When Ryan returned to Liyue Harbor, he found that the atmosphere in Liyue Harbor seemed to be somewhat somber.
Although the Liyue Qixing tried to block the news, the news of Lord Rex Lapis's demise was too shocking, and it inevitably spread throughout the streets.
For a time, almost the entire Liyue Harbor was plunged into sadness. Merchants had no heart to do business seriously, and old people couldn't help but wipe away tears when the matter was brought up.
Lord Rex Lapis's significance to Liyue was simply too great.
Liyue Harbor becoming Teyvat's largest commercial hub was entirely due to his annual divine pronouncements. Now that he was gone, it inevitably made people feel lost about the future.
"Strange... Why am I... so excited? Is it because I'll soon get Lord Rex Lapis's materials?"
The strange atmosphere in Liyue Harbor also made Ryan notice a peculiar reaction within himself. He looked at his slightly trembling, excited arms with some confusion.
He had grown up listening to Cloud Retainer tell stories of Ganyu and Lord Rex Lapis. Even if he couldn't be as close as Ganyu, he held great respect for Lord Rex Lapis.
Why would he suddenly feel so excited...? Full of doubts, Ryan quickened his pace, walking past the crowds tearfully discussing Lord Rex Lapis's demise.
"Paimon, you're here!"
Just then, Ryan suddenly noticed Paimon and Lumine walking out of the Liuli Pavilion, immediately casting other questions aside and going over to greet Paimon.
As for that blonde traveler, she wasn't important.
Just an ordinary human who looked decent, Ryan wasn't interested in the materials on her body.
"Huh? Who is this gentleman? He looks somewhat familiar?"
However, at that moment, Ryan suddenly noticed the man following behind Paimon and Lumine.
So familiar, he seemed to have seen him somewhere...
"Oh, oh, this is Morax, a Guest Elder at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor."
Paimon hadn't expected to suddenly run into Ryan, but after realizing, she immediately introduced him to Ryan.
"A white fox... I suppose this must be Mr. Ryan, whom Director Hu has been talking about these past few days. A pleasure to meet you."
Morax glanced at Ryan's fox ears at this point, then greeted him with understanding.
"Oh, oh, so it's Director Hu's person, a pleasure to meet you!"
'It seems I must have seen him at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor before...'
Ryan quickly responded to Morax, guessing in his heart.
According to Liyue customs, people from Wangsheng Funeral Parlor do not speak to outsiders during work. So, although Ryan had seen several people from Wangsheng Funeral Parlor at the time, he hadn't interacted with any of them except Hu Tao.
Therefore, it was reasonable that he didn't have a deep impression.
"Did you just finish your meal? You seem to have something else to attend to?"
After getting acquainted with Morax, Ryan curiously inquired.
"Hmm..."
Paimon scratched her head and looked back at Morax with Lumine.
"No matter, it's like this, young friend Ryan, our Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is currently arranging the Rite of Parting for Lord Rex Lapis, and this traveler intends to help me with the preparations."
Morax shook his head slightly, then explained to Ryan.
"Rite of Parting..."
Ryan muttered to himself. He had heard of this; it was equivalent to an immortal's funeral, only held after an immortal's passing.
Lord Rex Lapis's Rite of Parting... The Exuvia would definitely appear, right?
As Ryan thought about it, his eyes gradually lit up.
"Lord Rex Lapis's Rite of Parting is of extraordinary significance. Please allow me to help you with the preparations as well!"
After his eyes lit up, Ryan immediately eagerly suggested.
'Hehehe, after the Rite of Parting, I can get Lord Rex Lapis's materials, and then I can conveniently abduct Paimon to take back for alchemy. Anyway, this blonde bodyguard looks like she can't take a hit...'
'As for this Wangsheng Funeral Parlor Guest Elder... he doesn't seem to be able to take a hit either... I'll find a way to trick him into leaving first, otherwise, it won't be easy to explain to Hu Tao...'
Ryan chuckled to himself, having already planned everything after the Rite of Parting.
"Since young friend Ryan is interested, having another person help with the preparations is a good thing."
Morax nodded slightly, agreeing to Ryan's suggestion.
And so, Ryan temporarily joined Lumine's party.
The first material to prepare for the Rite of Parting was noctilucous jade. Morax led them to Shitous Gem Shop near Chihuo Rock.
Although it was called Shitous Gem Shop, it was actually just a stall and couldn't compare to the large shops on Feiyun Slope.
However, Morax knew that there were indeed some good goods here.
"Yo, esteemed customers, welcome to Shitous Gem Shop! Would you like to try your luck with a couple of rough stones?"
Shitou, the stall owner of Shitous Gem Shop, saw Morax bring people and immediately his eyes lit up as he eagerly inquired.
Although he had heard the rumors on the street, he didn't show much sorrow when facing customers.
However, what frustrated him was that after the incident, no one had the leisure to gamble on stones, and the rough stones he had acquired basically couldn't be sold.
"Rough stones..."
Morax was explaining to the stall owner that they were there to buy high-quality noctilucous jade, while Ryan curiously approached the rough stones at the side of the stall.
So-called rough stones were raw Primogem of various jades. What was inside the stone before it was cut open, no one knew except perhaps Lord Rex Lapis, so this activity was also called stone gambling.
"Shatter Delusion, Condense Truth... Golden Light Traces Origin to Illuminate the Pill Soul..."
Ryan tried it briefly, and golden light shone from his eyes onto those rough stones.
"Still no good..."
After the golden light dissipated, Ryan had no Harvest.
He had tried several times before, but this ability, except for when used on elixirs to obtain information, had no feedback when used on anything else in other situations.
While Ryan was pondering over those rough stones, the stall owner also took out several of the best-quality noctilucous jade according to Morax's request.
Lumine and Paimon looked at those beautiful noctilucous jades, carefully looked left and right, then exchanged a slightly pained glance.
How could they distinguish the quality of these stones...? In the end, they had no choice but to let Morax decide.
"Oh? You want me to decide, very well."
"If you ask me, the answer is actually very simple..."
"Boss, I'll take them all."
Morax nodded slightly, then said to the stall owner without hesitation.
"Good! Esteemed sir, I knew you were extraordinary, and your generosity is truly impressive!"
Shitou, the stall owner, his eyes lit up, and he immediately praised him without reservation.
"Wait! Hold on, boss, what he just said doesn't count, let's discuss it again!"
Paimon was startled by Morax's words, her eyes wide, and she quickly blocked the stall owner, preventing him from wrapping up all those noctilucous jades.
The stall owner glanced at Morax, found that he had no reaction, and could only temporarily stop.
"Hey! We only need one kind, right? Buying them all is too much of a waste of Mora..."
After stopping the stall owner, Paimon said to Morax, speechless.
"Don't be afraid, Paimon, Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is very rich, their Director Hu is very generous, I think this Guest Elder should be similar."
Hearing Paimon's voice, Ryan's attention shifted from the rough stones, and he leaned over to explain to Paimon.
"But the Mora for preparing the Rite of Parting is provided by Young Master..."
Seeing Ryan leaning over, Paimon explained, speechless.
The operational funds given by Young Master, if there was any left, belonged to her and Lumine, so she didn't want to use it all up without a plan...