Genshin Impact: Back From Teyvat - The Archon Follows Me Home!

The stadium was packed with noise and excitement. On the competition stage, Lu Chen removed his mask and looked toward the stands.

His whole family was there watching him, especially Venti, who stood up to cheer—making her stand out even more.

Lu Chen smiled and waved at them.

Venti even blew him a kiss, though he had no idea where she learned that from.

The crowd erupted in even louder cheers.

The scoreboard showed 15:5. After three rounds, Lu Chen had reached 15 hits first.

As for the opponent's five hits—he had let those slide on purpose.

In the championship's individual event, he had to go through group rounds first. Only after making it out of his group could he enter the knockout rounds and eventually reach the finals.

He'd already beaten every opponent in Group A, most in completely one-sided matches. Even the close ones had been staged by him.

Ignoring the disappointed look on the face of his opponent from the provincial academy, Lu Chen removed his mask, wiped his sweat, and stepped off the stage.

The school team coach approached with a bright smile, holding out a towel and a bottle of water.

"Great job, Lu! With you two on the team, our year-end bonus—uh, I mean, the championship—is within reach!"

Lu Chen took the water and took a sip. "Where's Miss Raiden?"

"She's in the women's épée next—already in the locker room."

Lu Chen nodded. "Oh, then I'll head to the stands if that's all right."

The coach nodded quickly. "Sure, go ahead."

Normally, athletes would stay in the locker room where the coach would go over group results, strategy, and tactics...

But Lu Chen and Ei were like living deities on the team—the coach never dared to order them around.

Lu Chen was done for the day anyway. The match had been uneventful, not much worth discussing.

He changed into a cool T-shirt and shorts and made his way to the spectator area.

The venue was packed. He squeezed through the crowd for a while before finally reaching his seat.

The empty spot beside him was saved for Ei. On Ei's other side sat Miko and Venti, while to Lu Chen's right were Zhongli, Qiqi, and Hu Tao.

A group this good-looking naturally drew attention. Even the cameraman seemed interested, sweeping his camera their way.

Lu Chen's confused face suddenly appeared on the big screen—good-looking as he was, he didn't seem very photogenic.

The camera shifted to the left, where Venti gave it a wink and made a heart with her hands.

The audience roared again.

Lu Chen watched the screen in awe.

No wonder she was a star—finding the camera that fast, she was practically born for the spotlight.

Though V.T.'s true identity was still a mystery, this "mysterious artist" persona had already become a sensation in the industry. Venti's standing at Star Entertainment had risen sharply as a result.

Fans were dying to know what V.T. looked like. The more tightly Star kept it under wraps, the more intense the curiosity became.

Honestly, it was a brilliant marketing move. It didn't disrupt Venti's daily life and gave her complete freedom to write songs.

She was already working on her second album—rumor had it the theme was "travel."

Ei hadn't appeared yet. As Lu Chen snacked, he reached into the bag and found a bottle of coconut milk.

Confused, he looked to his right. At this hour, shouldn't Qiqi have already finished it?

He met a pair of lifeless eyes.

Qiqi stared at him helplessly. She held a pile of handwritten cards, while Hu Tao sat beside her furiously scribbling away.

Lu Chen asked Zhongli, puzzled, "What are they up to?"

The golden-eyed man looked over. Lu Chen noticed he was holding a pen too.

"Hu Tao said she wants to help you with your task."

"Task?"

Lu Chen leaned in curiously. Hu Tao was intensely focused, writing and doodling on the cards.

"Wait..." Lu Chen noticed something off. One card had five big words on it:

Grand Opening Special!

"Master Hu, what are you doing?"

Hu Tao glanced up when someone blocked her light.

"What are you doing? You're blocking my light."

Lu Chen suddenly realized what she was up to and gasped, "Don't tell me... you're trying to reopen the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor?"

Hu Tao looked up again, her plum blossom eyes filled with seriousness.

"Correct. Unfortunately, no prize for guessing."

"Huh?"

Lu Chen snatched a card and studied it—phrases like "Celebrate the Zhongyuan Festival," "Second Tombstone Half Off," and "Buy One, Get One Free" jumped out at him.

He shot a look at Zhongli. "You're just going to let her do this?"

Zhongli shook his head. "It's beyond my authority..."

"You're just too lazy to deal with her!"

Lu Chen knew Zhongli could never handle Master Hu, so he quickly stepped in to stop her ridiculous plan.

Hu Tao watched her hard work get confiscated, mumbling, "I was just trying to help..."

"Stop making things worse, will you..." Lu Chen glared at her, feeling a headache coming on.

Hu Tao had her own... unique interpretation of the "Ghost Festival Funeral Night" task.

She said, if there are no conditions, we can create them.

No customers? No problem—we can make some.

Terrifying...

Thank goodness she hadn't passed out the flyers yet. Otherwise, as the head of the family, Lu Chen might've been taken away...

Back in his seat, Lu Chen sighed. This family had caused enough chaos. All he wanted now was to keep things low-key.

Trying to keep a low profile, Lu Chen looked toward the stage as Raiden Ei stepped out.

As soon as the No. 2 women's épée competitor appeared, the crowd erupted.

During the three-day tournament, Lu Chen and Ei were clearly the center of attention. Lu Chen's pockets were stuffed with business cards from different sports schools.

He could only smile and politely decline. He only joined the school team and entered the competition to complete a challenge.

And sneak in some goof-off time while he was at it.

"How long do you think she'll take?" Venti asked with a grin.

Miko crossed her arms, watching disinterestedly.

"If it's Ei, less than a minute."

Lu Chen shook his head. "You're overthinking it. There are three rounds, each three minutes..."

"You don't actually think she'll fight all nine minutes, do you?" Miko looked over.

Lu Chen just smiled silently. Miko started doing the math, but no matter how she calculated, she figured Ei would land all fifteen hits in the first round.

"You didn't include the timeouts, did you?" she asked suspiciously.

"Nope." Lu Chen smiled. "Wanna bet?"

"No way." She pouted. "I'm not like you two."

She was probably referring to Lu Chen and Venti, who loved making bets and constantly trying to outdo each other.

Lu Chen smiled and turned back to the match. As they spoke, Ei scored again—3:0 on the board.

During the timeout, Lu Chen saw the opposing coach shouting something.

Seemed like he was telling the fencer to move more nimbly and counter the attacks—don't keep getting caught by those simple thrusts...

Easier said than done. Who could dodge Ei's attacks?

Amid the roaring crowd, Lu Chen casually finished his snacks while watching Ei's entire match.

15:10.

It took 8 minutes.

The coach wiped the sweat off his forehead, clearly rattled by how close the score was. He followed Ei, chattering nonstop.

Lu Chen leaned back with his hands behind his head, relaxing in his seat.

Miko frowned and looked over again.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

"I never talked to her, but I figured she'd do it," Lu Chen said.

He had given his opponent five hits on purpose. Ei had gone even further—giving ten.

Only true elites could toy with the score like that.

And the reason? To keep a low profile.

Their family already drew enough attention. Lu Chen and Ei had no interest in pursuing sports careers, so it was better to win while staying under the radar.

Miko looked from Lu Chen to Ei on the edge of the arena. The silent understanding between them made her snort.

"Tch!"

She didn't bother replying after that.

"Huh?"

Lu Chen scratched his head, confused by Miko's strange expression.

Did I do something to upset her?