Genshin Impact: Dionysus reigns supreme, all demons retreat!

Ah Zhong repeatedly declined Xu Ning's gifts.

"The old village chief has always been very caring towards us younger generation, and this is what we should do."

Xu Ning said calmly, "Take it. Consider it a way to make up for the regret that we couldn't be there to take care of the old village chief. You are different from many others in the village. Thank you for taking care of him in his final days."

Ah Zhong reluctantly accepted it.

Ah Zhong looked at the group of students at the village entrance, who were clearly not ordinary people. Each of them stood respectfully at the village entrance, waiting for Xu Ning.

He sighed and said, “I know that from the first day you came to Xiachuan, you seemed to have some prejudice against the people here. But actually, apart from being a bit xenophobic, they are not bad people. It’s just that they have been poor for too long, and they often seem a bit selfish.”

Xu Ning shook his head and said, "It is precisely because of xenophobia that people become stagnant and isolated, which further leads to poverty."

"The fishing industry in the entire Cloud Sea will inevitably suffer greatly in the near future. The fishermen in Liyue Harbor have already made plans and are seeking new ways out. If you are still stuck here, the future will only be more difficult."

Ah Zhong nodded and said, "Thank you for reminding me. After I settle my family with the money you gave me, I will go out and find some other ways to make a living."

Xu Ning and Bei Dou bowed once more towards the direction of the old village chief's grave, then led the group of students back to Wangshu Inn by land.

Having just experienced a life-or-death separation, everyone seemed somewhat somber throughout the journey.

Seeing that the atmosphere seemed to be getting heavier, Xu Ning took the initiative to ask, "Does any of you know the story of the immortal yakshas?"

The "Tiger" walking at the front scratched his head, somewhat puzzled as to why Xu Ning had suddenly asked this question.

"Coach, are you bored walking around and want to tell us a story instead?"

Xu Ning glared at this idiot. "Most of my stories are told in bed. You think you're worthy to listen?"

"Star" replied, "It is mentioned in ancient books that the Yaksha were summoned by the Emperor to eliminate evil spirits, kill for the Dharma, and protect Liyue. Even now, there are still rumors among the people that the Yaksha protect the people."

Xu Ning nodded. "While we don't know if these rumors are true or false, the Yaksha Sage from back then does indeed still exist and continues to protect the people of Liyue to this day."

"You should know that the land of Liyue, where we live now, was in ancient times. The remnants of countless demon gods who died on the land still pollute the creatures on the ground. Evil spirits and demons will occasionally rise up and harm the people."

"Especially during the Lantern Festival in Liyue, when people are celebrating, those evil spirits and monsters will emerge and cause trouble. At this time, the immortal will tirelessly appear throughout Liyue to sweep away these monsters and protect every Liyue resident."

Xu Ning glanced around at everyone and, seeing that they were all listening intently to his story, nodded in satisfaction and began to speak.

"My original intention was to wait until you had spent the New Year with your families and then clean up the entire Guili Plain before the Lantern Festival."

"One reason is to test the results of your recent training."

"Secondly, it's also to experience the spirit of the Thousand Rock Army in protecting Liyue and safeguarding its people."

"Thirdly, I was thinking of giving that respectable immortal who has been working tirelessly for a thousand years a break, so that he can relax a bit during this festive season when every household is lit up."

Upon hearing Xu Ning's words, "Star" said, "Our Thousand Rock Army was originally established to protect Liyue, and eliminating evil spirits is the duty of the Thousand Rock Army."

Xu Ning nodded and said, "It's best if you have this kind of awareness. There are still more than half a month before the Lantern Festival. Our current goal is to take Wangshu Inn as the center and kill all the demons and monsters that appear near Dihua Island, Guili Plain, Mingyun Town, Yaoguang Beach, and Guyun Pavilion. We will also draw all the locations where the demons gather on the map."

"Ji" raised his hand and asked, "Does the instructor mean that new demons and monsters will appear in those places where monsters are concentrated?"

Xu Ning nodded, "Exactly. After all, that might be where the remains of a demon god are buried, so it's normal for monsters to appear frequently. We'll sweep across the area initially, and then we can target specific areas for elimination later."

Xu Ning led the group of students back to Wangshu Inn, leaving dozens of jars of wine as payment for their food and lodging expenses over the past few days, and also personally gifted them a jar of "Zhenqiang" fine wine.

In the days that followed, Xu Ning led the students to explore every inch of Dihua Island and Guili Plain on foot, searching for teleportation anchors and the Rock Eyes, while also teaching them wilderness survival skills. During this time, they also eliminated countless demons and monsters.

When they returned to Wangshu Inn, the two maps in Xing and Jie's hands were covered with countless symbols.

Xu Ning instructed the two to spread the map on a large dining table, then pointed to several teleportation anchor points on it and said, "The Lantern Festival is approaching, we need to prepare in advance."

"These teleportation anchors are distributed very evenly, and I can use their power to freely travel to various locations to provide support."

"So for the next step, we will still use eight teams, with each team stationed at a teleportation anchor point, forming a network to cover the land of Liyue."

"The statue in the north of Dihua Island, Wangshu Inn, the entrance to Mingyun Town, the seaside of Yaoguang Beach, the east of Luhua Pool, the Thousand Rock Army's garrison in Guili Plains, the two locations in the east of Guili Plains, plus the final gateway to the land route directly north of Liyue Harbor, that makes a total of eight places for you to guard."

"Beidou and I will be responsible for the area around Guyun Pavilion. There are also teleportation anchors there, which will allow me to provide support to you at any time. We will rent a ship and head there tomorrow."

"Once you've chosen your assigned guard areas tomorrow, you can head there and make your preparations. Have a good rest today, everyone; food and drink are plentiful!"

Everyone cheered when they heard they would have a day off.

Above everyone's heads, a solitary figure perched on the eaves of the Wangshu Inn glanced indifferently at the bustling students below before disappearing.

The next morning, everyone began to line up and head to their respective locations.

Jie was lucky; when he drew lots with the others that night, he got the Wangshu Inn and stayed there instead of leaving.

Xu Ning went to the boat rental place early and, to the surprise of the owner, stuffed the entire rented boat into the Dust-Hidden Cave.

Then, carrying the Big Dipper, they teleported directly to the mudflats of Yaoguang Beach, took out a small boat, and slowly sailed towards Guyun Pavilion.

"Xu Ning, do you think we'll be able to meet an immortal on this trip? Just how powerful is he?"

Beidou asked curiously.

Xu Ning pondered for a moment and said, "An immortal who has fought for a thousand years and survived the battle of the Demon God War must be incredibly powerful!"