Ryen never expected that after searching all day for the End, it would turn out to be right outside the already chosen Mondstadt Base No. 1.
That saved a lot of effort.
He had originally planned that if he found the End portal, he would just set up a teleportation point there and have Ningguang's team come build a proper base.
Now, that wasn't necessary anymore.
Even though he still had a lot of teleportation points in reserve, the fewer he used, the better.
The MC world was boundless—who knew how many teleportation points Ryen would need to place in the future?
Using a wooden fence, he marked the location, then turned around and set up a crafting table.
"Ryen, aren't we going down to slay the dragon now?" Keqing asked curiously.
Ryen shook his head.
"We are, but we need to be well-prepared—and also clear out our backpacks."
"This time, we'll be killing at least thirteen dragons. We'll need quite a few end crystals to respawn them, and we also need backpack space to store the dragon eggs."
"Let's get everything ready before the afternoon."
Hearing this, Paimon counted on her fingers, then mumbled after a moment:
"Ryen, if we're getting thirteen dragon eggs, shouldn't we bring one back for Cloud Retainer?"
"Of course she gets one! Otherwise, would she have guarded the house for nothing?"
Ryen chuckled at Paimon.
Everyone agreed that Cloud Retainer had done a good job guarding the base, but calling it "hard work" was definitely an exaggeration…
There had been no communication from Cloud Retainer today, but Ningguang and the others knew full well that she was probably busy designing her own Jade Chamber in the sky. If she had actually encountered bandits or new monsters, she would've sent word immediately.
"Fine," Paimon shrugged.
"But Ryen, don't you want a dragon egg?"
"Of course I do!"
Ryen rolled his eyes.
"I've already made up my mind—I'm going to hatch an Aether Dragon. No way I'm giving up my dragon egg!"
"Then… who aren't you giving a dragon egg to?" Paimon asked, scratching her head. But then she caught Ryen looking at her with playful eyes.
Paimon froze and pointed at herself in disbelief:
"Me?!"
"Exactly!" Ryen nodded without hesitation, rubbing her cheek as he said with a grin:
"Paimon's so tiny, she'd probably get flung off if she tried riding a dragon. Besides, don't you already fly in Teyvat?"
"You don't fight, you stick to Lumine all day—what do you need a dragon for?"
Perfectly logical, but Paimon wouldn't accept it.
She puffed up her cheeks and stomped her foot hard.
"Big meanie! Why can't Paimon ride a dragon?! I can ride one!"
"Why does everyone get one and I don't?! I can help Lumine fight too!"
Ryen sighed and shook his head.
"You're just too small to handle a dragon."
"Then how come Nahida gets one?! Ryen! You're playing favorites! Paimon doesn't like you anymore!"
The completely innocent Nahida turned to look at Paimon with a blank stare.
Sure, she was short—but there was no rule that lolis couldn't ride dragons, right?
And Paimon wasn't just short—she barely even reached Nahida's waist.
Plus, this little thing already flies around Teyvat on her own. Did she really need a dragon?
Still, seeing Paimon all puffed up and sulky—she even refused to eat the cake Ryen offered—he finally gave in.
"Alright, alright. I'll give you one. Happy now?"
Paimon's eyes lit up instantly.
Her tiny body suddenly exploded with energy as she jumped straight into Ryen's arms, rubbing up against him with a sweet giggle:
"I knew it! Ryen would never leave me out! You're my favorite!"
"Don't worry, I'll take good care of my dragon!"
The way she flipped her mood was flawless.
Ryen shook his head and muttered:
"Let's just hope the dragon doesn't accidentally eat you with how small you are…"
"No way!" Paimon tilted her head with a cheeky smile.
"If that happens, I'll just ask Lumine to take care of it for me!"
Lumine, suddenly burdened with another responsibility, rolled her eyes.
But honestly, she didn't mind raising another dragon.
One ice dragon, one fire dragon.
That way she could trigger elemental reactions all by herself in the future.
As for what kind of dragon Paimon wanted…
Who cared?
As Paimon's emergency food guardian, Lumine had the right to decide for her!
Just like how red envelopes always got taken by parents with the line, "You're too young—I'll save it for you."
After settling things with Paimon, Ryen said quietly:
"This time we're crafting two sets of End Crystals. You all should pay attention to how to make them—there'll be plenty more dragon fights in the future."
"Also, once End Crystals are placed, don't touch them. They explode just like TNT."
"To craft an End Crystal, you need an Eye of Ender, a Ghast Tear, and some Glass."
"Once crafted, you place them in specific locations in the End to summon the Ender Dragon again."
As he explained, Ryen's hands were already busy.
In no time, he had crafted enough End Crystals.
He even built a chest nearby to store miscellaneous materials from his inventory.
Then Ryen turned to the others.
"Put your stuff in here. Bring one stack of building blocks, one stack of empty glass bottles, a diamond sword, a diamond pickaxe, and your enchanted bow."
Hearing this, Ganyu asked curiously:
"Ryen, Endermen are immune to ranged attacks. What about the Ender Dragon?"
Ryen paused to think, recalling how to kill the Ender Dragon.
"When it's flying in the air, it's not immune to ranged attacks. But when it lands at the End Portal to rest, you can only melee it."
"Anyway, you won't get a clear idea just from hearing it. Once we're inside and see the dragon, I'll explain everything."
Killing the Ender Dragon wasn't much harder than defeating the Wither Storm.
The main thing was to avoid getting hit in the face by the dragon's breath.
Otherwise, even diamond armor wouldn't hold up for long.
"Oh, right."
Just as Ryen picked up his shovel to start digging, he suddenly turned back.
"Everyone must bring a stack of glass bottles. We're collecting dragon's breath."
Everyone nodded in agreement—they were already prepared.
Ryen continued:
"Zhongli, dig down with me. Go straight down, and remember to place ladders. Once I get down and confirm it's safe, I'll call the rest of you."
With that, Ryen started digging on the spot. Zhongli followed, placing ladders as they descended.
Neither of them spoke, silently digging their way down.
After who knows how many blocks, Ryen's foot suddenly slipped—and he fell into a wide, open space.
The distinctive clattering of Skeleton bones echoed in his ears, prompting Ryen to immediately plant torches around the area.
After surveying the surroundings, he observed that they were in an abandoned mineshaft—there were signs of past mining activity, and spider webs were spread across all directions.
Zhongli had also arrived beside Ryen.
After a moment of caution, they realized there were only monster sounds, but no actual monsters in sight.
Ryen whispered:
"Don't move just yet—stay on guard. I'm going up to call the others."
Zhongli gave a small nod, then pulled out a diamond sword and began harvesting the surrounding spider webs.
Ryen climbed back up using the ladder Zhongli had placed earlier.
All in all, it took no more than two or three minutes.
He waved down to the group, signaling for everyone to descend into the mine one by one.
After a brief inspection, Ningguang commented with some interest:
"An abandoned mineshaft? Are there treasure chests and other resources here too?"
Ryen nodded with a smile.
"There definitely are. This place can be mined as well—but let Jean and the others handle that later. For now, our priority is still finding the End Portal."
Back in the day, Ryen and Ningguang's group were the type to never leave a single resource behind. They absolutely would've cleared the whole mine before moving on.
But now, resource gathering wasn't their concern anymore.
The Qianyan Army and the miners would take care of it naturally.
Once they returned from this expedition, who knows how many new materials they might discover?
"Ryen, where do we look for the End Portal?" Ganyu asked softly.
Before Ryen could answer, Zhongli pointed ahead and said:
"There seems to be a passage that way. If there's a portal, it should be in a special room, correct?"
Ryen nodded and swapped to his shotgun, taking the lead.
"We'll just have to search. The End Portal should be nearby."
The group followed close behind, weapons in hand, remaining alert as they ventured deeper, placing torches along the way for markers.
At a bend in the path, the sounds of Skeletons and zombies grew louder and clearer.
Ryen raised his hand and fired.
The deafening blast echoed even louder in the narrow confines of the mineshaft.
But the four or five monsters in front of him were all taken out in a single shot.
Venti glanced at the shotgun in his hand and scratched his head in confusion.
"Why does your shotgun seem so much stronger than ours?"
Ryen chuckled and shrugged.
"Why else do you think it's called the Super Benelli?"
With a bit of playful teasing, the group moved onward.
Before long, they noticed a bright red glow coming from a small room ahead.
The unique scent of lava also reached their noses.
"Found it!" Ryen said with joy, quickening his pace.
Everyone hurried after him. Beyond the door was a slightly larger chamber.
Floating in midair were some strange-looking structures, with a large hole in the center.
Below it was a pool of lava.
Seeing this, Lisa raised an eyebrow.
"This is the End Portal? Please don't tell me we have to jump into the lava to get to the End."
Ryen let out a helpless laugh and stepped forward, casually plugging the lava pool.
No matter what, they'd have to jump into the hole shortly—and having lava beneath it was just pushing their limits too far.
"Hold the Eye of Ender, place them onto these structures, and we'll be able to teleport to the End."
He explained briefly, then quickly tiptoed up and began inserting the Eyes of Ender into the portal frames.
Just like the nether portal's formation, a spatial ripple spread as the End Portal formed instantly.
Unlike the Nether's portal, which exuded an ominous aura at first glance, the End Portal looked like a starry sky embedded within the frame.
It was strikingly beautiful.
"The End Portal does look way prettier than the Nether one—what a gorgeous trap," Lisa said with a playful smile as she stepped forward to inspect it.
Ryen nodded in agreement.
"Compared to the Nether, the End may not have lava, but it's just as dangerous—if not more."
Then he turned to everyone with a smile.
"Double-check your backpacks. Make sure you've packed everything—we're about to teleport."
"Ehehe!" Venti grinned, arms akimbo.
"Ryen, you're always so reliable when it counts!"
Ryen simply shrugged.
"Staying alive is the most important thing!"
Seeing that no one needed to re-prepare, Ryen turned around and smiled:
"Alright, I'll go first. Stay close behind me."
"We head to the End—to slay the dragon!"