While undercurrents surged on the Douluo Continent and various factions were busy, a few "people" remained quite leisurely.
They enjoyed the beautiful scenery and fine things on the Douluo Continent, truly at ease.
"The journey will eventually reach its end, no need to rush."
Because of Zhongli's words, their travel pace was very slow. Every time they arrived at a place, they would stay for a period to understand the local customs, culture, and past "memories."
"Zhongli, after Xiaoxue took the throne, the lives of the common people have really improved a lot!"
"Such a small and remote village, in the past, they would have had nothing to eat, but now they can fill their stomachs!"
Paimon flew beside Zhongli, speaking with a look of relief.
She had traveled with Zhongli for a while, and although it wasn't long, she had seen many things and understood the hardships of the common people.
Especially that little kid Wang Chen, his family was so poor that they could barely make ends meet. If not for Zhongli's kindness, Wang Chen might have starved to death one day.
"Speaking of which, there's also your contribution here."
As if remembering something, Paimon's eyes lit up, and she placed her hands on her hips, speaking with a proud expression.
Zhongli, however, waved his hand, not taking credit.
"I only did a little insignificant thing, giving her some advice on national development. Being able to achieve this is her own merit."
Hearing this, Paimon instinctively said, "Without your guidance, she couldn't have reached this point!"
Zhongli was startled and looked at Paimon with some confusion.
"You're not her, how do you know she couldn't do it?"
Hearing this, Paimon instinctively wanted to say something but covered her mouth, her eyes darting around.
"Paimon knows nothing!"
Everyone: "..."
If there wasn't some secret here, they wouldn't believe it!
They didn't know that Qian Renxue wasn't the same as the one from the original timeline, she was a "regresser"!
Standing nearby, Guizhong, Xiao, and the Azahada on Guizhong's head all twitched at the corners of their eyes.
From their understanding of Paimon, if she truly knew nothing, she wouldn't have this expression.
Since Paimon didn't want to say, they didn't press further.
Everyone had their own secrets, and if they didn't want to share, it was their freedom. There was no need to dig deeper.
"Morax, your overall direction has always been correct. It is through your and the Adepti's efforts that Liyue has become so prosperous."
Azahada praised without hesitation. It could be said that almost everyone in Liyue had a blind trust in Zhongli.
The reason he didn't call him Zhongli was that Azahada wasn't used to calling his old brother by his new name.
Hearing this, Zhongli waved his hand again.
"Azahada, that's not quite right~"
"???"
Not only was Azahada full of question marks, but Guizhong and the others also had the same expression.
Wasn't Liyue's prosperity due to Morax's strength and development policies?
What was wrong with that?
Xiao touched his chin. Although he felt something was off and was also confused, he believed that since the Emperor said so, there must be a deeper meaning!
Zhongli didn't keep them in suspense. Under everyone's puzzled gazes, he continued, "Liyue is the Liyue of its people. It was built through the efforts of all Liyue's people, Adepti, and gods, through sweat and blood."
"Among this, there is not only my contribution but also yours, the adepti's and all the people of Liyue's contributions!"
"Although I possess divine power, I cannot handle everything. Blind trust in me is not right."
"Until that girl named Keqing appeared, she questioned whether the words of the Geo Archon were all correct..."
"Outrageous!"
Before Zhongli could finish, Azahada was the first to shout, causing the earth to tremble.
"How could you be wrong? That girl..."
"Azahada, it's not like that."
"Her questioning actually made me very pleased."
Zhongli waved his right hand, releasing an amber light that calmed the earth's anger.
"Huh?"
Suddenly, Paimon seemed to remember something, touched her chin, tilted her head, and said to Azahada, "Azahada, the Dragon King, you don't know."
"This Keqing is one of the Seven Stars of Liyue, the Yuheng Star. Although she questions whether Zhongli's words are correct, she is actually a very twisted Zhongli's fan..."
"She questions Zhongli because she believes Liyue cannot always rely on him. What if Zhongli disappears one day, or something happens? How should Liyue develop?"
"She believes humans should learn to think for themselves, not rely entirely on Zhongli..."
The truth is, in Liyue, there are only Zhongli's fans and twisted Zhongli's fans. Even Azahada, the Geo Dragon King, who should be at odds with the Geo Archon, is still a Zhongli's fan.
The Geo Archon won the Dragon King's authority, which originally belonged to the Geo Dragon King. They should have been natural enemies, but instead became the most reliable comrades.
"So that's how it is."
After hearing this, Azahada suddenly understood.
He thought someone in Liyue was disrespecting Zhongli, but it turned out to be for this reason.
A twisted Zhongli's fan?
This was the first time he had heard of such a thing. What exactly was this so-called Zhongli's fan? Could it be a chef?
Leaving aside the changes in the Heaven Dou Empire, the group continued on their journey, wandering aimlessly.
With the Geo Archon's decree, they traveled unimpeded through the Heaven Dou Empire.
That's right, it wasn't an imperial decree or some elder's decree.
It was the decree of the Geo Archon.
As everyone knew, the Geo Archon was a peerless king, equal to the Heaven Dou Emperor. Seeing him was like seeing the Heaven Dou Emperor.
Naturally, he had his own token.
Within the Heaven Dou Empire, no matter which heavily guarded city they entered, showing the Geo Archon's token allowed them to pass smoothly.
After all, this was no ordinary prince, nor a royal prince, but a terrifying existence known as the number one in the world.
If he wanted to do something, could he not do it without a token?
Showing the token was actually a way of interacting with everyone as an "ordinary person."
If he didn't show the token, then everyone should start wondering if they had made some mistake recently.
In fact, they didn't even need to show the token, Paimon was the best identity verification!
Such a "spirit," a humanoid "spirit" that could fly...
Who else could it be but Zhongli?
This was also why they could travel unimpeded even within the Star Luo Empire.
The architecture of the Star Luo Empire was distinctly different from that of the Heaven Dou Empire.
The Heaven Dou Empire leaned more towards grandeur, while the Star Luo Empire leaned more towards steel...
Here, "steel forests" were everywhere, with most buildings constructed from steel.
As for whether it would be hotter in the summer, for the people who were used to it, it wasn't a problem.