84: The Enchanted Divine Bow is Forged!

The structure stood there, towering in its eerie perfection.

Slightly elevated on both sides, sunken in the middle.

Flat at the base, with a smooth arc at the top.

A precisely measured 200-square-meter construction.

To put it simply…

Aside from a few glass windows carved into its surface, the building was essentially nothing more than a gigantic coffin.

Hu Tao could even swear on her name that no coffin in the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor had ever been this… coffin-like.

With craftsmanship of this level, if this were an actual funeral product, she could have easily sold it for over a million Mora.

But the thing was—

As she had clearly stated before—

The people of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor deal with coffins, but they do NOT live in them!

Ningguang and Keqing exchanged strange glances, while Ganyu's expression darkened slightly in disapproval.

"Cloud Retainer," Ganyu spoke up, her usually gentle tone laced with rare reproach, "Master Hu is responsible for conducting Liyue's funeral rites, a duty that carries immense weight and solemnity. How could you mock her in such a way?"

"Mock her?"

Cloud Retainer blinked, genuinely baffled.

She turned her head back and forth between the building and the expectant faces around her, clearly not understanding what the issue was.

"Do you not see the beauty of Liyue's ancient architectural style in this?" she asked, slightly indignant.

"…"

Ningguang pressed her lips together, then glanced at Keqing, who shot her a subtle look of encouragement.

Sighing, Ningguang finally decided to voice the unpleasant truth.

"Cloud Retainer… you really don't think this looks like a coffin?"

The words had barely left her lips when Cloud Retainer's feathers ruffled in offense.

"Tianquan, are you mocking this Immortal?!"

She scoffed, flaring her wings slightly as she continued, "This structure incorporates both Liyue's ancient building techniques and the unique properties of this new world! It is a perfect fusion of—"

The words died in her throat.

Because at that moment, Hu Tao calmly summoned something from her Vision—

A coffin.

A real coffin.

Right in front of everyone.

Cloud Retainer's proud gaze flickered between the elegant black wooden coffin and the identical house standing behind her.

She stared.

She blinked.

Then she stared some more.

After an uncomfortably long silence, a faint blush crept onto her avian face.

"…It does seem to resemble a coffin… just a little bit…" she muttered reluctantly.

Nobody spoke.

But somehow, despite the clear morning sunlight and the crisp, fresh air, a chill settled over the clearing.

For the first time, everyone truly felt the presence of the ominous new structure.

Especially Ningguang—who suddenly realized she had personally helped build this extremely unlucky thing.

Suppressing the urge to shudder, she quickly cleared her throat and spoke up, attempting to shift the conversation.

"Perhaps… we should consult Ryen before making any further decisions?"

She threw a glance at Cloud Retainer, giving her a way out of this embarrassment.

"We saw how easily Ryen constructed his estate," she continued, "but attempting it ourselves… has proven to be rather challenging. Clearly, there's still much we don't understand about construction in this world. Wouldn't it be wise to seek his advice?"

Cloud Retainer immediately latched onto the lifeline.

"Ahem… Indeed!" she declared, nodding sagely. "Tianquan speaks wisely. There is great knowledge to be gained in house-building. We must humbly seek Ryen's guidance."

With that settled, the others—including Hu Tao—chose to let the matter go.

After all, the giant coffin was everyone's responsibility.

Cloud Retainer might have been the mastermind, but they had all played a part in its creation.

There was no escaping the blame.

"…So what do we do with this—" Keqing paused, then rephrased her words carefully, "—house?"

Under normal circumstances, Ningguang would have suggested dismantling it to recover resources.

But in this world, wood was practically everywhere.

She glanced around at the surrounding forest, where trees stretched as far as the eye could see. With the sheer amount of logging happening for the construction of their base, retrieving materials was hardly an issue.

"We'll leave it for now," she decided. "Once Ryen sees it, he might have a better solution. This location is too good to waste."

No one objected.

And so, with unspoken agreement, the group made a silent pact—

No one would speak of their architectural disaster again.

Chatting casually about other topics, they began their walk back toward Ryen's manor.

…

However, the moment they stepped through the door—

FWOOOSH!

A flaming arrow whizzed past Cloud Retainer's face, embedding itself firmly in a tree nearby.

In the next instant, the entire tree erupted into flames.

Bright orange fire roared to life, crackling and consuming the bark within seconds. The sheer heat of it made the air shimmer.

The sudden blaze left them momentarily stunned.

"Ah—! My apologies!"

Ryen's voice rang out, growing closer as he hurried over.

"I didn't realize you all had returned," he explained, slightly breathless. "I misjudged my aim—no one got hurt, right?"

His gaze swept over the group, scanning for any injuries.

Seeing only Cloud Retainer looking slightly startled, he sighed in relief.

Then, rubbing the back of his neck, he chuckled awkwardly.

"Sorry about that, Cloud Retainer," he said sheepishly. "I didn't expect you to suddenly show up. I was in the middle of testing my enchanted arrows and lost focus for a moment."

At that moment, the shock finally wore off, and the others registered what he had just said.

"…Enchanted?"

Keqing's eyes lit up. She had an inexplicable feeling that this was something incredibly important.

"You mean what you were talking about before—using lapis lazuli to enhance your equipment with powerful attributes?"

Ryen smiled knowingly and spread his arms, hinting at something.

"Haven't you all noticed anything different about me?"

"Hmm…"

Hearing this, Ganyu perked up and carefully scrutinized Ryen.

At that moment, she finally noticed what was off about him.

Her expression turned to one of shock as she pointed at him in disbelief.

"Ryen… you're glowing!"

Ganyu's exclamation made everyone else take a closer look at him.

At first glance, Ryen still wore the same iron armor he had on yesterday.

But now, from head to toe, the entire suit of armor emitted a faint purple glow.

It was as if a thin, translucent energy field covered his entire body.

"That's not all!"

Ryen chuckled as he took out his diamond sword and wooden bow.

Just like his iron armor, these two weapons were also enveloped in a soft purple radiance.

Under the sunlight, shimmering energy rippled across their surfaces, making them appear almost alive.

"Ryen…"

Ningguang opened her mouth to speak, but before she could ask, Ryen laughed and said:

"That's right. This is what I mentioned earlier—enchantments."

"Now that I have both obsidian and lapis lazuli, naturally, I was able to set up everything necessary for enchanting."

"This morning, after you all left, I enchanted all my equipment. And I must say… the results were impressive!"

Ryen wasn't exaggerating.

In fact, his gains from enchanting were massive.

Not only had he successfully applied protection enchantments to all his armor, but the biggest surprise came from his diamond sword.

Initially, he hadn't had high expectations for it.

But after enchanting his bow, on a whim, he decided to toss in an enchanted book as well.

And just like that, perhaps due to accumulated luck, he hit the jackpot.

His diamond sword now bore the perfect combination of enchantments:

Looting, Unbreaking, Sharpness, Knockback, Fire Aspect, and Mending.

With these enhancements, he now possessed two top-tier weapons. Whether venturing into the Nether, the End, or exploring unknown territories, he'd be far better equipped.

Of course, he still had his katana and AK-47.

But right now, he hadn't activated any mods. If his katana broke, repairing it would be a nightmare, and his AK-47 had no spare ammo.

Both of these weapons were trump cards, meant to be saved for critical moments.

Under normal circumstances, Ryen preferred weapons he could easily maintain.

As he casually swung his diamond sword with a look of satisfaction, the girls around him fell silent, absorbing what they had just witnessed.

Then, in an instant, they all felt it—the blazing heat, as if molten lava coursed through the blade itself.

If they hadn't known better, they might have assumed Ryen was the very embodiment of the Pyro Archon.

"What a powerful sword…"

Zhongli's voice broke the stunned silence.

"And besides that… if I'm not mistaken, that bow of yours also harbors an immense, terrifying power."

Ryen turned toward Zhongli and found him and Xiao approaching from a distance.

He raised a hand in greeting.

"You're back. How's everything on your end?"

Zhongli nodded slightly.

"Everything is going smoothly. As the first group to settle in, the workers are proving to be quick learners and highly adaptable."

"We've explained all the key points they need to be aware of, and they're now focused on planning and constructing their homes. We'll check on their progress at noon."

Keqing's expression flickered slightly, as if she had something to say.

But Zhongli anticipated her concern before she could voice it.

"There's no need to worry. Safety measures are in place. The designated trees within the perimeter have been cleared, allowing for direct sunlight. They're building within fenced areas."

"Before leaving, both Xiao and I surveyed the surroundings. No monsters in sight."

That reassurance finally put Keqing and the others at ease.

This first wave of miners was made up of elite workers.

Ningguang had already planned for them to fully adapt to this new world before leading future recruits.

Once they were experienced enough, she intended to have Ryen activate the chain mining function for them, so they could venture deep into the mines and extract rarer resources.

Naturally, minimizing casualties was a top priority.

"So this is your new research project?"

Zhongli stepped closer, examining the enchantments on Ryen's gear.

"A power I've never seen before…"

From his perspective as an Archon, these weapons weren't on the level of divine artifacts, but they certainly weren't ordinary either.

Even adepti like Xiao could significantly boost their combat prowess with them.

"Well…"

Ryen shrugged, chuckling.

"I was just experimenting with enchanted gear, but since you're all here, why not test it together?"

With that, he sheathed his diamond sword.

There wasn't much need to test it—other than the Fire Aspect enchantment potentially catching people's attention, its other effects were straightforward.

In contrast, his bow's enchantments were much more absurd.

"This bow has five major enchantments. At this point, without any mods, it's essentially the strongest long-range single-target weapon available."

As he spoke, Ryen smoothly pulled the bowstring back to its maximum draw.

The arrow looked unremarkable, no different from the ones Ganyu carried.

But the moment he let go—

FWOOOSH!

As the arrow soared through the air, it burst into flames.

A scorching heatwave rippled outward.

The projectile shot straight toward a pig that was lazily wandering nearby.

And the instant the arrow struck—

BOOM!

The pig let out a final wail before collapsing in a heap.

And the best part? The meat it dropped was already fully cooked.

"Not bad."

Ryen chuckled as he put his bow away.

He glanced at the expectant faces around him and spoke lightly.

"The enchantment… is called Flame."

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