Liyue Harbor.
As the God of Liyue, the Geo Archon Zhongli could feel the pulse of the earth more clearly than any other god.
This faint yet familiar aura of a demon god was none other than that of the God of Salt, Havria.
He knew that the Heavenly Principle would gradually revive the gods, even those who had fallen during the Archon War, as long as it served the greater plan.
But for now, Zhongli chose not to delve into the matter of Havria's impending revival. He had to deal with the lively and mischievous girl standing before him.
Hu Tao placed two ticulously crafted bowls in front of him. "Zhongli, as thanks for your hard work managing business for the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, I personally asked Xiangling to prepare these takoyaki just for you. This is my token of appreciation—you wouldn't waste my effort and sincerity, would you?"
Zhongli's usually serious face twitched as he stared at the tight, plump octopus balls in the bowl. "Director Hu…" It was as if he could see Osial writhing in the bowl.
Hu Tao, feigning innocence, blinked her eyes. "Zhongli, you have to finish them all~!"
···
At the Chasm of Salt.
Havria's resurrection didn't take long.
A white-haired girl curled up on the ground, hugging her knees. She slowly opened her eyes, first in confusion, then in shock, before finally raising her head to look at the young man standing before her, scrutinizing her with his hand on his chin.
The overwhelming, supre, all-encompassing aura of dominance pressed down upon her.
Havria imdiately understood—it was the Heavenly Principle who had resurrected her. She lowered her head in terror. "Heavenly Principle…"
Though she had never seen the Heavenly Principle, only the victors of the Archon War were qualified to set foot on Celestia. Yet, the connection to the essence of her own being left her without doubt that the young man before her was the supre Heavenly Principle.
What she didn't understand was why soone like her—a defeated god from the Archon War—was brought back to life.
Noah snapped his fingers, and clothing fitting Havria's temperant appeared on her.
To Noah, Havria's presence reminded him of the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata—overflowing with compassion from head to toe. However, Rukkhadevata, as the avatar of the World Tree, had an innate safeguard, whereas Havria had none and was far weaker.
"Havria, as a defeated god from the Archon War, you were never supposed to be revived. But—"
Noah pointed a finger, transmitting the details of the World Assimilation Plan into her mind.
"I hope you are wise enough to understand what you must do."
Havria was utterly stunned by the information flooding her consciousness. By the ti she recovered, the Heavenly Principle and the two girls beside him had already vanished, leaving only his voice in her ears.
"You made the wrong choices in the Archon War. If you wish to change your fate, seek out Morax. He will teach you sothing useful."
Listening to the Heavenly Principle's words, Havria was shaken to her very soul. When she finally snapped out of it, her gaze beca resolute.
Havria wasn't stupid. No god with complete sentience was truly foolish. It was simply her temperant that had led her to make certain decisions.
Having already died once due to her poor choices, she would not make the sa mistake again.
If it was clearly wrong—harmful to herself, her followers, and everyone else—then she wouldn't choose it a second ti.
"The World Assimilation Plan…"
As a god under the Heavenly Principle's banner, she could now deeply feel the extent of the Heavenly Principle's power.
Only the Heavenly Principle stood supre.
"Morax... Is the victor of this land the God of Gold?"
When she had perished, the war on this land had only been a few hundred years in, and no gods had yet fallen. She had been the first god to die.
Before her death, she had told her followers to seek the protection of the God of Gold.
At that ti, the God of Gold had already ford an alliance with three other gods on this land—all of whom led human populations.
Havria stepped out of her birthplace. "The Heavenly Principle has given a second chance. This ti, I will not squander the opportunity to start anew."
···
During the ti Havria made her way toward Liyue Harbor, Noah had already left Liyue with Yae Miko and Istaroth, arriving at the borders of Suru.
The natural environnt imdiately contrasted sharply with that of Liyue. Suru's dense rainforests were so tall that they obscured much of the sky, and as far as the eye could see, it was a sea of lush greenery.
If judged solely by its environnt, it felt as though they had stepped into a fairytale world.
As Noah sensed the emotions fed back to him by the Human Realm System in Suru, his golden eyes turned cold and indifferent.
"Suru… Such a beautiful environnt, yet the entire national system is utterly rotten. If it weren't for the urgency of the world's lifespan hanging over my head previously, I would have dealt with this place long ago."
The Human Realm System could detect the emotions and grievances of the people on a given land.
The resentnt and suffering of the people in Suru exceeded even that of Inazuma.
Though Inazuma had its flaws, Raiden Ei was still present. No matter how corrupt its upper echelons beca, they would not spiral into complete irreparability. After all, Inazuma's corruption was mostly confined to the upper levels, while its mid-tier administration remained relatively intact.
But Suru? Ever since the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata had suppressed Forbidden Knowledge within the World Tree and created Nahida, the entire national system of Suru had decayed from top to bottom.
Even the occasional righteous individuals who erged were nothing but fleeting sparks, quickly snuffed out by the tides of corruption.
The original sin began the mont the sages imprisoned Nahida five hundred years ago.
This original sin laid the foundation for the current, heinously corrupt system of Suru.
The very foundation of this nation now rested upon the act of imprisoning its own god.
And Nahida was a god personally appointed by the Heavenly Principle. To imprison her was an outright act of rebellion against the Heavenly Principle itself.
In other words, Suru had made itself the enemy of the Heavenly Principle.
As soone who had lived in the modern world, Noah fully understood the depths to which a small group of humans, ard with knowledge and power far beyond the average, could descend into depravity and arrogance when left unmonitored by a god.
Back when he had played the ga, just witnessing this situation had left him seething with rage. Now, facing it in reality, his fury was barely contained.
"Miko, Istaroth, you two can explore Suru as you please. I have so matters to take care of," Noah said coldly, his golden eyes locking onto the two beside him as his body gradually beca transparent, vanishing into the air in the blink of an eye.
Yae Miko felt a shiver run through her as she watched the once-amiable Noah grow cold and indifferent. For the first ti, she felt a bone-deep fear. "Suru… Is it really that rotten?"
Suddenly, she recalled what had happened when Lord Noah appeared in Inazuma.
Half of Inazuma's upper echelons had been purged, with nearly ninety percent of the great clans erased from history and exiled to Seirai Island to mine.
Istaroth yawned lazily, her tone indifferent. "Imprisoning their own god... If it were Phanes handling this, the first step would be dropping nails from the sky, followed by a curse. At least half of Suru's population would be dead."
Yae Miko was utterly shaken when she heard that the people of Suru had imprisoned their own god.
In Inazuma, the people held an unwavering reverence for their Archon. The people of Inazuma had always believed in and followed Raiden Shogun, building the Inazuma of today under her guidance.
Yet the people of Suru had imprisoned their god. Such an act was utterly heretical, akin to locking up one's own parents.
Without the protection of their god's power, could humanity have ever survived as peacefully as they do now? Calling it "ungrateful" would be far too mild.
···
At this mont, Noah stepped into a special domain unique to Suru.
It was a space born from the energies of the World Tree, existing in the boundary between reality and illusion.
The mories of the world inherently existed in this liminal space between reality and illusion. It was this duality that allowed the World Tree to house infinite mories and wield the power to distort and rewrite history.
If the world were compared to a computer, the Heavenly Principle would be the CPU and Windows operating system, while the World Tree would serve as the storage drive. The Archons could be considered the various applications running on the Windows system.
In this analogy, the World Tree naturally possessed 20% of the permissions over the world of Teyvat.
And as Teyvat grew stronger, the World Tree would also grow stronger. In the future, it could potentially be used to rewrite the histories of lower worlds.
For instance, the origin of the world of Demon Slayer, the history of how humanity ca into being, or even fabrications and lies spread within those worlds—all could be altered through the World Tree.
In Noah's grand plan, the World Tree played an incredibly pivotal role. It was, in fact, an indispensable component.
This was because the World Tree was a divine object that could rewrite the origins of the worlds being assimilated.
Noah walked along the ethereal roots extending from the World Tree.
The main body of the World Tree was just ahead, its dreamlike pink canopy already visible.
Before long, he arrived beneath the canopy. The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata was already there, calmly awaiting his arrival.
Her appearance was identical to Nahida's—petite, with pointy elf-like ears, and long silvery-white hair tied into a side ponytail, the ends of which gradually transitioned into a vibrant green. A small green leaf adorned her head, and her light green, four-leaf clover-shaped pupils radiated purity.
Her tiny fra was draped in a three-pronged green cape. She wore a white flower-bud dress paired with white pumpkin-shaped bloors. Every detail of her outfit—from the hem of her dress to her shoes and accessories—was accentuated with delicate golden patterns, reflecting her noble status.
Although she took the form of a child, her aura was imbued with a saintly compassion for the world.
For reasons unknown, Noah's otherwise cold and detached emotions seed to soften slightly under her presence.
He exhaled a breath. "The God of Wisdom, avatar of the World Tree, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata. Lord of Trees, Mistress of Dreams, Queen of the Rainforest, Buer…"
"To be honest, had the imminent expiration of this world's lifespan not pressed so urgently, my first step into Teyvat would not have been in Inazuma—it would have been here, in Suru."
The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata gazed at the young man standing before her. His opening statent did not surprise her. But just as she was about to speak, he continued.
"Do you know why?"
The Greater Lord nodded, her voice soothing, as though capable of nding even the deepest wounds. "I understand. To soone like you, Suru must appear utterly deplorable—too far gone to be of any help. Your frustration is justified."
She fully understood everything this lord had done in Inazuma, as well as the unyielding will he carried. Perhaps no one in this world understood him better than she did.
Noah wasn't surprised. After all, as the avatar of the World Tree, the Greater Lord held dominion over the world's mories—sothing even the Heavenly Principle could not achieve.
It could be said that the Heavenly Principle could either hold the First or the Second Throne, depending on the context. But the second level of authority over the world would always and unchangeably belong to the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata.
No one but her could wield control over the World Tree.
Even if soone were to erase the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, the World Tree would simply give birth to a new avatar.
In other words, rulers of the world may co and go, but the Pri Minister—Rukkhadevata—was eternal.
"The corruption of Suru is only part of the reason," Noah continued. "The more pressing matter is that you hold 20% of Teyvat's permissions."
As he spoke, he crouched down and lifted the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's chin with a finger, forcing her to et his gaze.
"When I annex a world, you naturally gain 20% of its subordinate permissions. Moreover, you're the only one who can challenge my authority. While it's true that if we fought, you'd certainly lose to , the re thought of not having complete control—and having 20% of the results of my efforts go to soone else—irritates greatly."
The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata tilted her head slightly, her serene smile radiating an almost magical sense of calm. Gently, she placed her hand against Noah's chest.
"The Fifth Descender of Teyvat, soone even stronger than the First Descender, Phanes. Is this unease and restlessness what's troubling you?"
"Are you afraid that I might slip from your grasp, escaping your control rather than remaining under the Heavenly Principle's dominion? You've already claid Teyvat as your possession, haven't you?"
Noah stared silently at the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata.
Truthfully, he could imagine how gentle she would be, even in her childlike form.
"You're correct."
The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's expression didn't waver in the slightest. If anything, her tone beca even calr, her deanor more tender. "Since you've already deed Teyvat as your possession, and I am part of Teyvat, then naturally, I too am your possession."
Noah's mind remained cold and rational. "But possessions can also bite back at their owners. Look at Suru now—the country you founded has been overtaken by rebels, infested with parasites leeching off this land."
The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata placed her small hand over her heart, her clear eyes eting Noah's. "If you're so worried, then let's forge an eternal covenant. Just like the one between the Three Moon Goddesses and the Lord of the Stars (Morning Stars)."
"Would that ease the doubts in your heart?"
Noah was montarily stunned.
An eternal covenant like the one between the Three Moon Goddesses and the Lord of the Stars? Wasn't that essentially proposing marriage?
Back in the First Era—before the Age of the Great War, when Phanes first descended to Teyvat to create humanity—there were only four native gods in the skies of Teyvat.
The Sky Moon Goddess Aria, the Abyss Moon Goddess Sonnet, the Crimson Moon Goddess Canon, and the Lord of the Stars.
The Three Moon Goddesses had all fallen in love with the Lord of the Stars.
However, the Three Moon Goddesses were far more powerful than the Lord of the Stars. They constantly fought over the Lord of the Stars' love.
Istaroth, too, had exploited this rivalry to sow discord among the three, leading to a civil war that ultimately resulted in the deaths of two goddesses and the Lord of the Stars.
Their eternal covenant as husband and wives dictated that if one party perished, the others would follow.
Noah had only wanted to make a grand entrance and express his thoughts on the World Tree's permissions. How did it suddenly evolve into this?
This was entirely beyond his expectations.
The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata looked at the stunned Noah, a hint of disappointnt flashing in her eyes. "So, an eternal covenant is out of the question as well?"
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