Late at night, on the tallest mountain in Feiyun Village, Ling Feng was burying something – a jar.
Standing behind him were Shenhe and Pei Yu, along with her grandmother.
After burying the jar, Ling Feng approached Pei Yu and her grandmother.
"Your ashes have been buried here as per your request."
That's right, the jar Ling Feng had just buried contained the ashes of Pei Yu and her grandmother. To find Pei Yu's ashes, Ling Feng had flown to Dihua Marsh again, finally locating Pei Yu's remains under an ordinary tree.
According to their wishes, Ling Feng had cremated their remains into ashes, placed them in a jar together, and buried it on the tallest mountain in Feiyun Village.
Pei Yu's grandmother mentioned that their family used to love coming here, but hadn't since Pei Yu's parents died at the hands of monsters.
Pei Yu's parents' ashes were also buried here, marking a final reunion before leaving the world of the living.
"Thank you, Brother Ling Feng and Sister Shenhe."
"We've troubled you so much."
Pei Yu and her grandmother bowed in thanks. Ling Feng tried to stop them, but their resolute attitude made it impossible.
"Alright, let's head to our final destination, the place where Yin and Yang meet in Liyue, Wuwang Hill."
Ling Feng placed Pei Yu and her grandmother into the Spirit Soothing Pot to prevent them from being possessed by evil spirits or contaminated by residual demon god essence on the journey.
Ling Feng summoned the 'The Unforged', and with Shenhe, they soared into the sky once more.
Ling Feng's help to Pei Yu and her grandmother brought an unexpected bonus.
Pei Yu's grandmother had worked at a blacksmith's shop for a few years in her youth. When Ling Feng summoned 'The Unforged', she recognized the four-star Liyue divine weapon. She explained that 'The Unforged' was different from ordinary weapons; it was a hybrid of a sword and a saber.
More precisely, it was a single-edged sword. Its body was sword-shaped, possessing the sharpness and lightness of a sword, but its hilt and one side were crafted in the style of a saber, embodying the robustness and dominance of a saber.
In simple terms, 'The Unforged' was a sword with only one sharpened edge and a blade tip, its back could be used to stun enemies, and so on.
For others, knowing this offered little practical use. However, for Ling Feng, it meant he could use both sword and saber techniques with 'The Unforged'.
Ling Feng had originally wondered why 'The Unforged' could be used with both sword and saber techniques, initially attributing it to the uniqueness of the martial arts. Now, he understood it was due to 'The Unforged' being a single-edged sword.
He had foolishly thought it was a Tang sword, only to realize now that it was a sword! He had claimed not to be good with swords, yet found himself surprisingly adept.
However, his swordsmanship was unconventional. He didn't bother with finesse; it was all about power.
Amidst the clouds, Ling Feng asked, "Sister, are there any teleportation arrays in Pounding Jade?"
He preferred not to use teleportation anchors because they were guarded, and Ling Feng found that troublesome.
He'd rather travel by sword than use a teleportation anchor. Wouldn't the experience of the wind hitting his face in the sky be exhilarating? Others sought thrills in speeding cars; he soared on his sword, performing aerial spins and 360-degree somersaults, experiencing the sensation of ascending to heaven.
"I don't know. Master never told me. But I seem to recall Master mentioning it once or twice in passing, that the teleportation array in Pounding Jade had long been damaged," Shenhe replied.
"Then we'll travel by sword. My true qi recovery speed can keep up with my flight speed now."
As Ling Feng spoke, he cast a sword incantation to activate auto-flight mode, keeping 'The Unforged' on a forward trajectory. He then sat down cross-legged to rest. Seeing this, Shenhe also sat down.
Ling Feng looked at the luminous screen floating in the air, displaying the mission panel.
[Heart's Desire Quest - Final Stage "Dual Wishes": Fulfill the final wishes of Pei Yu and her grandmother, escort them to the border of Wuwang Hill. Rewards: 160 Wish Power, 0.5 Merit Points, the complete set of "Mount Mao Daoism", and a Soul Summoning Bead.]
The second stage of the Heart's Desire quest had been completed when Pei Yu and her grandmother finished their conversation at the door, unlocking the final stage.
This final stage offered the most abundant rewards. By learning Mount Mao Daoism, he would no longer be as helpless when dealing with ghosts and spirits as he was today.
At least, dealing with ordinary spirits and ghosts wouldn't be a major problem. What he needed wasn't a method to kill ghosts, but the ability to subdue spirits and expel demons.
If he truly wanted to kill ghosts, both the Earth Fire and the Blazing Flame Saber techniques could achieve that. But in a situation like today, he would be at a significant disadvantage.
More skills are always better.
He had already mastered the Ghost Killing Spell and the Spirit Transcension Spell. Having learned one for salvation and one for killing, he only lacked a means of subduing.
Ling Feng closed the mission panel with a thought and opened the partner panel. He noticed that "In Seclusion" was written next to Tu Shan Hong Hong's name, so he closed the screen.
"By the way, Sister, do you know why the teleportation array was damaged?" Ling Feng took the opportunity to inquire about the situation in Pounding Jade.
He had heard from other Genshin Impact enthusiasts that there was a hidden quest in Pounding Jade, supposedly related to it being an ancient settlement for Liyue people. He didn't know many specifics.
The game version he had arrived in was only 2.1, and there were still many stories he didn't know. This missing knowledge needed to be filled in one by one.
Upon hearing his question, Shenhe began to recount what she knew.
"I don't know about that. The information I have comes from what Master told me and from records I've read in ancient texts."
"Pounding Jade was formerly known as Guili Plain, and it was the site of the largest and most brutal battles during the ancient war of the Archons.
Countless Archons and beings perished in Guili Plain. Because it was the most developed region in Liyue at the time, it became a place of contention for the Archons.
Ultimately, the Sea Archon, who possessed supreme Archon power, inexplicably flooded the entire Guili Plain. It was also during this war that the Geo Archon's closest friend, the Dust Archon, perished.
The ancient texts provide no further records after that. However, I know the Sea Archon eventually died, though the specific cause of death is unknown.
After Guili Plain was destroyed, the Anemo Archon led the people of Guili Plain to migrate south of Mt. Tianheng and build a new city-state, which is now Liyue Harbor."
Listening to Shenhe's account, Ling Feng fell into deep thought. He had gained a deeper understanding of Liyue's history, but he also realized how terrifying this region was. Based on what he knew so far, there were at least three top-tier Archons.
The Geo Archon, Rex Lapis.
The Ley Line Dragon Ancestor, the Osial.
And the Sea Archon.
Not to mention how many other Archons he didn't know about. After all, with three top-tier Archons alone, there must be a large number of lesser Archons.
Tsk, tsk, tsk. It was a good thing he hadn't arrived during the Archon War. With Liyue's unknown terrifying combat power, he would likely have died miserably.