The Supreme Bishop of Fontaine

"Ningguang is a woman with ambitions as high as the sky."

"That's obvious. Otherwise, she wouldn't have said something like wanting the shadow of the Jade Chamber to cover all seven nations."

Furina, carried by Ye, flew all the way to the port of Liyue and chose to enter Liyue Harbor from there.

As they walked up the steps, Furina looked around at the bustling scenery while chatting with Ye. Naturally, the conversation turned to Ningguang.

Furina was curious: "Ye, what's your impression of Ningguang?"

Ye replied calmly: "She has both ambition and the ability to match it. In today's Liyue, where the Geo Archon has stepped down, she is a presence that cannot be ignored—even more so than the adepti."

"Oh? I know that the Mighty and Illuminated Adepti of Liyue are all transcendent beings who fought alongside Morax during the Archon War. Their strength is no small matter."

"Strength doesn't mean everything. Neuvillette is stronger than me, but Lady Furina, who do you think the nations value more—me or Neuvillette?"

"I'll reserve my judgment on whether Neuvillette is stronger than you, but your point is clear." Furina pursed her lips and said, "Indeed, even if many people think you're not as strong as Neuvillette, everyone still fears you—so are you saying Ningguang is like you?"

"She's still a bit inexperienced, but she has potential. She'll continue to grow, and one day, she might even surpass me."

"I'll still reserve my judgment on that, but I understand your high opinion of her." Furina smiled as she looked around curiously. "This makes me even more curious about the Jade Chamber that's being rebuilt."

"If Lady Furina is interested, you'll see it soon. I've heard the reconstruction is almost complete."

"I wonder if we'll encounter any adepti during this trip to Liyue? I'm quite curious. I've heard that making wishes to the adepti is very effective."

"Lady Furina, it's better not to be too desperate. While the adepti of Liyue do have their merits, they're not capable of granting your wishes."

"Of course not. I'm a god. How could mere adepti grant my wishes?"

Furina wasn't expecting that, but she realized that she might have been a bit too relaxed after leaving Fontaine. Although she had come out to relax, she couldn't let her guard down in front of Ye… Even if she had a nagging suspicion that Ye might have guessed she was a fake Hydro Archon, whether he knew or not, she had to act as if he didn't.

"I'm just curious about the adepti."

"If Lady Furina is truly curious, why not go talk to one?"

"Huh?"

Furina, who had just climbed a set of stairs, was taken aback by Ye's words. Then she saw him stop and turn to look to the side.

Following his gaze, Furina saw a little girl with a talisman stuck to her forehead standing motionless, looking somewhat drowsy.

"Uh… are you saying… this little girl is an adeptus? She looks more like a Jiangshi from Liyue's legends."

"She is a Jiangshi, but being a Jiangshi and being an adeptus aren't mutually exclusive."

Ye said calmly:

"Her true name is 'Savior from Suffering, Reviver of the Dead.' Though she doesn't remember this name herself."

Furina was a bit incredulous, but… adepti, like gods, shouldn't be judged by their appearances, right?

So she quickly accepted it and walked over.

"Hey, little one, what are you doing here?"

Well, even though she understood that the girl was an adeptus, Furina was a god herself, so she decided to address her as "little one."

"You're an adeptus, right? This is my first time meeting one. You do seem a bit special."

The little girl looked up at Furina and spoke slowly: "Ade…ptus? Qiqi, don't know. Qiqi, is Jiangshi. Qiqi, is here, to evacuate people. Because, sea, has danger."

"Danger?"

Furina subtly paused, suppressing her instinct to look toward the sea and ask Ye for confirmation.

Furina didn't know if there was really danger in the sea, but as a god—or at least as the Hydro Archon—she should be able to sense it if there was.

But Furina didn't know if the danger was real or if the so-called adeptus was mistaken. In any case, she couldn't pretend to know and act as if she had already sensed the danger.

So—Furina looked at the little girl named Qiqi and asked with a playful smile:

"Oh? What kind of danger is it? Can Qiqi tell?"

This casual tone would work whether the danger was real or not.

"Mm, Ningguang said, sea has danger. So, sent Qiqi, to evacuate people."

Qiqi nodded, unaware of the thoughts racing through Furina's mind, and continued in her slow voice:

"But, no one listens to Qiqi. So, Qiqi can only stand here."

"If danger comes, Qiqi will step forward, protect everyone."

"You, should listen to Qiqi. Don't go near the sea. Really, dangerous."

Furina smiled and nodded, agreeing: "Alright, big sister understands. We'll leave it to you, Qiqi."

With that, Furina turned and left, with Ye following calmly beside her.

After walking for a while, Furina asked casually: "Ye, what do you think about the danger Qiqi mentioned?"

"It's just a somewhat powerful monster. Nothing to worry about. The only special thing is that she's the wife of Osial, his familiar, and also his kin from before he became an God."

Ye said calmly:

"Essentially, she's similar to the adepti of Liyue. But Liyue has more than one adeptus, so she won't cause much trouble."

Although, given the current state of Liyue, the adepti wouldn't easily intervene. But even if they didn't, they were still Liyue's safety net, just like Zhongli.

If mortals could handle it themselves, then they would. If mortals couldn't, then the adepti would step in. And if even the adepti couldn't handle it, then the Geo Archon would have to intervene—Ningguang wasn't the type to stubbornly insist on proving mortal strength for the sake of pride. Qiqi and Ganyu were the safeguards she had prepared for this incident, and they were the only two adepti she could mobilize as the Tianquan.

And in fact, this preparation was completely justified.

After all, it was just a monster, not an Archon. If two adepti and the Millelith of Liyue Harbor couldn't handle it, that would be ridiculous.

As for the tsunami caused by Beisht, even without Shenhe, either Qiqi or Ganyu alone could have dealt with it. That was the purpose of having safeguards.

Though Shenhe's intervention was the best outcome.

"What's more concerning isn't Beisht, but Osial."

Ye glanced back at the sea.

"How interesting."