The name alone landed with the weight of a bronze bell.
Ningguang and the others instinctively furrowed their brows, their expressions tinged with confusion.
Cultivation…
The literal meaning was the pursuit of immortality.
For ordinary Liyue citizens, seeking the way of the immortals was harmless enough—but among Liyue's upper echelons, it was an absolute taboo. Anyone daring to entertain such an idea would be sternly rebuked by the adepti.
And yet, here was Rex Lapis himself proposing cultivation?
Moreover, adepti were born of heaven and earth—they could not be made through mere training. In other words, they were beings under the divine mandate of the Archons. Even if Rex Lapis himself wished to raise someone to such a level, it could not be done lightly.
"This morning's thunderclouds shrouding all of Liyue… I trust everyone here has heard of it," Zhongli said casually.
Ningguang immediately nodded.
"Yes. Every other nation has been reaching out to the General Affairs Bureau through various secret channels, all wanting to know what happened. Lord Rex Lapis, those bolts of lightning earlier… it seemed they spread across all of Teyvat."
Zhongli inclined his head, unsurprised—Ningguang had already reported as much to him.
"That," he said, "is exactly what we are here to discuss."
"Has war broken out? Do you require us to march and quell it?" Granny Ping asked offhandedly.
Despite her mild grandmotherly appearance, Granny Ping was one of the most formidable fighters among the adepti. She had simply lost the will to battle after Guizhong's passing. But if Liyue truly needed her, she could resume her immortal form in an instant.
"War?"
Zhongli shook his head. "Quite the opposite. This time I've called you all here not because of some disaster, but because of a great fortune.
"If handled well, the Liyue of tomorrow could, without exaggeration, become a divine kingdom upon the earth—and the entire nation could ascend as immortals with ease.
"But if handled poorly… Liyue will be doomed. At best, it will fade into obscurity, forgotten by Teyvat.
"This is too great a matter for me to decide alone. All of you must take part in the decision."
His words only deepened the fog in their minds. Still, knowing it was neither war nor calamity allowed them to breathe easier.
"Cloud Retainer," Zhongli said, tapping the table lightly. "Explain to them."
Cloud Retainer rose gracefully, already understanding what was required.
"This matter begins a hundred days ago, with the arrival in Teyvat of an otherworldly traveler—or to be more precise… a cultivator."
Over the next hour, she explained in clear, deliberate detail all that had transpired since Jiang Yan's arrival, including his words earlier today and Zhongli's conversation with Alice.
When Cloud Retainer finally sat down, throat parched, the entire Jade Chamber fell into a heavy, unprecedented silence.
It was a long time before Ningguang finally rubbed at her temples.
"If everything you say is true… then this could be a turning point not just for Liyue, but for all of Teyvat."
"What is that supposed to mean? Are you accusing this immortal of lying?" Cloud Retainer snapped, her hoarse voice laced with irritation as she glared at Ningguang.
"Cloud Retainer!" Zhongli's tone sharpened.
"This is no time for personal tempers. Besides… when you first heard this account from Jiang Yan yourself, did you not also find it hard to believe?"
Cloud Retainer gave a dismissive huff but relented, seating herself again. She had never cared for Ningguang or Keqing, and being doubted only stoked her temper.
Ningguang knew full well Cloud Retainer disliked her, so she didn't bother sparring words. She simply frowned and said,
"If that is Lord Rex Lapis's own judgment, then I will trust it. Still—cultivation…"
"Let us set aside the how of cultivation for the moment," she continued. "As for this cultivator—Jiang…"
Before she could finish, Zhongli raised a hand to interrupt.
"Do not speak his name. In Teyvat, the moment anyone calls it aloud, he becomes aware of it. We witnessed this ourselves atop Mt. Tianheng earlier today.
"This is a private meeting of Liyue. It would be unwise to let him know. Address him simply as 'the gentleman.'"
A chill prickled at the back of Ningguang's mind. Her caution toward this man deepened immeasurably. As a ruler, she feared most of all a being who could sense every mention of them. That left no room for secrets.
She was silent for a moment before asking,
"Lord Rex Lapis… if you were to face this gentleman in battle, how much of a chance would you have?"
The question caught everyone's attention.
Zhongli fell silent for a long while before sighing.
"Even if every Archon and every godly being in Teyvat, past or present, were to join forces, we could not withstand even a single exchange against him. I am no exception.
"If he wished to destroy Teyvat, it would be done in but a single thought."
His words left the room utterly numb.
"Are you certain?" Keqing asked, unable to hold back.
Though she disliked Zhongli's constant control over Liyue, she had absolute confidence in his strength. As did everyone. He was the God of War, the one who had swept the land of Liyue clean through force of arms.
"I am certain," Zhongli said with a nod. "Earlier, when he wielded ten thousand swords, even the faintest trace of his aura gave me the sense of inescapable death.
"As he says, I am merely at the late stage of Essence Refinement into Qi. Xiao, who is closest among us to the power of an Archon, has only reached the peak of Essence Refinement into Qi.
"Even Ganyu and Shenhe are not yet at the mid-stage of that same realm. By this measure, many of Teyvat's so-called gods may not even have entered the first stage at all."
Ningguang felt a stifling weight pressing against her chest.
"The first realm…" she murmured.
"The most fearsome thing about cultivators is not their power alone," Zhongli said gravely, "but that they are seekers of eternal life.
"According to the gentleman, their longevity comes without the erosion that we suffer. So long as they survive their heavenly tribulations, they may live for countless millennia.
"Though I did not ask his exact age, I judge his lifespan to be no less than five thousand years—and perhaps already beyond ten thousand.
"And yet, his bone age… is barely over twenty."
Ningguang's long lashes trembled.
"Then for at least several thousand years, his peak strength will remain utterly undiminished?"
"Likely more," Zhongli replied with a tinge of envy. "His talent all but guarantees ascension to true immortality. Once that happens, there will be no end to his life."
They were all, in their own way, cultivators—yet his path brought no erosion, no slow death. While Zhongli himself… was already worn near to breaking.
Fair?
Reasonable?
"So," Ningguang said after a pause, "our first priority is not the matter of cultivation, but the gentleman himself.
"Though he seems mild-mannered and approachable, the truth is that his strength… means Teyvat is little more than his personal garden.
"We should harbor no intent to harm, but neither can we be without vigilance. Alice's warning rings true—cultivators pursue only their own path to immortality, without the compassion that drives the gods.
"If, as she says, slaughtering the world could make him stronger, we cannot assume he would not do it."
The fact remained: a cultivator was not an Archon. They were a free, unrestrained, and inherently domineering breed.
Ningguang would not gamble Liyue's survival on the hope that he had no ill will.
Alice might be unreliable—but since even something as absurd as dual cultivation had been confirmed by the gentleman himself, how far-fetched was the idea of forging weapons from slaughtered mortals?
Between trusting another… and trusting herself—
Ningguang had known the answer since the day she first entered the world of ruthless commerce.
If you relied on others, you were already dead.
"Heh. Fine words," Cloud Retainer sneered.
"You speak as if soaring in the clouds—but what means have you to bind him? Lord Rex Lapis? Us? Or your pitiful mortal strength?"
Her bluntness soured the expressions of all the Qixing—but she was not wrong.
For one so powerful, the very thought of restraining him was itself an error.
And if he decided to swat you like an insect… there would be nowhere to lodge a complaint.
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