"This world's special materials?"
Lisa thought for a moment, then quickly understood.
"You mean those monster drops you mentioned before?"
Ryen nodded slightly and said softly:
"In this world, the uses of those drops are basically fixed combinations."
"I'll have Ningguang and the others give you a copy of the synthesis list later."
"But I've always felt that—since lapis lazuli can trigger elemental resonance in Teyvat—then other materials should be able to as well."
"It's just that there aren't any particularly skilled alchemists in Liyue…"
Hearing this, Lisa nodded slightly, understanding Ryen's thinking.
"I understand. When I leave, give me some of those materials, and I'll study them carefully."
Ningguang had always understood and supported Ryen's idea.
If those materials could establish any special connection with Teyvat, then Liyue's products could be further expanded.
Its influence would also rise rapidly.
That was something everyone would be happy to see.
If it weren't for the lack of top-tier alchemists in Liyue, Ningguang and the others would've started long ago.
"I'll build an alchemy workshop for you in Liyue. Just let me know if you need anything."
That was essentially Ningguang poaching Lisa right in front of Jean and the others.
But they didn't mind.
Given the current relationship between Mondstadt and Liyue, when one grows stronger, the other thrives as well.
Lisa would still be doing research that benefited Mondstadt.
Besides, Ryen clearly had no plans to leave, and Jean and the others might even end up stationed here permanently.
As for returning to Mondstadt…
That was simple too.
The two nations were allies, so the teleport anchors were, of course, open to each other.
Ordinary people couldn't use them, but Genshin users like Jean and her companions certainly could.
Lisa chuckled and thanked Ningguang, then added with a relaxed tone:
"Could you place the alchemy workshop near Ryen's little courtyard?"
"It's quiet here, and it'll be convenient for me to get materials from him."
"If I have to walk too far, this witch might start getting sleepy."
Ningguang frowned slightly, thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
"Besides… there's another alchemy master in Mondstadt. Though I hate to admit it, his skills far surpass mine."
"If possible, he should be invited too—he would definitely be very interested."
Now that Ningguang had agreed, Lisa went a step further.
She was, of course, referring to Albedo.
Albedo, who had lived for hundreds of years, was a disciple of Gold, and his alchemy was said to be second only to Gold's in all of Teyvat.
Naturally, Ningguang and the others had heard of Albedo's name. After a brief pause, she said:
"You mean the Kreideprinz, the alchemist who wields the power of creation—Albedo?"
Lisa nodded.
"That's right. But there's one issue—his teacher was the famed Khaenri'ahn sage, Gold, Rhinedottir."
"Nowadays, Albedo's alchemy bears some of that same golden brilliance."
"But Gold is… well…"
Lisa didn't finish the sentence, and Ningguang's gaze subtly shifted to Zhongli and Venti.
Venti was fine—he was an old acquaintance of Gold's.
But Zhongli... clearly harbored a grudge against her.
Back when Khaenri'ah was destroyed, Rhinedottir fell from grace and became a sinner, creating countless dark beasts.
Even if that hadn't been her original intention…
Still—
How many Qianyan soldiers died five hundred years ago?
Even the Yaksha, Bosacius…
If Zhongli were to encounter Rhinedottir now, he'd probably have no problem unleashing a full-powered Planet Befall on her.
After a moment of silence, Zhongli sighed and closed his eyes.
Ryen understood his meaning and chuckled softly:
"Gold is Gold. Albedo is Albedo. What we need now is talent. I'll talk to Morax—he's not that petty."
Venti rolled his eyes and complained:
"That's debatable…"
"Last night when I was drinking with the old man, he kept whining to me about how you always call him a petty little dragon."
Ryen raised an eyebrow, casting a glance at Zhongli, who was glaring at Venti in irritation.
"Looks like I overestimated just how not petty he is…"
Venti and Ryen exchanged a laugh. Zhongli couldn't blow his cover here, so Venti wasn't afraid of him.
At least, not here.
At worst, he'd just hide out at Ryen's place afterward.
But the others didn't dare laugh along. After all, those two were poking fun at the Geo Archon himself.
"As for Albedo, I'll leave that to you, Jean. His alchemy means a lot to us."
After a while, Ryen put away his smile and nodded at Jean.
She readily agreed, though she hesitated for a moment and said:
"I have one more request…"
"Before her travels, Lady Alice entrusted Klee to me. I need to take care of her. Would it be alright to bring her along…?"
"Please don't worry. Though Klee is a little mischievous, with me watching her, there shouldn't be any issues."
Seeing Jean glance unintentionally at Ganyu, Ryen immediately understood what she was really thinking.
"I've heard Klee is Mondstadt's lucky star. Looks like Jean has something else in mind too."
Jean nodded, a bit awkwardly.
"That's right… Klee has really good luck, and opening lucky blocks really depends on her luck…"
"Really good luck?"
Keqing perked up.
After watching Ganyu's luck these past few days, she was constantly amazed at how important good fortune was for lucky blocks.
If they had another extremely lucky person, that'd be perfect.
"Yes, indeed."
Jean nodded seriously and said softly:
"Before she left, Lady Alice told me that Klee's Constellation is the 'Trifolium'"
"…"
Well then.
There wasn't much more to say.
A person's Constellation represents the blueprint of their life.
And Klee's? It was literally the Lucky Four-Leaf Clover.
What more did they need to know?
Strategic Weapon: Lucky Block Specialist +1.
"Miss Ningguang, I have a question…"
After some light-hearted chatter, Diluc changed the subject and asked in a low voice:
"Where should we Mondstadtians begin building our base?"
This caught Ningguang and the others off guard.
So far, the two explored regions were already occupied by Liyue.
As for other areas, they honestly weren't very sure.
They all turned to look at Ryen.
He waved his hand casually and said:
"That's a small matter. We've already explored the snow mountain earlier, but the desert next to it hasn't been touched yet."
"If you don't mind, set up your first base in the desert. The mines there are rich in resources."
"But honestly, compared to the mines, I think what you need more are Lucky Blocks."
"How about this—either tomorrow or the day after, I'll go search for an End Portal and explore the area while I'm at it."
As he spoke, Ryen looked out the window and said softly:
"This world is overflowing with resources. Don't worry about shortages."
"Even if you just start digging with a pickaxe, you'll come across tons of resource-rich caves."
"As for the environment—that's no issue either. Whether it's desert or ocean, you can use the blocks from this world to reshape it."
"If you're as motivated as Keqing and carry dirt to terraform the land, within a few days you could turn a desert into a lush jungle…"
"Location isn't the problem. What you all need to focus on now is familiarizing yourselves with the unique features of this world."
"And then start learning about deeper tech, like Redstone technology, and so on."
Hearing this, Jean and the others visibly relaxed.
Venti's eyes lit up as he grinned and asked:
"So that means… if we want to, we could recreate Mondstadt and Starfell Lake?"
At those words, Ryen and Ningguang exchanged a knowing smile and pointed toward the back mountain.
"Didn't you see what Cloud Retainer's doing?"
"She's very enthusiastically turning the back mountain into her version of Jueyun Karst."
Venti froze. After a moment, he muttered in disbelief:
"You can really do that?!"
"Of course."
Ningguang nodded seriously.
"Ryen said that in this world, the most important things are imagination and creativity."
"You shouldn't be asking what can be done—but what you want to do."
"As long as you dare to dream it, there's a way to make it happen!"
Even though they had already learned a lot about the unique qualities of this world, Jean and the others still couldn't help being shocked.
And yes, the desire to recreate Mondstadt was already growing in their minds.
"Take it slow. You've only just arrived—it's not good to rush into things."
Ryen stretched, then placed Nahida and Paimon on the chairs beside him.
"When Ningguang and the others first came in, they also spent four or five days getting familiar with everything here."
"Once you get a grasp on the fundamentals of this world, your work will progress quickly."
Lisa immediately understood. Glancing at the still-dazed Jean and company, she sighed lightly and said:
"So in this world… the most important resources have always been imagination and creativity, huh?"
"This place really is a scholar's dream come true."
Ryen chuckled and nodded.
"Lisa, you really are the Akademiya's once-in-two-centuries genius. I didn't expect you to figure it out so quickly."
"If I can help it, I'd rather not get involved with the Akademiya."
Lisa idly ran her fingers through her hair and said with a sigh:
"Getting tangled up with a faction that's caught your eye and being targeted by Liyue? Yeah, that doesn't sound like good news for me."
Ryen let out an awkward laugh.
"Relax—it's got nothing to do with you."
After saying that, Ryen glanced at the sky. Judging from the sun, it was probably around 3 PM.
He decided it was time to get serious.
He tapped the table lightly and said:
"Well then, let's talk about this afternoon's plan."
"Wither Storm?"
Hu Tao, who had been sitting idly in boredom, suddenly perked up.
"We're finally going to fight the Wither Storm? Seriously, I've been nagging you about this for days, and you're only now putting it on the agenda? Ryen, even if you want to be cautious, this is too cautious!"
Hearing her complaint, Ryen rolled his eyes.
"Do you think the Wither Storm is something you can just deal with casually? That thing's an endgame-level boss, on par with the Ender Dragon. If you're not fully prepared, it'll blast you into the stratosphere!"
"You little ingrate. Complaining that I'm too slow, huh? Fine. How about you go look for Lucky Blocks this afternoon instead?"
That shut Hu Tao up real quick. She immediately ran over with a grin, plopped down behind Ryen, and started massaging his shoulders.
Ryen raised his hand, and Hu Tao leaned in playfully to let him give her a light flick on the forehead.
Of course, Ryen wasn't actually mad and didn't use much strength.
"Well, Hu Tao's not wrong either."
Taking advantage of the mood, Ryen cleared his throat and changed his tone:
"We've indeed delayed the Wither Storm long enough—it's about time we deal with it today."
~~----------------------
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