Afterward, Zhongli brought Havria's final relics to the summit of Guyun Stone Forest.
At this point in the quest, Xuehua stared at the salt statues of Havria's followers on her screen. The sight left her feeling heavy and conflicted.
So she teleported to Guyun and climbed all the way to the peak.
"Earlier I mentioned that beneath Guyun lie many ancient demon gods, sealed away."
"Today, the adepti have entrusted Liyue to mortal hands, and Havria's era belongs to an even more distant past."
"The Salt Chalice and Salt Ruler she left behind… should not return to Liyue Harbor."
"Leaving them here is both a burden… and a homecoming."
Zhongli crossed his arms and explained to Lumine and Paimon.
"Zhongli…"
Paimon clasped her hands behind her back and tilted her head.
"There's actually something I've been wanting to ask."
"When Qiu Nian—Gui Xu—was fighting the God of Obscuration… why didn't you help him?"
"Qiu Nian was seriously injured by that final attack. He said he'd need years to recover."
"Aren't you two old friends?"
Lumine also looked puzzled.
Did Zhongli simply not sense it?
That seemed unlikely.
Xuehua leaned closer to the screen.
"Yeah… why didn't Zhongli go help him?"
The livestream chat exploded with the same question.
"Seriously injured…"
Zhongli muttered thoughtfully, resting a hand under his chin.
His old friend had only suffered minor wounds, in truth.
After several days had passed…
the injuries were probably already healed.
"Well…"
"During the battle, I did send a message to Qiu Nian, asking whether he needed my assistance."
"The reply I received was simply: No."
Zhongli calmly explained.
"Oh… I see…"
Paimon scratched her head.
"But why though?"
He clearly could have avoided being injured.
"Perhaps my old friend simply wished to resolve his own matters."
"Much like myself, he has lived in this world for over six thousand years."
"It would not be strange if he had his own way of dealing with things."
"But there is no need to worry."
"As he himself said, a few years of recuperation will suffice."
Zhongli said gently.
The chat reacted instantly.
[So Qiu Nian just didn't want to trouble the Geo Archon.]
[He really handled it himself… I'm gonna cry.]
[Wait—Qiu Nian is also over 6000 years old?!]
"So what do you need me to do, Zhongli?"
Lumine asked.
"I once personally ended an era."
"I have often wondered… how such histories should be recorded."
"History can be written, but history itself is unreliable."
"This incident proves that."
"Time possesses tremendous power. Over the years, history becomes distorted."
"I must find a better method to record the truth."
"Carving words into stone is one ancient method."
"But even stone… the world… and perhaps even I…"
"…may one day disappear."
Zhongli spoke quietly.
"Zhongli…"
Paimon looked at him with a complicated expression.
"So, Traveler, I thought of you."
"You are someone who has crossed the heavens and traveled among the stars."
"If history is engraved in your memory…"
"…perhaps one day it will travel with you to another world."
"As long as you remember…"
"Then the history and era of Teyvat will have gained a kind of backup."
Zhongli said.
"So that's why you wanted me along…"
Lumine placed her hands on her hips.
"That's quite the responsibility…"
Paimon sighed.
At that moment, a cutscene began.
Soft music started playing.
"Thousands of years ago, Liyue was engulfed in chaos."
"The adepti and I fought across the land."
Zhongli walked forward to the edge of the mountain peak.
Lumine held the Salt Chalice and Salt Ruler, gazing at the sea below.
"After millennia… only stories and legends remain."
"Osial… you and I were enemies."
"But the conflicts of the old era…"
"…are merely memories now."
The wind lifted Zhongli's coat and braid.
His words carried an indescribable sense of divinity.
"So, Havria's relics…"
"Let them return to the land that once belonged to you."
Golden Geo energy surged around him.
Zhongli tossed the Salt Chalice and Salt Ruler into the sea below.
"Another miracle of Liyue Harbor fades into the past."
"Between heaven and earth, countless wonders remain for later generations to ponder."
He gazed out across the ocean.
On Xuehua's screen, the quest notification appeared:
Ancient Investigation — Act I: Salt Flower Complete
"What if Osial swims back here and devours those relics?"
"Would it make him stronger?"
Lumine asked with concern.
"I understand your worries."
"Although the Salt Chalice and Salt Ruler still possess divine authority…"
"Even if Osial were to recover his divine core, these items would still be insignificant to him."
Zhongli reassured her.
The chat reacted enthusiastically.
[This quest is amazing.]
[Zhongli's divine aura is off the charts.]
[I love the Geo Archon so much.]
[Osial is no joke either.]
[A god who fought Morax must be terrifying.]
[He's definitely stronger than the God of Obscuration.]
At that moment—
another cutscene suddenly began.
"Morax… why did you throw those two relics into the sea?"
A familiar voice sounded behind them.
Floating in midair were the Salt Ruler and Salt Chalice.
Holding them was Qiu Nian.
He had quietly arrived behind the three of them.
Lumine and Paimon both looked shocked.
"Long time no see."
Qiu Nian greeted them calmly.
Xuehua immediately screamed in excitement.
"Two husbands on the same screen!"
The livestream chat went crazy.
[I never expected Qiu Nian to appear in Zhongli's story quest.]
[Technically he showed up after the quest ended.]
[Bro really wandered all the way to Guyun during his stroll.]
[But wait… why did he fish the relics back up?!]
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