Mountain Shaper's expression instantly turned grave. He explained seriously, "Natlan can indeed resurrect the dead, but only the Natlan warriors who die during the Pilgrimage of the Holy Night of Returning Fire. Furthermore, the Pyro Archon must pay a sufficient price.
Under normal circumstances, living beings in this world, including gods, cannot cross the boundary between life and death.
Forcibly attempting to do so will inevitably lead to disaster!"
By the end, his tone had become quite stern, clearly warning Elias Graves not to entertain such ideas.
Elias Graves smiled faintly and replied in a relaxed tone, "Uncle, you worry too much. I've never had any thoughts of reviving the dead. After all, I still rely on the funeral business to make a living. It's just that something I saw today made me feel emotional, which is why I asked."
With that, he recounted the story of Lord De'an to Mountain Shaper.
After hearing the story, Mountain Shaper couldn't help but feel sympathy for Lord De'an's plight. He sighed, "To lose one's wife in middle age and one's daughter in old age is truly tragic.
However, life is a journey of suffering. We often find ourselves in a small boat of pain, searching for the shore of happiness."
Elias Graves was stunned by these words. It took him a moment to process them before he blurted out, "Uncle, I never thought a rough-and-tumble guy like you could say something so philosophical."
Mountain Shaper's face darkened. "What do you mean, rough-and-tumble? This adeptus has his own adeptal bearing! What does a little brat like you know?!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he grabbed the wine pot from the table, tilted his head back, and started chugging from it, as if only this could vent the anger from the offense he had just taken.
Elias Graves, naturally seeing through his true intentions, quickly stood up to snatch the wine pot back.
For a moment, the two of them tussled, pushing and shoving, their playful curses and laughter filling the air.
...............
Five days later, inside the Adeptal Rites shop, Elias Graves was lying listlessly on a recliner behind the counter.
Lord De'an still couldn't accept his daughter's death. He spent his days by her body, praying for a miracle.
Just then, a little girl came skipping into the shop. She held a freshly made paper flower in her hand, gesturing excitedly, her eyes shining with the hope of praise.
Looking at the little girl's innocent face, Elias Graves's mood lightened slightly.
He gave her a thumbs-up in approval.
Seeing this, the little girl's face broke into a radiant, sunny smile. She happily ran back to her spot and continued to immerse herself in the joy of making paper flowers.
Elias Graves turned his head and looked around the shop.
The sight made him gasp. The wreaths made by the deaf and mute children had piled up like a mountain, taking up nearly a whole corner of the shop.
This sight only deepened his gloom. He finally pushed himself up from the recliner, straightened his clothes, and headed towards Lord Zhang's mansion.
When Elias Graves arrived at the mansion, he happened to run into the two officials from the Justice Division.
They had one piece of good news and one piece of bad news for him.
The good news was that Lord Zhang's case was closed, and he could be buried now. The bad news was that Lord Zhang's illegitimate daughter had gone missing.
After hearing this, Elias Graves hurried to find the bookkeeper to discuss the matter.
The bookkeeper's stance was clear: Lord Zhang could be buried, but the treasury would not provide another cent. If he insisted on the remaining three million Mora, he would have to find the missing young miss to negotiate.
After a brief moment of thought, Elias Graves decided to proceed with the burial. After all, any further delay would cost him money, and he figured the young miss would most likely not agree to the funeral arrangements made by Pan Huilian anyway.
With that settled, he headed towards the hall where the body was kept.
Inside the hall, Hu Tao was squatting on the floor, looking bored. She held a long, thin twig in her hand and was gleefully teasing a cockroach.
When the corner of her eye caught sight of Elias Graves approaching, a mischievous glint appeared in her eyes, and a prankish idea popped into her head.
With a flick of her wrist, she used the twig to fling the cockroach towards Elias Graves, a wicked smile on her face.
Elias Graves reacted quickly. With a light shift of his feet, he easily dodged it.
He said expressionlessly, "I'm docking you one day's pay."
Hu Tao immediately jumped up from the ground, her hands on her hips, her eyes wide with indignation. "Scumbag Graves, the cockroach didn't even touch you! On what grounds are you docking my pay?"
Elias Graves chuckled, a hint of mockery in his smile. "On the grounds that your actions have caused serious harm to my pure and fragile soul."
Hu Tao's cheeks puffed out in anger, like a small, inflated ball. "Pure and fragile soul? Scumbag Graves, you're so shameless! You, pure and fragile? If you dare dock my pay, I'll hang around your shop entrance every day and see what you do then!"
Elias Graves, however, put on an air of indifference and shrugged. "Hang around if you want! But I should remind you first, according to 'The Liyue People's Code,' attacking someone with a cockroach is considered a serious act of assault."
Hu Tao was startled by this. She turned her head in a panic to look at Zhongli and asked with some trepidation, "Consultant Zhongli, it's not that serious, is it?!"
After a moment of thought, Zhongli spoke calmly, "Speaking in terms of universal rationality, Director Hu Tao's actions just now undoubtedly fall within the category of intentionally harming another person. However, in practice, such behavior typically only requires a sincere apology to the other party."
At his words, Hu Tao breathed a sigh of relief. She turned back to Elias Graves, offered a perfunctory "sorry," and then made a triumphant funny face.
Seeing this, Elias Graves said slowly, "Director Hu Tao, do you really think this is over so easily?"
Hu Tao had a bad feeling about this and subconsciously took a small step back.
Then, an astonishing scene unfolded before her eyes.
Elias Graves slowly squatted down and picked up the cockroach, which had been tormented to within an inch of its life.
He cupped the cockroach in his palm, his face instantly contorting into an expression of utter grief, and began to wail, tears streaming down his face. "Xiao Qiang! What's wrong? You can't die!
We've been through thick and thin together for so many years! I've always treated you like my own flesh and blood, raising you, teaching you!
To think that today, I, a white-haired man, must send off one with black hair!"