Su Yuan and Yelan stared at the scene in shock.
Could it be that Jiangxue's condition for becoming eerie was... someone disturbing his fishing?
Fortunately, he didn't seem overly aggressive.
As long as they didn't disturb him further, he probably wouldn't make a move...
Su Yuan took a few steps back and returned to Yelan's side.
"Jiangxue" no longer paid him any attention and once again immersed himself in the quiet joy of fishing.
"This isn't good..." Yelan murmured thoughtfully.
"Has Jiangxue also entered an eerie state?"
"But... it seems like he doesn't have the urge to kill anyone..."
Su Yuan looked again at the Yaksha mask in his hand.
It was covered in damage and cracks, clearly bearing signs of a fierce battle...
A terrifying thought suddenly crossed his mind—
Could it be... that Xiao was already dead?
Xiao must have discovered something was wrong with Jiangxue and tried to fight him—but he wasn't a match for Jiangxue in his eerie state...
Afterward, Jiangxue dumped Xiao's body in the river, which was why he was able to fish up Xiao's mask just now...
Should I commit suicide here to return to a previous save point?
But what would be the point?
According to Verr Goldet's description, Xiao had already been missing for two or three days...
There's no way my return point could go that far back...
"Su Yuan, what do we do now?" Yelan looked at him and asked.
"We hurry—back to Liyue Harbor!"
Su Yuan clenched his teeth in frustration and spoke with firm determination.
Xiao's fate was still uncertain, but Su Yuan believed that Zhongli would definitely have a way to learn the truth about Xiao's situation...
He had to meet Zhongli as soon as possible!
But at the same time, Su Yuan couldn't help but worry.
According to what Yelan had mentioned earlier, it seemed Zhongli might also be acting a little strange...
If he had also fallen under the control of the eerie force, then Liyue truly would become a nightmare-level difficulty...
After that, Su Yuan and Yelan returned to Wangshu Inn and warned Verr Goldet and Huai'an that Jiangxue was no longer himself, and that they absolutely must not disturb him while he was fishing—no matter what.
Although they didn't fully understand the reason behind the warning, faced with Yelan's serious tone, they nodded and agreed.
Then, Su Yuan and Yelan continued their journey south, heading toward Liyue Harbor...
"Yelan, how many people in all of Liyue currently know about the existence of the eerie?"
Su Yuan asked, because just earlier, Yelan hadn't revealed anything about the eerie to Fei'er Gedait and Huai'an.
"Only the Liyue Qixing and a few of us core high-level personnel are aware of it..."
"The Millelith soldiers, lower-level staff, and the general public all think it's just regular disturbances caused by monsters and demons..."
Su Yuan nodded and said, "I understand."
"But now that I'm here, I'll tell you in advance. I'll be making my own decisions—I'll tell certain people about the eerie if I believe they can be trusted."
"If we want to fight against the eerie, we need more strength on our side."
Yelan smiled slightly, nodded, and replied, "Understandable. I trust your judgment."
After a long journey, by dusk, Su Yuan and Yelan finally arrived at Liyue Harbor.
"Su Yuan, I still have a few matters to take care of. You go find Consultant Zhongli on your own."
"Tonight, if you don't mind, you can stay at my Yanshang Teahouse."
"It's right across the bridge from Wangsheng Funeral Parlor—very close by."
"Of course, if you'd rather spend the night at the funeral parlor itself, I won't stop you."
Su Yuan muttered to himself weakly, Any normal person wouldn't choose to stay overnight at a funeral parlor, right?
With that, Yelan said her goodbyes and disappeared into a corner of Liyue Harbor.
Following the directions Yelan had given him, Su Yuan headed straight toward the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
However, before he even arrived, he spotted a familiar figure...
Zhongli—he seemed to be at a street stall, about to buy some baked flatbread...
And what's more, Su Yuan clearly saw Zhongli pulling out his wallet, ready to pay.
Su Yuan watched the scene unfold, and his heart sank instantly...
It's over... No matter how you look at it, this just doesn't seem like the real Zhongli...
Never mind the fact that Zhongli never carries money when he goes out—let alone using his own wallet to pay.
Zhongli was always a man of refinement.
Even if he didn't dine at top-tier places like Liuli Pavilion or Xinyue Kiosk, he'd at least go to Wanmin Restaurant, right?
Just look at this street vendor selling flatbreads—the pan was pitch black and covered in rust, the stove was stained with oil and crumbs.
It didn't look sanitary at all...
Su Yuan felt that if this were truly Zhongli, there's no way he'd be eating here...
He thought to himself, Maybe it's best to stay away from him for now...
Because the man before him... was no longer Zhongli.
For now, it's better to just get through the night, gather some new intel, and then make a decision...
After all, without any solid information about what's happening in Liyue, it's still far too difficult to act...
Su Yuan was just about to quietly slip away, when Zhongli's voice suddenly rang out:
"Little friend, you seem unfamiliar to me..."
"But why is there a faintly familiar aura about you?"
Familiar aura? That must be from Xiao's Yaksha mask...
Su Yuan hadn't expected that to be what drew Zhongli's attention.
Looks like slipping away isn't an option anymore.
Time to face this head-on!
After all, as a certain wise man once said: No matter what difficulties we face, we must not fear! Face them with a smile! The best way to overcome fear is to confront it!
Besides, he still had two safe rewind chances left today—it'd be a waste not to use them!
So, Su Yuan stopped in his tracks and slowly walked up to Zhongli, meeting his gaze...
"Mr. Zhongli, hello there..." Su Yuan said slowly.
Zhongli gave a slight nod, then spoke:
"If you have some time to spare, why don't we find a place to sit and chat over some tea?"
"I'll treat," Zhongli added.
"Sure," Su Yuan replied.
Looking at the clearly abnormal Zhongli before him, Su Yuan was genuinely curious about what he was really up to.
If he could glean even the slightest bit of information about Zhongli's possible eerie corruption, that would be more than worth it...
Then, Su Yuan followed Zhongli to a small street-side tea stall.
They found a corner seat and sat down.
Wait a minute... Su Yuan couldn't help but feel a bit like complaining inside.
Old man Zhong, when you said you were treating me to tea, I thought at the very least it'd be a proper teahouse or something... how did we end up at a street-side tea stall?
Su Yuan didn't mean to look down on street stalls—he just felt that this was totally unlike Zhongli's usual style.
"Young friend, I'll be blunt," Zhongli said directly.
"Are you carrying a Nuo opera mask used for exorcism rituals? May I take a look?"
Su Yuan nodded, handed the mask he had on him over to Zhongli, and then said, "Let me introduce myself. My name is Su Yuan..."
"'Su' as in tiramisu, and 'Yuan' as in ruins and rubble."
Zhongli accepted Xiao's mask and carefully examined it. Suddenly, he commented,
"Su Yuan, that introduction of yours isn't very balanced..."
"Think about it—tiramisu is something sweet, pleasant, and delicious. But ruins and rubble paint a scene of destruction, desolation, and sorrow..."
"Isn't that a little too contradictory? You might want to consider making it a bit more consistent."
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