Walnut used me to boost her sales performance.

"Aren't you coming with us?" Paimon asked curiously.

Since they are friends, it would be better for him to go himself, so why insist on making them go?

"I have some reasons why I can't show my face, so I'll have to trouble you all," Zhongli explained briefly.

Hearing this, Jiang Bai suddenly understood.

It turns out they had a falling out, which is why they were afraid to see each other.

Seeing Jiang Bai's expression, Zhong Li knew he had misunderstood again. He gently touched his forehead and turned around to signal them to go borrow something.

He no longer had any intention of correcting Jiang Bai's strange thought process. Once Jiang Bai knew the truth, everything would naturally fall apart on its own.

Jiang Bai led them back to Yujingtai and sent Meng to look around for Granny Ping.

Grandma Ping was watering the flowers as usual, while the petals of the glass lilies growing in the surrounding flower beds withered and all fell off.

Seeing such a beautiful glass lily, Grandma Ping shook her head and sighed slightly.

"Life is unpredictable, life is unpredictable..."

"Grandma Ping!" Jiang Bai called out.

"It's you. Are you here to admire the flowers? And who are these two?" Grandma Ping asked, her back hunched over, as she looked at Kong and Paimon.

"These two are my friends, travelers from afar. This is Kong, and this is Paimon," Jiang Bai introduced them briefly.

"Hello, Grandma Ping." The two greeted each other very politely.

"Hello. If you came to see the flowers, you've come at the wrong time. These glass lilies are all withered..." Grandma Ping said with a complicated expression.

"Huh?" Jiang Bai glanced around at the glass lilies, wondering what to do after they had all thanked him for the apprenticeship tea!

"Why have all these flowers withered? Is it because their blooming season is over?" Paimon wondered.

Chapter 281 Our guest elder is just too low-key.

"In my day, people said that glass lilies were intelligent and would thrive if they heard good sounds, like singing and laughter. But if they heard too many bad sounds, like gossip and rumors, they would wither very quickly..."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Bai immediately squatted down next to the glass lilies and began to sing, while also having Gu Dong on his shoulder water them.

"Big Qiuqiu is sick, Second Qiuqiu is here to check..."

A fairly pleasant song drifted over, but the petals of the glass lily closest to it all fell off with a single swipe.

Jiang Bai was shocked and stumbled back several steps.

"Has my singing voice really reached the point where even flowers would wither upon hearing it...?" He was deeply shocked.

He clearly thought he sang quite well!

Even the head of the hall praised it!

Grandma Ping adjusted her glasses, momentarily at a loss for words.

Even when it comes to singing, you still have to choose the songs...

She shook her head. "Lilac Lily senses the rumors circulating in Liyue Harbor; it's not something that can be stopped by singing..."

"Will it bloom again after this is all over? How long will it take to bloom?" Jiang Bai asked Grandma Ping anxiously.

He had thought that the glass lily was valuable and wanted to dig it up from the wild to plant, but he couldn't find it in the wild at all; only some grew in Yujingtai.

If the glass lilies here stop blooming, his apprenticeship tea will have to be made with sweet flower dew!

"Once people's hearts settle down, it will naturally bloom again," Grandma Ping sighed. "But right now, Liyue Harbor is like a powder keg; it could explode with just a spark. Who knows when people's hearts will settle down..."

Jiang Bai breathed a slight sigh of relief. As long as it can be opened, it won't be long before people's hearts are at peace after Zhongli takes the throne.

“Speaking of which, Granny Ping, you are also an immortal. Do you know why the Emperor’s soul returned to the heavens?” Jiang Bai asked.

Grandma Ping turned her head and looked at the vast Cloud Sea outside Liyue Harbor, her expression complicated.

"Besides time, what else could have caused the death of a former god of war?"

"You also believe it was a natural death...?" Jiang Bai pondered, if that's the case, then Zhong Li really didn't do anything underhanded.

Grandma Ping shook her head, indicating she had no intention of commenting further.

They were people who came from that era of war and chaos, so they naturally knew just how powerful the Emperor was.

The Emperor would not die without a reason. If his lifespan was nearing its end, he would surely inform them. There must be a reason why things turned out this way.

Let's see what happens next...

"By the way, Grandma Ping, we've come to borrow something from you."

“Yes, that thing is called the Dust-Cleansing Bell,” Paimon replied.

"It's this..." Grandma Ping suddenly realized, and then a smile appeared on her face.

"I heard that Zhongli is in charge of organizing the Immortal Sending Ceremony..."

“Yes, he said he had a reason for not coming and asked us to come and borrow…” Jiang Bai shrugged, feeling that things were a little different from what he had imagined.

Why don't Grandma Ping and Zhong Li seem to have fallen out?

"Go and get it yourselves from my cave..."

Grandma Ping lifted the lid of the pot, and all three of them sucked it in.

Not long after, the three of them came out with the bell.

Seeing that they had received the items, Granny Ping smiled and said, "Please pass on a message to Zhongli for me: if you have time, you can come over for tea. Although I don't have much to offer, I still have a teapot."

Jiang Bai joked, "Grandma Ping, you're too modest. If you don't have much to your name, our guest elder will have to say he's dirt poor."

Immortals are never poor; whatever they take out can cause a frenzy among the people, it's just a matter of whether they're willing to part with it.

Grandma Ping chuckled and waved as she watched them leave.

Leaving Yujingtai, Paimeng felt quite emotional.

"Is this Granny Ping also an immortal? I really can't tell!"

"The truly wise live in seclusion in the city. I've heard there are quite a few immortals in Liyue Harbor, but I only know of Granny Ping."

"Speaking of which, why didn't they just have us find the immortals in Liyue Harbor instead of having us go to the mountains to look for them?"

"There's nothing you can do. Even if a celestial being from the city stood right in front of you, you wouldn't recognize them."

"That's true..."

The group walked to the venue where the ceremonial ceremony for sending off immortals was being prepared, and found Hu Tao and Xiang Ling there.

"Mr. Zhongli, I've received the items." Jiang Bai handed them to him.

Zhongli looked at the object with a touch of nostalgia. "Not bad, this is indeed the Cleansing Bell. It's been kept in excellent condition."

"You got it so quickly! Thank you for your hard work." Hu Tao patted Jiang Bai on the shoulder, then looked curiously at the Cleansing Bell in Zhong Li's hand.

According to ancient texts, this is a magical instrument that can automatically play music, and it is used to accompany each ritual of sending off immortals.

Hearing Zhongli's words, Paimon circled around Zhongli, saying, "With that tone, you wouldn't happen to be an immortal too, would you?"

“Hehe…” Zhongli smiled without saying a word.

Seeing Zhongli smile without speaking, Hu Tao's eyes darted around, and she stood on tiptoe to pat Zhongli's shoulder, deliberately saying:

“Our guest elder is just too low-key. He drank with the Emperor back then, and they have a life-or-death friendship. He is the most suitable person to handle the ceremonial ceremony for Prince Yan!”

“Master, you flatter me. I am just an ordinary person, Zhongli. I know a little more than I do, and I cannot be called an immortal…” Zhongli said helplessly.

Even if he knew that he was the Rock King Emperor, the Hall Master probably wouldn't change his personality.

"Alright, alright, I know you don't want to reveal your identity."

Seeing that Zhongli denied the matter, Hu Tao waved her hand and looked at Kong and Paimon with a hint of threat, "There are only a few of us here, we won't tell anyone."

Paimon and Kong nodded quickly, promising they would never tell anyone!

"Oh, right, Grandma Ping asked me to pass on a message to you." Paimon remembered something and vividly imitated Grandma Ping's speech.

"...Although I don't have much to my name, I do have a teapot."

"Haha, that tone doesn't suit you, but her teapot is indeed excellent; it's perfect for brewing tea. When the time is right, I'll naturally bring some good tea..."

After Hu Tao exposed his identity as an immortal, Zhong Li no longer bothered to hide it.

"The perfume balm is still being made and won't be finished until tonight. So what's next?"

“Next, we’re going to buy kites,” Zhongli said.

"Go on, go on, I still have many details to handle here." Hu Tao waved her hand and went to attend to her own business.

This farewell ceremony is no ordinary event; the entire population of Liyue Harbor will come to bid farewell to the Emperor, so it must be the grandest in history.

Buying a kite is much simpler; I've already ordered it, so I can just go and pick it up.

"Does this kite have any meaning?" Jiang Bai asked, holding one of the kites with intricate patterns, full of curiosity.

Are you suggesting we perform a kite-flying act during the Sending-Off-the-Immortals Ceremony?

"Seven kites symbolize the seven gods."

Chapter 282 Let's go invite Wendy over for the feast

The old woman who made the kites clearly knew a lot about these things; as soon as Zhongli explained their uses, she understood perfectly.

"The kite offered to the Wind God, I deliberately painted freely outside the lines; the one offered to Lord Rock, however, must be painted strictly according to the pattern..."

Zhongli picked up a purple kite and examined it closely. "The swirling lightning patterns on this kite are beautifully drawn, just like the eternity that Thor desired..."

"Is Thor pursuing eternity?" This was the first time Jiang Bai had ever heard of this.

“Mm.” Zhongli nodded.

Jiang Bai was very surprised.

There is a saying that lightning is a momentary flash of light, a fleeting thunder, yet it seeks eternity.

The freedom that the Wind God pursues is completely different from the just contract that the Geo God holds.

Perhaps each deity has a different personality and pursues different things, and their elemental attributes may not be related to what they pursue.

Zhongli picked up another kite, representing the god of grass, and admired it for a moment.

"The patterns of plants and trees, and the rings of silver wood, which are a tribute to wisdom, are cleverly integrated into the skeleton, which is truly admirable..."

His gaze swept over the other kites, “Justice, as balanced as water; War, as fiery as fire; and the Ice God’s former…”

At this point, he paused, skipping over what the Ice God had once revered.

Jiang Bai, who wanted to hear what the Ice God admired, was immediately scratching his head in frustration when he suddenly stopped talking. It was like reading a novel and having a chapter cut off at the most exciting moment, which was extremely frustrating.

Ignoring his emotions, Zhongli praised to herself, "Very good, the details are all done very well."

Jiang Bai suppressed his frustration and was about to make the payment when D'Addariya suddenly appeared.

"Oh, what a coincidence!"

"What are you doing here?" Jiang Bai stared at him warily.

D'Artagnan spread his hands helplessly. "Don't be so wary of me. I just heard that you're preparing a celestial ceremony and wanted to see if there's anything I can help with."

"You've come at the right time, please help me pay." Jiang Bai offered his place to pay.

"Oh, is it that direct?"

"You wanted to help, right? This is where you can help."

"Am I only good for being a wallet?" D'Artagnan scratched his head helplessly, but still took out his wallet to pay.

"Your payment is the biggest help you can give us!" Jiang Bai said, then looked at Kong and Paimon, "Don't you agree?"

The two nodded in unison, "That's right, that's right!"

Faced with such a harsh reality, what could D'Artagnan do?

He could only shrug and say, "How realistic..."

"Help us carry the kite to Yujingtai," Zhong Li said.

These seven kites are quite large and not easy to carry.