The Infinite Journey of a Certain Flame

Ying and Kiana exchanged a glance.

"Paimon, just say what you want to say."

"Hehehehe..." Paimon, his thoughts exposed, showed no shame whatsoever. Instead, he looked at Kiana with some anticipation, "Is there still that water in the tin can from before?"

Water in a tin can? Oh, she meant Coke, right?

I can't believe I'm craving something again after all this time?

Kiana didn't think much of it and redeemed another can of cola from the system shop.

[10 Herrscher Points consumed. Host's remaining Herrscher Points: 70.]

"This is called Coca-Cola. You can tell me if you want some, but... you'd better drink less of it."

After all, drinking too much soda can make your stomach feel uncomfortable.

Kiana tugged at Paimon's little belly.

With that little belly of hers, she'd probably bulge out after just one can of soda.

"Mmm! I'll be careful. Hehehe, Kiana is such a nice person."

However, how could Paimon, whose appetite is a mystery, possibly know how to restrain himself?

The most obvious example of this is on the way to the abandoned shrine.

This greedy little guy has already drunk the entire can of cola that requires both hands to hold.

"Hiccup... It looks so dark up ahead."

"Paimon, keep your mouth away from me."

"Why—hiccup, ah!"

"The smell of your breath!" Ying reached out and pushed her face hard, while pinching her nose at the same time.

It's clear that Ying doesn't really like the smell of cola.

On the contrary, Paimon liked it very much.

"Could it be that soda tastes similar to slime gel?"

Whether it is or not, only those who have eaten slime know.

Kiana, anyway, was not really interested in trying that kind of experience.

While she was lost in her thoughts, the group had already arrived at the entrance of the abandoned shrine. Ying and Paimon had even finished talking to the mysterious figure in front of a small altar.

"..."

The figure dressed as a priestess disappeared without a word of response.

"Gone? This place looks so desolate, hiccup... Anyway, let's look for clues nearby."

Ying nodded slowly, and then planned to go to the abandoned shrine with its eerie atmosphere to look for clues.

Her casualness, as if she were strolling through her own backyard, was truly novel.

Kiana followed her as they explored, asking questions with curiosity:

"Ying, aren't you scared?"

"Afraid? Why?" Ying turned her head, her tone calm but tinged with doubt.

Judging from her tone alone, she showed no fear whatsoever.

This is really...

While Kiana was pondering how to respond...

"Kiana, hiccup...Are you scared?" Paimon's comment was always so untimely.

For a moment, Kiana didn't know how to answer.

"Huh? Me? I didn't..."

"Hehe, I didn't know you were afraid of the dark!"

Paimon grinned mischievously, seemingly convinced that Kiana was scared.

It has to be said that she can really have wild imaginations sometimes.

Kiana knew that arguing directly at this point would be useless, so she looked at Ying:

"Let's keep looking."

"No, don't be afraid. I've seen many in Liyue, and they're all very friendly."

"Me? Really..."

Kiana was speechless and was about to say something when Ying put her arm around her shoulder and smiled as if to comfort her.

Being treated like this is truly...

Kiana turned to look at Paimon, who was grinning from ear to ear, and could only sigh before urging the two meddlesome duo:

"Ahem, let's hurry up."

Song of Flames and Lightning (Genshin Impact Inazuma Main Story): Chapter 10 Divine Child, Divine Child, Will You Cry?

The abandoned shrine had a very eerie atmosphere, as if it were being influenced by some unknown force.

Even though the weather was fine outside, it was a quiet and peaceful night here.

If it's just darkness, it's really not a big deal.

But those gray figures standing silently and motionless in place evoke a sense of eeriness from the bottom of one's heart.

Of course, these are all for ordinary people.

The three extraordinary guests who arrived here were an emergency food of unknown origin, a traveler from another world searching for his relatives, and a Honkai messenger who had just arrived.

If something truly terrifying were to emerge, perhaps the one who should be truly fearful is the other party.

At least while exploring the abandoned shrine.

The only emotion that Ying and Paimon felt was irritability, extreme irritability.

"These people appear and disappear so mysteriously, hiccup, this is so troublesome!"

"Paimon, that's not human."

"Is that the main point?"

The duo engaged in friendly conversations with several figures.

Although the other party usually disappears silently and then reappears in another place, the two of them continue to search and talk relentlessly.

However, perhaps something went wrong somewhere.

Or perhaps they missed something.

In short, after several attempts, Ying and Paimon's patience finally ran out.

Kiana witnessed this scene firsthand, leaving her somewhat speechless.

During the exploration, she repeatedly tried to remind Ying to search for the last person.

But Ying was so focused on solving the mystery that she didn't listen to her several times when she tried to whisper a hint.

"Paimon, Kiana, is there something we're missing?"

"I think so, but where exactly is it?"

Paimon asked with his hands behind his back and a naive expression.

The two of them stood there deep in thought, seemingly trying to recall what had just happened.

Seeing that they had finally calmed down, Kiana spoke up at the right moment to remind them:

"Hotaru, have you checked the shrine?"

"You've already been there?" Ying turned to look at Kiana. "Did you miss something?"

Nonsense, you've been searching for ages and you still don't know how to climb up to the roof and take a look.

Kiana smiled, somewhat speechlessly reminding him:

"Just because it's not on the ground doesn't mean it's not anywhere else, right? Have you checked the roof?"

Reminded of this, Ying nodded as if suddenly realizing something:

"The roof... there isn't one, let's go take a look."

After saying that, she called Paimon and they began to climb.

After some twists and turns, Ying finally arrived at the roof of the shrine.

She looked around, about to tell Kiana, who was waiting below, that she hadn't seen anything, when she heard Paimon's surprised reminder that something was wrong.

Following the direction Paimon's little finger was pointing, Ying finally spotted the last of the many figures.

"Phew, finally found her... Kiana, found her!"

Ying waved to Kiana, conveying her joy.

Even though Kiana knew the final step to solving the mystery a long time ago, she was still happy for Luminous.

"Really? That's wonderful, Ying!"

Kiana waved her hand, and after the other person turned around, she turned back to get busy.

After all, obtaining the "Divine Cherry Blossom Exorcism Manual" requires more than just these steps...

"hehe."

Ying smiled happily, then greeted the figure standing blankly on the top of the shrine.

However...

After the figures dispersed, everything remained as before, and nothing unusual happened.

This strange sight left Ying and Paimon looking at each other, their expressions showing signs of distress.

"This is troublesome, Paimon. Shall we go downstairs?"