"Hmph... I can't pretend it's archeological exploration anymore."
After Clement walked away, little Paimon crossed his arms and complained.
Even she could see that Clement was not a sincere scholar who came to conduct archaeological excavations. It was a good thing that he was not allowed to take away the relics of the Salt Demon God.
"Clement's mistake was greed, but besides greed, there are many temptations that make people want to violate the contract. When faced with the things they desire, how many people can restrain their desires and abide by the contract?"
"Why not, let's take this opportunity to make it clear."
Zhongli sighed softly. Under the dim light in the distance, his golden pupils showed a very similar color and texture to Maura.
"Explain what?"
Paimon didn't understand what Zhongli was talking about, so he asked curiously, but the emperor had already turned his attention to Wan Yan beside him.
"Miss Wanyan, you lack the most basic knowledge of archeology and don't know a few cultural relics, but you are very proficient in the knowledge of the Demon God of Salt. Compared with archeology and cultural relics, the Demon God of Salt itself interests you more, right? "
"The reason why Miss Ninglan entrusted the traveler to investigate the cause of the emperor's death is probably related to the actions of the Yinyuan Hall..."
Hearing these words, Wan Yan suddenly panicked, but she still forced herself to calm down and asked: "What, what action... Why can't I understand?"
Perhaps because the time had not come yet, Zhongli did not point out Wan Yan who was pretending to be dumbfounded. He just put away the salt cup with a calm face and stared at the other party with cold eyes.
In this temporary archaeological team, no one is here for archaeology, and almost everyone has their own small ideas.
Clement did it to unearth the demon's relic in exchange for Mora and his status among the fools, while Wanyan claimed to be an archaeologist just to find evidence of Morax's evil deeds and to prove that the salt god Heulia was a A powerful demon god.
"Okay... I admit that Mr. Zhongli is indeed very knowledgeable. It seems that I mustered up the courage to ask you questions. It seems to be the right choice."
As if she couldn't stand Zhongli's dazzling gaze, Wanyan pursed her lips and finally decided to tell the truth.
"As you all know, Manager Ning Lan and I are from Yinyuan Hall. Our ancestors were the people who were protected by the Demon God of Salt during the suffering period when the Demon God War swept across the continent."
"During the war, Morax assassinated our god. He was jealous of Lady Heulia's power and made us homeless. I...we hate him! But Liyue is Morax's Liyue, and history must be the same. Whitewashed by him.”
Wanyan looked excited and seemed to have found a way to vent her anger.
"So, I want to prove that Morax is also guilty, that he has blood on his hands, that he has a ruthless side."
"We signed a contract to face the truth, right, Mr. Zhongli! You must make a fair judgment on this matter!"
Wan Yan finally revealed the true purpose of exploring the ruins of the Salt Demon God. The expression on her face became more and more distorted as she told the story, but Zhong Li remained silent for a long time after hearing the words.
Ying frowned tightly, looking at the hysterical Wan Yan in front of her, she just felt ridiculous.
I obviously live in Liyue and have been blessed by King Yan for generations, but I am so ungrateful.
Famas, who was listening on the sidelines, just smacked his lips and sighed at the power and scale of the Silver Plains Hall.
Heulia died at the end of the Demon God War, more than two thousand years ago. Today, a thousand years later, she still has a huge number of fans.
Wanyan's current belief is by no means something out of nothing, but has been formed through a long period of subtle influence. Her remarks just now can also prove from the side that there are by no means a few believers of the Salt God in Yinyuan Hall.
Although Morax has passed away, the 3,700 years of walking with God are real.
Qixing, who are also humans, paid great attention to the death of the gods and quickly took control of the center of power in Liyue. However, this does not mean that they deny the achievements of the gods. On the contrary, the deeper they go into the center of power in Liyue, the more they understand. The wisdom of Morax.
Governing the country should allow for different opinions, but such opinions should not appear in such a turbulent time, let alone artificial speculation based on trumped-up evidence.
Morax is still the foundation of Liyue, and the behavior of Yinyuan Hall is tantamount to shaking the foundation of Liyue.
Famas silently mourned for Yinyuan Hall in his heart. Although he didn't have a good impression of Liyue, judging from Ninglan's previous commission and Wanyan's current reaction, Yinyuan Hall must be planning something that is detrimental to Liyue's interests. action.
"Miss Ninglan...Yinyuan Hall...action?
Little Paimon extracted the key words from the conversation between Zhongli and Wanyan and hurriedly asked.
But Zhongli shook his head at Paimeng and turned to comfort Wan Yan, who was gritting his teeth.
"Now that I have signed a contract, I must abide by it...Besides, Liyue is no longer the Liyue of Morax."
"Come with me, all the answers lie ahead."
Several people continued to go deep into the ruins and entered the third altar. Two broken swords were enshrined on the altar.
After being eroded by time and salt, the blades of the two broken swords were pitch black, and the original shape and appearance could no longer be distinguished. However, the moment Famas saw the broken swords, he was first stunned, and then showed a look of understanding.
He finally understood why Zhongli told the truth about Heulia's death and it was inextricably linked to him.
"Ah! It's a broken sword. This is evidence! It proves that the Salt Demon God once resisted, but he just failed to resist the murderous hand of Morax!"
The person who reacted faster than Famas was Wan Yan. She seemed to have fallen into a state of demonic barrier. She looked at the damaged weapon carefully, as if she saw enough evidence to support everything, and excitedly explained to everyone:
"Compared to the salt lamp and salt ruler, the power of this sword must be far greater than them. If this sword can be repaired, it will be able to show others the power that Lady Heulia once had..."
Wan Yan started to argue endlessly. After Paimeng touched his chin and looked at the appearance of the broken sword, he walked around Zhongli: "It... does look like something left after the defeat?"
But Zhongli did not give any explanation of the origin of the sword. Instead, he first emphasized the contract to retrieve the object in sequence.
"The two broken swords are, from an archaeological point of view, two cultural relics. According to the contract of [taking the objects in sequence, one piece at a time], you can only take away one of them."
Wanyan was stunned when she heard Zhongli's emotionless words.
"Why, why? Although they are taking things in sequence, that guy Clement has already..."
"Yes, but [one at a time] is still valid. If you want to take away two cultural relics at the same time, it is a violation of the contract."
"This this……"
Wan Yan stood there at a loss. Paimeng, who didn't know why, was still pleading for Wan Yan: "Well... Zhongli, she is not malicious and she is not fighting. Can she be accommodating?"
But at this time, Zhongli was like the God of Contract in the past, his tone was calm but unquestionable:
"The contract cannot be accommodated. If it is not followed, it will be broken."
Wanyan's mind was spinning, and she suddenly made up her mind as she remembered the consequences of Clement's violation of the contract.
"No! If you only take away half of it, then there will be no way to repair it, and there will be no way to regain Heulia-sama's power..."
"No matter what, for my faith in Lady Heulia...even if it means breaking the contract, I won't hesitate!"
Zhongli's golden eyes narrowed slightly.
"If you violate the contract, you will be punished by eating rocks."
Hearing this, Wan Yan flinched in fear, but then nodded slowly.
"That's...it doesn't matter. Lady Heulia is willing to sacrifice her life to protect her followers. My sacrifice is insignificant, it doesn't matter how you punish me, as long as I bring back...the proof of my faith!"
Although her words were stammering, Wan Yan's tone was extremely firm.
From this point of view, she is indeed a devout believer in the Demon God of Salt, and her belief is not false.
But how strong can such piety be in the face of the cruel truth?
Paimon was still desperately waving his hands to stop Zhongli.
"Hey, Zhongli, even though Miss Wanyan is so talkative, I don't believe in you...I mean Emperor Yanwang, but..."
"...No, you can't hit girls!"
(End of chapter)
