's question, Ganyu replied, "Because of that ominous phenomenon that occurred in Jueyun Karst a few days ago. And since Jueyun Karst is not a place ordinary people can investigate, I came to check it myself."
Seeing Cloud Retainer staring fixedly at Junze, Ganyu subconsciously stroked Junze's little head.
"Master, you keep staring at this child. Could it be that he truly has something to do with what happened a few days ago?"
"The phenomenon from a few days ago?"
After a few seconds of silence, Cloud Retainer looked at Junze and said, "If it is him, then it would be normal."
Hearing Cloud Retainer say this, Ganyu's heart gave a jolt.
Although she also suspected the earlier event had considerable connection to Junze, she still hoped it had nothing to do with such a child.
But reality clearly did not align with her hopes.
Cloud Retainer withdrew her gaze and said, "Ganyu, do you know the origin of the child in your arms?"
Ganyu shook her head.
She had originally intended to bring Junze to Cloud Retainer anyway. How could she possibly know his identity?
Cloud Retainer lifted her head and said with a sigh, "If I am not mistaken, this child is very likely the hatchling of the demon god Taotie."
After a thousand years, speaking this name again, a look of reminiscence appeared on Cloud Retainer's face.
And when Ganyu heard Cloud Retainer's words, undisguised shock filled her face.
She stared in disbelief at Junze sleeping obediently in her arms, unable to accept that such a harmless-looking child could actually be Taotie, the thousand-year demon god of greed.
Although Ganyu had not yet grown up when Taotie rampaged, she had still heard of the brutality of that great war.
Even later, many adepti descendants had been frightened by their elders with tales of Taotie when they were young.
And now Cloud Retainer was saying this adorable child was Taotie.
"Cloud Retainer, is it really true?!"
"Hmph! Would this adeptus deceive you?"
Cloud Retainer snorted at being questioned. "Although this child bears no resemblance to the ferocious Taotie of old, the aura upon him, as well as the phenomenon caused a few days ago, were indeed created by Taotie."
"And moreover…"
As she spoke, one of Cloud Retainer's wings produced a large half of an eggshell from somewhere.
"The eggshell!"
Ganyu recognized the eggshell in Cloud Retainer's grasp. It was exactly the one that had been beneath Junze earlier.
"This is Taotie's eggshell."
Ganyu looked at the eggshell in Cloud Retainer's wing, then at Junze, a complicated expression appearing on her face.
She had never imagined she would pick up a Taotie and bring him back.