I'm in the Teyvat running group

"So, is everything Ying is doing now in vain? Or do you want me to stop her?" Yunxiu patted Kong's shoulder. He didn't really understand this feeling, but he could completely feel Kong's melancholy. It was the kind of melancholy that comes from watching your beloved person pursue an unattainable destination.

“You say it’s no use… This is something I have to do myself, but I can’t tell her the whole truth, and of course I can’t tell you either.” Kong turned back with a hint of desolation: “The reason I’m not telling you isn’t because you can’t handle it, but because you might do something very extreme… This is what another version of you told me.”

"which one?"

"I don't know. I've seen many versions of you in the timeline, even in this era, but their auras are very different from yours."

"In this era... do I still exist?"

"Yes, he is stronger than you are now, but weaker than you were before the Burial Fire... Of course, I also had a drink with him."

This was an unexpected development for Yunxiu. If he existed in this era as well, what was he doing? What was his relationship with her? It's not surprising that two or even three people could appear on the timeline at the same time, after all, this is the time of Teyvat, which is unbelievable but can ultimately be corrected in a mysterious way.

But there's no doubt that this person would never harm themselves.

“Come on, have a drink. I’m going to see Ying soon…” Sora picked up his glass, gave a weak laugh, and continued, “Ying is stronger than you and I can imagine. She will understand all of this and figure out a lot of things.”

Leaving aside Hu Tao and Shen He, Kong continued, "Just like you, aren't you also trying to maintain a normal mindset? After all, there are so many people around you who need your attention."

Yunxiu didn't speak, but instead picked up his wine glass and drank it down with Kong. That's how strange friendships between men are. Watching Kong disappear into the portal, Yunxiu put away the wine bottle and other things. He hadn't finished the wine yet, so he kept it. He could have a couple more drinks with Kong next time.

He walked back to Shen He and Hu Tao's side without saying much, and Hu Tao and Shen He didn't ask any questions either. The three of them left together.

Although it is unknown how long the Sea God Palace will last, once the power begins to dissipate, it will be difficult to stop. The collapse of the Sea God Palace is only a matter of time. It is already quite remarkable that they were able to find this information and some remaining treasures before the collapse.

After using the Unfettered Talisman to remove the protective barrier, Hu Tao and Shen He fell silent. The people of Liyue knew quite a bit about the story of the Demon God War, and Shen He, as a disciple of a Liyue immortal, naturally knew even more.

Especially now that she has become one of the immortals, many secrets no longer limit her. What she knows is naturally connected with this discovery. These secrets have a great impact on Shen He. Although he did not go crazy or cause any problems, he visibly fell silent.

Kurumi's own family were victims of the ancient war between demons and gods, and they have been fighting for these causes ever since. From the establishment of the Hall of Rebirth to the recent life-or-death changes, from all the dangers to the future of Teyvat, Kurumi knows more than many people.

And of course, they became even more silent.

As for Yunxiu herself, she was also full of worries...

But he knew, of course, that only one person could truly unravel these mysteries: the Emperor. The Emperor himself possessed the most secrets and was the oldest person in Liyue. If he didn't know or was unwilling to tell, then no one else could possibly know, and no one else would be willing to tell him these things.

Unless someone else manages to travel back in time to the Emperor's era and experience things alongside him...

But he didn't know which era the Emperor lived in. He only knew that the Emperor had appeared seven thousand years ago, during the time of Hyperion, which meant that the Emperor's lifespan was definitely much longer than that.

Back in Liyue, Yunxiu returned the walnut to the Hall of Rebirth and gave Shenhe the storage bag containing the Sword-Unraveling Pavilion to take back to Mt. Aozang. Only then did she head to the Rock Tea House—a place the Emperor had recently taken to. Two storytellers were currently discussing "The Tale of Yunxiu the Immortal Subduing Demons" and "Adventures in the Moon Palace" at the Rock Tea House, so the Emperor had been there for the past few days, which was quite rare.

The Rock Tea House was purchased by Yelan and is one of the core strongholds of the Liyue intelligence organization. Therefore, the people here naturally all know Yunxiu. They were not surprised to see him. Instead, they smiled and said, "Master Yunxiu, if you are looking for the Emperor, he is currently on the innermost part of the third floor, just as he always has been."

"Thank you. Have you had any large bills recently? You can just send them to the Chamber of Commerce." Yunxiu smiled and said, "Did he come alone, or..."

"There are two people, and a True Person named 'Hou Zhang,' who seems to be one of the Emperor's disciples." The shopkeeper naturally knew everything, but after a moment's thought, he continued, "However, he should also be an immortal. Although I am just a lowly sorcerer, I can sense the power emanating from that immortal."

It's the Emperor and the True Lord of Moon-Shaving and Sun-Building... It's rare for these two to sit together and drink tea. Generally speaking, if two people appear together in one place, there will naturally be other immortals as well. It's rare to see these two together.

Yunxiu nodded and quietly walked up to the third floor. Sure enough, she saw the Emperor and the True Lord of the Moon-Cut Sun sitting together drinking tea, seemingly chatting about something.

He quietly walked forward and sat down beside the tea table, smiling as he said, "Your Majesty, True Lord, it's rare for you two to appear together. What are you discussing?"

"I'm asking about the Emperor's cultivation methods... You should know Yunxiu; the Emperor is the ancestor of all immortal arts." Xiaoyue Zhuyang smiled and said, "My 'Severing the Three Corpses' method has reached its final stage. The next step is to sever the self, ultimately achieving the reunification of the three. I'm stuck here, somewhat confused."

"Is that so..." Yunxiu nodded. If that's the case, then doesn't that mean that True Monarch Yaoyue Zhuyang is only one step away from becoming a transcendent being...?

"You made a discovery at the Sea God's Palace, so you came to ask me questions... that must be it." Zhongli smiled, his expression unchanging, and casually finished his tea. "Let's talk somewhere else. As for Hou Zhang, you should work harder on 'delusion,' that's your final, crucial strike."

"Yes, Your Majesty." After rising, the True Lord of the Moon-Cut Sun bowed and left, leaving only Zhongli and Yunxiu behind.

"Follow me." Zhongli waved his hand gently, and a small pile of Mora was placed on the table. Then he turned into a streak of light and disappeared.

Yunxiu also transformed into a streak of light and followed. Zhongli's speed was not fast, but it was still far beyond the level of ordinary immortals. However, it was acceptable to Yunxiu. The two of them, one in front and one behind, landed on the Cloud Palace of Qingyun Peak about half an hour later. There was a small pavilion and a low table there. It was a very peaceful place.

As Yunxiu landed, Zhongli gently flicked his hand, and an invisible stream of light enveloped the surroundings once more, making this "world" seem to exist independently outside of Teyvat again.

“I can see you have many questions, but only in this way can you be safe.” Zhongli sat down at the coffee table, poured himself a cup of tea, and continued, “If you want to ask about the ‘Demon God War,’ there are many things I cannot tell you, but if…”

"What I want to ask is about the cultivation method of the Emperor's 'Severing the Three Corpses' technique, and some past events during the War of Burial Fire!" Yunxiu said resolutely. This was the most important information he had to ask, but since he had already said it, wasn't he just asking for other things?

The Emperor smiled approvingly before continuing, "I am the creator of the 'Severing the Three Corpses' technique..."

Chapter 300 The Immortal Ancestor of Humanity Forges the Mortal World (The Most Important Chapter!)

Sure enough... I guessed you were the creator of this thing.

Yunxiu naturally had no doubts. After all, Lei Nei had cultivated "Self-Severance" to such a terrible state and had even surpassed it by half a step. So, if Lei Nei knew how to sever the three corpses, how could the Emperor not know?

Since the Emperor knew about the existence of the Three Corpses Cultivation Method, then who created it? The answer is indeed the answer to the riddle itself. One of the Emperor's divine names is "Ancestor of All Immortals," because the way the immortals of Liyue become immortals is by cultivating immortal arts. After reaching a certain level, they can obtain the Eye of God and achieve immortality.

Inatsume is also aware of this practice, but few people are able to cultivate it.

"Of course, the story isn't that simple... Now it's time for you to know." Zhongli took a sip of tea and slowly began to speak:

"It is said that I am a celestial star descended to earth, eternal and immortal, the soul forged from rock."

"But what I remember first is not the rock, not the contract, nor the gold."

"Hunger, famine, the old having no one to rely on, and the young having no one to care for them—that was the earliest era after the beginning of time. I was a wandering sorcerer, a cultivator of that time."

“One day, I saw demons fighting each other, their remains scattered like shattered jade, unleashing terrifying power. No one within dozens of miles could escape it, and even those who managed to escape would die from the miasma entering their bodies… This was the world at that time.”

Yunxiu nodded. Strictly speaking, that should have been eight or nine thousand years ago. At that time, Fanes came and transformed the world. Even Hyperion had not yet been born. In that kind of world, the Emperor already existed. However, he said that he was a sorcerer who traveled around the world... He was not an incarnation of the Heavenly Star?

"I wanted to change everything, but spiritual practice is far more difficult for humans than it is now. While gazing at the three moons obscured by clouds in the sky, I suddenly realized that if there were a universe within the human body, there could naturally be 'three moons shining simultaneously.' I introspected my own universe and saw that people are plagued by three thoughts that prevent them from transcending. I cut off 'delusions' and 'desires,' went through another crisis, and finally cut off the thought of 'self.'"

"As I dissipated, my mind became clear, and my spirit ascended into a strange ocean. For the first time, I 'saw'—the invisible threads flowing between the wishes of the people, the invisible force that enables 'people' to form 'villages' and 'words' to become 'promises.' I call it—'the contract.'"

"Everyone thinks I am a celestial being descended to earth, but I merely possess the power of the celestial being. I remember everything clearly."

“I am not Tianxing, nor was I Morax from the beginning. What I remember most is that boy sitting alone by the campfire in the wilderness before all of this began!”

“I descended from the clouds and returned to the scattered ancestors, where I established the first covenant: to hunt and eat together, and to watch over and help each other. This was the earliest, but also the most solid, covenant, and a tribe with ‘covenant’ as its soul was thus established. I protected them and bound them together.”

"But my constraint is not power, but rules, laws, and reason. As the contract spread, the tribe gradually expanded until trade began and disputes arose. At that time, trade was mostly achieved through 'contracts,' but even 'contracts' have their imperfections."

"Therefore, I traveled through ancient Liyue, and within the fabric of the covenant, I saw another ray of light—the light of justice, stability, and measure. I drew upon this light and gave it form, and this is Mora… When the first Mora solidified in my palm, I gained a second power—'Precious Gold.' It is not wealth itself, but rather the extension and embodiment of the spirit of the covenant in the value of all things."

"From then on, I possessed the power of 'Contract' and 'Precious Metal,' and these powers coalesced within my spirit after I severed my three corpses. I also began to gradually change... Later, I learned that this was the process of 'becoming a god,' but I did not become a god with fragments of 'Primordial,' but rather with the power of humanity."

"Even that one could not erase me. Before the War of the Dead, he would never have disrupted the rhythm of everything because of me. After all, I was the one who could truly ignite a war of humanity. But I did not want the land to fall into war. At that time, he signed the first 'contract' with me. He acknowledged my existence, bestowed upon me the name of a demon god, and forbidding me from telling the Teyvats the path to godhood."

"Then... now I know..." Yunxiu asked, puzzled, "In the end, you told me..."

"There's a loophole in this contract: the key to godhood cannot be spread in Teyvat, nor can the Teyvats be told that the method of severing the three corpses contains the secret to godhood," Zhongli said calmly. "This isn't Teyvat, and you're not a Teyvat. Strictly speaking, this is my 'divine realm,' and also a true 'human realm.'"

Yunxiu nodded, then suddenly seemed to realize something and asked, "So, this is why both the True Lord of Moon-Shaving and Sun-Building and the Fox Abode Palace are stuck at the last step?"

Zhongli nodded approvingly, poured Yunxiu a cup of tea, and handed it to him.

In that case, everything makes sense!

Yunxiu recalled the Emperor's words: "If there were no gods in the world, this would be a kingdom for humans." She had once been a god among humans, and thus should witness their rise and fall.

So this sentence really does mean exactly what it says: humans can become gods themselves, and the human kingdom should have been born from the very beginning. The Emperor is indeed a god among humans; he was cultivated from a human to become a god!

He comprehended the cultivation method in three months and became a transcendent based on the "severing the three corpses" method. On the basis of becoming a transcendent, he became a god based on the fundamental principles of human society, namely the way of contracts and transactions. He is a "god of humanity" in the true sense!

Therefore, the line "I had no intention of vying for power, but I know the suffering of the common people" is not a high and mighty demon god's pity for mortals, but a great being who cultivated from humans to become gods, an angry cry of anger at the fate and misfortune of his people!

I myself come from among the common people, so naturally I know their suffering!

This finally made Yunxiu understand why this person, who was given the title of Rock King Emperor, always talked about the contract.

If someone is born a god, it's hard to understand. If someone is born to control contracts, then "contracts" are just a cold, impersonal power.

But if he had personally witnessed and experienced the hunger, strife, destitution of the elderly and children, and natural disasters caused by the lack of a contract, then the "contract" would become his blood-and-tears oath and lifelong answer to fight against the chaos of the world and save his compatriots.

Under the unity of "contracts," humans can form settlements and maximize the power of the group, thus truly having the foundation to fight against the gods. The existence of contracts and transactions is essentially a kind of "establishment and expectation of rules." Contracts let everyone know what they will gain if they fulfill their promises and what they will lose if they break their promises.

This is the foundation of human society.

As for Zhongli, who became a god because of the "contract," he will naturally become stronger as civilization continues to develop. This is because it is not the elemental power that the seven elements are derived from the power of the light realm, but the power of humanity born from humankind. Even if the Teyvats develop the moon or other planets on the day they do, as long as civilization still exists, the contract will exist.

The same applies to "precious gold." This principle of exchange exists throughout the universe, which is the fundamental reason why the Emperor said that you can find treasure chests in the universe.

“Therefore, most of the immortals in Liyue now are actually humans who cultivated their way up…including the True Lord of the Moonlit Pavilion.” Yunxiu took a sip of tea and asked, “And his name when he was still a mortal might really have been ‘Hou Zhang’.”

“He is a disciple I took in after I became the God of Contracts, and he is now over four thousand years old.” Zhongli smiled and said, “In fact, most disciples are like that. Strictly speaking, there are not many immortal beasts among immortals. As for what form they like to take after severing their three corpses, that is not something I care about.”

Yunxiu nodded. This explained the origin of the Moon-Cut Yang True Monarch. Moreover, Liyue has so many immortal beings, many of whom are actually humans who cultivated themselves... This also explains why Liyue has so many immortal beings.

There aren't many immortal beings in other countries, and Mondstadt practically has none. Several witches have long since transcended the mortal realm, and the members of the Witches' Guild come from all over Teyvat. The only immortal being in Inazuma is the Fox, but the Fox's immortality technique may very well have originated from Liyue.

The long-lived species that reach winter are all somewhat related to Kanria, while those of Sumeru, Fontaine, and Nata are almost entirely unrelated. Nata's lifespan, even that of the God of Fire, is not significantly different from that of a normal person.

Although the method of becoming a god after severing the three corpses cannot be transmitted, and severing the three corpses is extremely difficult to cultivate, even if one does not sever them all, one can at least achieve immortality, although there is still a lifespan limit.

These things were mentioned in the "Bandit Stone" mission, but not much was said about the time when Yunxiu and the Emperor went together, because Yunxiu directly rescued the hunchback.

As for the power of the rock itself, that's a minor matter. As long as one becomes one of the Seven Rulers, one will definitely have it. In other words, Zhongli has a total of three divine powers, two of which are related to humanity. This is the fundamental reason why he has become stronger and stronger. Even losing the Heart of God and the divine power of the rock has not had a significant impact...

This is certainly not a bad thing, but it also shows that he is indeed the most special god at present. Yunxiu guesses that his status is likely to be close to that of Fanes. As for how strong he is, we will only know after we fight.

Many things during the Demon God War can indeed be explained. As for the time before the War of Burial Fire, when Zhongli asked him for a coin in the video, it was most likely because he could see many future periods after becoming a transcendent being. In addition, both his past self and he were present at that time, so this time is not surprising.

Since Zhongli is unwilling to explain clearly, we can talk about it later. So now, I don't actually have many questions to ask. Which question should I ask first?

“Now, I have one last question to answer.” Zhongli took a sip of tea and said, “We will soon reach the limit of my ability to temporarily leave Teyvat… At that time, we will have to leave this place no matter what.”

"Think carefully about what question you want to ask before you ask it. If you ask the wrong question, I won't give you any other answers."

Chapter 301: True Identity Revealed, Battle Against the Mysterious Shadow (First Update on Tuesday!)

In an instant, many things came to mind.

There were so many things he wanted to ask, from the ancient burning of the burial fire to the war between the demon gods, from the details of the creation of the Three Corpses Slaying to the secrets of the war between the demon gods, and even some things from five hundred years ago. All the questions were in his mind, but no matter how hard he searched, he could only piece together a little bit of the truth from various fragments.

Moreover, he needs to verify most of these truths in order to truly understand what happened in that era.

For example, even now, he doesn't fully know exactly what happened on the night of the Black Catastrophe five hundred years ago. The only thing he's certain of is that, as the day with perhaps the thinnest false heaven in Teyvat's history, a large number of events must have occurred. What other random information is there on that day...?

But these are not the most important issues right now. If I'm not mistaken, the Emperor probably wants me to ask questions related to the war in Nata, which means the situation between the Seven Dragon Kings, especially the situation in Nibelungen.

After all, this is the focus of everything going forward, especially before the resurrection and return to the end. They still need to win a war in Nata, especially since the power of that "Gustott" is naturally not that simple. At that time, with the power of a war fortress, they were roughly equivalent to dozens of legendary figures. Even so, dealing with Bushgalo was still so difficult.

It's important to know that there were four legendary peak powerhouses who were close to gods at that time, two of whom had mastered the power of laws. Even so, it still took a lot of effort. How to deal with Gustot was naturally the next key point.

But it's obvious that Mavica should have a more appropriate answer.

That's right! It's asking about my own situation, which probably involves quite a few secrets!