Xiangling's eyes widened as she covered her mouth in shock.
Guoba, too, stared at Qiu Bai with wide eyes. Both of them were stunned by his actions.
With a casual gesture, the three Geo Mitachurls were reduced to black specks of light and vanished into thin air. And that strange white glow—how did it restore the scorched grass, making it lush and vibrant again?
"Mr. Qiu Bai, you're incredible!"
"Thank you, Mr. Qiu Bai!"
Still reeling from the spectacle, Xiangling finally snapped out of it and expressed her gratitude.
"You're welcome. I was just passing through."
"I didn't expect to run into you here, let alone see you caught up with monsters."
Qiu Bai turned with a smile, then glanced down at Guoba, who was still frozen in shock.
"Looks like I surprised you too," he chuckled, watching the little creature.
He had to admit—his display had been quite the spectacle.
"Hehe, I was just out looking for ingredients," Xiangling said sheepishly, scratching her head.
"I wanted to test out a new dish, but then I ran into three Geo Mitachurls."
"If it weren't for you, Mr. Qiu Bai, I might not have been able to handle them."
Despite being personally trained in polearm combat by the adeptus Cloud Retainer, she still struggled against three Geo Mitachurls.
Qiu Bai now noticed the large backpack strapped to Xiangling's back, with a pot securely tied to the right side.
"So, what ingredients are you looking for?" he asked curiously.
"Slimes!" Xiangling's eyes lit up.
"Slimes infused with different elements add unique textures to dishes!"
"Well… except Geo Slimes. They're just way too tough."
She emphasized this last part, making sure Qiu Bai knew that Geo Slimes were off the menu.
Qiu Bai's mouth twitched slightly.
"Mr. Qiu Bai, why don't you come with me?" Xiangling suggested enthusiastically.
"You can try my new dish while you're at it!"
Her eyes sparkled with excitement as she looked at him expectantly.
Guoba, now recovered from his initial shock, trotted over to Qiu Bai's feet.
"Lulu~ (^▽^)"
"Alright, alright, I'll come along!" Qiu Bai quickly waved his hands in surrender, stepping back slightly.
Faced with Xiangling's boundless enthusiasm, who could say no?
Besides, as a being with the body of a god, he figured he could handle whatever strange dish she cooked up.
Who knows? It might even turn out to be delicious.
"Then let's go, Mr. Qiu Bai!" Xiangling cheered. She stowed away her polearm, Dragon's Bane, and eagerly set off in search of Slimes.
Qiu Bai followed behind her, while Guoba happily hopped ahead.
"Go sniff out some monsters, Guoba!"
"But don't mess up like last time and lead us to another group of Geo Mitachurls!"
Xiangling shot Guoba a stern look.
"Lu… o(╥﹏╥)o"
Guoba gazed up at her pitifully.
Seeing his expression, Xiangling's heart softened.
"Alright, alright, I won't blame you. Just find some Slimes for me."
"When we get back, I'll make you a delicious Jueyun Guoba dish!"
She crouched down and gave Guoba a reassuring pat on the head.
"Lulu!"
Guoba's eyes sparkled with joy, and he bounced excitedly ahead of them.
Seeing him so eager, it was clear that Xiangling's promise had worked.
"Mr. Qiu Bai, let's hurry and follow Guoba!" Xiangling called back before dashing after him.
Qiu Bai sighed, the corner of his mouth twitching.
"Has Marcus really become... a dog?"
He hadn't expected the once-intelligent creature to end up like this.
But perhaps, in some ways, it wasn't such a bad thing for him.
As Qiu Bai pondered, he saw Xiangling and Guoba running ahead and quickly followed after them.
After a thorough search, they finally found a few Hydro Slimes and Cryo Slimes by a river.
"Found them! Guoba, you're amazing!"
"Now, leave it to me!"
With that, Xiangling dashed toward the Slimes.
"Take this!"
"See the skill my master taught me!"
Qiu Bai watched as she engaged the Slimes, the corner of his mouth twitching.
"Is she... using Vaporize as a combat strategy?"
Before he could react, Xiangling had already returned, holding a piece of Hydro Slime in her hand.
"Guoba, on to the next target!"
After searching multiple locations, Xiangling finally collected samples of all six elemental Slimes.
Of course, there were a few missteps along the way—like the time Guoba led them to a massive, burning tree. To make matters worse, the tree was alive and actively attacking them!
If Qiu Bai hadn't been there, Xiangling might have gotten into serious trouble because of Guoba. But instead of being scared, she had an outrageous idea—she wanted to pluck a leaf from the Pyro Regisvine to see if it was edible!
Had Qiu Bai not yanked her back, who knew what would have happened?
Well, if it came down to it, Qiu Bai could have just punched the tree into oblivion.
After all, if it wanted to be a "Blazing" tree, he'd be happy to show it what true "explosions" were.
"Phew, that was tough! Thank you so much, Mr. Qiu Bai."
"Now, it's time to test out my new recipe!"
Xiangling quickly found a makeshift campsite in the wild, pulled off her backpack, and slowly unzipped it, revealing an assortment of ingredients and seasonings.
"You really came prepared," Qiu Bai thought, surprised at her level of readiness.
She then set up a pot over the firewood.
"Guoba, fire!"
"Lulu!"
With a quick puff from Guoba, the firewood ignited instantly.
Xiangling turned to Qiu Bai, looking a little sheepish.
"Mr. Qiu Bai, could you help fetch some water?"
By now, the sky had dimmed into evening.
"Sure, leave it to me."
Qiu Bai took the container Xiangling handed him and made his way to the river. As he reached the water's edge, a strange sensation washed over him.
"Hmm? What's this...?"
"Interesting."
With his spiritual awareness, he sensed something unusual. A faint smile played on his lips.
He had found a rat.
"The Fatui's Second Harbinger..."
"The Doctor."
"What's he doing here? Could it be because of me?"
Qiu Bai hadn't expected the Doctor to show up in Liyue, but it didn't concern him.
Though three Fatui Harbingers had gathered in Liyue, they weren't enough to interfere with his and Morax's plans.
Unless... they harmed Liyue's people.
At that thought, Qiu Bai's gaze turned ice-cold.
If that was the case, then he wouldn't hold back.
...
Meanwhile, on a distant hill, the Doctor suddenly shivered, feeling an overwhelming chill creep into his bones.