It Appears That Time Cannot Erode Stone

Chapter 4

Morax/Zhongli POV:

It was quite a shock when he was suddenly standing on a floating courtyard of smooth, pale-grey stone. Being the lord of Geo, he knew that the stone under his feet were anything but ordinary, and he was careful to tread exactly where Keqing did.

The goddess of bravery took a deep breath and stopped outside a pair of huge double-doors, which were made of a dark, silky wood, black but full of light, like a piano.

Her hand rested on the golden handles. "Before we go in, let me warn you, Lady Ningguang does not tolerate any kind of rudeness, so you would be wise to be civil." She gave Xiao a pointed look, and the yaksha returned the stare unblinkingly.

Lady Ningguang. Morax tested the name mentally. His Chinese had never been the best, but if he was right, Ningguang translated roughly to condensed or frozen light. That gave him some clue about her power, but before he could press the matter, Keqing pushed the two doors open.

Immediately, the floor around his feet glowed moon-white, and the Jade Palace illuminated the sky like a second moon, or a truly brilliant star. 

A red, gold-traced carpet stretched out in front of him, on and on, until Morax couldn't see the end of it. On either side of the carpet, truly giant pillars rose like spirals of clouds until he couldn't see them anymore.

"Go on," Keqing said with no enthusiasm.

Morax stepped on the 'carpet'. The thing was, most carpets didn't glow bright gold and amber as soon as he stepped on it. Particles of gold rose around his feet, and his eyes widened.

"What is with all this flashiness?" Xiao asked, unimpressed.

Keqing looked unsurprised. "That was Ningguang's way of checking how powerful someone is. The crystal is so bright... You're more powerful than most gods, after all," she added to Morax.

Xiao and Ganyu walked after him, but the carpet faded back into red and gold.

It seemed like they were walking forever, but then a cold, female voice rang out in front of them. "Welcome to the Jade Chamber."

Morax immediately drew his polearm. 

The voice tsked. "I suppose I shouldn't be suprised."

Slowly, light began to flood in front of them, illuminating a stunning throne of white and gold, whose back was carved with glinting silver constellations. Seated on the throne was a woman in shining robes of gold and white, so that she looked like she was a part of the throne. Her striking red irises were stained crimson like roses, (Or blood- Shut up Morax!), and her fingers were tipped with gold claws.

The woman smiled and stood. The temperature dropped faster than a cannonball. "My name is Lady Ningguang, the Lady of the Jade Palace. Pleasure to meet you."

For some inexplicable reason, Morax instantly disliked everything about her. It took him a moment to realize why- she was the exact opposite of Guizhong.

He shook his head to clear the thoughts. Guizhong wanted a new ally. He was doing this for that reason.

He bowed reluctantly. "Likewise, Lady...Ningguang. I haven't heard of you, but I can tell that you would be a useful ally."

Those dead, red eyes bore into his, the eyes of a predator. "Really. How do you know that?"

A chill spread through Morax, but that was ridiculous. He wasn't afraid of this annoying, insignificant goddess. He had a feeling she wasn't referring to how he knew she would be a useful ally, but she was alluding to something else...

"I- Your handmaiden told me,"He tried.

Instantly, that deadened eyes brightened as her suspicion faded. "Oh. Pardon me for being so rude, but yes, you are right, I would love to be your ally. I can already guess what you want from me, of course."

Morax narrowed his eyes. His hand tightened on the handle of his polearm. "Can you?"

Ningguang shrugged elegantly. "If I had to guess, you want a god with an aerial view of your territory to warn you of when an enemy force is approaching. I could do that, of course, but what do I get out of it?"

Shit. Well, Morax hadn't thought of that yet. What would someone with the likes of her want? She didn't seem to have territory of her own, besides her Jade Palace, and by the looks of it that didn't seem to need protection.

"I'll pay you," he tried. "In times of war such as these, currency is few and worth much"

Instantly, Ningguang's slender fingers covered her mouth as she tried to hide a small laugh. "What do you mean? Hasn't Keqing told you?"

"What-"

"I didn't," Keqing interrupted, "In case he was a threat."

"What?" Morax asked, annoyed.

Ningguang held out her palm, as if she was offering him something. A bright flash illuminated her hand. All of a sudden, a dozen precious aureate & amber star jades were floating around her hand.

"As you can see," she said with a small smile, "I can summon precious stones. I am the goddess of wealth & light, Mistress of Heaven. I am afraid you will have to make a better offer than that."