A white hood concealed his face.
His posture was upright, and as he moved, a heavy, ancient aura spread around him.
Behind him followed a short youth with divine patterns etched across his body—
Rex Lapis's loyal attendant, the Exorcist Great Sage, General Jingwei, and Childe, Xiao.
Just monts ago, Zhongli had seen Keqing and Ganyu hurriedly ascend the Jade Chamber.
Considering the events of last night with Ryen, he inferred that it must have sothing to do with him.
Thus, he decided to observe discreetly.
Unexpectedly, he overheard such astonishing news.
Even though Zhongli had long since considered retirent, this matter was sothing he knew he could not ignore.
Moreover, it required imdiate action!
This concerned Liyue—Liyue governed by mortals—whether it could progress further and shine brighter.
He didn't mind giving his all to push Liyue one last step.
Furthermore, if that world's resources were truly boundless, the mining in the Chasm could be relaxed.
In doing so, the pressure on Liyue's ley lines would lessen significantly, and there might even be a chance to find a way to cure the illness of Ruin Guard.
These were also reasons why Zhongli had to agree.
Furthermore, to sign an agreent with a world's ruler—
This was a decision Ningguang couldn't make unilaterally.
Simply put, only he had the right to sign such a contract on behalf of Liyue.
Without hesitation, he summoned Xiao. The reason for bringing him…
Naturally, Zhongli had his own intentions.
"Your Grace, you're aware of this matter?"
Keqing glanced at Zhongli with a complex expression. The white hood obscured his features, making it impossible to see his face.
"I am aware of the situation."
Zhongli nodded slightly, examining the blocks before him.
Subconsciously, he tried to use his divine power, only to find that he couldn't connect with the cube-shaped stones at all.
In other words…
This truly was another world with different rules.
With that certainty, Zhongli felt more at ease.
"Your Grace, what do you think?"
Ningguang didn't pay much attention to Zhongli's sudden appearance, simply asking softly.
Zhongli fell silent for a mont.
"From a logical standpoint, we have no reason to refuse the goodwill of a world ruler. Liyue needs such an opportunity."
"But rember, this is a mutually beneficial cooperation, not sharing. After all, this world belongs to them."
"By cooperating with them, Liyue's developnt will soar. From any angle, we must engage."
With Zhongli's stance clear, Ningguang felt a wave of relief.
She nodded and continued,
"Then, when should we go to sign the contract with Ryen?"
Ningguang didn't ntion inviting Ryen to the Jade Chamber.
Though it was a mutually beneficial arrangent, after all, Ryen was in charge.
She wasn't naive enough to invite him to visit them.
Etiquette had to be maintained.
"The signing will happen later. I'll personally visit."
Zhongli replied briefly, then walked forward toward the blocks.
He examined them carefully, eventually offering a complint,
"Indeed, the creation of heaven and earth… never have I seen such a marvelous product in over six thousand years."
Xiao looked puzzled, not understanding why his master had called him over.
Why the sudden admiration for such strange-looking blocks?
They seed no different from ordinary stones or wood, perhaps just neatly arranged.
However…
Xiao looked up at Zhongli's back with a sense of reverence.
There must be a reason for the way the Emperor acted!
"Though incredibly wondrous, this does not harmonize with the surroundings. Better to dismantle them. Yuehua Star, where are the tools?"
Keqing imdiately retrieved the iron axe and pickaxe.
She didn't remind Zhongli about the weight, considering he was the Rock Lord.
Even so, Xiao furrowed his brows.
"Why must Your Grace handle such nial labor? I can assist."
Without hesitation, Xiao stepped forward and took the axe and pickaxe.
However, the mont the tools were in his grasp, Xiao's expression changed, and he nearly stumbled to the ground.
Through sheer effort, Xiao used his divine power to steady himself with the tools.
"This… they're too heavy! Why are they so heavy?"
Xiao looked at Keqing with a frown.
The latter pursed her lips and whispered,
"The materials used for these tools are quite special…"
"But…"
Xiao swung the axe again, the rushing wind cutting through the air, causing the ears of everyone present to ache.
And this was rely the weight of the axe itself, with no additional force used.
"What material could possibly weigh several tons?"
"This is sothing the Great Sage will understand in ti. These two tools—the axe for chopping wood and the pickaxe for breaking stones."
Keqing gestured toward the pile of blocks in front of them.
"No need for much strength. Just continuous strikes will break the blocks."
Hearing this, Xiao paused for a mont, his curiosity temporarily subdued.
He picked up the axe again and began chopping wood.
After about ten or so strikes, the wood suddenly shattered, turning into a small crystal floating to the ground.
Xiao was taken aback and instinctively reached out to grab it.
The mont his hand touched it, his expression darkened.
"Even this small piece of wood… why does it weigh several hundred kilograms?"
Ganyu softly laughed and gently covered her mouth, speaking in a soothing tone:
"It may look small, but ultimately, it's still one cubic ter in size."
"But…"
Xiao was about to ask more when Zhongli spoke solemnly:
"Just focus on breaking these blocks first, Xiao. The rest can wait until later."
Zhongli's words were always practical for Xiao.
Without hesitation, Xiao nodded solemnly.
He fell silent and continued chopping the blocks, one strike after another.
Seeing her Jade Chamber finally beginning to be restored, Ningguang let out a sigh of relief.
Her thoughts shifted to iron, a resource in Teyvat that was urgently needed throughout the land.
The Chasm's largest yield was iron, one of the main reasons why the Thousand Eyes Army's weapons were so formidable.
However, after seeing those iron tools earlier, Ningguang thought that Ryen's world must have a much higher quality of iron.
Not only that, but a single iron ingot could weigh nearly a ton, making resource collection much more efficient.
If handled properly, Liyue's assets could easily double.
Thinking of this, Ningguang spoke up:
"Ganyu, may I see your iron sword?"
Ganyu hesitated slightly but eventually nodded, reluctantly pulling out her iron sword and offering it to Ningguang.
"Be careful. This was a gift from Ryen…"
Hearing this, Ningguang couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh.
She half-expected Ganyu to warn her about avoiding injury.
However, Zhongli gave Ganyu a brief glance, his gaze lingering.
This child, who he had watched grow up, seed to have entered the age of love…
"Ganyu, just leave it on the table. I can't lift sothing so heavy."
Ningguang rembered Xiao's earlier struggles with the tools. If even a powerful adeptus like Xiao had trouble, she wasn't about to embarrass herself.
Ganyu placed the sword carefully on the table in front of Ningguang.
Before Ningguang could even inspect it, a loud crack echoed through the room—the table instantly shattered into four pieces.
Thankfully, there was nothing on the table at the ti.
However, the iron sword fell to the ground, causing a minor tremor and embedding itself several centiters into the earth.
"…."
Ningguang pressed her lips together, her expression a mix of frustration and amusent as she looked at Ganyu.
"Ganyu, how much iron did this sword use?"
"Just two iron ingots."
Ganyu gazed at Ningguang with a puzzled yet innocent expression.
Ningguang gave a bitter smile and muttered softly:
"So… nearly two tons of weight?"
"Ganyu, your strength is truly remarkable…"
~~~----------------------
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