An Encounter #5
Thanks everyone for supporting me on this one…I didn't think I can go this far but I'm glad that I do. Again, thank you all so much.
And sorry for the delay… Exploring Inazuma drains me so much energy…
Let their silly and weird journey continue…
Recap: After the defeat…Keqing woke up in Wangshu Inn and saw herself in his room (well nothing weird happened to her during in the Inn though...really) and she had to pay for after what she had done him...by paying the bill first of course...After that she's going to get stuck with him for a while for the Archon how long…
While Keqing is still arguing with the Inn's receptionist about the bill. The golden hair boy traveler and the fairy are current on their way to the next quest…meeting the next adepti: Mountain Shaper
Somewhere in Mountain Hulao…
A certain traveler and his companion are moving up to the top of the mountain, and it's quite high. Also, they haven't unlocked the teleport waypoint up there yet…
"So tired…" Aether groaned…he has moved for over 2 hours and still no sign of the destination.
"Hmph! You can fight nonstop but yet you can't climb this mountain?" Paimon asked him
"Said by the fairy who's floats all of the time" Aether said with his mockery voice.
"Hey! Floating is also cost energy you know!" Paimon shouted.
"Then try to walk like me, eh?" He shook his head…and continued to move
"Whatever…" She sighed
Aether can fight enemies without tiring for the whole day but when he do the climbing, he can only do it for 30-45 meters high and need to rest even worse he can only swim for 20 meters only if he doesn't want to get drowned…(*). He asks himself why but after all, he's an unknown being in this world…
"Why they like to live in such high mountain like this? It's so inconvenient if you want to go somewhere…" Aether asked himself…
"Because they like to have a high ground I guess" Paimon said.
"I think so…seem like lot of enemies are underestimate their power"
After walked for 30 more minutes they started to spot some weird orange rocky things…they are definitely not ordinary rocks they have seen before…
"What is that thing…it's creeping me out…" Paimon looked around a saw a lot of them.
"I don't know either…but it's not normal at all…we should keep caution" Aether said as he took out his Dull blade…
As they continue to move, they see more and more of these. Aether and Paimon feel like if they step on it, they are doomed. But somehow, they managed to get passed through without any problem…
And they finally reached the top of the mountain.
Aether and Paimon spotted a person looks like a thief is kneeling and praying for something.
"Have mercy, O mighty adeptus! I beg you... Show mercy upon me and my brother... Spare our lives!" He keeps repeating these sentences and saying blurtly…
Aether came closer to him and asked: "What are you doing?"
Like a savior came down from the Celestial, that person quickly grab Aether's hand and hold it tight.
"My name is Li Ding. Oh, have mercy, mighty messengers of the illuminated adepti! I beg you to save us... My brother and I, we only came here because our family is poor, and we heard rumors about the treasures hidden in the amber of Mt. Hulao. We followed the path up the mountain, but suddenly the amber... it swallowed up my brother, Li Dang!" Li Ding said… Aether heard his panicked voice to know how dire the situation is.
"I'm not the adepti messengers" Aether explained to him…
"So these ambers are basically a huge minefield then…so scary" Paimon sweated. They were lucky enough to get passed through…
"But you can enter this place safety which mean you are the adepti messengers I have no idea which amber trapped him... Please, you have to rescue him! I beg you, show me some adepti mercy!" Li Ding kneeling to Aether and keep hugging his leg…
Aether and Paimon turned away from Li Ding and have a little discussion between them.
"Oh great now we have to find his brother too? How many things I have done already?" Aether complained. All he wants is just to find his sister but somehow, he got dragged to a bunch of nonsense and non-related quests…
"Oh come on, errand boy! You have come this far now. He probably knows something about the adepti so let's help him" Paimon said.
"Why I didn't cook you in the last time already…"
"Hey!"
After a few minutes both of them agreed to help Li Ding.
"Ok, so where I can find him?" Aether asked.
"All I know is that we kept to the path the whole way up the mountain. So the amber won't be far from the path" Li Dong said
Aether saw there's an Amber is nearby so he decided to move closer for further inspection. He touched and tried to punch it but it didn't do anything to it.
"Ok let's try the sword then" Aether took out his dull blade and put on a flew slashes on it but that strike only dealt a minor damage to it…
After 30 minutes of trying, every effort he did is not worked as intended, he started to get impatient…and then he took out an special item…An item that made Paimon freaked out…Meanwhile Li Ding is still having no idea what is going on…
Aether took out Klee's "treasure" and tossed it to the amber.
"Better go take cover~" Aether took Paimon and Li Ding hide behind a huge rock far away and after a few second later…
KA-BOOOOOMMMMMM!~~
A loud explosion occurred and blew away the amber in an instant and left nothing behind, not even any trace of it…basically it become non-existent.
"So that's how we destroy them" Aether smirked as he took out more Klee's bombs…
"Wait are you going to blow my brother away with that…please don't do that please…." Li Ding begged him again, he cried all over Aether…
"Of course, we are not going to do that, I'm just checking how tough that thing is…" Aether said
"Let's take a look around to see if there anything we can break these thing…safety" Paimon suggested them
All 3 of them are looking all around the top of the mountain and can't find anything useful most of them are just garbage thing like cabbages, carrots, wheats, apples…
"Who buried these for!? What a waste of time…" Paimon roared…
"Yeah, I wonder how people can cook with this stuff buried like these…I hope we didn't eat these foods made from those" Aether's face paled, he wonders is his stomach is too good or he just got lucky…
Aether then stepped on some kind of mechanism and something raised up…
A crafting table appeared right before them and there's a label on it:
"In case of emergency, break the glass…"
"What a weird crafting table, it's looks so unusual than the one we use in Liyue and Monstasdt" Paimon looked at the wooden crafting cube.
"Oh, I didn't mention that thing, we can use it to break these ambers" Li Ding said.
Aether glared: "Why didn't you say earlier…"
"Sorry, Sorry I was about to say it but I was too scared…also when I tried to use it but it's not working…"
"Why it didn't work?" Paimon asked.
"It said "Only someone who's worthy can use it" it seems like I'm not worthy enough" Li Ding explained to them
Aether moved closer to that table and touched it, the light from the cube glowed up and recognized him
"I'm still worthy~" Aether chuckled
"There are some blueprints and the instruction how to make it too" Paimon took out the blueprint and the instruction from the table.
Paimon reads the instruction and it shows how to craft…a pick axe, a shovel, and an axe...
"In order to break the amber safety, you need to use the Diamond pick axe. To make the Diamond pick axe you need to make a White Iron pick axe to get the Diamond piece and to make a White Iron pick axe you need an Iron pickaxe to get the White Iron piece…" Paimon reads the instruction…
"That's the dumbest instruction I've ever seen…and it somehow remind me one of the worlds I've visited before" Aether shook his head. He remembers he entered a world that had the same concept like that it's called Mi*ecr*ft and it was a nightmare…somehow that nightmare is coming back to him.
"Alright then let's gather the wood first" Paimon said
"I will wait in here…I don't want to see these ambers again…they will swallow me this time for sure" Li Ding said…
Aether sighed as him and Paimon teleported to the forest nearby…
Paimon then read the instruction again: "To get the woods you need to use the Diamond axe. To make the Diamond axe, you need to make a White Iron pick axe to get the Diamond piece and to make a White Iron pick axe, you need an Iron pickaxe to get the White Iron piece"
Aether covers her mouth: "Alright shut up, emergency food…let's just use the sword instead". He summoned his dull blade and slashed at those trees and they managed to get some woods.
Now the hard part is how to get the Diamond…Aether and Paimon looked at their map and there isn't any diamond shows up on the map. Fortunately, it showed on the instruction…Now they need to dig down to get it.
They teleported back to the Hulao Mountain to craft a shovel…Aether already had a bunch of white iron before so they can craft one immediately
"You can use the Diamond shovel to dig instead. To make the Diamond shovel, you nee-" Before Paimon could finished reading the instruction, Aether stopped her.
"Maybe you should do the digging instead…" Aether threaten her…made her mouth stopped
They put all the material needed to make one into the crafting table and a shovel is made…But it looks not normal at all…
"Why this shovel looks so jaggery and pixelated…" Aether asked himself, looking at the weird shovel…
"What is that mean?" Paimon asked the same question.
"Never mind…this whole adventure is weird already…" Aether sighed.
They went back to the digging's spot and Aether started to dig down…10, 15, 20 meters but there's still nothing sighted…only after 5 more meters then…
He feels something hot below his foot…he looked down and saw.
Hot lava is right under him…
Before he might fall off to the deadly lava. Aether summoned a giant geo boulder below him, preventing from falling and he teleported back to the surface safely…
"That was closed" Aether panted…that was one of his most near-death experience he has gone through ever…
"Oh I forgot to tell you the warning on the instruction: "Do not dig straight down"…" Paimon look at the instruction and spoke.
"Is there anything else Paimon…?" Another cracked smile and deathly glare from Aether made Paimon a bit scared…
"And…if you can't find the diamond…you can use the magical crystal ore instead…" Paimon pointed the location of the ore on the map.
That location is exactly the same position they've just dug recently… and to be worse those ores are right next to them but they didn't mine them earlier…
Paimon dared not to say any words after that. She knows if she just blabbing just a word, her life will be at stake…
Aether and Paimon then teleported back and take a look at these ores…
"You know sword can't break those things easily, right? We can use the Dia-"just before Paimon can finished her sentence again. She sensed a very dark aura around Aether, his face is cold and lifeless with his eye widen and staring at Paimon without even blinking. She knows he's at his limits now…anything happened to him now can suffer an unnecessary consequent.
Not a single wind or any noise around him now…only complete silent…
It would be better if he has anyone who can use claymore weapon to get those ores easily or may be if he can ever use it…
After a few minutes of silent…Aether has finally spoken: "You know what, Paimon. We can use that thing…"
"What?" Paimon asked him.
Aether took out something and Paimon saw a familiar thing she saw a few hours ago…
"You mean, Ka-Boom, Aether?" Paimon shivered, sweated.
"Yes, Ka-boom~" Aether then threw some Klee's bomb at the magical crystal ore as he took Paimon to hide and…
A loud explosion can be heard from a far. Li Ding's on the top of Hulao mountain can also saw the big mushroom's cloud caused by the bomb…The magical crystal ore had been shattered into piece…
"NOW THAT'S A LOT OF DAMAGE!" Aether shouted in "Have a little more!"
"Stop! Calm down Aether" Paimon afraid he's losing his sense now…
"I'm just kidding…I was so stressed…And this helped me a lot" Aether waved…
After they got enough of those magical crystal, Aether and Paimon went back to the mountain and craft it…the pick axe also looks weird as well as the shovel but they are not bother to question about it anymore…
"Finally, a fine pick axe" Aether picked it up and started to break the amber one by one…
30 minutes later…
Despite a lot of effort but still no result at the moment…all the stuff broke out from the amber are just animal, birds, or even some hilichurls…Too bad they all got blown up by Klee's bomb from a bad mood traveler…they wish they could have just got stuck inside the amber instead of getting out.
"Are you sure he got stuck in these things?" Aether asked, he's so tired right now…
"I hope so…" Paimon sighed.
Aether moved up to the last amber: "Well that's the last one…"
He shattered the amber and it revealed a person. That person slowly woke up and saw Aether and Paimon…
"Wh–What happened? ...Y–You rescued me? Thank you..." Li Dang said and started to remember what was happened "Oh! And have you seen my brother? His name is Li Ding, we were climbing the mountain together. I just hope he didn't get trapped in amber too..."
"He's the one who sent us looking for you" Aether said
"Phew... so he's safe then...?"
"He's at the top of the mountain"
"Thank you! I will head up to find my brother now. I hope I don't run into any more amber on the way..."
They went up to the top of the Hulao mountain again and met Li Ding. Both of them ran to each other and cried of happiness to find their own brother are still fine… Aether finds it amused somehow since they came here to stole something that's isn't belong to them…
"Thank you for rescuing my brother, O mighty messengers of the illuminated adepti!" Li Ding said
"You must be the adepti messengers!" Li Dang shouted.
Not this again…
"I'm not the adepti messengers" Aether shook his head.
"I say you are, Lord, and I should know. I've followed a few. Hail the Archon!" Li Ding joined his brother.
"I'm not the adepti messengers! Will you please listen? I'm not the adepti messengers! Do you understand? Honestly!" Aether keep shouted at them…
"Only the true adepti messengers denies his divinity"
Aether really want to punch those two brothers off the mountain right now but he knows he can't do that.
He then tried to hold his anger and swallow it and began to say:
"What? Well, what sort of chance does that give me? All right, I am the adepti messengers!" Aether gritted his teeth, his palm and tried make a smile but somehow it looks like a cracked smile.
"He is, He is the adepti messengers!" Both of Li Ding and Li Dang said in the same time…
After that they heard something loud…
"Who dares trespass on my mountain? Who is it that frees the thief from his incarceration and blows off my place? Come forth and receive your punishment at once!" A scary sound came from behind them.
"Thank you again the adepti messengers…we are leaving now" Li Ding and Li Dang ran off away…
After that a big crane appeared right in front of Aether and Paimon…
"You intrude upon the sanctity of Mt. Hulao, you destroy the amber of my mountain, and you free a thief whose freedom is not yours to give" his intimidating voice scared Paimon away…
Paimon tried to say: "Wait! We can explain..."
"Here, look at this..." Aether said as he took out the sigil…
"Is that a bomb?" The crane looked at the thing Aether has just bought out…
"Oppss wrong item…sorry, here is it" Aether took off Klee's bomb and showed him the Sigil…
"A Sigil of Permission? One was unaware that such things still exist in the mortal realm" The Crane said.
"Moon Crave sent us…"
"Moon Carver... trusted a mere mortal as his messenger…lets us talk…" He then introduced himself as Mountain Shaper.
Aether explains what happened in Liyue Harbor…
"Rex Lapis... Assassinated… At the Rite of Descension!?…What mortal in Liyue– nay, in all the world, would conspire to commit such foul treason? Or perhaps the more pertinent question is, what power in this world could aspire to achieve it?..." Mountain Shaper looked at the traveler: "Once one has dealt with certain matters here that require my attention, one shall convene with the other adepti"
Aether nodded:"We will…leave it to us"
Before Aether left the place, Mountain Shaper had whispered something to him… Unfortunately, Paimon didn't able to hear it…
Both of them returned to their Forward base Operation after their long adventure…: The Wangshu Inn.
"Finally, we're back home…time to take a shower…" Aether said tiredly, he has suffered too many bad things today already…
"What did Mountain Shaper say to you before we left Aether? He looked a bit…freaked out…" Paimon asked him
Aether shooked his head and smirked: "It's nothing…May be next time we should bring more Klee's bombs...They will probably make our adventure easier…"
"Oh…"
Just before they can enter theirs room, they heard a familiar sound came from the reception room and it shouted very loudly…
"This dumb golden hair boy! Still making me trouble even when I was forced to join him and I even had to pay for his room rental for a whole 3 months!? What's wrong with him!?...Arghhhhhh!" A wild angry Keqing appeared again...but she hasn't noticed them yet.
After he heard such a scary voice like that, Aether whispered to Paimon: "Let's get out of here…I don't want to see her right now…". And both of them started to sneak out.
But being stuck with him for quite a time now, Keqing already realized the scent of him…and she knows he's nearby.
Keqing turned her head and saw Aether and Paimon are trying to escape from her.
"Hey! Get back here you trouble maker!" Keqing shouted as she started to chase them.
"Oh snap!" Aether ran to the balcony then jumped as he took off his glider and flew away.
Keqing went right after him but when she reached the balcony, she couldn't see him anywhere anymore.
The golden hair boy escaped from that purple hair girl once again.
But not for long this time.
She already knows where he's going to go next and she also has the location of him now…
A small grin appeared on her face:
- You can't hide from me forever…
5th Encounter End…
(*)Yeah the stamina system is so weird…you can fight enemies non-stop and can sprint so far away but you can only swim about 10-15 meters…bruh.
Sorry for the short Keqing's appearent in here, please wait for a little more xD
Oh, and to be continued…