Menma and Hashirama, what happened in Teyvat

(A few dozen minutes ago, Liyue, at the junction of Dihuazhou and Guiliyuan, Wangshu Inn)

At this time, in the kitchen of the inn, Chef Yan Xiao was cooking dishes with ease, just as if he had done it countless days and nights working here over the past decade.

Although it was dinner time, and there were as many guests dining in the inn as usual, the dish Yan Xiao was cooking at the moment was not prepared for any of the guests -

After preparing an appropriate amount of agar and putting it in a bowl and soaking it in water, Yan Xiao reached out and picked up another large bowl. In it was filled with sweet almonds that had been soaked and swollen to the right degree.

After draining the water from the almonds, Yan Xiao brought out a small stone mill for the kitchen, poured all the almonds into it, added a moderate amount of water, and began to grind them. Before long, under the combined effect of Yan Xiao's strong arms and the heavy disc of the stone mill, the almonds that had softened due to swelling were quickly ground into pulp, turning into a mellow, smooth, white milk pulp, which slowly flowed into the pot that had been prepared long ago.

Then, Yan Xiao took out a large bowl and a gauze bag for filtering. He held the gauze bag open with one hand and picked up the basin with the other hand, pouring the almond milk into the gauze bag. Soon, the milk that had been filtered and sieved out impurities seeped out from the bottom of the gauze bag and flowed into the large bowl below, becoming clearer and more delicate than before.

After completing this series of operations, the agar was soaked for a long time. Yan Xiao drained the agar and poured it into the pot along with almond paste, milk, and sugar, and simmered it over low heat. While simmering, he kept stirring with a clean spoon until the solid agar was completely dissolved and completely blended with everything in the pot.

It can be seen that Yan Xiao has already mastered the cooking process of this dish and is very adept at it. There is not even a hint of awkwardness or sluggishness in the whole process.

Soon, the stew was almost done. Yan Xiao took the pot off the stove and after it cooled down for a while, he filtered the milk in the pot into a large square wooden box with a new gauze bag. After gently skimming off the foam floating on the surface of the milk, Yan Xiao carefully closed the wooden box and put it in a storage area filled with ice packs to freeze. During this time, he was not idle and began to prepare the ingredients and kitchen utensils for the next dish on the menu.

By the time he calculated the time correctly, he had just finished making another dish of crystal shrimp and asked the waiter Yuhua who had been waiting at the kitchen door to take it away. The previous milk paste had already cooled and solidified.

He took out the wooden box and opened it, and used a knife to cut the curd of milk pulp, which had become chewy but not mushy, tender but not loose, into irregular rectangular blocks shaped like tofu and placed them on a round plate. Finally, Yan Xiao took out a can of osmanthus jam made of honey and dried osmanthus flowers that he had prepared long ago, and poured it evenly on the plate with a wooden spoon.

After adding two mint leaves as the finishing touch on the top, the "Almond Tofu" is completed with an exquisite shape and creamy color, like a masterpiece of art created by a famous craftsman.

……

Although there were orders for other dishes on hand, Yan Xiao decided to put them all aside for now. Because... the task of delivering this plate of almond tofu to that special "guest" had a higher priority than all the orders at the moment.

Originally, Yan Xiao was going to ask someone to deliver it, but at the moment, no waiter could spare the time. You have to know that Yuhua, who just came to the kitchen door to serve dishes, was actually a waitress standing at the bottom floor of the inn responsible for entertaining guests. It can be seen how busy the entire inn is.

Even the innkeeper Huai'an temporarily joined the ranks of waiters, and the owner Phil Godette was completely unable to leave because he needed to keep accounts and look after the counter. Yan Xiao couldn't call anyone to help deliver the dishes. Therefore, he could only choose to temporarily put aside the order and personally deliver the plate of almond tofu to the top floor of the inn.

Thinking of this, Yan Xiao didn't have any special reaction. After all, he had experienced this kind of thing many times, and he was used to it, so of course he didn't think it was a big deal.

So, with this thought in mind, Yan Xiao walked up the stairs to the top floor.

But who would have thought that as soon as he reached the top floor, Yan Xiao saw a scene that stunned him a little -

I saw a bluish-white figure standing on the railing at the edge of the top floor. Although the word "tall" has nothing to do with his body, it exudes a deep aura all the time, and has a serious look that makes people feel "unapproachable".

What's more, the ferocious Nuo mask he wore on his face and the green spear in his hand that exuded a murderous aura added an unquestionable majesty to everything about him.

"Xiao...Xiao Immortal..." Seeing this, Yan Xiao, who was a little dazed, couldn't help but whisper the other party's name.

It's not that he had never seen the other person before. After all, the other person had basically stayed on the top floor of Wangshu Inn all along, which was something that almost everyone in Liyue knew. However, despite this, it was difficult to see the other person in the inn normally, including those who sent him almond tofu. And today, when he suddenly saw the other person appear in this state, Yan Xiao was of course very surprised.

"Huh?" At this time, the figure called "Xiao Shangxian" by Yan Xiao suddenly turned his head, as if he had just discovered that Yan Xiao appeared behind him.

After scolding himself for being "lazy and careless" in his heart, Xiao looked at Yan Xiao and said calmly: "What's the matter?"

"Oh...oh!" After hearing Xiao's question, Yan Xiao came back to his senses and hurriedly presented the plate of almond tofu in his hand, "I...I am here to deliver almond tofu to the Immortal. You should not have had dinner yet..."

"Is that so... leave it there for now." Xiao glanced at the almond tofu in Yan Xiao's hand and nodded slightly, "If there is nothing else important, leave quickly."

"Uh... Immortal Xiao, is there something unclean?" Yan Xiao asked. Even he could see that Xiao must be concentrating on observing something, otherwise he would not have failed to notice him coming up at first.

Although Yan Xiao is muscular, has a fierce look, and was once a bandit, he is actually very afraid of ghosts. Since Xiao's demon-slaying range also includes these "unclean things", Yan Xiao felt a little nervous when he saw Xiao ready to go.

"I'm not sure yet. I still need to go investigate to find out." After saying this, Xiao's figure flashed a blue-black color and disappeared in an instant, leaving only a remnant sound in the air. [Stay in the inn and don't move around casually, and don't get close to my range of action.]

"Yes!" Although he didn't know whether Xiao could still hear him, Yan Xiao still responded out of awe and gratitude, then immediately walked down the top floor, returned to the kitchen and started processing the dishes on the order, not asking about the matter anymore.

……

[It has disappeared...]

After Xiao disappeared from the top floor of Wangshu Inn, he appeared in the north of the inn the next moment, which was the end of the wooden bridge next to the inn and closer to Dihuazhou.

The reason why he put on the Nuo mask, picked up the weapon, and went here to investigate in person was because he felt a faint breath.

This aura was very unfamiliar. Xiao was very sure that he had never encountered anything with similar sensations in the thousands of years he had lived. Moreover, the aura was very weak. If he were not a member of the Yaksha clan, and his ability to sense danger and unfamiliar things was one of the best among the immortals in Liyue, he might not have been able to detect this aura at all.

That was why he had been so focused on detecting the source of the aura and the place where it last appeared, that he didn't even notice Yan Xiao appearing behind him.

He couldn't tell where the aura came from, whether its owner had any ill intentions, or whether it would cause harm to Liyue, so he planned to investigate. But he didn't expect the other party to react so quickly. When he arrived here with the extraordinary speed of "Wind Wheel Two Liberations", the other party had already fled and left the place, and he couldn't track any trace of him.

This area was as peaceful and ordinary as ever, with no sign of any changes due to the uninvited guest who had just left.

only……

[Even if you have already left, since you have existed and done something, you must have left traces.] After looking at a bunch of red bushes with colorful flowers in full bloom, Xiao said in his heart, [Although I don’t know who you are, but... I hope you are not an enemy of Liyue.]

Among these bushes, the most brightly colored colorful flower that was originally in full bloom has disappeared.

……

……

……

(Mondstadt, south of Wolfrund)

After declining Eze and Adeline's offer to let them stay in the winery's guest room for one night on the grounds that they needed to hurry on their journey, the group of four left the Dawn Winery and continued their journey towards Liyue.

However, it was already late, and the four of them were not in a hurry to travel, so even if they walked faster, when they arrived at the area south of the Benlang Territory, they had to stop and rest for a night.

It's not that they can't stay up late to travel, but there is no need to do so. As long as there is nothing too urgent, it is best not to skip the necessary rest.

Although Paimon felt sorry for not staying in the guest room of the Dawn Winery to rest, after all, considering the high-end accommodation conditions there, it would definitely be very comfortable to sleep there for a night, but Kong didn't care about it, and even advised Paimon not to rely too much on this kind of paradise that did not belong to him.

As a person who can endure hardships, Kong is not picky about accommodation conditions, as long as it is not a torture like "sleeping in a dead bed and eating boiled soup". What's more, Mr. Uzumaki and Mr. Senju said before that they would show him their operation and conditions when they spend the night outside, so that he and Paimon can experience the fun of outdoor survival that only belongs to powerful "ninjas".

Therefore, for Kong, who wanted to learn ninjutsu from the two, the appeal of the high-end guest rooms in the Dawn Winery seemed to become less great.

Finally, they chose a beach by the sea below the cliff and planned to rest there for a night.

Although there is a saying of "sea view room" in Teyvat, almost no one dares to build a sea view room in such a place. However, if you prepare a temporary residence such as a tent to experience the feeling of "sea view bungalow", it can also be considered a very good choice.

Besides, what Menma and Hashirama did was much cooler than just setting up a tent.

"Earth escape, Earth flow residence!"

"Wood Release: The Four-Pillar Family's Technique!"

As Menma and Hashirama finished speaking, two small single-family buildings with very different materials and styles rose from the ground, as if two renovated bungalows had emerged directly from the ground.

A house is made of solid earth and stone, like an elongated hemisphere arched upwards, without any edges or corners. The entire earth wall is seamless, like a stone bowl inverted on the ground; together with the "not forgotten door and window", it forms a spacious space for people to live in.

The other house is made entirely of solid wood. The square, solid and durable wooden structure makes it easy to tell at a glance that it is solid and reliable. Although the house was built in less than half a minute, its exquisiteness is no different from those houses that were carefully built by craftsmen for months or even years; the green branches and leaves dotted on the exterior walls add a breath of life to the whole house.