"So you've decided to take a look?"
Kitsune Saiguu set down the spoon.
Resting her chin on one hand,
she waited for Su Han's decision.
The place was certainly dangerous.
But opportunities existed there as well.
If he continued cultivating step by step, who knew how long it would take him to comprehend the mysteries of time?
Su Han placed a spare Serenitea Pot on the ground.
Inside were hundreds of thousands of manga volumes he had printed.
"Yeah, so I'll leave everything to you afterward. If I can't come back, you'll handle selling the manga. A few hundred thousand copies should last for quite a while."
If he was merely exploring,
he should return shortly.
If he encountered danger,
Su Han estimated he could handle it within a few days.
Kitsune Saiguu accepted the Serenitea Pot. She had wanted to tell Su Han about the child, but before she could speak, he had already left after dropping off the item.
"Sigh, forget it."
"Cultivation is more important right now."
"I'll tell him about that later."
"So he won't be distracted."
The fox put away the Serenitea Pot and continued tending the fire.
Truth be told,
cooking was both an enjoyable and time-consuming activity.
Makoto's consciousness space was located inside a cave beneath Mt. Yougou.
The location was easy to find.
Ordinary people couldn't see it because of the seal.
But Su Han had no such concerns. Just moments ago, he had learned how to open the seal from Kitsune Saiguu.
"This should be the place."
There were some old, worn objects scattered on the ground.
At the end stood a rock wall.
Su Han activated his power while using the unlocking method.
Whoosh.
Purple light resonated through the surroundings.
Soon, a crimson torii gate appeared before him.
At its center was a vortex absorbing everything around it.
"Now I just have to go in."
Su Han's current strength was definitely far greater than Lumine's when she first arrived in Inazuma.
So he wasn't worried about getting lost inside.
Even if he became trapped,
it would merely be a matter of time before he escaped.
Su Han walked forward.
As the sensation of weightlessness intensified,
his entire body was instantly pulled inside.
"Next should be a spacetime turbulence."
Having seen the game's storyline, Su Han knew what should happen next.
However, the expected events never occurred.
Before him stretched endless darkness.
Su Han felt his body continuously flying forward with no end in sight.
"What is going on?"
He was somewhat stunned.
His perception ability expanded to its maximum.
Yet for some unknown reason,
his Observation Haki was completely ineffective in this strange space.
He couldn't determine what was happening.
Su Han remained calm. As he silently recited the Ice Heart Formula, he simply closed his eyes.
He began using his primordial spirit to comprehend the space itself.
Discarding all distracting thoughts,
the truth of the space gradually revealed itself.
Everything around him was pitch-black.
Beneath him lay countless layers of space.
The place he occupied was actually a spatial tunnel.
In other words, some mysterious force was carrying Su Han toward an unknown destination.
During the journey,
his primordial spirit glimpsed the world beyond the tunnel.
It was a realm where darkness and purple intertwined.
The dark regions were filled with destruction.
The purple regions overflowed with all kinds of negative emotions.
"What kind of place is this?"
The doubts in Su Han's heart deepened.
In Genshin Impact, the only power associated with purple should be the Abyss.
So was he heading toward the Abyss?
"Probably not."
Su Han quickly rejected the idea.
Makoto herself had been killed by the Abyss, so she naturally would not have touched such power.
Since it wasn't something she had touched,
there was only one possible answer.
The Abyss had invaded this world.
"If my guess is correct, the darkness ahead will gradually be occupied by purple."
Su Han's speculation was soon confirmed.
Further along the tunnel,
the purple light steadily increased.
Eventually,
the darkness almost disappeared.
Only purple radiance remained.
"So it's been completely devoured..."
"Then does that mean Ei and Makoto were outsiders?"
"No, that's probably not right. Perhaps they came from the Second World!"
Su Han arrived at a new hypothesis.
Teyvat's world barrier was extremely weak.
Even Descenders arrived one after another.
Furthermore, the place Ei and Makoto had come from had already been consumed by the Abyss.
If this assumption was true,
then Su Han roughly knew where he was headed.
The Second World.
The outer layer beyond Teyvat itself.
Who knew how much time passed.
Perhaps several days.
Perhaps only a few hours.
Within this space,
the concept of time was extremely vague.
Only when the purple light became clearly perceptible
did Su Han finally open his eyes.
What greeted him was revolting.
Purple energy was everywhere.
It seemed to have become the only remaining color.
The black spatial walls could now be seen clearly.
But purple alone wasn't enough to make someone nauseous.
The problem was that the purple energy was covered in countless tentacles and indescribable horrors.
For example, one tentacle was covered with innumerable eyes.
And they were constantly moving around.
There was also something that had just brushed past Su Han.
It was a creature composed entirely of countless arms.
Tentacles covered its body like body hair, writhing frantically.
Most horrifying of all,
its skin was completely rotten.
"Just where exactly am I going?"
Su Han's face turned pale.
He was definitely not a fan of Lovecraftian horror.
As for tentacles,
he couldn't like them even a little.
Finally, after traveling further,
all the purple monstrosities disappeared.
And Su Han reached his destination.
He was ejected from the spatial tunnel.
Before him lay a world completely ruined by purple corruption.
Everywhere were writhing creatures radiating eerie auras.
Through the destroyed scenery,
Su Han could vaguely tell that this place had once been beautiful.
The lake beneath his feet.
The mountains in the distance.
And the temple used for worship.
"So this is Ei and Makoto's homeland?"
Su Han wasn't entirely certain.
He didn't even dare descend.
The moment he emerged, he had completely concealed his aura.
He was afraid this strange world might notice him.
Even so, he remained cautious.
After roughly five minutes,
seeing that none of the nearby aberrations had noticed him, Su Han finally began exploring.
He slowly descended.
The lake could no longer be called a lake.
The stench was more terrifying than a latrine.
The instant Su Han sensed the smell, he activated a barrier to isolate himself. Yet as he descended further, he discovered something even more disgusting.
The flowing purple liquid was mixed with countless body fragments and biological tissues.
They had long since lost all signs of life.
Like refuse in a landfill.
Drifting slowly downstream.
Su Han frowned, unable to understand what had happened here.
He continued exploring.
Flying all the way to the vicinity of the temple.
At that moment, the statue standing at the entrance suddenly moved.
"No one may approach the gods' temple!"
"You vermin, get away!"
It raised its ruined weapon.
But before it could strike,
the tentacles wrapped around its body instantly pierced through it.
The statue was completely restrained.
Not only could it not move,
its power was rapidly fading.
A cold gleam flashed through Su Han's eyes. Several streaks of golden sword qi shot out, severing all the nearby tentacles.
Crack.
Crack.
Crack.
Large numbers of tentacles fell to the ground.
The statue stared blankly ahead.
It could see nothing,
yet it sensed someone watching it.
"You helped me?"
"That's right. So can you tell me what this place is?"
Su Han's question plunged it into silence.
Perhaps it had not spoken for too long.
Or perhaps it had lost its memories.
Whatever the reason,
the silence lasted an entire hour.
Just as Su Han thought it had died,
the statue finally opened its mouth again.
"You do not seem to be one of those disgusting knights. Nor are you one of those people who watched the world's destruction without lifting a finger."
"This place... is the Second World, the Land of Divine Birth, Takamagahara."
The statue spoke very slowly.
But when Su Han heard the words "Second World,"
his suspicions were confirmed once more.
Suppressing his excitement, he continued questioning.
"Then allow me to ask another question."
"If this is the Land of Divine Birth, then gods should be born here, correct?"
"Who are they?"
The statue fell silent once more.
Su Han was not in a hurry and quietly waited.
He had many questions.
Setting aside everything else, the name Takamagahara alone was enough to prove this place was deeply connected to Makoto and Ei.
Furthermore, the phrase "Land of Divine Birth" was highly unusual.
About half an hour later,
the statue finally answered.
"The First World decayed long ago. According to records, it was already ruined tens of thousands of years ago."
"The Land of Divine Birth is naturally a place that nurtures gods."
"Unfortunately, by the time the gods were born, the world had already perished. Even I, one of its guardians, could not escape that fate."
"The identities of the newborn gods were beyond the knowledge of us guardians."
"But perhaps you can find answers inside the temple."
"Before that, however, may I ask something of you?"
"I ask that you destroy me. This ruin has completely fallen. I do not wish to become one of that sludge. Since the gods are gone, our duty has come to an end."
"Destruction is my final destination."
Looking at the feeble statue,
Su Han respected its wish.
Using sword qi, he severed its consciousness.
This was Sword Twenty-Three.
A technique capable of destroying souls.
The light in the statue's eyes vanished completely.
It would never awaken again.
The tentacles at its feet, which had been creeping closer, immediately lost interest.
"So they only pursue beings with consciousness."
Su Han gradually understood how the tentacles selected their targets and finally relaxed.
Afterward, he flew toward the temple.
Although the structure had been corroded,
floating in the air prevented him from being affected.
The temple resembled a torii shrine.
In fact, it looked even more similar to the Grand Narukami Shrine.
Inside, it was incredibly dark.
But that posed no problem for Su Han.
With a snap of his fingers, a flame appeared in the air.
It seemed nobody had visited for ages.
Everything had fallen into ruin.
Wooden fish drums.
Clothing.
Tables.
Everything was shattered.
Some items had even become fossilized.
What clues could possibly remain in a place like this?
Su Han was puzzled.
Yet he refused to give up and continued searching little by little.
Eventually, when he reached the rear hall of the temple, he found a stone monument.
Many names were engraved upon it.
They appeared to be successive generations of gods.
And every name appeared in pairs.
[First Generation Gods: Fire / Ice]
[Second Generation Gods: Wind / Snow]
[Third Generation Gods: Clear Sky / Shadow]
[Fourth Generation Gods: Star / Darkness]
[Fifth Generation Gods: Makoto / Ei]
When Su Han saw the final line,
he thought to himself, As expected.
The final pair of twins born from Takamagahara's Land of Divine Birth had indeed been Makoto and Ei.
There was even a record explaining Makoto's weakness.
[The world stands on the brink of destruction. Takamagahara can no longer resist the invasion of the Beasts of Corruption.]
[Though they are the strongest twin gods, the world's dwindling power can no longer sustain both of them.]
[Fortunately, Makoto chose to sacrifice herself and transfer her nourishment to her younger sister, allowing her to be born.]
[Yet sadly, the day of the gods' birth was also the day the beasts attacked.]
[Even the gods could not save Takamagahara.]
[The world has completely perished.]
Those were the final words.
No further records existed.
Yet Su Han had already obtained tremendous information.
The Land of Divine Birth was extremely special.
Every so often, twin gods would be born there.
They possessed immense power and led Takamagahara forward.
Among them, Makoto and Ei should have been the strongest pair.
Unfortunately, the world's power had already been exhausted.
No matter how talented they were, birth itself would have been impossible without enough origin power.
Fortunately, Makoto awakened early.
Though she could not speak,
she understood the worries of her followers.
Looking upon her unborn sister,
the goddess sacrificed herself.
Using her divine power to mature her sister prematurely.
Naturally, there were risks involved.
"So that's probably why Ei is so clumsy."
Su Han smiled bitterly.
His heart ached.
Makoto truly had been a great sister.
Perhaps he should not have been so harsh on Ei.
After all, her soul had never fully developed from birth.
After leaving the monument,
Su Han continued exploring the temple.
Eventually, he found a diary that had been hidden extremely well.
It seemed protected by a special power.
Inside were records of everything that had happened.
The first sentence read:
[This book is written to record the history of Takamagahara!]
[If anyone in the future sees this, I hope you will take this book with you. That way, our existence will not be forgotten.]
[Recorded by: Apoir, Great Elder of Takamagahara.]
Su Han immediately felt deep respect.
This was likely the final relic left behind by one of the last survivors.
No matter what,
he would take this book with him.
Even if Ei no longer remembered this place,
the story of Takamagahara deserved to be passed down.
Turning to the second page,
he found the history of Takamagahara.
[Takamagahara, the Land of Falling Meteoric Fire, also known as the Nation of Izumo.]
[We are the people of this land. Like the citizens of other nations, except that we excel in sword forging and swordsmanship...]
[Among all nations, Takamagahara consistently ranked among the top three powers because it was always protected by twin gods, and thus enjoyed the favor of the Lord of the Starry Sky.]
[Unfortunately, one day the Lord of the Starry Sky vanished, and war spread across the world. Takamagahara could not escape it.]
[The war lasted a long time. Only a century later, when purple power transformed into polluted springs and erupted throughout the world, did everyone realize the divine war had been deliberately orchestrated.]
[Reader, remember well those knights and warriors clad in pale violet armor. They are the culprits who brought the world's original sin.]
[Though we do not know how they wielded that profound and dark power, what value is such power if it comes at the cost of destroying an entire world?]
[Those executioners claimed that the power of the Abyss would eventually destroy the world, so they mastered it in advance.]
[But did they not understand that actively destroying the world is entirely different from passively suffering destruction?]
[We were truly desperate. The previous generation of gods perished in the war. Before dying, their true spirits returned to the Land of Divine Birth to incubate the strongest gods possible.]
[Yet sadly, we did not have enough time.]
[Even our special sword arts could not stop the power of the Abyss.]
[What a pity. We could not serve our two divine ladies. Once Takamagahara is destroyed, such beautiful gods will never be born again...]
[However, if one day our gods should fall, perhaps the clan's divine art may preserve their lives.]
[This is the Divine Wedge Art.]
[Using one's own soul as nourishment, one may form a symbiotic bond with a god. From then onward, both parties share the same lifespan.]
[But take heed: the Divine Wedge Art can only be performed with the god's willing consent. Otherwise, the backlash will be inevitable.]
[Furthermore, the fifth-generation gods departed in great haste and left behind a treasure.]
[If you discover it, please return it to our gods.]
[Final words of Great Elder Apoir.]
The beginning of the diary was neat and orderly.
But the further it went,
the messier the writing became.
Some passages were almost illegible.
Su Han even noticed signs of revisions.
He could vaguely make out traces of curses directed at the gods, later crossed out and replaced with factual descriptions.
Su Han guessed that the Abyss had affected the elder's mind.
Otherwise, someone so devout would never have written such things.
"But where exactly is that treasure? He never said."
Su Han shook his head lightly.
He felt he couldn't ask too much of the man.
After all, Apoir's condition at the time had been terrible.
The fact that he managed to record the history so completely was already remarkable.
So where should he search?
If he were the elder, what place would be easiest to hide something?
Su Han's gaze swept around before finally landing on the book in his hands.
He flipped to the inside of the cover.
There, he found an engraving of a twin red spider lily.
One flower was pink.
The other was deep violet.
Su Han plucked one of the petals.
A powerful force immediately surged from within.
At that moment, a scene entered his mind.
An elderly man with white hair appeared before him.
His body was covered in wounds.
Holding the petal, he wept as he spoke.
"It was all my fault. Madness consumed me, and I failed to tell our gods the most important thing."
"They never took their companion treasures with them."
"In the past, these might have been needed to give birth to new gods."
"But now they're completely useless. If the gods carried them, even after traveling to another world, they would possess enough power to establish themselves."