Downstairs, Ningguang was enthusiastically explaining the power of hot weapons to Jean and the others, but Ganyu didn't care.
No matter how shocked they were, Ganyu had no interest in finding out.
Right now, she was simply lying beside Ryen, holding him in her arms. Ganyu gazed at him as if she were gently looking at her entire world.
To Ganyu, as long as she had Ryen, everything else was irrelevant.
It was rare for Ryen to sleep this soundly, like a child.
Even when asleep in the past, Ryen would always be hugging Ganyu, giving her an immense sense of security.
But now, their roles had reversed.
And Ganyu found great joy in it.
These private moments for the two of them were the perfect time for Ganyu to reminisce.
Thousands of years' worth of memories came flooding back, but for Ganyu, most of what she had seen, heard, and experienced had blurred with time.
In this endless span of life, there wasn't much she could clearly remember.
Like the Archon War of old… like the time she choked a god to death.
Or five hundred years ago, the battle against the dark creatures, and the blood and tears Liyue paid.
These were the only memories still vivid in her mind — never forgotten.
As for the people she had met and the things she had done over the past millennium, Ganyu could hardly remember.
Her life was so long that she had to forget a lot just to keep on living with a sound mind.
But ever since the past half year… everything had changed.
Her memories with Ryen were etched deeply into her soul, without any effort.
From the very first time they met, when Ryen was still a little naive in his greeting…
To every conversation, every heart-to-heart talk over these past six months…
To the moment not long ago when they officially got together…
Compared to Ganyu's long lifespan, half a year might be insignificant.
But the weight of these memories far outweighed all the others combined.
Even better…
She and Ryen still had a long future ahead — more beautiful memories to be made.
They would get married. They would have children…
And those children would have children…
At some point, Ganyu's feelings began to shift — the once unshakable importance of Liyue in her heart had dropped to second place.
Now, what she valued most was her future with Ryen.
What would their children look like? Would they have horns, too?
What should they name their child?
If they only had a daughter, would she be too lonely?
As these thoughts ran through her mind, a happy smile bloomed on Ganyu's face.
Unknowingly, she had already begun envisioning an even farther future with Ryen.
But soon, a hint of worry crept into her heart.
"We didn't really take any safety measures… Could Miss Ying'er have been wrong? Why hasn't anything happened yet?"
"Could it be… that Ryen and I aren't physically compatible?"
A maiden in love is always full of ever-changing thoughts.
Especially one with a beloved by her side.
Of course, Ryen knew none of this.
He was dreaming.
In the dream, he stood high and proud atop a cosmic battleship built using the modular system of the Universe Battleship mod.
Behind him stood a vast and dense army.
On one side were soldiers wielding all kinds of energy weapons; on the other side were cultivators shrouded in mystical auras, gripping unsheathed swords.
To Celestia, he was Teyvat's number one dark force — rampaging across the land with his battleship every day.
But to the Seven Nations, he was an absolute savior.
In this dream, Ryen had Ganyu on his left arm, Ningguang on his right, and a crowd of uniquely charming women around him.
He wore a pure white grand cape, dark sunglasses, and a cigar between his lips.
At his command, the "Peace Bomb" was launched — its target: a Sunsettia fruit in front of him.
Firing high-caliber cannons at mosquitoes? That was child's play!
Ryen wanted to roast a Sunsettia with a Peace Bomb — that was the style of Teyvat's top villain.
But perhaps because this dream world was strange, even after being blasted by the Peace Bomb, the two Sunsettias remained completely unscathed.
Ryen was furious.
In his dream, even Celestia had to pay tribute yearly under the might of his warship.
And now he couldn't even destroy two Sunsettias?
What a humiliation.
Without hesitation, he decided to personally deal with the rebellious fruits that dared to defy him.
In the dream, he was domineering beyond compare.
Unfortunately…
It was poor Ganyu, who was peacefully resting beside him, that suffered the consequences.
——
On a beautiful morning, the group didn't follow their original plan to explore The End.
Instead, Ningguang and the others spent some time explaining hot weapons to Jean and her group.
Diluc listened with blood boiling in excitement.
This alone proved — there truly wasn't a single man who could resist the charm of firearms.
And indeed, the potential of hot weapons was incredibly high.
Even the most basic guns — like the AK-47 that Ningguang and her group had seen — far outclassed the muskets used by the Fatui.
Sure, powerful beings like Vision holders, Archon followers, or even gods might not care about these weapons.
But the point was — ordinary people could use them.
When a flood of steel was gathered, who dared say these weapons weren't strong?
For someone like Diluc, who had long viewed the Fatui as enemies, he was already picturing using firearms against them.
Muskets?
Just children's toys!
Real men use RPGs!
Give him three RPGs, and Diluc would charge the Doctor's research base and bombard it directly.
The romance of a true man is always in smoke and battle.
While chatting, they copied down mineral schematics. Soon, Ningguang had completely finished transcribing a full set.
It was just around noon by then.
Judging by the way Ryen and Ganyu looked, they clearly had no plans to come down for lunch.
So, Ningguang led the group to gather the Millelith and the miners once again to assign tasks.
Aside from dividing half of Team Two to continue working in the Nether and search for ancient ruins…
The remaining thousand-plus Qianyan Army soldiers and miners all returned to the mine.
And now that they were fully outfitted in iron armor—many of the Qianyan soldiers even had enchanted gear—they were allowed to radiate outward from the base in a 50-kilometer range to search for and develop new mines.
However, due to the terrifying monsters Ryen had previously mentioned, they were grouped into larger teams for safety.
Neither the Qianyan soldiers nor the miners raised any objections. After all, going into the mines was work they were more than familiar with.
In fact, they even found it enjoyable.
Or rather, in this world, even if they were just sitting and staring at the sun, they wouldn't feel bored.
With everything arranged, and still no sign of excitement from Ryen, Ningguang and the others decided to bring Jean and her group down to the mines to experience mining firsthand.
This was probably the last piece Mondstadt was missing.
Because they had joined late, most of the mine resources had already been thoroughly cleared, so going down previously would have yielded little.
Ryen had never told them to visit the mines before either.
But now that there were new ores, it was a good chance to supplement their knowledge on what to be cautious of down there.
Ryen, still asleep, didn't wake up until past 4 in the afternoon.
But this was arguably the most comfortable sleep he'd had in the past six months.
Although the beds in the MC world weren't as cozy as those in Teyvat, they were without a doubt the best option for restoring one's energy and spirit.
Stretching lazily, Ryen turned his head toward Ganyu, who was beside him.
She looked at him with a face full of grievance, making Ryen a little awkward.
He had slept well and dreamed pleasantly, but never expected Ganyu to be right next to him.
Which meant… she had truly suffered.
Tormented by him into a strange, uncomfortable state—neither here nor there.
"Sorry, Ganyu..."
Ryen scratched his cheek, just about to say something, when Ganyu suddenly pounced on him like a hungry tiger.
Judging by the look in her eyes, she was clearly feeling quite unwell...
But Ryen quickly grabbed her wrist and whispered:
"These walls aren't very soundproof…"
"It's fine! Everyone's out!"
Ganyu cut him off without hesitation, looking utterly desperate.
Clearly, she couldn't take it anymore.
"This is all your fault, Ryen! You have to make it up to me!"
She pouted angrily, and Ryen couldn't help but feel helpless.
Still, a bit of exercise after waking up did sound like a decent idea.
Ganyu initiated a battle!
Ryen gladly accepted!
Ganyu was defeated in the first round.
She charged again.
Defeated again in the second round.
Now unable to rise!
Ryen smugly patted her and looked as if he stood atop a snowy peak.
"You really need more training, Ganyu."
She snorted, turning her head away in frustration.
Ryen, having gotten his win, didn't tease her further. He glanced out the window.
The sky was darkening.
Clearly, the day was drawing to a close.
After letting Ganyu rest a bit, the two tidied up and went downstairs.
Just as they reached the first-floor living room, Ningguang and the others returned, chatting and laughing.
Seeing Ryen looking so refreshed, Ningguang's expression softened considerably.
"Did you sleep well?"
Ryen stretched contentedly.
"That was the best sleep I've had in half a year. I guess a bit of exhaustion isn't a bad thing after all!"
He paused, then added:
"But let's try to avoid that kind of workload again in the future."
Hearing this, everyone perked up. Hu Tao leaned in, her face full of curiosity.
"What kind of work could've worn you out that much?"
Ryen shrugged, looking a little helpless.
"Don't ask... I spent all night stacking Matryoshka dolls…"
"Matryoshka dolls? What's that...?"
Hu Tao scratched her cheek, murmuring:
"I think I heard that word in Liyue Harbor once. Isn't it some kind of toy?"
Zhongli, standing nearby, added in his calm tone:
"It's a specialty toy from Snezhnaya. A Matryoshka doll is a ceramic doll that contains many smaller ceramic dolls inside it."
Ryen raised an eyebrow and nodded.
"Exactly. My task last night was pretty much like that… mentally exhausting."
"Ryen! You promised to give us something good!"
Paimon's eyes sparkled as she clung to Ryen's leg like a cute little gremlin.
Ryen lightly tapped his own head.
"Almost forgot—come with me."
Turning around, he walked over to the wall and pulled a lever, revealing a hidden door and leading everyone inside.
This was the first time Jean and the others had been in here. Though Ningguang had described it before, since it was Ryen's personal treasure vault, they had never treated it as a tourist site.
Now, seeing the tidy and secure passageway, they were all genuinely surprised.
Descending deeper, they soon arrived at the workshop where Ryen had crafted guns the previous night.
Several workbenches had been pushed together to form a large table. The vast room was packed with countless storage chests.
This left Jean and the others astonished.
According to Ningguang, not a single chest in here was empty.
Suddenly, Lumine pointed excitedly at a nearby workbench.
"Wait—is that... what is that?!"
Looking over, they saw something completely different from an ordinary crafting table—laid out neatly on it were over a dozen pitch-black, gleaming weapons.
Cold steel shimmered under the light.
As everyone stared in curiosity, Ryen stepped forward with pride, picked up one of the submachine guns, loaded it, and chambered a round.
The crisp click of the mechanism rang out.
"This is your new gift—a modern firearm: the MP5 submachine gun."