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She withdrew her hand and stared at Zhongli with her plum blossom eyes extremely seriously and worriedly. Her tone was more serious than ever before, even with a hint of coaxing a child.

"Guest...you...you just need to tell this hall master the truth..." She paused, as if looking for the least hurtful words.

"Have you been...overworking yourself lately? Or...did you catch a cold at night and have a fever for several days, which...has clouded your brain? Or maybe it's because you ate undercooked mushrooms and had these strange hallucinations?"

She pointed at the plate of Youyou Dazheng on the table, then at Zhongli. "What... Hollow Racing in another world? What... Going back and forth to Nata to help the Traveler fight the Abyss in one day? These things..."

Hu Tao's voice rose a little, filled with disbelief. "Even those True Lords of Liyue who can fly through the clouds and have lived for thousands of years can't do these things, right?!"

"Your experiences over the past two days... haven't they been a little too 'up and down' and 'colorful'? Like the new 'Strange Tales' that Yunhan Society is staging..."

Hu Tao's eyes were filled with genuine, unpretentious worry, as if this knowledgeable guest official in front of him was about to be sent to the emergency room of Bubulu in the next second.

"Guest, how about... you go back to your room and get a good night's sleep? You don't have to worry about the affairs of the hall. Or... I'll go and get Master Baizhu here right now? I'll have him take a good look at you and prescribe a prescription to calm your mind and spirit."

It was obvious that Zhongli's frank narration did not arouse sudden enlightenment in the Hall of Rebirth, but deeper doubts.

Shock and worry intertwined in Hu Tao's plum-shaped pupils, eventually settling into a heavy feeling that "this child is seriously ill."

She knew that her guest had a mysterious origin and might be related to the immortals, but things like "Hollow Racing in Another World" and "One-Day Round Trip to Nata"...

It's too bizarre, just like a joke made up by a storyteller under the overpass to attract attention, and the quality is not very high.

"Guest..." Hu Tao's voice was filled with helplessness and coaxing.

"Although our Liyue Harbor is vast and there are many legends about immortals, I have never heard of any True Lord who can instantly cross thousands of miles and drive to another world... You..."

Zhongli looked at Hu Tao's expression that said "I understand you're under a lot of pressure" and knew that words alone would not be enough to gain her trust.

He sighed softly: "Wait a moment, Hall Master. Zhongli has physical evidence."

As he spoke, his hand reached for his waist, about to take out the motorcycle that had been modified by Xianyun and was full of the fusion style of otherworldly and immortal technology.

"Clap!"

The crisp sound of chopsticks falling to the ground suddenly interrupted Zhongli's actions.

The two looked in the direction of the sound and saw Dai Yuan (Ruo Tuo) sitting next to them, still holding out his chopsticks, with a frozen expression and empty eyes.

On the plate of Youyou Marching Army in front of him, a chubby little ghost had a big bite missing from it!

"Brother Daiyuan?" Hu Tao called out in confusion.

Dai Yuan didn't react. His body swayed slightly, as if his soul had left his body.

The expression on that face changed rapidly: first confusion, then extreme shock and pain (as if he had tasted the worst evil in the world), then the pupils began to lose focus, the eyes became distant and empty, and the corners of the mouth even twitched slightly uncontrollably.

Zhongli's expression changed slightly, and he immediately stood up and walked over to Ruota. Hu Tao also realized that something was wrong and hurried over.

"Daiyuan? Daiyuan!" Zhongli called out in a deep voice, and at the same time stretched out his finger, and the fingertips containing a trace of gentle rock elemental power gently touched Ruotuo's eyebrows.

Hu Tao also shook Ruo Tuo's arm anxiously: "Brother Dai Yuan! Wake up! What's wrong with you?"

Under the gentle stimulation of Zhongli's elemental power and the anxious calls of the two, Dai Yuan's empty eyes finally began to focus.

He took a deep breath, like a drowning man emerging from the water, and coughed violently several times.

The "karaiken" images that flashed before my eyes like old films, a mixture of wear and tear, pain and ancient memories, gradually faded away, and the concerned calls of Zhongli and Hu Tao finally came clearly to my ears.

"Cough... cough cough..." Dai Yuan shook his still dazed head and looked blankly at the two faces in front of him that were full of worry.

"What happened to me just now?" He felt a numbness in his mouth, as if all his taste buds were completely destroyed and then wiped out, leaving only an indescribable feeling of pure "tastelessness".

He subconsciously looked at the plate of Youyou Da March on the table. The "little ghost" with a missing bite was looking at him "innocently".

"You... you seemed to have tasted this," Hu Tao pointed at You You Da Xing Jun, her face full of apology and fear. "Then... you suddenly seemed to have lost your soul. No matter how I called you, you didn't respond! I was scared to death!"

Zhongli calmly withdrew his fingers and continued calmly, "It's nothing. Perhaps he's just recovered from a serious illness and his body is still weak. In addition, the unique aroma of this... dish has a temporary impact on his mind, causing a temporary soul-leaving syndrome. This incident is also recorded in ancient books."

"It could also be that you've been trying a new cultivation method lately, and your Qi circulation has been sluggish."

He calmly tried to find a way out of Walnut's "masterpiece" and Ruota's condition, "Next time you see that little Paimon who can purify abnormalities, just ask her to sort it out for you again."

He cleverly shifted the blame to "recovering from a serious illness" and "going astray in cultivation", trying his best to maintain the face of his own hall master.

Chapter 105: Physical evidence is difficult to prove, Zhong Li is tired

"Is... is that so?" Dai Yuan touched his still numb mouth, and looked at the "cute"-shaped plate of Youyou Marching Army.

Thinking back to the terrifying taste shock that swept through my soul just now, as if I had tasted the most painful thing in the world, and the torrent of memory fragments that followed... I always felt that something was wrong.

But the person in front of him was an old friend who had been with him for thousands of years and a symbol of the contract. He had never doubted Zhongli's words.

So, despite being full of doubts, Dai Yuan nodded and chose to believe, "I see... then... that's good."

Seeing this, Hu Tao felt even more guilty. She had originally intended to "reward" (punish) the disobedient guest official, but ended up accidentally injuring the righteous Dai Yuan!

She, the head of the Rebirth Hall, also needs to save face!

So while Dai Yuan was still a little dazed, Zhongli focused on comforting him. He quickly picked up the plate of "evidence" - Youyou Daxingjun, and hid it in the cabinet behind him.

Her face flushed slightly as she silently muttered to herself, "Hu Tao, oh Hu Tao, next time you punish the guest minister, you must choose a time when there are no innocent people around!"

Dai Yuan shook his head vigorously, trying to get rid of the strange numbness in his mouth and the chaotic images that remained in his mind.

After calming down, his downtime memory came back online.

Oh right! Wasn't I just cooperating with Hall Master Hu to conduct a "just interrogation" of Zhongli? Why did I suddenly lose consciousness?

"Ahem," he cleared his throat (although there was still no taste in his mouth), tried to regain his previous "fair and strict" attitude, and looked at Walnut.

"Master Hu, how far have we...reached in the interrogation? Has Zhongli confessed everything?" His serious expression made it seem as if he was not the one who was almost knocked down by Youyou Daxingjun just now.

Hu Tao looked at Brother Dai Yuan, who had just experienced an "unprovoked disaster" and the first thing he did when he woke up was to help her "seek justice". The slight sense of guilt in her heart instantly turned into full of emotion!

What a sincere man! What a good ally!

She immediately straightened her body, put on a stern face again, and spoke to Zhongli with a voice that was a little louder than before.

"That's right! Guest! Brother Dai Yuan is right! Don't evade the question! Although the Traveler is far away in Nata, this is definitely not an excuse for you to use her as a shield!"

"Tell me the truth, where have you been having fun these past two days... uh, where have you been 'running around'?" She almost let the cat out of the bag and quickly changed her words, but the word "free and easy" still revealed her inner assessment that Zhongli was "making up stories."

Zhongli looked at the two people in front of him who were "united against the same enemy", especially Ruota's serious look of "I have lost my memory but I still want to uphold justice", and felt powerless.

He gave up the idea of ​​continuing to explain with words and decided to use "real objects".

He walked to a slightly empty space in the hall and waved his hand.

Accompanied by a soft golden light and subtle spatial ripples, a peculiarly shaped motorcycle appeared out of thin air and landed steadily on the ground.

The lines of this motorcycle are smooth and powerful, and the main frame shines with Liyue's unique, jade-like amber luster, but the key parts are embedded with precision mechanical components that are obviously not Liyue's style.

There are also decorative green streamlined parts on both sides of the motorcycle, and it seems that wind elements are flowing through them.

The entire car combines the technological sense of another world with the elemental power of Teyvat, making it both avant-garde and mysterious.

Walnut's plum blossom pupils widened instantly!

She circled the locomotive twice, her mouth slightly open in amazement. This was definitely not something any workshop in Liyue could create!

The shape, material, especially the cyan core and the suspended crystals, all exude a strong "otherworldly" aura.

Could it be that... those unbelievable things that Ke Qing just said... are true?

Just when the needle of the scale in Kurumi's heart began to waver, about to lean towards the side of "unbelievable but seems to be true"...

"Ha!" Dai Yuan's eyes lit up next to him. He took a step forward and looked at the motorcycle carefully, with a hint of excitement in his tone of "I finally caught it."

"You finally took out this precious motorcycle Xianyun modified for you! Zhongli! Where's the motorcycle you promised me? Didn't I tell you to get me one when you left? Where's mine? Where's my 'Daiyuan'?!"

He completely forgot about the "soul separation" incident just now, and his mind was full of (Dai Yuan thought) the cool flying car that Zhongli had promised before but had not yet delivered.

"Xianyun?" Hu Tao caught this key name and immediately came back to his senses from the shock of the motorcycle.

Of course she knew Xianyun! The master of mechanical engineering who had just moved to Liyue Harbor!

Xiangling had mentioned this to Hu Tao before, saying that there was a master of machinery named Xianyun, who used a "mechanical cooking machine" he made to compete with Xiangling to see whose dish was more delicious. Fortunately, Xiangling was the winner.

So in Hu Tao's current understanding, Xianyun is a reclusive master of mechanisms with extraordinary skills!

Being able to build this locomotive that combines immortal magic and sophisticated mechanisms is completely within the "reasonable" range!

The surprise on Hu Tao's face faded away in an instant, replaced by a look of "as expected", with a little pride and understanding of discovering the truth.

She crossed her arms, glanced at Zhongli, and drawled, "Oh? So it's the work of Master Xianyun... I thought so."

She walked to the motorcycle and patted the gleaming jade-like body of the motorcycle seriously.

"Keqing, why didn't you just tell me you were going to ask Master Xianyun to modify the car? You've gone through so much trouble, and even made up this story about a hollow race car from another world...tsk tsk tsk."

She shook her head with an expression that said, "I've seen through everything," then turned to look at Zhongli, her eyes filled with an oppressive sense of "leniency for confession," and her voice rose slightly.

"Hmm? A guest? Explain? What about the promised 'Daiyuan'? It won't be charged to Wangsheng Hall along with your modification costs, will it?"

The ending of the word "hmm?" was dragged out very long, full of teasing.

Zhongli: "..."

He looked at his old friend Ruota, who had just been "united against the same enemy" with him. He was now looking at him with eyes full of innocence and expectation (for motorcycles).

Then he looked at the young hall master Hu Tao in front of him, who was feeling very proud because he thought he had caught him.

Zhongli's calm state of mind also began to ripple with a feeling of "heart fatigue".

How about going to Nata and getting some peace and quiet? The thought flashed through his mind, but he suppressed it immediately. As the God of Contract, how could he retreat in the face of danger?

He calmed himself down, and his golden eyes first looked at the "culprit" motorcycle, and Dai Yuan who was staring at it with burning eyes.

"Ahem," Zhongli coughed lightly, his voice still calm, yet with a subtle hint of guidance. "Daiyuan, since you're so curious about this car, why not... experience it for yourself?"

Chapter 106: Send Dai Yuan away, the hall master's instructions

Dai Yuan's (Ruo Tuo) eyes lit up instantly! "Is it okay?" He blurted out, and his body had already taken an honest step towards the motorcycle.

"Of course." Zhongli nodded, and with a wave of his hand, he tossed the motorcycle keys to Dai Yuan. "This bike is easy to operate. You've seen me use it before. Besides, you were there when Xianyun instructed me to use it. Go try it out in an open area, and you'll understand its secrets."

He skillfully threw out the bait, with the primary goal of getting rid of this old friend who might say something shocking at any time.

"Good! Good!" Dai Yuan was overjoyed. He no longer remembered anything about "justice trial". His mind was filled with the pleasure of galloping.

He jumped onto the motorcycle in one step. Although his movements were a little unfamiliar, the surging sense of power made his blood boil.

He tried to inject a trace of immortal power into the core, and the motorcycle immediately let out a low roar, and the body even floated slightly off the ground.

"Master Hu!" Dai Yuan shouted excitedly to Hu Tao, his voice slightly drowned out by the hum of the locomotive.

"I'll go try it first! Zhongli... uh... you have to interrogate him carefully! Make sure he tells the truth! You can try it later too, this car is really exciting!"

Before he finished speaking, he twisted the accelerator and the motorcycle "whooshed" out of the gate with an excited roar and a trail of dust, leaving behind a string of heroic laughter and a mess of tables, chairs and benches that were tilted by the airflow.

Hu Tao looked at Dai Yuan's receding figure and the slightly messy hall. Instead of being angry, a hint of emotion flashed in her plum blossom eyes.

"What a sincere young man, Dai Yuan! He even rode his bike and still reminded me to interrogate the guest! That's really... so kind!"

She automatically filtered out the mess and only felt that this new friend was shining.

After getting rid of the biggest "unstable factor", Zhongli secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

He turned around and faced Walnut, who was once again looking at him with scrutiny, and calmly took out a few things from his arms.

"Hall Master..." Zhongli placed the items on the table one by one, his voice calm.

"Zhongli knows that his 'disappearance' has worried the Hall Master, so he brought back some local products from Nata as a small token of his apology and to prove that what Zhongli said was true."

Walnut's eyes were drawn to something on the table.

A cute cotton camel doll, woven with Nata's unique colorful wool yarn, which feels extremely soft to the touch. It has a round and cute shape, and a small feather pendant around its neck symbolizing the Flower Feather Society, full of the rustic interest of Nata folk handicrafts.

A colorful "Huayuhui" wide-brimmed hat: the brim is carefully decorated with Nata's unique, brightly colored bird feathers and dried flowers. The weaving technique is unique and has a strong tribal celebration style.

There are also several carefully polished raw stones. These are not priceless top-grade gems, but malachite and obsidian with natural flame patterns or lava bubbles, which are unique to the Nata volcanic area. They are polished into smooth pendants or ornaments, revealing the ruggedness and fiery breath deep in the land of Nata.

These things… Walnut picked up the soft cotton camel doll and squeezed it. Then, curiously, she put on the Flower Feather Club hat, which was a bit too big, covering half of her face. Then she carefully examined the stones with the volcanic mark…

The style, material and craftsmanship of these things all reveal a strong local Nata flavor that has not been commercially refined!

It was completely different from the "Nata specialties" she had seen in Liyue Harbor, which were beautifully packaged and expensively brought from thousands of miles away by Fengdan or Xumi merchants!

Apart from those few raw stones, the rest are more like... ordinary objects that the locals can buy easily and carry the warmth of life. They don't look like the objects that merchants have to travel thousands of miles to trade.