Nahida opened the passage into Irminsul once more.
For the first time, Lora stepped into the world that held Teyvat's fate. There, she saw its true form.
It was not like a tree in the usual sense. Its essence was closer to the convergence of endless streams of data.
Nahida reached out and released her power, guiding Irminsul as she searched through it for everything related to Forbidden Knowledge. Lora, meanwhile, used an even greater force to strip that corruption away by force.
Without Nahida's help, doing so would have damaged Irminsul.
But with her assisting from the side, Lora only needed to tear the contamination out. She did not have to worry about anything else.
As she continued removing it, her understanding of Teyvat deepened as well. This was knowledge closer to the world's source, not the limited perspective of ordinary lives that merely existed beneath the sky.
A flowing radiance gradually appeared in her hands.
It was the web of Teyvat itself, along with the destinies of all living beings within it.
Once the last traces of Forbidden Knowledge had been stripped away, Apep immediately swept her senses across Sumeru to confirm its current state.
"Mm... The Withering has disappeared, and the revival of Forbidden Knowledge has not affected the current Sumeru."
Only after hearing that did Lora and Nahida let out a breath of relief.
"Aunt Lora, do you have a way to revive Greater Lord Rukkhadevata?" Nahida looked to her, seeking an answer.
"Let's go out first. We'll talk about it then," Lora said.
The three of them left Irminsul's space, and Lora brought out the mass of Forbidden Knowledge she had extracted.
She looked at the corruption in her hand, but did not choose to erase it completely.
The concept of the first Dendro Archon had already become fully intertwined with Forbidden Knowledge. As long as Rukkhadevata was still regarded as the first Dendro Archon, that knowledge had to exist.
In other words, if it disappeared, then no matter how many times Lora spoke of her, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata would still be remembered in Teyvat as nothing more than a giant tree.
That meant this mass of corruption was necessary for her revival.
More precisely, it had become Rukkhadevata's current anchor. Before she returned, the Forbidden Knowledge could not be cleansed away no matter what.
Lora tried injecting the power of the Primordial Sea into it, attempting to awaken the presence within. But no matter how much power she poured in, it was swallowed whole, without the slightest response.
She stared at the mass in her hand. After thinking for a while, something suddenly occurred to her.
"Perhaps what's needed isn't only the power of life."
Her gaze fell on Nahida.
"Do you need my help?" Nahida asked immediately. As long as Greater Lord Rukkhadevata could be revived, any price would be worth it to her.
"Can you break off a branch from Irminsul?" Lora asked.
Nahida froze for a moment, then quickly understood. "You plan to use it to revive her? I think I should be able to. I'll try..."
She closed her eyes and began to connect with Irminsul.
Greater Lord Rukkhadevata was the incarnation of Irminsul. If they wanted to create a body capable of carrying her, then the branch had to be as pure as possible. The purest one in the past had been used to create Nahida, but with Lora here, absolute purity was no longer an issue.
Lora-brand purifier.
Guaranteed results.
Nahida broke off the purest branch that currently existed and handed it over.
Lora infused it with vast amounts of pure water, washing away every trace of filth and ensuring its purity.
Using the branch as the foundation, she gradually extracted the power from the Forbidden Knowledge and infused it inside. Both Nahida and Apep watched without blinking.
What Lora was doing now was even more astonishing than creating the Fontainians or reviving Raiden Makoto.
After all, those two feats had still been accomplished within the framework of Teyvat's power. But making Greater Lord Rukkhadevata reappear in this world meant defying the laws of Irminsul itself.
In the current Teyvat, the only ones capable of such a thing were the Heavenly Principles, the Sustainer, and Lora.
Time passed second by second.
The branch's light grew brighter and brighter, while the chaotic aura in Lora's hand gradually weakened.
After a long time, a confused voice sounded inside the Sanctuary of Surasthana.
"Egeria?"
That voice seemed to come from beyond the heavens. Innocent, lost, and bewildered, like the first question ever asked by a life just born.
The branch no longer needed Lora's power to sustain it. It rose into the air on its own.
Looking at it floating before them, Lora let out a long breath and said softly, "Long time no see, Gusion."
"Why?" Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's voice came through. "I... should not still exist..."
"Gusion, it's all over now. This world will no longer be destroyed because of your existence," Lora said softly. "Nor does it still need a fragile god to sacrifice herself in order to save it."
"You can exist freely in this world now."
"I can... exist?" Rukkhadevata's voice trembled slightly.
"Yes. The world will never forget you again. No one will ever forget you again."
Lora nodded and raised both hands. Vast amounts of Primordial Seawater wrapped around the branch before her.
Following the movement of her hands, the water condensed into a human form.
This was the first time Lora had created a complete god's body entirely on her own.
Before long, a grown, mature version of Nahida appeared before Lora, Apep, and the others.
Apep gazed at Greater Lord Rukkhadevata and sighed with emotion. "As expected, the power of the Primordial Sea is the most sacred."
"You praised the Primordial Sea, but you're not going to praise me?" Lora looked at her with a smile.
"Shall I praise you, then?" Greater Lord Rukkhadevata landed on the ground and looked gently at Lora. She opened her arms. "Egeria!"
Lora walked over and embraced her.
"Welcome back, Gusion."
"Your embrace is still as comfortable as ever," Rukkhadevata said with emotion.
It was not only the lives of Teyvat that liked Lora's aura. Even gods loved the life force of the Primordial Sea.