After the playful chaos settled down,
everyone enjoyed a pleasant lunchtime together.
The tri-color dango and dango milk that Paimon had asked Thoma to order from Inazuma made Raiden Ei very happy. Before long, she had completely forgotten about what had happened earlier.
As for the Shogun—
She was currently deep within the realm of consciousness, handling all kinds of administrative matters sent over from Inazuma.
That blockhead Raiden Ei was not someone she could rely on. She understood perfectly well that this was precisely why Gu Chen had created her in the first place.
First, to share Raiden Ei's burden.
Second, to lead Inazuma even better.
Thanks to the additional knowledge Gu Chen had installed, even when dealing with thorny governmental affairs, the Shogun handled them with ease.
Previously, since she had not possessed a true independent consciousness, she hadn't had an account in the chat group.
But now, she did.
[System Notice: Raiden Shogun has joined the chat group]
[Kaeya]: Huh? What's going on? Did the Raiden Shogun from another world show up? (confused)
[Shikanoin Heizou]: Something's off. Very off. (Shikanoin Heizou · notices something)
[Venti]: Did the Cult Leader hide something from us again? (grin)
[Xiangling]: Paimon bought quite a lot of lunch from me earlier. The Cult Leader must be eating right now, yeah? (Guoba · cheerful)
[Zhongli]: What exactly is going on with this Raiden Shogun? (puzzled)
[Raiden Shogun]: Hello everyone. I am indeed the Raiden Shogun. You may understand it as my consciousness being born within Raiden Ei's body. From now on, Inazuma's affairs can be left to me. (Raiden Ei · light smile)
[Furina]: That's so smart! I want one too! (Venti · starry-eyed envy)
[Neuvillette]: Miss Furina, what would you need such a thing for? Do you actually have work that requires sharing? (confused)
[Furina]: ...
That hurt. Truly hurt.
So what, just because there's no work to share, she's not allowed to have an extra consciousness to play with?
[Kamisato Ayato]: This is wonderful news! (delighted)
[Kamisato Ayaka]: Please take care of things, Shogun-sama! (Kamisato Ayaka · bowing)
[Kaeya]: There's no doubt that the Raiden Shogun's appearance is great news for Inazuma. But I've caught the key point! A consciousness born from "Raiden Ei's" body—everyone knows that Miss Ei's consciousness resides in the Musou Isshin and can still control her body. So… doesn't this count as one body with two souls? (grin)
[Venti]: Holy—kid, that insight is impressive! 383 (Venti · shocked)
[Azhdaha]: Damn! (Paimon · shocked)
[Osial]: I'm curious—will she fight with Miss Ei? (grin)
[Kaeya]: @[Gu Chen]
[Gu Chen]: What's up?
[Kaeya]: Cult Leader, this definitely has something to do with you, doesn't it? Spill the benefits in detail! (Hu Tao · mischievous grin)
[Gu Chen]: Don't pry. It's not good for you. (mysterious)
[Diluc]: The subtext is basically: even if you knew the benefits, what could you do about it? Single dogs should stop asking these questions—knowing the answer will only leave you with tears of envy.
[Osial]: Savage. (Venti · tossing flowers)
[Azhdaha]: I was just here to watch the drama and somehow got stabbed. (annoyed)
[Zhongli]: By universal reason, Kaeya was the one who started it. (annoyed)
[Dvalin]: @[Kaeya]Kid, you're done for. You've offended the largest demographic in the group. (Nahida · pointing)
[Kaeya]: Brothers, I'm part of that demographic too! (help)
[Nilou]: So there are that many single boys in the group? (Nilou · popping up)
[Collei]: Seems like it. (nod)
[Gu Chen]: I'll give you a tip—go use your charm and find a partner already. (grin)
[Kaeya]: Cult Leader, do you have no idea what the common folk are suffering through? (heartbroken)
[Gu Chen]: ?
[Kaeya]: I've been wandering around Mondstadt lately with nothing to do, and I discovered that girls there have raised their standards a lot. According to my investigation, it's all because of you, Cult Leader. Your brilliance is just too dazzling—every era has its own unique charm from you. As a result, single young men in Mondstadt are having an even harder time finding partners. (Paimon · shocked)
[Jean]: Hold on. @[Kaeya]Captain of the Cavalry, what do you mean "wandering around with nothing to do"? I distinctly remember assigning you plenty of tasks. (angry)
[Kaeya]: Ahahaha, let's stick to this topic first. Work can wait a bit, right?
[Osial]: Seems like the Cult Leader's charm has a huge impact. (Paimon · shocked)
[Zhongli]: By universal reason, if Venti were a woman, he would most likely fall for the Cult Leader as well.
[Venti]: ("Cult Leader~" in a cutesy voice, 3s audio)
[Gu Chen]: ...
[Furina]: Nice one! (Keqing · thumbs up)
[Barbara]: (Qiqi · collapse)
[Gu Chen]: If having strong personal charm is a crime, then I suppose I'm already unforgivably guilty. (grin)
[Venti]: If having thick skin is a crime, then the Cult Leader is unforgivably guilty. (grin)
[Zhongli]: Following the logic above, the one upstairs should be beheaded as well. (sipping tea)
[Kaeya]: Strongly agree! (grin)
[Furina]: Judgment! Judgment! (Furina · death sentence! death sentence!)
[Raiden Ei]: (Qiqi · secretly observing)
[Nilou]: Yay, Miss Ei is speaking! How's things going between you and Mr. Gu Chen? (Nahida · happy)
[Raiden Ei]: Very well. (nod)
[Nilou]: Yay! (Klee · yay)
[Collei]: Another dream fulfilled! (Klee · yay)
[Kaeya]: It's CP fans' carnival time for the Cult Leader~
[Osial]: Happy for the Cult Leader. (devout)
[Sangonomiya Kokomi]: Actually, I'm a bit curious—after obtaining those memories, won't Lady Ei be influenced by them and become obsessive?
[Kaeya]: What's there to fear? The Cult Leader's here. Even if she became obsessive, he could just suppress it directly. (shrug)
[Nilou]: Shouldn't we be more worried about Miss Ei's mental state? If she became strange and it affected her relationship with Mr. Gu Chen and the other sisters, that would be bad. (Floating Fungus · scared)
[Lisa]: Would it evolve into: "Gu Chen can only belong to me"?
[Yae Miko]: Not impossible. (Yae Miko · mischievous grin)
[Raiden Ei]: ...
[Baizhu]: I'm quite worried about Miss Ei's mental state as well—especially now that there's the Raiden Shogun competing for affection. (Baizhu · concern)
[Raiden Ei]: First, I'm not affected by the memories to the point of becoming obsessive. Second, my sister's here, Miko's here, and A-Chen is here—I won't become obsessive! Besides, the Raiden Shogun is governing now. I don't even have authority, so what's there to be afraid of? (Qiqi · collapse)
[Sangonomiya Kokomi]: Those memories really didn't affect Lady Ei that much? (Kokomi · thinking)
[Venti]: What are you thinking about? (Paimon · shocked)
[Sangonomiya Kokomi]: From my perspective, acquiring such emotionally heavy memories should have influenced Lady Ei. The fact that it didn't is actually a good thing.
[Alhaitham]: Theoretically speaking, Miss Kokomi's view is correct. The emotional weight of those memories is indeed immense… Though I don't know how Miss Ei managed it, with Mr. Gu Chen around, there's probably no need for us to worry. (Alhaitham · off work)
[Venti]: Huh, why does it feel like the topic has suddenly looped back to speculation about the Exposure System? (pondering)
[Zhongli]: By universal reason, the Exposure System remains mysterious at this stage, and there is still no clear indication of its true purpose. (Zhongli · sipping tea)
Seeing Zhongli's message, Gu Chen paused.
After thinking for a moment, he asked, "What do you all feel?"
"Mm… it's hard to explain. Something like chasing you from another Teyvat all the way to here?" Raiden Makoto thought for a bit and said.
Buyel nodded lightly. "It's about the same for me—like countless simulations, finally finding you, and then being brought into this world by some overwhelming force."
"Same here," Guizhong nodded.
Gu Chen turned to look at the others who had obtained memories.
"It's hard to put into words. The experiences of a previous life feel like a dream I once had," Lumine shook her head, then said frankly, "Why dwell on it? As long as we truly love each other, isn't that enough?"
"Of course I know." Gu Chen chuckled. "I'm just curious about the Exposure System's purpose."
Even Gu Chen found it puzzling.
The Exposure System wasn't bound to him, yet nearly ninety percent of the videos it played helped fulfill his dreams.
That made him happy—but also confused.
He even suspected that his own system, after entering standby mode, had transformed into the Exposure System.
Lost in thought, Gu Chen looked at Paimon.
After carefully making sure there were no fish bones, Paimon swallowed and said, "Isn't a past life just a past life? Getting the memories is like I reincarnated directly into this world!"
Gu Chen froze at once.
Equivalent to her past self being reborn into this world?
"That's not quite complete," Ganyu shook her head. "It's not just reincarnation—it's more like being reborn with memories, except those memories can't be recalled normally. Only at the moment the video is exposed and the reward is given do the sealed memories of the previous life awaken."
"Isn't that even crazier?" Guizhong said in surprise.
"You're a single-timeline history insertion. Of course your feeling is different from ours." Ganyu smiled.
"Now that you put it that way, it really does seem so," Raiden Ei thought carefully for a moment and nodded.
[Extraordinary Group Chat]
[Gu Chen]: @[Zhongli] Does it feel like you yourself were reborn from the Tai Xuan Cult era into the current Teyvat—without memories—and only after the video exposure did those sealed memories awaken?
[Zhongli]: The Cult Leader truly is extraordinary. Thinking back, that does seem to be the case. (nod)
[Venti]: Wait, why does this keep getting more ridiculous?! (Paimon · shocked)
[Alhaitham]: If that's the case, perhaps the current Teyvat can be seen as the core source world, with everyone being reborn from parallel worlds… Just a thought—don't forget that Teyvat seems somewhat dangerous and requires maintenance to remain stable. So the Exposure System's purpose could be roughly divided into a few points: first, to mend historical regrets; second, to enhance Teyvat's foundation; third, to soothe the regrets of the various female leads.
[Sangonomiya Kokomi]: If that's true, then my long-standing confusion is finally resolved. (Kokomi · energy rising)
[Sustainer of Heavenly Principles]: Difficult to understand. (Qiqi · collapse)
[Zhongli]: Although the Exposure System's purpose is unknown, everything it has exposed and rewarded has had a positive impact on Teyvat.
[Yae Miko]:"Reborn in Teyvat to Chase My Husband, Only to Discover Countless Reborn Love Rivals!" (Yae Miko · mischievous grin)
[Raiden Ei]: Don't laugh—your day might come too.
[Yae Miko]: Oh my~ @[Gu Chen] Brother-in-law, the fox is here to repay a favor~
Becoming Gu Chen's woman?
Yae Miko thought about it.
From a rational standpoint, Gu Chen's charm was indeed powerful, but to say she liked him deeply? Not quite—more like a certain degree of fondness.
From an emotional standpoint, her sister Makoto and Ei were both his women. Aside from those like Kitsune Saiguu who had long since fallen, if she joined, it would truly be a reunion.
After thinking it over, Yae Miko decided to let things take their natural course.
[Gu Chen]: Very good, very good—"The Fox Repays Kindness" is a script I like! (grin)
[Kaeya]: Cult Leader, is your face smiling like this right now? (Gu Chen · dragon-king crooked grin)
[Venti]: I told you—never let pranksters learn Photoshop. (Gu Chen · dragon-king crooked grin)
[Zhongli]: Putting the Cult Leader's head on my body… abstract. (Zhongli · black line)
[Furina]: So to sum it up, we don't need to worry about the Exposure System now, right?
[Nahida]: Yes. (nod)
[Paimon]: It's fine—if the sky falls, we still have the almighty Boss Gu! (Klee · yay)
[Kaeya]: The Cult Leader will figure something out with his invincible power. (Jean · thumbs up)
[Gu Chen]: What do you mean—just praising the Cult Leader here? Have you considered the feelings of our great Sustainer?! (grin)
[Furina]: Sustainer: Gods, heed my command—smash the cup as the signal and seize Gu Chen! (Furina · amused)
[Sustainer of Heavenly Principles]: I don't recall us having any grudges. Isn't it unreasonable to slander me this hard? (Yoimiya · mischievous)
[Prince]: Compared to slandering you, I'm more doubtful of your abilities. (picking nose)
[Sustainer of Heavenly Principles]: I'm just not at my peak—are you getting bold with me? (angry)
[Gu Chen]: Sustainer: The waters are deep and the winds are fierce. Without strength, don't speak! (grin)
[Venti]: I suggest raising the banner of rebellion, joining forces with the Tsaritsa, and charging up to Celestia to change Teyvat's ruler! (grin)
[Tartaglia]: Great idea! I'm sure Her Majesty would be interested! (Tartaglia · smug)
[Prince]:laughs
"Your Highness, what should we do?"
The Abyss Heralds were also considered extraordinary beings, though they had never spoken in the group before.
Looking at the chat content now, they too felt at a loss.
Aether curled his lips.
Not to mention a terrifying, unfathomable powerhouse like Gu Chen in this world—
Even if he and the Tsaritsa joined forces, they probably still wouldn't be a match for the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles.
That was true even if the Sustainer wasn't at full strength!
After everything was exposed by the Exposure System, Aether had decided to lie flat.
Fighting was impossible.
All he could do was occasionally roast the Sustainer in the chat to get by.
"Prepare some gifts. I should go see Lumine." Aether said.
The Heralds exchanged looks.
"Now that everything's exposed, wouldn't it be inappropriate not to go see Lumine?" Aether said quietly.
Thinking it over, the Heralds agreed.
"Think carefully about what gifts to bring," Aether said.
The Heralds began pondering, each offering their own suggestions.
—
— [Dackub] 1000V, […] 1000V
Thank you to both bosses for the generous rewards!!
(Hu Tao · flying kiss) (Mona · heart sign) (Nahida · wink)
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