Chapter 19 – Almond Tofu

The person before them was none other than the Conqueror of Demons, Xiao.

Lumine also gazed curiously at the Adeptus before her, sensing a strange aura.

Though it was faint and elusive to Lumine, as she possessed two types of Elemental Power within her.

Qiu Bai swept his Divine Sense over Xiao and frowned slightly.

He could see clearly that, given Xiao’s current condition, he could hold out for at most another hundred years.

The Karmic Debt within him would then erupt completely. However, this amount of Karmic Debt seemed rather insignificant to Qiu Bai at this moment.

He was confident he could cleanse the Karmic Debt within Xiao in a single attempt.

“A Sigil of Permission… It seems you came prepared.”

Xiao’s gaze held a hint of surprise.

“But this is merely a token to prevent me from harming you. It does not mean you won’t get hurt.”

Xiao looked at the three and spoke indifferently.

“Uh… I don’t really understand.”

Paimon scratched her head, indicating she didn’t follow.

Xiao paid no mind to whether Paimon understood or not and continued.

“Excessive proximity to the world of Adepti and demons is overstepping boundaries.”

“The human soul is not as resilient as that of an Adeptus, and human blood can hardly bear such concentrated Adeptal Energy.”

Xiao gave the three a faint glance.

“For your own good, leave quickly.”

With that, he turned away.

Paimon behind him hurriedly said, “Wait, we came to…”

Before Paimon could finish, Xiao had already vanished from sight.

Meanwhile, Qiu Bai behind them stretched lazily. Unable to bear Adeptal Energy?

When Lumine fought the Overlord of the Vortex, Osial, the Adeptal Energy she wielded contained the power of several Adepti.

Paimon stomped her foot in frustration.

“He makes me so angry! How can he just talk to himself like that?”

“I really want to give him an unpleasant nickname.”

“But if we offend an Adeptus, will we only find cabbages when opening treasure chests in the future?”

Thinking this, Paimon held her forehead.

Bennett: “Impressive.”

At this moment, Qiu Bai, who had been silent for a while, spoke up.

“Let’s go find the innkeeper and ask her how to communicate properly with an Adeptus.”

“Oh, right! Qiu Bai is so smart. Let’s go, Traveler.”

Lumine smiled and nodded at Qiu Bai, then the three of them walked together to the counter of Wangshu Inn.

They stopped in front of the counter, behind which various ceramic utensils were displayed.

A small cat was also sitting on the counter.

“Hmm… Hello. Your attire, face, and your strange little companion… I can’t quite place it.”

“Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Verr Goldet, the owner of Wangshu Inn.”

“You can call me Godette.”

The lady behind the counter smiled and introduced herself to Qiu Bai and the others.

“Hello, Boss Godette. I’m Qiu Bai, this is Lumine, and this is Paimon.”

Qiu Bai smiled as he introduced them to Godette.

“Are you… Consultant Qiu Bai of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor?”

Godette behind the counter said with some surprise.

After all, she was an informant placed at Wangshu Inn by Ningguang and naturally knew of Qiu Bai before her.

Qiu Bai looked curiously at Godette.

Because since he had awakened, he didn’t recall ever having visited Wangshu Inn.

So how did the owner of Wangshu Inn know his name?

“Oh? I didn’t expect the owner of Wangshu Inn to know of me. I am truly honored.”

“You’re too modest, Mr. Qiu Bai.”

Then, Verr Goldet continued, “So, is there something you wanted to ask me?”

Lumine stepped forward and said, “Boss Godette, about that Adeptus…”

“Oh, have you already met Xiao?”

“That’s quite impressive. It’s rare for him to be in a good enough mood to show himself.”

Godette seemed somewhat surprised.

Because this Adeptus—even though she had been here year-round—she had only seen him a few times.

Paimon held her head, feeling a bit of a headache. “So that counts as being in a good mood?”

“Yes, encounters with Adepti are rare. Some people devote their lives to seeking them out and never even catch a glimpse.”

“When the Geo Archon founded Liyue, he borrowed the power of the Adepti. But because most of them only knew how to protect Liyue through combat…”

“So over thousands of years, it was ultimately humans who took over the operations of this trading hub, while the Adepti retreated into seclusion.”

Godette patiently explained to the three.

At this moment, Lumine and Paimon were a bit puzzled. Were Adepti really that hard to meet? She had already encountered four Adepti in a single day.

What Lumine didn’t know was that Qiu Bai, standing beside her, was a deity of Liyue.

Paimon exclaimed in surprise, “The boss lady really knows a lot!”

Godette smiled at Paimon. “Not ‘boss lady,’ just ‘boss.'”

“Anyway, since you have such a strong connection with the Adepti, things should be much easier.”

Godette paused before continuing. “If you’re asking for my advice… well, actually, just try to make Xiao happy.”

(Though I’ve never actually seen him smile.)

“Make him happy?”

“It’s hard to imagine that Dharma Guardian Yaksha… hard to picture what he’d look like smiling happily.”

Paimon looked at the boss with a headache.

Xiao last smiled… probably five hundred years ago, Qiu Bai sighed inwardly.

“Is that so? We know what to do now.”

At this point, Qiu Bai, who hadn’t spoken for a while, finally spoke up.

After all, he had experienced this storyline in the game.

Godette was taken aback and looked at Qiu Bai. After all, she hadn’t yet said how to make Xiao happy.

This person before her had likely only just met that Adeptus today. How could he immediately discern Xiao’s preferences?

“Huh?!”

“How does Qiu Bai know how to make that Dharma Guardian Yaksha happy?”

Paimon’s gaze turned curiously toward Qiu Bai.

“It’s a secret.”

Qiu Bai grinned at Paimon.

Paimon said in astonishment, “You… is there anything you don’t know?”

“Anyway, let’s go find the chef at this inn first.”

“Prepare a serving of Almond Tofu, along with a few of Lumine’s signature dishes.”

Godette quickly added from behind, “Just say the order is from me.”

Qiu Bai turned around, thanked the boss, and then led Lumine and Paimon to find the chef at Wangshu Inn.

Lumine was currently bewildered. Fortunately, she had learned how to cook in Mondstadt.

But she didn’t know if that Adeptus named Xiao would like the dishes she made.

After all, from traveling frequently in the wild, she had learned many recipes and was quite confident in her cooking skills.

After Qiu Bai and the other two had left, Godette felt inwardly shocked. How did that Mr. Qiu Bai know?

Could it be that the person before her was also an Adeptus, like Xiao? Perhaps she should report this to the Tianquan.

Mr. Qiu Bai, Consultant of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor?

How mysterious.

Then, under Godette’s gaze, the figures of the three gradually faded into the distance.

Qiu Bai swept his Divine Sense across the entire Wangshu Inn. Some were here to enjoy the scenery, others were discussing business.

Each one was an elite of Liyue, but they were not his target.

A mysterious smile curled at the corner of Qiu Bai’s lips as he said, “Found it.”

“Found what?”

Lumine and Paimon looked at Qiu Bai, who had suddenly stopped walking, with puzzled expressions.

“Follow me.”

Without further explanation, Qiu Bai headed toward another part of the inn, with Lumine and Paimon following closely behind.