Genshin x Minecraft: Building the Temple of Virtue

"Heavy?" Keqing gave Ganyu a curious look, pointing at the coal in her hands.

"Ganyu, are you tired? It's just a small chunk of coal—how heavy could it possibly be?"

"It's not that!" Ganyu replied anxiously, noticing Keqing's disbelief.

"Keqing! Feel it yourself! This piece of coal is incredibly heavy! At least a hundred times heavier than a crystal ore of the same size!"

Seeing the seriousness in Ganyu's expression, Keqing realized this wasn't a joke. She took a piece of coal, carefully weighing it in her hands.

Her eyes widened in shock.

Up until now, she'd been enjoying the ease of mining and the thrill of resources automatically appearing in her inventory. She hadn't paid attention to the coal's peculiar properties.

But now that she held it and truly felt its weight… this small chunk of coal must weigh over 100 kilograms!

"This little thing weighs as much as three of me combined!" Keqing exclaimed, staring incredulously at Ryen.

He merely shrugged, his face calm.

"That's why I've been saying the resources in this world are… unique. On average, a single piece of coal here weighs around 170 kilograms. Nine pieces of coal can be combined into a cubic meter of coal, which weighs over 1.5 tons."

"So don't let its size fool you," Ryen continued. "If you were to take this coal back to Teyvat, the heat it produces and the duration it burns for would be equivalent to 170 kilograms of ordinary coal. And since this coal is of higher quality, its performance might even surpass what you're used to."

Keqing and Ganyu stood stunned, absorbing his explanation.

They'd thought they had a good grasp of how this world worked. But once again, Ryen had surprised them with another mind-boggling revelation.

Looking around at the densely packed coal veins within 30 meters, Keqing felt overwhelmed.

This coal mine wasn't just rich—it was absurdly abundant!

Coal was everywhere: in the walls, overhead, underfoot, and deeper underground. With a rough estimate, the coal in just this 30-meter radius could weigh nearly 20 tons.

And this was only the surface layer of the mine. They hadn't even ventured deeper yet.

According to Ryen, the deeper layers contained the world's hardest diamonds and obsidian.

Keqing and Ganyu exchanged a look, their thoughts aligning. They both realized just how invaluable this world truly was.

This wasn't a barren wilderness—it was an untapped goldmine.

A world where high-quality resources were everywhere.

A world where mining was effortless, yielding refined materials without the need for additional processing.

Calling this place a treasure trove didn't do it justice. It was paradise!

Keqing's thoughts began to race.

If coal deposits of this quality were even more abundant deeper in the mine, then this single mine could revolutionize Liyue Harbor's coal market, potentially dominating Teyvat's entire coal trade.

Especially in Snezhnaya, where coal was in high demand.

Flooding the market with this high-grade coal could give Liyue Harbor a decisive economic advantage over the Fatui, leveraging coal profits to suppress their activities.

The more Keqing thought about it, the more her imagination ran wild.

And it wasn't just about the profits—it was sustainable, requiring no additional investment or maintenance. All it took was manual labor, and the returns were virtually limitless.

"This would drive Ningguang absolutely crazy if she found out…" Keqing muttered to herself, the fiery determination in her eyes growing stronger.

"Keqing, it's not just coal!" Ganyu said earnestly, snapping Keqing out of her thoughts.

"Ryen mentioned there are many other minerals in this mine. If those minerals are anything like this coal—"

Before she could finish, Ryen raised a hand to interrupt her.

"There's no if about it—it's a certainty," he said, smiling knowingly.

"Take iron ore, for instance. A single unit of iron ore will always yield one block of iron ore. When you smelt that block, it produces one iron ingot. Nine iron ingots can then be crafted into a cubic meter of iron, which weighs over eight tons. Now, tell me…" Ryen's grin widened as he looked at Keqing and Ganyu.

"How heavy do you think a single iron ingot is?"

The more Keqing and Ganyu thought about it, the brighter their expressions became.

After a moment of silence, Keqing clenched her fist with determination, the smudges on her face making her look adorably fierce.

"This is amazing! Absolutely amazing! The issue of resources will no longer limit Liyue's development!"

"This could be the first monumental step for Liyue's governance! Ryen, I know I've said this before, but I have to say it again…"

"Thank you! Truly… thank you!"

Ryen chuckled as he reached out to rub Keqing's face, wiping away some of the dust in the process. He handed her a newly forged tool.

"Here, use this. A higher-level pickaxe will make mining even faster!"

Keqing took the tool with the utmost seriousness, as though she had been entrusted with a sacred mission. She nodded solemnly.

"I understand! Ryen, just watch—I'm going to clear out all the coal here!"

Ryen found the sight amusing. It was the first time he'd seen someone so enthusiastic about mining coal—especially someone as important as Keqing.

Ridiculous, really.

Still, Ryen didn't stop her. They would need these resources sooner or later, so the more they mined now, the better.

With no time for idle chatter, Keqing immediately swung her pickaxe, the sound of clanging filling the air as she worked diligently.

Turning to Ganyu, Ryen handed her the remaining tools.

"Alright, Ganyu. You too—do your best!" he said with a smile.

Ganyu, however, didn't seem as jubilant as Keqing. Her eyes darted about, and she looked as though she was deep in thought.

Ryen didn't press her, preparing to head to another part of the mine to start digging. But before he could move, Ganyu's soft voice stopped him.

"Ryen…"

Curious, he turned back.

"What is it, Ganyu?"

She hesitated, her lips pressing together as if debating whether to speak. Finally, after a moment of internal struggle, she mumbled shyly,

"My… my face is dirty too…"

"…"

Ryen blinked in surprise before breaking into a chuckle. Gently, he reached out and began wiping her face clean.

"Hang in there, Ganyu. Conditions are limited right now, but once we're out of here, you can have a proper wash."

He paused, adding thoughtfully, "Once we've mined some iron ore and crafted iron buckets, we can collect water next time. Then you'll be able to stay clean whenever you want."

Ganyu didn't quite catch what Ryen was saying. All she knew was that her face felt warm, and so did her heart. Even the horns atop her head seemed to heat up.

Dazedly, she nodded before turning back to the task at hand, throwing herself into mining with newfound focus.

Watching her retreating figure, Ryen's gaze grew contemplative. After a brief silence, he shook his head and walked toward another section of the mine to begin digging.

To Ryen, mining coal was routine, nothing to get excited about. But for Keqing and Ganyu, it was as if they had been injected with boundless energy, their enthusiasm soaring to new heights.

The three of them decided not to venture deeper for the time being, focusing instead on clearing out the coal in their immediate surroundings.

Ryen had made it clear—whatever they mined today, aside from the portion reserved for future use, Keqing and Ganyu could take some with them.

Specifically, they could fill their inventory slots—nine each.

Nine slots might not sound like much, but each slot could stack up to 64 units. With coal blocks, the amount they could carry out of the mine would be enough to supply Liyue Harbor for half a month.

If they chose to sell it to Snezhnaya, the profit could easily reach billions of Mora. After all, they were talking about hundreds of tons of high-quality coal.

And coal wasn't lacking buyers in Teyvat. Every nation needed it. Snezhnaya, with its extreme cold, was the largest consumer, but Fontaine also relied on coal as a major energy source.

Of course, this was just speculation on Keqing and Ganyu's part. After all, they only had 18 inventory slots between them and couldn't dedicate all of them to coal. They would need to carry other valuable resources as well.

At the very least…

Keqing couldn't take her eyes off the ever-burning torches.

When Ryen placed the torches around the mine, illuminating the entire cavern as brightly as daylight, Keqing's desire for them grew stronger.

Overall, the three worked with great motivation. In half an hour, they had cleared out almost all the coal in the area.

The sheer amount of coal exceeded even Ryen's expectations.

By the end, they had gathered enough to fill three and a half stacks of coal blocks—a massive haul.

Looking at the pickaxe in his hand, its durability nearly depleted, Ryen casually tossed it aside. It was just a stone pickaxe, and with the abundance of stone around, it wasn't worth conserving.

As he prepared to call Keqing and Ganyu for a short break and some food before continuing their exploration, Ganyu's sudden cry of alarm pierced the air.

This time, her tone carried a hint of panic.

Without hesitation, Ryen grabbed his shield and stone sword, rushing toward her.

When he reached Ganyu's side, his eyes narrowed at the sight before him.

Embedded in the wall in front of Ganyu…

Was an arrow.