Genshin Impact's Incense Burner Of Liyue [530]

Muttering a silent complaint, Gu Sanqiu waved his hand and chose to end the call, signaling the arena to send this middle-aged charlatan away.

It seemed like there was no point in asking about the other party’s cultivation system anymore. Even without thinking too hard, he could already guess that the next sentence would be something along the lines of, "Join us to see the truth."

He couldn’t be bothered to listen.

However, the peculiar quality about this person, along with something he himself had sensed, led him to a particular guess.

"The power of the Light Realm? Can an ordinary person truly bear the power of the Light Realm?"

Primal, violent elemental energy—combined with Léon’s extreme five-billion-mora environmentalist ideals—this was the only theory he could come up with that sounded even remotely plausible.

But as far as he knew, the power of the Light Realm wasn’t that simple. Could a mere human really achieve such a feat, or was there some inexplicable existence filtering it for him?

"Tsk, seems like I was too hasty. If I’d known, I would’ve blasted away half of those little trinkets on him. Then, if I threw out a big move to cover my tracks, wouldn’t those things have ended up belonging to me?"

Gu Sanqiu suddenly felt like he had suffered a loss, but he also realized just how interesting this arena was.

Given certain restrictions, he usually didn’t wander around too much, but the matches here were based solely on strength. That meant he could encounter all sorts of interesting people from all corners of the world.

Léon’s appearance served as a reminder—Fontaine wasn’t just about rock music and an advanced industrial system. Rampant pollution and its absurd legal environment were also key aspects of the nation.

Other nations had similar peculiarities. It was like being in Mondstadt, enjoying the free-spirited atmosphere, only to suddenly run into a stubborn old aristocrat from the Lawrence Clan. That would definitely be frustrating.

As everyone knew, when it came to daily commissions, the deceptively polite Katheryne would occasionally slip in an absolutely infuriating request. Adventurers had long since complained that such commissions should come with extra pay.

Gu Sanqiu was certain the Blondie must understand this sentiment well by now. If Paimon and Blondie swapped roles, a strong Paimon would probably have already drawn her sword to cut down the requester.

"Before Blondie heads off to explore the map, should I sell him a batch of antidotes at a discount?"

Energy crises and extreme environmentalists—Gu Sanqiu was already picturing all sorts of unpleasant environments and even more unpleasant monsters.

For instance, if someone forgot to maintain an industrial waste dump, and buried beneath it happened to be the wreckage of a Ruin Guard...

Clang clang—behold, the newest Ruin Guard!

This new model would fire missiles, be covered in industrial toxins and jagged metal scraps, and any physical contact would inflict both poison and bleeding. Only Fontaine’s unique "Spring of Purification" could cure it!

Of course, the locations where these monstrous abominations spawned would always be a good distance away from said spring. (Cross that out.)

For just 998 mora, why haven’t the Abyss Order and Khaenri’ah remnants placed their orders yet? (Cross that out again.)

If Fontaine’s environmental conditions were truly this ridiculous, then such situations weren’t just possible—they were practically inevitable. They might even be worse than Inazuma’s hellish landscapes.

But what did any of that have to do with him? It’s not like he was going there anyway.

Gu Sanqiu was only interested in that five-billion-mora bounty. Oh, and also keeping an eye on poor Blondie.

Since Lumine had saved his life, Gu Sanqiu figured he should at least offer Blondie a very comfortable discount.

With his connections and resources, this discount should ensure the two lovebirds occasionally got to enjoy a decent meal.

Hmm... If he wanted to offer an even bigger discount, he’d have to wait and see how big of a loss he took after the Liyue Harbor incident wrapped up. After all, he was well aware of Blondie’s destructive impact on any given storyline.

Wherever she went—whether she was saving or wreaking havoc upon a nation—she’d always just dust off her hands and leave. Meanwhile, the economic aftermath would send the leadership’s blood pressure skyrocketing a hundred times over.

Free of charge?

No way. That would set a bad example for the kids.

The battles continued, and the flames atop the four stone pillars in the arena burned even brighter.

As Gu Sanqiu secured victory after victory, the flames expanded far beyond the pillars, splitting into multiple streams that began carving mysterious patterns into the stone. The scene now carried an almost sacred aura.

"What’s this? Winning streaks come with hidden unlockable skins?"

After sending off another assassin, Gu Sanqiu had amassed twenty thousand Ancient God Coins—meaning he had hit a twenty-win streak. The changes to the stone pillars were beyond his expectations.

Even after touching them, there was no change in temperature, meaning they were likely just decorative. Or perhaps they were so high-grade that he couldn’t comprehend their significance.

Twenty consecutive wins—by now, he had a solid grasp of how this arena worked.

And he strongly suspected that the Pyro Archon who created it had simply been Venti’s stand-in.

Later, he encountered a few Natlan warriors, all of whom fervently claimed this arena was a sacred gift left by their god. Their religious jargon was so convoluted that distilling it into simple terms was almost impossible.

In summary: endless battles unfolded here, and if you performed exceptionally well, you’d earn the attention of Natlan’s god.

The more Gu Sanqiu listened, the more something felt off. This whole setup felt less like a divine battleground and more like a massive livestreaming platform. The flames on the stone pillars seemed to function as a "viewer count" tracker.

The stronger you were, the higher your "heat." And once you gained enough fame, the god of Natlan would finally deem you worth watching.

And what was the so-called reward? Simply receiving their amusement.

Given the Pyro Archon’s domain, this hobby of hers actually made a lot of sense.

If she wanted to maintain peace without constantly starting wars, couldn’t she at least find some entertainment on the side?

On the Study of Fishing God Techniques.

Once the thought surfaced, it became impossible to contain. Venti’s fine wine, Zhongli’s leisurely strolls through the mortal realm, Ei’s obsession with sweets...

The more he learned, the more it seemed like the prestige of these ruling Archons was constantly plummeting.

The worst part was that you couldn’t even say this out loud—unless you wanted to be promptly added to their little black books.

The only reason he got away with stirring trouble was because Zhongli was magnanimous and had thousands of years of patience, so his punishments were always minor. Unlike, say, the fate of those who earned an exclusive seat in a private room at Guyun Stone Forest.

Dvalin could yell at Venti to get his act together because he was Barbatos’s diligent underling. Vanessa could chase Barbatos away like a squirrel because they were sworn comrades-in-arms.

And Andrius? Well, he still retained his strength, so he wasn’t afraid of a wayward Barbatos at all.

As for a certain pink-haired fox, her relationship was more complicated—not just a hardworking subordinate and a close friend, but also a great youkai capable of dodging slashes. That’s why she could gossip about Ei’s quirks so openly.

Try talking about other gods like that and see what happens.

If you ran into someone like Decarabian, you’d be flattened by a sky-high tower in an instant. By next year, there wouldn’t even be anyone left brave enough to tend your grave.

Oh, wait—no, that’s imprecise. The real problem would be whether you’d even have a grave at all.

And why wouldn’t you?

Because no one in their right mind would think there’d be a body left to bury. How could the Archons afford to lose face like that?

Gu Sanqiu calmly patted his chest.

He could only say that the Book of Reckless Idiocy would remain eternal in his heart, always "encouraging" him to raise someone’s blood pressure.

But "knowing when to back down" was just as deeply engraved in his soul.

Pride?

What’s that?

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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!