Original God, I am the only designated Red King God Envoy of Xumi

Nashida followed Amber and rushed to the Hall of All People with the two immortals. On the way, Amber briefly introduced Nashida to the two immortals. Liuyun saw in just a moment that Nashida was actually a puppet, but she didn't say it explicitly. Amber had given her so much face, and if she said these words explicitly, it would seem like she was turning her back on her.

The four of them spent a pleasant lunch time. The two immortals praised the Wanmin Hall's signature dish, boiled black-backed sea bass. After that, Amber arranged a temporary place for the two immortals to stay. On a whim, she went to Yujingtai with the two immortals to find Grandma Ping and meet Yaoyao by the way.

"After that, Aping, Yaoyao and I met the people who came. I never thought that Liuyun and Lishui, who are already old, could still make such a joke." Maybe it was because of the alcohol, or maybe it was simply because she wanted to say this, Xieyue laughed out loud without any scruples while holding the wine glass. Seeing this, Liuyun waved her hand, as if saying "I don't want to argue with you too much", but this was actually her reaction because she knew she was in the wrong.

"Well, immortals are not saints and sages, so who can be without mistakes? Besides, Xieyue, don't be so proud. I heard from Aping that you obviously didn't bring Mora, and you finally borrowed it from her, right? You have the nerve to do that." Compared to Xieyue, Lishui was really a little drunk. He couldn't help but say such words according to the atmosphere at the dinner table. Xieyue coughed a few times when he heard it, and suddenly felt a little embarrassed.

"Li Shui, see through it but don't say it, see through it but don't say it!"

"It's okay that Zhongli always forgets to bring Mora, but it turns out that his three immortals do the same. Is this some kind of tradition?" Paimon has always been so sharp in his complaints, and for a moment he drew everyone's attention to Zhongli.

Zhongli, who had been quietly drinking, saw that it was now impossible to stay out of this situation, so he stopped being silent. "It's just that after being away from the world for so long, it's inevitable that I'll show some ugly behavior when I return to the world. It's not something to be surprised about."

"The Emperor is absolutely right!" Liu Yun continued. It was great that Zhongli was willing to speak up for them. At first glance, the topic had turned back to the Three Immortals, but Paimeng keenly noticed the problem and added, "At first glance, what Zhongli said makes a lot of sense. He's only judging the Three Immortals, and hasn't mentioned anything about himself at all."

"Ahem..." Even Zhongli couldn't keep his composure anymore. Paimeng's talent in this area was truly formidable, and even gods couldn't escape unscathed. "Paimeng, do you know the old saying in Liyue: 'People live to save face'? The 'face' in that 'face' refers to dignity."

"The people of Liyue have always valued face, and this applies to the immortals as well. Everyone at this table is familiar and friends, so they don't really care about it—but if Paimon behaves like this in front of strangers in the future, he's bound to suffer."

"Wow! Is it so scary?!" Paimon was completely frightened. From then on, she decided to control her mouth to avoid causing trouble. Ying was happy to see this situation - otherwise, it would be bad for her if Paimon offended someone because of her words in the future.

After Zhongli's words, the topic came to an end. The time of exposing each other's shortcomings was over. According to the habit of ordinary people, they would probably brag to each other under the influence of alcohol. However, immortals had no habit of lying, so this part was skipped. Everyone took the opportunity to talk about some past events. Now, except for a few immortals, everyone at the table became quiet and acted as if listening to a story.

"Come to think of it, the Great Sage Subduing Demons is not here today. Alas, this situation has been going on for hundreds of years, right?" Liu Yun was the first to talk about Xiao, and the topic naturally shifted to Xiao. When talking about the several immortals present, they all sighed.

"You can't blame him. The guardian Yaksha originally made a pact with the Emperor to kill to protect life. However, slaying the demons will inevitably bring about karma. The Great Sage did this for our safety." Xie Yue's words showed that he was worried about Xiao, but he could do nothing about it.

"Uncle Xueyue, is the 'Great Saint Conquering Demons' you mentioned the young-looking immortal?" Yaoyao asked. Xueyue nodded, and then, as if suddenly remembering something, he said, "Yaoyao, do you want to hear your uncle tell you the story of the guardian Yaksha?"

Although Yaoyao is too sensible to be a child, she still has many qualities that can only be seen in children. Just like now, when she heard that there was a story to listen to, Yaoyao happily agreed.

"That's good. The guardian Yakshas sacrificed themselves for the people of Liyue. It would be nice to let you youngsters listen to their stories and remember their sacrifices." Xueyue pondered for a moment, organized his words a little, and began to talk about the past of the Yakshas in a low voice.

Xie Yue talked about the ancient times of Liyue, which was at the end of the Demon War. The land of Liyue was eroded by the remains of the defeated Demon God and was filled with demons and evil creatures. In order to solve this problem, the Emperor made a contract with the Yakshas among the immortals. The Yakshas vowed to kill to protect life and tried their best to destroy the demons and evil creatures in the land of Liyue.

However, in the process of fighting against demons and evil spirits for thousands of years, they were inevitably bound by karma and polluted by the hatred of the demon gods; they either fell into fear and went mad, or killed each other, or became possessed by demons.

As a result, three of the five Yakshas died, one disappeared, and only the remaining "Golden Peng", also known as the demon-slaying great sage Xiao, remained in the world.

"Ah... ? How could this happen..." Paimon is a person who is easily affected by emotions. Her words at this moment are also the voice of many people present. One of the cruelest things in the world is to see a good person who has done many good things for others end up with a miserable end.

Yaoyao, Ying and Nashida had similar looks in their eyes at this moment. They didn't say anything, but their words explained everything invisibly. This story can be said to be a complete tragedy.

Zhongli, his wine now replaced with tea, remained silent. A subtle worry shone in his eyes, tinged with helplessness. How could he appear so unconcerned with his fellow Demon Slayer? It was Xiao's heart that was suffering, and even someone as powerful as Zhongli could do nothing about it.

Chapter 46: General Jinpeng

"Speaking of which, Amber has done me a great favor. According to the Liyue custom of reciprocity, how about I prepare a practical mechanism for you using my most proficient immortal mechanism technique?" Liu Yun suggested to Amber at the end of the dinner. They knew all the help Amber had provided them in the past few days, and naturally wanted to repay her.

"Hmm... the immortal family's mechanical technology sounds very attractive. I will wait and see." Amber did not refuse. If she did not accept Liu Yun's offer, she would be uneasy. However, Amber did not think that Liu Yun could give her anything that she could really use.

"Let me join in. Miss Amber has been shown a lot of favors these days, and it's not appropriate for me to just stand aside and watch." Li Shui also said this. After they chatted for a few sentences on this topic and talked about some miscellaneous things, the dinner really came to an end.

Liuyun asked Amber to take Nashida to stay in Liyue for a while longer, and her gift would be ready within a month at most. After saying goodbye to each other, they went their separate ways. Amber took Nashida to the outside of Liyue Harbor, but found that Ying and Paimon were going the same way as her.

"...What are you two planning?" Amber asked. Ying and Paimon looked at each other and said in unison, "Go see Xiao."

"Ah...it seems we're indeed going the same way." Amber couldn't help but sigh that her and Ying's thoughts were surprisingly similar at this moment. "I contacted an airship passing through Wangshu Kezhai. They're flying to Fontainebleau, so it wouldn't be a big deal if they gave us a ride. How about we go together?"

"Okay!" Ying agreed immediately, glad to accept the opportunity. Although Ying could use the anchor point to reach Wangshu Village in just a few moments, was there any need to use it at this moment? Ying followed Amber, and the few of them successfully boarded a common Leonard-class airship.

"Besides the common Leonard-class airship, there's also the Akhmar-class, which is much larger and has a much higher carrying capacity. The Adventurer's Guild often uses the Akhmar-class airship for high-ranking officials."

"It is said that Ikaros is currently researching a new super-large airship, the total length of which will be more than 100 meters. I am quite looking forward to what kind of behemoth it will be." In the middle of the flight, Amber mentioned to Ying that airships are usually very stable during flight unless they encounter extreme weather. Therefore, they even put a table and a few cups of tea on it.

"Amber knows a lot about airships. We only know that the airships are made by Ikaros Company, and Ikaros is located in Fontaine. We don't know the specific grades of the airships." Paimon sighed, and her sigh was recognized by Ying.

"That's nothing—by the way, how about you all guess what the super-class airship was ultimately named?" Amber suggested, pushing her glasses. "Speaking of which, it has a deep connection to Mondstadt, your previous stop on your journey."

Ying and Paimon thought for a moment, and all kinds of names were brought up at once, but Ying and Paimon were always restrained and did not dare to guess too high. Finally, after Amber's reminder, Ying said the name "Barbatos class".

"It's close, but not quite. Actually, after Icarus sent someone to get the Wind God's approval, the company did consider using that name internally. However, considering the potential negative impact Mondstadt might have, they ultimately changed it to 'Tevarin-class,' the name of Barbatos's familiar, the East Wind Dragon."

Amber explained to Ying and Paimon that the Icarust agent she mentioned was actually herself, but it was not convenient to say it here.

"Wow... there is such a thing." Paimon said after swallowing the snack in his mouth. Amber was finally able to open up, so she continued to talk in depth.

She mentioned that in the current Fontaine, airships have become a widely used tool. Many airships owned by individuals or even groups will even add some paint jobs to them. The more fancy airships usually seen in Liyue Harbor are basically from Fontaine.

But in a few years this may not be used as a criterion for judgment, simply because people in other countries who own airships have also followed suit. For example, the wealthy merchant Sangge Mahabayi from Xumi had the ingenuity to add pictures and slogans promoting the Casazale caravan to the airship. Such behavior may become more common in the future.

The atmosphere on the airship was relatively relaxed, but it was not the case near their destination, Wangshu Village. Liyue was one of the places with the most brutal fighting during the Demon War. Some of these demons were defeated by Morax, but the death of a demon, even an extremely weak one, would often cause changes in the local climate and soil, making it unsuitable for habitation for thousands of years.

As a result, Morax rarely kills demons, and mostly suppresses and seals them under the rock spear. These demons will fall into "dormancy" under the influence of the seal, but occasionally when they are half asleep and half awake, their resentment and the remnants of their power will turn into filth, repeatedly harassing all living beings. Xiao's duty to this day is to fight with these filth and protect the peace of Liyue in secret.

Yakshas are the aristocrats among the immortals. They are born knowing how to fight and how to survive. This is even more outstanding in Xiao. Xiao and even Yakshas are rarely worshipped or mentioned among the people, simply because they are not lucky stars that can bring wealth and protect the health of the world, nor are they saints who hold the immortal way and stand high among the clouds.

Moreover, the Yaksha has experienced many killings and the karma he carries is definitely not something that ordinary people can bear. Even just contact with him will cause great backlash. Nowadays, the people of Liyue will not pray to Xiao, and even few people know the legend of Yaksha, but Xiao does not care about all this. Protecting Liyue is the "contract" he made to the Emperor, that's all.

Xiao looks very young on the surface, but in fact it is not the case among the immortals. Xiao's seniority and reputation among the immortals are outstanding. Therefore, when the immortals mention each other, they may use abbreviations such as Liuyun and Xieyue, but when they mention Xiao, they will at least call him "Great Sage", which is actually a respect for him.

"Disperse!" On the field next to Wangshu Kezhai, Xiao tightly grasped the emerald spear. He had a terrifying ghost mask on his face and turned into a shadow that shuttled back and forth faster than the wind. Every time his figure appeared, the tip of the spear would kill a filthy creature. Around Xiao, twenty or thirty such filthy creatures had already fallen.

The mask worn by the Yaksha is a "Nuo mask", which is only worn when facing evil spirits. In ancient times, the Yakshas wearing Nuo masks fought hard and made a great name for themselves. At that time, the evil spirits would be frightened just by seeing the Nuo masks.

Another use of Nuo masks is to alleviate the impact of karma to a certain extent, so that the Yaksha does not have to face killing directly. This is more like a kind of psychological comfort.

"...Hu." Xiao took off his Nuo mask, looked at the corpses of demons all over the ground, and breathed a deep breath. If he calculated carefully, the days of fighting like this had been going on for about two thousand years. Most of his colleagues who were as close as family ended up dying a violent death. It was rare that he did not follow in their footsteps.

The Nuo mask in Xiao's hand had sharp teeth and a pair of sharp horns. He looked at the Nuo mask in his hand in a trance and couldn't take his eyes off it for a while.

He had been fighting while wearing this Nuo mask before, and those demons fell one by one under his gun, so vulnerable. For a moment, it seemed to remind him of some past events, some past events that were even older than the oath he made with the Emperor to kill to protect life.

"Aren't you going to wear it?" A familiar voice came into Xiao's ears. Xiao gripped his spear tightly and turned his head suddenly, but what he saw was himself.

——No, that’s not right. To be exact, it was himself who was wearing the Nuo mask and covered in blood.

"You again." Xiao's tone was calm. He put away his Nuo mask and grasped the spear with both hands. "As usual, no more nonsense, let's start fighting."

"Hahahahaha, what do you mean by 'you again'? I am you, Xiao, and you understand that best," Nuo-masked Yaksha responded, showing no signs of attacking. "However, your impatience for a fight is quite consistent with yours, Xiao."

"--What do you mean?"

"What do you mean? You know best, don't you?" The Nuo-masked Yaksha paced slowly. "You might be able to fool others, but you can't fool me, or yourself. When you were fighting those demons, the face behind your mask was clearly smiling, wasn't it?"

"You enjoy the fight, the thrill of easily taking the lives of others, don't you? Just like you once were—before you made the contract with the Rock God, when you were a great demon under the Demon God's throne, causing massacres, crushing many ideals, and then devouring the 'dreams' of those who failed."

"It's just that you didn't use the Nuo mask to cover yourself up before, but now you've become a coward who only dares to hide behind the Nuo mask and 'enjoy' all this...ah, this is really ridiculous."

"Shut up! Stop talking nonsense!" After Nuo-mian Yaksha's repeated words, Xiao finally couldn't bear it anymore. He let the anger that suddenly appeared in his heart stab Nuo-mian Yaksha with his spear. Unexpectedly, Nuo-mian Yaksha seemed to be prepared. In just a moment, he used the same spear to block Xiao's attack. The battle was about to break out, and the two men fought on the field.

"As the guardian yaksha, I kill to protect life. Even though I have committed many sins of killing, I will never be the evil ghost you say!" Xiao swept across with a huge force, shaking up a lot of mud on the surrounding land. The Nuo-masked yaksha retreated quickly. He blocked Xiao's pursuit and spoke again slowly.

"Really? Then why don't you touch the corner of your mouth? If you don't think you're an evil spirit, then why are you smiling now?"

"...!" Xiao was momentarily shocked. He subconsciously touched the corner of his mouth, only to find it curled up in a cruel arc. Was he actually smiling? Was he actually satisfied with the fight before him?

"Xiao, why do you like almond tofu? Is it because it's sweet?" Nuo Mask Yaksha slowly approached, "No, not really. It's because—it tastes a lot like those 'sweet dreams' you ate back then!"

"Hahahahaha, even if it's just once, you want to experience the dreams of those losers again, don't you? Feel their ideals shattered in your hands, feel their lives so easily controlled by you! You feel happy about it, you tremble with excitement! This is your nature, Xiao!"

"Shut up... Shut up--!!" Xiao concentrated all his strength and launched a rage attack. The shot finally hit the Nuo-masked Yaksha. The shot clearly hit the Nuo-masked Yaksha, but what reached Xiao's ears was the sound of metal clashing.

"Ying! Be careful!"

"Ding--!"

The shadow of the Nuo-masked Yaksha slowly dissipated, and the scene in front of him appeared in front of Xiao. The target of his previous attack was not the Nuo-masked Yaksha, but the blond traveler!

It was Amber who was holding the staff to take Xiao's attack at this time. It can be expected that if this attack had not been taken, Ying might have been seriously injured or even died on the spot.

"You can defeat me countless times, Xiao." The Nuo-masked Yaksha spoke again before disappearing, "But you can never kill me - I am you. No matter how much you hate me, I will always be a part of you."

"Ying! Are you okay?" Paimon flew over quickly to observe Ying's injuries. Her tone was full of worry. Xiao was gasping for breath, staring at everything in front of him with wide eyes.

"It seems I've arrived at the perfect time, Great Sage."

Chapter 47: The Cold-Faced Immortal is Not Good at Socializing

"Hu... Hu..." Ying was gasping for breath. She seemed to be very frightened. In the previous attack from Xiao, she felt a strong murderous intent. For a moment, she seemed to be in a tragic battlefield. What she saw was a mountain of corpses and a river of blood. Even her blood froze.

"What's going on? What happened?" Nashida, who was a little behind, ran up quickly. She held Ying's hand and felt it carefully. After confirming that there was nothing wrong with Ying, she turned around and held Xiao's hand again and felt it carefully, but she was shaken off by Xiao halfway through the perception.

"Don't touch me!" Xiao's words sounded quite unfriendly, and his expression was not very good, but he reacted the next moment.

"..." Xiao's expression was a little strange for a moment, mixed with regret and fear, and some other things that were difficult to identify, "...This body is stained with too much killing karma. Any rash contact will only hurt you."

"Previously, I was blinded by the backlash of my killing karma, which led to my offending behavior. I'm not feeling well today, so I won't stay any longer. I will come to apologize later." Xiao made a move to leave, but before doing so, he added, "If you don't want to endure the danger I experienced today again, stay away from me in the future."

"Don't be in such a hurry to leave, Great Sage." Amber grabbed Xiao's hand at the last moment. Xiao wanted to break free, but found that Amber was surprisingly strong. When he thought about it carefully, it made sense. If she didn't have such extraordinary strength, how could she have taken on his previous attack?

"What do you mean?" Xiao frowned, with a hint of impatience in his words. Amber didn't react much, but Paimon couldn't stand it anymore.

"Hey! What's with your attitude? You almost killed Ying just now! And now you still have this attitude! Is this an apology?!" Paimon was rarely angry. She would never dare to openly contradict someone like Xiao who seemed difficult to deal with, but now she just shouted it out loud.

"...I." Xiao, who looked fierce and cold, was somewhat speechless after hearing Paimon's words. He closed his eyes and opened them again. After a long silence, he spoke again, "I'm sorry for what I did just now. To make up for the shock you received, I'm willing to do anything for you, as long as it doesn't violate the contract I made with the Emperor."

Xiao's expression softened a lot, and Paimeng finally calmed down a little. Ying had almost recovered by then, and she smiled at Paimeng: "I'm naturally very happy that Paimeng is so worried about me, but there's no need to make things so difficult for Xiao."

"But he almost killed you just now!?" Paimon was a little dumbfounded. In fact, she was not the only one dumbfounded, even Xiao's eyes widened a little.

"Don't be fooled by Xiao's ferocious demeanor. He really doesn't want us to get too close to him. He's afraid his own murderous karma will affect us. This is actually a sign of concern and protection for us," Ying said. "Think carefully. If Xiao were the kind of person you think he is, how could he possibly have kept his contract with Zhongli and single-handedly cleared the land of Liyue of demons for thousands of years?"

"Hmm...it seems so." Paimon thought about it carefully and found that this was the truth. Although there was still some rejection in her eyes when she looked at Xiao, after all, it was a fact that he almost killed Ying.

"Is that so, Immortal Xiao?" Ying turned to look at Xiao. Xiao closed his eyes upon hearing this and did not utter a single word, but this could be regarded as his agreement.

"I know this kind of personality. According to what Amber explained to me before, this is called 'insincerity', right? They feel that it is too embarrassing and humiliating to express their true thoughts." Nashida seemed to suddenly remember something because of the scene in front of her, and expressed her thoughts.

"Yes! That's it!" Ying agreed with Nashida's opinion. There was a hint of mischief in her smile, which made Xiao unable to bear it any longer.

"...disrespectful to the Immortal Master." Xiao shook his head, and as Amber relaxed, he withdrew his hand. Amber had suddenly attacked because she was afraid that Xiao would disappear in the blink of an eye - Xiao's true form was a golden-winged Roc, and he was very fast, not to mention that he was proficient in flying. But now Xiao obviously would not have such an idea anymore, so Amber let go of his hand.

"The promise I made to you before still counts. If you don't have anything else to do next, I will leave first. As a guardian Yaksha, I still have a lot of things to do." Xiao crossed his arms across his chest. Although he was not tall, only about 1.6 meters tall, he showed the aura of an 1.8 meter tall man.

"Shangxian Xiao said before that as long as we don't violate the contract with the Emperor, anything is possible, right?" Ying asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Yes, I wouldn't lie to you about such a thing." Xiao nodded. He took a deep breath and seemed to be mentally prepared for Ying to make some difficult requests.

"—Then, please ask Immortal Xiao to join us for dinner. I heard from the proprietress of Wangshu Inn that you like almond tofu. Yan Xiao and I just happened to learn how to make almond tofu. I think Immortal Xiao is very experienced with this dish. How about you be a judge?"

"...Huh?" Xiao widened his eyes again. He couldn't quite believe what Ying said.

"What's wrong? Can't Immortal Xiao even meet a request like mine?" Ying curled the corners of her mouth slightly, put her hands on her hips, and there was some inexplicable pride in her words.

"...That's not the case. I just didn't expect you to make such a request." Xiao sighed, "But are you sure? Although Yakshas are usually only good at killing and survival, I am an immortal after all, and I can still help you with many things."

"No, that's all!" Ying clasped her hands together, closed one eye, and tilted her head slightly to look at Xiao. For a moment, she even had some of Hu Tao's mischievousness. Seeing this, Xiao sighed again: "Then follow me."

Xiao led the group towards Wangshu Inn. It was almost dark at this time. On the way, they talked about things related to Wangshu Inn. Xiao said that he often ate almond tofu there. The chef Yanxiao there was very good at cooking. The owner Philgodette had never taken Tamora away, probably because he saw through his identity as an immortal.

Xiao did not refuse this kindness, and from then on he paid more attention to the area around Wangshu Inn, clearing out monsters in time to keep it peaceful. During this time, Xiao also corrected Ying's view of Philgodette as the "proprietress", saying that she was the owner of Wangshu Inn, not the proprietress.

This is increasingly consistent with Ying's initial evaluation of Xiao. He is indeed not as cold as he looks, and he also remembers the little things that happen to mortals like Philgodette.

After arriving at Wangshu Inn, Xiao asked Philgodette to arrange a dinner, preferably a sumptuous one, and also borrowed a quieter private room, saying that he would find a way to pay Mora later.

Seeing this, Filgodette simply smiled, a look of insight in her eyes. "The Immortal's care for the Wangshu Inn is enough to support hundreds of dinners like this. How could I have the nerve to accept you, Mora? There aren't that many guests right now. You and your friends should just enjoy your dinner."

"...Not friends, just some acquaintances I've met a few times." Xiao explained, but Philgodette just smiled. She didn't know whether she listened to him or not. Amber and Ying asked her to arrange two more rooms. Amber wanted to open one for Xiao as well, but Xiao refused, so Amber didn't force it.

Led by the waiter, they came to a quiet private room further back. Philgodette looked at the backs of the people, especially Xiao, with an inexplicable emotion in her eyes. She felt relieved to see that the lonely immortal had such an "acquaintance" who was worthy of him treating her to a meal.

After several people sat down in their seats, they fell into a strange silence for a while. Xiao sat there like a statue, not realizing that as the host, he should take on the responsibility of leading the topic.

"Although Xiao is an immortal, he doesn't know much about the customs of the mortals in Liyue. Just like now, according to the customs of Liyue, as the host of a dinner, Xiao should take the responsibility of leading the topic, right?" Paimon broke the silence, and after hearing her words, Xiao showed a look of sudden realization.

"So there is such a custom? I'm sorry... I don't usually interact with mortals, so I didn't know about this tradition." Xiao apologized immediately. This behavior invisibly shortened the distance between him as an immortal and mortals, making people feel that the powerful Immortal Xiao also has his embarrassing side.

"Then let me open the speech according to tradition. My name is Xiao, and I'm one of the guardian Yakshas of Liyue, the 'Great Sage Subduing Demons' among the Three-Eyed and Five-Manifested Immortals. Xiao is not my real name, and I cannot reveal my real name to you easily." It was rare for Xiao to say a lot of words at once, but after he finished speaking, he fell silent again, and his eyes swept over the other people present, as if to say that it was someone else's turn to speak.

"...Is that the end?" Ying was dumbfounded. She knew that Xiao was not good at socializing, but she didn't expect that he was so bad at socializing. This was a party, what was the point of him introducing himself?

"Hmm...shouldn't everyone take turns introducing themselves? I've seen businessmen do the same thing when they sit together to discuss business, introducing themselves to others, or introducing their employers to others."

"That's true...but this is a gathering among acquaintances, not a business place. We generally wouldn't do this, right?" Ying held his forehead and shook his head, sighing slightly.