Genshin Impact, I'm Slime

The toxicity of the products produced by Zhidong is indeed severe.

Inside the stone hall, Yusupov's head tilted upwards by an extremely slight half-inch, his unfocused pupils fixed on Zhiyi's back. With the last vestiges of his life force, he squeezed out a broken yet clear curse from his torn vocal cords:
"No, that's not right... Tian Shu Xing isn't dead yet... You can't take his place."

"He will expose you... I'm down there... waiting for you, Zhiyi... I'm waiting for you in the hell of extreme winter!"

Yusupov's final roar was like a snapped string, abruptly ending, but the venomous aftersound echoed in the silent stone hall like a poisoned blade, carrying a chill from the abyss.

The once arrogant body stopped convulsing and lay completely limp on the cold, rough ground. Only the unfocused, icy blue eyes still held frozen horror and resentment, staring blankly into the darkness of the cave ceiling.

Zhiyi stood quietly, like a cold stone statue, his face expressionless, devoid of any pity, only a kind of indifference that seemed to come after the dust had settled, as if the other party's curse was just a breeze passing by his ear.

He didn't spend time checking whether Yusupov was completely dead, because the man would soon become a charred skeleton here.

Zhiyi raised her hand, her fingertips meticulously smoothing out non-existent wrinkles on her sleeve. She pushed up her glasses, her movements slow, as if performing a silent ritual.

When he spoke again, his voice had returned to its initial calmness, as if he were merely reading a pre-signed verdict:
"Go in peace, Mr. Yusupov."

His gaze briefly swept over the old haystack in the corner, then seemed to pierce through the thick rock wall, landing in a brightly lit direction in Liyue Harbor.

"After tonight, everyone will get what they want. All those who know the truth will either remain forever silent in the darkness, or... become accomplices in the new order I am about to establish."

"Goodbye."

The last three words fell lightly, carrying no weight of emotion, colder than the chill in the depths of the cave.

Zhiyi no longer paid any attention to Yusupov on the ground, as if he were just a pile of unsightly garbage.

The young man turned resolutely and walked steadily toward the pile of straw in the corner that symbolized destruction. With a slight movement of his sleeve, a metal tinderbox, gleaming with a cold, hard light, silently slipped into his cool palm.

Uncle Tian is not dead... This is indeed an accident, and one of the few minor variables in his plan.

But the cold calculations quickly replaced that barely perceptible pause.

Zhiyi believed his plan had no flaws.

He had deduced the scenario countless times, from the source of the poison and the method of poisoning to the subsequent framing and cleanup, every step of which was linked to the Fools.

Even if the Seven Stars of Liyue had suspicions, they couldn't find any concrete evidence to link him to Uncle Tian's poisoning.

On the contrary, as Tian Shu's closest student, during the sensitive period when Tian Shu was accidentally killed but luckily survived, Zhi Yi was precisely the person that the Liyue Seven Stars needed to rely on and consult, and his position became more secure as a result.

Even if Uncle Tian survives, and people start to suspect him, he still has one last trump card.

Zhiyi's lips slowly curved upwards into a cold, calculating arc.

FAMAS.

Since the other party agreed to help him and even became an examiner for the selection of Tian Shu Star, it means that the other party has the power to shake the chess game in Liyue.

If Uncle Tian really becomes an insurmountable obstacle, then why not ask FAMAS to make this troublesome former Tian Shu Star disappear forever at a suitable time?
Without further hesitation, Zhiyi firmly grasped the cold metal casing of the tinderbox with his fingertips and gently rubbed it.

"laugh……"

A tiny, yet exceptionally bright flame suddenly leaped up in the darkness, illuminating his expressionless profile and igniting the long-awaited pile of dry straw. But the moment the tinderbox in Zhiyi's fingertips touched the dry straw, a hissing sound rang out, and a stream of clear, icy water appeared out of nowhere, instantly extinguishing the weak flame. The flickering red glow at the tip of the tinderbox in Zhiyi's hand also vanished into a wisp of pungent smoke, dissipating into the damp air.

The waterlogged grass stems drooped limply, leaving only a charred mark.

"You big bad guy! Now where do you think you're going? We've got you!"

A shout, slightly childish yet exceptionally loud, suddenly rang out. Immediately afterward, several figures that Zhiyi knew all too well appeared abruptly from behind a haystack not far in front of him!
The first thing to emerge was Paimon's white figure floating in the air.

Holding up a small bucket she'd somehow found, her face flushed red with excitement, she tried her best to make the fiercest expression and shouted loudly in Zhiyi's direction.

The sudden shout had a remarkable effect in the quiet, cold cave. Whether it was intimidating or not is debatable, but it certainly startled Zhiyi, who was focused on setting a fire to cover his tracks.

Even a Liyue native with a clear conscience would likely break out in a cold sweat if, in this dark and desolate underground cave, a small flying creature suddenly popped out from behind a haystack and started shouting.

Zhiyi is no exception.

He gasped sharply, instinctively taking a step back, his heart pounding in his chest.

But this feeling of unease lasted only a moment.

He forced himself to steady his breathing, his gaze quickly passing over the boisterous Paimon and locking onto the two even more imposing figures behind her.

Ye Lan crossed her arms, her short, dark blue hair gleaming coldly in the dim light of the cave. Her face was expressionless, but her emerald eyes were fixed on Zhi Yi.

Beside her, the blonde traveler gripped the hilt of his bladeless sword, the tip pointing diagonally at the ground. He leaned forward slightly, poised to strike at any moment, his eyes fixed on the defenseless Zhiyi with extreme vigilance.

"Long time no see, Zhiyi."

Night Orchid's voice rang out, clearly drowning out Paimon's lingering words, carrying a businesslike calm, as if the two had merely met by chance on the street.

Paimon's puffed-up cheeks from anger, the Traveler's grip on his sword hilt, poised to strike, and the cold, metallic glint of the phonograph in Night Orchid's hand all shattered Zhiyi's forced composure.

A suffocating chill suddenly surged from the soles of Zhiyi's feet without warning. His heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, sinking downwards into a bottomless abyss.

With his intelligence, how could he not understand what had happened?

Night Oran's calm, almost cold gaze, the traveler's undisguised hostility, and Paimon's angry accusations all silently proclaimed a cruel truth.

That is, his supposedly secret conversation with Yusupov, full of scheming and betrayal, and every meticulously planned detail of the conspiracy that he proudly revealed, has probably all been seen by the other party.

It was even clearly captured by that phonograph.

Damn!

Zhiyi wished she could turn back time and grab the smug, eloquent self from just a few minutes ago by the throat.

He shouldn't have said so much, or even a single word.

Those theatrical scripts he once scorned, those villainous acts he regarded as symbols of stupidity, now felt like a resounding slap in the face, burning with irony, as they landed hard on his own cheek.

He ultimately became the kind of fool he once mocked—a fool who ruined everything because of his arrogance. (End of Chapter)