"Xiao, step back. Leave them to me," Yun Fan patted Xiao's shoulder, holding a long-handled blade as he stepped forward, shielding Xiao behind him. His sharp gaze fell on the newly formed demonic creatures.
"Understood," Xiao didn't insist on fighting alongside Yun Fan. He knew the Divine General's strength well, and besides, his own spiritual energy was nearly depleted. Forcing himself to continue would only be a burden.
"Let's end this in one move," Yun Fan raised his weapon, the blade held high above his head, assuming a combat stance. In the past, he might have toyed with them, but now, he had no patience to slowly clear out these demons.
How much would the Fenghuang Down's evolution progress after absorbing this karmic debt? With that thought, he wasted no more time.
"Thunder, shatter the illusions!" Thunder surged from Yun Fan's feet, shooting into the sky and piercing through the black mist covering Xiao's Sea of Consciousness. The moment the malevolent resentment and malice came into contact with the golden lightning, they retreated like a receding tide.
Yun Fan bathed in the radiance of thunder, his expression calm, his demeanor exuding authority and divinity. At this moment, he was like the God of Thunder incarnate.
"Ten Thousand Thunderbolts Summon Divine Punishment!"
As Yun Fan swung his weapon, endless bolts of thunder descended from the heavens, carrying an aura of destruction that enveloped the entire Sea of Consciousness.
Under this wide-ranging attack, the karmic debt and demonic resentment had nowhere to hide, all reduced to ashes by the thunder.
"Retract!"
With a soft command, Yun Fan withdrew his power. Since the demons had been eradicated, letting the thunder continue to rage would only risk unnecessary damage to Xiao's Sea of Consciousness.
Snap!
Yun Fan raised his left hand and snapped his fingers.
The crisp sound reached Xiao's ears, and he felt his consciousness blur. When he regained focus, he was back in the real world.
"Ah!" Xiao, who had been sitting cross-legged, stood up and stretched. He felt an unprecedented sense of comfort and lightness in his body, something he hadn't experienced in the thousands of years since making his contract with the Geo Archon to "kill to protect."
Though he could still sense some karmic debt within him, the whispers that once disturbed his mind were now gone.
"Judging by your reaction, the cleansing seems to have been successful," Yun Fan observed Xiao's movements and nodded in satisfaction as he approached.
Hearing Yun Fan's words, Xiao quickly bowed.
"Thanks to the Divine General's grace, I, the Golden-Winged King, will never forget this kindness. If you ever need me, I will go through fire and water without hesitation!"
"No need for such formalities. You've helped me a great deal as well," Yun Fan shook his head, his gaze falling on the Fenghuang Down in his hand. The Consciousness Key was now fully operational, having extracted the purest consciousness energy from the karmic debt and demonic resentment, while obliterating all impurities.
Seeing Yun Fan fall silent, quietly observing the "flower" in his hand, Xiao didn't disturb him, standing by and waiting patiently.
The Fenghuang Down's efficiency was impressive. After just a few minutes, Yun Fan received a signal from it.
"Only a ten percent increase?" Yun Fan was slightly disappointed to see that the evolution progress had only reached ten percent, though this was within his expectations. After all, Xiao was just one person, and no matter how much karmic debt he carried, there was a limit.
In fact, if Xiao alone could provide all the energy needed for the Fenghuang Down's evolution, that would have been truly strange.
"There's still so much energy needed..." Yun Fan stroked his chin, deep in thought. The Rite of Descension was only two days away. If he went around Liyue now to gather scattered demonic resentment and karmic debt, he might not make it back in time, potentially missing the grand spectacle of the dragon's descent.
But if he didn't go now, he felt an itch he couldn't scratch. It was like when you're saving up for a character in a gacha game, knowing you'll definitely get them before the banner ends, but you can't resist spending money to get them early. And after pulling... you usually regret it.
Sigh, humans are truly contradictory creatures.
"Xiao, take me to places in Liyue where karmic debt and demonic resentment are concentrated. I need to cleanse them all," Yun Fan decided to prioritize gathering consciousness energy and evolving the Fenghuang Down. As for the Rite of Descension, it could wait!
Two days later...
"Ugh, Traveler, the Rite of Descension is tomorrow. Haven't we been a bit too lazy lately?" Paimon crossed her arms, feeling a bit guilty as she reflected. The two of them had been in Liyue for several days now, spending their time eating, drinking, and enjoying the local culture and cuisine.
Tasks like going out on missions or taking on adventurer commissions had long been forgotten. They had even accepted a commission from Katherine in Mondstadt to deliver a letter to Katherine in Liyue, but that too had slipped their minds.
"Uh, I guess we have been a bit lazy," Lumine said, biting into a freshly made candied hawthorn skewer, her tone uncertain. It seemed that since arriving in Liyue, she hadn't even visited the Adventurers' Guild.
"Then, should we go take on some commissions? I feel bad spending Yun Fan's money like this," Paimon's eyes darted around, her fingers fidgeting.
They hadn't been adventurers for long, and the number of commissions they had taken was limited. With Paimon's bottomless appetite, Lumine's savings had been nearly depleted on the first day. Now, all their expenses were covered by Yun Fan's money.
"Uh, how about we wait until after the Rite of Descension to take on some commissions?" Lumine thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up as she made the suggestion.
"Traveler, this isn't like you," Paimon said, exasperated. Normally, she was the lazy one. How had Lumine become like this?
"Hehe," Lumine smiled. If not for life's pressures, who would want to toil every day? Now that they had Mora, it was only natural to enjoy themselves. After all, humans have their flaws, and she was no exception.
"Alright then, after the Rite of Descension, we'll take on some commissions and earn some Mora!" With that, Paimon went back to devouring her food, her earlier guilt completely forgotten.