Genshin Impact, I'm Slime

Pantalone's deep words, like a stone thrown into a deep pool, reverberated through the traveler's heart, creating countless ripples.

"How do gods view gods?"

This taboo question, like a cold needle, suddenly pierced Ying's consciousness.

In an instant, those whispers and warnings from the abyss that she had been repeatedly warned against surged into her heart like a dark tide.

"Do not trust any god."

The traveler looked up abruptly, her amber-gold pupils contracting sharply, a hint of undisguised astonishment flashing across her face.

She instinctively bit the inside of her lower lip, momentarily speechless.

Neither the different appearances of the gods encountered on the journey, nor the deep-seated pain and doubts about the gods taking away his loved ones, are secrets that he cannot easily reveal to the Executors of the Fools at this moment.

Pantalone was incredibly perceptive; he noticed the traveler's momentary speechlessness, the complex emotions surging in his eyes, and the instantaneous tension in his body.

This traveler was clearly not indifferent to the gods, but rather had unspeakable doubts and struggles.

This reaction was more...interesting, and more precious than he had expected.

A hint of pleasure flashed in Pantalone's eyes, as if he had found the perfect leverage to break down the other's defenses.

He didn't press further; instead, he gracefully folded his hands, his posture composed, yet his voice carried a captivating, persuasive rhythm:

"There's no need to rush to answer, Miss. After all, this is an ancient question that has troubled countless mortals."

The rich man's gaze, peering through the windowpane, seemed to pierce through the bustling Liyue Harbor and reach towards the unknowable heavens.

"Let us set aside for a moment those grand and ethereal debates and look at the real land beneath our feet, and at the flow of... Mora in our hands."

He deliberately emphasized this word, which was once the name of the god of contracts.

"Morax."

Pantalone uttered the name slowly, his tone devoid of reverence, only cold analysis.

"He created Mora, endowing the cornerstone of this covenant with unparalleled authority. People say that Mora is an extension of the power of the 'Rock King,' a symbol of divine authority... But isn't this seemingly powerful authority also a shackle set by the gods?"

Pantalone leaned forward slightly, his gaze refocusing on the traveler, his voice lower yet carrying an almost chilling penetrating power:

"Think about it, he created Mora, and then generously bestowed upon the mortals he chose, such as the Lord of Tianquan, who resides high in the Jade Pavilion."

"So, does this supreme power of wealth ultimately belong to the gods who created it, or to the millions of mortals who truly use it and give it value?"

The traveler's breath hitched slightly. Pantalone argued that the creation of the gods was separated from its actual place in the mortal world, with a cold logical force pointing directly to a subversive conclusion.

"Morrah's true nature has never been in God's hands!"

Pantalone spoke with unwavering resolve, his fingers lightly tapping the table as if striking an invisible contract.

"It belongs to every human being who labors and exchanges value in a contract. It flows among the camel bells of merchants, leaps on the anvils of craftsmen, and settles in the nets of fishermen... It constitutes the blood and foundation of the mortal world. Its power comes from the trust and needs of countless mortals, not from the grace of some high and mighty being." "The crystallization of all human wisdom and labor does not need the guarantee of gods."

Pantalone's tone gradually became more impassioned, and a pure flame of human wisdom ignited in his insightful black eyes, carrying intense doubt and ambition.

"The gods may have the power to move mountains and fill seas, and may have once protected the common people."

"But times change, and the world is now in a state where the order of the world has been established, operated, and perfected by humankind. When the wisdom of mortals is sufficient to steer this behemoth called the economy, just as a sailor steers a ship..."

Why should we entrust the fate of our own rise and fall, our very survival, to those capricious gods who are prone to anger and departure?

The banker's gaze swept across the brightly lit Yiyan Palace outside the window once more, his eyes sharp as knives, as if he wanted to cut down the divine right it represented.

"Morax chose Ningguang as his proxy, entrusting her with the financial power of Liyue, but the source of this power has never been the favor of the gods. It should belong to the mortals who created and bear all of this, to us."

Pantalone abruptly pulled his gaze back, fixing it firmly on the traveler's face, his voice low and inflammatory:

“I know you may be surprised, but Miss, this is not betrayal, but enlightenment.”

"It is time for us to recognize the fact that the divine authority that was once regarded as a blessing is nothing but a fog that prevents mankind from truly taking control of its own destiny. It is time to return this core power that holds the world together to mankind who rightfully possess it."

Pantalone's words, like a cold torrent, carried a highly subversive logic and a naked challenge to divine authority, impacting Ying's understanding.

The room was deathly silent, with only the halo of Gui Li's shadow flowing in the silence, reflecting the girl's tense profile and the almost fanatical, determined light burning with ambition in the rich man's eyes.

Paimon was clearly stunned by these shocking remarks. His mouth was slightly open as he stared blankly at the rich man, then looked anxiously at the silent Ying, his little face full of fear and confusion.

A silent storm is brewing within the traveler's heart.

She instinctively resisted Pantalone's words; the rich man, as the executor of the Fools, every word he uttered was imbued with the unfathomable calculations and ambitions of the Northern Bank.

The other side is simply using every possible excuse to justify the fools' attempt to seize ultimate power.

But thinking of the deities he encountered on his journey, the traveler found some truth in the rich man's words.

The wind god, as free and unrestrained as a bard, sleeps in the land of the rising winds, embracing his lyre, while Mondstadt sways in the shadow of the Stormterror. His freedom borders on indulgence; is it an expectation of his followers or a detachment from them?

For over six thousand years, the Geo Archon of Liyue has held the power of contracts, but one morning, through a meticulously planned "death," he placed the entire Liyue Harbor at the center of a vortex.

Even if there are reasons to test the people and let them grow, wasn't that shocking upheaval a capricious turn of God's will? Did those mortals struggling in the vortex ever truly have the right to choose?
And FAMAS...

Ning Lan's urn has not yet faded from the minds of travelers.

These vibrant faces, distinct personalities, and drastically different destinies have become the most powerful endorsement of Pantalone's cold logic. An unavoidable question, like a giant anchor rising from the deep sea, crashes heavily into the traveler's heart.

These beings, who have lived from ancient times to the present, possess unparalleled authority capable of shifting stars and defining laws.

They sheltered, they guided, they also left, they may even have been imprisoned, but what was the core that supported every major decision they made?
Is it a blessing for mortals? A balance for the world? Or simply a fleeting moment, an emotion, or an ineffable "will to do as one pleases" within their long lives? (End of Chapter)