The Rite of Parting began. Lumine and Paimon couldn't wait to rush to the front row to watch the ceremony.
"Oh, by the way, Fu Ning, why don't you come stand in front?" Paimon asked.
Fu Ning smiled faintly. "Me? No need. My eyesight is quite sharp."
"Among everyone here, I'll definitely be the first to see the Geo Archon."
Paimon scratched her head. "Uh… okay, let's go!"
Ningguang raised her hand, glanced at the position of the sun, then solemnly announced, "The auspicious hour has arrived."
Beside her, two attendants bowed and quietly retreated.
The Geo Vision at Ningguang's waist began to glow, drawing elemental energy and condensing several stone cores around her.
The stone cores floated to the furnace at the center of the stage and began to spin. Eventually, they erupted with a surge of energy that shot into the sky, condensing into a white cyclone.
Fu Ning instinctively sensed something was wrong.
There wasn't the usual strong resonance of Geo energy at the cyclone's core…
Something was off.
The white cyclone slowly darkened, turning pitch black. A shadowy figure seemed to be falling from within.
Ningguang took half a step back, her expression tightening.
Suddenly, a massive figure plummeted onto the stage, shaking the ground and throwing up thick smoke. Panic and screams erupted in the crowd.
As the dust began to settle, a golden dragon's lifeless body lay sprawled on the platform.
It was unmistakably the form of the Geo Archon, Morax himself.
Ningguang's pupils contracted sharply. She stepped forward to inspect the "corpse."
And after a moment, her voice rang out with disbelief and authority.
"The Archon has been slain! Seal the area immediately!"
Her eyes flicked to Fu Ning, sharp and full of barely concealed suspicion.
A large number of Millelith soldiers surged into the area, surrounding the venue.
Fu Ning: "…"
Watching the soldiers rush toward him like a tidal wave, Fu Ning sighed.
Of course, that only made them more alert.
"I mean… could you let me explain first?"
Fu Ning didn't blame them.
After all, from their perspective, Morax truly appeared to be dead. If someone told him that someone had stabbed Furina, he'd probably go mad too.
He glanced around and noticed that Traveler and Paimon had quietly vanished.
Almost all Millelith were concentrated here. In this chaos, anyone with halfway decent skills could slip away.
Fu Ning turned his gaze to Ningguang, who was striding toward him. He already knew what was coming.
"To be honest, I have no idea what just happened," he said plainly.
"But I can guarantee the Emperor's death has nothing to do with me."
"You all know who I am. I'm Fontaine's top security envoy. And more than that, I'm a demon god—just like Morax."
"I'm also a devout follower of the Hydro Archon. Why would I ever lay a finger on the Geo Archon?"
He shrugged helplessly.
Ningguang narrowed her eyes at him. "Words are meaningless now. Would Master Fu Ning of Fontaine kindly come with us?"
Fu Ning sighed. "Well, sure. You wouldn't believe me even if I told you the whole truth."
"Even if all of you together couldn't hold a candle to me in a fight, if this turns into a diplomatic crisis, it'll spiral out of control fast."
"None of us want that."
"So go ahead, take me."
He half-raised his hands in mock surrender. "Want to cuff me? Planning to torture me until I confess?"
Ningguang: "…"
How shameless…
The always-poised Ningguang resisted the urge to curse.
You've already said everything. What more can I say?
"…There's no need, Master Fu Ning of Fontaine. No one would dare torture you here," she said through gritted teeth. "Fontaine is a nation of law. And so is Liyue. No one here would try to force a confession—and even if they wanted to, they wouldn't succeed."
"It's terrifying! Traveler, isn't this terrifying?" Paimon clung nervously to Ying. "Do you think it really was Fu Ning who killed the Geo Archon?"
"And—and! Didn't Fu Ning say he'd be the first to see the Archon appear… ah!" Paimon gasped, covering his mouth, as if struck by a sudden, terrible realization.
Lumine shook her head. "Highly unlikely, Paimon. Don't overthink it. Maybe Fu Ning just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"He said he's only been in Liyue a short while. Besides, how could a human kill a god?"
Paimon let out a breath of relief. "Yeah, you're right… I really didn't think Fu Ning would ever do something like that. Still, every time we show up somewhere, something huge happens…"
To Lumine and Paimon, Fu Ning was still just a human.
A very strong one, maybe… but still human.
Ningguang arranged a place for Fu Ning to stay.
The official reason: to ensure his personal safety, and to prevent any harm from coming to Fontaine's esteemed envoy.
In truth, a squad of Millelith soldiers was assigned to keep watch over him at all times.
Days passed in that room, and not a single soul came to visit.
But the guards were rotated frequently.
Even Zhongli didn't show up.
How cold could one man be?
So, Fu Ning decided to cause trouble.
"Talent: Sequence Ten – Supreme Energy Spike!"
Transparent energy spikes formed, targeting mental consciousness. Though not physically harmful, they were extremely insulting.
He scanned all of Liyue Harbor, located Zhongli, and drove the spikes straight into his mind.
At the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, Zhongli—just raising a teacup—suddenly fumbled and spilled it.
Zhongli: "…"
He knew at once—only Fu Ning could touch him from this distance. (Wording bro 😭)
Trying to ignore it, Zhongli picked up a fresh cup and resumed drinking.
…
Zhongli began to feel like he was getting old. His hands just kept shaking…
…nmd… this is never going to end, is it?
He stood up at last, realizing he had no choice but to deal with Fu Ning.
After all, he wouldn't be able to sip tea in peace otherwise.
Sure enough, the moment he stood, the persistent mental itching vanished.
As soon as he sat again—it returned.
Alright then, Fu Ning. You want my attention? You've got it.
Zhongli stood, cleaned the spilled tea, and left the Hall of Rebirth.
He began considering how to help Fu Ning out of his predicament.
The Traveler and Paimon? No—too easily silenced.
That meant…
Tartaglia.
He might be a mere "guest" at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, but he had status. As the Eleventh Harbinger, he could stir the pot.
Fu Ning was innocent. Even the Liyue Qixing knew it was unlikely he'd assassinate Morax.
But they feared his power. With the Geo Archon "gone," Fu Ning's presence—unfettered—might stir chaos amid the already unstable undercurrents in Liyue.
Still, Zhongli wanted to see something.
Would mortals be able to resolve such a crisis on their own?
Even if, to him, it all felt just a bit troublesome.