That night, Rosaria had to go on patrol and couldn't continue "training" with Nolan, so he simply went to train with the other girls—after all, training could not be neglected.
[Level: Lv124 (1,502,451 / 34,000,000)]
By the next morning, counting the previous days' efforts, Nolan's training progress had grown significantly once again.
After successfully maxing out Rosaria's affection, he prepared to continue raising the affection of the other girls.
According to his plan, today he intended to head over to Liyue, where several girls with whom he had good relationships still didn't have their affection maxed.
Those were Xiangling, Yanfei, and Beidou.
Aside from gifting them skills to increase affection, Nolan thought of another method—adventuring together.
He had long considered this: the many sealed demon gods beneath Guyun Stone Forest, originally sealed by Zhongli—if he used a Command Seal to take control of them, they could maintain peace across Teyvat.
After all, ancient god-level combat ability was too precious to waste. Since he had the ability to control them, letting them contribute to Teyvat's development would be far more useful than leaving them sealed and idle.
Besides, as demon gods, they held high research value.
Previously, after fighting the Shogun and getting a drop of her blood, Nolan—following the principle of "waste nothing"—gave it to Sucrose for research.
But that was blood from a top-tier demon god. At that time, Sucrose's level wasn't high, and her biological alchemy skills weren't yet at the level needed to analyze such top-tier material.
Thus, even though she had now reached level 99 like everyone else, and had produced many results in other fields, she still had made very little progress with ancient god-level blood.
The research was extremely difficult, but not entirely fruitless. It was simply that the level of a top-tier demon god was overwhelmingly high.
Compared to the Raiden Shogun, the demon gods sealed under Guyun Stone Forest were far weaker.
Once controlled, making them cooperate with Sucrose's research to improve her alchemy mastery would be quite reasonable.
Back then, his strength wasn't enough to implement this idea. But now? Absolutely enough. Perfect timing to handle all of them—and earn some EXP while he was at it.
Those were plans for later. Now, back to the main task.
With the plan to adventure at Guyun Stone Forest, he needed a reason to invite Beidou and the others.
Guyun was offshore. Going alone felt boring. Inviting Beidou—someone who knew the sea better than anyone—made perfect sense.
Since he'd pass the harbor anyway, he could stop by Wanmin Restaurant and ask Xiangling if she wanted to join and search for new ingredients.
Unless Wanmin was unusually busy, Xiangling would definitely agree—her obsession with culinary innovation was second to none. And in the morning, Wanmin was generally not busy.
So the odds of securing her were high.
Finally, there was Yanfei. Since this wasn't law-consultation related, inviting her depended on her personal interest.
But her affection toward him wasn't low. Even if she wasn't interested in adventuring, she likely wouldn't reject his invitation.
Plus, she had Intersteller Travel, allowing instant teleportation back to Liyue, so she wouldn't be inconvenienced.
With everything planned, Nolan used Waymark to ask Beidou and Yanfei if they were free. After all, one was a fleet captain and one was a legal advisor—they were usually busy.
If they were occupied, he didn't want to disturb them. The demon gods were sealed and wouldn't be running away. Going another day was perfectly fine.
Beidou replied first: her fleet was currently at sea and would return to Liyue Harbor this afternoon. After that, she'd have a few days off and could accompany him to Guyun Stone Forest.
Yanfei soon replied as well: she happened to be free these few days. If he wanted to invite her out for a walk or adventure, any time was fine.
With this, he moved the appointment to tomorrow morning, avoiding scheduling conflicts.
Next step: visit Wanmin Restaurant early and ask Xiangling. If she happened to be unavailable, he could rearrange his plan in advance.
Also, since he intended to explore Zhongli's sealed ancient god site, he needed to inform Zhongli beforehand. It would be rude to just enter the seal without saying anything.
After planning everything out, Nolan had breakfast in the Wonderland Space, then left with Hu Tao, who was heading to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
As expected, Zhongli—like every morning—was at "Third-Round Knockout", having tea and listening to opera.
Nolan spotted him from a distance, walked over, and explained his plan.
Controlling the dangerous demon gods would remove the risk of them escaping the seal, prevent environmental contamination from accidental over-killing, and potentially make them useful to Teyvat.
Such a beneficial endeavor—Zhongli naturally approved.
After that, Nolan went to Wanmin Restaurant to find Xiangling. She was indeed there, selling freshly steamed buns with Guoba.
Seeing him, Xiangling brightened and immediately offered him freshly made buns. He accepted, eating while asking if she was free tomorrow.
The moment she heard he was going to an ancient god seal site, Xiangling's eyes sparkled.
She had already proven that slimes could be cooked. Would demon gods also be… cookable?
Nolan broke into a cold sweat. Absolutely not.
Who knew whether those bizarre demon gods were edible? And demon gods were intelligent beings. Even if non-humanoid, the idea felt horribly wrong.
"Hehe, it was just a sudden thought—I wouldn't actually cook them. But an ancient god seal site might have plants or animals we've never seen before.
"Those could make new ingredients!"
Xiangling said excitedly.
"Uh… even if there are, they're probably contaminated by ancient god energy. Better not. Instead, I'll help you look for rare fish in the deep sea, how about that?"
Nolan suggested after thinking.
"Mhm! Some deep-sea fish are ridiculously hard to catch—and expensive! Like Deep-Sea Rays or Golden Blackfin Skipjack. They live thousands of meters underwater! I've always wanted to get one for cooking!"
Xiangling said with anticipation.
[Xiangling Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 530 Affection Points. Current affection Level: Lv.5 (330 / 500)]
Seeing the notification, Nolan smiled.
"In that case, it's perfect. Exploring the seal shouldn't take long. Afterward we'll look for rare fish together."
The ancient god seal was deep underwater. Maybe not thousands of meters, but certainly several hundred—far enough that ships wouldn't accidentally find it.
Otherwise someone might mistake it for a treasure site, poke around, and release demon gods by accident. That would be a disaster.
"Hehe, okay!"
Xiangling nodded excitedly. Guoba even hopped and chirped joyfully.
With the schedule mostly confirmed and everyone free, Nolan's tasks for the day were complete.
With nothing else planned for the rest of the day, Nolan returned to the Wonderland Space and continued training with the girls.
It was still early morning, and Rosaria had already come back from her night shift. Her strength still needed improvement, so Nolan felt it was necessary to cultivate with her more often so she could catch up with everyone else.
—The next morning.
Nolan rose from the warm bedding shared with the girls, and spent a good while cuddling and cultivating with Rosaria, Layla, and Mona.
His training progress increased by a large margin again.
Soon, it was nearly time for the appointment with Beidou, Yanfei, and Xiangling to head to Guyun Stone Forest. If he headed out now, he'd arrive right on schedule.
After breakfast, he returned once more to Liyue Harbor.
When he walked to Wanmin Restaurant, he found Beidou and Yanfei already there, eating the large buns Xiangling had prepared.
"Good morning, everyone," Nolan greeted with a smile.
"Hehe, morning, Traveler! Come sit, eat with us! This is my newest creation—bitter-melon peel pork buns! You have to try it!"
Xiangling grabbed him enthusiastically, sat him down, and pushed one of the pale green buns toward him.
"Bitter melon, huh? Just looking at it already feels detoxifying…"
The thought of bitter melon alone made Nolan feel like his expression was about to wrinkle into the shape of one.
"Haha! I've already tried it. It only has a faint bitterness—honestly, it's pretty good!"
Beidou let out a hearty laugh at his expression.
"Indeed. This new dish is surprisingly decent. Much better than that strange drink she once made me try—the one mixed with lizard tails and stirred with slime condensate."
Yanfei took a bite of the bun calmly, showing no sign of being overwhelmed by the bitter taste.
"If you two approve, then it should be fine."
Nolan nodded, picked up a bun, then looked at Yanfei curiously. "By the way… that drink you mentioned. You actually drank it?"
The bun entered his mouth, releasing a light bitterness that balanced the rich flavor of the meat filling, creating a refreshing taste overall.
Actually… it's quite good, Nolan thought, eyes brightening slightly.
"I think this bun could become a bestseller." He turned to Xiangling with affirmation.
"If even the Traveler says so, then I'll try selling it for a few days."
Even Xiangling, who frequently experimented with bizarre dishes, felt that juicing bitter melon and mixing it into dough for meat buns was… unique.
So receiving everyone's approval made her genuinely happy.
[Xiangling Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 520 Affection Points. Current affection level: Lv.6 (350/600)]
"Of course I didn't drink it! Whenever Xiangling starts grabbing strange ingredients, I stay far, far away."
Yanfei said after swallowing her bun.
"What? I think aside from the slightly odd texture, there wasn't anything that bad about it!"
Xiangling crossed her arms, glaring at Yanfei.
"The fact that the texture was strange already proves that drink was a failure."
Yanfei shrugged lightly.
When Xiangling cooked normal dishes, her culinary skills were unquestionably among the best in Liyue. But when she experimented… she always liked adding her own creative twists.
The result was often something where—even before tasting it—the appearance alone was enough to scare most people away.
"Speaking of recipes, the 'Akasha Interconnection Network' should have all kinds of regional cuisines. Xiangling, you should browse through it. You might get tons of new ideas."
Nolan laughed, then continued:
"All right, once we finish breakfast, we'll head out. On the way back, let's catch a few deep-sea fish for an all-fish feast!"
"Mhm! I'll definitely develop a new dish from it!"
Xiangling nodded vigorously.
"Then let's set off. Adventuring at an ancient god seal site sounds dangerous. Traveler, you better protect us well."
Beidou said, meeting his eyes.
Though she considered herself strong, demon gods were on a completely different level. Even sealed ones weren't something she could handle.
Normally, even knowing such a place might hold treasure, she would never go.
But she trusted Nolan. With him there, she believed nothing bad would happen.
And since she might face the legendary pressure of a demon god, it could even toughen her will.
With him around, there was no reason not to try.
"Mhm. Beidou is right. Before we depart, let me grant you all a few skills. In case of danger, these will help you stay unscathed."
Nolan explained the effects of "Divine Maiden's Purity" and "Grace of the Night's Opulent Splendor", then applied them to the three girls.
Since Xiangling still didn't have Intersteller Travel, he gave her that skill as well.
"No wonder you dared invite us to such a dangerous place—you were already prepared! With these skills, I won't even fear running into monsters while traveling alone!"
Yanfei said with clear delight as she felt the energy settle.
With teleportation, mental-control resistance, and damage redirection all covered, she truly no longer had to worry about danger.
Her affection rose noticeably.
[Yanfei Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 630 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.8 (150/800)]
"It seems your power has already reached an unimaginable level, Traveler… To casually grant such incredible abilities to us…"
Beidou said, deeply impressed.
With these skills, she would no longer need to fear anything when sailing. Their usefulness to her was enormous.
[Beidou Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 640 Affection Ponits. Current Affection Level: Lv.8 (500/800)]
"Traveler, you're too good to us!"
Xiangling said excitedly.
From now on, she could venture into the wild in search of ingredients without worrying about monsters. She could even explore areas she previously never dared to enter.
[Xiangling Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 650 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.7 (400/700)]
(End of Chapter)
(T/N: Changed Demon God to Ancient God, I think it suits better.)
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