Genshin Impact: I, Heavenly Principle, Will Make Teyvat Supreme

After a long while, Noah emerged from the Sanctuary of Surasthana, his lips curling into a satisfied smile.

He licked his lips as though savoring lingering sweetness and flexed his fingers, seemingly lost in the moment of his earlier experience.

Of course, the encounter didn't go all the way to the final step. He had enjoyed the gradual sense of possession and chose not to rush things. Consuming everything at once would feel no different from swallowing a fruit whole without savoring its taste.

Nevertheless, apart from the very last boundary that remained unconquered, he had indulged in plenty of satisfaction this time. The lingering taste, akin to a mix of milk and marshmallows, still seemed to linger in his mouth.

As Noah walked along the tree-trunk pathway leading out of the Sanctuary, he encountered Nahida.

Blinking her clear eyes, Nahida looked up at him.

"Heavenly Principle, my lord."

Noah crouched down, and Nahida, understanding his intention, reached out her arms willingly. Noah picked her up like a doll and kissed her cheek.

"Nahida, I'm leaving the rainforest today. Honestly, I'll miss you a bit."

"Be sure to study diligently under Buer, okay? Someday, some worlds may be entrusted to you."

Though Nahida didn't fully comprehend what the Heavenly Principle meant by "worlds," she understood the part about learning from Buer.

"I'll make sure to become a true God of Wisdom, just like Buer!"

Noah reluctantly put Nahida down, ruffling her hair before he stood up. He then departed from Sumeru City, accompanied by Yae Miko and Istaroth.

Yae Miko licked her finger and opened the map she had obtained from the Akademiya.

"Lord Noah, are we taking a ship from the Palace of Alcazarzaray to the inland sea of Fontaine, or traveling through Caravan Ribat and Aaru Village to cross the Great Desert to Fontaine?"

She added thoughtfully, "According to the scholars, the northern expanse of the Hadramaveth Desert was once a nation called Gurabad. It's said to have been a flourishing garden but has long since ceased to exist. Ever since the Black Tide five hundred years ago, that region has been shrouded in ominous crimson light. Many scholars have hired adventurers or members of the Gilded Brigade to investigate it, but..."

She paused before continuing, "...without a Vision, the scholars can't last more than a few days in the area due to its unusually high elemental concentrations. Five centuries later, there's still no significant progress in research."

Noah waved his hand dismissively.

"Let's not bother with the desert this time. There's not much to see there—it's all just sand and wind."

The desert oasis was home to numerous clans forming the Gilded Brigade, but Noah wasn't particularly interested in them.

Life in the desert fostered extreme insularity among its people. He decided to let them evolve naturally for now, trusting in Buer's ongoing efforts to improve their living conditions.

Sooner or later, the desert dwellers would integrate with the larger Sumeru family under Buer's governance.

After all, what were their options?

They could cling to the dead King Deshret's legacy and ruins, awaiting their tribe's inevitable decline, or join the prosperous unity that Buer was building for Sumeru.

Two choices—and they'd pick one eventually.

Noah remained impartial to humanity as long as they didn't rebel against the Heavenly Principle or commit unforgivable sins.

Having been human himself, he understood the duality of human potential: its brilliance and its flaws.

Yae Miko nodded.

"Fair enough. I don't particularly enjoy places full of sandstorms either."

Even before attaining divinity, sand could never cling to her body. However, the sight of endless desolation was far from appealing.

Snap!

Noah casually snapped his fingers, activating the power of space. The surrounding area distorted, and the three of them vanished in an instant.

The power of space belonged to Asmoday, but since Asmoday was his vassal, Noah could use it directly without issue. He hadn't separated the laws of space from the Primordial Ring of Law, which allowed him continued access to it.

Similarly, while Istaroth wielded the power of time, it didn't mean Noah had lost it.

Only by removing a fragment from the Primordial Ring of Law would he lose the strength of that particular law. However, even then, he could always retrieve such fragments. Distributing them was simply a matter of temporarily delegating authority.

At this moment...

Realm of Farakhkert

This was the land once established by the Goddess of Flowers, Nabu Malikata, known by modern Sumeru scholars as the country of Gurabad.

Malikata, descended from the Seelie race, was cast from the heavens to the earth by the Heavenly Principle.

Having found a fragment of the Primordial Ring of Law, she became a god. Wandering aimlessly through the desert sands, the sharp grains tore into her feet, and her blood turned into sweet dewdrops.

As she roamed, the lifeless desert began to transform, sprouting a massive oasis.

Under the influence of the laws of flowers, countless Padisarahs bloomed. From these flowers emerged delicate, fairy-like beings.

These creatures, touched by life, pleaded with their flower-born mother to cease her wandering. They promised to dance for her, to gather fruit for her sustenance.

Unable to resist their heartfelt pleas, Malikata, who was a mentor of humanity, stayed. She named the beautiful beings born from the flowers the "Aranara."

Life began to thrive in this place, drawing desert wanderers seeking survival into this lush oasis.

Every human who arrived was welcomed by Malikata. Following in the footsteps of her Seelie ancestors, she taught them and guided them as a mentor.

Sadly, she eventually agreed to King Deshret's request to explore forbidden knowledge in his pursuit of eternal dreams. She unsealed the veil of dreams, releasing the power hidden within the Light Realm, violating Phanes' laws.

This led to her demise by suicide.

After her death, Gurabad was lost to history within a century. The Aranara, deceived by Deshret's lies of resurrecting their flower-born mother, became eternal sources of energy for his quest for an eternal dreamscape, suffering endless torment.

It wasn't until a certain blond-haired traveler arrived that the Aranara were finally liberated.

Even though Malikata had died, her consciousness lingered.

During the calamity of Khaenri'ah five hundred years ago, she heard the cries of humanity and transformed into the divine bird Simurgh. She lent her strength to the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata in resisting the onslaught of abyssal beasts.

Noah and Yae Miko entered the Vourukasha Oasis.

This expanse was located beneath a colossal tree, its hundreds of roots, each thousands of meters long, lifting the massive trunk above the ground. Beneath its roots lay an enormous oasis.

The oasis was covered in delicate purple flowers, radiating an aura of tranquility and serenity, like a forgotten garden.

Yae Miko surveyed the surroundings and gazed up at the towering tree. Her violet eyes widened in shock.

"What an enormous tree! And it seems to be suppressing some kind of seal?"

Now a deity, Yae Miko could sense things previously beyond her perception.

Noah chuckled playfully.

"This tree was nurtured by the purified waters formed from the remains of the previous Hydro Archon, Egeria. As a god served as its nourishment, of course, it grew to such grandeur."

"Using a god as nourishment!"

Yae Miko froze for a moment.

Noah turned to Istaroth, who was yawning lazily, and called out, "Hey, as my supporting act, this is supposed to be your moment. How can you slack off during work hours?"

Istaroth rolled her eyes. "Having a master like you is truly my blessing."

Still, she admitted to herself that her new master was much better than Phanes. The Primordial One treated them like mere tools, using them tirelessly. At least her new master didn't truly treat her as an object.

While she complained aloud, deep down, she felt more comfortable than ever.

"Fine, fine," she said, imitating her master by stroking her chin and putting on an air of wisdom.

"The previous Hydro Archon, Egeria, and this Harvisptokhm, huh? This story begins with the Khaenri'ah calamity five hundred years ago."

Adopting an authoritative tone, Istaroth began narrating:

"Five hundred years ago, the last King of Khaenri'ah, known among his people as the One-Eyed King, Irmin, followed Rhinedottir's advice. He mobilized vast resources to harvest abyssal energy for bio-alchemy."

"When Rhinedottir created an abyssal-alchemical being comparable to a god using that energy, it resonated with the power sealed beneath the Lunar Palace by Phanes, tearing open the false sky that served as the world's barrier."

"This breach allowed the abyss's strength to pour into Khaenri'ah along the path Dragon King Nibelung once traversed. The world of Teyvat—its existing Dragon Lords and gods alike—was forced to defend against the onslaught of abyssal forces."

"A single misstep would have meant the destruction of Teyvat."

"During this crisis, Asmoday led six other gods to Khaenri'ah to seal the breach. The power of the abyss was so corrosive that it could even pollute a god's essence. Of the seven gods who fought, three fell on the battlefield."

"The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, after stabilizing the World Tree, arrived in Khaenri'ah when the sealing was nearly complete. She took Egeria's body—left behind after the Hydro Archon perished—and used all her divine strength to plant the Harvisptokhm, further pushing the remnants of abyssal energy back through Khaenri'ah's gates."

"The dying Goddess of Flowers, Nabu Malikata, also rose to aid, moving the surviving humans away from the corrupted lands. In the end, her remaining essence merged with the Harvisptokhm, fortifying its ability to resist the abyss."

"Seeing the world on the brink of destruction, Phanes, in her final moments, cast one last curse. She transformed all the culprits behind the catastrophe into immortal beings, eternally subjected to the abyss's corruption. As for the rest of Khaenri'ah's populace, they were turned into Hilichurls, condemned to eternal suffering."

Noah nodded thoughtfully as Istaroth concluded her recounting. She was, after all, a witness to the events in Khaenri'ah.

At that time, not only did Asmoday and the six gods intervene, but Istaroth also secretly provided assistance.

With a flick of his finger, Noah playfully tapped Istaroth's forehead. "You did well. Now you can go back to napping."

Istaroth stuck out her tongue, and when glared at, she feigned innocence with a pair of wide, blinking eyes, much like Paimon.

Noah crouched down, placing his hand on the dew-soaked ground.

"If it weren't for the Harvisptokhm, this region's ley lines would have been half-destroyed. Yet even now, abyssal energy clings to them like maggots, resistant to purification—even by the gods."

He speculated that even Phanes had no means of cleansing such deeply ingrained corruption in the ley lines.

His golden eyes flashed, and the Primordial Ring of Law behind him shimmered faintly.

The ley lines were the framework of Teyvat, its core structure. If they were compromised, the entire world would be at risk.

Buzz—

As ley lines were akin to aetherial anchors (Ether Anchors), controlling them granted one absolute dominion within a world bubble.

In an instant, the ley lines spanning Realm of Farakhkert and Gavireh Lajavard—two interconnected regions—were activated.

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