I, the Rock King Emperor with 21 billion in power, have joined the chat group.

With his signature silly voice, the loud and boisterous Paimeng suddenly pushed open the door and flew into the courtyard.

Following behind him was a young female traveler with a somewhat somber expression.

She walked to Zhongli's side and stopped slightly.

"Mr. Zhongli."

She greeted him very politely.

"Hello, young traveler." Zhongli turned around calmly.

Before silence could fall, Little Paimon moved closer to Zhongli.

"Oh, Zhongli, you're not drinking tea? I thought you were so free all day that all you could do was drink tea."

Paimon speaks almost without thinking, saying whatever comes to mind.

"So, after you stepped down from your duties as the Rock King Emperor, you seem to have become a bit like a retired old man. All you can do is drink tea and admire flowers."

Upon hearing Xiao Paimeng's words, Zhongli turned his head and glanced at her with his pale golden eyes.

Little Paimon seemed to sense the somber atmosphere, chuckled twice, and didn't continue the topic.

Then she floated back to the traveler girl's shoulder and said with a grin, "Zhongli, our Ying has been through a lot lately."

"You know what? The Windflower Festival in Mondstadt a while ago was really fun. It was completely different from the Lantern Festival in Liyue."

Let me tell you.

“In Liyue, we have to do all sorts of small tasks, but in Mondstadt, the Mondstadt people say that this is their own festival, so of course we have to do the work ourselves.”

"Also, I didn't see any familiar faces in Liyue. During the Lantern Festival, Keqing, Ningguang, and Ganyu were all incredibly busy. But during the Mondstadt Windflower Festival, many friends were there. Not to mention Wendy, who was just singing for fun, and Mona, the alchemist who had no money, even the acting Knight Commander celebrated the festival with us."

"Speaking of the festive atmosphere, the Wind and Flower Festival is definitely better."

After saying this, Paimon crossed his arms and nodded seriously.

Zhongli smiled calmly at this statement.

He nodded slightly: "Perhaps so."

After saying this, he did not delve into the topic further, but instead asked, "Travelers, what brings you here today?"

"Can't I come and visit you, a retired cadre, if there's nothing wrong?" Xiao Paimeng approached with a smile.

"Isn't it because I was worried you'd be bored staying alone in Liyue Harbor that I came to chat with you?"

"Alright, alright." Zhongli shook his head helplessly and gently pushed away the little Paimon that was leaning close to his forehead.

“I actually have quite a lot on my plate, so I'm not always in Teyvat. If you're really free, I do have something to tell you.”

Zhongli's gaze swept over the traveler girl and Paimon.

He said softly, "My main body may fall into a deep sleep for a while. If you want to travel to other countries or have other matters to discuss with me, you will probably have to contact my clone."

"Huh?? Asleep? What happened?" Little Paimon asked in surprise.

"It's nothing," Zhongli replied. "It's just for further advancement. I won't go into the specific reasons and process."

"Okay." Paimon crossed his arms, looking like he was seriously considering something. "When does it start? You mean it'll be difficult for me and Ying to see you in the future?"

“That’s not the case.” Zhongli shook his head. “I still live in this small courtyard, and there’s no real difference from before. When you come to see me, you will still be here.”

"If there's any difference from before, it's that my clone's power is weaker than my main body. If I were to encounter a life-or-death battle against [Heavenly Principle], perhaps..."

"Maybe we can't win?" Little Paimon quickly chimed in.

"No, perhaps it won't be as devastating as it seems." Zhong Li smiled faintly.

"Hey~~!" Little Paimon clapped his hands.

“Actually, you might not know this,” Zhongli continued, “but the me I am now is also an avatar.”

"Ok??"

This surprised Paimon.

She stared at Zhong Li, scrutinizing him from head to toe: "Is it really a clone?"

“Of course.” Zhongli nodded slightly.

"Thinking about it..." Little Paimon's expression gradually changed: "Zhongli, when exactly did you become a clone? Could it be from the first time we met?"

"Could it be that your true form is indeed that dead golden dragon?"

“No.” Zhongli didn’t have the mischievous idea of ​​making Paimon guess, but said directly, “That’s just an avatar. You should have seen my real body.”

Paimon and the traveler were startled, and then, for some reason, they suddenly remembered the pale golden eyes they had seen before, eyes that seemed to tear the entire sky apart and oppress and destroy the world.

Both Paimon and the traveler girl were somewhat bewildered.

Paimon was the first to react.

She swallowed hard, forcing a dry laugh: "Haha... Haha... Mr. Zhongli, you're quite the joker, those eyes..."

“It’s me,” Zhongli said calmly.

"Haha...haha," Paimon chuckled dryly twice more.

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore." She quickly ended the conversation to avoid recalling those terrifying eyes—you know, even she was so scared when she saw those eyes that she couldn't eat properly for two days.

"Let's get down to business."

"Important business?" Zhongli sat back down at the bluestone table in the courtyard, feigning confusion. "Didn't you just say there was nothing important?"

“How could there be no important matters?” Little Paimon said irritably. “My wife Ying and I are very busy every day. Of course we have a lot of important matters to attend to. We don’t have as many clones as you, who can do whatever they want whenever they want.”

"This matter... let me explain." The traveler girl standing beside Paimon took a step forward and spoke for the first time, taking over Paimon's words.

Zhongli's gaze immediately shifted to the girl in front of him, who looked rather gloomy and was clearly very unhappy.

But she noticed Zhongli's gaze and forced herself to smile.

“If you can’t laugh, then there’s no need to laugh.” Zhongli calmly took a sip of tea that had appeared out of thin air on the table, shifting his gaze from the girl’s face: “From a general rational point of view, mortals are never in control of their own lives in this world, but if one has to force oneself to even cry or laugh, then that would be too pathetic.”

"Mmm." The traveler girl nodded gently, like an abandoned kitten, trying hard not to cry.

"I recently ran into my brother again."

"Hmm, where?" Zhongli was not surprised: "Hmm...where doesn't matter. Tell me what he said and did."

“He rejected my invitation again,” the traveling girl sighed. “And he even mentioned his enemy.”

"Hmm, the enemy?" Zhongli raised his voice slightly.

“Yes, what destroyed the entire Black Sun Dynasty back then, besides Tianli, were you Seven Gods, right?” The traveler girl stared into Zhongli’s eyes.

“…” Zhongli pondered for a moment.

As the traveler girl expected, she nodded.

"Yes, Wendy and I are also members of the Seven."

The traveler girl's expression did not change. After all, the Black Sun Dynasty was a stranger to her, while Zhongli and Wendy were companions she had made.

She hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Mr. Zhongli, why did you do this?"

“This world is very fragile,” Zhongli replied directly. “What the Black Sun Dynasty obtained from the sky has caused great harm to this world and could lead to the destruction of the entire world.”

"Of course, this crisis is nothing to me now, but back then, I couldn't guarantee that I could save the world when it happened."

Zhongli made no attempt to hide anything: "So, I am also a [Destroyer]."

“As for your brother…” Zhongli shook his head slightly: “I don’t know him, but Wendy should know him. At least in Mondstadt, he and Wendy traveled together.”

"I understand." The traveling girl nodded slowly, then continued to ask:

"Then what do you think I should do to win my brother back?" The girl lowered her head, patted the hem of her clothes, knelt down properly, raised her hands to Zhongli, and bowed.

"Please, Immortal Zhongli, save me. I'll even offer my brother to Gan Yu as her secretary if you want, just teach me how to win my brother back."

"......."

Zhongli silently looked at the girl kneeling on the ground, and then at Xiao Paimeng, who was also kneeling in mid-air.

His calm expression finally changed slightly.

He looked at the traveler girl with a conflicted expression: "Although I noticed a long time ago that you liked to stare at a girl's thighs the first time you met her, I never expected... you would be so... well, according to Liyue, you'd be called 'unreliable'."

“It’s just an appreciation of beauty.” The traveler girl couldn’t help but retort: ​​“It’s not about staring at thighs, but praising the world that created beautiful girls, praising the wonderful thigh stockings and the snow-white, smooth skin that’s like tofu or pearls.”

This doesn't sound like something she would say.

Zhongli looked at the traveler girl seriously and rubbed the corner of his eye with his fingers: "Okay, let's not dwell on this."

"But since you've asked so sincerely, as your friend, I should give you a hint."

Zhongli reached out and tapped the table slightly. The traveler girl immediately felt an invisible force lift her up and make her sit at the bluestone table, opposite Zhongli.

"You and your brother are twins on the Stone of Fate, the saviors wandering the world of Teyvat, the hope to save this world."

Zhongli, a rare riddle-maker, uttered a few words.

"Although I cannot tell you the details right now, I can guarantee that you and your brother will eventually be reunited, and you and your brother will save the world."

"If, at the end of this world, you and your brother don't have a happy ending, I won't agree."

"This is my guarantee—the Rock King Emperor Zhongli."

"Hmm..." The traveler girl's expression also turned serious.

She nodded slightly and continued to ask, "Then, Mr. Zhongli, what do my brother and I... need to do now?"

“You don’t need to worry about your brother.” Zhongli tapped the stone table again: “You just need to travel according to your original plan. Whatever you encounter or experience on your journey, it will all be part of your life experience.”

"Traveler".

"You will eventually reach the end and witness the birth or destruction of this world."

At this point, Zhongli laughed.

"Of course, I will not allow destruction to occur under any circumstances."

"Yes, I believe you, Mr. Zhongli." The traveler girl smiled slightly.

......

A short while later, the traveling girl and Paimon took their leave.