Chapter 120: Preparations
" It's so obvious, your reserves are so large I wonder how Childe didn't sense it." Aether said while looking at him. Zhongli chuckled.
"That's because I let you sense it. Can you sense it now?" Zhongli asked. Aether concentrated for a second before raising an eyebrow.
"I can't. There's nothing to sense. It's like you don't even have a vision to begin with. " Aether answered. Zhongli nodded.
" So, how did you know? " Zhongli asked. Aether scoffed.
" C'mon old man. With that infinite amount of Geo reserves you have, anybody with a brain could piece the puzzle. And also, how could someone murder you? To us mortals you're invincible. What I think is that you're just tired of your job and you just want to rest. " Aether explained.
" I wanted to let the humans govern themselves. But it seems they didn't handle my death that well. Look at the Liyue Qixing, they denied tradition in searching for a killer that doesn't exist. I'm somewhat offended but I don't care now, I'm retired and I am no longer the Geo Archon, so their business is not my business." Zhongli said while they were walking to the marketplace of Liyue Harbor.
"What if Liyue Harbor was in a catastrophe. Will you return once more to help them like Venti did with Mondstadt? " Aether asked the retired God.
" No. They will have to fight for themselves now. To them, I am dead and me coming back will cause some problems to the Qixing and many others. " Zhongli shook his head. Aether nodded.
" So you want them to move on to a new age. But many don't want to. They would rather loo have a god to protect them." Aether argued calmly.
" And that is exactly why they must move on. Change is inevitable and we have to adapt to the change. They have relied on me and the adepti for too long. It's time for them to be independent and find their own power. Like parents raising their child, one day the child doesn't have to rely on their parents no longer. " Zhongli and Aether arrived in front of the Noctilucous Jade stall.
Aether and Zhongli stopped their own conversation and Zhongli proceeded to tricked the seller by buying small samples and burning them to see which is the real one.
"You want us to burn the Noctilucous Jade. If one of the three samples shines the brightest then we're buying that one. " Aether said. Zhongli nodded.
" Exactly. " Zhongli said.
" Are you paying or am i paying? Don't tell me you don't have Mora on you. " Aether whispered to him. Zhongli chuckled.
" I don't.... unfortunately. But Mora isn't the only currency in the world. " Zhongli made an excuse.
" You old fool. Mora and intelligence are the only currency that can get you anywhere in Liyue Harbor. If you don't have either one of those then say bye to your dreams of becoming rich." Aether scolded. Zhongli looked away feeling a little embarrassed. Aether sighed.
" You don't need to worry. I'll take care of the bills. I'll just have to 'bargain' with the guy a little once we know which stone to buy. Let's go to Dadaupa Gorge as you said. There is a big pot that the hilichurls use to cook food, I'm sure it'll be of good use to us." Aether nodded and both of them used a teleport point to get there.
"Mondstadt. An old friend of mine used to bring me dandelion wine whenever she came to visit me." Zhongli said with nostalgia while walking to the camp.
"Venti is doing very well. She is refitting into society as a god once more. She wrote to me that she has become the advisor for the Acting Grand Master Jean. " Aether said while smiling brightly. Zhongli smiled a little.
" That's nice. If I was not mistaken, you and her fought that dragon of hers right? " Zhongli asked Aether.
" Along with many others. She did the final blow to it. " Aether answered.
" I never imagined that the dragon would betray her. " Zhongli muttered still in somewhat disbelief.
" A dog cannot defeat its master. The dragon was too ambitious and lunatic. All because he got abandoned for a few hundred years. " Aether muttered in annoyance.
" Well, enough of that talk for now. We're here. " Zhongli pointed to the camp. Aether looked at the camp.
" So what should we do? Drop meteors like you did in the Archon War? " Aether asked the god. Zhongli chuckled.
" I don't always drop meteors from the sky. I fight with my spear and use other techniques as well. We all have our specialties when fighting enemies. I for one specialized in every aspect you can think of. " Zhongli boasted a little. Aether shook his head.
"You could gain a lot in thousands of years. " Aether muttered.
" And you could lose everything in that time as well. That's why I decided to retire. " Zhongli muttered sadly while clenching his fist. Aether nodded sadly. He unsheathed Enma and the blade was covered in a dark purple color.
*Pat!*
"Huh?" Aether looked at Zhongli who shook his head. He had his hand on his shoulder.
"No. You'll face them without your Enma. Use the elements. I want to see how strong you are." Zhongli looked at him seriously. Aether sheathed Enma back.
"We will confront them. You will fight them. I will just watch." Zhongli said.
"Alright." Aether muttered and both of them walked to the hilichurls. They were alerted and charged towards them.
*Pssshhh!!!*
Their heads dropped on the ground. Aether had used invisible wind to cut their heads. Zhongli nodded his head.
More hilichurls ran at them raising their clubs,shields, giant axes and giant wooden shields.
Dozens of spikes shot from the ground and pierced the hilichurls. Two Mitachurls raised their axes at Aether preparing to swing. Aether charged up his fist and punched the air.
Two air bullets hit the Mitachurl's and created a large hole in their bodies. They fell down dead.
*Fiewwww!!!*
Aether raised his hand and the arrow that was aiming towards him shattered when hitting his hand.
"His hand is golden. I sense his Will. It seems he figured that out as well. Though it is the basics he'll get more and more advanced when he rigorously trains in that part." Zhongli thought. He was feeling a little impressed.
"Buti para!!" A hilichurl appeared behind Zhongli swinging its club at him. Zhongli without even looking at the hilichurl dodged out of the way smoothly.
*Bam!*
The hilichurl missed him and its head flying off his body. Aether looked back at the group. There was a little bit left. A fire ring appeared on his hand and he threw it.
*Zoom!*
A lot of heads were cut off by the ring. Aether stretched out his hand and caught the ring. Aether looked at Zhongli.
"All done Zhongli." Aether said smiling. Zhongli nodded.
"You fight well for a human. I think you could complete the fight a little faster. It does not matter about the techniques you use, it matters about how fast you use them and how fast you defeat your enemies." Zhongli explained and Aether nodded. Zhongli raised his hand.
" I am not done yet, Aether. You have to be quick and swift when fighting your enemies. Your wind arrows that cut their heads off would do. You don't have to always use flashy techniques when you fight. Any technique is flashy when you use it." Zhongli continued.
" And also, who taught you how to use your Will on your techniques or weapons? Don't worry,I won't tell anybody. It is a contract." Zhongli reassured.
" The first person who taught me how to use my Will is Venti. The one who told me how to use it on my elemental techniques is Moon Carver. " Aether answered truthfully. Zhongli raised an eyebrow of his.
"Venti and Moon Carver. It is unexpected but I expected you to answer similarly to that. It seems Moon Carver has taken an interest in you. He rarely does that. " Zhongli said amused.
" I told him of my dream to become the strongest man in the world so that no one could take away my loved ones. He then gave me a scroll about how to utilize my Will on my elemental techniques. Said that would give me a small advantage against the adepti when I fight them. " Aether said chuckling a little.
" Sounds like him. Have you fought any of the adepti when you arrived at Liyue Harbor? " Zhongli asked.
" I fought the Conqueror of Demons, the Yaksha Xiao. " Aether answered. Zhongli nodded.
" You're still here. How did the fight go if I may ask." Zhongli asked again.
"Surprisingly, I'm not in a coffin six feet under yet. It went alright. I still have so much to improve on after the fight." Aether said determinedly.
"Every journey has its final day. Don't rush. Simply enjoy the process and you will achieve everything in the end." Zhongli said calmly. Aether nodded and smiled.
" I will..... Ahem.... That's enough for now. Let's go find out which stone to buy...
To be continued....
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone