Chapter 127 – Though I Have No Desire to Vie for the Throne, I Know the Suffering of the People

I slowly turned around and looked at Morax before me.

“This meaningless war of internal attrition.”

“The only way to break it is to shatter the war imposed by outsiders.”

My gaze gradually shifted upward to the floating islands in the high sky.

“There are seven hundred Demon Gods in the mortal realm.”

“Eighty have already fallen in this war so far.”

Then I turned back to Morax and spoke slowly.

“I understand now…”

Morax sighed and said to me.

I nodded, then walked onto the streets of the still-forming Liyue Harbor.

I wore clothes formed from Divine Power, white and pristine.

Yet the people of Liyue around me were clad in thin, tattered garments.

A frail elderly woman, holding a steamed corn bun and leaning on a cane, approached me.

“Rex Lapis, Adeptus Lord.”

“Have you eaten? I have a steamed bun here for you.”

The old woman looked at Morax and me, who appeared as young men, and spoke with a smile.

“I…”

The moment I saw this elderly woman, I couldn’t help but clench my fists.

“Adeptus Lord, what’s wrong?”

“Don’t you want it?”

The old woman raised her head, looked at me, and smiled.

Her wrinkled face and graying hair regarded me with kindness.

“You eat it, I’m not hungry…”

Seeing her appearance, I, as a deity, lowered my head, unable to meet her gaze.

Morax behind me also turned away, unable to bear looking at the old woman.

“Everyone has been waiting for your return.”

“They all say that hunger is only temporary—Rex Lapis, the Adeptus Lord, and the Adepti will surely find a way.”

The old woman looked at Morax and me and smiled.

Then, from all around, people of Liyue emerged one by one, smiling as they looked at Morax and me.

These Liyue people wore worn-out clothes, each of them thin and pale.

“Yes, I have found a way.”

“From now on, no one will go hungry.”

I raised a sphere of light in my hand and smiled at the people before me.

“Follow me.”

I nodded to the crowd, then slowly walked out of Liyue Harbor.

Outside the harbor, on a plain separated by a mountain ridge where rivers converged, I held a white light in my hand and infused it into the soil. A tender sprout quickly grew before our eyes.

In no time, it matured into a full-grown grain plant. I plucked its seeds.

Repeating this process, after a while, a vast field of golden grain plants stretched out before us.

“This way, no one will go hungry anymore.”

I turned and smiled at the Liyue people before me.

A woman held a child in her arms.

“Child, do you see?”

“From now on, Mother will cook delicious food for you every day.”

The woman looked at the child in her arms, gently touched the tip of its nose, and spoke tenderly.

“Have you found the grain plants?”

Marcus, standing twice the height of a man, strode over and looked down at me and Morax.

“Yes, we have.”

Hearing this, I smiled and glanced at the grain field beside me.

“This way, no one will go hungry anymore.”

“Never seen this kind of grain before.”

Marcus looked at the grain field, a smile spreading across his bear-like face.

“I’ll need to study it.”

“See what delicacies I can make.”

Despite his seemingly bulky frame, Marcus gently plucked a grain plant.

“The God of the Stove has arrived as well.”

“He will surely prepare even more delicious food.”

The elder looked at Marcus working in the grain fields and said with a smile.

The nascent Liyue Harbor at night.

Smoke slowly rose from the earthen houses.

Faint firelight shone through windows made of wood and paper-cloth.

That night, laughter echoed from every household.

Standing atop the mountain peak, Morax and I gazed at the houses below, remaining silent for a long while.

“This cannot continue…”

After a long pause, Morax murmured.

He understood deeply how terrifying the battles between Demon Gods could be.

If a Demon God were to invade, even if we resisted, the aftermath of the battle would inevitably reach this place.

“What do you mean?”

I furrowed my brows, somewhat confused about what Morax was trying to say.

Morax’s gaze shifted to the thousands of lights below.

“Though I have no desire to contend for power…”

“I am aware of the suffering of the people…”

Morax relaxed his hands, his eyes shining as he looked upon the land he protected.

“I’m sorry… Morpheus.”

“For the sake of the place I guard, I should no longer retreat.”

Morax turned to look at me, speaking apologetically.

During the day, he had witnessed the conflicts among Demon Gods and the emaciated people of Liyue.

He knew that the balance I spoke of, and the prevention of loss, did not exist.

I closed my eyes slightly as a gentle breeze brushed against my face, as if I were making a decision.

Since loss could no longer be prevented and balance could no longer be maintained…

What meaning did the balance I sought to protect hold?

“I knew you would say that.”

“Then I will join you in stirring up some trouble.”

After a long while, I opened my eyes, looked at Morax, and said with a smile.

“The balance they desire is one controlled by them.”

“But is a balance eroded by outsiders truly balance?”

My gaze shifted to the floating islands in the sky as I murmured inwardly.

“Gather the Adepti…”

Morax looked at the moon in the sky and spoke slowly.

Qiu Bai sat beside Cloud Retainer, flipping through the pages one by one.

Then he took a deep breath and closed the book with both hands.

“So, Morpheus?”

“Is this something fabricated by mortals?”

Cloud Retainer looked at Qiu Bai, who was leaning close to her, and asked curiously.

“To be honest, I don’t know either.”

Qiu Bai picked up Cloud Retainer’s teacup, took a sip, and smiled at her.

“It’s probably fabricated.”

“If what this book says is true, why wouldn’t Marcus recognize you?”

Cloud Retainer looked at Qiu Bai, puzzled.

Then she took the teacup from his hands, refilled it, took a sip with her red lips,

and placed the cup on the stone table.

“Haha, who knows.”

“I was born a thousand years ago, so I don’t know much about events from thirty-six hundred years ago.”

Qiu Bai chuckled softly, gazing at the moon in the sky as he murmured.

Qiu Bai picked up the teacup Cloud Retainer had just placed on the stone table, blew on it gently, and took a sip.

“Hmm, excellent tea.”

“And it has a strange, refreshing fragrance.”

Qiu Bai turned to look at Cloud Retainer and smiled.

“You really are something else.”

Cloud Retainer blushed as she looked at Qiu Bai, whispering softly.

“If I had truly known you thirty-six hundred years ago…”

“Given my disposition at the time, I probably wouldn’t have even spoken to you.”

Cloud Retainer turned away with a blush, her tone tinged with prideful shyness.