Yae from Genshin Impact is my sister

Chapter 173 The Battle Begins (6)

"Chongyun, I think we need to find some outside help. The two of us fighting this Frost Armor King is no different from giving him a gua sha treatment."

Xingqiu conjured several water curtain swords that struck Qiuqiu Frost Armor King. Qiuqiu Frost Armor King scratched the spot where the swords were concentrated, turned around, and charged towards Chongyun, who was drawing fire in front of him.

Chongyun was also suffering greatly. The fierce battle was causing his strength to continue to decline, but in order to prevent Xingqiu from getting injured, he could only grit his teeth and persevere. During this time, some of the Thousand Rock Army soldiers did try to share the burden with Chongyun, but the Frost Armor King of the Hill Crest, who had absorbed the power of Oser, was not someone that ordinary people could contend with.

To minimize casualties, Chongyun could only grit his teeth and keep fighting with his blurry eyes, trying to slow down the Frost Armor King.

"Chongyun, watch out!"

Xingqiu's reminder invigorated Chongyun, but his nearly exhausted elemental power and stamina made him react a beat too slow. Chongyun was knocked away by the Frost Armor King and crashed heavily to the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood. Chongyun immediately lost his fighting ability.

"Aaaaaah! I want you dead!"

Seeing Chongyun lying on the ground, his life hanging in the balance, Xingqiu charged toward Qiuqiu Shuangkai King like a madman. At this moment, he craved power more than ever before.

A hint of human contempt flashed in Qiuqiu Frost Armor King's eyes as he swung his powerful fist, ready to clash with Xingqiu's sacrificial sword.

However, Xingqiu, blinded by killing intent, had no intention of confronting Qiuqiu Frost Armor King head-on. Just as the tip of his sword was about to collide with Qiuqiu Frost Armor King's fist, Xingqiu forcibly twisted his body in mid-air.

This subtle movement caused the Frost Armor King's fist to strike him, and the sword in his hand smoothly pierced the Frost Armor King's left eye. Instantly, blood and pain caused the Frost Armor King to roar in anger.

Even though they had lost some of their fighting spirit due to the influence of the power, the instinctive fear still made the monsters in the battle tremble involuntarily.

Xingqiu, who had been knocked to the ground, smiled with satisfaction when he saw that Qiuqiu Shuangkaiwang's eyes were ruined. The move he had just made was a technique from the Guhua Sect that involved exchanging injuries for injuries. Because it was so insidious, almost no disciples of the Guhua Sect knew about this move. Xingqiu had only seen it in an ancient book.

"What a pity, I didn't manage to pierce the monster's head. It seems I'm still too weak."

Qiuqiu Frost Armor King stared intently at Xingqiu with his only remaining eye. He couldn't believe that a mere ant could injure him so badly; this was a disgrace to him.

"Protect Xingqiu and Chongyun. Qianyan Army and I will take the lead."

Fengyan quickly sent men to drag Xingqiu and Chongyun to a safe location. At the same time, he personally stepped forward with his white-tasseled spear. Xingqiu and Chongyun were both heroes of Liyue, and he could not allow this Hilichurl Frost Armor King to harm them.

While the Thousand Rock Army on the front lines were fighting desperately to protect their homeland, some richly dressed noble families were lurking in the shadows of Liyue Harbor like rats in the gutter.

In these hidden places, these people not only had to deal with the unbearable stench, but also had to be constantly wary of monsters rushing out from the shadows. Initially, these people lost many of their lives because they did not pay attention to the monsters in the shadows.

"Chief, can the Fools really be trusted? This road doesn't seem like it has any secret passages."

The words of this noble family member made one of the clan leaders wary. As a noble family, they were naturally very familiar with Liyue Harbor. According to the leader's memory, the road they were on seemed to lead to the sewers of Liyue Harbor.

"I say, you fools aren't trying to trick us, are you? This road clearly leads to the sewers!"

The clan leader questioned the leader of the Fools, but the leader wasn't angry. He just chuckled and looked at the Fools as if he were a fool.

"What kind of look is that! How dare you look at me like that?"

The chieftain could no longer bear the humiliation. He picked up a longsword from behind his back and was about to fight the foolish squad leader when the people around him stopped him.

"You, are you going to allow yourselves to be humiliated by a mere Fool? As a thousand-year-old family of Liyue, do you have no dignity?"

"Dignity? Is dignity more important than life?"

A voice, neither too loud nor too soft, came from the crowd. This question stunned the clan patriarch who had drawn his sword. After a moment of silence, the clan patriarch slowly sheathed his sword. He seemed to be missing something, yet he also seemed to have nothing missing.

The leader of the Fools chuckled twice and continued leading his men forward. He knew that these people had now completely become his dogs, and they would do anything to keep them alive.

"Well then, everyone, let's continue onward. Be careful of the monsters lurking in the shadows, because if you die, you'll have nothing left."

Upon hearing the words of the Fools' squad leader, the members of the noble families gripped their valuables tightly. These were their guarantee of continued extravagance after escaping Liyue Harbor, and they couldn't afford to lose them.

"My jade! My jade is gone!"

Among the crowd, a member of a prominent family touched his pocket. The fine jade that should have filled his pocket was now empty. His face turned pale instantly. That was the only valuable thing he had with him. How could it be gone?

"It must have been just now, when we encountered the monster, it must have been dropped by accident. You, it must have been one of you who picked it up!"

"Give it back to me! Give it back to me!"

"Give it back to me, waaaaaah!"

Seeing the man weeping in front of them, all the members of the noble families silently distanced themselves from him, including his own family members. After all, no one wanted to get too close to a poor man. They didn't have much of value with them to begin with, and if they gave it all away, they wouldn't have enough to spend.

"Tsk tsk tsk, how pitiful. Let him search for his jade here slowly. We should leave now. If we don't go now, we won't be able to leave after the battle is over."

The leader of the Fools gloated and urged everyone to continue, while the man, as if possessed, searched everywhere for his jade. Before the Fools could even utter a few words of lament, an arrow suddenly shot out from the aristocratic crowd and pierced the man's head.

“If we let him search for the lost jade here, our whereabouts will be exposed, so only the dead are safest.”

A voice drifted from the crowd, and everyone fell silent. No one objected; after all, they didn't want an arrow to pierce their own foreheads, nor did they want to lose their lives because of this man searching for jade.

At the entrance to the path, Hu Tao was being led deeper into the path by her little ghost. Hu Tao didn't think much of it; she assumed there were some monsters in the path. She followed the little ghost and plunged into the path.

Chapter 174 The Battle Begins (7)

"Yes, the time since death was not long ago, the body is still warm."

"The cause of death should be homicide. I don't think anyone would be stupid enough to shoot an arrow into their own forehead."

Hu Tao circled the corpse in front of her twice, stroking her smooth chin as she analyzed the cause of death. But who would kill someone in a place like this?

The victim was wearing clothes that looked quite expensive. The fact that the killer didn't remove the clothes after he died suggests that the killer wasn't after money. If it wasn't for money, then it was most likely a revenge killing.

Hu Tao's eyes gleamed with excitement. She, Detective Hu Tao, had finally encountered a case. Thinking back to the scene where she wanted to work on a case with Ke Qing but was rejected, Hu Tao clenched her little fists in dissatisfaction. Fortunately, there were still some demonic auras here. If she followed this path, she might be able to find out the truth and also deal with the demons here. It would be killing two birds with one stone.

"Then I, the master, will help Keqing solve this problem. If we still haven't found the culprit after clearing out the monsters, then Keqing will have to find it herself."

Walnut twirled her staff with a flourish, her intuition telling her that she would find the culprit before clearing out the monsters on this path.

Just as Hu Tao was searching for clues, her little ghost found a sparkling stone in a corner. Following the principle of asking Hu Tao when in doubt, the little ghost picked up the stone and flew to Hu Tao's side.

At first, Hu Tao thought the little ghost had taken it from a wealthy family. But after the little ghost gestured, Hu Tao realized that the little ghost had found the jade.

"Hiss~ Things seem to be getting complicated. Little guy, let's go and explore deeper into the area. My intuition tells me that we'll find the answers we're looking for there."

Normally, Hu Tao would probably report the matter to the Thousand Rock Army first and then go with them to the depths of the path. But now the Thousand Rock Army is busy fighting the monsters and can't spare the time, so Hu Tao has no choice but to go and catch the murderer herself.

Deep in the alley, the Fools' squad leader silently walked to the wall at the dead end. The noble families looked at him with burning eyes, all wanting to escape this place of trouble as soon as possible.

"What do you mean by this? Hurry up and find the secret passage to leave Liyue Harbor! Are you Fatui lying to us?"

"Qu~ I've said it so many times, we Fools aren't as good at deceiving as you people."

The Fools' squad leader squinted at the entrance of the path and slowly pulled out an evil eye from his pocket. When the Fools around him saw their captain take out an evil eye, they immediately drew their weapons as well.

Seeing that the fools' expressions didn't seem to indicate they were lying, the members of the noble families turned around, weapons in hand, and nervously watched the corner of the path, the only place where people could hide.

At this moment, the members of the noble families were filled with immense fear. They were afraid that Ningguang had already dealt with Oser and would come to settle scores with them, afraid that Keqing would lead the Thousand Rock Army to arrest them and throw them into prison, and afraid that the immortals would punish them.

Under the heavy and stressful atmosphere, many people had beads of sweat on their foreheads. In the small space, apart from heavy breathing, there was not a sound.

One minute, two minutes, until three minutes passed, and there was still no sign of anyone around the corner. This puzzled the members of the noble families, but they were more annoyed. Did this foolish group think it was fun to play tricks on them?

"Hey, you fools don't actually think it's funny to play tricks on us, do you? Let me tell you... wait, where are they?"

The noble family member, who had been missing for a long time, turned around to argue with the Fools, but when he turned around, he found that the Fools were nowhere to be seen. The few Fools who were at the back of the group had long since disappeared.

"Damn it, we've been tricked by the Fools!"

"What? How dare they? Aren't they afraid of our retaliation?"

"Quick, find the secret passage. If they could disappear here, the secret passage must be nearby."

These words reminded many people, who came to the wall and carefully explored every corner. At this moment, these people seemed to have forgotten that they were a family with a thousand-year-old tradition. In the past, they would not have touched such dirty things, but now they were exploring them.

"Wait, something's not right!"

“It doesn’t feel like we’re stepping on stones; the texture can’t be stone.”

Not stones? This statement surprised everyone. Aren't these paths all paved with stones? If the speaker hadn't come from a family that specialized in selling all kinds of minerals, the others would have already retorted.

"This thing doesn't seem to be a stone. These things must be the work of the Fools."

After wiping away a patch of mud, a lump of metal appeared before everyone. A few of the bolder ones went up to examine it and, finding it to be just a lump of iron, gathered everyone together.

"This thing should only be something that the Winter Kingdom produced, and only the Winter Kingdom could produce it."

"I think you're right, but why do I feel like this thing is getting hot?"

"You know what, I can feel it too, it really is hot. Wait, why is this thing glowing?"

Those who realized the danger of this thing tried to escape, but it was too late, as a bright light enveloped them, and then a small mushroom cloud rose inside Liyue Harbor.

"I wonder which expert is fighting the monster, that they can make such a sound."

"Brothers, we can't fall behind. Let's split up and continue searching for monsters. If we encounter any survivors, remember to take them to safety."

Several Thousand Rock soldiers searching for monsters watched the mushroom cloud slowly rise and sighed, then resumed their defense of Liyue Harbor. Even though they weren't very strong, they wanted to contribute in their own way.

"Tsk, this bomb is really powerful. It was originally prepared for the Thousand Rock Army, but it ended up being used on these people. What a waste."

"Fortunately, the valuables these people were carrying weren't completely destroyed. With these valuables, the brothers can live it up for a while."

Beneath a patch of foul-smelling mud, a mechanism was slowly triggered, and the leader of the Fools led several Fools out from inside the mechanism.

Seeing that there was no one left alive, the captain of the Fools rubbed his hands together, his greedy eyes constantly glancing at the wealth buried beneath the corpses. That was the wealth accumulated by these noble families over thousands of years. With this money, even if they returned to the Winter Kingdom and retired immediately, they would never have to worry about food and drink for the rest of their lives.

"Haha, it seems I'm the one who's laughing last."

"Oh my, look what I've discovered! Several murderers! Gentlemen, how about joining me for a cup of tea at the General Affairs Department?"

Chapter 175 The Battle Begins (8)

Just as Walnut was fighting the Fools, on the turbulent sea, accompanied by Oser's unwilling roars, Oser, who had been unable to break through for a long time, finally became angry. He realized that the seal was not completely broken. If he did not leave the sea within a certain period of time, he would still be sealed.

Moreover, it seemed that a force was accelerating the closing of the seal. Although he did not know who was emitting this force, he could sense that it belonged to the Demon God.

Even knowing this, Oser was still helpless. Having already exhausted most of his power, Oser was unable to break through the obstruction of the immortals in the Jade Pavilion, and his weak senses could not find the culprit who accelerated the closing of the seal.

Looking at the Thousand Rock Army constantly resisting the monsters in Liyue Harbor, Oser hardened his heart, and a powerful demonic force once again spread into Liyue Harbor.

The monsters attacking Liyue Harbor paused, and a surge of black energy entered their bodies. This strange black energy caused a dramatic change in the monsters, with many of them growing larger under its influence.

The sudden increase in strength of the monsters instantly murky the previously clear battle situation, and the Thousand Rock Army's defensive perimeter was constantly shrinking.

"Have these monsters gone completely mad? I feel like they've completely lost their minds."

A Rock soldier thrust his spear at a Hilichurl's head. The Hilichurl, who should have dodged the thrust, did not dodge but allowed the Rock soldier to strike him. The Rock soldier paid the price by being hit hard on the arm with a wooden club by the Hilichurl, and the arm immediately swelled up.

This situation occurred in every corner of the battlefield, leaving the Thousand Rock Army somewhat dumbfounded. Faced with such frenzied monsters, the Thousand Rock Army displayed unparalleled discipline. Although they were not yet able to adapt to the monsters' attacks, not a single person retreated.

"Brothers, I won't say more. Behind us are our wives, children, parents, and elders. If we are afraid, they will be the ones who get hurt."