"Alright, Rosalyne, that's enough."
The Cryo Archon waved her hand, signaling the three to sit down.
Though Tartaglia was now a cultivator, the Archon's authority was still something he respected.
Once they were seated, she turned to him with curiosity.
"Tell me about your time in Mount Shu. We couldn't reach you before, and there's a lot we'd like to ask."
"Uh…"
Tartaglia scratched his cheek awkwardly.
Seeing this, the Cryo Archon perked up slightly.
"What is it? Inconvenient to say? If it's confidential, then don't."
"Not really."
Tartaglia shrugged.
"It's just… too much happened this week. I don't even know where to begin."
"Then start with the important parts."
The Archon prompted casually.
"Important, huh…"
His eyes lit up with mischief.
"Does 'I fought a ton of people and lost every single time' count as important?"
The Cryo Archon sighed, pinching her forehead, about to scold him—
but Tartaglia quickly waved it off with a grin.
"Kidding! I'm now an inner disciple of Longshou Peak in Mount Shu, part of the Hall of Discipline. I'm cultivating the Blood-Reversing Demon Blade.."
Hearing that, Rosalyne tilted her head.
"Longshou Peak is…?"
"Longshou Peak is where the Hall of Discipline is. Their job is to oversee discipline among disciples."
He explained patiently, for once not picking a fight with her.
"The acting head of Longshou Peak is Zhongli—yes, the Geo Archon himself. Every inner disciple there is technically a Hall of Discipline member."
"So you even landed yourself a post of sorts, hm?"
Arlecchino remarked lightly.
"Post? My ass!" Tartaglia's face darkened.
"Each of Mount Shu's Seven Peaks has its own duties. Every inner disciple has responsibilities. The Hall of Discipline may oversee discipline, but we supervise each other too. It just happened that I was assigned there."
The three Fatui harbingers exchanged curious glances. Seven Peaks?
They'd heard scraps before but never the full picture.
Catching their interest, Tartaglia elaborated:
"Mount Shu's Seven Peaks are its seven branches.
Tongtian Peak — the Sect Master's seat.
Longshou Peak — Zhongli's, home of the Hall of Discipline.
Sunrise Peak — headed by Venti, famous for formations.
Great Bamboo Peak — masters of alchemy.
Bamboo Peak — supreme in spellcraft.
Windreturn Peak — artifact refinement.
Sunset Peak — beast-taming.
Each peak has its role. Inner disciples aren't officials, just cultivators with tasks to do."
(Though in his heart, Tartaglia muttered—basically free labor.)
The Fatui trio nodded, gradually piecing together Mount Shu's structure.
The Cryo Archon, after pondering, suddenly noticed something odd.
She leaned forward.
"Wait… your Vision and Delusion—where are they?"
"Ah… that."
Tartaglia rubbed his nose, pulling out his now-dim Vision and still-glimmering Delusion.
"After I switched to the Immortal Path, the Vision turned like this. I drained its elemental power, so now it's just a glorified storage trinket."
That immediately drew their interest.
The three leaned in to inspect. The Archon's eyes went distant.
"…So it's true."
"Does Her Majesty know why Visions change like that?"
Rosalyne asked curiously.
The Archon only nodded faintly, saying nothing more.
"Anyway, doesn't matter. I don't need it anymore."
Tartaglia shrugged.
"Compared to an external power organ, real strength is best when held in your own body."
"Then why's the Delusion still active?"
Arlecchino pressed.
This time, the Cryo Archon answered for him:
"Because the power of the Delusion doesn't belong to him. It comes from a god. You can only rebuild what's truly your own. External gifts? You can't 'switch' them."
"Exactly." Tartaglia nodded firmly.
"So I don't plan to use the Delusion either. Master said: external power will always betray you. Only what's in your own hands is reliable."
He added quickly:
"Of course, artifacts aren't counted as 'external'—since they're cultivated as part of one's strength. But a Vision, something that can be taken away at any moment, doesn't qualify."
The Archon herself didn't care—her own power was innate divinity.
But Rosalyne and Arlecchino both twitched at the implication.
So he's saying our Visions make us weaklings?
They swallowed their retorts—after all, one sweep of Tartaglia's divine sense could crush them now.
Liyue had a saying: "The wise bow to the times."
"Seems your Sect Master is quite the teacher."
The Cryo Archon said with layered meaning.
Tartaglia nodded.
"Of course. Master's busy cultivating, but when he has time, he'll answer anything. We disciples usually wait until after morning class to see if he's free."
Rosalyne's eyes flickered. She asked softly:
"So… what kind of person is this Sect Master, truly?"
"Master, huh…"
Tartaglia sighed, struggling to put it into words.
After a long pause, he said quietly:
"From my perspective, Master is… unimaginably strong."
The three straightened, listening intently.
"Master is at the peak of Spirit Transformation, Returning-to-Void. He's about to break through to Union of Void and Dao Realm. Once he does, he'll prepare for ascension."
Tartaglia gestured broadly.
"To put it plainly, Master created the Mount Shu World—a realm ten times larger than Teyvat—by his own power."
The Cryo Archon froze.
It took her a long moment to even process how absurd that was.
"And his talent…"
Tartaglia's tone carried awe.
"Master was born with an Innate Dao Body. Elder Alice said it's a constitution spoken of only in myths—before him, it never existed. After him, it never will again. A being born one step from the Dao itself."
"Though Master stands at the peak of Returning to Void, he's under thirty years old."
The three harbingers collectively went still.
"And the ancestors of Mount Shu value him deeply. He carries countless immortal arts, with heaven-shaking potential."
"…Ancestors?"
The Cryo Archon asked sharply.
"Yeah, that's a long story."
Tartaglia scratched his cheek.
"Mount Shu used to be the leader of the righteous path in the cultivation world. The upper realm's Mount Shu was one of Daoism's great sects—boasting Taiyi ancestors, Golden Immortals, countless Celestial Immortals and Terrestrial Immortal."
"They even served under the Daoist patriarch, the Supreme Lord of Spiritual Treasure, one of the most powerful Da Luo across all realms."
"As for how strong an Immortal really is? I don't know. But creating a Teyvat-sized world would be nothing to them."
The Fatui exchanged glances, silently memorizing every detail.
"Master's personality is gentle," Tartaglia went on.
"Senior Cloud Retainer and the others say they've never seen him angry. Other than that… I don't know much. He's busy. Even as an inner disciple, I rarely see him."
"Apparently, only Ganyu is close enough to meet him daily—besides Klee, the true disciple, and the special cases like Lumine and Paimon."
"Most of us go through the peak lords and elders first. And talking about Master privately is forbidden. My senior brother Xiao watches closely—he's peak Transforming Qi, with a spirit weapon. He could easily suppress a top Archon-level being."
"Even Lord Venti is wary of him."
The Archon narrowed her eyes, committing the names Ganyu, Xiao, Lumine, Paimon to memory.
"…Good thing we didn't make enemies of Liyue. That Ganyu girl is probably—"
Rosalyne muttered before Tartaglia cut her off with a sharp glare.
"Don't talk nonsense! Mentioning Master's private matters without permission can get you locked in the Demon-Sealing Tower!"
"The… Demon-Sealing Tower?"
The Cryo Archon's gaze sharpened.
"It's Mount Shu's symbol of force. Inside are sealed six Demon Emperors—each at peak Union of Void and Dao Realm."
Tartaglia's voice lowered.
"There are countless other demons too. The six emperors alone… each once sacrificed dozens of minor worlds in blood. Mount Shu paid a terrible price to seal them."
The Cryo Archon froze, then inhaled sharply.
"What the hell? And those monsters are sealed here, in Teyvat?!"
Sacrificed dozens of worlds? Even one emperor could erase Teyvat in moments!
Tartaglia waved it off.
"No need to worry. The tower was forged by a Golden Immortal ancestor—an immortal artifact. Nothing at Union of Void and Dao Realm can break free."
"In fact, it's a supreme training ground. Outside, one day passes. Inside, a year. Even the laws of time are carved into it."
His eyes gleamed.
"Zhongli's always wanted to go in and train. He says he needs to settle a grudge—with the Greenwind OX, one of the Seven Kings of the Nine Nether Secret Realm."