Looking at the iron bucket and the golden apple on the table, then at Ningguang's slightly embarrassed expression, Ryen understood—she had intended to help Lisa break her curse but forgot about the weight of the items and just set them down.
Shaking his head with a chuckle, Ryen said softly,
"If it's not urgent, I can take you to that world later so you can drink it yourself..."
"Mr. Ryen..."
Jean pressed her lips together and bowed slightly.
"Hello, we didn't properly introduce ourselves yesterday. I'm the Acting Grand Mast—"
Ryen waved his hand.
"I know who you all are. No need for introductions. Also, just call me Ryen. There's no need to be so formal."
"I'm just an ordinary person, really."
An ordinary person?
Not just Jean, even Ningguang and the others found that quite funny.
What kind of ordinary person owns a whole world and can flatten Teyvat with a punch?
"Yes, Ryen... Ryen."
Jean let out a breath. So far, Ryen seemed very approachable.
After a short pause, Jean asked nervously,
"Lisa's curse is already very serious. If possible, could you help her now?"
"Now? Sure."
Ryen shrugged and looked over at Ganyu.
Besides him, Ganyu was probably the only one present who could lift such a heavy iron bucket without using elemental power and help Lisa drink from it.
So naturally, he asked Ganyu to assist.
If he were to feed Lisa himself, Ningguang and the others might not be too happy.
Ganyu understood, walked forward, and lifted the iron bucket over to Lisa.
"Do I... have to drink it like this?"
Lisa looked a little embarrassed.
Drinking directly from the bucket was already bad enough, and now Ganyu had to feed her too?
"Let's find a cup instead."
Ryen laughed, then turned to grab a cup from one of the nearby rooms.
The bucket held a massive amount of milk.
Surprisingly, though, after drinking it, Lisa didn't feel overstuffed.
Instead, the curse that had plagued her for so long vanished—as if it had never existed.
Lisa hadn't felt this light and free since being cursed.
She didn't even feel drowsy anymore.
She extended her hand, lightning flashing faintly in her eyes.
"It's really... gone..."
Lisa still couldn't believe it. It all felt like a dream.
The curse that baffled so many people, that no one could deal with...
A bucket of milk... and it's just gone?
Ryen casually picked up the golden apple from the table and took a bite.
"Of course. Compared to Xiao's karmic debt, your curse wasn't that complex. Milk in this world can remove all negative effects—so curses count too."
As he spoke, Ryen gently picked up Nahida and fed her a bite of apple.
Nahida didn't mind that Ryen had already bitten it.
In fact, she looked happy to be sharing an apple with him.
"Ningguang, I'm hungry. Can we eat now?"
Ryen winked at Ningguang, who gave him a helpless look.
"I've already sent someone to prepare it. It'll be here soon."
After speaking, Ningguang noticed Jean looking at her with anticipation, so she asked:
"Do you have any plans for this afternoon?"
Ryen thought for a moment and replied softly,
"Plans... maybe some fishing, or riding on the plains and hunting."
"There's nothing that really needs me at the base or villa. But I was thinking, if Zhongli's here, we can go kill the Wither Storm."
"And tomorrow, maybe use Ender Eyes to search for the End portal."
Speak of the devil.
Zhongli strolled in through the main gate, glanced at Venti, and said softly:
"You called for me?"
"Ha!"
Ryen chuckled.
"Just in time for lunch... Want to head over there this afternoon?"
Zhongli nodded slightly.
"My matters are settled. I was planning to come find you anyway. How are things in the Nether today?"
"Going great. Xiao is keeping watch."
Ryen gently rubbed Nahida's ears.
"Since you're coming, I'll go ahead and summon the Wither Storm this afternoon."
"That's the creature you said rivals Archons?"
Zhongli raised a brow, then sighed slightly.
"You really don't let me rest, huh."
"Well, with great power comes great responsibility! You're super strong and come with built-in defense."
Ryen waved his hand and then looked toward Jean and the others.
"What about you all? Want to come watch this afternoon?"
Jean had been waiting for this exact question. She nodded immediately.
"That would be wonderful! Thank you, Ryen..."
Just then, the food arrived. Everyone took their seats, and once all the dishes were served, Lumine couldn't hold back any longer.
"Ryen, is this the Lesser Lord Kusanali?"
Ryen didn't deny it and smiled as he helped Nahida with her meal.
"That's right. Just call her Nahida."
Getting confirmation, Lumine became excited.
"That's great! Nahida, can I ask you a question?"
Nahida looked up and carefully studied Lumine. She seemed to understand something but still nodded gently.
"Thank you..."
Lumine pressed her lips together and asked softly:
"My brother and I got separated while traveling this world. He has golden hair and is about the same height as me... Have you seen him?"
The golden Nara!
Nahida recalled the stories the Aranara had told her during her slumber.
She was just about to answer, but then received glances from Zhongli and Venti.
After a brief pause, Nahida shook her head.
"Sorry, I'm the second-generation Dendro Archon, born five hundred years ago. I usually sleep a lot, so I've never seen your brother."
Technically, Nahida wasn't lying.
At the very least, she had never seen Aether with her own eyes.
Lumine had already prepared herself for this, but she still felt a little disappointed.
"Then... we were separated by a god who called herself the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles. Nahida, do you know that god?"
At that, Nahida, Ningguang, and the others all had slightly awkward expressions.
They quietly glanced at Zhongli, seemingly asking for permission.
After his subtle nod, Nahida responded:
"The Sustainer of Heavenly Principles... she is one of the Seven Gods..."
"Just as her title implies, she is..."
Nahida stammered a bit, trying to choose her words.
This wasn't the MC World—there were many things she couldn't mention here.
But Lumine seemed to have guessed something already.
After a brief pause, she nodded slightly.
"I understand now. Thank you, Nahida. You don't need to say any more..."
Nahida pressed her lips together.
"I'm sorry. Due to many circumstances, I can't tell you more... But Lumine, please be very careful. The path you walk is extremely dangerous..."
"She" is extremely dangerous...
"As for the rest, there's not much I can help with. Though I carry the title of the God of Wisdom, I am not as knowledgeable as Lord Greater Lord Rukkhadevata."
"In the past five hundred years, what I've had access to has been very limited..."
Hearing this, Lisa's eyes flickered.
"Because of the Akademiya?"
Nahida remained silent.
But Lisa had already understood.
"When I was studying at the Akademiya, I heard teachers mention that the Little Lucky Grass King had been imprisoned by the Grand Sage..."
"Imprisoned?! They dared to do something like that?"
Jean was greatly shocked.
"They dared all right."
Ryen let out a cold laugh.
Seeing this, Ningguang explained the Akademiya's so-called God-Creation Plan to Jean and the others.
Sure enough, after hearing it, Jean and the others were furious— even Venti, who was usually carefree, had a dark expression.
"Truly treacherous... No wonder the old man got so angry he wanted to call for a meeting of the Seven Archons."
Venti sighed and looked at Nahida with a complex expression.
"Aww... Poor Nahida..."
Paimon waved her little fists angrily.
"Those nasty sages! Paimon the Great will knock them all down to get revenge for Nahida! Right, Lumine? You'll help Paimon, right?!"
For once, Lumine firmly agreed with Paimon, nodding strongly.
"Of course! Let's beat up those sages together!"
"You two don't need to worry about that anymore."
Ryen chuckled lightly. His tone was calm, but somehow chilling.
"I've already arranged the ending for those sages. I'm going to feed them to the zombies, one by one..."
Suddenly, Paimon froze. The mood in the room turned heavy.
Soon after, Ryen smiled again and waved his hand.
"Alright, enough of this depressing stuff. Let's eat. Once we finish, we'll head over to my world."
"You're just in time to catch a big event— I'll be dealing with the Wither Storm this afternoon."
Everyone wisely chose to skip over the previous topic.
Paimon, still slightly scared, leaned close to Lumine and whispered:
"Lumine... he's scary... Ryen talks about killing people and feeding them to zombies like it's nothing..."
"By the way, what is a zombie?"
Nearby, Ryen raised an eyebrow and put on a mock fierce expression:
"I heard that! Paimon was talking behind my back! I'll toss you into the mob spawner later!"
"There are zombies, skeletons, spiders, and creepers in there..."
"A chubby little thing like you? They'd love to eat you!"
Paimon's eyes instantly went wide.
"Waaah! Lumine! Save me! He's a bad guy!"
Lumine, expressionless, pushed Paimon straight into Ryen's arms.
"I have Sister Ningguang sponsoring me now! I don't need emergency food anymore— Ryen, go ahead and feed her to the zombies."
"Ehh?!"
Paimon looked at Lumine in despair.
"Lumine! I'm your most important partner!"
"Not anymore."
Lumine acted cold and didn't even glance at her.
Paimon instantly wilted, completely dejected.
Ryen, amused, pinched her cheeks and started rubbing her chubby belly.
Maybe he picked up the technique from Nahida.
Very soon, in Paimon's heart, Ryen turned from a big bad guy to a great good guy.
She purred like a kitten, looking totally satisfied.
"This silly thing… She's going to be kidnapped someday…"
Lumine shook her head helplessly and quietly listened as Ningguang explained some basic features of Ryen's world.
Perhaps because everyone had other things on their minds, the meal ended fairly quickly.
To be precise— Jean and the others ate very fast.
Though they didn't urge Ryen afterward, they kept chatting absentmindedly, occasionally glancing his way.
Which Ryen found amusing.
Wiping his mouth, he made a move, and just like before, little star-like particles gathered around.
The double-portal slowly opened once more.
Jean and the others straightened up, looking at Ryen with serious faces.
"Ningguang probably told you a bit about how special this world is. But something like that— it's hard to explain even if you talk about it all day and night."
"The fastest way to understand is to go experience it yourself."
Stretching lazily, Ryen picked up Nahida again and smiled at Jean and the others.
"Ready?"
Venti looked at Ryen excitedly.
"Hurry up, hurry up! I've been waiting forever!"
"Then let's go."
Ryen turned and led everyone through the portal.
"The journey through worlds begins now."
~~----------------------
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