Jiang Chen returned directly to the alchemy workshop in Mingyun Town.
He immediately sought out Albedo and handed over the items he had brought back.
"Mass-produce this."
"Albedo has already developed an initial version. Make do with it for now."
"See if you can replicate more of them."
Without further ado, Jiang Chen passed the items to Albedo.
Hearing this, Albedo took the objects and examined them closely.
After a quick review, he spoke up:
"I can manufacture this."
"It's not particularly complicated."
After a brief inspection, Albedo was confident.
Producing these wouldn't be difficult for him.
"Then start producing a batch."
"These are walkie-talkies."
"We'll use them for the time being."
Since Albedo could handle it, the task was left to him.
This was an upgraded version provided by Albedo—essentially at the level of a basic mobile phone.
Once a batch was ready, they could be distributed to key personnel.
A range of a hundred kilometers would suffice for now.
"Understood."
"I can have a batch ready by tonight."
With that, Albedo began preparing for production.
Jiang Chen didn't disturb him further and left with the remaining two walkie-talkies.
Back at home, Jiang Chen adjusted one of the walkie-talkies to Channel 6.
Sucrose was on this channel, right?
Would it be possible to reach her from here?
It seemed unlikely—the distance was simply too great.
If it was a hundred kilometers on Dragonspine, how far would it be out here?
If they could actually communicate, that would be amazing.
"Hello, hello!"
"Can you hear me?"
Pressing the talk button, Jiang Chen called out.
However, after a long wait, there was no response.
Disappointing, but expected.
He chuckled to himself.
It was just as he'd predicted.
He'd give the other walkie-talkie to Keqing when she returned.
That way, they could stay in touch more easily.
"What's this?"
Just as Jiang Chen set the walkie-talkie down, Guizhong approached curiously.
What was that thing in his hand? It looked interesting.
Her researcher's spirit ignited instantly.
"Walkie-talkies."
"They allow communication within a hundred kilometers."
"This is the initial version. Albedo is already working on an upgraded model."
"We'll use those later."
Guizhong's curiosity only grew.
"Let me see!"
Without hesitation, she grabbed the other walkie-talkie and immediately began disassembling it.
Jiang Chen couldn't help but laugh.
Wow, straight to dismantling, huh?
Guizhong took the walkie-talkie apart effortlessly.
Then, she carefully studied its internal structure.
Her alchemical skills were quite advanced.
After all, many mechanical devices required alchemy.
The walkie-talkie wasn't particularly complex.
Any alchemist with decent skills could replicate it.
The real challenge lay in the research phase.
After examining the design, Guizhong's eyes lit up with understanding.
In the next moment, a pile of materials appeared in her hands.
Arrays formed one after another.
Soon, various components took shape.
In no time, they were assembled into a complete unit.
A brand-new walkie-talkie materialized in Guizhong's hands.
"So simple."
"Though the communication channel is too limited."
After crafting one, Guizhong offered her critique.
Jiang Chen nodded.
"It's just the initial version."
"The upgraded one is already with Albedo."
"It should be ready soon."
"We'll make do with these for now."
"If only Sumeru's Akasha Terminal could be used in Liyue..."
"That's true networking."
"We'll have to negotiate with them eventually."
Jiang Chen sighed.
It'd be ideal to just adopt an existing system.
"You plan to revive the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata?"
When Jiang Chen mentioned Sumeru's terminal, Guizhong instantly grasped his meaning.
The Irminsul?
If it involved the Irminsul, then yes.
But to utilize the Irminsul, the Dendro Archon would need to be involved.
However, the current Dendro Archon hadn't been seen for a long time.
Jiang Chen certainly wouldn't seek out the present Dendro Archon.
He was probably aiming for the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata.
She was the true administrator of the Irminsul.
Among the Seven, she was the only one directly appointed.
Her position's importance spoke for itself.
"Exactly."
"Sumeru is in chaos right now."
"Can you believe it? The Lesser Lord Kusanali is under house arrest!"
"Those people are utterly audacious!"
"As friendly neighbors, we should help rescue the Dendro Archon and prevent Sumeru's people from being deceived by the current Akademiya any longer."
Bringing this up, Jiang Chen's tone turned serious.
Remove the corrupt, purge the treacherous. And then... after helping them this much, it wouldn't be too much to ask for a favor in return, right?
Look, I've even revived the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata for you. What's wrong with having closer ties with Liyue?
What's wrong with offering more benefits?
In short, Jiang Chen saw endless possibilities here.
Guizhong studied Jiang Chen with a strange look.
She had a feeling things might go awry.
"Are you sure?"
Her gaze was filled with skepticism.
She wasn't entirely convinced.
Something told her Jiang Chen might stir up trouble.
She wouldn't be surprised if Sumeru ended up under Jiang Chen's influence.
Though she found it odd, Guizhong kept her thoughts to herself.
As they chatted, several auras appeared outside Jiang Chen's home.
Sensing their presence, Jiang Chen stood and walked out.
There, he saw the Yakshas, accompanied by a few adepti.
Their arrival reminded Jiang Chen of his next task.
"Did you bring the artifacts?"
The adepti had been busy lately.
Scouring the land for artifacts.
They'd even dug up their old friends' graves.
Now, they'd finally gathered everything they could.
Hearing Jiang Chen's question, Bosacius stepped forward.
"Mr. Jiang Chen, we've collected all the artifacts we could find."
His voice brimmed with excitement.
They'd been swamped lately.
Between searching for artifacts and cleansing the remnants of fallen gods in Guili Plains,
they'd been stretched thin.
Fortunately, today marked the completion of their mission to gather the relics of departed adepti.
The process had been frustrating.
Grave-robbing was no easy task.
The traps alone were enough to make anyone curse.
All of them were designed by that damned Liuyun.
If only they'd brought Liuyun along.
Without her, the operation had taken far longer than necessary.
Had she been there, they'd have finished much sooner!