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ArabicGenshin Impact: A Guide to the Unofficial History of Teyvat — Chapter 30
Chapter 30: Such a Title is Utterly Ridiculous!
The night was as dark as spilled ink, and the pale mist of Dihua Marsh quietly crept across the reeds.
A dark green figure swept over the glassy surface of the lake like a sudden gale, landing with silent precision on the highest balcony of Wangshu Inn.
Xiao dismissed his Primordial Jade Winged-Spear, the heavy weapon dissolving into motes of anemo energy. The suffocating weight of his Karmic Debt and the lingering killing intent from his battles gradually settled beneath the cool caress of the night breeze, leaving only a deep, deep-seated exhaustion etched between his brows.
His patrol was finished. This should have been his customary moment of silence. However, a faint, raucous clamor drifting up from the lobby below shattered the tranquility of the midnight hour.
Xiao possessed absolutely no desire to concern himself with the trivialities of mortals. He was just about to turn away and retreat into the shadows when his overly keen hearing caught a few fragmented, utterly baffling words.
“…Conqueror of Demons…”
“…insomnia…”
“…height…”
“…Look up, look down, see…”
His footsteps came to a sudden halt. His cold, amber gaze instinctively dropped toward the source of the sound. Though separated by several floors of thick timber, the lively discussion felt as if it were happening right next to his ear. Those specific keywords pricked at his consciousness like fine, irritating needles.
He frowned slightly. A trace of absurd doubt flashed through his mind.
‘These mortals, staying awake deep into the night… what nonsense are they discussing now?’Then, a clearer voice, thick with obvious amusement, drifted upward. The speaker seemed to be reading something aloud to a captivated audience. “…Therefore, it is privately suggested that Immortal Xiao be granted an elegant new title:’True Lord Look Up, Look Down, See.’ How fitting! How vivid!”
“Pfft—hahaha!” A burst of suppressed yet entirely joyful laughter erupted from the ground floor.
“This author, Li Xin, really dares to write anything!”
“Shh! Keep your voice down! What if he actually hears us…”
“What’s there to fear? Doesn’t the book explicitly state it’s just ‘hearsay and idle chatter’? Besides, the author warned not to mention it to his face. We’re just reading a novel, not saying it directly to him…”
“But seriously, a thousand years of insomnia… just thinking about it is terrifying.”
“So that’s why he’s… uh, I mean, that’s why he’s so diligent in exorcising demons, right? He has all that extra time since he can’t sleep, and it stunted his growth!”
Up on the balcony, Xiao’s figure stiffened completely.
Silver moonlight spilled over him, outlining the slender, upright silhouette of the young adeptus. His face remained outwardly expressionless, but his tightly pursed lips and the dangerous tension pulling at the corner of his eye betrayed a storm of inner turmoil.
‘Insomnia? Not growing tall? True Lord Look Up, Look Down, See?’
These ridiculous phrases swirled in his mind, rapidly combining into a suffocating sense of ashamed annoyance he had never experienced in his millennia of life.
Had his physical stature really become a casual topic of conversation for the masses? And it was actually printed in a book?
Xiao’s grip tightened on the wooden railing, his knuckles turning white. An invisible, low-pressure aura slowly bled out from his form, the sudden density in the air startling the resting night birds on nearby branches into taking flight in a blind panic.
The clamor and laughter below only continued to grow. That cursed book seemed to have become a wellspring of midnight joy, as various ‘idle chats’regarding the’Conqueror of Demons’ were read aloud and eagerly dissected.
Xiao stood in absolute silence, listening to every word. For the very first time in his long existence, he felt a flicker of helpless resentment toward his own superhuman hearing.
The night breeze ruffled his dark hair, but the cool air did nothing to soothe the strange, intensely irritating emotions flaring in his chest.
‘That book… who exactly wrote it?”And what other absolute nonsense does it contain?”True Lord Look Up, Look Down, See?’
Such a title was utterly ridiculous!
He had never cared for the frivolous writings of mortals and actively loathed being the subject of idle gossip. Yet at this exact second, a morbid curiosity too strong to ignore, coupled with a sharp sense of being deeply offended, seized his mind.
He had to know what else was written in those pages.
His figure vanished soundlessly from the balcony. In the next fraction of a second, as if melting directly into the shadows, he materialized behind a secluded wooden pillar in the bustling lobby of Wangshu Inn.
Not a single one of the rowdy, drinking travelers noticed the silent arrival of the Yaksha.
His sharp gaze quickly locked onto the boss, Verr Goldet, who stood behind the front counter casually clicking away at an abacus. She seemed somewhat helpless regarding the sheer volume of the travelers’ noise, yet she made no move to stop them, a knowing, highly amused smile playing on her lips.
Xiao’s figure shifted again. With absolutely no sound of footsteps, he appeared abruptly before the counter like a phantom, separated from Verr Goldet by only the width of the polished mahogany desk.
Verr Goldet sensed the sudden shift in the air and looked up. Seeing the young man who had appeared so silently, a flash of surprise crossed her eyes, which quickly melted into a polite, gentle smile. “Immortal Xiao? Is there something you need at this hour?”
She immediately noticed that the adeptus’s expression seemed several degrees colder than usual. His brow was slightly furrowed, making him look as though he had encountered some incredibly complex, unsolvable problem.
Xiao pursed his lips. He appeared entirely unaccustomed to making this kind of request.
Avoiding Verr Goldet’s searching, perceptive gaze, his golden eyes fell on the open ledger resting to the side. His voice remained characteristically cold and flat, but if one listened closely, a faint trace of unease and forced urgency bled through the syllables.
“That book…” Xiao paused, visibly weighing his words. “…The book they are currently discussing. Do you happen to have an extra copy here?”
The last few words were practically squeezed out from between his teeth. Asking for such a thing was a massive, unmatched exception to his rules.
He had never imagined that a day would come where he would proactively ask for a mortal leisure book that recorded—and entirely fabricated—details about his personal life.
Verr Goldet was momentarily stunned before sheer realization dawned on her features. She cast a quick glance at the crowd still discussing the novel animatedly, then looked back at the adeptus who appeared perfectly calm on the surface but radiated an intense aura of caring deeply about the matter. The smile at the corners of her mouth deepened significantly.
She forcefully swallowed the urge to laugh and considerately didn’t ask a single probing question. Instead, she simply bent down and pulled out another similarly bound book from a stack beneath the counter.
“Yes, I have it. A young girl from Sanyu Bookstore brought a few copies over a few days ago, saying they were for the guests to read during their stay.” She gently pushed the book across the wooden counter, her tone as perfectly natural as if she were recommending the chef’s new signature dish. “This is the one. Is Immortal Xiao also interested in these local folk anecdotes?”
Xiao did not answer. He reached out for the book almost instantly. His movement was so blindingly fast it stirred a sharp breeze in the lobby. His fingers seemed to hesitate for a microscopic fraction of a second the moment they brushed the cover, before he decisively snatched the book into his hand.
“…Thank you.”
After delivering a painfully stiff word of gratitude, the dark green figure vanished from the counter in a flash of anemo energy, as if he had never been standing there at all. He left behind only a faint breeze and the boss, Verr Goldet, who now wore a highly playful smile.
In the very next moment, Xiao had returned to his usual, isolated resting corner on the top balcony.
Cold moonlight washed over him as he stood with his back to the noisy lobby far below. He lowered his head, his golden gaze incredibly complex as he stared at the cover of the book currently burning a hole in his hand: The Troubles of the Guardian Yaksha: Karmic Debt is Not as Scary as Insomnia.
The cover was plain and simple, looking no different from any ordinary, cheap novel sold in the harbor.
Yet for some inexplicable reason, the paper felt hot to the touch.
Xiao took a slow, deep breath to steady his nerves, and finally flipped open the first page.
Tonight, the ‘insomnia’ plaguing the top floor of Wangshu Inn would likely be significantly more severe than usual.
Down in the lobby, the book was still being passed around the tables, with fresh bursts of laughter erupting from time to time. Not a single mortal noticed that the terrifying subject of their discussion had quietly returned, eavesdropped, and then slipped away again, filled with an unspeakable, brooding gloom.
Only the boss at the counter, Verr Goldet, looked up toward the ceiling of the top floor, her lips curving into a knowing yet slightly sympathetic smile.
‘Consequences at your own risk, Wangsheng Funeral Parlor awaits you with a thirty percent discount’—those warning words written by the author certainly weren’t just for show, dear guests.