Ch 36

Revealing the events of the world's original timeline through a mobile game couldn't possibly be just for making money. There must be some higher-level reason behind it. Perhaps it's to avoid a horribly dire situation in the future? So they chose to rewrite the future at this point? Zhongli felt like he was catching onto something. But at that moment, an unexpected guest approached him.

"Mr. Zhong Li, you've deceived me quite thoroughly. I thought you were a 'friend in the same line of work,' but it turns out you are the target of our mission."

Zhongli? Or is it... Morax, the Geo Archon?

....

Tartaglia stared at the deep back of the figure before him. His eyes burned with a thing called "battle intent." If not for the details revealed in the mobile game, he might have remained completely ignorant. Who could have guessed that this humble guest of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor would be none other than Morax, the Geo Archon of Liyue?

Tartaglia thought of his in-game self, who had even introduced this "Disruptor of Worlds" so the Traveler could eventually find the "Adeptus' Cremation." He acted as a big spender on numerous occasions, making Zhongli foot the bill. It was ironic to think about these scenarios now.

So, Tartaglia headed directly to the research base outside Liyue Harbor. Once, when he was at the Wangshu Inn to "collect a debt," he happened to acquire a "God's Heart" of Balladeer. Coincidentally, the "Professor" was also researching the Ruin Guards in Liyue at the time, so Tartaglia took the relic to him for study. Later, he heard that the Professor went to Mondstadt and had recently gone missing. But it didn't matter. Considerable progress had been made in researching the Balladeer's Forbidden Curse here. With the power of these duplicates, Tartaglia believed he had a sufficient hand to play. Having been taught by the Abyss, he had glimpsed endless possibilities of an ancient world. Even in the face of Morax, the God who could sweep through a thousand troops, Tartaglia believed he had a chance to defeat him.

However, Morax, the Geo Archon, in response to Tartaglia's provocation, seemed entirely unmoved. He didn't even bother to say anything like, "How do you know my true identity?" or "I admire your courage for challenging me." In fact, it was as if he hadn't heard anything Tartaglia said, treating it as if he had been performing for thin air.

"All right, since you're indifferent, don't blame me for taking the initiative," Tartaglia said, and the water elemental power in his hand transformed into two sharp blades. The surrounding sea breeze sharpened as well. As he was preparing to launch an attack, a cold voice sounded from behind.

"Stop, Tartaglia."

Hearing that annoying voice, Tartaglia immediately knew who had arrived.

"Lady, this is a battle between Zhong Li and me, there's no need for your interference," Tartaglia bluntly stated to the newcomer.

"I'm not here to help you," the lady's gaze was sharp as she focused on Tartaglia. "I'm here to stop you."

"What do you mean?" Tartaglia narrowed his eyes. He keenly sensed that the lady and Zhong Li seemed to share some unspoken secrets. And this secret compelled the lady to come and halt him. In other words, his preemptive declaration of war on Morax, the Geo Archon, was beyond the lady's expectations, potentially affecting her own plans.

"I've already said, I'm here to stop you," the lady replied expressionlessly.

"Ha..." Tartaglia sneered. "Obstructing me again and again. Just because you're ranked higher, you think I'm scared of you?"

Tartaglia showed rare signs of hostility, and his target was not Zhong Li but his colleague, the "lady."

"Since you want to challenge me, then go ahead," the lady showed no sign of backing down. She raised her right hand, and a white artifact floated around her.

The situation changed quickly. Initially, Tartaglia had come to seize the Geo Archon's "God's Heart" by force. But now, the unexplained appearance of the lady had irritated him. She had thwarted his plan several times and refused to disclose any crucial information, leaving Tartaglia fed up.

Seeing that this targeted battle was turning into infighting among the Fatui leaders, Zhong Li, who had remained silent, spoke up:

"Takumi, the game developer, seems to have unlocked the content for Act Three. I must go and experience it."

Tartaglia: "???"

"You're challenging me for the honor of the Fatui leaders, and you're going to play a mobile game? Do you think I'm invisible?"

Facing Tartaglia's "resentful" gaze, Zhong Li seemed to realize his oversight.

"Oh, right," he turned around and looked at Tartaglia. "If you really want to challenge me, then wait until I finish the in-game missions."

"When the time comes, I will give you that opportunity."

With that, he left directly, heading towards the city and the location of the mobile game center.

Tartaglia lightly rubbed his forehead. The situation had taken a very different turn from what he had anticipated. He had come to seize the Geo Archon's "God's Heart," a wicked and dangerous act. But it had somehow turned into a situation where he was perceived as wanting to challenge Morax's divine power.

In the background, the lady's icy aura continued to emanate. Tartaglia shook his head.

"Alright, it's meaningless to fight you. I also need to make time to check out the latest storyline in that mobile game."

And so, the matter suddenly calmed down. It was as if a group of children, in the midst of a dispute, had been suddenly called home by their parents when dinner was ready.

The tense atmosphere that had just prevailed suddenly dissipated. It wouldn't be too surprising if, one day, the Fatui's executives, the Cryo Archon, and the other Seven were sitting together playing mobile games, discussing the plot and character strengths, would it? Tartaglia displayed a wry smile at his own absurd thought.

...

...

Inside the mobile game center today, it was still extremely lively. Over a hundred players marveled at the rich and audacious plot of Liyue. The Geo Archon was assassinated, and the Traveler embarked on a journey to seek the Adepti. Ordinary people were introduced to the legendary Adepti. The preparations for the Adepti's grand ceremony in the story also revealed various surprising details. What were the Fatui's true intentions? Who was the murderer of the Geo Archon? In addition to Tianquan's recent significant actions, discussions about the plot were unusually intense.

When Zhong Li arrived, many players proactively greeted him. Although the Zhong Li in the story had some strange notions about money, his vast knowledge and wisdom were truly admirable. Subsequently, Tartaglia's arrival surprised many. The atmosphere in Liyue Harbor was extremely hostile toward the Fatui, and he dared to appear openly here. Some even admired his indifference.

Tartaglia was well aware of the current situation. Although Ningguang was continually settling scores with the Fatui, many of the city's powers had tangled and sorted themselves with the Fatui, and it wouldn't be easy to clear them out in a short time. As for dealing with the Seven, he'd leave that to the lady. Right now, he just wanted to see if he could succeed in the third act. What really happened with the Geo Archon's assassination?

With the activation of his account, the new third act was indeed unlocked.

.....

"Look! Up there in the sky, that's the 'Qunyu Pavilion'!"

On a cliff in the western direction of Liyue Harbor, Tartaglia arrived at the designated location for the mission. Several dozen meters ahead was the floating Qunyu Pavilion.

Looking from here, it seemed like a fortress floating in the sky. Even Tartaglia had to admire Ningguang's craftsmanship. The resources and effort required to successfully construct such a massive aerial palace were beyond ordinary imagination.

However, in the current storyline, although the Traveler had already reached the mountain's summit, there was still a considerable distance to reach the Qunyu Pavilion. From this location, they could observe some details of the pavilion, but reaching it in person was quite challenging.

"Bad planning on my part. It seems I, the guide, don't actually know the way to the 'heavens.'" Paimon sighed in resignation. "I should have asked that envoy named Ganyu."

"Uh-huh," Paimon pondered for a moment. "But since we want to go to the Qunyu Pavilion, it's reasonable to look for its location on the map! There must be a way up nearby, right? Let's search!"

Soon, not far from the cliff, they found a Windwheel Aster, which appeared to correspond to Paimon's words. Tartaglia triggered a mechanism with the Anemo element.

Immediately, a wind current and a series of accelerating wind rings formed ahead. Was this the way to the Qunyu Pavilion? They proceeded through the accelerating wind rings, but instead of reaching the pavilion directly, they arrived at a Star Glow Crag.

Although they had closed some distance, they still couldn't reach the Qunyu Pavilion. However, this Star Glow Crag had a treasure chest, so the trip wasn't entirely in vain.

"Huh? Can we only fly up to this point?"

"Blame it on the wind current not being strong enough; otherwise, we could've gone straight to the top!" Paimon was still stubbornly refusing to admit that she had led the way wrongly.

"Let's return to Liyue Harbor and inquire with the adepti. The method to get up there probably isn't a secret. Otherwise..."

"Otherwise? Oh, I see. Otherwise, it would be hard to explain if Ganyu asked us to visit the Qunyu Pavilion on our own, right?" Paimon quickly caught on. "Okay, let's follow your plan. But wait! Look below."

Following Paimon's direction, they saw at the junction of two mountains below a structure that resembled an ancient watchtower. Its location was clearly designed to serve as a checkpoint. It wasn't unfamiliar; in the previous storyline, it was the place where the Geo Statues were positioned.

"In that case, I have a new idea."

"...How about we use the Geo Statues to launch you up?" The Traveler's gaze turned dark, and Paimon finally suffered a bit. "Do you hate me that much?"

"Um... it's just that I didn't consider the safety details," Paimon replied. "But I do remember that the Geo Statues have a function to see far away."

"In that case, we can indeed make use of it... Let's use the Geo Statues to explore the vicinity for any way up!"

With their Wind Gliders, they flew down. From a distance, they spotted someone standing beside the Geo Statues. They were armed with spears and appeared to be members of the Qixing.

"Who goes there, daring to trespass in this high-security area?" The moment they touched the ground, they were surrounded by several members of the Qixing.

"Wait a minute... Could it be that Ningguang intentionally set us up?" Paimon's face showed a panic. "She pretended to invite us to the Qunyu Pavilion, but ambushed the Qixing here to capture us!"

"What a formidable opponent. Was this also part of her plan?" Paimon seemed to think her reasoning was sound.

"Ahh, I'm angry now! You soldiers over there, you are abusing your power! Shameless!" The Qixing soldiers seemed perplexed, "What... This is just a normal guard duty. How is it shameless?"

Another soldier was more decisive. "Nonsense. Anyway, let's control the suspicious individuals first!"

With that, they entered combat mode. Tartaglia wore a faint smile. If it weren't for the storyline, he would have preferred to challenge powerful enemies in this game.

During his recent gameplay, he discovered that he was a powerful five-star DPS character in the game. Especially when facing multiple enemies, his "Havoc: Obliteration" ability produced explosive damage, swiftly eliminating all foes. The satisfaction he felt was irresistible.

Tartaglia's current party configuration was himself as the full HP main DPS, with three support characters: Bennett, Sucrose, and Jean. Unfortunately, he missed the limited banner of Venti, the Windborne Bard, in Mondstadt and had to use Sucrose, who was relatively weaker in terms of energy generation. Nevertheless, Tartaglia considered this team composition almost perfect.

Bennett and Jean wielded "Sword of Descension," and Sucrose had the "Widsith." All were maxed out. Tartaglia, on the other hand, used the "Aquila Favonia," which cost 90 million Mora. This luxurious setup made him unstoppable against most enemies, speeding up Adventure Rank progression considerably.

In fact, Tartaglia hoped for more challenging domains to enjoy the thrill of combat. With this mindset, he came across the "Spiral Abyss" during his Adventure Rank advancement. It had 12 floors, with increasing difficulty, making it the most challenging domain in the game. Simultaneously, the rewards were plentiful, including the most precious resource in the game - Primogems.

Tartaglia planned to challenge the Spiral Abyss immediately after completing the main storyline and become the first to conquer it.

Back to the story, after easily defeating the Qixing soldiers, a voice stopped them, "Halt! What's all the commotion?"

"Keqing, these two oddballs suddenly appeared and seemed to have some ulterior motives for the Geo Statues," a Qixing soldier reported.

"Who are you calling oddballs?" Paimon pouted.

"We're just looking for the way to the Qunyu Pavilion."

"Hmm? You want to go to the Qunyu Pavilion? Who are you?" Keqing showed a surprised expression and then smiled with relief.

"How coincidental, I am one of the Liyue Qixing," Keqing introduced herself with a pause, "I am Keqing, the 'Yuheng' of the Liyue Qixing."

"I know about you, Traveler. You're Ningguang's guest, right? I didn't expect to encounter you here in the mountains," Keqing said. She explained that she was here to investigate the Geo Statue's restored mechanism. It was previously damaged, but it was repaired overnight, which piqued her interest. The Qixing soldiers stationed here were responsible for guarding the site, not capturing people.

After clarifying the misunderstanding, the Traveler and Keqing reached an understanding. Paimon took the opportunity to ask, "By the way, Your Excellency Yuheng, do you know why Lady Tianquan invited us to the Qunyu Pavilion?"

"When Ningguang invited you, I suppose it was to have you maintain a certain neutrality in the matter of 'saving Mondstadt's hero,' at the very least... not completely siding with the Adepti," Keqing explained.

"We aren't taking sides. We've talked to the Adepti, and they are also preparing to protect Liyue," Paimon clarified.

"What you call 'protection,' is it like looking down on others from a high position?" Keqing asked.

"Huh!?" Paimon was astonished by Keqing's attitude.

"Because you are mortals, you are the ones they are protecting, so they won't see you as assassins capable of killing gods," Keqing explained. "So, I think they must also believe that Ningguang's orders to seal off the scene, interrogate the mortals, and hunt down assassins are all useless, perhaps even concealing something."

"I'll be blunt: they're underestimating people," Paimon had a thoughtful expression.

"You have a point. However, as Liyue people who show [disrespect to the Adepti], I've never met one like you before," Keqing remarked.

"Ha... I am inclined to be disrespectful to them because they have a carefree sense of time, are arrogant towards mortals. So, they won't act against us, the Seven, for the time being, right?"

"Let it be. I shouldn't discuss the Adepti gods in such a manner. [Disrespect to Adepti] is just my personal attitude; Ningguang would never say such a thing."

"In any case, I admit that this time the Adepti  have shown remarkable restraint. The fact that they chose to gather and discuss when the Rex Lapis was assassinated is indeed unexpected," Keqing's tone was tinged with sarcasm. She had no respect for the Adepti.

Tartaglia thought this character was quite impressive. It was a pity he served the Cryo Archon, putting him in an opposing position to the Liyue Qixing. Otherwise, having such a friend wouldn't be a bad thing.

"Does Ningguang want to negotiate with the Adepti?" the Traveler asked.

"In Ningguang's eyes, the best outcome is that everything can be negotiated, but that's impossible," Keqing said.