Chapter 16: A Lot of Information

"What the heck is going on?! Wait, let me sort this out." The final part of the story was so explosive that Axue, after her initial excitement, quickly patted her cheeks to calm herself down and began analyzing. "First, let's give a big thanks to Astrea—no, to Themis. This scene of humiliating La Signora is absolutely satisfying!" The more furious players were at La Signora earlier, the more satisfying this scene became. Even though the Supreme Archbishop of Fontaine seemed to have his own agenda and likely had no intention of returning the Gnosis to Venti, it didn't diminish the sheer joy of seeing La Signora get her comeuppance. It was cathartic and exhilarating. Moreover, the dialogue in this scene was particularly amusing, making it impossible not to laugh. I stole what you stole, and now I'll trade it back to you. How's that for a deal? "Just like Astrea, the name Themis is also derived from the goddess of justice in Greek mythology. So, what's the connection between Themis and Astrea in the story? The final scene made it clear—they share the same body. Maybe it's a case of split personality? That seems to be the setup. In any case, Themis shouldn't be treated as Astrea. They're not the same person." At first, Axue almost thought Astrea's earlier behavior had all been an act. Split personality is fine, split personality is fine. Otherwise, it would be too disillusioning—though that might also be interesting? In any case, accepting the split personality setup, Axue didn't just like Astrea anymore—she also grew fond of Themis by association. She believed other players would feel the same. First, Themis humiliated La Signora, avenging Venti and the players. Second, she displayed overwhelming power, and as the alternate personality of the beloved and pitiable Astrea, this setup instinctively excited players. Finally, she was stunningly beautiful—the most important point. Combining these three factors, Themis, despite having just appeared, was sure to skyrocket in popularity. "But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let's review the information revealed in this chapter's story and the foreshadowing in all of Mihoyo's PVs so far." With that, Axue closed the game and logged into the community. "Oh? Venti's character PV and demo are out? Let's check those first." Upon entering the community, Axue noticed this and clicked on Venti's character PV, Winds of the Four Directions. "The story I want to tell began a millennium ago." The PV opened with Venti narrating like a bard. "The 'Lionfang Knight' drove out the nobility." "The 'Falcon of the West' took its first form." "The 'Wolf of the North' returned from wandering and settled in Wolvendom." "With the winds shifting, the reborn City of Freedom began to rebuild." The scene shifted to show Venti and a red-haired woman from behind. Venti continued: "The Anemo Archon visited the leader of the Falcon of the West, but the Lionfang Knight was unimpressed. The fiery-haired girl made a sound to shoo away squirrels, saying she had no time for songs. Thanks to the Anemo Archon, her desk was piled high with paperwork." Axue couldn't help but laugh at this. The stream chat was flooded with comments like, Classic Venti. The video continued, showing Venti and a majestic, beautifully designed wolf. "The Anemo Archon visited the Lord of Wolves, advising him to behave and suppress his divine nature. The Wolf King growled in warning," Here, Venti lowered his voice, imitating the wolf's tone: "Mischievous bard, save your advice for yourself." Axue chuckled again. Venti was... something else. But undeniably lovable. The scene shifted once more, showing Venti and Stormterror—no, Dvalin, the Dragon of the East. "The Anemo Archon visited his first familiar, helping him disperse the snowstorms and protect the green fields and the people of freedom." "But the dragon seemed to think that 'help' from a god shouldn't involve cheering him on while playing the lyre." "Hahahaha!" Axue finally burst out laughing. "So, it was Dvalin who cleared Mondstadt's snowstorms, not the Anemo Archon? No wonder Jean said Mondstadt couldn't withstand Dvalin at full strength. He's too powerful—doing all the work while the so-called god just plays music?" As Axue laughed, the screen gradually darkened, as if the PV had ended. But then, Dvalin's roar echoed: "Do something useful, Barbatos—!!!!!" "Hahaha!" Axue couldn't hold back her laughter anymore. "I can't! I'm definitely pulling for Venti now! I was only planning to pull for Astrea, but now I have to get him too!" Even though the Anemo Archon did nothing useful all day and was so weak he couldn't even beat a Harbinger, somehow, this just made Venti even more endearing. After laughing for a while and watching Venti's character demo, Axue finally opened the Teyvat Chapter Storyline Preview PV. "Alright, folks, now that we've finished Mondstadt's story, let's revisit this PV." Axue wasn't the only one doing this. Big Horse, another streamer, was doing the same. "Before the game launched, I said that after playing through some of the story, revisiting this PV and the Reporting to Lady Furina PV would give us a completely different perspective." Big Horse opened the Teyvat Chapter Storyline Preview PV, feeling unusually excited. As a player who valued story depth, he had a unique passion for analyzing game narratives. Many of his viewers followed him specifically for his story analyses. The PV began playing. A young man's voice, clear as a spring, slowly spoke: "We never got to say goodbye, so... I won't treat it as a farewell." Hearing this, Big Horse paused the video. "This line is spoken by our protagonist, Aether. Now that we've finished Mondstadt's story, it's clear that this PV follows Aether as the Traveler and Lumine as the Princess of the Abyss. So, this line is Aether speaking to Lumine." 「This line feels like it's setting up something tragic.」 「Before playing, it didn't mean much, but now...」 「The pain of being separated from a loved one is hard to bear.」 Seeing the chat's comments, Big Horse smiled and continued playing the PV. "The war has already begun. It is a continuation of the last war." "The gods have adorned the outlines of desire with seven colors of light, proclaiming that their authority can be reached." "But the smoldering remains buried beneath the present world serve as a warning to the usurpers—'The divine seat in the heavens was never meant for you.'" "Yet, O usurper, do not stop here." "No one can watch from the sidelines." Big Horse paused again. "We don't know who's speaking these lines. Of course, it's definitely an important character, but they haven't officially appeared yet. For now, these lines are just cryptic, but they're impactful. However, the most impactful part is yet to come—this is the segment that made this PV go viral worldwide. Mihoyo was clearly very confident in this part, even playing it on a loop in Times Square for a full month. Other countries did the same. Now, after finishing Mondstadt's story, let's revisit this segment." The PV resumed. The cryptic voice spoke again: "Behold..." As these words were spoken, the background music suddenly shifted. Black text appeared on the screen: 『Mondstadt』 『The Outlander Who Caught the Wind』 "The dragon that protected the city of freedom for a millennium has finally grown disillusioned with freedom." "Can freedom still be called freedom when it is commanded by the God of Freedom?" Diluc's illustration appeared, wielding a greatsword wreathed in flames. Big Horse wanted to pause, but this segment was too captivating. Especially after finishing Mondstadt's story, the impact was even stronger. The background music, perfectly fitting Mondstadt's theme, made him eager to hear the next segments, despite having listened to them many times before. So, without pausing, the music changed again. Seamlessly transitioning, the music shifted to a tune that perfectly matched Liyue—or rather, Chinese cultural themes. Big Horse's heart trembled, and a sense of pride welled up within him. 『Liyue』 『Farewell, Archaic Lord』 "In the eyes of the people, the God of Contracts was murdered." "In his final moments, he would sign a contract to end all contracts." At the same time, an illustration of a white-haired woman in a qipao-like dress, exuding grace and elegance, appeared on the screen. Big Horse didn't know how Liyue would be portrayed, but based on this background music and the Chinese-inspired character, he was ready to give Mihoyo a five-star review. It was fantastic. Mihoyo was clearly putting their heart into this game. Big Horse had the highest expectations for Liyue and believed Mihoyo would deliver. The music changed again, this time to a tune that evoked images of Japan. 『Inazuma』 『A Thousand-Armed, Hundred-Eyed God』 "The Shogun is eternal, and the Sakoku Decree has no end." "What kind of eternity does the God of Eternity seek in the eyes of mortals?" A young girl who had already captured players' hearts before her official appearance, wielding a fan, appeared on the screen. Not only did Mihoyo deeply understand their own culture, but they also showed a profound appreciation for other cultures. This was why the Teyvat Chapter Storyline Preview PV had gone viral worldwide. Seven nations, seven different background music tracks, representing seven distinct cultural heritages. Not just in China, but globally, Big Horse had never seen a game like Genshin Impact. 『Sumeru』 『Truth Amongst the Pages of Purana』 "Wisdom is the enemy of the God of Wisdom." "Knowledge is but bait floating on the surface of the sea of ignorance." "The scholars of the Akademiya are breeding folly, and the god's wisdom has no objection." 『Fontaine』 『Masquerade of the Guilty』 "The God of Justice revels in the theatrics of the courtroom, even craving the trial of gods." "But she knows well that only the Heavenly Principles must not be opposed." 『Natlan』 『Incandescent Ode of Resurrection』 "The rules of war are etched into the flesh of all beings." "The defeated become ashes, while the victors reignite the flames." "The God of War shares this secret with the Traveler, for she has her reasons." 『Snezhnaya』 『The Unreturned Star』 "She is a god who will never be loved by humans again." "She is a god who will never love humans again." "People follow her because they believe she will one day raise a banner of rebellion against the Heavenly Principles." The seven nations concluded, but the PV wasn't over. The background music remained the same, maintaining Snezhnaya's tone, but the atmosphere grew increasingly oppressive. The narrator's voice also changed. "In the endless eternity, humans will live peaceful, dreamless lives." "But in the blind spots of the gods' gaze, there are still those who dare to dream." 『Khaenri'ah』 『The Dream Yet to Be Dreamed』 "Humans have their own heritage. We are not the dregs left after the gods' chosen." "From beyond this world, we draw the power to deny the world." As the representative of Khaenri'ah, a handsome blond man appeared in an illustration. Then, the narrator continued: "Now, O Traveler who has stepped into this world." "Your journey has reached its end." "But you have yet to cross the final gate." Aether's illustration appeared in a field of flowers, just like at the beginning of the PV, but Lumine was nowhere to be seen. "If you understand the meaning of your journey, come forward, defeat me, and command me to step aside." "Prove to me—that you are more worthy than I to save her." "Then, go and reweave all destinies." The screen went black, and the words Genshin Impact appeared. But the PV wasn't over yet. "My memory has all but faded, but I will always remember—how much she too, loved these flowers." The PV finally ended. Big Horse was momentarily speechless. As he had said earlier, after finishing Mondstadt's story, revisiting this PV was even more impactful. Taking a deep breath, Big Horse finally spoke: "This time, I noticed something. The narrator in the PV might be the character from Khaenri'ah. Of course, it's not certain, but there's a 90% chance, right?" "But that's not the important part. The key is the information about Fontaine and Snezhnaya, as well as the descriptions of these two nations in the PV." "Folks, there's a lot of information packed in here!"