I, from the Celestial Empire, have parachuted into Teyvat.

"I'm at the General's Mansion reviewing information related to the Abyss. What? You need something from me?"

"Of course, regarding the search for information from the public, Yaedo's call for submissions has been open for some time now, and the public has been very enthusiastic, but unfortunately the results have not been ideal. I have screened all of the tens of thousands of submissions as you requested, and I have not found a single useful one. However, the call for submissions is still ongoing, and we will have to wait and see how the submissions go."

Ivan sighed, "I understand. Thank you for your hard work."

"Alright, I'll go back to Yaedo and keep an eye on things."

There was a sound from the other end of the phone, and then the phone was handed back to Xu Donghai.

Ivan rubbed his temples and asked, "Uncle Xu, how's the situation in Liyue and Mondstadt? Any news?"

“I just received a message from Mondstadt and Liyue. We’ve basically sifted through all the official archives and found nothing useful. The search for information from the general public is going in a similar way to what Yae is doing… Also, regarding the matter you asked Lisa from the Knights of Favonius to inquire about, Lisa has already confirmed with the Sumeru Order, and they also don’t have any relevant information there. In addition, with the assistance of Mondstadt and Liyue, we’ve also tried to contact other countries on the Teyvat continent, but we haven’t received a response yet.”

"Okay, I understand..."

After hanging up the phone, Ivan scratched his hair in frustration.

The severe predicament everyone had faced in the past few days had already made Ivan extremely frustrated. The increasingly worse situation made Ivan feel like he had a fire stuck in his chest and needed to vent it. So Ivan punched a pillar of the castle tower next to him.

"asshole......"

Ivan cursed, it was unclear whether he was cursing the terrible situation or feeling powerless himself.

"what happened to you?"

Suddenly a voice sounded behind Ivan. Ivan turned around and saw a shadow walking towards him from behind.

Ivan sighed and shook his head, saying, "It's nothing... I'm just a little... angry."

Ying asked with concern, "What are you angry about?"

"We are powerless... Time is running out. We are carrying the weight of countless lives on our shoulders, yet everything we have done so far seems to have been in vain."

Shadow gently took Ivan's hand and used lightning elemental power to envelop the wound Ivan had just suffered from hitting the pillar. The subtle lightning elemental swirled and soothed the pain in the wound, calming Ivan's agitated mood.

"When you came to Inazuma, you awakened me from centuries of meditation. Everything we encountered afterward, and the changes in Inazuma, made me realize one thing: eternity is not static. Everyone's vision of eternity is a different world. Before, in my eyes, eternity was the cessation of time, the freezing of beauty, and everything maintaining absolute peace and stability. However, you made me understand that this kind of eternity is not what everyone wants. For some, eternity is standing with their loved one at the moment fireworks burst at a fireworks festival; for others, it's the moment their child is born; and for still others, it's tomorrow's sunshine being brighter than today's. So I began to try to see the world in different ways—from the farmer's perspective, from the perspective of a wandering samurai, from the perspective of a merchant, from the perspective of every blade of grass, every flower, every tree, and every leaf... In the end, I saw true eternity."

Ying stroked Ivan's hand and said softly, "I believe everything is the same. Perhaps the current predicament can be solved by changing our perspective, our angle, and our direction of thinking. Don't worry, I believe there will be a way."

"Putting yourself in someone else's shoes...?"

Ivan muttered these words to himself, then gave a wry smile: "Then it can only be creatures of the abyss. After all, only they truly understand the abyss. But how can we possibly think like creatures of the abyss..."

At this point, Ivan suddenly froze, then his blank expression turned into wild excitement. He then burst into laughter and, in the next second, pulled Ying close and kissed her on the cheek.

This series of actions completely stunned Ying, who didn't even have time to blush. She just stared blankly at Ivan, not understanding what had gotten into him.

"Thank you, Shadow. I understand, I understand!"

"Since we can't think like the creatures of the abyss, let's just go after them!"

Ivan looked up at the sky, and a confident smile returned to his face.

The name of an organization came to mind.

It was an organization whose traces were all over the continent of Teyvat, which had fallen into the abyss countless years ago, been corrupted by the abyss, and had countless connections with the abyss.

"The Abyss Order!"

Chapter 390 Cat and Mouse

Several days have passed since Ivan and his team established contact with the people trapped in the abyss.

Communication has remained smooth these past few days. People inside and outside the abyss hold online calls at fixed times each day to keep each other informed, and everyone is working hard to find a way to escape the abyss.

At dawn, Ivan stood before the shogunate, arms crossed, pacing back and forth in a low voice, as if waiting for something.

"General."

Suddenly, the sound of the guards greeting him at the main gate of the general's mansion caught Ivan's attention. Ivan looked up and saw Ying walking out of the gate, and Ying also saw Ivan lingering at the gate.

The two looked at each other for a moment, then hurriedly looked away.

Two days ago, during a conversation, Ivan got excited and suddenly kissed Ying on the cheek. Ying's face immediately turned as red as a ripe cherry, and Ivan only realized what he had done afterward.

In the two days since then, the atmosphere between the two has been somewhat subtle every time they meet.

Ivan turned his head, looked at the ground beside him, and coughed awkwardly.

"Ahem... Um, why are you up so early?"

Ying also kept her head down, her tone carrying a hint of panic.

"Um, I... I came out for a walk, I'm planning to go to town..."

"Oh...see you later..."

"Um......"

Shadow hesitated for a moment, then lowered his head and brushed past Ivan, quickening his pace and running away.

At this moment, a carriage stopped in front of the General's Mansion. Xu Donghai and Kujo Sara got off the carriage and bumped into Kage, who was about to leave. Xu Donghai and Kujo Sara greeted him.

"General."

"General."

"Greetings, you two..."

Ying nodded hastily in response, but her steps showed no sign of stopping.

Seeing Ying's hurried appearance, the two of them were somewhat bewildered.

Xu Donghai asked in bewilderment, "Why does Your Excellency look so flustered, and why is your face a little red? Am I seeing things?"

Kujo Sara also looked puzzled: "The General is always calm and collected in the face of adversity. I have never seen the General like this before. What's wrong with you today?"

The figure had already disappeared at the end of the street. The two saw Ivan standing in front of the General's Mansion and immediately went to greet him. Xu Donghai asked with some curiosity, "Little Ivan, what happened? Why did the General leave in such a hurry?"

"Uh, it's nothing, nothing happened..."

Ivan touched his nose and quickly changed the subject: "How's it going? Any news?"

Kujo Sara said, "I have led the Tenryo Envoy to conduct a thorough search of the entire Inazuma area, but so far no trace of the Abyss Order has been found."

Ivan frowned slightly and looked at Xu Donghai, asking, "What about Mondstadt and Liyue?"

Xu Donghai nodded and said, "We've got it. News has come from Liyue that they've discovered signs of the Abyss Order's activities within their territory, and we've now basically pinpointed their location."

Ivan clenched his fist and exclaimed excitedly, "Great!"

This is definitely good news. If no trace of the Abyss Order has been found in Mondstadt, Liyue, and Inazuma, it would be too difficult to search other places or other Teyvat countries where cooperation has not yet been established. Fortunately, Lady Luck is on our side this time.

"Contact the relevant personnel in Liyue. The follow-up operations must be carried out steadily, and we must absolutely guarantee a successful capture!"

......

"Candied hawthorn berries..."

"Selling candied hawthorns..."

In Liyue, on the bustling Tiger Rock Street, a young man wearing a sun hat strolled leisurely down the street carrying a stack of candied hawthorns, calling out to customers as he went.

"Boss, I'd like two skewers of candied hawthorn."

"Alright, that's twenty moras in total."

The child, who had just received the candied hawthorn, happily left with his mother, holding her hand.

The vendor put away his mora, straightened his straw hat, and shouldered the bundle of hawthorns again, preparing to leave. Just then, a man dressed in black cloth appeared in front of the candied hawthorn vendor and asked curiously, "Boss, how much are your candied hawthorns?"

The vendor looked up at the man and replied, "Ten mora per string."

"Ten Mora? That's so expensive? I do wholesale, I need a lot, can you give me a discount?"

The vendor glanced at the man again, and the man looked back at the vendor with a smile.

The vendor raised an eyebrow and nodded, saying, "Alright, I doubt there's enough for you here. I have some fresh batches at home; come with me to get them."

"to make."

The man in black nodded, chuckled, and followed the vendor out of the bustling crowd. The two left Chihuyan Street and turned a few corners before arriving at a dark alleyway where few people passed by.

Seeing that no one else was around, the vendor immediately changed his expression, raising an eyebrow with disdain: "New here?"

The man in black immediately smiled obsequiously and said, "Yes, yes."

The vendor, with a crooked mouth, said, "Then do you understand?"

The man in black nodded: "I understand, I understand."

As he spoke, he took out a bag of Mora from his pocket and handed it to the vendor with both hands.

The vendor took the Mora bag, weighed it in his hand, and then snorted, "Fine, at least you know the rules."

Seeing the vendor put away the Mora bag, the man in black smiled and said, "May I ask, Lord Guide, is it true that once you join our sect, your dreams will come true?"

The vendor raised an eyebrow and said, "How could it be fake? Once you join the sect, you can get whatever you want, whether it's power, authority, money, beautiful women, or even the power to bring the dead back to life."

The man in black was clearly very tempted by the vendor's words. He couldn't help but swallow, and asked in a slightly excited yet hesitant voice, "But, Lord Guide, I've heard that many people who joined our sect have seemingly disappeared..."

"Huh? You don't believe me?"

"No, no..." the man in black hurriedly waved his hands.

The vendor, chin held high, said, “Those so-called missing people are actually highly valued within the sect and have been sent to the sect’s holy land for further study. They have a bright future ahead of them, so it’s naturally difficult for ordinary people to know their whereabouts. Since you’re quite well-behaved, I’ll put in a good word for you once you get there. If you join the sect and perform well, you’ll naturally be sent to the holy land for further study as well.”

"Yes, yes, yes... When I make something of myself in the future, I will never forget the kindness of Lord Jieyin in introducing me to you."

"You're quite sensible, come with me."

The vendor waved, hoisted his candied hawthorns into a bundle, and led the man in black out of the alley.

At that moment, on the rooftop of a guesthouse just across the street at a 90-degree angle from the alley, a purple figure put down his binoculars and then turned on the walkie-talkie clipped to his shoulder.

"Attention all squads, the rats are preparing to return to their burrows."

Chapter 391 You will definitely escape.

Liyue Harbor, the docks, are as busy as ever.

Seeing the guide walking ahead of him, the man in black hurried forward, puzzled, and whispered, "Guide, what are we doing at the dock?"

The guide frowned and said in a low voice, "Why are you talking so much nonsense? Just come with me."