Genshin x Minecraft: Building the Temple of Virtue

After passing on the tricks of mining diamonds to everyone, Ryen had them follow that narrow mine tunnel to see if there were any more diamonds hidden within.

Since the tunnel had no branches, Ryen wasn’t too worried about them getting lost.

To be extra cautious, he also prepared a water bucket for each of them—after all, when it came to certain dangers, a well-placed splash of water could solve most problems.

However, what truly surprised Ryen was that Keqing and the others, without any guidance, had each crafted a boat to bring along.

Now that was some impressive progress! Who would’ve thought that after using a boat against an Enderman once, they’d suddenly grasp such a deep understanding of boats?

Ryen mused to himself—maybe he should take some time to demonstrate the lava boat-clutch trick for them.

But then again, that maneuver was a high-risk, high-reward stunt.

This wasn’t like his past life, where he could just click his mouse and tap his keyboard—it was real life.

And Ryen had no interest in gambling with his life.

He always followed the principle of playing it safe and securing victory steadily.

Thus, he repeatedly reminded everyone not to venture more than 200 meters into the tunnel.

After all, underground caves were filled with unknown dangers, and Ryen would rather give up on diamonds than risk the safety of his friends.

Of course, just to be extra sure, he had secretly asked Zhongli to keep an eye on them. If anything went wrong, Zhongli’s sheer strength should be more than enough to hold the situation under control for a decent amount of time.

Hmm…

That should be foolproof.

As Ryen idly pondered, he grabbed an iron bucket and poured lava over a three-block-high stone pillar in front of him.

Once the lava spread and stopped flowing further, he immediately doused it with water, forming a neat layer of obsidian.

With the obsidian set, he collected the water, pulled out his diamond pickaxe, and began mining using Chain Mining.

In just a short while, Ryen had already gathered a full stack of obsidian.

This pace was quite decent, considering how tough obsidian was—after all, even with a diamond pickaxe, it still took quite a while to mine each block.

But Ryen didn’t find the process boring.

After all, Ganyu was right there beside him the whole time.

Just as he finished another round of mining, Ganyu, who had been quietly observing for quite a while, suddenly stepped up.

She reached for the lava bucket in Ryen’s hand with a serious expression and declared,

”Ryen, I’ve got it now. Let me take over—you should rest for a bit.”

Ryen blinked, momentarily caught off guard.

He was about to tell her that his hunger bar had only dropped by two points, so he wasn’t tired at all.

But seeing the confidence in Ganyu’s eyes, it was clear she had been paying close attention and genuinely wanted to help.

It wouldn’t be right to turn down her kind gesture.

So, after a brief pause, Ryen gave her a slight nod and even handed her his diamond pickaxe.

”Just be careful. Lava burns—it’s dangerous.”

Ganyu’s little head bobbed up and down rapidly as she softly recited,

”I know—I should stand on a high platform and pour the lava over the stone pillar. Then, once the lava spreads out and stops flowing, I can pour the water to create obsidian.”

She muttered through the steps under her breath, carefully following the process.

Step by step, she first poured the lava, waiting for it to settle, then followed up with the water.

In an instant, a fresh layer of obsidian neatly formed in front of her.

”Ryen!”

Ganyu turned around excitedly, looking at him with sparkling eyes.

Ryen chuckled.

”Alright, now pick up the water. I’ve set up Chain Mining for you, so the next step is just mining. You got this?”

Ganyu nodded eagerly.

”No problem! Leave it to me!”

Seeing her so enthusiastic, Ryen couldn’t help but smile.

Ganyu’s happiness seemed to come from the simplest things, though he wasn’t entirely sure why.

Perhaps it was just in her nature—she was such a kind person that helping others brought her genuine joy.

Ryen didn’t stray far from her, choosing to stand nearby and watch over her.

After all, dealing with lava was no small matter.

Though Ganyu had learned quickly, it was still best to keep an eye on her.

Her mining speed was noticeably slower than Ryen’s.

Perhaps it was because she had only inherited part of Ryen’s physical traits.

But that was fine. Ryen wasn’t in a hurry—he patiently waited for her to mine at her own pace.

After about four to five minutes,

With a final crack, the obsidian shattered, breaking apart into glowing blocks that floated on the ground.

Ganyu’s eyes lit up with joy.

She quickly climbed down the ladder, carefully collecting every last piece of obsidian, before scrambling back up and holding them out to Ryen.

Looking at her expectant expression, Ryen chuckled and gently pinched one of her horns.

”Good job, Ganyu.”

That single sentence made Ganyu seem as if she had been recharged with boundless energy.

”It wasn’t hard at all! As long as I can help you, Ryen, I’m happy!”

Without hesitation, she grabbed the lava bucket again, ready to continue.

But before she could start, Ryen caught her hand.

”That’s enough for now, Ganyu. There’s no need to keep going.”

Hearing this, Ganyu blinked in confusion, tilting her head at him.

”But, Ryen… you only mined about one stack of obsidian, right? You’ll probably need a lot more, won’t you?”

”Unless… Are you worried that I’ll get tired? If that’s the case, don’t worry! This is nothing—I can keep going just fine!”

Ryen chuckled helplessly and pointed at the diamond pickaxe in her hand.

”Ganyu, did you forget? You still have Chain Mining active. That means the durability of the diamond pickaxe is dropping really fast.”

Following his gaze, Ganyu lowered her eyes to examine the pickaxe—

Sure enough, the once-pristine diamond pickaxe was now covered in cracks.

She fell silent.

This was a diamond pickaxe.

It had cost three precious diamonds to craft.

Ganyu was well aware that this entire journey—the past two days of deep mining—was all for two things: redstone and diamonds.

And now, after being used for barely half an hour, the pickaxe was already in such a fragile state.

Ganyu suddenly felt a pang of distress.

”Ryen…”

Ganyu gazed at the diamond pickaxe in her hands, her eyes filled with reluctance. She opened her mouth, about to say something, but before she could, Ryen chuckled and tapped her forehead lightly.

”No apologizing. I’ve been using this pickaxe for most of the day. If anyone’s responsible for wearing it out, it’s me.”

”Besides, it’s just a tool. No need to worry about it. Once more miners from Liyue arrive, getting diamonds will be even easier, won’t it?”

Hearing that, Ganyu seemed to realize something. She nodded softly, her fluffy ears twitching ever so slightly.

Then, after a brief moment of contemplation, she turned back toward the lava and water.

”Ryen, should we take a few extra buckets of lava back? You’ll probably need a lot of obsidian, right?”

”Besides, I noticed that Lady Cloud Retainer and the others seem interested in taking some obsidian with them as well.”

Ryen wasn’t surprised that they wanted to bring some obsidian back.

After all, it was one of the hardest materials in the Minecraft world!

Even Zhongli had been standing there with a thoughtful expression.

He was probably considering reinforcing Azhdaha’s seal with this stuff, wasn’t he?

If that was the case, then Ryen felt like handing obsidian over to Zhongli would make him somewhat complicit in something… ominous.

Still, he agreed to Ganyu’s suggestion and let her gather a few extra buckets of lava.

After all, obsidian was incredibly useful—not only was it durable, but it was also the primary material needed for crafting enchantment tables and Nether portals.

Something like this? The more, the better.

Together with Ganyu, Ryen retrieved four buckets of lava. Just as they finished, voices echoed from the narrow tunnel behind them.

Judging by the cheerful chatter, Ningguang and Keqing seemed to have made a decent haul.

Just as expected, the moment Keqing stepped out of the tunnel and saw Ryen, her eyes lit up with excitement.

She strode forward and placed several diamonds into his hand.

”Ryen, we found seven diamonds in total. How’s that for a haul?”

Ryen raised an eyebrow and accepted the diamonds with a pleased nod.

”Adding the three I found, that makes ten in total. This mine is surprisingly rich in resources.”

At that, smiles spread across everyone’s faces.

”So… should we continue exploring the mine?” Ningguang asked.

Ryen thought for a moment before shaking his head slightly.

”No need. By my estimate, it’s around midday already.”

”Let’s head back to the estate to rest up and sort through our findings.”

Although there was a bit of lingering regret among the group, no one objected.

After all, they had already been down here for quite a while, and the amount of resources they had gathered was nothing to scoff at.

Besides, tomorrow was the scheduled day for the first group of miners to arrive. Both Ningguang and Keqing needed to return and make preparations.

Additionally, Keqing still had to draft a Minecraft Mining Safety Manual as soon as possible.

Just because they had gotten lucky this time and encountered no major dangers didn’t mean the same would hold true for others.

After all, who were they?

They had Ryen, Zhongli, and several highly capable warriors in their party.

But the miners arriving tomorrow? They were, at best, ordinary people with minimal combat abilities.

There had to be a detailed set of safety guidelines—one that covered how to avoid hostile creatures, how to identify different ores, and even techniques for mining efficiently and safely.

For Keqing and Ningguang, this trip wasn’t just about gathering resources.

The knowledge they had gained was far more important.

Seeing that no one had any objections, Ryen spoke up.

”Alright then. Let’s teleport back to the estate. You all remember the teleportation method I showed you, right?”

”Of course.”

Ningguang smiled, casting a glance at him before speaking softly.

”I’ll go ahead and wait for you all there.”

As soon as she finished, a radiant white glow enveloped her body—then, in the blink of an eye, she was gone.

The others wasted no time in following suit.

As interesting as the mining experience had been, the environment down here was still dark, damp, and eerily silent.

Even Ryen—who had plenty of experience mining—felt that if Ganyu and the others hadn’t been here with him, he probably wouldn’t have gone this deep into the cave at all.

At most, he would have just skimmed the surface, grabbed some coal, iron, and redstone, and left.

After all, the Minecraft world was vast—limitlessly vast, even.

Even if all of Teyvat were placed within it, it would barely take up any space in this near-infinite world.

Because of that, resources and land weren’t scarce at all.

Here, the most valuable things weren’t diamonds or redstone.

They weren’t even Netherite.

The most valuable thing in this world…

Was imagination.

And creativity.

At least, that was what Ryen had told Ganyu and the others.

But deep down, he knew the truth.

The real key to this world was something else entirely.

It was companionship.

Without it, this world would be nothing but a vast, lonely void.

It was they who brought laughter and warmth into this world.

They who filled it with life and vibrance.

Because in the grand stretch of existence, humanity could experience countless fleeting moments of joy—

But what truly kept the heart burning with passion and anticipation for tomorrow…

Was the presence of others.

A Minecraft world without companions was just a lonely sandbox.

And he… was no longer alone.

…

One by one, beams of white light flashed as Zhongli and the others teleported away.

Finally, after Ganyu gently urged him to hurry up and left as well, Ryen found himself standing alone in the silent depths of the mine.

He turned and took one last lingering look at the cavern.

This was the first mine in the Minecraft world where he had discovered diamonds.

It had given him many surprises, and yet… there were still unanswered mysteries.

Like that perfectly structured mineral wall they had encountered earlier.

A lingering curiosity flickered through his mind.

But even if it truly was Him, Ryen didn’t feel any fear.

He took a deep breath, his voice echoing through the dimly lit cavern.

”Him…”

His words stretched out, carried into the depths of the mine.

For a few moments, there was nothing but silence.

Then, Ryen let out a soft chuckle, his body beginning to glow with the familiar radiance of teleportation.

”You may be alone… but I never have been.”

”If you truly exist… then wait for us.”

”We’ll come find you.”

~~----------------------

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