After leaving the Northland Bank, Ye Xi headed off to finish his Daily Commissions. Even though he was currently sitting on a mountain of Primogems, his Daily Commissions were non-negotiable!
As a former Genshin Impact player, he followed a sacred rule: never let even a single Primogem slip through your fingers! It was a matter of principle.
He returned to Yujing Terrace to pick some Glaze Lilies. Hunting pigeons was even simplerhe just scattered a handful of feed on the ground, and a swarm of them immediately crowded around to snatch it up.
Although it felt a little cruel to catch them like this... pigeon meat was delicious. He planned to head into his Serenitea Pot tonight, set up a grill, and enjoy some BBQ with Yae Miko.
After tossing several pigeons into his inventory, the reward for the day arrived!
[Primogems being issued, please check...]
[Primogems received.]
[Primogem Quantity: 17,280]
Looking at that number, a restless urge surged within him. He immediately began walking toward the Hall of the Qixing, planning to make his Wishes as soon as he reached his room.
Evening was drawing near, and the sun was beginning to dip below the horizon. As the streetlamps flickered to life, the sky still held onto a lingering, faint glow.
"Master Ye Xi!"
The Millelith guarding the Hall of the Qixing saluted him. Ye Xi smiled and nodded in response. He was currently in an excellent mood. However, as the Millelith watched him enter the estate, their eyes were filled with envy.
Who wouldn't be jealous? To be able to enter and leave the Hall of the Qixing freely as a commoner was one thing, but to live right next door to Lady Ningguang was another entirely.
"Have you guys heard? Someone passing by the Tianquan's residence last night heard some... strange sounds!"
"What? What kind of strange sounds?"
One Millelith guard looked around suspiciously, and after confirming no one was watching, he whispered, "You know... that kind of sound!"
The surrounding soldiers all sucked in a breath of cold air.
"What? You mean the Lady Tianquan... she actually...?"
"I'm so jealous of that Ye Xi! How lucky can one guy get?!"
"By what merit! What merit does he have to deserve this?!"
Just as they were gossiping, several squad leaders immediately barked at them.
"Shut your mouths! That is a grave disrespect to Lady Ningguang!"
"That is the Lady Tianquan you're talking about! Stop talking nonsense!"
"Master Ye Xi has only been at the Hall of the Qixing for one night. Everything takes timeyou're just spreading baseless rumors!"
"Moreover, these are Lady Ningguang's private matters. Do not discuss them! She has sacrificed so much for Liyue; it's only natural if she wants a family of her own! The Chief Instructor was just scolded by the Ministry of Civil Affairs today and is still in solitary confinement! Do you want to go in and keep him company?"
Hearing their superiors' warnings, the gossiping Millelith immediately fell silent.
However, not far away, a pair of ears had heard everything.
Has Ningguang fallen so far during the few days I was away? If she can't even handle her own affairs properly, what right does she have to govern Liyue?
"Ye Xi?"
"Hmph, I want to see just what kind of ability this 'personal guard' actually has!"
The young woman's gaze was sharp. Having made up her mind, she walked quickly toward the direction Ye Xi had gone. Her purple twin-tails fluttered behind her in the wind. Her slender legs, wrapped in black stockings, moved with purpose, making her skirt sway slightly.
She was none other than the Yuheng of the Liyue QixingKeqing!
She had only just returned to Liyue Harbor. On her way back, she had received a personal letter from Ningguang. In the letter, Ningguang had mentioned a coming catastrophe for Liyue and the arrival of the "Rule by Humans" era.
Keqing had been incredibly excited when she read those words. She had looked forward to that day for a very long time. However, when she read that this information came from the "heart voice" of a man named Ye Xi, she found it utterly absurd.
She could clearly see that between the lines of the letter, Ningguang was repeatedly emphasizing Ye Xi's mysterious nature. A unique ability that allowed others to hear his heart voice.
The power to use two elements. High regard from the Raiden Shogun, even to the point of being able to influence her will! Even Yae Miko shared an intimate relationship with him.
Every single point sounded impossible to Keqing. She even felt like Ningguang was going out of her way to protect this man. Since she was already skeptical,
hearing the Millelith talk about last night's events led her to an immediate conclusion: this Ye Xi must have bewitched Ningguang. He was surely a small-time crook after her wealth and beauty!
Ye Xi pushed open the gate to Ningguang's courtyard and stepped inside. Suddenly, he heard light footsteps behind him. Before he could turn around in confusion, he felt the cold steel of a blade resting on his shoulder. The blade was sharp, its tip darkit appeared to be the four-star weapon, The Black Sword.
Identifying the weapon gave Ye Xi an immediate idea of who it was.
"Hah, with alertness like this, you think you can be a personal guard?"
"I suggest you don't move. Blades have no eyes, and I don't want the trouble of cleaning up your corpse."
The voice ringing in his ear was incredibly familiar, filling Ye Xi with a strange sense of nostalgia.
[It really is Keqing!]
[I finally get to see her! The most perfect person in all of Teyvat!]
This wasn't an exaggeration. When Genshin Impact first launched, Keqing was the character with the highest popularity! He still remembered how accounts that pulled Keqing from the Standard Wish pool could be sold for thousands!
As the person who had been in charge of character design projects, he knew exactly how important Keqing was to the game. If Genshin Impact became a global hit later on,
Keqing was the cornerstone that initially grabbed the world's attention! She was the ultimate poster girl! Countless players had joined the game specifically because of her.
Truth be told, designing Keqing's outfit had been the top priority for the entire company. Their motto was just two words: "Perfect." The black stockings were there to satisfy a major preference.
The high heels were for public appeal. But the stroke of genius was her twin-tails; those two pointed tufts on her head looked just like cat ears! It checked all the boxes for a huge number of players.
In summary, while other characters had their own pros and cons, Keqing was flawless! Every part of her was a highlight. Even CCTV had once included her portrait in a record of major events for the year.
It was the first time a game or anime character had been highlighted like that! The entire company had been ecstatic back then. Without the takeoff provided by Keqing, the later enthusiasm wouldn't have been nearly as high!
Therefore, in Ye Xi's heart, he had always held Keqing in very high regard.
While Ye Xi was lost in his memories, Keqing was completely bewildered by the heart voice she was hearing.
Per... Perfect person?! This person... we've just met for the first time, and he's saying such embarrassing things!
A faint blush crept onto her cheeks. Though, she couldn't exactly deny his words.
"I really don't understand what kind of spell you've cast on Ningguang."
"Do you really think you can protect the Liyue Qixing with this level of defensive awareness? Are you looking down on us?"
"Ningguang even claimed you can use two types of Elemental Power. Utterly ridiculous! I truly don't know why she's being so foolish!"
Ye Xi was speechless. This was the Hall of the Qixing! There were so many Millelith on guard that there was no need to be so tense! Besides, even if someone did show up, it would probably be the Fatui. As a Fatui Harbinger, those people saw him as being as great as The Tsaritsa herself. Forget attacking him; they'd probably want to kneel the moment they saw him!
However, Keqing wasn't entirely wrong. His current strength relied entirely on his mastery over multiple elements. If they were talking about the combat instincts of a seasoned warrior, he really didn't have any.
At the end of the day, he was just a corporate worker who had spent three cozy years in Inazuma. If he ran into a minor monster, he just crushed it with Elemental Power; there had never been a need to develop a warrior's intuition. He really did feel like he needed some training. It would be best if Teacher Zuo could give him some pointers.
But that wasn't urgent. The priority was clearing up the misunderstanding with Keqing. After a moment of thought, a smirk played on his lips. He said calmly, "Miss Keqing, what if I told you that I discovered you long ago? I knew you were one of the Liyue Qixing and that you weren't a threat to me, which is why I didn't set up any defenses."
"Can you understand that reasoning?" Ye Xi crossed his arms, looking helpless.
"Eh?!"
"This..." Keqing was slightly taken aback. She suddenly felt that what Ye Xi said made sense.
Thinking about it, she wasn't usually very guarded when she returned to the Hall of the Qixing. If she noticed Ningguang approaching, she wouldn't exactly draw her sword and go on the defensive, would she? Was it possible that Ye Xi really had noticed her and deliberately lowered his guard?
Ye Xi's tone became a bit sharper as he pressed his advantage. "Miss Keqing, I gave you my full trust, and yet you drew your blade against me and slandered me as a liar. Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"
"I... I didn't mean to, I just..."
Keqing was flustered, her cheeks burning. If that was really the case, she had been incredibly rude! Someone trusted her completely, and she responded with a sneak attack and called him a liar.
Sensing her panic behind him, Ye Xi found it a little funny.
[This girl is so easy to fool.]
[She's so serious and meticulous at work, and yet her personality is so easy to tease.]
[I feel like if I just said a few more compliments, she'd immediately turn shy and demand to know my 'true intentions.']
[So cute.]
Keqing was stunned. Hearing his heart voice, she felt as though Ye Xi understood her perfectly! Especially that comment about how "she'd turn shy if complimented"it made her feel both embarrassed and angry! She wanted to retort, but he seemed to be exactly right.
Dammit! She was going crazy! This feeling of being seen through was incredibly humiliating! Why did Ye Xi know so much? It was as if he were an old enemy! But this was their first meeting! Keqing was certain she had never met him before!
After a brief moment of shame, she furrowed her brows. Regardless of anything else, Ye Xi had said she was easy to fool! That meant his claim about not being on guard earlier was a lie!
If that was the case, she didn't need to feel guilty anymore! This boy was definitely a bad person!
Just then, the Millelith patrolling outside seemed to have noticed the commotion and rushed into the courtyard. Seeing the scene, their eyes widened in shock.
"Lady Yuheng, what are you doing?!"
The captain of the Millelith patrol, Jiayi, didn't understand the situation. The soldiers behind him instinctively lowered their spears.
Keqing huffed, looking as if she had seen through Ye Xi's scheme. She ordered, "You've come at the perfect time. Take this swindler to the Disciplinary Bureau immediately!"
"This man has no skill at all. Held at swordpoint, he was so scared that he didn't even dare to move. His strength is inferior even to a minimally trained Millelith!"
She pressed the sword a bit closer to Ye Xi's neck, only to find him still standing there calmly with his arms crossed, showing no intention of resisting. This only fueled her anger. She was convinced Ye Xi was just faking his composure to appear like a mysterious, powerful expert. It looked like he couldn't be bothered to deal with her, but in reality, he was just sticking to his lie about "not being on guard."
Jiayi looked at Ye Xi, his brows knitting together. "Lady Yuheng is wise! This man suddenly moved into the Hall of the Qixing yesterday. Lady Ningguang offered no explanation and insisted on making him her personal guard, even though he doesn't even have a Vision!"
The other Millelith nodded in agreement.
"Exactly! How can someone without a Vision protect Lady Ningguang?!"
"I've suspected him for a while! The way he walks doesn't look like a martial artist at all!"
"A soldier should stand like a pine and sit like a bow! This guy walks all loose and casual, without a hint of alertness! He's definitely a scammer!"
"..."
With that, several Millelith moved forward to take Ye Xi away.
Right then, Ye Xi let out a long sigh. "I didn't expect the Millelith to think of me this way. Fine..."
As he spoke, Ye Xi simply reached out and flicked the side of the dark blade resting on his shoulder. In an instant, a burst of extreme frost swallowed the sword.
Keqing had been alert and pulled the sword back immediately, but the frost was spreading too fast. If she didn't let go, it would freeze her fingers! She instinctively dropped the weapon.
The Black Sword stabbed straight into the grass, its entire length covered in thick frost. Even the surrounding grass was caught in the freeze. The frost spread over a meter across the ground!
Keqing couldn't help but feel relieved. Luckily she had let go, or she would have suffered severe frostbite! She looked at Ye Xi's back, her heart racing.
He had unleashed such powerful Elemental Power with just a flick of his finger! How did he do that?! And she hadn't sensed him gathering any Elemental Power at all!
The sudden turn of events left everyone dazed. When the Millelith finally snapped out of it, they stood frozen in place.
"Ssssuch terrifying Cryo power!"
"How is that possible? Doesn't he lack a Vision?!"
"What's going on? What did he do? How did Lady Yuheng's sword get frozen?!"
"I didn't even see him move... did I blink and miss it?!"
"..."
The display of power completely subdued them. Everyone stood there, paralyzed with uncertainty.
Suddenly, Ningguang's curious voice drifted in from outside the courtyard. "Keqing? Ye Xi? What are you all doing here?"
🚨 Note: Consider supporting this story on Patreon.com/Flokixy to access 400+ advance chapters and 2 new chapters daily! (Full story bundles also available without a subscription).