Jean and the others knew that Teyvat wasn't the only world out there—many "descenders" and "outsiders" had arrived before.
But they never expected that they would one day get to visit another world themselves.
Let alone that this new world… would be this absurd.
After stepping through the dual traversal gate, they didn't feel much of a change. But when they opened their eyes again, they were already standing in a completely different world.
Looking around, everything seemed startlingly real—the breeze, the sunshine, the air…
Even their own shadows didn't look any different from those in Teyvat.
But on closer inspection, a bizarre sense of unreality pervaded everything.
Though the buildings were beautiful, they were entirely made from square, blocky materials.
That alone shattered Jean and the others' understanding of the world.
Even the distant trees were square-shaped. The fountains? Made of blocks too.
Pigs, cows, sheep leisurely wandering around the pastures—all cube-shaped.
And in one strange-looking farm setup, there was even a square-shaped person.
Suddenly, a huge shadow loomed over them from above.
Jean and the others looked up.
Two towering pillars stretched into the sky, topped by a massive floating platform.
Lisa never thought she'd witness a world that so blatantly violated the fundamental rules of existence.
It felt like this world was only supposed to exist in fantasy.
Everything she'd learned over the years felt like it vanished in an instant.
"Wah!"
Suddenly, Paimon let out a panicked squeal and clung tightly to Ryen's arm.
"Paimon can't fly! Paimon can't fly, Ryen! What do we do?!"
Her voice was tinged with the threat of tears as she burrowed into Ryen's arms, afraid she'd suddenly fall.
Hearing that, Venti also tried to channel his divine power to attempt flying.
But he was shocked as well.
"My power… is completely sealed!"
"Completely?"
Lumine gathered a swirl of wind in her palm. She felt the suppression too, but not to such an extreme degree.
Having traveled through countless worlds, she understood:
Every world had its own rules.
But completely suppressing divine power? That was unreasonable.
"Yes. My godly powers—it's as if they've all been sealed."
Venti frowned slightly and glanced over at Zhongli.
After receiving a confirming nod from him, he finally relaxed a little.
So it wasn't just his problem.
Apparently, anyone who entered this world would be universally suppressed.
The degree of suppression varied depending on one's strength.
"This world has no elemental laws, nor elemental reactions. It's normal that your powers don't work here."
As he spoke, Ryen pinched Paimon's cheek again.
"And Paimon not being able to fly? That's part of the laws here too.
From now on, you'll just have to walk like everyone else."
"Ugh… What kind of annoying law is that!"
Paimon pouted furiously.
"I'm not walking! Ryen, carry me!"
In just this short while, Paimon had grown extremely fond of Ryen.
Maybe it was because of his top-tier "petting skills."
Either way, being around him made her feel safe and comfy.
"I'll share part of my physique with you all."
With a snap of his fingers, Ryen grinned and added,
"Otherwise, you guys wouldn't even be able to hold a tool in this world."
As soon as he finished, Diluc's eyes widened in shock, staring at his hands in disbelief.
"This is… What kind of power is this?"
"Is it the law of pure strength?"
Lisa was just as baffled. She'd never imagined that, as a physically frail mage, she'd ever feel this powerful.
"How much of your strength did you just share with us?"
Lisa asked softly.
"About a quarter."
Upon hearing that, Lisa couldn't help but remark,
"A quarter of your power… and I feel like I could destroy all of Mondstadt. Then your full strength must be…"
"Hehe! Ryen's raw strength? If you really wanted to measure it, it'd probably be… limitless."
Hu Tao didn't seem surprised at all.
"By the way, didn't Ningguang explain all this to you guys before you came?"
Ningguang chuckled and shook her head.
"This world has so many unique traits—if I tried explaining everything, a whole day wouldn't be enough."
Hearing this, the others nodded in agreement.
"This power… can it be brought back to Teyvat?"
Venti suddenly asked curiously, glancing at Ryen.
Diluc also looked hopeful.
After all, with just a quarter of this power, he could march into the Fatui HQ and personally take down the Doctor.
"My power can only be shared with you in this world."
Ryen shook his head. At that, the group sighed with a bit of disappointment but didn't press further.
"Alright, let's walk and talk. I'll give you a little tour and explain the basics of this world."
"What you need now is to quickly familiarize yourselves with how things work here."
With that, Ryen waved them along as they began moving toward the outer part of the estate.
There were piles of automated machines here, even redstone contraptions.
The goal was simple: to let them directly experience the unique features of the Minecraft world.
Cloud Retainer was still transforming Mt. Hulao in the back hills, Xiao remained in the Nether, and both the Millelith and the miners were continuing their work.
Ryen's villa estate rarely had visitors.
Naturally, the first thing he introduced was the personal rules of this world.
No falling from high places, automatic health regeneration after eating… all these were essential for survival, so they had to be learned right away.
Along the way, Jean and the others were so shocked that they hadn't yet recovered.
It made Ningguang and her companions a little emotional.
After all, just over a month ago, they had first arrived in this world and listened to Ryen explain its unique aspects.
The shock they felt back then was no less than what Jean and the others were experiencing now.
Their expressions were practically identical.
Now, Jean and the others finally understood, from firsthand experience, why Ningguang and the rest paid so little attention to mineral resources.
Turn on an iron farm, and in just a few minutes you'd gather massive amounts of iron.
They passed a freshly spawned lucky block on the road—Ganyu shattered it with a single arrow, and piles of diamonds and gold came raining down…
Only then did they understand why Ningguang always looked amused whenever someone brought up mining deals in front of her.
Even her tone back then carried a hint of boredom.
The luxury resources that all of Teyvat pursued… here, they were just lying around in abundance, easy to obtain.
As for what Liyue contributed to these resources…
Well, it was just having people haul them back.
And then?
That was it.
To be honest, even if they sold it for a dirt-cheap five thousand Mora per ton, Ningguang and her team would still make a huge profit.
All the way, Ryen focused on showing them the world's unique features rather than redstone tech and automation.
After all, even Ningguang and the others, who had lived here for over a month, still struggled to fully understand redstone.
Aiming too high too soon wasn't wise.
Before long, Ryen had led the group back to his villa.
With the massive influx of materials, Ryen was able to completely redesign his estate.
Naturally, he rebuilt it using quartz and concrete, transforming it into a highly modern villa.
Swimming pool, balcony, garden—everything was included.
If only there were more furniture, it would be perfect.
From what Ryen knew, Ningguang was already planning to introduce these construction materials—concrete, for instance—into Liyue's market.
The goal was to modernize some of Liyue's existing buildings.
After all, wooden houses weren't exactly the safest.
As for selling to other nations…
That would just be a side benefit.
Once Liyue started using these materials, other nations would surely question and investigate.
Though they weren't afraid of that, there was no need to waste energy dealing with it either.
Sitting on the living room sofa, Jean and the others still hadn't fully come to terms with everything they'd seen. Their minds were blank.
They couldn't even begin to describe what kind of world this was.
It was just that…
What this world had already shown them far exceeded the limits of their imagination.
Paimon and Lumine, however, were much quicker to adapt.
One was carefree and only cared about food—she was already munching on steak.
The other had seen more and had a strong ability to accept the unfamiliar.
"A wild, treasure-filled world… just waiting to be developed."
Lisa murmured quietly as she looked at Ryen, who was currently playfully bickering with Ganyu.
Suddenly, she understood why Ningguang and the others had shown such unwavering support for Ryen, even saying that if anyone dared to become his enemy, all of Liyue would rise up in response.
The value of this world… was simply immeasurable.
"Hard to accept, isn't it?" Ryen smiled as he looked at Lisa, who was no longer her usual lazy self. She gave a faint nod.
"It's alright. Right now, you don't need to understand why this world is so strange. Just get used to it. Accept it as normal."
"As you explore further, deepen that impression. Eventually, you'll be able to mentally separate the rules of Teyvat and this world—then reconcile them."
"That's exactly what Ningguang and the others did."
Hearing this, Jean and the others numbly nodded.
"I won't try to answer all your questions—otherwise, we'd be here for days."
Ryen chuckled, and the mood among the group lightened slightly.
Jean immediately turned serious, exchanged glances with Lisa and the others, and stood to give a slight bow.
"Thank you, Mr. Ryen, for allowing us this partnership, for letting us join Liyue in developing this world."
"For Mondstadt, this is an entirely new and hopeful path. No matter what, Mr. Ryen, you will always be Mondstadt's most important ally."
"Mondstadt will give everything it has. Anyone who tries to interfere with our cooperation… will be Mondstadt's enemy!"
Ryen had heard those words once before.
But…
He could understand it.
Mondstadt was different from Liyue—Liyue had a thriving economy and top-tier strength.
Ryen's world simply gave Liyue an opportunity to move toward something more mysterious and profound.
But for Mondstadt?
They needed more than that.
They needed a chance to turn the tide, to shake off the influence of the Fatui.
And Ryen's world…
Was practically telling them outright—
This world could not only turn things around for them, but even lift them to the very peak of Teyvat!
As long as they kept cooperating, even if their Grand Master never returned with the main force, they could still become one of the most powerful and advanced nations in all of Teyvat.
Given that… anyone with half a brain would know what to do.
Jean gave Ningguang a grateful glance and said earnestly:
"No matter what happens in the future, Mondstadt will always be Liyue's most steadfast ally. We will face all enemies together—live and die as one!"
Ningguang smiled softly.
"Even though that's already been repeated many times in the contract…"
She rose gladly and shook Jean's hand.
"Let's have a smooth and successful journey exploring this new world together."
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