Time ticked by, and soon, the countdown on the big screen ended as cheerful music began to play.
"Ding ding dang~ ding ding dang~ It's lottery time~"
Ye Yun, hearing the music, walked to the counter and took out the winning number for this round.
Everyone present locked their eyes on Ye Yun's hand.
Ye Yun opened the slip of paper and read out the number.
"The winning number for this round is No. 37. Who has No. 37?"
Everyone immediately lowered their heads to check their own numbers.
Stelle flipped through her 10 lottery tickets as fast as she could, her expression growing darker with each one.
No way! I don't think I won again!
After checking all 10 tickets, sure enough, Stelle hadn't won.
Devastated, she cried out in anguish—her 10,000 credits, all gone again!
"If I play the lottery again, I'm a dog!" Stelle stood up and angrily flung her tickets.
Hu Tao, who had also bought 10 tickets, didn't win either.
"Me too! If I play again, I'm a dog!"
Everyone looked around at each other to see who the lucky winner was.
Qingque glanced at her ticket.
"Ohhh! It's me! I won! Hahahaha!"
Fu Xuan, hearing Qingque won, was elated. She slapped Qingque on the shoulder.
"Well done, Qingque! I knew you had a good luck!"
Jing Yuan was also pleased. Qingque winning was a win for the entire Luofu.
The Sword Control Technique was a sword art—it could be taught to others, unlike abilities, which were exclusive to the user.
"Qingque, go claim your sword technique."
Qingque nodded happily and ran over to Ye Yun to claim her prize.
Ye Yun placed Qingque's ticket into the counter. In the next second, a bundle of scrolls appeared in his hand.
"Take it carefully. No refunds after you leave the counter."
Qingque carefully took the Sword Control scroll and returned to the others.
Fu Xuan eagerly urged her.
"Open it, Qingque, take a look!"
Just as Qingque was about to open it, she paused, as if realizing something, and then closed it again.
She handed the scroll to Jing Yuan.
"General, you should be the one to use this. I'm not really interested in this kind of thing, and I have no talent for sword arts either.It'd be a waste in my hands. You should find someone better suited to learn it."
Fu Xuan was deeply moved by Qingque's words. She's finally maturing. Now she could confidently entrust the Divination Commission to Qingque once she succeeded Jing Yuan as general.
As for Qingque herself? Her real thoughts were:
Learning that technique would be a hassle, and once I learn it, they'll probably make me teach others too. What a pain!Besides, I don't even like this stuff. Better to give it away.
Jing Yuan patted Qingque on the shoulder, moved.
"Qingque, I'll make the decision—going forward, you only need to copy down 50 item entries for the Alliance each day."
Qingque was overjoyed. What a deal! Now I'll have time to drag Stelle and the others into more Calestial Jade Game matches!
Jing Yuan looked at the scroll in his hands and thought about it. He decided to discuss it with Jingliu.
Without a doubt, Jingliu was the most suitable person on Luofu to learn the sword technique. Once she mastered it, she could teach others, like Yanqing.
Jing Yuan glanced at Yanqing, who was practically drooling at the scroll.
"Yanqing, don't worry. When the time comes, you'll definitely get to learn it."
Yanqing lit up with joy.
"Thank you, General!"
Jing Yuan gave a small nod.
"Alright, let's see what the prize for the next round is. Everyone gets one ticket, we'll deduct the cost from public funds."
Nobody left the shop—some stayed to chat, while others waited to see the next prize.
Stelle and Hu Tao kept swearing they'd never play the lottery again.
"Lottery? What's that? Never buying again!"
"Exactly! I, the great Hall Master, am a practical person! I'd rather spend my money on something at the snack bar!"
Two minutes later—
The big screen in the lottery shop flickered, and the next prize appeared.
**[Third Lottery Prize: Emperor Armor Summoner]
Description: The supreme armor from a certain armored world, possessing terrifying power.
Price: 200,000 star credits. Countdown: 6d, 23h, 59m, 59s**
Everyone stared at the prize announcement.
"Woof! Woof! Woof!" Stelle barked three times, then dashed to the counter to buy 10 numbers.
Hu Tao followed suit, barking three times before rushing to buy her tickets.
After seeing the Emperor Armor Summoner, Welt looked like a different person. He queued behind Hu Tao, gripping a massive handful of credits.
March 7 was baffled. Why is this thing so attractive? Armor? Is it really that amazing?
She looked at Welt and muttered:
"I've never seen Uncle Yang like this before."
Himeko chuckled when she heard March's confusion and explained:
"Everyone has something they're passionate about.For example, little March, don't you really love cameras?Imagine if the next prize was a rare, high-end camera. What would your reaction be?"
March thought for a moment and then nodded in realization.
"If it were a camera, I'd probably act just like Uncle Yang."
At that moment, a loud voice rang out.
"Hahaha! Aha is back again! Let's see what's going on~!"
Aha swaggered into the lottery shop but immediately stepped on Pom-Pom's trash shovel, knocking over the trash.
"Aha! Trouble follows you everywhere!"
Pom-Pom slammed the broom to the ground and scolded Aha furiously.
Aha gulped, cold sweat pouring down.
"Wait! Pom-Pom! Let me—uh—explain! Yeah, explain!"
Pom-Pom's response: a massive headbutt.
Aha was sent flying.
"Owwww!"
Jing Yuan, hearing the name "Aha," looked closely at the figure and then exchanged a glance with Fu Xuan.
They saw the same shock in each other's eyes.
"Aeon of Elation!"
March 7th was equally stunned. She tugged hard on Himeko's sleeve.
"Himeko! Himeko! Isn't that the Aeon of Elation?! That's the Aeon of Elation, right?!"
Himeko nodded slightly.
"That's right, that's the Aeon of Elation. But don't worry, they mean us no harm. Aha is also a former Nameless."
March 7th clutched her head in disbelief.
"What?! He was a Nameless too?!"
Himeko nodded again.
"Yep. Pom-Pom confirmed it personally."
March 7th's brain short-circuited. She sat down, trying to process it all.
Nearby, Stelle stroked her chin in thought. After a moment, she slapped the table.
"Holy moly! I have serious backing, huh?!"
***
Himeko shook her head.
"Stelle, you can't think of it that way. What if you need help and call Aha, but Aha thinks it'd be more fun to watch you get beaten up instead?"
Stelle instantly calmed down upon hearing that.
Emmm… she really hadn't considered that possibility.
Come to think of it, Aha was full of uncertainty—whether he'd come to help or not was a complete gamble.
After that, Aha got up, returned to the lottery shop, bought 100 numbers, and left again.
Once Aha was gone, everyone chatted for a while before returning to their own tasks.
Those who had work went to work, those who had to study studied, and those conducting research returned to their research.
Seeing that Fu Xuan, Jing Yuan, and the others had left, Qingque waved her hand.
"Anyone up for a game of Celestial Jade?"
Stelle immediately raised her hand and was the first to sign up.
"Me!"
Hu Tao followed right behind her. With someone watching over the internet café, nothing major would go wrong—after all, Ningguang was involved in the business.
People from Liyue would never dare stir up trouble in the café, and as for foreign forces? The two Fatui Harbingers stationed in Liyue had already been taught a lesson.
Hu Tao was confident that Childe and Signora wouldn't be stupid enough to cause trouble in her place.
And she was absolutely right.
Because at that very moment, Childe and Signora were both sitting in the café with a group of Fatui soldiers surfing the web.
"Count me in too!" she added.
Yelan, seeing the Celestial Jade set on the table, became interested as well.
"Count me in."
Qingque, seeing how she had easily gathered a group just by calling out, felt that the Astral Express really was a great place.
Since she came here, not only did she land an easy, secure job, but she could also play Celestial Jade anytime, anywhere.
Even back in Luofu, it took effort and planning to gather people for a game.
But here, just shout and a group forms.
***
Behind Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, near Lumine's camper van.
Lumine and Paimon had just returned from Ye Yun's shop when they saw Aether sitting at the door of her camper, waiting for her.
There was a chain made from spatial authority wrapped around Aether's ankle—placed there by Calestia.
This chain was invisible to anyone without elemental vision, and its sole purpose was to seal Aether's powers and prevent him from using portals to return to the Abyss.
Aether was essentially under house arrest around the funeral parlor. If he moved more than 3,000 meters away, Calestia would immediately sense it.
Calestia had said: finally catching this guy, no way I'm letting him run off again.
Lumine crossed her arms and glared at Aether.
"What are you doing here?"
Aether was completely speechless at his sister. What kind of sister helps people catch her own brother?
"Nothing, just strolling."
Lumine rolled her eyes.
"Don't lie to me. Just say what you're here for."
Aether gave up and went straight to the point.
"How did your powers recover so fast? Back then, I had to gather all seven elemental powers to do it."
Lumine didn't hide anything.
"I bought a pill that breaks seals from Ye Yun."
Aether frowned.
"Ye Yun? A friend of yours?"
Paimon chimed in.
"Yeah, Ye Yun's a good friend of ours! He runs a shop full of amazing stuff!"
Aether said, "Lumine, I need one of those pills."
Lumine immediately refused.
"No way. You want to go back to the Abyss? What exactly is in the Abyss that has you obsessed like this?"
Aether replied, "The Abyss Order members were once citizens of Khaenri'ah. I can't just abandon them."
But Lumine still shook her head.
"Nope. Unless Calestia agrees, you're not getting one."
Aether said, "Lumine, I want to lead them in rebuilding our homeland."
Lumine shook her head again.
"I already heard the truth about the Abyss from Zhongli and the others. That thing has no place in Teyvat.
You know how terrifying the Abyss is."
Aether fell silent, memories of the war in Khaenri'ah flashing through his mind.
The Seven Archons had destroyed their homeland and turned the citizens into monsters.
"The Abyss is the only way to save Teyvat. It was Calestia who led the Seven Gods to destroy Khaenri'ah back then."
Lumine was about to explain the truth to him when Calestia suddenly appeared.
She coldly looked at Aether and thought aloud.
"I see… that explains it."
Calestia reached out and grabbed at Aether's chest, pulling out a ball of dark mist.
"So this is why this little blonde suddenly joined the Abyss. You've been whispering in his ear all along—sinner!"
The dark mist let out an eerie, chilling laugh.
"Hahaha! Calestia! The Abyss will consume all!"
Calestia snorted and crushed it.
Paimon looked confused, glancing at the collapsed Aether, then at Lumine and Asmodeus.
"What… what just happened?"
Calestia said,"I knew something was off after we caught him yesterday. Turns out he was under someone's influence.
Lumine, your brother is fine now. Once he wakes up, bring him to me. I have some things I need to ask him."
Lumine nodded and helped Aether into the camper to rest.
Meanwhile, on Jing Yuan's side.
After parting ways with Fu Xuan and the others, he brought the swordsmanship scroll to Jingliu.
Jingliu was currently at Sea of Clouds with Rios, watching over the kids.
The four little ones were joyfully blasting fish at the riverbank.
Seeing Jing Yuan approach, Jingliu spoke directly.
"Give me the scroll. Have your disciple come find me the day after tomorrow."
Jing Yuan smiled and handed it over.
"Thank you."
Jingliu shook her head slightly.
"No need for thanks—it's my duty."
Jing Yuan asked,"I heard from Yanqing that he sparred with you once?"
Jingliu nodded.
"Yes. He's promising—you have a good eye."
Jing Yuan was just about to boast a little, when Jingliu followed up with:
"It's just… the one teaching him isn't very good. Taught him all wrong."
Jing Yuan immediately broke into a cold sweat.
Ugh. This was his own master. He couldn't argue.
If someone else had said that, he'd be ready to throw hands.
Jing Yuan looked around and suddenly remembered Jingliu had been here yesterday.
Seeing the sword marks on the cliff face nearby, he shook his head.
Not long after she left the Divine Foresight Pavilion yesterday, he had received a report.
Several dragon guards had been attacked by a mysterious swordswoman—leaving the group of guards turned into a pile of… dragon meat. The scene had been brutal.
Seriously, of all people to mess with, why would they choose her?
If it had been him or Dan Heng, they'd have only gotten a beating at most.
But getting caught by Jingliu? Even being caught by Blade would've been better—you'd be a mess, but at least you wouldn't be paste.
After that, Jing Yuan, Jingliu, and Rios chatted while keeping an eye on the kids.
On the train—
Kafka brought Blade aboard.
After he and Dan Heng had fought outside the train, they both returned silently, each covered in wounds of various sizes.
But judging by the fact that they could now sit in the same room without fighting again… maybe that was progress?