Night fell over The Chasm, and the search party had returned to their camp at the Chasm Entrance after a fruitless search. With numerous monsters lurking below, resting properly in the depths proved impossible.
The group's spirits were low, especially Yelan's. She sat alone, silent and brooding, lost in her thoughts.
Lumine and Paimon approached her, wanting to offer comfort but unsure of what to say. Finally, Lumine simply said:
"Yelan, you should rest properly. Only with proper rest will you have the energy to find Qingge!"
Yelan looked up slightly. "Thank you. You should rest too."
Paimon chimed in: "Yeah, Yelan! They say you haven't rested properly in days. If you keep pushing yourself like this, your body will give out!"
Yelan rubbed her eyelids with her right hand, acknowledging that her body was nearing its limit.
The Conqueror of Demons had also descended into the depths, only to vanish without a trace, just like Qingge. Yelan could only hope that he would find Qingge and bring her back safely.
"I'll rest soon. You should all get some rest too."
With those words, Yelan walked toward a nearby temporary camp.
"Traveler, let's get some rest too," Lumine said, glancing at the Chasm Entrance. She really wanted to go down there with the Millelith soldiers who descended into the depths at night, but...
Seeing Paimon yawning, she kept her thoughts to herself.
Paimon: "Huh? Am I just really tired? Why do I hear the Big Dummy's voice?"
Lumine stopped, noticing she heard it too.
"Paimon, you're not imagining it. It sounds like Itto for real."
Paimon's sleepiness vanished instantly. "Huh? What are Itto and the others doing here?"
Lumine and Paimon followed the sound, Itto's booming voice growing clearer.
Soon, they spotted Itto, Kuki Shinobu, and Yanfei deep in conversation.
What a strange trio.
Paimon floated closer. "Shinobu, and the Big Dummy! What are you doing here? And how did you even meet Yanfei?"
Itto: "We're best buds, and this Flying Lavender Melon here!"
Kuki Shinobu: "Greetings, Traveler."
Yanfei: "The Traveler and Paimon! I never expected to run into you here!"
Yanfei continued, answering Paimon's earlier question:
"I came here because of a will. I found it in an ancient book—it was likely left by some eminent figure from the past. He had a magical artifact go missing and wants it recovered."
"Even Law consultants have to do this kind of work?" Paimon exclaimed. "That sounds exhausting!"
"Executing wills is indeed part of a Law consultant's duties," Yanfei explained, "though cases like this are rare. Besides, The Chasm isn't exactly a place you can just wander into."
Kuki Shinobu chimed in, "I studied Law in Liyue. Unfortunately, just before graduation, I went home to visit family and got caught by the Sakoku Decree... my diploma was delayed by several years."
"After the Inazuma Sakoku Decree was lifted, I decided to come to Liyue to collect my diploma. The Boss was worried about me traveling alone, so he came along too."
"In Liyue Harbor, the Boss got into a brawl over some party incident. If it weren't for Senior Sister's intervention, he might already be locked up. The Boss is straightforward and wanted to repay her, so he followed her all the way here."
After confirming Yuna wasn't among them, Paimon asked again, "Where's Yuna? Didn't she come with you? I remember how much she longed to see the world beyond Inazuma!"
"Little Yuna... she's a bit tied up with things in Inazuma right now," Kuki Shinobu replied. "She couldn't get away."
"Oh, right! We just heard that Qingge disappeared in The Chasm?!"
Only a select few knew about Mu Qingge's disappearance, and Yanfei happened to be among those unaware.
Hearing this, Paimon's expression immediately turned somber.
"Today marks the thirteenth day..."
"No way," Yanfei insisted, "Qingge's a lucky one—she'll definitely be fine. Traveler, let's join the search! Every extra person helps!"
Seeing his benefactor so concerned, Itto immediately volunteered, "Finding people? That's my specialty!"
Itto wasn't exaggerating. The Oni Clan's sense of smell was naturally far superior to humans', and he also had Ushi, his faithful companion.
Lumine nodded in agreement. At a time like this, every extra pair of hands truly made a difference.
"Let's rest for today. We'll all head down to search first thing tomorrow morning!"
After agreeing on the meeting time for the next day, Lumine and Paimon returned to rest as well.
-
Early the next morning, everyone was up and ready. Lumine introduced Itto and Kuki Shinobu to Yelan, who thanked them both. Yelan looked much more rested, suggesting she had indeed slept well the night before.
Once preparations were complete, Lumine, Paimon, Yanfei, Kuki Shinobu, Arataki Itto, and Yelan formed a small team and ventured back into The Chasm to continue their search. This time, their target was the innermost section of the abyss. The remaining Millelith soldiers, led by a Millelith Commander, continued their search in the lower, more accessible areas.
Upon entering The Chasm, Paimon called out, "Come on out, Ushi!"
Paimon eyed Ushi, stroking her chin thoughtfully. "Does Ushi seem a little bigger than before?"
Itto released a small, surprisingly adorable creature—a bull?
"Don't let Ushi's size fool you," Itto boasted. "His abilities are enormous!"
Moo~ Moo~
Ushi emerged, its eyes locking with Itto's.
After a moment, Itto suddenly slapped his thigh. "Almost forgot! Does anyone have something belonging to the person we're looking for? Just something with her scent will do."
Yelan produced a writing brush. "This is Qingge's brush, the one she used constantly. It's been a while, so I'm not sure if any scent remains."
Itto held the brush to Ushi's nose. Ushi tilted its head, and Itto nodded.
"Enough! Let's go, Ushi!"
Ushi let out a couple of moos, took a few steps forward, then retreated several paces before spinning in circles.
Itto immediately scooped Ushi up. "Ahem, uh, Ushi says it doesn't recognize any familiar scents in this area for now."
Paimon stomped her foot. "What?! Totally unreliable!"
Yelan understood and took the lead, heading deeper into the Chasm.
Along the way, the group encountered numerous monsters. Fortunately, they all possessed Visions, making them formidable combatants—everyone except Paimon, that is.
Despite their progress, none of them—including Ushi, who remained nestled in Itto's arms—made any significant discoveries.
Until... they reached the deepest part of the Chasm.
Beneath the Celestial Nail.
Yelan: "This area was once part of the Chasm Restricted Area, off-limits to outsiders. But given the circumstances, and since we've thoroughly searched every other location, this is our last hope..."
Moo~ Moo~
As soon as Yelan finished speaking, Ushi let out several excited barks.
"Ha ha! Ushi says it's found it!"
"What?!"
Yelan's initial shock quickly gave way to elation. "Where is it?!"
Itto set Ushi down, and the group followed closely behind the little bull.
Ushi stopped directly beneath the Celestial Nail and began barking again.