Su Yuan originally thought the rain would last for a long time, but after a while, the skies cleared and the sun came out.
"Su Yuan, where are you rushing off to in such a hurry?"
Yelan's voice called out from behind him.
"Didn't we agree that I'd take you to meet Ningguang today?"
"Yelan, let's put that off for now. I have a feeling Ningguang isn't in that much of a hurry to meet me."
Su Yuan turned to Yelan and said,
"First, use your intelligence network to help me find where Chongyun and Shenhe are!"
"There are so many celebrities, officials, and wealthy tycoons who would give anything just to meet Ningguang and can't even get the chance..."
"And look at you—you've got Ningguang inviting you personally, and you tell her to wait…"
"You really are quite an interesting one."
It wasn't that Su Yuan didn't want to meet Ningguang—it was just that he had no idea what kind of state Ningguang was in right now…
The most pressing matter at the moment was still finding people he could trust, sharing some of his information with them, and figuring out what to do next.
"But Ningguang also said that confronting the Eerie is no trivial matter," Yelan added.
"She wants everything to follow your lead, and for me to simply assist from the sidelines."
"Whether it's your feats in Fontaine, your heroic intervention at Yilong wharf when that fire broke out, or your concern about the Eerie threatening Liyue…"
"She believes you're someone who can be trusted."
Su Yuan nodded.
The fact that Ningguang trusted him was a great relief.
With her support, things would be much easier for him while operating in Liyue…
"You're looking for Chongyun, right?" Yelan mused.
"He's a close friend of Xingqiu, the second young master of the Feiyun Commerce Guild. If you're looking for him, why not head to the guild?"
"At this time of day, chances are good he'll be there."
"As for Shenhe… there hasn't been any sign of her around Liyue Harbor recently."
Su Yuan nodded, then followed Yelan to the territory of the Feiyun Commerce Guild.
However, before they could even enter, they saw Chongyun standing at the entrance, speaking with Axu, a servant of the guild.
"Axu, what exactly is going on with Xingqiu?"
Chongyun looked rather agitated.
He was eating a popsicle, trying to suppress his pure-yang constitution.
"Since yesterday, I clearly saw him from a distance—called out to him, even—but not only did he ignore me, he also ran away as fast as he could…"
"This kind of thing has happened several times now. It's like he's hiding something shameful… like he's deliberately avoiding me!"
"And now, I've come all the way here—I know he's inside, so why is he still refusing to see me?"
"Brother Chongyun," Axu said with an apologetic smile, "I'm really sorry…"
Axu gave an awkward smile and said,
"Though I'm not sure exactly what's going on, the young master gave a strict order—not to see you under any circumstances..."
"I'm just an ordinary servant, I have to follow the young master's instructions..."
"Xingqiu! What did I do wrong? What did I do to upset you so much that you're avoiding me like this?!"
Chongyun shouted toward the house:
"Can't you at least give me a reason? What is this supposed to mean?!"
Watching this scene, Su Yuan fell into deep thought.
What was going on?
Wasn't Xingqiu on really good terms with Chongyun?
Why was he now acting so strangely and ignoring him?
Could it be… that Xingqiu has already been taken over by the Eerie?
"Chongyun." Su Yuan stepped forward and gently patted Chongyun on the shoulder.
"You are…?"
Chongyun turned around, looking at Su Yuan with a puzzled expression.
Then he caught sight of Yelan's face and exclaimed in surprise:
"Oh? Miss Yelan…"
"I still remember, back when I had just started out as an exorcist, I was invited to a client's home for a cleansing, and had the honor of meeting you there…"
"Nice to meet you, Chongyun. My name is Su Yuan—'Su' like in tiramisu, and 'Yuan' like in ruins and rubble," Su Yuan said with a smile.
"As for Xingqiu's current condition… I might have a rough idea of what's going on."
Then, Su Yuan turned to Yelan and said, "Yelan, I'm going to share some detailed information with Chongyun now. Could you give us a moment?"
Yelan nodded in understanding and quietly walked away.
Su Yuan then led Chongyun to a secluded corner beside the Feiyun Commerce Guild.
"This brother Su Yuan, you say you have some understanding of Xingqiu's current situation—are you some kind of expert in psychology or emotional analysis?"
Chongyun sized up Su Yuan and suddenly blurted out something unexpected:
"But don't get the wrong idea, there's nothing like that between me and Xingqiu. We're really just good friends, that's all."
"I'm just really curious about what I might've done wrong to upset him so much that he doesn't even want to see me…"
Su Yuan gave Chongyun a somewhat speechless look.
What was this guy even talking about?
He had never thought about it that way at all…
Although… in his own world, Xingqiu did have the "nickname" of the Feiyun Commerce Guild's second young lady, with his feminine looks, a female voice actress, and a ton of people shipping him and Chongyun as a couple…
"Chongyun, if I remember correctly, your constitution is rather unique—you're what they call a pure yang body, right?"
Su Yuan looked at Chongyun and slowly began to speak.
"Think about it—because of your constitution, all those demons, evil spirits, and monsters of every kind don't dare go near you…"
"You mean…" Chongyun immediately caught on to Su Yuan's implication, his eyes widening, "You're saying the reason Xingqiu refuses to see me might actually be because he's been disturbed, possessed, or controlled by some kind of evil entity?"
As soon as Su Yuan finished speaking, Chongyun reacted at once.
"If that's the case, then I must see him, no matter what!"
"I'm from a family of exorcist—it's my duty to eliminate evil wherever it appears!"
"More importantly, Xingqiu is my good friend. I can't just stand by and do nothing!"
"Chongyun, hold on a second," Su Yuan said calmly.
"If it is an ordinary evil spirit… then that's still the lesser problem here…"
Su Yuan looked at Chongyun and said seriously:
"What I'm about to tell you next… might completely overturn your understanding of the world."
"Have you ever heard of something called… the Eerie?"
Then, Su Yuan briefly explained the information he had about the Eerie to Chongyun.
"So that's how it is?" Chongyun's expression grew solemn after hearing Su Yuan's explanation, and he nodded thoughtfully.
"Then the first thing we need to figure out… is what exactly is going on with Xingqiu right now."
"Has he been possessed by an ordinary evil spirit… or has he been corrupted by an Eerie?"
"If I can just get close enough to Xingqiu to observe him directly, I'll be able to tell in no time whether it's a demon or an Eerie."
"But the problem is… Xingqiu absolutely refuses to see me."
"Don't tell me… we're going to have to use force and break into the Feiyun Commerce Guild?"
Su Yuan was also contemplating a troubling question: whether Xingqiu's current condition was caused by a regular evil spirit or by an Eerie.
He wasn't entirely sure…
If it was a demonic presence, then it would make sense for it to fear Chongyun's pure-yang constitution—but if it was an Eerie, then wouldn't that make the Eerie seem a bit too… weak?
"Chongyun, right now, Xingqiu is simply refusing to see you…"
Su Yuan looked at Chongyun and spoke:
"So let me go into the Feiyun Commerce Guild and find out what's really going on."
"But… wouldn't that put you in danger?" Chongyun asked, a bit hesitant.
"Still, we have to confirm Xingqiu's current state. If he has been corrupted and taken over by an Eerie, then we need to figure out what exactly caused his transformation." Su Yuan said with firm resolve.
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