They won the Holy Grail War, but this turned out to be the Virtual Tree Universe.

Chapter 554 Extra Chapter (18): The Starry Sky Train Visits Liyue

At the flagship bar in Naxia Town, on the night that the Moon Hunter successfully "chaseed" his wife after defying the heavens, the people who "helped" him were celebrating.

The banishment of the Moon Hunters signifies that Nordcalle has successfully weathered this crisis.

Therefore, the local Voynich Chamber of Commerce covered all the expenses for this victory celebration banquet.

After all, the rampant hunting outside would severely disrupt trade routes, and every extra day this disaster lasted, the merchants of Nordkalai would lose a considerable amount of money.

This includes super-shrewd businesspeople like Dolly.

Ying, whose Mora has never been particularly wealthy, naturally wouldn't refuse someone paying for it.

Despite possessing a large amount of credits, they cannot use them directly in Teyvat and can only rely on the Mora they exchanged when they arrived in Mondstadt.

The Star Train crew, who were short of money, naturally wouldn't refuse someone's offer to treat them.

Moreover, only relevant individuals were allowed to attend this celebration banquet, so everyone was quite relaxed.

Even Sundays spent waiting on the train were brought up. In the bar, people were divided into several small groups and chatted happily, with everyone "visiting" each other to participate in the conversation.

For example, the bar girl group consisting of Himeko, Lauma, and Nefer, after the three girls had a couple of drinks, Nefer couldn't help but start asking about the Star Train group's future plans.

Nefer's face was slightly flushed; she was already pleasantly tipsy. After raising her glass once more, she casually asked...
"Miss Himeko, the crisis for the Moon Hunters has now been resolved."

You have completed the mission entrusted to you by that immortal star god. What are your plans for the future?
Should we explore Norrkåle some more, or visit other countries?

Nefer wasn't gathering intelligence at this moment; the purpose of the Star Train's arrival in Teyvat had already been clearly stated.

For the train crew, Danlei's commission is at most an important side mission; the main mission is always the same: exploration.

Nordekale is just one region in the north that is wintering, for the whole of Teyvat.

Nordekale is not small in area, but it is known for its vastness and sparse population during winter. To develop it, there is only one town, one city, and at most the Frostmoon Children and the Moon Moment Force Experiment Design Bureau.

After visiting these places, we've finished exploring the areas where people from Nordkalé gather.

In the remaining areas, one can basically only watch various wild beasts, Frosty Night Spirits, and Radiant Beasts baring their teeth at them.

It can be said that if the train crew wants to explore Teyvat, other countries are a must.

As for why they didn't go to the closer Winter's End capital, it's because Ying has connections in the other six countries, which can save the train crew a lot of trouble.

As for Zhi Dong, with the thousands of Fools' Emblems in her bag, it was no wonder she was arrested and imprisoned the moment she stepped into the city.

Himeko didn't evade Nefer's question and answered directly.
"After the matter of the Moon Hunters is over, we will indeed be leaving Nordcalle."

According to Ying, other countries in Teyvat are not facing any major crises, and the efficiency of expanding from one country to another is rather low.

So we decided to pair up and contact different countries separately.

At the speed of the train, it only takes a few hours to travel around the six countries.

However, who goes to which country still needs further discussion.

Personally, I'm more interested in Sumeru. I'm very curious about what kind of wisdom this wise kingdom possesses.

And I've heard their coffee is famous, I'd like to try it.

Himeko told Nefertari about Sumeru, which means she knew that she was born in Sumeru.

Of course, Himeko wasn't lying; she was indeed very interested in the Kyoto Institute and Sumeru's coffee.

However, Nefer was not very satisfied with her hometown, and she replied with an expression that suggested unpleasant memories.
"If I had to choose, I definitely wouldn't choose Sumeru."

In that place, wisdom and savagery coexist.

Within the oasis, the Academy is rife with factions and cliques, and various forms of discrimination remain unresolved.

As for places outside the oasis, I think unless you're interested in archaeology...

Otherwise, you wouldn't want to go to a place with extreme temperature differences between day and night, rife with thieves and scammers, where you'd get a mouthful of sand every few steps without a mask.

Himeko knew what Nefertari was saying. It was no secret that Sumeru was composed of oases and deserts; Hikari had described this contradictory country to the train crew back in Pinocene.

However, it is true that the Sumeru Academy has a rich collection of books, but its academic achievements are questionable, and it is said that the Fontaine Academy has great potential to surpass it.

However, the rich heritage of the Faculty of Education is far beyond what the Fontainebleau Academy, which has only been established for over four hundred years, can match.

Therefore, seeing that Himeko remained unmoved, Nefer said nothing more.

If Himeko just wants to look at the books and drink coffee in Sumeru Castle, there is indeed no danger.

Moreover, given the nature of the Order Institute, these bullies would definitely treat Himeko, a guest who possesses a wealth of extraterrestrial knowledge and wields immense power, like a treasure.

Furthermore, Narcida, the little grass goddess, has regained power. (The World Tree records have been altered, and the Teyvats have forgotten the Great Tree King.)
Nefer had a good opinion of the goddess Nasita.

So, Nefer immediately started another topic, intentionally or unintentionally revealing some secrets of Teyvat to Himeko, hoping to entice her to trade information with her before leaving.

Of course, the value of Teyvat's secret intelligence is certainly not as high as that of the outer realms, and Nefer is willing to pay the difference in Mora.

Nefer saw that the Starry Sky Train Group was short of money and that Ying could not provide a large amount of funding.

Falgar could access all the money from the Knights of Faer, and even though he was the Grand Master and could advance large sums of money, he still needed Jean, who was far away in Mondstadt, to reimburse him afterwards.

Supporting the development of the Star Train is clearly unrelated to this expedition. If he dares to allocate funds, he will definitely not be able to pass Qin's test later.

It should be noted that the donations made by the Grunhild family bypassed the Knights' financial audit.

Even if Arecino and Sandone were willing to give the money to the Fools, everyone would advise the train crew not to accept it, fearing that the Starry Sky Train would later be tied to the Fools' chariot.

As for the Frostmoon Children, they are struggling to afford the cost of rebuilding their base, and Lauma is even considering temporarily suspending the free moon feast.

If the Frostmoon Child wants to pull out a huge sum of Mora in one go, Rauma will have to sell herself.

After eliminating these possibilities, there are only two people in Nordkale who can provide substantial funding to the Star Train Group and who have a basic level of trust: Nefer and Dolly.

However, if they want to get funds from Dolly, they'll have to offer some good alien stuff.

Nothing on the Starry Sky Train is superfluous.

Moreover, the high-tech equipment on the train is basically driven by imaginary energy. Without the train providing the power of destiny, it would be just like an electrical appliance without electricity—pure scrap metal.

The remaining personal belongings are not very valuable in Teyvat.

For example, the model that Walter spent a lot of effort making would definitely be worthless in Dolly's eyes.

Therefore, the Star Train will have to get funding from Nefer.

Intelligence costs Star Train nothing, and they can control how much they reveal.

With Nefer's hint, Himeko immediately understood, and the two reached an agreement without tacit agreement.

Himeko's interaction with Nefertari was just a microcosm of the banquet. Falga and Arecino both sought out their close friends and crew members to inquire about the train's future plans.

The members of the Starry Sky Train crew did not hide their plans for the trip.

Xing said she didn't care where she went, and would see what other people's schedules were like.

I want to go to Inazuma on March 7th to read light novels.

Danheng wanted to go to Mondstadt, but he didn't give a specific reason. In reality, he wanted to talk to Dvalin about the rock dragon he had seen.

Welt wanted to go to Liyue. At this banquet, he met Yanfei, who had found Ying, and became very interested in the immortal arts that mortals could cultivate.

Moreover, Walter has heard that Chenyu Valley tea is very good, and he wants to go and buy some.

On Sundays, he, like Himeko, wants to go to Sumeru.

He heard from Ying that the power of the Grass God was to manipulate dreams, so he wanted to talk to Nasita.

Based on all this information, it's actually quite easy to analyze the distribution of the Starry Sky Train crew members.

Himeko and Sunday share the same goal: to go to Sumeru together. The train will most likely make a temporary stop in Sumeru as well.

Welt and Danheng will probably go to Mondstadt or Liyue together. These two countries are adjacent, and their capitals are relatively close to each other compared to other countries.

Since Hoshino has no goals, she will most likely go to Inazuma with the unmarried March 7th. Hoshino also reads light novels, so she certainly won't find them boring.

As expected, the result was exactly what everyone anticipated.

After the victory celebration, the Starry Sky Train crew only stayed in Nordcaledo for one day. Himeko and Nefer exchanged some information, and then the crew set off with the bank deposit slip given to them by Nefer.

Ying and Paimon set off with the train crew as guides.

Anyway, the Star Train only takes a few hours to circle the planet at a safe speed. She can go to various countries to make arrangements for the train crew and then come back without taking much time.

Accompanying her was Klee, who, having had a blast in Nordkalé, was happily preparing to take the train back to Mondstadt with a bag full of the latest bombs.

For her, being confined upon returning home was inevitable, but the trip was so rewarding that a week of confinement would be worth it.

So the Star Train headed straight for Mondstadt, following the previously recorded route.

There were no problems returning Klee. When Jean saw Klee, she not only didn't blame her, but instead gave her a bear hug, just like Laumma hugged Columbia.

Although Jean's figure wasn't as hot as Laura's, her little head was hot enough to bury Klee's.

When Klee was released, her eyes, which had been suffocated, started to dart around.

Seeing that Klee was not severely punished, the Starry Sky Train crew took their leave with peace of mind.

The train crew, accompanied by Ying, then went to the Wind Dragon Ruins.

As soon as Danheng described the rock dragon he had seen, Dvalin immediately recognized it as the Nagato of Liyue.

Therefore, Danheng decisively teamed up with Welt to search for the Dragon King Rota in Liyue.

Ying remained silent on the issue of the Dragon King Ruoduo.

As witnesses to many major events in various countries, Ying and Paimon know what they can tell their friends and what they cannot.

The Dragon King Ruoduo is crucial to the stability of Liyue's ley lines, and he is also Zhongli's most valued old friend.

Without Zhongli's consent, Ying and Paimeng could not disclose the strictly confidential information about the sealing point of the Ruotu Dragon King to the Starry Sky Train crew.

However, Ying also gave Danheng a little reminder.

She secretly slipped Danheng a copy of an old advertisement for the Temple of Rebirth that he had kept as a memento, telling him that he couldn't directly ask the authorities about finding the Dragon King Ruoduo.

The Liyue Shrine of Resurrection was involved in organizing even the funerals of immortals in ancient times, indicating a close relationship with the immortals of Liyue. It may also contain information about the Dragon King of Rhodo.

Seeing that Ying was secretly giving him information, Danheng knew that she must know something about the Dragon King Ruoduo.

Dan Heng quickly guessed that Ying's position might make it difficult for her to tell him this information, so he very understandingly expressed his gratitude and accepted the bizarre advertisement that read "Buy one monument, get one free".

Mondstadt is very close to Liyue. In no time, the Star Train arrived in Liyue and headed straight for Liyue Harbor.

Then, Qunyu Pavilion flew over in its latest Returning Machine.

The Star Train's uninvited arrival, to put it bluntly, constitutes an invasion of Liyue's airspace.

Since Liyue doesn't have any celestial beings, and the Jade Pavilion is the only visible aerial unit, it naturally came over immediately.

Fortunately, the Star Train looks like just a train and doesn't have any weapons.

Therefore, Qunyu Pavilion was only approaching via the Guizhong Machine, while the immortals were still observing.

If what arrived today was indeed a spaceship with menacing cannon barrels, then the one flying over would be the Three-Eyed Five-Manifestation Immortal.

Seeing Liyue's "flying fortress" approaching, the Star Train naturally slowed down and stopped in mid-air, then had Danheng, in his Moonlit Form, fly off on clouds with Glow and Paimon.

Danheng's Moon Drinking Form has horns but no tail (the tail is a phantom and cannot be seen unless he uses his full power), making him look like a half-immortal.

Ying was known to all the soldiers of the Jade Pavilion.

After all, there are only a few people who have the authority to visit Qunyu Pavilion without prior notice, and since Ying was just wandering around Qunyu Pavilion (looking for treasure chests), all the soldiers in Qunyu Pavilion naturally recognized Ying.

Therefore, the soldiers of Qunyu Pavilion did not attack when they saw the three approaching.

When the three landed on the platform of Qunyu Pavilion, Ningguang's secretary, Baiwen, had already arrived after hearing the news.

When she saw Danheng beside Ying, she didn't dare to greet Ying as casually as she usually did.

Even the Seven Stars of Liyue know very little about the Liyue Immortals.

Many immortals have gone into hiding over time, and apart from the Emperor and other immortals, no one knows them.

Therefore, when Baiwen saw a person who looked like an immortal and Ying get off the flying train, he dared not be negligent at all.

After bowing solemnly, Baiwen respectfully said...

"Miss Ying, Miss Paimeng, and this immortal, welcome. Are you all here to see Lord Ningguang?"

Seeing how serious Yingjian was, he quickly helped Danheng and the train crew behind him explain their identities.

After a flurry of chatter, Baiwen finally understood the situation with a shocked expression.

Therefore, after being informed, Ningguang, knowing that the matter had changed from an unidentified flying object invasion to an alien force visit, gave the Stardust Train crew a very high level of courtesy and personally went out to greet them.

Considering that the rest of the train crew would also be coming to Liyue to experience it, Himeko led everyone off the train so that Liyue could at least record everyone's information to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings in the future.

(End of this chapter)