Collapse, surrender to me!

Hidden in the weeds is a dilapidated temple, which has been ravaged and eroded by time.

The outer wall of the temple is made of bluestone. The desolate mountain wind blows it more mercilessly, revealing the mottled traces of time. The painted on the wall has long been peeled off, leaving only the fragments, as if silently telling the glory of the past.

The wood carvings on the gate were eaten by insects, and the once exquisitely carved patterns and patterns had long been blurred. The copper ring on the door was rusted and lost its former luster. Only the faint afterglow passed through the broken door to illuminate the dimness inside the temple.

As soon as you enter the temple, you can see a dilapidated scene through the broken windows.

The table in the temple that used to enshrine the statues of gods has collapsed, and some broken stones are scattered on the ground, filled with dust and cobwebs.

The mountain birds outside the temple no longer sang, and only occasionally the wind blew through the rustling leaves, making a low sound.

The surroundings are desolate and lonely, as if time has frozen. Like a secret buried deep in time, it is just waiting for someone to stroll in this forgotten and dilapidated place and imagine its former prosperity and glory.

Grayshu looked towards the collapsed table, and saw a bird statue on the ground.

The immortals in Liyue didn't seem to be in human form, and she had gotten used to it.

"Can you still speak? Squeak?"

Grayshu asked the statue.

She could feel that there was still a faint soul fluctuation in the statue, which was maintained by the wisp of incense and seemed to be extinguished at any time.

"…My name is Tongque."

The bronze sparrow never really squeaked.

But he still spoke.

The tone is somewhat unpredictable.

"You clearly have the aura of deep karma left over from your body, but now you don't seem to be affected at all. It seems that you are not an ordinary person. I wonder what you have to say to me?"

"Nothing, just came to take a look out of curiosity."

Grayxiu speaks her mind.

Bronze Sparrow... She seemed to have seen this name in the books in Keqing's house.

It seems that he was one of the immortals who died in battle protecting Liyue, so it is normal for him to have a temple.

In fact, Grayshu is now similar to the former Bronze Sparrow. She protects Liyue and has a temple built for her, but she is not dead.

Perhaps after she leaves here for a long time, the temple will become deserted like Tongque.

Thinking of this, Gray Xiu couldn't help but speak.

"How about I help you renovate this place?"

"Don't worry. I am already dead. I left a thought behind just to let you see what Liyue Harbor will look like in the future on my death anniversary. It will disappear soon."

Tongque sighed.

"I was originally a minor fairy among the Yakshas. The Rock King Emperor gave me the fairy name of Tongque. Thousands of years ago, I was weak and died on the battlefield. I died, but the Great Sage Conquering the Demons and others have been enduring such pain for thousands of years... How can I feel at ease to enjoy the offerings?"

"Death is nothing more than a way to live in peace."

"I'm here at Tianheng Mountain. From what I've heard from passers-by, it seems that a lot has happened in Liyue now. But compared to thousands of years ago, it's already incredibly prosperous. My wish has come true. Stranger, it's fate that we meet. I wish you all the best in the future."

"My magic is about to dissipate. Oh, I really want to eat authentic grilled goby again..."

Tongque sighed to himself.

As I silently wait for myself to disappear.

However, one second, two seconds...a full minute passed.

Nothing happened.

Not only did his residual soul not dissipate, but it gradually solidified.

Tongque was stunned for a moment.

He discovered that there was an endless supply of prayer power emanating from Grayshu's body, which kept him going.

"…You don't have to do this, my friend."

Tongque said hurriedly when he saw this.

"I am a dead person, like a tree without roots and water without a source. You are just wasting it by doing this."

He was really dead after all.

Although Grace could use the power of incense and vows to extend the life of his thought, it was not a long-term solution.

Trees without roots cannot absorb any nutrients.

What Grayshu's behavior is doing now is exactly the same as giving him a nutrient solution. As long as it stops, he will still dissipate.

Moreover, in Tongque's eyes, Gray Xiu had consumed a large amount of incense and vows to maintain him for only a short moment. These original forces were already quite huge in his era.

"A dead person is really not worth spending so much money on."

"It doesn't cost anything. I'm not a true immortal, and I don't need this."

Grayshu sensed Tongque's thoughts and explained.

"Moreover, there were only a few people in Liyue thousands of years ago... Liyue has been peaceful for too long now, and the population has increased many times. What you think is a huge consumption is actually insignificant in today's Liyue."

As she spoke, she reached into the statue, grabbed a transparent little bird, and placed it on her shoulder.

"At least it's more than enough to maintain your existence. And as someone who has made contributions and shed blood for today's peace, you don't have to refuse this wish."

"Let's go. I know a restaurant that serves authentic grilled goby. Although I've learned a lot, I still feel like something is missing. I'll take you there to try it and see how much it has changed since thousands of years ago."

Chapter 269: There Wasn't Anything Before, But There Is Now

Tongque never thought that there would be a day when he would return to Liyue Harbor.

His magic and the remaining power of incense and prayers could not keep him too far away from the temple.

Listening to passers-by's stories and watching from afar are ultimately not as moving as experiencing it in person.

The feeling is hard to describe.

If I have to put it in words, it's probably the feeling of when your parents die and come back to life one day, and watch your children finally grow up.

But there is also an indelible gap.

It doesn't feel the same as before.

The current Liyue is the new Liyue.

Times have changed, and he is ultimately a thing of the past.

"Do you feel that you can't fit in with the current Liyue?" Zhongli's voice suddenly sounded behind him: "When I woke up, everything and everyone has changed. I wanted to buy some osmanthus flowers and wine, but it's a pity that I don't know when I will see you again."

"Your Majesty!" Tongque turned back suddenly.

"Long time no see." Zhongli smiled, which was rare for him. "I remember you. I was the one who gave you your name after you gained intelligence."

"I didn't expect that the Emperor would still remember Xiaoxian."

Tongque looked very excited. If Grayshu hadn't helped to stabilize him, his soul might have been shaken apart.

Compared to the Liyue people who grew up listening to the legend of the Emperor, those who have fought with the Emperor are much more fanatical about Morax.

That was the leader who led them to conquer Liyue.

Tongque gradually calmed down from his excitement, and his tone became a little low.

"It's a pity that I am not strong enough to continue following the Emperor."

"In that battle, if I had been able to eliminate the enemy earlier and rush to support you, perhaps you would not have died." Zhongli shook his head.

"Lord Emperor, please don't say that." Tongque said quickly: "The Emperor defeated the demon god, but I failed to defeat the remnants of the opponent. I am ashamed."

"These are all things of the past... What do you think of Liyue now?" Zhongli asked.

"Nature is wonderful."

Tongque said from the bottom of his heart.

No matter how hard people in the war-torn times thousands of years ago thought, they could never have imagined the prosperous scene that would occur thousands of years later.

Even if Teyvat's development is slow.

Tongque is quite satisfied with Liyue today.

"And the Emperor is still the same as before after thousands of years."

"It is the same?"

Zhongli shook his head and said nothing more.

"What are your plans for the future?"

"There is no future." Tongque was stunned for a moment. He didn't think Zhongli would not be able to see that he was now a dead person.

Life and death are one of the most fundamental rules between heaven and earth.

Reversing life and death is a difficult thing.

He, Tongque, was judged to be a dead man by heaven and earth, so even if Grayshu used the power of Jianmu to inject vitality into it, it would soon dissipate.

Grayshuse was already satisfied that she could take him around Liyue.

"If you want to die, you have to ask her if she agrees." Zhongli pointed at the girl.

"Have you heard of the City God?" Grayshu asked Tongque.

Cheng Huang is the god who protects the city in Taoism and a Yin god.

The City God of different places is appointed by different people, and some are even elected by the local people themselves. The selection criteria are loyal and heroic people who died for their country, or upright and intelligent historical figures.

Tongque fits this requirement perfectly.

"But isn't this from the novel?" Tongque asked, "There is no City God in Liyue, and Teyvat only has underground veins, not the underworld."

“It didn’t exist before, but it exists now.”

Grayshu spread his hands, and with a thought, he passed on the Shinto method.

This is the little order that Jingyuan gave her.

It’s just right for use in Tongque now.

"Zhongli, I will take him to condense his form first. See you later."

……

"The emperor has now abdicated and his name is Zhongli?" Tongque didn't quite understand the emperor's behavior.

But the Emperor must have his reasons for doing this.

“By the way, is there any difference between Liyue thousands of years ago and now?” Grayshu asked curiously.

"How to describe it?"

Tongque thought for a moment and said.

"This is not where I fought thousands of years ago."

Liyue Harbor was perfected after the Demon War.

For Tongque, when he fought side by side with the Emperor, Liyue was not a fixed place. Sometimes when a great war between demons and gods broke out, the sky would collapse and the earth would sink, and the mountains and rivers would flow backwards.

The people of Liyue will also have to relocate.

It feels a bit like Liu Bei.

It’s just that Uncle Liu was losing and fleeing all the time, while the people of Liyue led by the Emperor had to leave their homeland even if they won.

After all, even if we defeat the opponent's demon, the demon residue left after death will pollute the earth, and we won't be able to stay there any longer.

Finally, they fought and retreated and arrived at Liyue Harbor and settled down.

As for Tongque, Liyue was like a small village in his impression. It was very simple. Everyone did everything to be able to move quickly in times of crisis, otherwise the Emperor would have to be distracted to protect them.

Tongque himself died in a war of evacuation.

The Emperor wiped out the invading demon god. After the demon god's death, his karma wreaked havoc. He protected the people until he died in battle.

"Well, that was all in the past. Now no one can force Liyue to run around." Grayshu touched Que'er on her shoulder.

Then he took Bronze Sparrow and walked towards the port of Liyue Harbor.