Chapter 142
Late at night.
Liyue, research institute campus.
The picnic cloth was spread on the lawn, and Venti returned to Mondstadt for a rare occasion and brought back the dandelion wine he had buried for hundreds of years.
Mr. Zhongli was in front of a barbecue pit, watching Takumi busy grilling meat, looking quite interested.
Raiden Ei was sitting in front of a low table with a picnic cloth, a cup of tea in her hand. Not far away, the Orchid Mantis and the Goodra were taking turns educating the Deerling.
"Lala~!" Orchid Mantis was serious, like a strict mother.
"Miao~~" Goodra was a loving mother with a smile.
The baby Deerling stood blankly between the two temporary mothers.
After thinking about it, Raiden Ei took out the Pokédex, clicked a photo, and uploaded it to the group chat:
*Baby Deerling found new moms.*
Ningguang: ?? My Metang was just brought back from the research institute two days ago. No, after this conference, I will continue to keep Metang in the research institute.
Jean: So does my Eevee!
Yae Miko: …Hey, there's actually a pet boarding service? It's so convenient!
As you know, the Guuji is very busy every day, so she really doesn't have time to train Pokémon bit by bit.
Arataki Itto: Yae Miko, if I hadn't lost the ramen competition with you last time, I would have almost believed you!
Eula: Hey, I received the notification of tomorrow's matchup arrangements. Yeah~ I'm in the first match!
Yelan: I received it too.
Zhongli: Me too.
Kamisato Ayaka: Tomorrow will definitely be another lively day~~ (looks of anticipation.jpg)
---
The next day, just as dawn broke, Takumi came downstairs from the living area of the research institute and saw Raiden Ei already feeding milk to the baby Deerling. He greeted her:
"Ah, good morning Raiden Ei."
"Breakfast with Cresselia is ready; you can go eat. I'll go release some Liyue Adepti first. You, Zhongli, and Venti can go directly to the venue later."
After saying that, Takumi asked Jirachi and Meloetta to take him straight up into the sky. Raiden Ei looked up at Takumi's trace disappearing into the clouds and mist in the sky.
"The starry sky?"
She murmured, then looked down at the baby Deerling that was licking her palm after drinking milk, a look of doting in her eyes and a gentle smile.
Pokémon.
They're so cute.
---
In the starry sky, in the forbidden land of Jueyun Karst, three Adepti were gathered. They were almost right next to each other.
The only Pokédex was being held by Cloud Retainer. Her crane wings operated the device, occasionally swiping across the screen. The other two Adepti who couldn't operate it looked a little anxious.
Moon Carver: "Cloud Retainer, keep watching the video we just saw!"
Mountain Shaper: "Hey! I want to watch the previous one, that video was interesting!"
It turned out that the Pokédex screen showed the Teyvat Cheers interface. The Adepti stayed in the starry sky for almost two days, relying on the sand sculpture videos on Cheers to relieve their boredom and have fun.
Unknowingly, they also fell in love with Teyvat's internet culture and how Pokémon surfed the internet.
A leisurely voice sounded behind the Adepti:
"Ah, three masters of Jueyun Karst. Am I disturbing your elegance?"
Hearing this, Cloud Retainer, who was moving her wings across the Pokédex screen, said without raising her head:
"You finally came. But can you help me get rid of these two irritable ones next to me?"
Moon Carver said angrily, "Cloud Retainer, you are too presumptuous!"
Mountain Shaper was also shocked and angry, "Yes, yes. Send us away, and you get to monopolize the only Pokédex device!"
The Deer Adeptus and the male Adeptus with black and gray fur looked at each other and said in unison, "Don't even think about enjoying the Pokédex by yourself!"
Takumi shook his head, speechless at this scene. It was both funny and sigh-worthy.
It seemed that he had underestimated the influence of Pokémon technology and internet culture on Teyvat.
The dignified Liyue Adepti, who had been cultivating immortality in Jueyun Karst for years without caring about the world of mortals, were otherworldly enough. But just two days of using the Pokédex to access the internet had them acting like they were addicted.
For the right to use a Pokédex, they were on the verge of turning on each other.
"Alright, three masters," Takumi began. "As you are the Adepti who protect Liyue, there was a misunderstanding about what happened between us before. You must have received a dream from the Geo Archon last night, right?"
Speaking of the Geo Archon's dream, all three Adepti, including Cloud Retainer, raised their heads in surprise.
"It seems that you have also attracted the attention of the Geo Archon," Cloud Retainer acknowledged.
Takumi continued, "Yes, the Geo Archon had a dream. In it, he said he had given up his ancient body and wished to live as a mortal."
Takumi was not surprised by this. In the original work, Zhongli relied on this message to appease Xiao and the Adepti. It was the reason why the relationship between the Adepti and Liyue Qixing had eased.
Takumi asked Jirachi and Meloetta to open the blockade of the different space: "Three masters, you may leave now. Here are the other two Pokédexes. In addition, are the three masters interested in coming to the virtual arena to watch today's champion match?"
Hearing this, the three Jueyun Karst Adepti, led by Cloud Retainer, answered without hesitation:
"Of course, we'll watch it!"
"That's outrageous!"
"You know, the latest hot topic on the internet is that, in just one night, ordinary tickets for the champion match have been sold for one million Mora!"
Takumi chuckled. As expected of the Three Internet Addicted Adepti, they were more updated on Pokémon Network information than he, the store manager, was.
---
Ten o'clock in the morning.
Liyue's Grand Arena quickly filled with spectators. The regular trainer competition outside was in progress. Inside, the virtual venue reached through a portal had also started a new day of elimination and ranking matches.
Except for those from the Inazuma region, all characters from the group chat came to watch the champion match. When Takumi and the three Jueyun Karst Adepti arrived, the live broadcast's smart camera deliberately focused on them for half a minute.
The Liyue Qixing, led by Ningguang, all greeted the three Adepti. The Jueyun Karst Adepti, who were previously upset, were now in a friendly mood.
The audience in the live broadcast room of the champion series noticed a corner of a Pokédex peeking out from Cloud Retainer's crane feathers. The barrage quickly filled with hot discussions:
"Oh, Adepti are quite fashionable too~"
"Nonsense, even the Adepti can't resist this trend!"
"Indeed, who can resist internet addiction? I played 'Auto Chess' all night, and now I can seamlessly watch the champion series live broadcast!"
"Brother upstairs, take it easy; don't die suddenly!"
The three Adepti, Moon Carver, Mountain Shaper, and Cloud Retainer, found Xiao and Madam Ping. Yanfei and Ganyu were also nearby.
This group had a strong Adepti presence. Meanwhile, Takumi walked toward Raiden Shogun.
The three Jueyun Karst Adepti, who had just returned from the starry sky, couldn't help but tremble.
"Whoa! Is the Electro Archon here too?"
They were shocked seeing Takumi happily chatting and getting along harmoniously with Raiden Shogun.
Xiao's face was blank, while Yanfei, Ganyu, and Madam Ping looked at each other and smiled.
"The Electro Archon arrived in Liyue yesterday," Yanfei said. "It seems that the three Adepti only got the Pokédex and an invitation to join the group chat. Therefore, they may not know some of the secret information of the Pokémon era."
Jueyun Karst Adepti: ???
"What?!"
Nani, is there a group chat?
Including Cloud Retainer, the Adepti suddenly felt left out.
"We also want to join the group!" the Jueyun Karst Adepti said angrily.
---
At the same time… the first battle of the champion tournament ended.
"The Mondstadt adventurer Duran has been knocked down, and his Pokémon Spearow has lost the ability to fight."
"Contestant Eula wins!"
With the announcement from the smart referee, Eula put down her famous sword and smiled victoriously. Her shining golden Charmeleon stared with disdain at the Spearow, which was now scorched black by its fire.
"Roar~!"
The Charmeleon turned back and roared at Eula.
*(This opponent is too weak, find me another one!)*
Eula walked up and patted Charmeleon's neck, muttering to herself. Her shiny Charmeleon was already at level 40, but it showed no signs of evolving into a Charizard.
Perhaps the external pressure wasn't enough.
---
Boom!
The second battle began. Rotom possessed an Ice Cannon, and the ice mist it sprayed was even more intense than the original. It covered a wider range, and the power of the freezing element was even stronger.
Yelan moved swiftly, the water-colored rope in her hand wrapping around the Ice Cannon.
She returned to her starting point and gently clicked her fingers.
*Click.*
The water element exploded. The Ice Mist Cannon was immediately aimed at its own user.
What followed was quite funny. The Fatui member, best known for freezing her enemies, now found herself falling into her own freezing reaction.
The corner of Yelan's mouth curled up, and she didn't even try to break free. The fight continued until the intelligent system determined that the Fatui could not break free from her own freeze reaction, belatedly announcing:
"Fatui Radomir has lost the ability to fight!"
"Contestant Yelan wins!"
Seeing Yelan's victory, everyone in the group chat wasn't surprised. Only Tartaglia—his eyebrows twitched.
"That Rotom… It can even possess and transform our Fatui elemental technology into its own? Rotomized?"
---
The third battle began.
When Zhongli, a guest from the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, stepped onto the stage, his opponent was a mineral expert named Kunjun.
Takumi couldn't help but show a weird smile on the guest stage. Raiden Shogun caught a glimpse of his expression and asked in a low voice:
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, it's Morax and his old friend clashing head-on."
If Takumi remembered correctly, Kunjun was the incarnation of the kind side of Azhdaha, the true Azhdaha.
This plot of old friends confronting each other made the champion tournament suddenly more interesting.