Genshin Impact: Watch me turn the tables and kill my servants at the start!

The traveler arrived at Yujingtai half an hour before the start of the invocation ceremony.

Paimon flew ahead of her, weaving through the crowd, and stopped on a slightly elevated set of steps. He turned back and waved to her: "Hurry up! It looks like it's about to start!"

Ying squeezed through the crowd and stood next to Paimeng, looking up at the high platform in the center of Yujingtai. On the platform stood a huge incense burner, with a row of neatly dressed ceremonial guards standing on each side.

In the very center of the platform, there was a large empty area, the ground paved with dark stone slabs engraved with intricate patterns, and several stone pillars carved with dragon patterns stood at the edge.

Ningguang stood at the front of the platform, dressed in a solemn gown, quietly confirming the procedures with the officials beside her. She raised her hand to signal the honor guard to take their positions, then stepped back to the edge of the platform and announced loudly, "The auspicious hour has arrived—the ceremony to invite the immortals shall officially begin."

The smoke from the incense burner rose, gathering into a thin column above the platform, spiraling upwards along an invisible path. The sky began to darken at that moment.

Clouds gathered above Yujingtai from all directions, as if pushed in from afar by an unseen hand. The clouds grew thicker and thicker, their color changing from light gray to dark gray, and then from dark gray to a heavy hue with a hint of dark gold.

Immediately afterward, a beam of light cleaved through the center of the clouds—a colossal dragon slowly descended from the clouds, its golden scales gleaming warmly in the light. Its head was lowered, as if gazing down upon the myriad beings below. The entire arena fell silent at that moment.

Then the dragon paused in mid-air. Its movement didn't seem to stop voluntarily; it was more like it was severed from the inside by something. Its body began to tilt, first veering to one side, and then the entire dragon lost its balance, falling from the sky and crashing onto the stone slab in the center of the platform.

A tremendous crash resounded above the Jade Capital Terrace, causing the ground to tremble slightly. Incense burners toppled, stone slabs shattered, and smoke billowed outwards from the point of impact. The dragon's body lay motionless in the center of the high platform.

The square was silent for about two breaths. Then the crowd erupted. Some screamed, some backed away, and some stood there, staring blankly at the lifeless dragon body on the platform.

Ningguang stood at the edge of the platform, her face turning extremely grim in an instant. She swiftly turned and issued an order to the stunned Qianyan Army officer beside her: "The Emperor has been assassinated! Seal off the entire area! Close all entrances and exits! No one is allowed to leave!"

Ying stood still, looking at the dragon's body on the high platform, then at the Thousand Rock soldiers rapidly moving towards the various exits. Paimon flew to her ear, his voice much lower than usual: "Shouldn't we... leave here first?"

Without hesitation, Ying turned around and pulled Paimon along, squeezing through the crowd in the opposite direction.

The Thousand Rock Army's blockade was faster than she had anticipated. She had just passed through the first alley when she heard footsteps and commands behind her.

Ying quickened her pace and turned into a narrower "path," moving swiftly along the base of the wall.

Paimon, standing beside her, glanced back every now and then: "They seem to be coming this way!"

Ying turned another corner and disappeared behind a shed piled with miscellaneous items. A series of orderly footsteps sounded outside, paused briefly at the alley entrance, then continued moving forward, pausing again at the alley entrance before moving on in another direction.

Ying squatted behind the shed for a while, and only stood up from behind the cover after confirming that the footsteps had gone far away.

Ying had only taken a few steps when a squad of Thousand Rock Army soldiers appeared at the alleyway ahead. The leading soldier paused for a moment upon seeing her, then quickly raised his spear: "Halt! There are suspicious individuals present at the scene of the Immortal Ceremony. Please cooperate with the investigation!"

Ying didn't stop. She turned and ran in the opposite direction, footsteps following closely behind. She ran through two alleys, climbed over a low wall, and landed on a wider street. Another group of Thousand Rock Army soldiers appeared ahead.

Ying squeezed sideways into a gap next to a closed shop, holding her breath as she listened to footsteps passing through the opening. The footsteps grew closer—Ying could already see the Thousand Rock Army turning the corner and flanking her.

A hand reached out from the shadows beside her, grabbed her wrist, and led her through a half-open door. The door closed behind her, and footsteps echoed across the street outside, fading into the distance.

Ying looked up and saw an unfamiliar face. The man appeared to be a head taller than her, his short, orange-red hair standing out even in the shadows, and his grey-blue eyes were looking down at her. He released her wrist, took a half-step back, and said with a casual tone, as if to say, "You're lucky you made it in time."

Paimon flew off her shoulder, looking warily at the stranger before him: "Who are you? Why are you helping us?"

D'Artagnan leaned against the wall by the door, arms crossed: "I am the Executor of the Fools, codenamed 'The Prince.' You must have many questions about what you saw at the Summoning Ceremony, right? If you want to know the answers, you can come to the Northern Bank to find me."

D'Artagnan pushed open the door and stepped aside to make way for them. "Don't worry, the Thousand Rock Army is already far away."

Ying stood inside the doorway, looking at him: "Why are you helping us?"

D'Artagnan thought for a moment: "Because I also want to know the cause of the Rock King's death."

After saying this, D'Artagnan didn't elaborate further, turned around and walked deeper into the corridor, her voice echoing back from ahead: "The Northern Bank is on the main street of Liyue Harbor, it's easy to find. You can come anytime."

Paimon watched D'Artagnan's figure disappear around the corner of the corridor: "He said he was an Executor of the Fools?"

Ying stood by the door: "Yes."

Paimon flew to the door, glanced outside, then retreated. "There's definitely no one outside... So, are we really going to go to the Northern Bank to find him?"

Ying thought for a moment, then took her phone out of her pocket and glanced at the screen—it was fully charged.

Ying put her phone away, pushed open the door, and went out. "Go. Anyway, we don't have any other clues."

The afternoon sun was slowly sliding down the roof of Yujingtai. The square, which had been bustling with people just moments before, was now empty, leaving only the outline of the dragon's body, covered by a curtain, lying quietly in the silence on the high platform.

Ying walked along the street toward the main street, with Paimengfei beside her, occasionally glancing back at the now quiet platform.