Keqing, born into a prominent family, possessed an excellent foundation of knowledge.
While not as erudite as the scholars of the Sumeru Academia, she at least understood basic elements and fundamental world phenomena.
However...
Today, all that past knowledge was overturned.
Because she witnessed a person fall into a lava pool, take a bath, and emerge completely unharmed.
Immediately after, she watched as an iron bucket, at most holding a liter of water.
Poured out a cubic meter of water.
And that was just the beginning.
That cubic meter of water squirmed like some evil creature.
Under her very eyes, it rapidly spread and extended.
From one cubic meter, it expanded to tens of cubic meters.
In fact, Keqing could still barely accept it up to this point.
After all, wasn't that how the ornamental fish tank in Jiang Xuan's villa was made?
What truly made Keqing, and even the others, wildly doubt their perception of reality.
Was that after the bucket of water was poured out, it spread without ceasing, extending downwards. From a one-cubic-meter size, it transformed into a volume that could fill a swimming pool.
And when that water came into contact with the lava.
With almost no elemental or other reactions, the lava instantly turned into a large expanse of Obsidian.
Jiang Xuan jumped into the water, slowly descending along the water column onto the Obsidian.
Then, he turned around, picked up the Iron Bucket, refilled it with water, and walked to the edge where the Obsidian and lava met.
Just like before, he repeated the process.
Pouring water, forming Obsidian, refilling water, pouring water...
Everyone watched as Jiang Xuan, using just an Iron Bucket of water.
Transformed the formerly boundless lava pool into a flat Obsidian plain.
Cloud Retainer, standing above, pursed her lips, and said with complicated feelings:
"Is this... a means of reclaiming land from the sea, involving laws of nature?"
"Perhaps..."
Zhongli replied flatly, then leaped down, landing on the water. Despite a six-block drop, he landed on the water completely unharmed.
Zhongli reconfirmed the bizarre law: falling from a height into water causes no damage.
Hearing Zhongli's movement, Jiang Xuan also turned around. In this short time, he had already filled a lava pool hundreds of meters in radius.
Waving his hand, he called out:
"After you come down, first place torches, then look around for diamonds."
The others, landing one by one, exchanged glances and silently pulled out their torches to place them.
Keqing followed Ningguang, somewhat distracted.
Ningguang, with her astute mind, naturally understood why Keqing was spacing out.
After placing the last torch, Ningguang turned to Keqing, a faint smile on her face.
"Are you that shocked by Jiang Xuan's act of filling the lava? Logically, you've been here longer than I have, so you should be more accustomed to these illogical phenomena."
Keqing's eyes brightened. She turned to glance at Jiang Xuan, who was still filling lava at the edge, and shook her head slightly.
"I was thinking about something just now..."
Ningguang said nothing, just looked at Keqing with quiet elegance, like the most perfect listener.
Keqing didn't keep her in suspense. After a brief thought, she whispered:
"Jiang Xuan's ability to fill an Iron Bucket with water and interact with lava in this manner is truly astonishing. I was thinking..."
"Could we utilize this ability to expand Liyue Harbor?"
"After forming a partnership with Jiang Xuan, Liyue's various businesses are bound to flourish."
"Therefore, we must plan for Liyue Harbor in advance. If we can utilize the sea area without affecting normal ship docking..."
"Jiang Xuan's world's lava and water would be a cost-free method for land reclamation."
"What do you think?"
Upon hearing this, Ningguang was somewhat amazed by Keqing's astonishing idea.
However, land reclamation itself was a somewhat sensitive issue; at the very least, it definitely wasn't something the two of them could decide.
But Ningguang didn't really want to reject Keqing's plan either. She also wanted Liyue Harbor to be larger and more prosperous.
She wanted Liyue Harbor to never again experience the poverty she knew in her childhood.
More aggressive development was necessary.
After a moment of thought, Ningguang neither rejected nor denied it, merely saying softly:
"This matter is of great importance. Our opinions alone might be too limited. Perhaps we should consult the Geo Archon after the Rite of Descension."
Although Keqing wanted to implement this plan decisively, Ningguang's words were very reasonable.
She was wholeheartedly devoted to Liyue.
But...
Gossip was a fearful thing.
After much deliberation, Keqing decided to help Jiang Xuan find diamonds first.
The two quickened their pace and walked over to Jiang Xuan.
At this moment, Ganyu and Cloud Retainer were swinging their pickaxes at the Obsidian.
And Jiang Xuan, watching Ganyu and Cloud Retainer swing their Iron Pickaxes at the Obsidian, had a complicated expression, wanting to speak but holding back.
From then until now, Jiang Xuan had repeatedly wanted to remind them that Iron Pickaxes couldn't break Obsidian.
But Ganyu and Cloud Retainer, caught up in their excitement, clearly didn't give Jiang Xuan a chance to speak.
"Jiang Xuan..."
Ningguang gracefully walked over, glanced at Ganyu, who was pouting slightly and swinging her pickaxe relentlessly.
She looked like a hardworking hamster building its nest.
But visibly, the Obsidian showed no signs of budging.
One had to know that even relatively hard iron ore would crack after a few swings from Ganyu.
But this Obsidian...
It was completely unmoved!
Immediately, Ningguang's spirits lifted.
"Jiang Xuan, this Obsidian... seems very hard!"
Jiang Xuan nodded wryly, spreading his hands.
"Obsidian is considered one of the hardest ores in this world. Even TNT..."
Jiang Xuan was about to say that Obsidian was blast-proof, but then he remembered that no one had seen TNT before.
He quickly changed his words:
"Even a Creeper's explosion won't damage Obsidian, so it has many uses."
"Besides crafting Nether Portals, it can also be used to build Fortifications, or even Prison Fortresses."
"You know, without a Diamond Pickaxe, no other pickaxe can mine Obsidian."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ganyu and Cloud Retainer, who were digging enthusiastically, froze.
Even Keqing stopped her attempt to start digging and silently withdrew her Iron Pickaxe.
"Jiang Xuan!"
Ganyu's face flushed slightly. She looked at the Obsidian, then at her Iron Pickaxe.
She said with a hint of grievance:
"Were you deliberately trying to make me embarrass myself?"
Although her words were a complaint, the kind Ganyu couldn't bear to truly complain about Jiang Xuan.
Her tone was filled with embarrassment about her own actions.
Jiang Xuan looked at Ganyu with some helplessness.
"I wanted to say something, but you didn't give me a chance..."
"You just came up and started mining with an Iron Pickaxe, and besides..."
Jiang Xuan pointed to the ground, amused:
"Ganyu, didn't you ever think? The Obsidian we're standing on is above lava."
"If you're using Vein Miner and you dig it away, wouldn't everyone fall into the lava? Didn't you feel something was wrong when I didn't stop you in such a dangerous situation?"
Although he was talking to Ganyu, Cloud Retainer, who was also involved, averted her gaze awkwardly.
After a moment, she cleared her throat, trying to save face.
"This Immortal... This Immortal actually had a guess early on. But this Immortal was also testing the hardness of this Obsidian."
"It proves that Obsidian is very hard and can serve as a cage for powerful criminals, or for building Fortifications."
"Ahem... This Immortal will go look for diamonds. The rest is up to you all."
With that, Cloud Retainer quickened her steps and hurried away.
Her figure, however, was more or less disheveled.
Seeing this, Jiang Xuan chuckled, gently patting Ganyu's head.
"Alright, let's go look for diamonds too. This is the most important thing about this mining trip."
After all, diamonds and Obsidian were the foundation for starting the Enchantment Era.
Of course, if Jiang Xuan's village had an Enchanting Table, it wouldn't be this troublesome.
But that village was so poor that Pillagers would weep upon seeing it.
Muttering to himself, Jiang Xuan looked up at the ceiling of the mine.
Keqing had intended to ask Jiang Xuan for his thoughts on Liyue Harbor's land reclamation, but seeing the expectation in Jiang Xuan's eyes.
She silently helped him search for diamonds instead.
However, they searched the entire lava pool, and looked at the ceiling and surrounding walls.
There was no sign of diamonds.
Jiang Xuan was even considering giving up, when suddenly, Cloud Retainer, not far away, called out.
"Jiang Xuan, come quickly! This Immortal seems to have found diamonds!"
Everyone froze, then hurried towards Cloud Retainer. Jiang Xuan, worried that Cloud Retainer might start digging directly, loudly replied:
"Don't dig yet! Wait for me to get there and see!"
Fortunately, after the incidents of needing Silk Touch for gold ore and a Diamond Pickaxe for Obsidian.
Cloud Retainer was no longer the rash person who would just swing her pickaxe at any ore she found.
She quietly waited for Jiang Xuan and the others to arrive.
Of course, they didn't wait long, and everyone soon reached the spot.
It was a narrow passage, not part of the lava pool Jiang Xuan had filled.
It was quite inconspicuous; the front was dark, and it was hard to see what was there, but it was definitely a mine passage.
Cloud Retainer pointed to three connected Diamond Ore on the ground and said:
"This Immortal stumbled upon this small path, walked over, lit a torch, and found this. It should be diamond ore, right?"
Jiang Xuan examined it closely and immediately beamed.
"That's right! It's Diamond Ore! Exactly three, enough to make a pickaxe."
Hearing this, Xiao immediately stepped forward, eager to help:
"I'll dig, Mr. Jiang Xuan, can an Iron Pickaxe work?"
But Jiang Xuan shook his head slightly.
"I'll do it this time. An Iron Pickaxe can indeed mine Diamond Ore, but there are some techniques involved."
With that, Jiang Xuan personally stepped forward to demonstrate.
In his previous life, while playing games, he had more than once carelessly mined Diamond Ore, only for the diamonds to fall into the lava below with a single swing. These were painful lessons.
"When you find diamonds, you can't mine them directly. It's best to turn off Vein Miner and mine the surrounding stone area."
"Dig away the stone, confirm there's no lava beneath the Diamond Ore, and then mine the Diamond Ore."
As he spoke, Jiang Xuan dug away the cobblestone next to the diamonds, and after digging one block down again, as expected, he saw the scorching lava.
A trace of relief flashed in Jiang Xuan's eyes. He was lucky to be careful this time. Otherwise, the diamonds he had diligently searched for two days would have fallen into the lava, and Jiang Xuan would have been truly heartbroken.
"See that?"
Jiang Xuan pointed to the lava, somewhat helplessly:
"If you're not careful, not only will the diamonds fall in, but you'll also be in danger."
"So, when mining for Diamond Ore here, you must be extremely careful."
He casually blocked the lava with stone, and then used Vein Miner to collect the three coveted diamonds.
The moment the ore shattered, dazzling diamonds floated to the ground.
Reflected by the lava and torchlight, they were stunningly beautiful and brilliant.
"Diamonds..."
Jiang Xuan picked up the three diamonds, a hint of emotion in his eyes.
"Finally... I finally have diamonds..."
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