Genshin Impact's Incense Burner Of Liyue [548]

Break time was over. Everyone went their separate ways, heading back to their respective lodgings—after all, they had jobs to return to. Someone like Xiao probably even had to work overtime, the most diligent of all the workaholics.

Then again, now that he thought about it, he was about to put in some overtime as well. That realization brought a strange sense of melancholy.

Maybe he just wasn’t cut out for this late-night grind.

Looking around, aside from a few exceptions like Zhongli, the hot spring had certainly softened most of them into a near-Slime-like state—practically oversized, soon-to-be-boiled tangyuan.

Good thing that area didn’t fall under "At night, silence reigns—the Incense Burner's domain opens." Otherwise, Gu Sanqiu might start questioning the real purpose of those two large hot springs.

To be fair, he was a little curious about what was going on in the other pool.

Compared to their side’s elemental composition, the women’s hot spring probably looked more like a nuclear reactor.

Eh, whatever. Not important.

Gu Sanqiu tied his hair up, bit down on a mint leaf, and let the rushing wind envelop him. Following the trail he had left behind, he took off in Childe’s direction.

Did you really think you could just leave after running into me?

Sure, before we crossed paths, I had no way of getting to you—trying to track you down would’ve made too much noise and put you on alert.

But now that I’ve caught you once, you think I’ll let you slip away? The flow of the wind, the pulse of the leylines, even the most basic tracking talismans—there’s no way I’ll let you escape.

You know nothing about the dangers of Liyue.

Gu Sanqiu swiftly left Liyue Harbor, following the trail he had linked to. Before long, he arrived at a hidden entrance embedded in the rock face.

"Pity the golden-haired idiot isn’t here. Otherwise, I could’ve tricked him into going in first to scout for danger."

He chuckled. "Come on, you really thought this little trick would fool me?"

Meanwhile, from another perspective—

Several Fatui agents hid in the shadows, anxiously watching Gu Sanqiu as he stood at the entrance, scrutinizing the place for minutes on end without stepping inside.

None of them dared to make a sound. Even their breathing was controlled, fearful that even the slightest disturbance would tip him off.

Only when Gu Sanqiu finally stepped through the entrance a few minutes later did they let out a breath of relief.

"Will it work?"

"No idea. But Lord Childe said this should erase any tracking methods he’s using. Let’s hope it does."

The Electrohammer Vanguard exhaled heavily. "I have no interest in facing that monster. The current head of the Xuanmen Sect… one of Liyue’s strongest."

Boom!

A fiery explosion erupted from within the rock, shaking the ground violently. The agents stationed there took the cue to flee immediately.

Their mission wasn’t to ambush him—just to confirm that the explosives had gone off as planned.

"Tch, cautious as ever."

Gu Sanqiu emerged from the hidden entrance, completely unscathed.

Inside, apart from a literal mountain of explosives, all he found was a set of Childe’s clothes—clear as day that this was nothing more than a setup meant to disgust him.

"Not bad," he mused. "They knew the most efficient way to suppress their presence to near-undetectable levels… but isn’t this underestimating me a little?"

Raising his hand, he gathered a concentrated burst of wind energy and sent it soaring into the sky, where it exploded, dispersing into fine streams that followed the faintest lingering traces.

"Even so, I can still find you."

---

"The explosives went off?"

Childe frowned after listening to the report. "You said he stopped at the entrance for a few minutes?"

"Yes."

"Tch. That means he knew it was a trap."

Without hesitation, Childe stood up. "I’ll go divert him. The moment I leave, activate the formation. No unnecessary movements."

"His ability to track us hinges on me—let the researchers continue their work."

As his legs became encased in his Hydro armor, Childe disappeared from the secret research facility in an instant.

The moment his feet touched solid ground, he could already sense the massive elemental force closing in on him.

"Damn it."

He had spent so much time wandering outside, double-checking his surroundings before returning to the research facility, ensuring there were no spies tailing him.

But the more he thought about it, the more uneasy he became. There hadn’t been any surveillance.

And that was completely unlike Gu Sanqiu’s style.

Which meant there was only one possible explanation—his pursuer had already marked him in some way.

Leaving behind anything unnecessary, he had stashed nearly all of his belongings at the temporary hideout, then rigged the place with explosives.

He knew those bombs wouldn’t kill Gu Sanqiu.

But this kind of intricate tracking should be fragile. As long as he could interrupt it, even for a moment, that would be a win.

Yet… even that plan had failed.

Judging by the powerful wind elemental surge rapidly closing in, Gu Sanqiu must have attached a fragment of wind energy to him, following its resonance to track him down.

"A miscalculation. From now on, I’ll need to thoroughly purge any elemental traces on myself before trying to escape again."

"A miscalculation? If anything, I’d say your plan was perfect."

Childe calmly unsheathed his weapon. "Should I take that as you complimenting yourself? Because the only reason you found me is that you’re not ‘other people.’"

Gu Sanqiu materialized from the swirling winds with a grin. "Mmm, you could say that. Or… you could say that from here, I could just follow your aura straight to the Sigils of Permission."

Childe scoffed. "Won’t work. I deliberately took a longer escape route. The moment I exited, I activated the self-destruct sequence and formation seals. You won’t find it."

"Sounds interesting. So you’re gambling on the fact that I won’t just blast through with large-scale destructive techniques?"

"Exactly."

Childe’s gaze drifted to the towel draped over Gu Sanqiu’s shoulders. "Also… what the hell are you even wearing?"

"Isn’t it obvious? I ran straight over fresh out of a hot spring. Do you feel my deep affection for you? Even while relaxing, I couldn’t stop thinking about you."

"I’d rather you forgot I even existed."

"Now, how could I do that? Aren’t we battle-hardened comrades?"

Gu Sanqiu casually wiped his face with the towel. "You really went all in. All those explosives—didn’t that drain your entire stock?"

"That’s none of your concern. Even if you did mess with us in Liyue, the Fatui still have plenty of supply routes."

Childe took a slow step back. "If we’re not fighting, I’m leaving."

Gu Sanqiu paused, then waved a hand dismissively.

"My girl just had her birthday. I don’t feel like killing today. Go ahead—I don’t even want the Sigils of Permission anymore. You lot can keep worshiping that broken talisman like it’s some priceless treasure."

Without another word, Gu Sanqiu vanished into the wind. He didn’t even spare a glance at Childe, who let out a breath of relief.

Instead, he gazed up at the full moon, lost in thought.

Even without the Fatui, trials would still come. Calamities would still arrive.

The Fatui were merely a trigger—an accelerant.

If he took the talisman today, tomorrow, Childe would just get his hands on a half-decrypted copy. Maybe even one that hadn’t originated from Zhongli’s hands.

In other words, fate had already been set in motion the moment Childe obtained the first talisman.

"Whatever. The Fatui mean nothing."

Gu Sanqiu burned the towel to ashes, the fire concealing the dark expression on his face.

As the flames died down, the Incense Burner’s usual playful smirk returned.

"Now, let’s focus on something really interesting."

"Who are you, my little mystery?"

---

T/N: MY GIRL? HE REFERRED TO HUTAO AS MY GIRL? WOMGOAMGOAMGOAOSFNJ

This is a fan translation of 原神之璃月奉香人 by 淡白蛋清. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!