Although the cooperation had fallen through, Aether didn't show the slightest hint of concern.
On the contrary, he calmly reminded, "Lesser Lord Kusanali, whether you believe it or not, once the Order has gathered enough energy, we will reconnect with the Irminsul."
"By then, if you still insist on obstructing the Order's actions…" As he spoke, Aether's tone gradually grew stern.
Nahida refused to back down and responded without hesitation, "Aren't you afraid that I'll drag you into an endless dream then?"
"Next time, Shao Yun won't be of any use."
As soon as the words left her mouth, Nahida's grass-green eyes suddenly sparkled with a brilliant green light.
This was the distinct feature displayed when she invoked the authority of the Dendro Archon.
Aether narrowed his eyes slightly and coldly threatened Nahida, "Hmph, then let's wait and see."
No sooner had he finished speaking than he turned his head, waved at Enjou, and signaled him to open the Abyssal portal.
Just as Aether was about to step into the portal, Shao Yun suddenly asked, "So we wasted our time again?"
Hearing this, Aether stopped in his tracks, slowly turned, and fixed his gaze on his brother-in-law.
"You can't say it was all for nothing. At least, you've changed that woman's fate trajectory."
"As for my plan, it will definitely succeed. Trust me!"
After saying this, Aether stepped into the Abyssal portal and left.
Seeing His Highness depart, Enjou quickly followed.
However, before leaving, he made a point of walking over to Shao Yun, smiling as he bid farewell, "Then, farewell, Mr. Shao Yun. I look forward to our next meeting!"
Shao Yun, who had a fairly high opinion of Enjou, also nodded with a big smile and replied, "Haha, farewell, and take good care of my big brother!"
Hearing this, Enjou immediately made a reassuring gesture and earnestly responded, "Of course! I'll take my leave now."
He then turned and stepped into the portal, and as the light gradually dimmed, the entire space returned to calm.
…
By now, the cavern was left empty except for Shao Yun and Nahida, the atmosphere slightly awkward…
After all, the relationship between these two wasn't exactly great right now…
Nahida lightly cleared her throat twice to break the awkwardness, intending to give him a graceful exit.
"All right, Mr. Shao Yun, can you take me back to Sumeru City? I've been missing for so long, the Order will have been thrown into chaos."
Hearing this, possibly due to his low honor rating, Shao Yun immediately started complaining, "Whoa, why? I remember, I just poked you once, didn't chop off your two cute little legs!"
"Why can't you just walk back yourself? Can't even handle that much?"
Hearing this, Nahida couldn't hold back. Is this guy's head growing mushrooms, or did someone pour sand in there? I'm trying to give him a way out, trying to mend our relationship, and he just mocks me! He even says I give face and get none in return!
And seriously, Shao Yun really thinks he's some sports prodigy. Sumeru City is tens of thousands of miles away—if you try walking back, your legs would be ground to dust!
However, bearing the title of the Dendro Archon, Nahida quickly devised a countermeasure.
She merely raised her eyebrows slightly, a barely noticeable smile tugging at the corner of her lips, and then deliberately began to bring up old grievances.
"Hmm, that's right, you did poke me. Since that's the case, out of your apology, shouldn't you obediently take me back to Sumeru City, 'Arthur Morgan'?"
As she deliberately emphasized the words "Arthur Morgan," Shao Yun rubbed his nose, still sore from the earlier blow, mumbling complaints.
"But you punched my nose… I think that evens us out, right? I don't owe you anything!"
Though he said this aloud, he began to doubt himself internally.
Upon reflection, there wasn't truly a blood feud between him and Nahida; at most, it was just a clash of views.
It wasn't a big deal—so long as they minimized contact and avoided unnecessary exchanges in the future, everything would be fine.
Besides, back when they first interacted, their relationship had been relatively amicable.
Finally, considering Lumine and Paimon's feelings, Shao Yun squared his heart and reluctantly agreed to ride with Nahida back to Sumeru City.
"All right, I'll take you back, but please call me 'Shao Yun'! Thank you." Shao Yun reminded her to use his name before agreeing to escort Nahida back to Sumeru City.
Then he whistled, preparing to ride with her back.
Unexpectedly, this time, it wasn't the pale pink Andalusian horse Carrot, nor the chestnut Hungarian crossbreed Boadicea.
Instead, a unique black-coated horse with a white face appeared before him.
Notably, this horse also had white fetlocks at the ends of its legs.
Shao Yun's eyes widened as he stared at the black horse that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
His mouth dropped open, and after a long pause, he stammered in astonishment, "Wha… whoa! What's going on here? What the heck?"
At that moment, the system displayed several timely messages.
[A mysterious horse has heard your summons.]
Immediately afterward, a detailed description appeared.
[Missouri Fox Trotter: "Barefaced" Baylock.]
[Effect: Riding Baylock will greatly enhance your intimidation.]
[Effect Explanation: When your honor is high, it causes people to feel a physiological fear as if your honor were low.]
[Note: Your stable is already full.]
Although Micah's horse weren't anything special, there was no denying that the guy had a good taste in horses.
Shao Yun walked slowly around Baylock, carefully observing his strong yet elegant physique, growing more fond with every glance.
He then reached out, gently stroking Baylock's head, and said softly with affection, "Hey, little guy, looks like you're mine from now on."
Seemingly understanding Shao Yun, Baylock let out a joyful neigh and nuzzled his chest with his head, then proudly flicked his long tail.
Seeing this, Shao Yun smiled slightly and deftly mounted Baylock's broad back.
Once seated, he looked down at Nahida, still standing on the ground.
Then, like lifting a tiny chick, he extended his hands, scooped Nahida from the ground, and settled her petite frame securely in front of him.
With everything arranged, Shao Yun flicked the reins and said loudly, "All right, I'll take you back to Sumeru City!"
…
Sumeru City, inside the Akademiya.
Now, Nahida had been missing for almost a month, and after Khaenri'ah, the Godless Nation had appeared in Sumeru!
Alhaitham sat behind the spacious desk that had once belonged to the Grand Sage, facing piles of documents and scrolls stacked like mountains.
Looking at this daunting workload, Alhaitham couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.
Now, all matters of the Sumeru Akademiya rested on him—affairs and experiments from all six colleges ultimately requiring his seal of approval.
Not only that, Alhaitham had to frequently attend various tedious academic conferences.
At those long, dull conferences, he had to endure the so-called research reports of scholars who pretended to be profound but were actually empty and pointless.
They spoke endlessly of theories that seemed incomprehensibly complex but were in reality hollow, making Alhaitham squirm in his seat.
He thought to himself, what kind of nonsense are these scholars spouting? The logic is like mixing concrete with spaghetti…
At this moment, the power Alhaitham held surpassed that of any Grand Sage before him; he could truly be said to hold the world in his hands.
However, a great scholar once said: "With great power comes great responsibility."
Despite holding enormous authority, Alhaitham felt no sense of power, only endless fatigue.
After all, Sumeru was a university disguised as a nation. No matter how much power he had, he still had to manage education.
Once education is involved, it's exhausting, both physically and mentally.
Just as Alhaitham was contemplating leaping from the Order, Cyno arrived via the lift.
Upon Cyno's arrival, Alhaitham hurriedly asked, "Cyno, what's the situation? Have you found the whereabouts of the Dendro Archon?"
Cyno shook his head slightly, expressionless, and responded in a calm yet unsettling tone, "I've thoroughly searched the entire rainforest region with my team. Nothing."
"My plan now is to expand the search to the desert area, so I've come to request your approval to mobilize the Eremites employed by the Akademiya and usually active in the desert to assist me."
Hearing that Cyno still hadn't found Nahida and planned to continue searching the desert, Alhaitham, though disappointed, still made some arrangements.
"The Eremites… yes, desert search operations are their specialty… approved."
Just as Alhaitham was pondering which gilded brigade to assign, Panah the Akademiya official, who had previously distributed Akasha Terminals at Sumeru's gates, rushed over in a flurry.
Pana sprinted to Alhaitham, so hurried that even his breathing was disordered.
But he ignored his breath, excitedly shouting, "Acting Grand Sage, good news! Huge good news!"
Seeing this, Alhaitham quickly gestured for him to calm down.
Then, he asked patiently, "Don't rush. Slowly tell me—what kind of news makes you lose control like this?"
Despite being told to catch his breath, Pana still shouted, "The Dendro Archon… she… she was brought back by Shao Yun!"
…
Elsewhere, in front of the gates of the Sanctuary of Surasthana, Shao Yun reached out, slipped his hands under Nahida's arms, and lifted her off the horse's back in front of him.
Once he set the petite Nahida safely on the ground, Shao Yun couldn't resist teasing, "We're here, Nahida. Next time, remember to exercise more, so you can run back to the Order from the desert in one go—don't trouble me."
"See, my horse gained a few extra grams of weight because of you, poor thing!"
As he spoke, he gently patted Baylock's neck, apologizing to the horse.
Hearing this, Nahida, who had just stabilized herself, froze mid-step, her delicate face flushing crimson.
She quickly spun around and raised her middle finger at Shao Yun.
The pale finger stood straight in the air, expressing Nahida's inner frustration and anger.
Seeing her boldness, Shao Yun frowned slightly and clenched his fist.
"What was Enjou thinking? He actually healed your little hand! In my opinion, he should have just chopped it off and boiled it in soup!"
"That way, you wouldn't be gesturing at me with that hand now!"
The moment Shao Yun finished speaking, the once cocky Nahida immediately deflated like a punctured balloon.
She hastily retracted her raised middle finger, like a child who had done something wrong, obediently clasping her hands behind her back and lowering her head, avoiding Shao Yun's gaze.
After multiple tests on the way back, Nahida knew that as long as she appeared pitiful and repentant, Shao Yun usually wouldn't trouble her further.
After all, she posed no threat to Lumine and Paimon; Nahida didn't believe Shao Yun could really harm her.
Seeing Nahida's compliant behavior, Shao Yun's anger subsided slightly.
He shook his head helplessly, sighing, "Forget it, not worth quarreling with you. I'm leaving, you stay put."
After speaking, Shao Yun turned his horse, flicked the reins, and rode off, leaving Nahida behind.
…
As he left the Sanctuary of Surasthana, heading along the passage toward the tree, Shao Yun happened to run into Alhaitham and Cyno.
Seeing Shao Yun walking from the palace, Alhaitham tensed and hurriedly asked, "Shao Yun, the Dendro Archon… I heard from the Akademiya official that you…"
However, before he could finish, Shao Yun abruptly interrupted.
He casually raised a hand, pointed towards the Sanctuary of Surasthana, and replied nonchalantly, "That 'garden gnome' has already been returned to the Sanctuary of Surasthana. Just go up and find her yourself."
Hearing this, Alhaitham's eyes widened slightly, repeating the keywords in disbelief.
"Garden…"
Cyno, standing beside him, also showed a rare flicker of emotion and exclaimed, "Gnome?!"
Clearly, both were shocked by Shao Yun's unusual nickname for Nahida.
Unbothered by their reactions, Shao Yun teased lightly, "What, don't like me calling Nahida that?"
Seeing Alhaitham and Cyno at a loss, Shao Yun's smile disappeared, his expression darkening, and he said harshly, "Of course, even if you don't like it, you'll just have to deal with it!"
With that, he ignored the stunned pair, continuing to ride away from the Akademiya.
Alhaitham and Cyno watched Shao Yun's departing figure, still stunned, unable to utter a word for a long time.
===BREAK===
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