Liyue Harbor, night.
Qiu Nian walked along the streets, heading toward Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. After arriving, he went upstairs to rest.
Life continued as usual, day after day.
And just like that, another month passed.
Although slightly reinforcing Natlan's ley lines had cost him some of his strength, by now, with his natural recovery combined with accumulated popularity points, Qiu Nian's power had reached thirteen.
Meanwhile, on the parallel Blue Planet…
The video "Character Profile: Qiu Nian / Guixu (V)" by the well-known theorycrafter had been out for some time.
"Qiu Nian, Guixu—a mysterious god whose origins remain unknown. It's suspected that he arrived in Teyvat alongside a being akin to a creator deity."
"From the Lantern Rite and We Will Be Reunited storyline, the information we've gathered about this man is still extremely limited."
"First, during the Lantern Rite, Qiu Nian mentioned that five hundred years ago, an endless tide of black beasts invaded the seven nations of Teyvat."
"The ancient Millelith, under the Geo Archon's command, formed a death formation and contained the battlefield within two hundred li outside the Chasm."
"The Chasm—clearly a region within Liyue, though it hasn't been released in-game yet."
"Then, in the We Will Be Reunited quest, the Abyss Prince—who holds a very high position in the Abyss Order—is investigating the number of gods slain by Guixu."
"Both Aether and Lumine showed visible surprise upon hearing the Cryo Abyss Herald report the number 'five.'"
"That implies Guixu may have killed far more gods than that."
"It's likely the Abyss Prince already knew of a certain number of gods slain by Guixu, which is why he reacted so strongly upon hearing there were five more."
"This supports my earlier theory—that during the Archon War, Guixu truly slaughtered a large number of gods."
"And only stopped after encountering Morax."
"This also aligns with Zhongli's description of him 'leaving behind a trail of blood.'"
"And it corresponds to the symbolism of autumn—associated with metal, which represents slaughter."
"This is everything we currently know about Guixu."
"Now, from this point onward, everything is purely my personal speculation."
"Based on the Yaksha records from the PV Adeptus Guardians of Liyue and Guixu's own statements…"
"When a god dies, their consciousness fades—but their power and resentment remain, becoming remnants that threaten the mortal world."
"In ancient Liyue, plagues, ghosts, and anomalies were everywhere."
"All of it stemmed from the decaying remains of defeated gods, whose hatred and resentment spread, giving rise to evil entities."
"The karmic debt within Xiao is precisely the result of such corruption from fallen gods."
"When the God of Salt died, everything within a certain radius was instantly turned to salt."
"So I speculate that after a god's death, there are two possible outcomes."
"One: an instantaneous destructive release."
"Two: a lingering, continuous pollution."
"And the latter is far more severe—it leads to plagues, monsters, and environmental distortions."
"So here's the question—do you all remember the God of Obscuration?"
"When he died, neither of these two effects occurred."
"In fact, he left behind nothing at all."
"Some might argue that the grass growing in that massive crater was a result."
"But that was caused by his attack—not by his death."
"So I currently have two hypotheses."
"First: the God of Obscuration had completely exhausted his power, so his death caused no destructive aftermath."
"Second: Guixu used some method to prevent any destructive consequences after his death."
"The first point doesn't have much to analyze, so let's focus on the second."
"What's the basis for this?"
"Xiao's karmic debt comes from the corrupted remnants of dead gods."
"Guixu effortlessly removed it entirely—and even converted it into Xiao's own adeptal power."
"We know that other gods—including Morax—were unable to deal with Xiao's karmic burden."
"Otherwise, ancient Liyue wouldn't have been filled with miasma and demonic entities."
"So I speculate that Guixu used a similar method on the God of Obscuration."
"He purified the aftermath of the god's death."
"And may have even transformed it into something beneficial to the world."
"During the Archon War, Guixu slaughtered an unknown number of gods."
"Even excluding the God of Obscuration, the confirmed number is at least six or more."
"I believe his reason for doing so was likely witnessing the devastation caused by battles between gods."
"Not only did such wars wreak havoc on the land and devastate mortals…"
"But the defeated gods would also leave behind pollution that harmed the world."
"And since only he possessed the ability to purify that corruption…"
"After killing those gods, he would convert their residual power into something beneficial."
"Since only seven victors would remain after the Archon War…"
"He simply ensured that only seven were left."
"This approach…"
"Prevents large-scale destruction from godly battles."
"And also eliminates the pollution caused by their deaths."
"You could say it kills two birds with one stone."
"I know this sounds ridiculous—but tell me, doesn't it make some sense?"
At this point, the theorycrafter chuckled.
"And what comes next is even more ridiculous—just take it as entertainment."
"I speculate that Guixu didn't slaughter gods aimlessly."
"During the process, he may have been selecting those worthy of ascending to the position of Archon."
"And I don't mean strength."
"I mean those best suited to govern a nation after the war—those most aligned with the role of a god."
"From the fact that Guixu gifted the divine authorities of the God of Vortex, the God of Obscuration, and the God of Salt to the protagonist…"
"We can see that divine authority itself holds little importance to him."
"So perhaps…"
"While slaughtering gods and collecting their divine authorities…"
"He was also searching for the few most suitable candidates for the Seven."
"And once he found them…"
"He would grant those divine authorities to those chosen gods."
"But to accomplish all this…"
"One would need overwhelming power."
"And without a doubt…"
"As an ancient god—
Guixu possesses exactly that."
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