Genshin Impact, I, a mere mortal, cannot accompany you to the very end.

Sure enough, Zhongli must know something. Yes, yes.

Wan Yan should have known better. He knew so much about the mechanisms of the underground salt, he could even predict what the next artifact would be...

Given his previous behavior, there's no doubt that he's definitely someone in the know!

It cannot be spread?

Is it to avoid damaging the reputation of the Liyue Sage...?

This is already a classic case of protesting too much.

Wanyan was truly fed up with the hypocrisy of the Liyue people. She stared straight at Zhongli and demanded, "Tell me the truth!"

The world fell silent.

The sound of the wind rustling through the weeds, the sound of iron filings falling from the bronze door, the sound of water dripping from the dome—all sounds were filtered out.

A long, long silence fell as everyone stared at Mr. Zhongli.

Finally, he spoke, his voice not loud, but it weighed heavily on Wanyan's heart.

"The history of Liyue was indeed altered by Morax."

He said this.

The history of Liyue was indeed altered by Morax.

The words echoed in Wan Yan's ears for a long time.

The huge weight on my heart was lifted.

The emotion that rose with the falling stone was the ecstasy of a wish fulfilled. The light in her eyes grew brighter. She was right, her research was right, they were right. All the efforts seemed to have paid off at this moment. Morax had changed history!

"Our research is correct, the evidence is right, indeed, it is just as we expected..."

She murmured, "The Salt God was indeed assassinated by Fushe, and all of this was kept secret by the Liyue Immortals..."

Before she could finish speaking, Zhongli uttered the next sentence:

"but."

"The fact that Heureia was killed by Fushe."

Zhongli spoke slowly, his voice as steady as a rock.

"—That was fabricated by Morax at the request of his friend."

"Grand Marshal Tengshe Fushe has never betrayed us."

Although he was speaking to Wanyan, his gaze was fixed on Qingnuoyan. Qingnuoyan could not decipher the meaning of that look. This was the first time Zhongli had revealed his emotions. His golden eyes were like a golden lake, swirling with complex and sorrowful eddies.

Was that... an apology?

Qing Nuoyan couldn't understand it. All he could do was smile and wave his hand to indicate that he had forgotten everything and didn't care.

...

what.

silence.

impossible.

Wan Yan was stunned. What? What? Impossible! Her mind was completely blank. The joy that had been welling up in her mind seemed to have been suppressed by a giant hand.

That large hand was so heavy that it made it hard for her to breathe.

Is Fushe not a sinful immortal?

How could Fushe not be a sinner!

"Impossible." She stared intently at Zhong Li, her eyes seemingly bloodshot. "You're lying! You're deceiving me!"

"The Liyue Immortals never concealed anything; on the contrary, they were the ones who were deceived."

Zhong Li said in a low voice:

"You may have found some evidence in the archaeological ruins... but in fact, the evidence that supports you was deliberately created by Morax. The purpose was to make... the immortals believe that Fushe is a sinner."

Everything was rejected.

"How did the Salt God die!" she gritted her teeth, pointing at the two broken swords. "How can we explain these two pieces of the Salt Demon God's sword?"

“I never said that,” Zhongli said softly. “This is the sword of the Salt Demon God.”

What...?

"On the contrary, this sword belongs to humankind." His voice was calm, but it sounded like needles to Wanyan's ears. "This sword belongs to the people of the Salt of the Earth, the children of the Salt God."

Each sentence was sharper than the last.

“And it was with this sword,” Zhongli paused, “that they killed their god!”

It was a bombshell.

"You're lying. How could mortals... how could we..." Wanyan took a half step back. "How could we kill the powerful Heureia?"

"That's just Heureia in your imagination. You're just worshipping a god you've imagined."

Zhongli shook his head.

"On the contrary, she was too weak—too accommodating, too gentle—and had no chance of ascending to the position of one of the Seven Gods...a loser. In the war between the demon gods, she chose to retreat, fearing the loss of her people. So, in her constant retreat, she was ultimately killed by her own people."

"Then, how do you explain the matter of Fushe?"

Wanyan stared intently at Zhongli, "That sinful immortal, why did he accept this crime!"

“Because,” Zhongli met her gaze, his voice low and earnest, and said:

"That sinful immortal is both stupid and stubborn."

"He's always like that."

Qing Nuoyan was taken aback.

Zhongli spoke very seriously. He was usually serious and always maintained his composure, but when he mentioned that sinful immortal, he shook his head slightly, and there seemed to be a helpless smile on his lips.

She looked like she really couldn't do anything about him.

Wan Yan bit her lip.

Lies, it's all lies.

My years of faith could not have been shattered by Zhongli's words. It must be a lie. Zhongli is deceiving me. Yes, he is also a follower of Morax. It's all a lie!

Wanyan seemed to understand something. She tucked the two broken sword pieces into her bosom. "...You want to undermine my faith in the gods!"

She made this decision decisively, turned around, protected the broken sword, and ran out of the bronze door as if fleeing, running far away into the distance.

“Mr. Zhongli... this punishment of eating rocks is a bit harsh.”

Qing Nuoyan watched her receding figure, thinking to himself that this was far more powerful than eating stones...

But in truth, Qing Nuoyan was also deeply shaken and had many questions she wanted to ask.

Although he said he didn't care about his past life, but...

I guess I still care a little.

The boy's thoughts were actually very simple.

If he wasn't a sinful immortal in his past life, or a villain hated by everyone... then he didn't harm them in his past life.

Does that mean... I can become true friends with Xiao and the others?

That's really great.

Qing Nuoyan looked up at Mr. Zhongli, a strange feeling creeping into his mind—it seemed that Mr. Zhongli was not only speaking to Wanyan, but also to him.

It seems Zhongli wanted to tell him: Friend, you have never betrayed me.

“A contract is a contract, and it cannot be broken.” Zhongli shook his head and explained, “Besides, even if I don’t tell her, she will find out sooner or later. It’s not a bad thing to be prepared in advance.”

He gazed into the depths of the ruins, "because if we keep going, there... there will probably be a truth she will have to accept no matter what."

ps1:

This is also chapter 2.5! So it's not just some minor character!

By the way, there are two or three lines that are from the original Genshin Impact dialogue, but I didn't charge for the word count of those lines, so please don't say I'm padding the word count!

PS2: Ugh, my stiff neck is so uncomfortable!

Volume 1: Chapter 87 "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..."

what is this.

Qingnuoyan didn't know what those things he saw along the way were...

It resembles a marble statue, but its texture is not stone; it lacks the veins and reflections of stone.

The fine grains stacked together to form their shape.

The pure white torso, the twisted and painful facial features, the hands struggling and bending forward, the ferocious expression, the bulging veins... all of these were forever frozen in the depths of the ruins.

Is that salt... salt?

He tentatively touched the 'statues', but as soon as he touched them, the first snow melted instantly, collapsing and scattering crystals in the air, shimmering with a gloomy light.

This is salt. Qing Nuoyan rubbed the crystals on his fingertips, frowned slightly, and looked up ahead.

Along the long, long ancient road, more salt sculptures stand, like one after another human-shaped tombstone made of salt. These tombstones extend into the depths of the ruins, with no end in sight. The atmosphere around is eerie and deathly silent, filled with a sinister and terrifying atmosphere.

Even the most lively Ying couldn't utter a witty remark in the face of this eerie scene; she instinctively gripped Qing Nuoyan's sleeve.

Thinking of what Mr. Zhongli had said before, Qing Nuoyan had a vague guess in his heart.

This is probably not a salt sculpture, this is a corpse...

Salt corpse.

Qingnuoyan discovered that these salt corpses all had weapons clipped to their waists.

How were these salt corpses formed...? Neither he nor Ying spoke; they both simultaneously considered that possibility.

No wonder Mr. Zhongli said that the 'truth' is the punishment for Wanyan's breach of contract.