Chapter Seventeen: Xi, The Beginning and End

Under the moonlit night, beside the campfire.

Little Paimon gazed at his calm face, yet beneath that tranquility, she seemed to sense a roaring fire of suppressed anger.

Noticing the unrest in the young boy’s heart, Paimon pondered for a moment, then placed her small hands firmly on her hips and declared resolutely, “Alright, since that’s the case, to repay you for saving me, I shall be your guide in Teyvat! I swear on the most delicious roasted meat that Paimon will definitely help you find your sister!”

The boy looked at Paimon’s unusual yet earnest vow and, for the first time, smiled at her.

He had told Paimon about these matters partly as a test.

After spending several days together, he felt no malice from the little one; she was as pure as a blank sheet, easily endearing herself to others.

Her only flaw was perhaps her voracious appetite, able to devour half a wild boar in one sitting.

This led him to believe that his earlier suspicions about the little creature were probably just his own overthinking.

Yet, out of caution, he still decided to share the story of himself and his sister to see how the little guide would react.

At that moment, seeing the sincere and serious look in Paimon’s eyes, the Traveler finally truly accepted this small guide who had nowhere else to go and wished to journey alongside him.

From now on, they would be travel companions for a long time to come…

[End of Episode One]

………………………

[Hmm, is that it? I was just getting into it!]

[Looks like Episode One is just about how the protagonist met Paimon, filling in a missing piece of Genshin Impact’s storyline.]

[Adding a bit of drama and foreshadowing to the development between the Traveler and the guide—this encounter full of tension lays the groundwork for the deep bond they will share. The screenwriter’s adaptation is quite good.]

[Hmm~ I quite like this adaptation. Let’s give it an 80 for now. If there are new developments later, I’ll reconsider.]

[By the way, when’s Episode Two coming? I’m looking forward to it.]

[Ahem, have you all finished chatting? If so, everyone look at me—I have an announcement.]

[???]

[I am Miss Xi’s biggest fan!!!!!! (shouting at the top of my lungs!)]

[Whoa, calm down, brother. I know you’re excited, but hold on, let me get excited first! Oh my... such a perfect face, and there’s a second one? Am I dreaming?]

[Wuwu, thank the heavens for Miss Xi’s great kindness, she saved my descendants! Who understands the panic of a straight man like me when he saw the Traveler? I didn’t dare tell my family—I almost thought I’d have to sit at the same table with the folks from Shudu.]

[Phew, what a relief. Ladies, now there’s no need to fight—you each like your own.]

[What’s that supposed to mean? Do you look down on us girls? You guys say two guys can be together, but two girls can’t?]

[Exactly, “one husband, one wife,” you know? We want both the Traveler and Miss Xi.]

[Eh?! That’s not fair!]

[You want to argue with us? You don’t know that the one thing you can’t argue with girls about is reason?]

[This, you, I…]

[Ahem, let’s take a count—how many of you have been daydreaming about Miss Xi since you first saw her?]

[+1]

[+1]

[+100861314520]

………………

Because of Miss Xi’s brief but stunning appearance in the Sky Island battle animation, the livestream chat room exploded instantly, setting off a huge commotion. Viewers grew restless, flooding the screen with scrolling comments.

But Silver Wolf understood perfectly—after all, her own heart had skipped a beat just now!

Silently capturing a screenshot, Silver Wolf cleared her throat twice and said, “Ahem, alright, we’ve finished watching the video. That’s all for today—I’m signing off.”

[Eh~~ already ending?]

[Don’t go yet, play a bit more!]

[No more news? When will the game officially launch? I can’t wait to dive in.]

……

The viewers were reluctant, their messages becoming even more urgent as if trying to pull Silver Wolf back, but she mercilessly shut down the stream without a hint of hesitation.

Stretching, Silver Wolf walked out of the room while opening a group chat, her fingers dancing lightly over the virtual keyboard as a faint smile curved her lips.

[Silver Wolf: @Kafka, @Firefly, sharing some goodies with you. (images) (images)]

………………

At the Tianheng Group Headquarters,

Unlike the netizens who only saw the first episode of the Mondstadt segment, Mobius sent Ningguang the complete, uncut series, also edited by Prometheus.

If Ningguang wished, she could continue watching the unfolding story.

Ningguang wanted to skip ahead to the Liyue segment, to relive the young Traveler’s adventures there and to see the moments shared between him and herself.

Yet, after much hesitation, she restrained the impulse.

Fine tea must be savored slowly—if gulped down hastily, its true flavor is lost.

Better to witness the young man’s journey from the beginning, step by step. That too was something to look forward to.

With this thought, she turned off the screen and shifted her gaze to the towering pile of official documents, intending to tackle the remaining work first.

………………

At Jiangnan University, Kong Ying’s dormitory,

Seeing Ying once again freeze the video at Miss Xi’s entrance and slip into a dazed state, Kong could only shake his head helplessly.

He looked over at little Paimon, who was once more munching on snacks, and hesitantly asked, “By the way, Paimon, what exactly did you and Feng Ge go through back then? Why did Feng Ge go to Teyvat in place of me and Ying? Why have you never mentioned Teyvat before?”

This had always been a mystery in Kong’s mind. From his and Ying’s perspective, their story went roughly like this:

Many years ago—he couldn’t recall exactly when—they wandered through countless worlds, traveling everywhere.

Then one day, they suddenly felt a strange summons, as if invisible hands were pulling them irresistibly toward an unknown world.

But just as they were about to enter that world, an unforeseen crisis struck.

A sudden quantum storm erupted without warning around them, its energy level extraordinarily high and wildly violent.

They and Ying were inevitably caught in it.

Despite struggling, they were overwhelmed, exhausted to the point of collapse, and passed out from their injuries.

When they awoke, they found that a black-haired boy had saved them, and their wounds were completely healed, as if what had happened was just a nightmare.

Before they could thank the boy, he apologized first.

It turned out the quantum storm was caused by this boy’s battle with a powerful enemy; Kong and Ying were innocent victims caught in the crossfire.

Though the boy said this, Kong and Ying sincerely thanked him.

No matter the cause, the boy had saved their lives—a rare kindness among warriors, many of whom would not consider the innocent nor extend a helping hand.

Since then, having learned that the boy was also a traveler across worlds, they, along with Ling Feng and his little flying companion—Paimon—became new travel companions.

They journeyed together for a long time, experiencing many adventures.

Until over a decade ago, when misfortune struck during their journey and Paimon was injured and fell unconscious.

Ling Feng brought them to this world.

He sealed the unconscious Paimon inside Ying’s body so she could gradually recover.

Ling Feng himself expressed a desire to stay in this world to rest until Paimon healed.

He said to them then:

“The journey is still long; there’s no need to rush. Let’s take this opportunity to rest well.”

“This place… is a world I created, modeled after a homeland I can never return to.”

“Kong, Ying—you are my best companions. Please allow me this selfish request.”

“May I invite you to pause our wondrous journey for a while and spend a peaceful lifetime with me in this ordinary world?”

At that time, Ling Feng’s eyes shone with hope, like a child longing for candy.

Having always cared for them like an older brother on their travels, this was the first time he made such a request. How could they refuse?

Moreover, they were more than willing; it posed no difficulty at all.

Thus, with their consent, Ling Feng transformed them back into children and sealed their memories, intending for them to spend a hundred years together in this world…

The last image in Kong’s memory was of Ling Feng’s smiling face full of expectation, as if he foresaw a warm century ahead.

He seemed genuinely eager to spend a peaceful life in this ordinary “homeland”!

According to the “rest” plan, they were to regain their memories after a hundred years and resume their endless adventures.

Only, for some unknown reason, the plan faltered.

Recently, Paimon, who was expected to take a century to recover, awakened in just over a decade, triggering Kong and Ying’s memory revival as well.

Even so, they never considered ending this life prematurely.

They could see how much Ling Feng longed for this “homeland,” so they didn’t want to shatter his beautiful dream early.

Throughout their past travels, Ling Feng had always cared for them; now it was their turn to support and fulfill Ling Feng’s wish!