Chapter 89

Shenhe was a pretty quiet person honestly, so our conversation the rest of the way towards Beisht's palace was silent beyond Shenhe asking me to adjust course a bit at times.

But finally, we reached Beisht's palace which consisted of a large bow moon-shaped island with a weather-beaten large single tower made out of weather-beaten stone and coral that had seemingly grown over the castle.

"Beware the coral... It's alive and capable of attacking and being used in stronger Geo-like constructs." Shenhe said softly as my Anemo Hypostasis disappeared as we landed in front of the large tower and already I could hear a piece of Liyue or Inazuma-style music coming from an open window.

I nodded to Shenhe's warning and then we walked over to the large door that probably led to the large tower and as we reached it, my face twitched seeing a lightly glowing diamond-shaped diamond thingy right beside the door. "Shenhe... Is that a doorbell?" I asked dryly pointing at it and her lavender multicolor eyes blinked as she looked at me in confusion before nodding with a small smile.

"Yes Jake, I am surprised you know of it as it's an Adepti invention and thus only used in Liyue due to only my Mother and Master Cloud Retainer creating them to sell to other Adepti for resources," Shenhe said softly and then held two fingers up and I felt the smattering Adepti energy within her stir as she mixed it with Cryo energy from her Vision and then pinch between her two fingers that were held up a talisman paper form that she threw it into the doorbell and with the Adepti energy within the talisman sinking into the doorbell I heard a long gonging noise from within the tower announcing our presence...

A couple of seconds later we heard the music from the tower abruptly cut off and then there was silence... For a whole five minutes, Shenhe and I just waited in fucking awkward silence like a Jehova witness that refused to leave without saying our piece to our ongoing pyramid scheme.

"Uhhh should you ring the doorbell again?" I asked softly with a wry smile and Shenhe tilted her head to the side before shaking it as she took a breath and her hands settled on the handlebars of her bare hips that were open to the eyes with how her outfit opened up to allow her hips to be seen.

"No... Lady Cloud Retainer, when I interrupted her private invention times when she was working on her inner massage chair invention would often make me wait for upwards up to thirty minutes and would scold me most severely if I just left after ruining her concentration or as she likes to call it... 'That moment of climatic perfection?'" Shenhe said innocently with some questioning confusion in her voice and my face twitched at her words.

'Oh dear Shenhe... You are just too pure and unsullied for this world.' I thought and then I noticed something as I looked up, I saw the curtains that were covering the windows on the side of the door were pinched and bunched up on the side and... I think I could see a piercing yellow eye staring at us from it so I awkwardly waved and the curtains violently closed.

So violently in fact that Beisht actually accidentally tore down the curtain with a clatter so me and Shenhe just stared at her with the window between us.

'Why is it, every divine we meet an awkward mess?' I asked mentally and then I waved again with a smile as I spoke up a bit louder to get through the window. "Lady Beisht, we are from Liyue and we needed to touch base with you." I called out and the kinda foggy form of Beisht froze before I could tell she slumped in place and then with a clatter of locks being removed the door was unlocked and swung open showing Beisht in clear view for the first time.

Beisht was undoubtedly a being of the sea as she had light blue hair, purple eyes and she wore tight-fitting silks that were similar to Guizhong, Ping and Cloud Retainer's cultivator/wuxia style clothing but hers were almost in the style of a bikini, either because of her nature as a sea serpent goddess or... Maybe we just caught her in her underwear as being hundreds of miles out into the ocean didn't allow her many guests.

"Follow me please." She said softly with her voice coming as a soft sigh against my ears like the lapping waves of the sea as she turned her back to us and elegantly walked into a sitting room to the side of the entrance of her castle and I couldn't help the glance downwards a bit... What was with Liyue girls and their obsession and body gloves that were all but painted onto their bodies?

Shenhe and I walked into the meeting room and as we came in I only briefly took in the sea-themed decor as Beisht opened up the conversation to the very heart of the matter. "So I assume you are here in relation to my prior partner's brief unsealing and resealing?" She asked with a dull smile and I nodded and I was going to speak but Shenhe spoke first.

"That's correct, we were sent here to make sure you weren't going to get revenge on Liyue for your husband being sealed again." Shenhe said bluntly and I could feel her body tense and I knew she was all but ready to pounce at the goddess spear in hands to kill her at a moment's notice and as Beisht's eye's tightened on Shenhe I snapped my fingers with a sigh to get their attention.

"Nope... Nope, please excuse my friend Shenhe, she has spent her entire life sleeping with a rock pillow so she is as hard-headed as they come." I said with a smile and Beisht snorted while Shenhe nodded if anything proudly as she continued my words.

"That's correct Jake, I indeed have a very hard head, in fact, mother Cloud Retainer trained me to headbutt Geovishaps off the mountains of Jueyen Karst as the elemental beings use the strength of their headbutting to establish territory," Shenhe announced proudly and I was in awe of just much of a meathead cultivator she was...

I waved my hand to the side to try to move on as I smiled wryly as I spoke to Beisht. "Anyway, yeah we came to touch base with you as foreign forces used your husband," I spoke before she raised a hand making me pause.

Beisht sighed and threaded her hands together as she spoke softly. "Look, my marriage with Osial was complicated due to us both being newborn sea serpent gods... We were basically siblings and we never actually ahem. 'Did the deed' for such a marriage, once we realized our sibling-like marriage similar to how all the rest of the Adepti never married one another due the familiar ties we shared." Beisht explained before shaking her head.

"When the Archon War came, Osial was never fond of humanity due to their weakness, and with the powerful Erosion, Celestia was beaming on all the gods and supernatural beings to force them to fight for supremacy in the Archon seats. My sibling and partner had his disdain for humanity explode into virulent hate and insanity when he couldn't reach Celestia to stop the madness with Celestia's Erosion breaking down our immortal souls... So although I would prefer him put out of his misery, him being in eternal sleep of being sealed away, is better than the agony of his soul being chipped away by Celestia." She explained sadly and I felt Shenhe loosen up beside me.

I nodded in understanding as much as I could, as I spoke softly. "Then I apologize for bringing this up then. If you like we can take our leave now, with the knowledge that you aren't... You know." I said wryly and she snorted eyeing me with her purple eyes tightening into a slit before she nodded as she looked between me and Shenhe.

"Oh, I would enjoy some company for the day as it had been several months since my fellow ocean kin Adepti have paid me visit." She said softly to me before she glanced at Shenhe and continued. "I can see from your clothes style that they were made by Cloud Retainer, is she still well?" She questioned and Shenhe merely nodded making Beisht wryly smile at how silent Shenhe was.

"Either way, even with Adepti magic it would take a couple of hours to fly from here to Liyue, would you two care to enjoy some grilled fish for lunch?" She questioned with a smile and I shared a look with Shenhe and she shrugged so I decided it couldn't hurt.

I nodded to Beisht with an honest smile as I responded. "Yeah I would appreciate it Lady Beisht, thank you for your hospitality," I said bowing my head slightly towards her.