Venti moved very quickly. Even without using his divine power, he reached Guili Plains in what felt like an instant.
He kept accelerating, and by noon, he had successfully arrived at Stone Gate.
Diluc watched Venti fleeing like it was an emergency and said helplessly,
"Why are you in such a hurry?"
Venti didn't answer and only sped up more. Finally, after crossing Stone Gate, he let everyone down with a sigh of relief.
He glanced back to make sure Zhongli hadn't caught up, then proudly put his hands on his hips.
"Safe landing! Mission accomplished!"
Lisa glanced at Venti and said with resignation,
"You brought the dragon with you?"
"Ehehe?"
Venti shrugged innocently.
"My Ender Dragon was just born not long ago. How could I bear to leave the little one with Ryen?"
Qin rubbed her temples, feeling a bit troubled.
"That's reckless, Venti! Everyone isn't ready for the dragon's appearance yet. If you act so carelessly, it could cause trouble for Ningguang and the others."
"Besides… how did you bring the Ender Dragon out?"
At this, Venti sneakily pulled out a pouch.
"Ehehe! A few days ago, I went to see Pingzi and asked her to make me a pouch enchanted with the Domain Divine Art."
Diluc suddenly understood and looked at the pouch in Venti's hand with some envy.
Sometimes, living long and having a wide network really is enviable.
Look at Venti — though reckless and unpredictable, he's good friends with immortals and can casually get them to help craft treasures ordinary people could only dream of.
It's known that the Vision of the Archons can store materials — Diluc and others keep their weapons in theirs.
But… the Vision's space is limited and can't store living things.
For portable storage, Liyue's Domain Divine Art is much better.
However, they're not close to Pingzi, and since this is a complicated process, they're too embarrassed to ask.
Lisa blinked and hinted meaningfully,
"Just bringing the Ender Dragon shouldn't be this big a deal, right?"
"Ryen definitely knows, but he couldn't care less about such small matters."
Venti's expression brightened and he looked somewhat proud.
Tossing the pouch in his hand, he smiled cheekily,
"You're smart, Lisa!"
"Before I left, I took some of the old master's treasured wine…"
Jean's eyes widened in disbelief, staring at Venti.
"You actually stole something from the Geo Archon!"
"What do you mean 'stole'? Don't say it like that!"
Venti puffed out his neck, arguing poorly,
"The bard's business… can that be called stealing? It's reasonable use!"
"Besides, the old master's wine has been stored for over a thousand years, and he never drinks it. Isn't it a waste to just leave it there?"
"Ryen said wasting is shameful!"
Diluc twitched the corner of his mouth.
His own dandelion wine, stored for four or five years, could sell for tens of millions of Mora.
Venti stole thousand-year-old vintage…
Even without the Geo Archon's name, that wine would easily sell for billions.
This move of Venti's was really breaking the divine rules.
"How much did you take?"
Jean clearly thought about this and took a deep breath to calm herself before asking patiently.
"Not much!"
Venti shrugged calmly.
"I left the old master over fifty bottles!"
"So… how much did you take?"
Seeing Venti not answer directly, Jean felt uneasy.
He scratched his cheek, a bit sheepish.
"J-just over three hundred bottles…"
Next moment, Jean nearly lost her balance and almost fell.
Luckily Lisa caught her.
"Over three hundred bottles…"
For some reason, Jean pictured the next time they go to Liyue — just crossing Stone Gate, the Geo Archon would be standing in the air, immortals behind him.
They would surely be punished by the Geo Archon's rock-eating penalty.
The atmosphere fell silent.
After a while, Jean sighed and walked forward with a bit of exhaustion.
Venti seemed to realize he'd been a little shady and awkwardly scratched his head, mumbling,
"At worst, I'll drink a hundred or so bottles myself and return the rest to the old master…"
Diluc shook his head and said quietly,
"Promise me one thing, Venti."
"What?"
Venti tilted his head at Diluc, who said solemnly,
"Next time you go to Liyue, go alone. Don't come with us…"
"Why?"
"I'm afraid of being punished by the Geo Archon."
...
Back in Mondstadt, everyone's pace quickened considerably.
News of the trade routes reopening had already spread, though Teyvat was so vast that not all nations were informed yet.
But since they had collaborated with Liyue, Ningguang's side would offer some preferential treatment.
Along the way, it was obvious to the naked eye that many Liyue merchant caravans had increased.
Many Knights of Favonius members escorted the caravans for protection.
Only a few of them knew about the strategic agreement between Mondstadt and Liyue, but that didn't stop Jean from subtly spreading some news.
Basically, the people of Mondstadt now understood that commercial ties with Liyue were strengthening.
Kaeya had received a letter from Jean and naturally dispatched forces to ensure the safety of Liyue merchants.
It also served as a show of strength to other merchants, letting them know Mondstadt could protect them.
This was meant to promote trade and accelerate Mondstadt's economic recovery.
Within Mondstadt's borders, Venti released the Ender Dragon and freely flew atop it.
Rushing past the meadows, occasionally blowing a gust of dragon breath to deal with some monsters.
Total freedom.
Venti wasn't worried that the people of Mondstadt would know they had gained another dragon.
Dragons were common in Mondstadt's land.
The Sky Dragon Tevalin, the Poison Dragon Durin, the Demon Dragon Ussa...
Well...
Except for Tevalin, none had a good reputation.
Actually, that's not quite right.
Tevalin had also caused a dragon disaster due to corruption.
So basically, dragons in Mondstadt often represented disaster.
But those who had seen the Ender Dragon noticed it dealt with monsters using a single breath of fire.
It showed no hostility toward humans.
The people of Mondstadt, being easygoing, quickly accepted the Ender Dragon, thinking it was the Wind God's new ward, protecting Mondstadt.
So at most, they would mutter "May the Wind God bless us" and then continue their own business.
Venti, riding the dragon, sped off like a flash, seemingly forgetting that Jean and the others were still waiting for him to escort them back to Mondstadt.
After waiting for a while and seeing Venti really wasn't coming back, they reluctantly teleported home.
Back in Mondstadt city after a long time, nothing had changed too much.
If anything, with no dragon disaster ravaging the city, Mondstadt was full of life.
Everything was recovering as fast as possible.
There were also many merchants dressed in Liyue style touring Mondstadt.
They were probably official merchants affiliated with the Liyue Qixing.
Two Fatui were still loudly chatting at the teleport waypoint, which annoyed Diluc.
In Liyue, Fatui had to walk carefully through the streets, fearing checks by the Qixing's militia.
But here in Mondstadt...
To reach the same level of control as Liyue was still a long way off.
Grumbling, Diluc turned and headed toward the Angel's Share tavern.
"Once you find the right candidate, come see me at Angel's Share."
He still didn't want to get involved with the Knights of Favonius.
At least until Jean truly took command of the Knights and Mondstadt, he wanted to keep his distance from the Knights.
More importantly...
He needed to check if his wine cellar was still safe and then settle accounts with Kaeya!
Since he had stayed in Mondstadt this time, he definitely snuck into the cellar to drink.
Just like Venti, no morals!
Only Lisa and Jean remained there. They exchanged a glance; Lisa chuckled softly:
"Let's take a stroll first. Jean would love to see how Mondstadt looks now, right?"
Jean nodded but hesitated:
"But… we still need to find the right people and look for Klee and Albedo..."
"No need to rush..."
Lisa smiled and linked arms with Jean.
"Even if there's work to do, a little break won't hurt. Besides, inspecting Mondstadt is part of the job too."
Convinced, Jean relaxed and joined Lisa to tour Mondstadt.
But Lisa had other plans.
She subtly led Jean toward the Church.
Before officially establishing Mondstadt in this new world and before Jean fully took control of Mondstadt,
Lisa wanted Jean, the rigid older sister, to reconcile with her shy younger sister.
Only then could Jean act without worries.
...
While Jean and others still worried about serious matters, Venti completely let loose.
The wind spirit empowered the Ender Dragon, making it fly faster.
They soared over Starfell Lake, crossed the Windwail Highland...
Venti shouted joyfully, enjoying the free atmosphere of Mondstadt.
He hadn't flown a dragon like this for a long time.
Especially after fully freeing Tevalin, he could no longer summon the dragon at will to fly freely.
Now the Ender Dragon filled that gap.
But Venti forgot one thing — Tevalin knew his aura very well.
Especially when sensing Venti was riding something else...
Tevalin flapped its wings high in the sky, swirling a cyan storm to block Venti in Windwail Highland.
The huge dragon's eyes fixed on him — especially on the much smaller Ender Dragon that Venti sat on.
Ugly!
Tevalin, with a strong subjective bias, gave the Ender Dragon this label.
But in truth, the Ender Dragon was not ugly — more like a sleek black dragon, very handsome.
"Barbatos..."
Tevalin's deep voice sounded in Venti's ears, tinged with jealousy and bitterness.
Like a girl abandoned by a scumbag.
"Hehe! Tevalin, you're here!"
Venti cheerfully waved at Tevalin while sitting atop the Ender Dragon.
"Who's he..."
Tevalin suppressed anger and coldly eyed the Ender Dragon.
At this moment, Tevalin understood.
This "freedom" that Venti claimed was because of the Ender Dragon,
This freedom given by the Wind God's order wasn't true freedom.
Bah!
This guy obviously found a new love and no longer needed him!
Scumbag God!
Tevalin's aura grew increasingly hostile, which Venti sensed a bit.
His face stiffened, and he quickly waved his hand.
"Tevalin, don't misunderstand! This is my new friend, the Ender Dragon."
"This little one was just born recently..."
Tevalin fell silent for a moment, the swirling wind around him becoming more turbulent.
"So... you said you gave me freedom because of this ugly dragon?"
"Hehe?"
Venti scratched his cheek, stammering before mumbling:
"We're just friends. Thinking otherwise shows you don't trust me!"
"My freedom has nothing to do with the Ender Dragon!"
"Tevalin, you're a good dragon! You deserve freedom!"
Venti's face was sincere, but to Tevalin, he was the perfect example of a scumbag.
Windstorms formed around him, stirring a hurricane that blew away monsters in Windwail Highland.
"So it really is because of him!"
Seeing Tevalin stubbornly unyielding, Venti got a bit angry and said in frustration:
"I told you, this little one is just a new friend I recently met! If you insist on thinking otherwise, I can't help it!"
Typical scumbag lines — Tevalin lost his mind completely.
"Barbatos!"
"You scumbag god!!!"
The roaring East Wind Dragon spread its wings and chased after Venti.
But Venti didn't panic in the slightest.
Instead, he happily controlled the Ender Dragon to escape.
Years later, when Tevalin mentioned the Wind God to others,
His words no longer carried the old feelings of awe and respect,
But full of...
Contempt for a scumbag...
~~----------------------
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