Venti smiled gently and extended a hand toward the two Bangboo.
At that moment, both of them tensed up, assuming the negotiation had failed and ready to fight.
But when Venti opened his palm, they froze.
There, in his hand, were a few shiny Dennies.
Then he pulled out a small wallet—inside were the very same Dennies they had scattered earlier.
"You ran too fast and dropped your money."
"Mm-hmm? (Aren't you here to catch us?)"
"Eh? I'm no thief. Why would I catch you? Liyue's laws are strict—robbery gets heavy sentences, you know."
"Mm-hmm mm-hmm... (Thank you, kind sir...)"
Golden Bangboo and Platinum Bangboo were stunned.
They'd met all sorts of humans before—some greedy for their bodies, some after their Dennies, and some wanting to run experiments on them...
But someone like Venti? This was a first.
No greed. No tricks. He'd even chased them down just to return their lost coins.
Golden Bangboo beamed.
"Mm-hmm... (Thank you!)"
"No need for thanks. These are yours after all. But chasing you all this way made me thirsty. How about buying me a drink?"
Platinum Bangboo nodded enthusiastically.
"Mm-hmm mm-hmm! (Sure, sure! Ten drinks if you want!)"
Golden Bangboo interjected quickly.
"Mm-hmm-da, mm-hmm mm-hmm (No, we're being hunted! We need to head to another Hollow!)"
They had come to C75 Hollow to collect scattered Dennies and gear coins, and now they'd covered almost the entire place.
It was time to move on.
Venti nodded as their words confirmed his earlier suspicions.
So these were the mysterious creatures everyone was after.
Unable to get his drink, Venti let out a dramatic sigh.
Platinum Bangboo piped up sincerely.
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm-da (These gear coins and Dennies are for you—you can buy wine yourself.)"
Golden Bangboo agreed.
"Mm-hmm! (That's right!)"
Venti gave a small nod.
"Alright. I hope you make it through all the blockades."
This was quite a lot of coin. Enough for four or five bottles of good wine. Venti felt a bit guilty taking so much.
"You're here to collect coins, right? Let me give you a tip—there's good fortune in that direction. Might be plenty of currency over there."
That just happened to be the direction Hare's House and the others were headed.
Venti had already sensed the presence of the Geo Archon in the breeze.
If the Bangboo could find him, they'd be safe for sure.
And knowing the Geo Archon—Morax wouldn't be the type to covet the wealth of others.
He was, after all, the god of wealth and creator of Mora. What would he want with pocket change?
What Venti didn't know, however, was that while Sam Li wasn't greedy...
He was currently traveling with a very greedy rabbit who'd been hunting for these two Bangboo all along.
After hearing Venti's advice,
Golden and Platinum Bangboo looked east and picked up the scent of gear coins and Dennies.
They caught a faint whiff of financial fortune in the air.
Platinum Bangboo lit up.
"Mm-hmm mm-hmm mm-hmm-da! (Thank you, kind sir! We won't forget this!)"
Golden Bangboo nodded eagerly.
"Mm-hmm mm-hmm-da! (Platinum, come on—let's go!)"
They had thought this Hollow was tapped out.
They hadn't expected such a strong scent of wealth waiting beyond.
Soon, the two Bangboo waved goodbye to Venti and headed toward the eastern side of C75 Hollow.
He wasn't in a hurry to find Zhongli anymore.
Instead, he took the coins the Bangboo had given him and went off to find a black market merchant to buy another bottle of fine wine.
On the north side of the Hollow, a truck and an SUV moved slowly down the street, scanning the area for any sign of Golden Bangboo and Platinum Bangboo.
Following Sam Li's advice, they had come to search this part of the Hollow.
But after over an hour of searching, still no sign of either Bangboo.
Billy began to doubt—
Had they escaped through a Hollow rift? Slipped into a companion Hollow? Or maybe even fled to Zero Hollow?
Nicole walked up to Eous.
"How's it going, Phaethon? Still can't break through the Hollow Investigation Association's network?"
Belle, controlling Eous, responded:
"Almost there. It looks like they noticed the intrusion—security's tighter now. It's just going to take a bit longer..."
"Please hurry. If we don't get new info soon, they'll be long gone."
If they missed this chance, finding those golden lumps again wouldn't be so easy.
She hesitated, then turned to Sam Li.
"What do you think? Where should we go next?"
Sam Li glanced into the distance, thought for a moment, then said,
"We're not going anywhere. Just stay here."
He'd already scouted this area earlier—both Bangboo had been here. Though they vanished mysteriously, he could sense them again now.
They were heading in his direction.
All they had to do was wait.
Nicole took a deep breath.
"Alright... I'll trust you."
Belle, still controlling Eous, finally broke through the Hollow Investigation Association's network.
She found something in their data.
"Nicole, I've located Golden Bangboo. Twenty minutes ago, someone from the Association saw it in the McKen District on the west side of the Hollow."
Nicole's eyes lit up.
She was just about to order the team to move out when she remembered what Sam Li had just said—and hesitated.
Sam Li said to wait right here...
But Phaethon had pulled data from the Association—hard evidence placing the Bangboo in the McKen District.
Now Nicole didn't know who to trust.
Of course she believed in Sam Li—but his words were still just a hunch.
Phaethon, on the other hand, had reliable intel from official sources.
Sensing her hesitation, Anby spoke up gently.
"Why not follow Sam Li's lead for a few minutes? If the Bangboo don't show, we can always head to the McKen District after."
"Alright. We'll do it Anby's way."