"You… you two?!"
Marchosius stammered, staring at Jiang Yan in disbelief.
Before Jiang Yan could say anything, Marchosius's eyes widened as he shouted,
"Your Majesty!!"
"Jiang Yan's going to be a dad!!"
With his chubby little legs moving faster than ever, he sprinted off.
Jiang Yan reached out helplessly, his mouth twitching.
"Don't spread nonsense, you idiot!!"
"Although the war has been won, the resettlement of the people of Guili Plains still needs more careful planning."
Inside the meeting hall, Morax was discussing with the assembled adept in the postwar arrangements for both Guili Plains and Dunyu Vale.
Two gods had fallen—one dead, one gravely wounded. Naturally, the territories of the Chi and the God of Dreams now fell under Morax's rule.
The sudden expansion of his dominion to nearly twice its former size left even the usually hands-off Morax with no choice but to personally oversee the new lands.
"I'll head to Dunyu Vale myself," Morax said. "Azhdaha must remain to guard Guili Plains. As for Jiang Yan… let him rest for now. Don't let him run around again."
"But the Chi isn't dead—only wounded. Guili Plains…" Guizhong's voice carried a note of worry.
Morax fell silent in thought.
"Guili Plains—I'll take that one."
Jiang Yan entered mid-conversation, yawning as he reached for a Sunsettia from the table.
"You should rest," said Guizhong gently. "You've just come out of a war."
Cloud Retainer scoffed coldly.
"Hmph. You just got back, and now you're leaving again?"
Hearing the irritation in her tone, Jiang Yan hurriedly waved his hands.
"Ah—don't be angry, Sister Cloud Retainer! Who said I'm going alone this time?"
"I'm planning to bring Ganyu with me to the Guili Plains."
As he spoke, he took a big bite of the bright red Sunsettia—only to grimace instantly from the sourness.
Who bought these damn fruits again?
That's twice already!
"You're taking Ganyu with you?" Morax thought for a moment.
"That's… actually a good idea."
This time, Cloud Retainer did not object.
Every time she saw Ganyu standing alone, gazing toward Mount Tianheng, her heart would ache. More than once she'd wanted to fly there and drag Jiang Yan back herself.
It wasn't as though she hadn't visited Mount Tianheng during those five years.
When she saw Jiang Yan sitting cross-legged, his body slowly turning to stone, even she had been frightened.
To spare Ganyu from that sight, Cloud Retainer had forbidden her from visiting—she didn't want the girl to worry.
But now, since the boy himself was taking Ganyu along, she had no reason to stop him.
"Ganyu's been learning governance from me lately," Guizhong said. "With Jiang Yan protecting her, there shouldn't be any issues."
Morax nodded in agreement.
After some more discussion, they finalized their deployment plan:
Jiang Yan and Ganyu would lead two thousand Thousand Rock Army soldiers to take control of Guili Plains.
The Geo Lord himself would travel to Dunyu Vale, accompanied by Cloud Retainer, Moon Carver, and Oceanid—also with two thousand Thousand Rock Army at his command.
The remaining five thousand would accompany the Five Yakshas and Azhdaha to Mount Tianheng, watching for any signs of movement from the sea around Guyun Stone Forest.
Truth be told, Morax and the others hadn't expected that the forces of Guyun would remain silent throughout this war.
As for Guizhong and Marchosius, they were to stay behind at Guili Plains, managing supplies and logistics.
Once the plans were set, everyone went their separate ways.
Three days later, Jiang Yan and Ganyu departed from the tribe, leading their two thousand Thousand Rock Army along with food and supplies toward Guili Plains.
The clash between the two gods near Guili Plains and Guili Plains had shaken all of southern and northern Liyue—(though the nation of Liyue had not yet been founded, the land was already known by that name).
The tale of the Wood Spirit Adeptus who faced two gods alone, slaying one and crippling the other, spread quickly among all the deities.
More and more gods began to acknowledge the authority of Morax, the Rock King.
Refugees seeking his protection poured in without end, and with the growing strength of their faith, Morax's divine power began to rise steadily once again.
Faith could empower a god—but Jiang Yan was no god. He possessed no divine seat. No matter how many mortals revered him, his strength would not increase.
For Jiang Yan, the only way to grow stronger… were treasure chests!
That was one of his main reasons for heading to Guilin Plains.
He had long since cleared out every chest near Guili Plains. Unlike monsters, treasure chests didn't respawn—so after mastering Sage Mode, if he wanted to keep advancing, he'd have to travel to other regions to find more.
Jiang Yan already knew how the story would unfold.
The Archon War was far from over. The gods of Liyue were countless, and the true frenzy of slaughter had only just begun.
And Liyue… would become the hardest battlefield of them all—hell mode.
The sea alone was filled with gods. Osial might be a top-tier one, but even he ruled only a small portion of the vast Guyun waters.
As Jiang Yan crossed the border between Guili Plains and Dihua Marsh, his gaze suddenly turned northeast.
"Over there… whose followers are those?"
In the ruined wasteland of Dihua Marsh, he saw a group of humans rummaging through the wreckage, picking through whatever they could find.
To read 30+ future chapters, head over to patreon:
patreon.com/ToastWizard