Duang~ Duang~
Slimes, Whopperflowers, Specters, murky-water phantasms…
Koji's Serenitea Pot now housed all sorts of monsters.
In the game, people with villain tags like the Fatui and Treasure Hoarders were classified as "monsters," but in real Teyvat they were all still people, not actual monsters.
As for the self-operating machines of Khaenri'ah, Koji had brought a few of those back as well. They were all in a dormant state for now; he would find someone to recalibrate them later. Since these things weren't truly sentient lifeforms, the Beast Tamer's Blessing didn't work on them very well.
"Hand over the nectar!"
Shenhe extended her pale, delicate hand toward a Whopperflower, her tone making her sound exactly like a bandit shaking someone down.
Koji felt several metaphorical black lines appear over his head. "Shenhe, look at you. You've scared the Whopperflower half to death."
"Then what am I supposed to do, dig it out with my bare hands?" Shenhe paused to think, then asked slowly.
That would be even worse.
"Shenhe, are you hooked on flower nectar now?" Koji honestly had no idea how to roast her for this.
"Qingxin with flower nectar is delicious."
Shenhe pulled out a Qingxin and just shoved it straight into her mouth, slowly chewing.
Most people would never eat Qingxin like that. It was a medicinal herb; eaten straight, it didn't taste good at all and carried a bitter edge.
But she had discovered that the fragrance and sweetness of the nectar mixed with Qingxin actually tasted surprisingly nice.
"Shenhe, it's not like we're short on Mora. If you want to eat something, just buy it properly," Koji said.
Qingxin with flower nectar might taste a bit better, but compared to actual cuisine it still wasn't exactly what you'd call normal food.
"I've just gotten used to Qingxin," Shenhe said with a faint smile.
Before meeting Koji, Qingxin had already been her staple herb. Her master would occasionally cook something for her, and maybe because of her training, she wouldn't feel very hungry even if she didn't eat.
"Do you want some?"
Shenhe spread her hand. Half a Qingxin remained.
"Sure."
Koji leaned in and captured Shenhe's lips, tasting the Qingxin-flavored saliva with its faint, lingering bitterness.
"…"
Shenhe froze. She hadn't expected him to eat it that way. It wasn't their first kiss, but it still caught her completely off guard.
The Slimes and other monsters watched the two humans pressing their mouths together, utterly baffled by what they were doing. What a strange behavior.
Without the restraint of the red cord, Shenhe's emotions surged out without any filter.
"Haa…"
She gasped for breath, nearly blacking out from lack of oxygen.
"Shenhe, your outfit and Ganyu's clothes… are they actually one design split into two?" Koji's hand sank into her "slime-like" softness. She was squishy and springy at the same time, impossible to put down once you started touching her.
"I'm not really sure. This outfit was given to me by Master. Dust and grime can't stick to it," Shenhe said, cheeks blooming red as the sensations across her chest sent tingles racing through her.
Her clothes had been made by Cloud Retainer and counted as an immortal artifact. You basically never needed to wash them.
"Shenhe, do you want to see your mother?" Koji asked gently, thinking of her tragic past.
Shenhe's mother had died of illness when she was five. Her father, mad with grief, searched desperately for a way to resurrect his late wife. When Shenhe was still a small child, he returned and took her to a cave filled with black Seelies, planning to revive his wife through a life-for-life ritual that would sacrifice his own daughter…
As for Shenhe's father, Koji didn't have any good feelings about the man. No matter how much he loved his wife, using his daughter's life as a bargaining chip disqualified him as a father.
"My mother…"
Shenhe murmured, her gaze turning distant.
Her mother had left this world before she turned five; there weren't many memories of her mother left in her mind.
But she knew one thing: her mother had loved her dearly.
"Can I really see her?" Shenhe's usually calm heart rippled.
"You can. I'm sure there are things you want to say to her. And I'd like to meet my future mother-in-law too," Koji said with a nod.
"I want to see her."
Shenhe didn't hesitate. If she had the chance, why wouldn't she?
…
Return of the soul.
The Blessing of the Soul and the Blessing of the Reaper flared together, crossing the boundary between life and death.
A woman who somewhat resembled Shenhe appeared. Because she had died young, her face bore no wrinkles at all.
"You are…"
Shenhe's mother looked at her—the white-haired woman in front of her looked so much like her little daughter, Shenhe.
But… hadn't her daughter's hair been black? When had it turned white?
Shenhe had originally had a full head of black hair. Cloud Retainer had once given her a white jade hair comb, telling her that if she wished to sever mortal ties, she was to comb her hair three times.
The first time, black hair would frost over with a layer of silver;
the second time, black and white would split evenly;
the third time, her hair would be pure white like falling snow.
The meaning of the three-comb ritual was this:
first comb, worries swept away;
second comb, no joy, no sorrow;
third comb, white hair without regret.
"Mom…"
Looking at that familiar yet unfamiliar figure, Shenhe felt her eyes redden as a sour ache welled up inside her.
Back then she'd been far too young. All her memories of her mother were hazy and blurred.
"Little Shenhe…?"
At the soft call, Shenhe's mother felt her very soul tremble. There was no mistake—this was her daughter.
Though she was now a soul, with Koji there Shenhe's mother was able to touch her daughter's cheek.
"Mother-in-law, let me explain things a bit…"
At that form of address, Shenhe's mother's expression turned a little odd. But since Shenhe didn't deny it, she chose not to question it just yet and listened instead as Koji summarized Shenhe's childhood experiences.
When she heard that Shenhe had nearly been killed by her own father, Shenhe's mother clenched her fists, eyes brimming with pain. If not for her, how would Shenhe have suffered through something like that?
"I'm sorry. It's all because of me."
When she looked at Shenhe's white hair, her heart felt pricked full of needles—she hurt so much she could barely stand it.
She was deeply dissatisfied with her husband now. She was dead; that should have been the end of it. Why had he gone on to hurt Shenhe?
"I never fulfilled the duties of a mother. I've been a failure of a parent."
"It's fine. If that so-called life-for-life ritual could have brought you back, I wouldn't have minded trading my life for yours," Shenhe said, shaking her head as warmth flowed through her chest.
Her mother really was such a gentle person.
"Have you been training with the Adepti all these years?" Shenhe's mother stroked Shenhe's long white hair.
As a citizen of Liyue, of course she had heard tales of the Adepti. She had simply never seen one; they weren't beings ordinary people could meet.
Her daughter had suffered misfortune as a child, yet in the end she had also gained a bond with immortals.
"Yes. I've been cultivating under Master. She recently sent me down the mountain to experience the mortal world, so I've been following Koji around," Shenhe said with a nod.
Life on the mountain had been tasteless, but she had long since grown used to it. Perhaps she was born suited to cultivation; she'd never found it particularly boring.
(End of Chapter)
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