Leaving aside how Lumine hadn't even finished touring Gandharva Ville before being dragged off to the desert by Alhaitham and the others, her complaints echoing endlessly atop the dragon,
Back in the Twilight Forest, Ryen and his group had already located the Naga Courtyard, officially beginning this run in full speedrun mode.
Inside the Naga Courtyard, cannon fire roared and bullets streaked through the air.
Outside the courtyard, Makoto sat with Klee and Nahida, calmly keeping the children entertained. When it came to looking after kids, Makoto was exceptionally experienced, after all, she had helped raise Yae Miko when Miko was young. And in Makoto's eyes, her own younger sister was still a child who hadn't truly grown up.
Treating Klee and Nahida with the same patience she once used for Miko and Ei was effortless.
Guizhong, on the other hand, was anything but well-behaved. She stacked blocks to gain height, sprawled across the courtyard wall, and stared eagerly at the battle inside, pumping her fists and shouting encouragement at the top of her lungs.
"Ryen! Ping'er! Cloud Retainer! Smash that ugly thing flat!"
"It dared scare me, knock its head clean off!"
"Morax, you're so dumb! Aim for its eyes! Eyes that ugly shouldn't be allowed to exist!"
"Little Ganyu, freeze it! Freeze it solid!"
What should have been a tense boss fight was forcibly turned by Guizhong into something resembling a shooting competition.
Ryen let out a helpless sigh.
They had only just discovered the Naga Courtyard, and before Ryen could even give proper instructions, Guizhong had rushed in excitedly. The result? She was instantly startled by the Naga's grotesque, twisted appearance.
Back in ancient times, when fighting gods, there had never been monsters this hideous. At the very least, the gods were aesthetically pleasing.
Seeing something this ugly for the first time, Guizhong froze on the spot in shock. If Ryen hadn't reacted quickly and yanked her back out, she would have been sent flying by the Naga's charge.
That incident left Guizhong holding a grudge. Even though she no longer dared get close, she stubbornly stayed plastered to the wall, cheering with all her might.
Fortunately, this was their second run through the Twilight Forest.
To Jean and the others, the Naga's attack patterns were riddled with obvious openings, and the strategy was firmly memorized. After several minutes of flawless execution, without taking a single hit, the entire group relentlessly kited and battered the Naga.
At last, with the sharp crack of Ganyu's sniper rifle, the Naga collapsed, exploding into countless fragments before vanishing completely.
The familiar loot and Naga Scales remained behind.
Guizhong cheered and immediately spread her Wind Glider, leaping straight into the courtyard.
Strutting over with her chin held high and an exaggerated swagger, she patted Ryen on the shoulder, her expression full of satisfaction.
"As expected of me. Under my precise guidance, you successfully defeated that monstrously ugly thing."
"Though there were a few details you didn't handle perfectly, keep trying next time!"
Ryen rolled his eyes and unceremoniously ruffled her hair.
"If you hadn't been shouting and causing chaos, we'd have killed it two minutes earlier."
"How is that causing chaos?! I worked hard too! And I got scared by the Naga, you know!"
Guizhong muttered unhappily.
Ryen didn't argue. He simply rubbed her head gently and said softly,
"Then how about fighting poison with poison, hang the Naga's head in your room and look at it every day. You'll be immune eventually."
Guizhong stared at the small but exquisitely detailed trophy. Even reduced in size, its ugliness and ferocity were undiminished.
"I'll probably die of fright before I build immunity."
Ryen chuckled, stored the Naga loot, and called out,
"So? Anything good in the chest?"
Ganyu walked over gracefully and shook her head helplessly.
"No. Just an apprentice-level spellbook."
Ryen didn't mind at all. At this stage, aside from gathering materials, there wasn't much in the Twilight Forest that truly interested them anymore.
As for weapons,
What could possibly compare to the Master-tier staff and Slash Blade waiting in the final Dark Tower?
"Move out. Next stop, the Lich Tower!"
Ryen waved his hand. Ganyu, as always, followed her intuition and pointed in a direction.
This kind of thing had become second nature to her. Guided purely by instinct, she had never once led them wrong. Though Ganyu herself still found her luck strangely uncanny, everyone trusted her completely.
Walking beside Ryen, Ningguang gently looped her arm through his. Casting a glance toward Guizhong chatting with Ping'er and the others, she spoke softly,
"Do you think… what you have with Guizhong will always stay at the level of 'good comrades'?"
Ryen scratched his head in confusion.
"What else would it be?"
"That may be your thought," Ningguang replied with a light laugh. "She might not see it the same way."
She shook her head and smoothly changed the subject.
"Once we finish exploring the Twilight Forest, clear all the bosses, and unlock the new mod… you won't keep coming back here, will you?"
Ryen shrugged.
"I'll still come. I want to build a dreamy fairy-tale house for Klee and Nahida. As long as it's not one of the dangerous regions, the Twilight Forest scenery is actually quite nice."
"We could even come here for the occasional vacation. And the final goblin carries valuable loot, farming it once in a while isn't bad."
"Of course," he added, squeezing Ningguang's cheek affectionately,
"I won't be farming monsters myself."
"With you around, you'll arrange for the Millelith to gather resources for me, right?"
Ningguang sighed helplessly.
"As your woman, isn't that exactly what I should do? Besides, stationing the Millelith in the Twilight Forest was already part of our plan. It's just that…"
Her brows knit slightly as she continued with a hint of concern.
"The Twilight Forest's mechanics are too strange."
"The monsters themselves aren't difficult, except for the goblin at the end. Everything else has been thoroughly planned. As long as we follow the recorded strategies, there won't be danger."
"As for the goblin… send a team equipped with Totems of Undying and suppress it with long-range firepower."
"The real problem is that we can't establish a permanent base here."
"Every time the Twilight Forest is cleared, it resets. That makes its resources effectively infinite, but it's not ideal for long-term development."
Ryen tapped Ningguang's nose teasingly.
"You don't need to voice doubts to me. My Ningguang is far too clever to not already have a solution in mind."
"Honestly… won't you ever help me think things through and offer some ideas?"
Ningguang complained with mild irritation. "You only ever keep your city-building plans in mind."
She then slowed her tone and continued calmly:
"My proposal is this: we select three hundred personnel and form a dedicated Twilight Forest exploration unit.
"They won't need to set up camps, and they won't build permanent bases.
"Once they enter the Twilight Forest, they advance step by step, systematically opening up every area and ensuring that all resources are fully extracted.
"During the resource-gathering process, they will also continuously clear monsters. When everything has been harvested, the Twilight Forest will be fully cleared and reset.
"In this way, we create a rational closed loop."
She paused briefly, then continued:
"Our Twilight Forest resources will be infinite, and monster materials will be inexhaustible as well.
"At that point, Albedo's alchemy can truly shine. Take Naga Scales, for example, while the acquisition rate is slow, the supply will be steady and endless.
"There are plenty of valuable items in the Twilight Forest. Infinite resets mean infinite treasures.
"Additionally, if we ever have special requirements, this Millelith unit can directly clear the Twilight Forest again to obtain specific materials.
"This way, everyone saves effort, and you won't need to micromanage the Twilight Forest anymore.
"And if we keep this going long enough, Master-tier staffs and Slash Blades will eventually become plentiful."
She looked at Ryen seriously.
"What do you think of this arrangement?"
Ryen pondered for a moment, then nodded.
"Concise."
"..."
Ningguang rolled her eyes.
"I spent so long thinking this through, and you summarize it with just two words?"
Ryen casually wrapped an arm around her waist and chuckled.
"You've already laid it out so precisely, even accounting for future resource yields. What more is there for me to add?"
"My Ningguang is the best steward I could ask for. With you here, I can focus entirely on my grand city-building ambitions."
"Tonight, I'll give you an extra reward."
Ningguang was more than satisfied with his words, though she still tapped him lightly in annoyance.
"Tonight was already my time."
She didn't dwell on it further and quickly regained her composure, speaking seriously again:
"I know you're clearing the Twilight Forest mainly for the new mod. Once it's completed, you may not come back often.
"But since this dimension contains things you need, I'll arrange for people to gather them for you.
"Master-tier staffs and similar items will all be distributed by you. As for the other large-scale resources…"
She hesitated slightly before continuing:
"I want to assign those directly, for example, Fiery Iron Swords, Frost Swords, Ender Bows, Tracking Bows, and so on."
Ryen waved his hand casually.
"Handle it however you see fit. You can decide these things yourself."
"You're not even going to hear my reasoning?" Ningguang smiled faintly. "That's quite a bit of trust."
"What else would I do?"
Ryen laughed as he pinched her cheek.
"You're my woman. Do I really need to interrogate every decision you make?"
Ningguang smiled, but still replied calmly:
"Even so, matters involving the world should be handled rigorously."
She continued with clear intent:
"I want to re-equip the Millelith light infantry.
"At present, the heavy cavalry already have warhorses, enchanted weapons, and alchemical potions. In essence, they're an upgraded form of light infantry.
"But since light infantry and heavy cavalry belong to the same military system, this imbalance in combat power has become inappropriate."
She explained her plan in detail:
"I intend for light infantry to carry standard alchemical potions, Fiery Iron Swords, and Frost Swords, along with various bows from the Twilight Forest.
"They'll form a close-combat elemental unit. With the unique bows, they can conduct powerful ranged attacks.
"In melee combat, they'll be able to trigger coordinated elemental reactions.
"This shifts the light infantry's combat style away from potion reliance and toward elemental power.
"It clearly distinguishes them from the heavy cavalry and completes the combat structure of Liyue's six main frontline forces."
Ningguang hadn't lowered her voice, so Jean, Kujou Sara, and the others walking nearby naturally heard everything.
Earlier, since Ningguang and Ryen had mostly been discussing personal matters, they had politely ignored it.
As for Twilight Forest development, Ningguang's plan was already extremely thorough. They had no intention of interfering, when the time came, they would simply follow Liyue's arrangements.
But the restructuring of the six main military divisions caught their attention.
They stepped closer, listening intently.
"That makes a great deal of sense," Jean said seriously.
"Our current military structure largely mirrors Liyue's system."
"The positioning of light infantry is somewhat awkward. Improving it would benefit not only overall combat effectiveness, but also the morale of the light infantry themselves."