Under the bright sunlight, the sky stretched clear and endless.
Above the vast blue sea, seabirds circled lazily in the air.
Qiu Nian stood on the beach, quietly gazing toward Guyun Stone Forest.
He was still thinking about what had just happened.
If Tartaglia insists on believing that I took the Gnosis…
And decides not to release the Overlord of the Vortex, instead going to find his colleague Signora…
At this thought, Qiu Nian's brows furrowed slightly.
Forget it.
If Tartaglia chose not to release the sea god—
Then Qiu Nian would release it himself.
After all, this was Morax's final plan.
Only after this step was completed could the next step begin.
And that next step…
…would be his to take.
Meanwhile, inside the Golden House.
"Damn it…"
"To steal the Gnosis while I was fighting you…"
Tartaglia looked toward Lumine and Paimon with clear frustration.
Right now, he had no options left.
If Qiu Nian had truly taken the Gnosis—
Then releasing the Overlord of the Vortex would be meaningless.
His only choice would be returning to Snezhnaya to report to the Tsaritsa.
Then perhaps she would send a Harbinger of higher rank.
But what truly stung—
Was how easily he had been defeated.
The feeling of defeat gnawed at him.
If only he were stronger…
Tartaglia clenched his fists.
At that moment—
Lumine suddenly spoke.
"When Qiu Nian left just now…"
"Didn't he say he didn't take the Gnosis?"
She recalled his final words.
"He said…"
'I admit your guess makes some sense.'
'But I really didn't take Morax's Gnosis.'
'And that he had something he needed to handle first.'
Paimon nodded and repeated what Qiu Nian had said.
Hearing this—
Tartaglia let out a bitter laugh.
"You don't actually believe that nonsense, do you?"
"From what I just saw…"
"His strength has likely already reached the level of a god."
"And he's from Liyue—yet he called the Geo Archon Morax."
"Have you ever heard a Liyue citizen call the Rex Lapis by that name?"
Tartaglia spread his hands.
"A being that powerful, hiding so deeply…"
"…is definitely no saint."
"'Definitely no saint'?"
"You're really not the one who should be saying that."
Paimon placed her hands on her hips and complained.
But Lumine was thinking carefully.
"What Childe said actually makes sense."
"And the way Qiu Nian spoke…"
"It sounded like Morax was his equal."
"Whether it's his tone or the way he acts…"
"He's always unbelievably calm."
"It's like even if Mount Tai collapsed before him, his expression wouldn't change."
"He's just too composed."
Lumine said thoughtfully.
"True…"
"And earlier you even guessed he might be that foreign god, remember?"
Paimon said.
"If he really is the foreign god you mentioned earlier…"
"Then it becomes even more likely."
"Perhaps he took the Gnosis to seize the authority of the Seven Archons…"
"…and become the next Geo Archon."
Tartaglia speculated.
At that moment, the livestream host Xuehua finally snapped out of her shock.
"I have to admit… Childe's guess actually makes a lot of sense."
The chat began exploding with theories.
[I think so too]
[Didn't Venti say people with Visions have the potential to become gods?]
[Yeah, that's why they're called "Allogenes," right?]
[And the Archon War was basically about fighting for Gnoses]
[So if a god directly obtains a Gnosis, could they become one of the Seven Archons?]
[If that's true, Qiu Nian definitely has motive to kill Rex Lapis]
[Wait, didn't Ningguang say gods and Archons are basically the same?]
[Yeah, if Qiu Nian is already a god, why would he want a Gnosis?]
[Maybe for the extra power]
[But during the Archon War, Guixu and Morax were friends]
The discussion quickly spiraled into speculation.
Hearing Tartaglia's theory—
Paimon's eyes widened.
"Wait… that's actually possible?!"
"Hold on."
Lumine suddenly closed her eyes.
She carefully replayed every event since meeting Qiu Nian.
After a long moment—
She opened them again.
Now she had a clearer idea.
"Well?"
"Did you figure something out?"
Paimon asked eagerly.
Tartaglia also stepped closer, waiting for her answer.
"I think the guess that Qiu Nian is the foreign god…"
"…is probably correct."
Lumine said slowly.
"But I don't think he took the Gnosis."
"Why not?"
Tartaglia frowned.
"According to Ganyu, secretary of the Qixing…"
"Three thousand years ago, the foreign god reconciled with the Geo Archon."
"He stayed in Liyue for ten years."
"He was close with Morax and the adepti."
"And he was described as a gentle god."
Lumine paused.
"Also…"
"Paimon, do you remember how Madame Ping reacted when she saw Qiu Nian?"
"Oh! I remember now!"
Paimon suddenly realized.
"Madame Ping was clearly feeling gloomy back then."
"But when she noticed Qiu Nian, she suddenly smiled."
"She even said something like 'So you've returned too.'"
"And Qiu Nian replied 'It's been a long time.'"
"And the most important thing—"
"Madame Ping said she didn't believe Guixu would assassinate Rex Lapis."
"She said that foreign god was a gentle god."
"And Qiu Nian even said, 'I don't believe it either.'"
Paimon explained.
Madame Ping was an adeptus.
She must have spent those ten years with Guixu.
So she would definitely know his character.
Thinking about it this way—
Qiu Nian probably wouldn't assassinate Rex Lapis.
"And before we came to the Golden House…"
"Qiu Nian said he had something he needed to deal with."
"He said the event hadn't happened yet, so he couldn't deal with it."
"The reason he left so quickly just now…"
"…is probably because that event finally happened."
Lumine concluded.
Meanwhile, Tartaglia listened to their conversation.
Completely confused.
Madame Ping?
Guixu?
The foreign god befriending Morax three thousand years ago?
When had all this information even appeared?
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