Genshin Impact, I'm Slime

The sea fog, wrapped in the salty night wind, made the faded vermilion columns of the pier rustle.

Famas took Wendy's hand and prepared to leave, but Zhongli called out to them to stop. The corners of his robe with gilded patterns were lifted by the wind, his amber pupils reflected the overlapping shadows of the two people, and his pale white earrings condensed into cold stars the moment he turned around.

"Wait a minute, you two."

Zhongli's voice seemed to carry a powerful pressure like a rock. Upon hearing the other party's dissuasion, Famas's pace quickened, and he rushed forward with Venti. However, Zhongli's next question made the boy's face suddenly darken:

"Do you know why God punished Munata?"

When the other party mentioned the country that was completely destroyed, Famas suddenly stopped and tightened his knuckles subconsciously, almost pulling Wendy to stagger half a step.

The young poet gently patted the back of Famas's hand, and the young man in red belatedly let go of the other's wrist. He turned around slowly, staring at Zhongli's face with his red eyes, and laughed in anger:

"What does the all-knowing Morax have to say?"

Famas' voice was sharp, and the dandelion clusters brought by Wendy were blown away by the air wave, and suddenly shattered into crystal dust when they passed by Zhongli's temples.

"It's not a brilliant idea, but the seven rulers today have all met the Maintainers many times."

"You and I both know that the laws of this world are like the tides of Liyue Harbor. The Seven Consuls are merely vessels that exercise authority. The only thing that Heaven cares about is order."

"As long as this world remains under the control of the Order of Seven, He will not care no matter what turmoil occurs."

"Just like the people of Teyvat during the Demon War, He doesn't care whether they rebel against Him or support Him."

Zhongli's voice was long and leisurely, his fingers stroking the patterns on the jade halberd, which reflected a light like broken gold.

"So? What are you going to say?" Famas folded his arms and chuckled, his red eyes burning like fire in the night. "Are you going to persuade me to abide by the order of heaven?"

"That's not the case." Zhongli's robe was blown up by the night wind. He tapped the jade ring on his thumb on the crack of the corridor column, and the crack was instantly plated with bright gold. "I just want to tell you that the world today is completely different from the old days."

"The boundary between life and death is now clearer, and the authority belongs to the Four Shadows. It is definitely not a field that any human god can meddle in."

"Because of the previous war, too many people were resurrected in Liyue Harbor. I'm afraid the four below the original have already set their sights on this land and noticed you."

Zhongli looked up at the sky. Perhaps only gods could see clearly that beyond the starry dome was the void that had long been shattered by the fierce battle.

“Oh? It’s okay, let Ruona Wa come down, I’ll see how much she has improved over the years.”

Zhongli mentioned several original shadows, trying to let FAMAS know that the situation was critical. Unexpectedly, the boy did not show much fear, and there was even a glimmer of excitement in his eyes.

His original intention was just to remind FAMAS to keep a low profile, but Zhongli only felt boundless evil spirit from FAMAS.

"The resurrection ritual you mastered has eliminated the fear of the end of human life in disguise."

"The authority of the gods is born out of fear and strengthened by awe. Death is the greatest punishment for life, and it is also their most important weapon. Humans are no longer afraid of this outcome. The demon gods whose faith has been shaken will naturally no longer follow you."

"This is what happened to the coalition of demons that Munata faced at the end."

"With the theory you propose, you betray your own class."

Zhongli concluded the failure of Munatar and Famas, and succeeded in making Famas blink in surprise:

"You also learned about the united front and class theory?"

"Many books still survived the fall of Munata, and I have read them critically."

Faced with Famas's surprise, Zhongli choked up for a moment, but nodded after a moment.

The winner gets everything from the loser; this is the most basic rule during the Demon War.

But most of the demons were not interested in books and knowledge. Famas also thought that Zhongli had left after destroying Munata, but he did not expect that the other party had also read those so-called forbidden books.

Sparks flew from the pendant on the boy's ear, and the faded red lacquered pillars behind him suddenly cracked. His sneering laughter startled the night owl perched on the mast:

"Then you should know clearly that I don't care what they think."

"Yes, this is the biggest problem I found with you."

Zhongli looked at FAMAS calmly, his gilded pupils showing a thousand years of enlightenment:

"You are not indifferent to others, you just regard the attention of the world as a flickering will-o'-the-wisp."

"All gods think you are the most human god, but even if you get drunk with singers at the banquet in the sky, you are still like ice with a heart of fire."

"The bard who drinks and sings with you, the god of wisdom who follows your thousand-year grand plan, and even the marshal and the king's hand who hold power for you... the closer they are to you, the farther they are from you." "To be precise, you are wary of everyone, even the whole world."

Famas lowered his eyes and remained silent, the golden bell around his waist trembling slightly in the night breeze.

The more he knew, the more he would cover it up with lies. His soul never belonged here. The lights of all nations reflected in the cup during the Seven Gods Party were ultimately separated by a layer of tempered glass.

"Besides, I think Barbatos has a deeper understanding of this point."

Zhongli looked at Wendy who was also silent. There was rarely any smile on the little poet's face, and even the brim of his upturned hat seemed to be drooping.

But Wendy still quietly held Famas' hand, not sure whether she wanted to comfort him or to cheer herself up.

"If anyone dares to predict the future, let him drink with us; even if tomorrow never comes, today's feast will be sung forever."

Zhongli casually repeated the lullaby that Wendy once sang to Famas, causing Famas to stare at him unfriendly.

No, my Wendy is singing a song for me, and you want to eavesdrop?

But Zhongli apparently had no awareness of being an eavesdropper and still had that serious look on his face as he continued to preach.

“It is because you don’t trust everyone that you drink to your heart’s content at every banquet. It is because you don’t trust the world that you risk your life in every battle.”

"That is why mortals and demons call you the 'human god' Harpas."

As the God of Contract, Zhongli attempts to use rational logic to anchor the fulcrum of the gods' existence.

The vast majority of demons descend from the sky or are born from the inspiration of spirits. They are ignorant and unconscious, neither good nor evil, and all the knowledge that is called human nature is acquired after birth.

Therefore, FAMAS, who came to Teyvat with humanity and knowledge, will undoubtedly face more choices and torments in the war than ordinary demons.

As a demon god, he is trapped in the distrust and loneliness of human weakness, but as a human being, he bears the burden of divinity and is expected and praised by the creatures under his rule.

This torn identity forces FAMAS to balance inner and outer conflicts, often through many extreme behaviors.

For example, in wars, Munatar would wipe out other cities and civilizations; at banquets, he would not care about the difference between superiors and subordinates, or between enemies and friends, and would drag prisoners of war to sing and revel.

This contradiction is precisely the essence of "human-god", that is, in the tearing between divinity and humanity, through constant self-destruction and reconstruction, one can briefly touch upon the truth.

Although he was disdainful of Zhongli's character, Famas had to admit that he had a keen eye.

The demons of the past would always fall into complete nothingness at some point due to their excessively long lifespans and unrivaled authority. Under the threat of endless time, only enjoying the present moment could give meaning to their existence.

Even Wendy usually uses poetry, wine and sleep to fight the emptiness of the essence of existence.

The young poet's previous action of holding Famas' hand was both an attempt to convey warmth and an attempt at self-salvation.

He is also afraid of being left behind by the world and needs to use touch to confirm each other's existence.

And this is the essence of what Zhongli calls "wear and tear".

Famas looked at Zhongli's golden eyes and finally sighed deeply.

Among the many demons with strange and twisted personalities in the continent of Teyvat, there is an outlier like Zhongli.

He did not need to fight against wear and tear through indulgence or destruction like other demons, but directly turned the fight against wear and tear itself into a set of executable procedures.

When Famas felt that the world was like quicksand and tried desperately to grab things for fear of being drowned; and Venti felt that the world was like a kite and simply lay down and floated with the wind, Zhongli drew up a "Position Description of Geo King" for himself and broke down the meaning of his existence into specific tasks.

Make contracts, mint coins, pacify demons, and protect Liyue...

When the demons felt bored of living for too long, Zhongli cut his flesh and blood into small pieces and gave them to mortals as currency, turning himself into a large router in Teyvat. All the wishes, contracts and memories of the mortals would be connected through his flesh and blood.

When Wendy gets drunk, she might throw herself into the arms of Captain Jean and cry and ask, "Does Mond still need me?"

After the war, Famas might feel so empty that he would burn down his own palace for fun.

But Zhongli can use endless time to write a 20,000-word appraisal report for a piece of jade, do three days of cost accounting for a pot of tea, accurately point out the pronunciation errors of a word when Tian Tiezui is telling a story, and count every feather on a thrush.

The old man Emperor's abnormal patience of treating boredom as a game made it impossible for Wear to find any flaws in him.

In the words of FAMAS, Zhongli may not be close enough to God, but he is very far from being a human. (End of this chapter)