When the Conqueror of Demons, Xiao, appeared at Wangshu Inn, it caused a stir. But before long, the commotion gradually subsided. After all, the inn was already filled with many important figures by now: Keqing of the Liyue Qixing, Captain Beidou of the Crux Fleet, the Raiden Shogun from Inazuma, and Barbatos, the Anemo Archon from Mondstadt. Having seen so many notable individuals already, the audience was not excessively shocked when Xiao appeared.
But then, as the audience watched Xiao walk to the corner of the inn and sit at the table of gods, their gazes fell upon Zhongli, the consultant of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. Many of them froze.
Something was not right.
When they looked at Zhongli's face, they felt a strange sense of familiarity. Where had they seen this consultant before?
Then they remembered. In the storyteller's tale, there was someone who looked exactly like Zhongli.
They quickly looked up at the projections formed by Electro energy above the inn. Sure enough, the frozen image showed Rex Lapis, the Geo Archon Morax, reaching out his hand and summoning a falling star.
Seeing this, every listener's mind went blank. They could only think one thing: impossible.
The consultant of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, the very man who had arranged Rex Lapis's funeral—how could he be Rex Lapis himself? How could the Geo Archon arrange his own funeral? And most importantly, according to the official announcement from Liyue, wasn't Rex Lapis dead? Hadn't he already been buried? How could he still be alive and working as a consultant?
The audience looked at the projection, then at Zhongli in the corner. There was no mistake. In his human form, Rex Lapis looked exactly like Zhongli. What was going on?
Those who noticed first began whispering among themselves.
"Could Consultant Zhongli of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor know Rex Lapis and deliberately dress like him?"
"That's possible. But the key is, not only does he dress like Rex Lapis, he also has the exact same face."
"Is it possible that, like the Raiden sisters, this Zhongli is Rex Lapis's twin brother?"
"Does Rex Lapis have a brother? We've never heard of such a thing."
"Could it be that Consultant Zhongli is actually Rex Lapis himself?"
"Impossible. Rex Lapis has already passed away. I saw it with my own eyes."
The very thought frightened many listeners. As citizens of Liyue, they had witnessed the Rite of Parting. They had seen Consultant Zhongli oversee everything, placing Rex Lapis's adeptus body into the coffin and burying it in the earth. He had truly passed away. How could he still be alive? Though they missed Rex Lapis dearly, they would never joke about his funeral.
Word spread quickly through the inn that Consultant Zhongli looked exactly like Rex Lapis. More and more people looked at the corner, then at the projection. They were stunned, overjoyed, and terrified—but mostly, they did not believe it.
Not only the ordinary audience, but Keqing and her companions in another corner were also taken aback when they heard the whispers.
Xiangling asked in confusion, "Does Consultant Zhongli of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor really look like Rex Lapis? Let me see... Ah, they do look exactly alike!"
Xiangling had never seen Rex Lapis in his human form before. After one glance at Zhongli and one glance at the projection, she was shocked. They were identical.
Her exclamation startled the others. Director Hu Tao, Yuheng Keqing, the adeptus disciple Shenhe, and Captain Beidou all turned to look at Zhongli in the corner, then at Rex Lapis in the projection. Their eyes were full of disbelief.
Even the ever-playful Hu Tao opened her mouth in astonishment.
"Is this a mistake? Storyteller, even if you don't know what Rex Lapis looks like, you shouldn't just make up an image! Zhongli doesn't look like Rex Lapis at all!"
Xiangling added, "That's right. Rex Lapis governed diligently for thousands of years and created Liyue's glorious history. How could he be such a lazy and idle person?"
Their first reaction was disbelief. In their minds, Rex Lapis was a diligent, hardworking god—not a slacker. How could a lazy person have won the Archon War? How could a lazy person have earned the loyalty of adepti and yakshas? So their immediate thought was to accuse the storyteller of fabricating images, slandering Rex Lapis, and creating trouble for Consultant Zhongli.
But among them, Shenhe and Keqing had not yet spoken. Shenhe stared at the storyteller, Li Mo, with complete trust. If he said Zhongli was Rex Lapis, then it must be true. Keqing turned to look at Zhongli in the corner, seeing only his indifferent expression. Could this truly be Rex Lapis?
Since becoming a member of the Liyue Qixing, Keqing had met Rex Lapis several times, but always in his massive adeptus form—never in his human form. So even she did not know whether the rumors were true.
Just as everyone was shocked, confused, and unwilling to believe, Shenhe spoke.
"I believe the storyteller. Consultant Zhongli of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is our Rex Lapis. But why would he fake his death and arrange his own funeral? Director Hu, as the current director of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, do you know anything about this?"
Hu Tao, who had been racking her brain, snapped to attention. "Right! I'm the director of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, and Zhongli is my consultant. I'll go ask him what's going on!"