Ten minutes later.
Sunday and Nainifindo stepped down from the stage—they had lost the match. After Mona Lisa unleashed "Thousandfold Tree Shadows," Nainifenduo was struck by an overwhelming energy wave.
With just one move, Nainifenduo lost the ability to battle.
Mona Lisa also returned to the VIP box. The challenge match against the Pokémon King would take place in one hour.
As soon as Mona Lisa returned, Hutao, Amber, and the others sward around her.
"Mona Lisa! You were amazing!"
"Co on, let the great hall master scan you to see just how strong you are."
"I want to too!"
Hutao and Amber quickly pulled out their Spiritbook and scanned Mona Lisa.
Before long, her information was revealed:
[Pokémon: Mona Lisa
Type: Grass
Level: LV.80
Description: Known as the Lord of Life, one of the most powerful Grass-type Pokémon.]
Hutao, seeing Mona Lisa's level on the Spiritbook, leaned backward in shock.
"Woooah!! Level 80?! Oh my goodness!"
Amber, Eula, and the others also gasped.
"Terrifying!"
"Oh my goodness, what can Stelle even use to fight this? No way! There's no way she can win!"
"I just want to know how Stelle feels right now—even spending money won't help~"
Fu Xuan calculated on her fingers.
"I foresee... Stelle will cry later."
Qingque also calculated.
"Wait, Great Diviner, I foresaw that Stelle doesn't cry—just gets a bit frustrated. Could it be that you were mistaken?"
Fu Xuan snorted.
"You're the Great Diviner? Or am I? Clearly, I am more accurate.
Qingque, you still have a long way to go, understand?"
Qingque twitched at the corners of her mouth.
"Yes, Great Diviner, I will work hard."
Mona Lisa smiled and said,
"Maybe I should go easy on her a bit later, otherwise Sister Stelle might be too embarrassed."
Mona Lisa suddenly spoke, catching everyone off guard.
"Mona Lisa, you can talk???" Hu Tao voiced what everyone was thinking.
Mona Lisa smiled and explained,
"I can~ Sister Hutao, don't be so surprised. Isn't Mr. Arceus able to speak too? And also Rios, Akshia, and the others."
Hutao thought for a mont after hearing that.
That's true—Rios and the others could speak too. It wasn't that weird.
It's just that Mona Lisa hadn't spoken before, and suddenly speaking now caught her off guard.
Welt then said,
"Mona Lisa, you should get so rest. You still have one more battle coming up."
Mona Lisa looked at Welt and smiled.
"Okay! Grandpa Welt."
Welt trembled when he heard her call him that, nearly losing his footing.
The room instantly fell into silence.
A mont later, Hutao burst into laughter, breaking the quiet.
"Pfft! Hahahaha! Sorry, I just couldn't help it."
With Hutao laughing, the others couldn't hold it in either.
Hiko walked over to Welt and said with a smile,
"Welt, based on seniority, Mona Lisa should indeed call you Grandpa.
March calls you Uncle Yang, and you're a generation older than her.
Since Mona Lisa is a generation younger than March, that makes her two generations younger than you. So calling you Grandpa is totally appropriate, right?"
Welt didn't want to say a word—he quietly walked to the corner in sadness.
Give back my adorable, obedient Bubu Seed!
Back then, Bubu Seed was so cute, always playing around and smiling at him—so well-behaved.
Mona Lisa scratched her head.
"Auntie Hiko, did I say sothing wrong?"
When Hiko heard Mona Lisa call her that, she instantly couldn't laugh anymore.
The others, however, laughed even harder—especially Hutao, who was cackling nonstop.
Hiko said to Mona Lisa,
"Mona Lisa, co see after the match. I need to give you a little lesson."
Mona Lisa looked puzzled.
A lesson? What for? Still, she nodded in agreent.
On the throne.
Stelle looked frustrated. It was break ti, and the lights around the throne were off, so no one else could see her expression.
"How did it end up like this? How could this happen?"
She looked toward Miris.
"Miris, you'll have to give it 200% out there. That Mona Lisa... is a bit too strong."
Miris nodded seriously. She wasn't at full strength—his level was only 60.
Even the original Lisa Bubu had been difficult to handle, not to ntion this even stronger Level 80 Mona Lisa.
One hour later.
Aventurine stepped onto the stage.
"Dear audience! As the upcoming battle may be quite intense, please put on the protective gear provided by our company.
We will not be responsible for any injuries caused by not wearing it."
Upon hearing this, the audience quickly donned the company-provided protective suits.
After confirming that everyone was properly equipped, Jade gave Aventurine the signal to begin the next phase.
Aventurine received the cue.
"Ladies and gentlen! Please welco renowned singer Miss Furina and Miss Robin to the stage to perform Ascension—to cheer on our challenger March 7th and her Pokémon Mona Lisa!"
As Aventurine finished speaking, the entire stadium went dark. Two spotlights shone on the foot of the Ascension Steps.
Furina and Robin were already waiting there.
"Hey! Fate strikes the keys of the piano—though the road ahead is perilous, we'll shine brighter than lightning!""Ahh~ it's the era of expedition! Look up at that grand stage—The gates of glory are already open wide!"
Each of the two took turns singing a verse, and with each verse completed, a segnt of the Divine Ascent Stairway lit up, filling the air with an overwhelming sense of destiny.
"Body of the victor, ascend the Divine Stair,Greet the worship of the world!Soar through the firmant! Fly to the sun!Sit upon the throne, shine with brilliance!"
As the song reached its climax, the duet by Furina and Robin, combined with a dragon of fire spiraling up around the Divine Ascent Stairway, instantly ignited the battlefield's atmosphere.
The audience erupted in cheers, the excitent so intense they could barely restrain themselves from charging onto the field!
At the song's end, every spotlight in the venue focused on the throne.
Stelle sat upon it, exuding pure queenly majesty.
She slowly rose and pointed toward Mona Lisa in the audience. Miris understood the cue and shot toward Mona Lisa in a flash of light.
In that instant, the battle began.
Miris charged at Mona Lisa.
Mona Lisa swept her hands outward.
"Forest of a Thousand Shadows!"
Countless towering trees burst from the ground, rushing at Miris.
Unfazed, Miris casually grasped the air, summoning a warhamr into her hand.With a single swing, she shattered the giant tree in front of her.
Hamr in hand, she pressed through the forest's barrier and closed in on Mona Lisa.
Mona Lisa nimbly leapt back, dodging the attack.
Seeing that she had dodged, Miris touched the glowing V-shaped marker above her head, unleashing a laser beam.
Mona Lisa summoned several vines to counter the beam.
But as the saying goes—"in beam struggles, the left side always loses."Miris's beam faded first, and Mona Lisa's vines shot toward her.
Miris swung her hamr and smashed the vines apart.
Then, with a powerful stomp, she launched herself forward, leaving behind a massive crater over ten ters deep and more than a kiloter wide.
Seeing this, Mona Lisa took to the skies, with Miris chasing after her.
As Miris closed in, Mona Lisa chanted:
"Vines of Despair!"
Over a thousand thick vines, each a ter wide, descended upon Miris.
Miris swung her warhamr to smash the approaching vines, but there were simply too many.In the end, she was overwheld and buried under the mass.
Just as the audience thought the battle was over, a brilliant light suddenly flashed from within the tangle.
The vines around Miris began to disintegrate rapidly as a sphere of white light expanded outward.
When the light faded, Mona Lisa's summoned vines had all turned to dust.
Miris stood unscathed, charging once more toward Mona Lisa.
The crowd was stunned.
"No wonder she's the Spirit King—what power! Mona Lisa's been on the back foot the entire ti."
"Yeah, even so high-level Pathstrider wouldn't have survived those last two clashes."
"And how do you know that, bro?"
"Heh, see this? My company-issued protective suit already got wrecked by the shockwaves! If I hadn't bought another one out of pocket, I wouldn't even dare watch this match."
"Damn, I need one too. This is just the beginning—once the fight hits its peak, one suit might not cut it."
Many audience mbers hit the purchase button, and a swarm of robots flew over, delivering protective gear to them.
High above the arena:
Miris had already reached Mona Lisa.
Unfazed, Mona Lisa calmly used her ultimate move:
"Illusory Wind Slash!"
She swung her arm downward, unleashing a jade-green energy slash.
Miris responded with her own ultimate:
"Radiance of Noah!"
The two attacks collided, releasing a burst of overwhelming energy.
Monts before impact, Aventurine, Topaz, and Jade used the power of the Keystone to shield the entire arena.
Welt, Jing Yuan, and others also stepped in to protect the surrounding areas.
Hiko watched and sighed in awe.
"These two youngsters are terrifying—the energy from that clash rivals that of a high-ranking Arbiter General."
Feixiao, having neutralized the aftershock, returned to the VIP box.
"Huang Quan, that last clash nearly matched one of your serious strikes."
Huang Quan glanced at Feixiao.
"Really? I don't know. I forgot."
After the clash, Miresse and Mona Lisa resud their chase—back and forth.
From sky to earth, land to sea.From deserts to glaciers, from mountains to plains.
The entire "Joyous Little Planet" had beco their battlefield.
Even as Miris and Mona Lisa tore the place apart, Aha wasn't angry—he was thoroughly amused.
"Hahaha! Aha's turf is getting wrecked! What fun! Aha's got no face left! Hahahaha!"
He was greeted by Sparkle's mighty flying kick to the rear.
"What are you laughing at?! Go fix it!"
Rubbing his butt, Aha cheerfully skipped off to start repairs.
As Miris and Mona Lisa fought ahead, Aha followed behind to restore the damage.
Their battle reached a fever pitch, and the audience felt their tickets were worth every cent.
"My god! This is incredible! Can we even watch fights of this level?!"
"So jealous of the people on-site—they're experiencing it up close."
"If it weren't for the company's protection, everyone at the venue would be vaporized by now."
"No kidding."
The battle raged on for the entire day.
Only at dusk did it finally co to an end.
Miris, exhausted, was defeated.
Thus, the first Spirit Tournant concluded—and a new Spirit King was crowned:
Grass-type Spirit King: Mona Lisa!
At the sa ti, Aventurine announced the new Spirit King rules:
The champion of each tournant can challenge any current Spirit King of their choosing.
If they win, they beco the new King.
If they share the sa type, they may only challenge the King of their own type.
As the event wrapped up, the audience was reluctant to leave the arena.
Viewers in the live stream felt the sa. Even during the boring ad break, trillions were still passionately discussing the battle between the two Spirit Kings.
"I'm telling you, if they were on equal footing, Miris would've totally won."
"Pfft. And with what? Her attribute's hard-countered by Mona Lisa!"
"Exactly! Long live Mona Lisa!"
"Official Mona Lisa fan club, let's go!"
"Shut up, Miris is way cooler and stronger! Miris fans, assemble!"
Now, Miris and Mona Lisa had beco legendary figures known across the universe.
When people talked about others—so high-ranking Arbiter General or elite warrior—most regular folks had no idea who they were.
"If I've never seen you fight, how would I know how strong you are?"
But Miris and Mona Lisa were different.
Countless people had watched their battle with their own eyes, for an entire day, and truly felt their power.
So even noticed a strange pattern.
"Damn... this 'Restarted Train Crew' is insane..."
Both Spirit Kings were, incredibly, Spirit belonging to mbers of the train crew!
Unaware of Ye Yun's existence, various factions began investigating the strange power of the train crew—trying to figure out how they had raised not one, but two Spirit Kings.
That night—
Most mbers of the "One Big Happy Family" chat group arrived in New Suru for a visit.
Nahida stood at the portal to greet them.
"Welco to New Suru, everyone. Make yourselves at ho—we'll start serving dinner once everyone's here."
On a balcony above, The Tsaritsa looked down at the neatly planned, well-organized city.
She couldn't help but sigh.
"Even Suru has developed better than our own region of Snezhnaya...We need to reflect on our plans.
We'll hold a eting when we return.If we continue on this path, we'll be left further and further behind."
***
Kiana, Theresa, and the others were also invited to attend.
Kiana was quite curious.
"Nahida, what made you want to invite us for a al?" Kiana asked while chewing on beef.
Nahida smiled.
"Because I want to promote the products of our New Suru.
All the food you're eating now cos from the farms and ranches of New Suru."
As she spoke, Nahida pointed at the sautéed mushroom boar steak in front of her.
"Like this steak—it's made from the specially bred mushroom boars from our ranch. The taste is better than before, and the at is more tender."
Upon hearing this, the little demon lord quietly summoned a waiter and asked for a large piece of raw mushroom boar at to be packed for her.
Nahida continued her introduction.
"All these fruits and vegetables you're eating also co from our farms.
Among them, the best in quality are the mushrooms—they taste absolutely delicious."
The little demon lord waved her hand.
"Waiter, co here for a second."
Finally, Nahida took out a canister of knowledge.
"This is a modified version of the canned knowledge I developed. Just stick it to your forehead, and you can absorb the knowledge inside.
Its only side effect is a temporary headache if you consu too much at once, but a good night's sleep will fix that."
Kiana perked up.
"Oh? Sothing this useful? Nahida! Can I order one? I want to customize it with content from the St. Freya Academy textbooks!
Then I can learn everything at once, and I'll definitely get first place in the next exam!"
Nahida thought for a mont.
"Just give the textbooks, and I'll make them for you. I'll let you know when they're ready."
Kiana was thrilled. She happily pulled out a wad of Stellar Jade, licked her fingers, and started counting.
"Nahida, how much is one of these canisters?"
Nahida smiled.
"1 million credits, or 100 Stellar Jade per can.
Of course, if it's a large amount of content, the price will go up accordingly."
Kiana started counting on her fingers.
"Language, math, English, history... eight subjects in total."
She handed 800 Stellar Jade to Nahida, who accepted them with a smile.
Seeing this, the others more or less ordered one or two canned knowledge packs as well.
This thing was interesting—it allowed you to instantly gain knowledge.
Herta, Screwllum, and Ruan i weren't interested.
They could easily develop a similar device themselves—this was nothing complicated.
Back at her seat, Kiana turned to Bronya and raised her eyebrows provocatively.
"Heh heh, dumb Bronya! I'm totally going to beat you on the next test! Wahahahaha!"
The thought of becoming top of the class had Kiana bursting with excitent.
Bronya replied dryly.
"Heh. Don't get ahead of yourself. You think just morizing the textbook will get you first place? If you don't know how to apply it, you still won't be able to solve the problems."
Hearing this, Kiana slapped another wad of Stellar Jade on the table.
"That's easy! Nahida! Give ten more sets! Add in problem-solving techniques!"
Nahida agreed and took another 1,000 Stellar Jade.
Theresa looked at Kiana speechlessly.
Openly cheating right in front of her? Just wait till the test—see if she doesn't change all the questions.
For now, she let Kiana enjoy herself. But when she sees the real exam paper, she'll be in for a rude awakening.
Cecilia didn't say anything. In her view, as long as Kiana was happy, that's what mattered. Good grades weren't that important.
Learning was both important and not important for Kiana. Gaining more knowledge would definitely help her.
But even if she didn't learn, Kiana's current strength spoke for itself.
Happiness was the most important thing—as long as Kiana was happy, that was enough.
Cecilia turned to the person next to her—Durandal.
Durandal was different from Kiana—she was more independent.
She was always busy with her own affairs, only coming to chat and eat with her when she had ti.
Cecilia would also bring Kiana to visit Durandal whenever she was free. Durandal was still in her original position.
Noticing Cecilia's warm gaze, Durandal smiled slightly.
"Mom, what's on your mind?"
Cecilia shook her head.
"Nothing. How's work lately?"
The mother and daughter continued their al while chatting.
Kiana, anwhile, ran off and brought a stack of exam papers to Nahida, asking her to use them for making canned knowledge.
Everyone continued enjoying dinner, and soon the topic shifted to Genshin Impact dungeons.
"Hey, among us, who's furthest along in the story?"
"You an the main story? That's probably Welt. I think he's already in Liyue."
Stelle pointed to herself.
"I've reached Liyue too, but I just got there—I'm grinding exploration in Dihua Marsh."
Welt thought for a mont and replied.
"Then I'm ahead of you. I didn't really go hunting for chests and stuff—I've been following the main story. I just ca back from eting the Adepti at Jueyun Karst."
Stelle perked up.
"Uncle Yang, tell us about the upcoming story!"
Hutao chid in right away.
"Yeah~ Mr. Welt, this head of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor would love to hear it too~"
"Our Liyue storyline—what will it be like? I'm really curious."
Hearing this, Welt paused for a mont and began explaining the Liyue main storyline.
"The story in Liyue Harbor begins with the Rite of Descension."
As soon as Welt started speaking, everyone's eyes turned to Zhongli.
Because, after all, the Rite of Descension was held to invite Zhongli.
Welt continued.
"This ti, the ceremony is hosted by Ningguang of the Liyue Qixing.
But sothing went terribly wrong.
A sudden change occurred at the scene, and the body of the Geo Archon fell from the sky.
For certain reasons, we—the Travelers—had to sneak away from the venue.
Unfortunately, we were still discovered by the Millelith.
In the end, it was the Fatui's Childe who saved the Traveler, giving them the 'All-Access Permit' to seek out the Adepti at Mt. Qingce.
The Traveler visited Moon Carver, Mountain Shaper, Cloud Retainer, and the Great Sage Conqueror of Demons.
Upon learning of the Geo Archon's supposed assassination, the Adepti all set out for Liyue.
That's as far as I've played—I don't know what happens after that."
After hearing Welt's recounting, Lumine slamd the table and stood up.
"Ha! It must've been Aether! Only a villain like him would assassinate a god!"
Welt shook his head.
"It probably wasn't Aether. The Abyss Order barely even shows up in Liyue's story.
From so clues, I've ford a theory—that the Geo Archon never actually died.
His death was a staged event, a self-orchestrated performance.
But I still don't understand what his motive could have been."
Upon hearing that, Lumine finally sat back down.
Had Welt not explained this, Lumine would've definitely gone to drag Aether out for interrogation.
Stelle turned to Zhongli.
"Why don't we just ask the person in question directly? He should know."
Zhongli, who had been deep in thought, looked up after being "called out."
"I believe I do know the reason. But I won't tell you. Knowing it would affect your gaplay experience."
Upon hearing this, Stelle said,
"Tch~ Fine, don't tell us then. We'll figure it out ourselves.
Flay, Hu Tao, you full yet? If so, let's go. Ti to grind in Genshin."
Flay and Hu Tao stood up, following Stelle back to the train.
At the Interstellar Peace Corporation.
A board mber above Schneider called a eting and summoned Jade for questioning.
"Jade, are you aware of your cris?"
Jade looked up at the board mber.
"What cri have I committed?"
At this mont, Schneider spoke up.
"You really don't know? It's your Strategic Investnt Departnt that's been selling Spirit Essences.
High-potential Spirit like Miris and Mona Lisa—you actually sold them off to outsiders! What do you say to that?"
Jade understood instantly—Schneider was trying to pin the sale of Miris and Mona Lisa on her.
"I'm not guilty. Miris and Mona Lisa weren't sold from my side."
Schneider snorted coldly.
"Hmph! Still denying it? Your departnt is the only one in the universe selling Spirit Essences! If it's not you, who else?"
Jade was about to ntion Ye Yun—but then quickly composed herself. Interesting. He's trying to bait her, to figure out where her supply is coming from.
She turned to Schneider.
"Schneider, save your dirty tricks. This business—it's beyond your reach."
Then she looked up at the board mber.
"This isn't sothing the company can handle with a single word. If mismanaged, it could bring about disaster!"
Schneider couldn't take her arrogance and stood up, ready to act.
Jade turned calmly to face him, unfazed.
Tension filled the room, on the brink of exploding into conflict.
At that critical mont, the board mber finally spoke.
"Jade, how about this—we divide up the Spirit Essences and sell them together?
We're all part of the sa company. We should make money together. Other departnts can help ease your burden, too.
Also, I guarantee full support for all your future Spirit tournants."
Jade gave a faint smile.
Heh. The old "stick and carrot" routine?
If the others got selling rights to Spirit Essences, they could easily start their own tournants.
Change the na a little—"Strongest Spirit King Tournant," maybe? Jade was sure soone would try it.
Do they really think she's a fool? Looks like these people need a lesson. Otherwise, they won't stop.
Jade said,
"I'll go back and think about it for a night, how about that?"
The board mber knew not to push too hard. After all, Jade controlled the entire supply chain of Spirit Essences.
"Alright. Go think it over. I'll await your response first thing in the morning."
Jade left the courtroom, glancing back at the locked chamber door with a scornful smile.
She pulled out her phone and sent a ssage to Ye Yun.
Not long after she sent it, a mysterious and powerful Spirit broke into the company's headquarters, Pierpoint.
After seriously injuring a Stoneheart, the Spirit left unhard—and the company couldn't do a thing.
The next morning.
After a night of grinding Genshin, Stelle, Hutao, and the others erged from a dungeon.
First thing Stelle did was run to the bar to exchange her currency for Star Coins.
She licked her fingers and counted—6,000 Star Coins total.
Over the whole night, she had grinded 600 Primogems.
Liyue really was the best. So many more treasure chests than Mondstadt—practically one every few steps.
Thanks to Zhongli's "walkthrough," she had solved several major puzzles and earned lots of great loot.
After exchanging her Star Coins, she happily skipped into the bustling kitchen.
Poking her head out beside Xiangling, she said,
"Xiangling, got anything to eat? Gim sothing, I'm starvin'!"
Xiangling was frying up so youtiao (fried dough sticks).
"Perfect timing. I'm frying youtiao. Want one?"
Stelle gave an OK sign.
"Sure! Sounds great."
Xiangling pointed to a basket nearby.
"They're in there. Be careful—they're hot."
Stelle nodded, grabbed so napkins, and picked one up, taking a big bite.
Feeling it was a bit dry, she went over to Little Evil God.
He was slowly stirring a pot of soy milk with a large ladle.
"Jashin-chan, give a bowl of soy milk."
Little Evil God glanced at her, then placed a clay bowl on the counter.
He scooped a perfect portion from the pot and poured it in.
At this point, Hutao, Stelle, and Amber also entered the kitchen looking for food.
Each took so youtiao and a bowl of soy milk, then sat at the table.
Hutao dipped her youtiao in the soy milk and took a bite.
"I've noticed sothing—we never seem to pull our own characters in this ga.
Diluc and Jean pulled so many tis, and still didn't get themselves."
Stelle replied,
"Well, their characters are 5-stars. Isn't it normal not to pull them?"
Hutao shook her head.
"But Lisa, Kaeya, and Xiangling are the sa—they didn't get their own characters either.
That's a bit strange, don't you think?"
Ye Yun, who was steaming buns nearby, chid in.
"It's possible to pull your own character—but it's very hard.
And if you do, sothing special happens.
If you folks from Teyvat pull your own character, you can unlock your real-life Constellations—enhancing your actual power."
Stelle's eyes went wide as she stared at Ye Yun.
"Constellations? That's real?
Whoa! You guys from Teyvat hit the jackpot!"
Hutao, Amber, and the others instantly perked up, now fully awake and ready for another dungeon run.
Amber knew what her first Constellation did—an extra arrow per shot! That'd double her firepower in real life!
As for Hutao—Ye Yun had ntioned her character would appear in a future event banner.
She planned to save up all her Mora and go all-in when her banner dropped.
Stelle raised her hand.
"Ye Yun! Are there any dungeons from our world?"
Ye Yun nodded.
"Yes. It's called Honkai: Star Rail—but it hasn't been released yet.
And, you know, you're actually the protagonist."
Stelle lit up with joy.
"Wahaha! I'm the protagonist! Wahahaha! This is aweso! So aweso!"
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