Genshin Impact's Incense Burner Of Liyue [373]

After finishing his midnight snack, Gu Sanqiu slipped out of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor like a thief. His sneaky behavior immediately raised Hu Tao’s suspicion that he might have pilfered something important.

"Lord Azhdaha’s place is out of the question," he muttered to himself. "At least one thing is certain—Zhongli must’ve left some kind of tracking mark on me. Otherwise, how else could he pinpoint everything I’ve done with such accuracy?"

He paused to think, his earlier musings about the connection between Karmic Spiritforms and faith power still lingering. But even if he sought Azhdaha’s advice, he’d probably receive nothing but vague, evasive answers.

Sigh. "Guess I’ll see if I can squeeze some secrets out of the blond’s mouth instead."

Scratching his head, Gu Sanqiu’s thoughts turned to the golden-haired traveler. After regaining power from the Anemo Archon statues, the traveler was essentially starting from scratch, leveling up again.

This presented an opportunity. He could either corner the traveler and threaten them for information—perhaps with a blade to their neck—or knock them unconscious, stuff them in a gift box, and toss them into the Abyss. Someone would surely pay handsomely for that.

Or... he could manipulate things from the start, brainwashing everyone into standing on the same side. That didn’t sound too bad either.

As his thoughts churned with increasingly bizarre schemes, all of which involved tormenting the traveler, Gu Sanqiu wondered if he should deliberately create obstacles to stretch out their journey.

But no, story-wise, Abyss-Lumine’s actions weren’t constrained by surface-world Aether’s travels. To follow their rhythm, he’d have to adhere to whatever mysterious "world script" was at play.

If he really tried to interfere, Zhongli and the others would likely come after him first—and not just for a lecture. He’d probably end up chained and sunk into the sea.

---

The next morning, Gu Sanqiu bought some breakfast from a street vendor and flew straight toward the Jade Chamber.

With his newly developed flight abilities, the Jade Chamber’s anti-air defenses had been deactivated.

Ningguang had said as much herself: she wasn’t concerned about her little brother getting injured by the defenses, knowing full well they wouldn’t even scratch him.

What she did care about was the money spent on those expensive anti-air weapons.

Her frank words had once sent Gu Sanqiu’s blood pressure soaring, but he couldn’t deny the logic. Even for the Tianquan Star, who was among the wealthiest in Liyue, resources weren’t limitless.

"Big sis! Get up and start working already! Your dutiful younger brother brought you breakfast."

Kicking open the main door to the chamber, Gu Sanqiu strolled over and placed the food on Ningguang’s desk.

"It’s from Xinyue Kiosk’s new breakfast menu. Tastes pretty good."

"Leave it there."

Ningguang, her attention on the documents in front of her, barely glanced up in acknowledgment.

"What about the task I assigned you? How’s that coming along?"

"Oh, that? I looked into it. Long story short, wiping out the entire organization behind it is next to impossible. Maybe even outright impossible."

Her eyebrows arched as she finally raised her head to meet his gaze.

"Who exactly are we dealing with, if even you admit it’s beyond your reach? That’s intriguing."

Gu Sanqiu shook his head. "If you’re asking me to eliminate the ones responsible for triggering the ley line surge, that’s doable. Not easy, but not impossible either."

"But if you want me to include the mastermind behind them, that’s a whole different story. The ones pulling the strings are none other than the Abyss Order—and not just any members, but high-ranking figures."

Ningguang frowned, pausing her work. She gestured for Baiwen to collect the finished documents before continuing.

"The Abyss Order? You mean those underground entities?"

"Come on, sis. You should take them more seriously. They’re not just ‘underground entities.’ Their power is far greater than that simplistic label suggests."

Gu Sanqiu sighed. "The ones who came to the surface were merely scouts, sent by various factions within the Abyss to gather intelligence. Their true strength far surpasses what we saw."

Ningguang tapped her desk thoughtfully. "I’m aware of their capabilities. While we can’t eliminate them entirely, I trust you’ve figured out why they caused such a commotion this time?"

Gu Sanqiu nodded reluctantly. "Yeah... part of the reason seems to involve me."

"You?"

"Yep."

"Explain."

After listening to his explanation, Ningguang frowned, resting her hand against her cheek.

"So, some of them came specifically to see you—or, more precisely, to show you something?"

"That’s about the size of it. Honestly, though, I couldn’t make heads or tails of whatever it was they were trying to show me."

"That’s not your fault."

Ningguang stretched, rising from her chair. "If my assessment is correct, your family likely had contact with the Abyss Order in the past. Perhaps even significant collaboration."

Gu Sanqiu sighed. "That Abyss mage couldn’t stop babbling about my family. So yeah, your theory checks out. And it probably wasn’t just a one-time thing—sounds like multiple generations interacted with them."

"How fascinating."

Ningguang chuckled. "Could it be they’ve sensed a winds of change? This land does seem to be brimming with newfound energy."

"Hold on, sis. Let’s call it what it is: a headache, not energy. If this much ‘energy’ keeps piling up, the world’s bound to fall apart."

"Perhaps. But this is only part of it."

Ningguang’s smile turned enigmatic. "Something even more... lively is waiting for you."

"Hey! You’re working me like this just because I’m not officially employed, so you don’t have to pay overtime, aren’t you?"

"Of course not," she replied, her tone laced with amusement. "Besides, this next situation is entirely your own doing."

She handed him a document. "See for yourself."

"I’m not looking. What kind of brother would I be if I just followed orders like some subordinate?"

"Hm?"

Ningguang narrowed her eyes and gave the document a threatening shake.

"Look. Or don’t. Your choice."

"Fine! Since you’re asking so ‘sincerely,’ I’ll take a look."

Gu Sanqiu reluctantly accepted the file and opened it—

"What the heck is this?!"

As if jolted by electricity, he dropped the file onto the floor.

"Why do I have to be part of this? Are you trying to get me killed?!"

---

T/N: hmm canon is coming soon, is it lumine or aether...

This is a fan translation of 原神之璃月奉香人 by 淡白蛋清. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!