Walnut used me to boost her sales performance.

"You're not human?"

Abedo shook his head, not answering the question directly, "My life essence is not the same as that of humans."

He is a life form born from the Cretaceous, and although he was modeled after humans, he is not a real human.

Black soil, chalk, red clay, and gold are the four stages of alchemy, and also four different source substances.

And he was the son of chalk.

Chapter 117 I Want Revenge!

Jiang Bai didn't think much of it, assuming they were just chatting casually.

After all, Aberdo knew about his outsider status, so shouldn't he also share some secrets that are not known to outsiders?

There's a saying that goes something like this: sharing secrets can help bring people closer.

They were originally complete strangers with no foundation of trust. They needed these kinds of "secrets" to strengthen their mutual trust.

The two walked side by side in the snow, their boots crunching on the snow.

"Wouldn't that cause a lot of trouble for people living among the human race?"

"It's alright. It's just that there's no one to offer me experience or guidance, so I have to figure things out on my own."

Aberdo spoke casually.

But only he himself knows the various confusions that a "special" thing will encounter in human society.

This sense of bewilderment doesn't stem from life itself, but from the unique loneliness of being the only one of its kind in the world.

When he got sick, he couldn't tell whether he was simply sick or if something had affected his body, or whether it would bring any danger.

When he is in a low mood, he cannot determine whether he is simply in a bad mood or if there is an abnormality in some part of his body that is causing him to exhibit a bad mood as a warning sign.

Just as humans cannot understand the life state of a slime, those around him cannot serve as a reference, because the essence of each person's life is different. He can only study for himself what the various anomalies on his body represent.

Do you have any relatives?

“Yes. My master, who created me, is like a mother to me. There is also Aunt Alice who brought me to settle in Mondstadt, and her daughter Clare; they are all my family.”

"That's alright, having family around means I won't be too lonely."

"And you? What does it feel like to wake up from a long slumber with no memory?" Because he wasn't a real human, Abedo was very keen to study the human species.

Although the person in front of him does not belong to Teyvat, he is still human.

"I don't feel anything," Jiang Bai said, shrugging.

“I don’t dwell on the past, nor do I have any obsession with regaining my memories. I’m doing quite well now. When I have free time, I stroll around with the head of the hall, exploring here and there. When it’s time to work, I just focus on my work…”

"Although I am curious about why I faked my death and ended up in Liyue, it is just curiosity, not something I absolutely need to know."

Abedo nodded. "You have a great attitude. Life is about looking forward. No matter what happened in the past, the present is the most important thing."

"You'll reach the place I was talking about once you turn this corner."

"Oh?"

Jiang Bai was very curious about what kind of place and what kind of thing could allow him to control the wind element.

After rounding a bend, a dilapidated ruin appeared before Jiang Bai.

This ruin was similar to the ones he had seen along the way: the huge stone pillars were only half-built, with the same patterns carved on them, and the walls had collapsed, leaving only broken ruins.

The road, paved with huge stones, was dilapidated, but it still stretched from underfoot all the way into the ruins.

The ruins are no longer recognizable from their original form; all that remains is a huge ring supported by stone pillars.

The circular path extends into the sky, and it should have once connected to other buildings built against the mountain, but those buildings have long since collapsed, and at the end of the path stands only a huge, silent statue.

The statue emitted a pure blue light. Because of the distance, Jiang Bai could not see the specific image, but he could tell that it was not the statue of the Rock God.

"Do you see that Statue of the Seven?"

"I saw it, so what?"

“The place we’re going to is right there. Follow me, there’s a road over there.”

As they walked, Abedo explained to Jiang Bai.

"The Seven Statues possess magical power. They represent the land ruled by the gods and also have the function of stabilizing the earth's ley lines. My master once told me that the statues have a special power related to the element corresponding to the gods. I think, perhaps through the statues you can master the corresponding elemental power..."

Aberdo wasn't sure if the idea could be realized, since it was just a guess.

"Is this a statue of the wind god?"

Jiang Bai knew that the snow-capped mountains belonged to Mondstadt's territory, and the god of Mondstadt was the wind god Barbatos.

“Yes,” Abedo nodded.

This is common sense for the people of Teyvat, but it may not be so for outsiders.

Jiang Bai might be seeing the statue of the Wind God for the first time.

"Then what kind of place is this ruin?"

"These are the ruins left by an ancient kingdom from a very long time ago. We call this place the [Snow Burial Capital - Old Palace]."

Jiang Bai walked to a large stone pillar, reached out and swept away the snow on it, revealing the mottled patterns underneath.

"As I traveled along, I saw many abandoned buildings with this pattern. Is this pattern unique to this ancient country?"

Jiang Bai was somewhat concerned about this, because he had once boasted to Zhong Li about his guess regarding this pattern.

"It shouldn't be. Many ancient relics have similar patterns, not just snow-capped mountains."

"Sigh, I guessed wrong after all..." Jiang Bai was a little dejected, and at the same time felt his face burning.

Abedo's statement undoubtedly confirmed his mistaken idea; the pattern did not represent the demonic people suppressed by the Lonely Cloud Pavilion at all.

In other words, all his guesses about Zhongli were wrong!

What was Zhong Li's expression like back then?

Zhongli remained silent and did not speak.

Jiang Bai thought that Mr. Zhongli must have been speechless when he heard what he said, speechless to the point of not knowing what to say.

Even someone as thick-skinned as him was starting to feel the strain.

"You guessed wrong? What did you guess wrong?" Abedo asked curiously.

"I've seen some ruins on several islands of Lonely Cloud Pavilion, and those ruins all had similar patterns. I thought those ruins came from the demon god's subjects who were suppressed by Lonely Cloud Pavilion, but now I realize that's not the case at all..."

Jiang Bai rubbed his face to cool it down.

Back then, he thought he was very clever, that he had seen through things that others hadn't... Now, looking back, Mr. Zhongli must have known the truth; he was just quietly watching his performance...

Damn it!

He was determined to find out Zhongli's true identity and reveal it to him in order to avenge this grudge!

Abedo smiled faintly, "You have less information, so it's normal to guess wrong. As far as I know, scholars have different opinions about these ancient ruins scattered throughout Teyvat, and there is no unified explanation."

"To explore the mysteries of the unknown, one must make bold guesses like this; the truth often lies hidden in these seemingly bold guesses."

Chapter 118 Statue of the Wind God

"There aren't many people who dare to speak their minds these days."

Aberdo's expression was open and honest, with no hint of mockery in his eyes. Clearly, he was speaking from the heart.

"That's true." Jiang Bai was indeed somewhat comforted.

Looking back now, Zhongli's reaction wasn't that outrageous; he just overdid it.

What did Zhongli say back then? He said he could "make bold assumptions and reasonable speculations," which was clearly a compliment!

How could he feel ashamed for guessing wrong!

Mr. Zhongli was clearly encouraging him at the time!

What else did Mr. Zhongli say...? I remember now, he said this continent has many stories, but they've been buried by time, and maybe he can unearth these long-forgotten tales...

I wonder what stories this long-destroyed ancient kingdom holds...

Jiang Bai perfectly exemplified what it means to be easily pleased and thrive on encouragement. With Abedo's encouragement, he felt confident once again!

As the two chatted, they walked up to the statue.

The pose of the Anemo statue is completely different from that of the Geo statue. The Anemo statue has a pair of large wings. He stands on a stone pillar wearing a long robe, with his wings folded behind his back, and holds a ball that emits a faint blue light in his hands.

“Try touching the statue,” Abedo suggested.

"Just touch the statue? Is it that simple?" Jiang Bai felt that this was far too hasty.

"If you mastered the Geo element by touching a special Geo artifact, then perhaps touching the statue of the Anemo Archon would have the same effect."

Abedo didn't know what method could help Jiang Bai master elemental power, so he could only try one method at a time.

After all, wind element is different from rock element; wind is invisible and has no concrete form that Jiang Bai can touch.

"Let's try this first. If it doesn't work, we'll try other methods."

“Okay.” Jiang Bai walked up to the statue and reached out to touch it.

He had originally planned to light up this ley line anchor point, and if he could manipulate the wind element so easily, it would be an unexpected bonus.

A feeling similar to that of touching the rock element created by Zhongli spread through me.

He felt an invisible wind, as if he had entered a world of wind, his hair was blown about by the wind, and his clothes were fluttering in the wind.

He seemed to blend into the wind, transforming into a light feather.

Drifting with the wind, never stopping.

He was like a wisp of wind among a thousand, blowing across lakes, mountains, and oceans, free and unrestrained...

It seemed like a moment had passed, yet also like a long time had gone by. Jiang Bai returned from that state of transforming into a wisp of wind, and a ball of wind condensed in his hand.

"I think I've mastered the wind element..." Looking at the wind ball in his hand, Jiang Bai felt a little unreal.

If touching a deity's statue allows one to directly control the corresponding element, then wouldn't that mean he only needs to travel to the lands of other gods, touch the corresponding statue, and that's it?

Compared to the humans here who need to manipulate elemental power through the Eye of God, his method is practically a bug.

Abedo confirmed it and nodded. "It seems you have indeed mastered the use of wind elements."

The next moment, Abedo asked another question, "So, can you use both wind and rock elements at the same time?"

"I don't know, but I'll give it a try."

This was also the first time Jiang Bai had ever manipulated two elemental forces simultaneously, and he didn't know if he could do it.

He conjured a whirlwind with one hand and a rock with the other, so there was no situation where he could only use one or two elemental forces and they were incompatible.

"Great!" Whether manipulating wind or rock elements, I can do it with ease and without any pressure.

Looking at the elements that Jiang Bai was conjuring in his hand, Abedo rested his chin on his hand and fell into deep thought once again.

"If two elements can be used simultaneously, then perhaps three, or even seven, can be used simultaneously..."

If he can manipulate seven elemental forces at the same time, would he be equivalent to a god, or even surpass a god?

"Have you ever seen a person or creature that can manipulate several elemental forces at the same time?" Jiang Bai asked curiously.

He wanted to know if this behavior was special, a privilege reserved for reclusive people like him, or something that others could do as well.

Abedo nodded. "I've seen it. Almost every executive officer of the Fools of the Winter Kingdom can use two or more elemental forces."

"Some large dragon lizards can also switch between multiple elements, but whether they can manipulate two elemental forces simultaneously remains to be studied..."

As one of the top alchemists in the Knights of Favonius in Mondstadt, he naturally had some knowledge of the Fools of Winterhold, and had even had contact and battles with them.

However, the technology used by the Fatui was not alchemy, so it was outside his understanding, and he had no way of obtaining this information, which was confidential even among the Fatui.

"I heard our leader say that people in this organization called the 'Fools' seem to be able to use elemental power even without the Eye of God?"

"Yes, they have developed something called the Evil Eye, which allows ordinary people to manipulate elemental power, but the corresponding price is also terrible."

"What price?"

Jiang Bai had no knowledge of the Fools Clan, since he had never seen or come into contact with them, only heard of them a few times.