"I wish to make a contract with you!"

Morax, God of Rock, paused just before he could leave the Gods assembly, then turned to face the unexpected voice.

It was the 'weak' Goddess of Salt, Havria, who was just forced to abandon Guyun to the other Gods due to her inability to protect it from Osial. The Goddess who refused to fight, and probably couldn't even if she was willing.

'A contract, huh?' he thought. All contracts need to be fair and equal in his opinion. That meant offering something of equal value. What could this Goddess possibly offer him?

"You do? Do you believe you can help fight alongside me and protect both our lands together?" He did not wish to be unkind, but everyone, including her own worshippers, knew that the Salt God did not fight. If her idea was to join forces but then not fulfil her part of the bargain… well. Goddess or not, it was unwise to provoke the Wrath of the Rock.

But to his surprise, she shook her head.

"I am a healer, not a fighter. I would never suggest something I wasn't able to deliver. However, a wise man knows that fighting is not the only thing needed to achieve victory."

Morax blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Even the strongest warrior gets injured from time to time. Everyone needs to rest, heal and recuperate so they can fight their enemies with all their strength. And I couldn't help but notice that your Yakshas are starting to lag, no longer able to fight with the same vigour as when they first started."

He frowned. "While true, negative karma is not so easy to deal with. Rage and hatred of the Gods of the Past are what ails them, rather than injury or lack of rest."

Havria smiled. "You forget that I am a Goddess too. My fighting strength may be lacking, but that is simply because my strength lies elsewhere." She lifted a small plate, holding a single salt crystal. It glistened, reflecting all the colours of the world despite the fact that they were still indoors, away from direct sunlight. "My newest creation, the Salt Flower. While a rock may support you, Salt has a different purpose. Salt invigorates and purifies. And that is exactly what this artifact does."

"...Do you claim to be able to remove the effects of karmic debt from my people?"

She folded the Salt Flower back into her robes. "Perhaps not completely, not right away. But I know that I can dissolve it back to its original energy, send it back to the world in a pure form that helps and strengthens the land rather than weaken it. This way, the more hatred the Old Gods send towards your people, the weaker they become, and the land becomes stronger. It might not be a single epic battle that shakes the world, but a slow, gradual change that will shape it."

Morax was still not convinced. "Perhaps that is true. But I am already stretched thin, and trying to protect another one's lands as well as my own is-"

"What kind of future do you want for your people? One where they merely survive and have to deal with all their hurts on their own? Or one where they heal and prosper? This war won't last forever. There will come a time when your people will need more than your strength, and I can support them in ways you cannot imagine. My people need your strength, and your people need mine."

Goddess of Salt Havria stretched out her hand towards the God of Rock Morax.

"I propose an alliance. For a better future."

Morax stared down at her hand for a moment. Then he took it.

And the world changed.

Five Nuo masks lay on the table, each submerged in its own bowl filled with a divine, saline solution.

Havria shook her head in sorrow and took the closest Yaksha's face in her hands. "Oh, my poor children. You've been carrying this heavy burden for a long time, haven't you?"

The dark-haired boy with green highlights blushed and looked away.

His friend laughed and teased him, "Hey, now. What happened to our brave Xiao who never flinched in face of adversity?"

"Ugh. Be quiet, Pervases! This is not a fight!"

"Yeah, that's right!" A red-head joined, laughing as well. "How dare you compare this beautiful Goddess to an 'adversity'? Our poor Xiao is facing the first gentle woman in his life, and you ~dare~ laugh at him?"

The boy, Xiao, took a step back and covered his face with a groan. "Uuuhh, I hate you all!"

His friends all laughed.

Harvia clapped her hands together. "Alright, that's enough, everyone! Go to the dressing room, change, and then proceed to the baths. You will find Sal Terrae's special salt scrubs in the containers to your right, so don't forget to use them properly! Trust me, I will know if you skip it, so use them all even if it stings. Then once you're done with your bath, go and rest on the deck chairs in the Salt Caves. Just relax, breathe deeply and let the salt do its job. If you feel like you need to sleep, then just sleep." She smiled at them reassuringly and gestured at them to proceed.

The rowdy warriors pushed and shoved and shouted at each other but dutifully made their way to the baths.

The Salt Goddess smirked and muttered to herself.

"Now let's see what we can do about that nasty karmic debt from those monsters. Let's dissolve it and see if we can't use the excess power to strengthen these children a little. After all, I still owe them one for the victory at Guyun."

"You're a big one, aren't you?"

Azdaha squirmed at Havria's petting but didn't protest. She pet him some more, and watched as the trees on its back grew beautiful leaves of salt.

Morax chuckled next to them and watched them with curious eyes. "Fascinating. I believe your movements just became a bit more agile, my old friend."

All their faces turned towards the ground, covered in a thick layer of salt rocks. The Geo Dragon gently lay down, and the trees on its back grew stronger and more vibrant. "You're right, I do feel… hmm… stronger is not the right word. Lighter, perhaps? Like I could run from one end of the world to the other and never get tired."

The giant dragon's face turned towards the Goddess. "Thank you, Lady Havria. I never realized how the battles weighed me down until the weight was removed."

"My pleasure." The Salt Goddess smiled, and pet the dragon some more. "Do you think now that you absorbed some of my powers of healing, you could heal and cleanse your companions as well?"

Azdaha shook himself and stood up, thinking deeply. "Perhaps? I don't know, but I feel like it might be possible."

Morax nodded in satisfaction. "I believe some training is in order. Let us see what you can do, and how it can change our battle strategy."

"Lord Morax! Lord Morax!" The messenger ran in, out of breath and on the verge of collapse. "The Guili Assembly is under attack!"

"Guizhong!" Morax didn't hesitate. He grabbed his staff, already sending the signal to all his friends and allies. The battle was upon them - his only hope that they won't be too late to save the life of his… his… They had to hurry!

Azdaha broke through a layer of rock to get out of the underground caves and join him. The ground trembled as the dragon shook off the excess earth from its back and shouted, "Everyone, to me! Hold on to me, I will carry you!"

The Yakshas and Morax jumped onto the dragon's back, holding onto its salt trees as it barrelled through the countryside, trampling over all obstacles in its path. They all felt their strength increase, their stamina restored, as they used the moment to prepare themselves for the fight of their lives.

They came just in time.

Morax threw giant rock spears at the monster that was about to break through Guizhong's ballistas. The Yakshas all attacked as soon as they jumped off of Azdaha's back, surrounding the Old God and rerouting its giant water spout attack into a nearby lake.

Guizhong and all the adepti cheered when they saw their friends and allies join the fight.

"I knew you'd come!" She smiled at Morax, wiping sweat and blood off her forehead.

He checked her condition. A little beaten up, a little tired, but otherwise fine.

"I always will." And Morax made a promise with himself - that no matter what may come, he will always be there for his… dearest friend, whenever she might need him.

On that day, they were all victorious.

A long, long time later…

The fresh face of the youngest Archon, Venti, twisted to give Havria his best puppy-dog eyes. The giant dragon behind him tried (unsuccessfully) to do the same.

"Err, Salt Archon? There's this tiiiiiny little thing that could use your help…"

Another pair of hopeful eyes watched from a respectful distance - the young Inazuman Kagemusha, sister of the Electro Archon with several friends suffering under the karmic corruption. As if waiting for her turn.

Havria fought to keep a grin off her face, already guessing what her young colleagues might want, "Yes, Anemo Archon?"

"You see, my friend would really like to see your famous Salt Caves. You know, change of air, to breathe and relax for a bit in a new place…"

She bit her lip, no longer able to fight her smile. "Just to breathe, hmm? Not to purify the poisonous blood slowly congealing on his back?"

Venti scratched the back of his head with an impish grin, "Hehe."

Havria lost the fight with her face and smiled, shaking her head.

"We're going to need a bigger cave…"

…And even later…

Morax gently touched his Gnosis, deep in thought. So the time has come for the Lord of Geo to face the Contract to End All Contracts. "Even Gods need to abandon their power when their people no longer need them…"

Guizhong slapped him on the back of his head. "Don't need them?! What am I to you? Rotten cabbage?!" She exchanged a commiserating glance with Havria, who then turned back to sprinkle some more salt into the soup that Marchosius dutifully stirred, both of them shaking their heads at their old friend Morax.

Morax couldn't help it and looked away from the judgmental stares of his long-time friends.

"But Liyue is strong enough to stand on its own and-"

"And who's going to create Mora? Who will create the one alchemical component necessary for every single transmutation in existence? Who will show people the path to Divinity and heal their wounds through their statues?" Guizhong sighed deeply. "They might no longer need your combat prowess, but that doesn't mean the rest of what you do can just be discarded! Or did the Cryo Archon show you her plans to replace all that too?"

"Err-"

Guizhong scoffed. "Men…"

Then she went back to pouring Osmanthus wine into the prepared goblets, while Havria set up the table and Marchosius served the food. Morax scratched the back of his head, went back to preparing this year's outfit for the Rite of Descension and forgot all about the Fatui's plan.

After all, now that things were peaceful, he and his friends planned to live in Liyue for a long time to come.

The End