"Even the Adepti don't know where the Geo Archon is?"
On the Jade Chamber, Ningguang's usually calm expression had long since vanished.
Even the Adepti who had once fought alongside Morax in the Archon War
had no clue where he'd gone.
If even they couldn't find him— then who possibly could?
A certain figure flashed through her mind.
Perhaps only from that man's mouth could they hope to learn the truth.
But if the price of asking… was the Jade Chamber itself, that would be far too great a cost.
Still, sentiment was one thing, and priorities another.
The Jade Chamber could always be rebuilt— but if they lost contact with the Geo Archon, or if he had truly abandoned Liyue… that would be a disaster beyond repair.
"Though the Lord of Geo has not appeared before us for some time," snapped Cloud Retainer, "it is absolutely impossible that he would deliberately hide from us Adepti!"
Her sharp gaze turned toward Keqing.
"It must be your mortal words that angered him!"
Under the Adeptis's glare, Keqing could only look helpless.
She did know what had likely upset the Archon— but she hadn't expected him to be this petty.
Sulking for an entire year over a few honest words?
That was just ridiculous.
Her once lofty image of the Geo Archon shattered a little.
So even the Lord of Geo can throw a childish tantrum…
"Wait, so you're saying the Geo Archon got mad because of what Keqing said?
That's kinda petty, isn't it?" whispered Paimon, leaning close to the Traveler.
Unfortunately, no one present was an ordinary mortal— every one of them heard her loud and clear.
In the next instant, Cloud Retainer's furious glare snapped toward the floating mascot.
"Eek! Scary!"
Paimon yelped and ducked behind Lumine's back, peeking out with only half her face visible.
"Do not insult the Lord of Geo!" Cloud Retainer's voice thundered.
"To slander the Archon is an act of grave disrespect!"
Were it not for the fact that Paimon and the Traveler were the ones who had revealed all this in the first place, Cloud Retainer might not have let them off so easily.
Even so, insults against Morax were not to be tolerated.
"But aren't you the one who said that?" Paimon mumbled, mustering up a spark of courage to talk back.
"…"
For a long moment, Cloud Retainer was utterly speechless.
Even she had just contradicted herself.
The Adepti and the Liyue Qixing stood at a tense stalemate, and poor Lumine and Paimon, caught between both sides, had no idea what to do.
Technically, this was an internal affair of Liyue— an outsider like the Traveler really shouldn't interfere.
But if she didn't… there was a real chance the two sides might start fighting.
And Ningguang was too rich and too dangerous to get caught in the middle.
"Now, now—surely there's no need for such hostility over something so small?"
A smooth, confident voice cut through the tension.
Tartaglia, the Eleventh Harbinger, had arrived on the Jade Chamber.
Even as an uninvited guest, his sudden appearance was enough to defuse the conflict for the moment.
Still, everyone's expressions darkened.
No matter what had happened, this was a matter for Liyue alone.
It was not a place for a foreigner to meddle—least of all a Fatui.
"And who might you be?" Cloud Retainer's gaze narrowed, sensing the dangerous aura radiating from him.
"Just a man from Snezhnaya who wishes to meet the Geo Archon,"
Tartaglia replied with an easy grin.
"I came hoping to see Morax himself—but it seems… even you Adepti can't find him. How disappointing."
He'd assumed that the Adepti would surely know Morax's whereabouts.
But after listening to their entire argument, he was now certain of one thing— Morax had truly vanished.
Even the Adepti couldn't trace his presence.
So much for waiting patiently in Liyue; that plan was useless now.
Fortunately, he had a backup plan.
And right now, with all these Adepti gathered before him, his blood began to boil with excitement.
Each of these beings had once fought beside the Lord of Geo in the Archon War— every one of them a worthy opponent.
"Tell me," Tartaglia said with a gleam in his eyes, "if the Adepti of Liyue were to face a great crisis… would the Geo Archon appear to save you?"
The chunk of amber Su Ran had given him pulsed faintly in his hand.
That mysterious power filled him with confidence.
Even outnumbered, he wasn't afraid.
"Arrogant fool!"
One of the Adepti—a young man with a green mask and a long spear— stepped forward.
"I am Xiao, the Vigilant Yaksha, one of the Three-Eyed Five Manifested Adepti.
Allow me to test your so-called strength!"
To threaten to use their lives to lure out Morax— such insolence was beyond words.
Tartaglia just smiled.
"I can tell—you're the strongest among them.
But you sure you don't all want to come at once?"
None of the other Adepti moved.
Xiao alone advanced.
Perfect.
Tartaglia's grin widened.
He'd been hoping for a good fight.
"I alone am enough."
The two lunged at each other.
Spear and Hydro blades clashed violently, each strike aimed at the other's vital points— swift, ruthless, lethal.
Every blow carved deep scars into the deck beneath their feet.
Watching her precious Jade Chamber being wrecked like that, Ningguang's heart nearly bled.
If she were strong enough, she'd have thrown both of them off by now.
"You've got some skill," Xiao admitted after a flurry of exchanges, "but if you think you can kill me, you're far from it."
By now, he'd already gauged his opponent's strength—
comparable to his own, perhaps, but with far less battle experience.
"Is that so?"
Tartaglia smirked and dismissed his Hydro blades.
Xiao didn't lower his spear.
Even with the Archon War long over, he'd fought enough to know when an enemy was about to reveal their trump card.
His right hand gripped the spear tightly, his left raised defensively as he watched Tartaglia's every move.
"Besides meeting Morax," Tartaglia said evenly, "I also came to measure the power of Liyue's Adepti.
You're the perfect whetstone."
From his coat, he drew forth the piece of amber.
"Ever since I came to Liyue, I haven't had a good fight.
But today's special.
Let me show you… the power I just obtained."
He raised the amber high.
"I—CAN'T DO ANYTHING!" he shouted boldly.
Everyone froze.
Ningguang, Keqing, even the Traveler and Paimon just stared at him in utter confusion.
And then—
They understood.
An overwhelming aura erupted from Tartaglia's body, so immense it felt as though it could crush all of Liyue beneath it.
Even as the vessel, Tartaglia himself staggered under the pressure— the sheer power threatening to tear him apart.
~~--------------------------------------
To read 30+ future chapters head over to patreon:
patreon.com/YonkoSlayer