Fortunately, in the future, Nahida will open up the barriers between the rainforests and the deserts and promote education.
However, the deserts of today have been neglected by successive Great Sages for far too long. Whether it's the level of education, the degree of infrastructure, the number of schools, or the degree of cultural recognition, they all fall far short.
Overthrowing the racial segregation system isn't something that can be achieved overnight. Desert infrastructure is even more time-consuming and labor-intensive, not to mention the education issues—it's truly a headache.
The only good news is that the Akademiya underwent a major purge, so there won't be any resistance when changing national policies afterward.
But even if Nahida fully supports the deserts, it would take at least decades, or even centuries, for the deserts to catch up to the rainforests.
For a region that has been left behind for five hundred years, this is already considered fast. Just integrating the region alone requires time, and education is an even more time-consuming endeavor.
A year's plan consists of growing grain; a ten-year plan, of growing trees; a lifetime's plan, of cultivating people.
All of this requires time, but fortunately, Nahida has plenty of it. She can gradually promote cultural integration while addressing education issues.
Anyway, this little loli Nahida still has plenty of lifespan left; there won't be any absurd situations like changing policies every four years.
Right now, it's impossible to let large numbers of desert people enter the Akademiya. This needs to be based on qualifications, not 'political correctness.'
If, for the sake of equality between the deserts and the rainforests, one were to forcibly allow large numbers of unqualified desert people into the Akademiya, that wouldn't be education or equality—that would be political correctness.
Unfortunately, Sumeru hasn't reached the point of playing with political correctness yet. Identity isn't an additive buff; that won't work.
The current deserts have few top talents—that's a fact. It will probably take at least ten or even twenty years before there's any improvement.
However... since they've already cleared out the traitors at court, why not imitate the Ming Dynasty a bit and create a Donglin list? It wouldn't hurt.
If imitating strictly, they could look at Collei. She's had access to top-tier educational resources, and she's only just learned to read.
Although the Four Great Talents are already discussing which university major to report to.
But if they really have to wait for Collei to attend 'university,' even if the Four Great Talents teach her together, it would still take several years. Only time is the most fair.
Fortunately, Nahida is resilient. She's not just talking about cultivating people over a century—she's already been around for five hundred years. She has plenty of time to educate, to teach! Teach them thoroughly!
Didn't they say that in the previous life, she killed books, and in this life, she'll teach pigs? Stay calm and keep working hard slowly.
As for now, let's just enjoy this moment of joy first.
Looking at the smile on Nahida's face, everyone felt utterly relieved.
It's the same smile as the one she had in the animation when she was having a sweet dream—truly adorable.
Now, the only issue left for Sumeru to handle is the matter of the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata. This isn't urgent; first, Nahida needs to understand it together with everyone.
Only by making those unknown stories known to all will it have meaning.
However, the stories need to be told bit by bit. The book released before that is the 'Act One of Sumeru's Stories: Through the Smoky Veil and Dark Woods.'
The good news is that the people of Sumeru have finally seen the legendary prophecy book.
They've heard about this book for a long time, but unfortunately, they've never had the chance to see it. Ordinary people can't access Dolly or desert merchants, and it's unlikely they'd go abroad just for a book.
Now that the Akademiya has lifted the ban on the prophecy book, everyone can finally satisfy their curiosity.
The bad news is that there are too many backlog stories. The people of Sumeru are only now catching up to Inazuma.
For the people of Sumeru, the long period of isolation has one benefit: there are so many stories that they can't finish them all.
They've only just started reading the prophecy book, and immediately, stories about them are being written—no need to wait, unexpectedly refreshing.
As for the major event of the Great Sage being captured, it naturally won't be hidden. The people of Sumeru already know about it—the Great Sage has been replaced.
The change of a leader should be something worth paying attention to. When the Grand Masters in Mondstadt or the Qixing in Liyue change, it's always a big stir, with everyone concerned.
However, no one cares about the Great Sage's replacement at all. The reason is very simple: the Great Sage? Who's that?
Unfamiliar. Not to mention the deserts—even in the rainforests, few people have seen the Great Sage.
To put it unpleasantly, the imprisoned Nahida still interacts with her people in dreams, but what about the Great Sage?
Over the past five hundred years, ordinary people in Sumeru might not have seen even one Great Sage. At most, they've seen the 'decrees' issued by the Great Sage on the Akasha.
The Great Sage doesn't care about these people at all—not even their lives or deaths.
The Sages are academic cliques; their interests lie in knowledge. Ordinary people don't even have the qualification to be exploited by them.
This isn't to say that ordinary people aren't exploited; rather, they're exploited even more harshly.
When harvesting leeks, you wouldn't pull them up by the roots, but for weeds that aren't even leeks, it doesn't matter.
So, when the Great Sage was using the Sumeru people's brainpower for 'mining calculations,' he didn't hesitate at all.
And during the mining, the Akademiya's scholars were actually excluded, because these people still needed to be subjected to 'sustainable overfishing.'
To the Great Sage, ordinary people are black slaves, and scholars are the black slaves used to supervise the black slaves—you see, the exploited are pitted against each other internally.
The Great Sage doesn't care about ordinary people, so naturally, ordinary people don't care about him.
No one shouted in protest at his downfall; everyone just continued living their normal lives.
That's not entirely accurate—it's not that no one shouted, because the people of Sumeru saw the 'Happy Birthday' PV.
So now, many people in Sumeru are shouting about how to deal with the Great Sage.
They really want to give the Great Sage a knife to the butt to open his eyes and let him witness the people's anger.
The Great Sage being locked up to recuperate could be said to have saved him.
If he sneaked out of prison and was discovered and reported by the Sumeru people outside, by the time the Discipline Officers arrived, Azar would already be lying on the ground.
Of course, the Great Sage isn't entirely worthless. His downfall did bring some impact to Sumeru.
For example, his collapse allowed the Dendro God and Alhaitham to take power, increasing opportunities for Sumeru people to receive education and creating the possibility of breaking class barriers.
Don't think that Sumeru's education is well-popularized. In fact, Sumeru leans toward elite education, and the degree of education for ordinary people isn't high.
A person's life is almost entirely planned by the Akasha; knowledge you're not allowed to obtain simply can't be obtained.
So, it's not just an opportunity for the deserts—it's the same for the rainforests. It can be said to be a once-in-an-era dividend.
Looking at it this way, the Great Sage's downfall is all benefits. The biggest downside is actually for the Fatui—they've lost a useful person.
The ones most heartbroken by the Great Sage's downfall are the Fatui. If other countries had more such traitors who sell out their country for personal gain, how great would that be?
The people of Sumeru are much happier—no more traitors; which Sumeru person wouldn't be happy about that?
Collei is equally happy. Under the education of the Four Great Talents, her literacy has finally improved, and reading is no longer a problem.
If there's a really difficult term, she can just ask 'where she doesn't understand' and it'll be fine.
Collei is about to formally read her first prophecy book.