Genshin Impact: I am the Great General of Liyue

"But I am the God of Contracts. For millennia, countless contracts have been made through my hands. I will never easily enter into a deal unless it is profitable. The deal with the God of Ice is a 'contract to end all contracts' that I made in my final moments as the God of Rock. As for the other side of the scales, what kind of bargaining chips has the 'Ice Queen' added? The answer will be revealed by you on your future journey."

Paimon rubbed his head, feeling a headache coming on.

"No... I still can't process so much information all at once..."

After a short while, Paimon circled around Zhongli and relentlessly asked him questions.

"So Zhongli! What exactly did you sign with the God of Ice? Tell me, I'm very curious!"

Completely ignoring Paimon's echoing voice, Zhongli crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and said, "...Not revealing the contents of this contract is also part of the contract."

"Ugh—so stingy."

Paimon turned his gaze toward Huiyuan, his large eyes filled with pity and helplessness.

"If you look at me like that, I won't know anything about the Emperor's contract. Hey, don't get so close, I really don't know."

Before Paimon could proceed with the next round of torture on Huiyuan, Ying pulled Paimon away.

"Hey, traveler, stop pulling my clothes—!"

......

After the disaster, Qixing began post-disaster reconstruction work.

Although it's called post-disaster reconstruction, the facilities in Liyue Harbor weren't actually damaged in large quantities; only a few shipments at the docks and several cargo ships were destroyed.

Several days have passed, and there is no sign that they have just experienced a demonic attack. People are living their lives as if nothing has happened.

The weather was peaceful, and the sunshine felt very warm on my skin.

"Meow~~~"

Mimi lay on Huiyuan's belly, basking in the sun with Huiyuan.

Because of the existence of Hunyuan, there were almost no deaths in this disaster; there were only a large number of injured civilians and the Qianyan Army.

Thanks to Senzu Beans, even those with severe injuries don't die. How powerful are Senzu Beans? Let's put it this way: as long as you have a breath left, even if your head has been cut off in half, they can bring you back to life. Of course, this assumes that the injury is to your physical body, not your soul.

Just like Wendy, if the body is not actually injured but the soul has a huge wound, the Senzu Bean can only play a very small role.

Today is the Sending-Off-Immortals Ceremony, and most people have gathered near the Jade Capital Terrace. Huiyuan, eavesdropping on the gossip, lies on the balcony of the office shared by Ganyu and Qixing, basking in the sun.

"...Once the ceremony for sending off immortals is held, it means that those rumors are all true."

A contractor named Big Foot spoke to Wang Banzi, a shipyard worker under his command.

Hearing the foreman's words, Wang Banzi couldn't accept the facts for a moment.

"Old Prince Yan, he is really... But the problem is, why haven't we caught the murderer?"

"Nonsense, anyone capable of assassinating Prince Yan is no ordinary person. Those suspicious figures mentioned in the rumors... I don't think they're reliable at all. There's only one theory that I think is very likely! I heard that the assassin is a young man from the Fools' Clan who holds a high-ranking position! His title seems to be 'Young Master'."

"The Fools? That's certainly suspicious. Everyone knows they're a greedy bunch, full of crooked schemes..."

Big Foot quickly covered Wang Banzi's mouth and became alert to their surroundings.

"Hush! Keep your voice down! What if the Fatui target you? Prince Yan won't be there to protect you now!"

On the other side, two fishmongers who were on good terms and spoke with accents were also talking about the Emperor.

Fishmonger Lao Gao said, "You know, the sea demons can't just appear out of nowhere... They've been suppressed by Lord Yan for two thousand years."

Fishmonger Lao Sun sighed and responded.

"Yes, and it just so happened to coincide with the time when Prince Yan was in trouble."

Old Gao began to speculate.

"Hey, do you think... is it possible that the person who assassinated Prince Yan and the person who released the Demon God are the same person?"

After hearing the other party's guess, Old Sun exclaimed in surprise, "Oh my, if you put it that way, it is indeed very possible, hmm... it makes sense, it makes sense. Hmm, everything connects! It must be that person colluding with the demon god to harm Prince Yan. Alas, that damned man, his heart is truly black! But, what kind of person could have such great supernatural powers? I have lived for so many years and have never heard of such a person."

Just as Lao Sun was about to continue guessing, Lao Gao waved his hand.

"Hey, forget it, let's stop guessing. It seems the Chiiwa Army is about to issue a notice. Let's hear what their General Affairs Department has to say."

At the entrance to the farewell ceremony, Feng Yan, the instructor of the Thousand Rocks Army, loudly proclaimed: "Announcement from the Seven Stars Officials—All should know: Soaring dragons and flying unicorns, though their lifespans rival mountains, ultimately turn to dust. The Emperor, though his celestial status is equal to the sun and moon, is subject to the vicissitudes of life, and has encountered a tribulation of lightning. Various rumors circulate in the streets, claiming the Emperor was assassinated, but this is not true. The Emperor has suffered a heavenly tribulation, and his soul has returned to the heavens. Therefore, this is announced to Liyue, urging all people to grieve in moderation and avoid further heartbreak. Furthermore, do not believe the rumors circulating in the streets and make unfounded speculations."

After saying this, Feng Yan slammed his spear into the ground, producing a loud metallic clang, and then left.

Paimon, who was standing at the bottom of the steps, was completely bewildered and couldn't understand what was being said, so he asked Ying beside him.

"Um... traveler, could you please translate what the Seven Stars' announcement said?"

Yingmei replied, "He said the Emperor's cause of death was 'undergoing tribulation'."

Paimon let out a long "Eh."

"Seven Stars' explanation has turned out like this... Something's not right. How could they give up on finding the murderer so quickly? And this reason... it feels like it was made up on the spot. Could it be that Seven Stars already knows that Prince Yan is actually not dead? But Zhongli clearly said that Seven Stars and the Immortals didn't know. Hmm... Did Zhongli secretly tell them after completing the transaction for the Heart of God?"

Seeing that Paimon, who wasn't very bright, had actually guessed almost exactly right, Ying praised him.

"I think Paimon guessed pretty accurately this time."

Paimon proudly puffed out his chest.

"Right, right? By the way, the Ceremony of Sending Off Immortals seems to have started quite a while ago. Let's hurry over and take a look, or it'll be over soon!"

Paimon and Ying went up and saw Keqing, Ningguang, and Ganyu standing in front of the incense burner.

"Ah, it's Ningguang and Keqing. What are they talking about? Is it almost over?"

After Paimon finished asking his question, Ningguang's voice could be heard.