Hearing the rattle of the wooden door and the voice outside, Qiqi trembled on the spot.
She turned to Su Han with pleading eyes, hoping he would drive Hu Tao away.
Even though her memories had recovered, the shadow Hu Tao had left in her heart had not faded.
Click.
The door opened, and Hu Tao slipped inside from the corridor.
When she saw Qiqi, she let out a small laugh.
"Qiqi… I finally found you. I looked everywhere, and you ran all the way here."
"D-Don't come any closer… Brother Su Han will protect me…"
Seeing Qiqi's tense expression, Hu Tao almost laughed in exasperation.
She reached out to pinch Qiqi's cheek, but Qiqi dodged away.
"Tao-tao, you're trying to tease Qiqi again."
"I'm not. After you lectured me last time, I realized Qiqi can look just like a normal girl. So I thought I'd help her change into a new outfit. Look at her clothes now. They make her look so gloomy."
At those words, Su Han finally noticed it too.
The clothes on Qiqi really did not suit a young girl at all.
They gave off a cold, eerie feeling.
He also saw that Hu Tao was holding a set of clothes in her hands.
Clearly, she wasn't here to mess with Qiqi.
She actually wanted to help her change.
"Really… you're not going to bury me this time?"
Qiqi looked at her nervously. If Hu Tao pretended to help her change clothes, there might already be a pit dug outside.
She remembered it all too clearly.
Once, Hu Tao had shown up with a pretty outfit.
It was in the middle of the night.
Baizhu and the other staff were already asleep.
Hu Tao suddenly appeared in front of her and said,
"Ahhh, Qiqi, see how nice I am to you. I bought you a brand new outfit. It's pretty, isn't it? Come on… big sister will take you somewhere good to change."
Then she slung Qiqi over her shoulder and carried her into the bamboo forest.
The clothes did get changed.
But right after that, Hu Tao picked up a shovel and started digging.
Qiqi had bolted in terror.
The two of them spent the whole night running under the moon.
Ever since then, whenever she heard someone say "new clothes," Qiqi would freeze up.
She refused to wear anything except what she had now.
Because if she put on something new, she was afraid she would be buried in the ground.
Hearing Qiqi say this, Hu Tao rolled her eyes and huffed. "Listen to yourself… I used to think zombies should be laid to rest. But now that I know you're fine, why would I cause you trouble? Hurry up. Otherwise, you can change right here in front of Su Han. With him watching, you're not scared, right?"
The girl blinked, then turned to look at Su Han.
Something seemed to settle in her heart.
"Alright… I'll change in this room. Brother Su Han… you… you can't leave my sight. Otherwise Qiqi will be scared."
"Mm. Go ahead. There's a screen over there. Tao-tao, stay where you are. I'll watch her."
Hearing that, Qiqi finally smiled with relief.
She took the clothes Hu Tao brought and walked behind the screen.
But once she was inside, she peeked her head out again, checking carefully.
Only after she confirmed Hu Tao wasn't following with a rope in hand did she finally exhale.
"Good… no rope…"
Slowly, she took off her old coat and put on the outfit Hu Tao had brought.
It was an adorable pink set, clearly tailor-made for her.
Once she put it on, Qiqi felt as if she really had become a little cuter.
A few minutes later, she walked out hesitantly and looked at the two of them. "With these clothes… do I really look good?"
The eerie air she sometimes carried before was gone.
Now she looked exactly like a soft, quiet little girl from next door.
Su Han felt an urge to lean over and kiss her.
"Hehe, much prettier, right? I personally had this custom-made," Hu Tao said, obviously pleased with her handiwork.
Su Han nodded. "Mm. It really does look good. You two play for a bit. I need to go to Mondstadt. There's something I have to do today."
"Alright, then you go. Be careful on the road. Don't worry, I won't bully Qiqi."
"Safe travels…"
Thanks to the gift of new clothes, Qiqi, for the time being at least, chose to trust Hu Tao again.
When Su Han arrived in Mondstadt, it was already nine in the morning.
Jean had posted a notice in advance, so the Knights of Favonius and the people from the Church had all gathered in the plaza.
"What's going on today? Why gather so many people?"
"I heard His Holiness is going to grant us a new kind of power."
"Really? He's far too generous…"
"Yeah, training in Haki already made me a lot stronger. My strength has shot up…"
As they chatted, a streak of light flew in from the direction of Liyue.
The crowd fell silent.
Moments later, Su Han stood before them.
"Knights of Mondstadt, and priests of the Church… All this time, you have worried about being unable to protect this city. From today onward, you no longer need to carry that concern.
"Barbatos and I have found a new power. As long as your faith is sincere, you can obtain it. I call these paths Holy Light Knight and Holy Light Priest.
"The first is a ferocious vanguard for close combat, wielding the power of Holy Light.
"The second is exclusive to priests. Healing the people. Healing allies. Casting support spells for your companions."
Hearing his introduction, many who could not cultivate Haki revealed eager looks.
Not everyone could train in Haki.
But this new method gave them hope.
Especially the gentle priests of the Church of Favonius. It fit them perfectly.
Su Han had inscribed the cultivation method into a Memory Stone.
Everyone could study how to guide Holy Light into the body, how to merge conviction with radiance.
Simply put, besides training, it was faith that formed the true foundation of Holy Light.
The first person to awaken it…
Was none other than Su Han's sister-in-law, Barbara.
As she grasped the power of Holy Light, a strong radiance wrapped around her, making an already cute girl seem instantly sacred.
"Wow… Miss Barbara already mastered the power of Holy Light? She's amazing…"
But the surprising part was only beginning.
After she awakened and changed class to Holy Light Priest, a flood of spells appeared in Barbara's mind.
Holy Nova.
Light of Purification.
Prayer of Healing.
Healing Hymn.
Hymn of Praise.
That last one required not only powerful Holy Light, but also a deep understanding of music.
Barbara read through the spells, then began to sing.
"La… lalala…"
Countless motes of light rose from her body and spread out quickly in all directions.
Knights who had been on duty all night suddenly felt their fatigue melt away.
Those who had been injured during training were startled to find their wounds healing.
"My goodness… what miraculous power is this? My whole body feels light…"
"Same here. I was exhausted just now, but suddenly I feel wide awake…"
"So this is the strength of a Holy Light Priest… incredible…"
The priests across the plaza looked at Barbara, bathed in light, their eyes full of admiration.
Su Han was a bit surprised as well.
He had always known Barbara had strong talent for support. He just hadn't expected her affinity with the Holy Light to be this high.
If she continued to focus on cultivating it, she would likely become the strongest healer in Mondstadt.
A single Hymn of Praise had already left countless people stunned.
Barbara descended to the ground. Her expression was full and confident.
Seeing everyone's astonishment, she smiled and said, "The power of Holy Light is indeed very profound. I hope everyone can train diligently. If there's something you don't understand, you can ask me… or His Holiness."
Jean felt a deep sense of relief.
Her little sister had finally grown up.
Lisa laughed softly at her side. "You can relax now. The little one is slowly maturing."
Jean nodded. "She has always been strong. She just kept getting stuck on fighting, the one thing she's worst at, trying to surpass me that way. But the path of Holy Light Priest fits her far better."
When it came to healing, a hundred Jeans couldn't compare to one Barbara.
That was just the difference in talent.
Before this, her sister had stubbornly tried to use combat, her weakest area, to chase after Jean. It had been the wrong path from the start.
Everyone had strengths.
And things they weren't suited for.
Afterward, Su Han released the tangram-like Zzrali.
With the Holy Light Naaru assisting, Holy Light Knights awakened much faster.
Some of them even showed greater talent than those from Liyue.
This was the difference between power systems.
For example, with Three-Form Qi, Mondstadt citizens could train it, but their rate of progress was never as fast as Liyue's, and their entry threshold was higher.
Here, the situation was reversed.
Knight training methods were similar to what they had before, just with the addition of devout meditation.
As for the priests, the Church now finally had a true combat support profession.
In the past, they could only teach hymns and act like counselors, helping citizens with their hearts and minds.
Now it was different.
They possessed true Holy Light.
In just one morning, three hundred Holy Light Knights and eighty Holy Light Priests were born in Mondstadt.
This brought an enormous leap in the city's overall strength.
Some of the Holy Light Knights even grasped initial skills.
Hammer of Light.
Radiant Blessing.
All of them were techniques that combined offense and defense.
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