Chapter 23 Alt POV at the start

Ningguang's regal placid face was hiding a series of giddy laughter as that enigma had done it... He completely broke the natural laws in the world in two things. One, he could basically spin Spirit Stones from damn near nothing just by collecting and coalescing the natural passive spirit energy in the air, compressing it and then injecting it into simple stone to make a spirit stone.

Secondly and most importantly. He broke the divine rule... He broke the divine rule that only 'immortals' and divines could leave the ground in some form of flight.

"Lady Ningguang, in accordance to all your help I have brought along a good deal of metal materials for the city to use at its will and of course a meager donation of spirit stones to repay the great nation of Liyue for it's assistance." Jake spoke and then he handed over a space bag that Ningguang carefully took from his hands while the harbor workers and other cultivators who saw the 'war ship' come in watched eagerly and were whispering to one another.

She threw a hint of her consciousness into the space bag and her face twitched seeing the ten thousand Medium Spirit stones as that was far more than any clans made in a good year no matter their business unless they came upon a heritage sight of some dead god and got their inheritance.

The nominal leader of Liyue nodded and respectfully spoke. "Jake Barriss, you are foreign to this land, but you have not shirked your debt nor have you shown any ingratitude."

With the standard respectful exchange done, Ningguang gave a more relaxed smile as she looked between Jake who had Keqing standing beside him almost protectively of his form as a good number of cultivators and martial artists were looking at his warship with undisguised bloodlust and greed as they desired to take it for themselves.

As Jake in their minds was nothing but a laborer whose cultivation and blood energy was barely in the first realm! 

'Does his realm matter when he is an abomination of a monstrous genius who can literally make Spirit Stones out of damned thin air?' Ningguang thought as she, unseen to Jake's own weak senses flared her Nascent Soul cultivation and more than a few people collapsed with their knees shattering and blood leaking from their mouths as she gave them a blunt warning.

Not to mess with her investment... As she over the years had left a great number of bodies of people who tried or even succeeded in ruining her investments to keep Liyue alive in this troubled world.

Without a change in her expression, she spoke up blandly to the assembled people. "All of you, return to your own doings. There is no need for you all to gawk at Liyue Qixing business." 

And with that even as people slowly dispersed she waved a hand to create a small formation out of her congealed spiritual energy that would blur people's vision of this area along with capturing all the noise within the area so no one could hear or read the lips of what they were about to say.

With that done Ningguang looked at Jake and said with an indulgent smile. "My my... I didn't think Yelan would be able to actually get you to make some actual war tools to wipe out monsters with how enthused you were in just acquiring raw materials."

The young man actually gave her a haunted look and his words made her pause as she had to parse the meaning of them. "Yelan didn't leave me much choice with her whole dommy mommy act along with her threatening to tie me up in her water strings and sit on me in a not-so-fun way if I didn't make the toys she wanted."

'Dommy mommy? What does... Oh.' Ningguang rolled her eyes at the young man's crass words but then she stilled as she thought about Yelan. Her fellow Nascent Soul femme fatale who had a simmering hatred for monsters and people from Snezhnaya.

Even as Keqing rolled her eyes and sighed, Jake's eyes lit up as he began explaining the 'Pelican' to her with Ningguang's mind whirling as she considered how to best use this limited resource and came to a pretty easy conclusion that the Pelican would actually be best used in delivering news and treasures to and from the sects of Liyue with trusted men and women piloting it.

Until Jake said something that floored her. "So yeah, this thing is outfitted with some interesting weapons along with a minor kinetic energy shield. But seeing as this is going to be mass-produced I didn't make it too special..." And as Jake said mass-produced Ningguang's heart stuttered along with her face going still as she blankly asked.

"How many will be made?"

Jake with a blink made a humming noise and she wanted to strangle him for making her wait as all her business and political plans were up in the air now as having planes that could cross all of Liyue's very dangerous countryside in less than a day... To put bluntly would change everything about Liyue and even parts of the world should he be able to make enough.

Finally Jake spoke and Ningguang felt her cultivation shudder as she realized that her own cultivating in the Golden Path registered Jake as the most precious thing in her collection. The most precious subordinate she had. 

"Oh... I can churn out probably five of these planes in a month but that is also when I am turning out the ground-based war machine I was working on for low-tier martial artists and people who cannot cultivate can operate." And after saying that, Keging showed off that War-Doll that took up an entire high-quality spatial ring that she borrowed for just that war mech.

"How many can you make if you are not making these war mechs... No I want everything scaled up, more warships, more of these mechs. I want as many as you can make Jake." She said firmly as she laid as carefully and gently grabbed his shoulders so she didn't accidentally crush his shoulders under her hands.

War-Dolls bigger than houses that was as physically strong as tier three martial artists like Keqing? That only required spirit stones to operate along with ammo made from mundane materials? She was going to strangle Yelan if she made Jake too uncomfortable with her acts... But he also seemed to like it?

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I looked at Ningguang with confusion as I could feel my Golden Path technique wigging out for some reason but with how determined she looked I could only shrug as I answered frankly. "Thats as many as I can make with the production scale I am at right now. The area I been building in has been capped for the refiners I can conceivably have until I acquire make another plant to acquire the specialty resources to upgrade that other production facility." I explained.

And Ninggunag's eyes were honestly kind of scary as she smiled and said. "I see... And you need another area rich in metal veins along with trace amounts of spirit stones in the area correct?" 

But I shook my head and said plainly. "Uhhh no? I get the spirit stones as the base metals are separated from other elements and the spiritual energy is a left over. That first facility doesn't have any spirit stones naturally forming there from having access to the leylines."

Keqing coughed and then cut in saying. "Lady Ningguang, having Jake run around making another plant for fabrication and another plant just for acquiring spirit stones is too much for just him to do on his own... Plus if we go to an unclaimed spirit stone mine, that means that Jake will make a massive amount of noise and release a stupid amount of spirit energy that will draw in every monster within a thousand miles."

Ningguang's face became cold as she thought about her military officer's point before nodding and saying. "Very well... In addition to yourself and Yelan being there when he begins spirit stone mining, I will call for help from the Grand Elder of the Cloud Refining Sect along with some of their stronger battle-oriented disciples to help secure the area."