Genshin Impact: I Made the Entire Playerbase Cry

This was the first time Mu Yang had encountered such a situation.

The timeline had advanced to the next point without him even going to sleep.

First, he sorted through the memories in his mind,

trying to figure out what point in time he had arrived at now.

"Guess this is to be expected of Morax..."

Mu Yang reviewed the state of the Archon War.

Currently, the known developments were:

The God of Salt, Havria, was stabbed to death by her own people in Sal Terrae.

The Great Serpent Orobashi had fled far away, leaving the Liyue region.

Osial was sealed beneath Guyun Stone Forest.

The beast Chi had been torn apart and suppressed, and Qingce Village had been incorporated into Morax's territory.

Of those who could still fight, very few remained.

The rest had either retreated into the mountains or hidden beneath the sea.

Finally, there was Chenyu Vale. Due to the relatively amicable relationship between the two sides, no conflicts had arisen even after all this time.

It seemed that this time skip had been a long one, and many things had happened in Chenyu Vale as well.

"Anyway, I should start by testing those people's thoughts."

Mu Yang left his house and headed for Mt. Lingmeng.

In Mu Yang's memories, after he had gone to the Guili Assembly,

helped the people there fight, and escorted them back to Liyue Harbor,

upon returning to Chenyu Vale, Clarisse's attitude toward him had become somewhat... peculiar.

This further confirmed Mu Yang's earlier suspicions—Clarisse had been wary of him all along.

Which left him utterly baffled.

Wasn't it you who sent me there in the first place?

I was gone for just a month, and now you're like this?

However, over the years, Clarisse had not taken any further action against Mu Yang.

It was just that from that day onward, she no longer lived in Yilong Wharf like he did.

Instead, she had carved out her own abode within Mt. Lingmeng, claiming she needed solitude for meditation and that she should not be disturbed unless it was important.

Afterward, she entrusted the full governance of Chenyu Vale to Fujin and Lingyuan, rarely involving herself in affairs anymore.

Aside from occasionally visiting the pavilion to drink tea, snack on desserts, and chat, she spent most of her time secluded in her abode.

Still, the other residents of Chenyu Vale knew Clarisse continued to watch over them—

because every night when they slept, they still dreamed beautiful dreams.

Following his memories, Mu Yang arrived at the entrance to Clarisse's abode.

There were no elaborate decorations—just a very simple door.

Moreover, it was protected by illusions and barriers, making it impossible for ordinary people to approach.

Before Mu Yang could even knock, the door opened on its own.

"Come in."

It was Clarisse's voice.

Mu Yang stepped inside without hesitation.

The interior of the abode was decorated similarly to her house in Yilong Wharf—

minimalist, yet every detail was carefully selected, much like the impression she gave:

a true noblewoman,

not some nouveau riche who filled her rooms with gaudy treasures.

Hearing Mu Yang's footsteps, Clarisse closed the book in her hands.

Reading was Clarisse's greatest passion.

However, she never discussed the contents of her books with Mu Yang or the others—

unless the book was a gift from them,

such as folk literature or similar works.

During tea gatherings, she would offer critiques of such books.

But the books in her personal study?

Those were strictly off-limits—no peeking, no commentary.

Their covers were uniformly ink-black, devoid of any markings.

Among the four of them:

Fujin was naturally energetic, fond of telling and listening to stories.

But ask her to read a book? No thanks.

Lingyuan? She was more likely to use books as pillows.

Mu Yang had once been quite fond of novels,

but now, influenced by his "character settings,"

he wasn't as interested—the sword came first.

So, usually, only Yaojun could hold proper conversations with Clarisse about books.

"What brings you here?" Clarisse met Mu Yang's gaze.

"How do you plan to deal with Morax?"

This time, Mu Yang did not beat around the bush—he asked directly.

Previously, he had repeatedly broached the topic of the Archon War in subtle ways,

but without exception, Clarisse had deflected or sidestepped the subject.

Today, he couldn't let that happen again. Time might be running out.

Clarisse visibly froze for a moment.

Then, quickly masking her lapse, she smiled faintly.

"No more roundabout tactics this time?"

Mu Yang did not respond, waiting instead for Clarisse to answer.

"You've interacted with them more, so of course you know his strength. It's only natural you'd consider such a scenario."

Then, Clarisse shifted her tone.

"However, it's not necessarily true that he and I would fight to such an extent."

Seeing that Clarisse seemed willing to engage today, Mu Yang took a seat.

"What do you mean by that?"

Clarisse replied, "He currently has an ally by his side—the God of the Stove, Marchosius."

"So, it's not impossible that we could reach a peaceful resolution."

She rose from her seat and moved to sit beside Mu Yang.

"You all wouldn't want to go to war with Mt. Aocang either, right?"

Of course, Mu Yang didn't want to fight Mt. Aocang.

Though Clarisse had never joined their little gatherings,

she knew that Mu Yang, Fujin, and the others shared deep bonds with the adepti.

Naturally, they wouldn't want to become enemies and turn against each other.

Moreover, Morax's side was almost entirely composed of combatants.

The adepti's mechanisms served both civilian and military purposes, and they had the advantage in numbers.

In contrast, Chenyu Vale had known peace for far too long.

Fujin was completely unsuited for battle.

Yaojun had some combat ability, but not much—he was more of a medic.

Mu Yang, Lingyuan, and her Qilin beast retinue were the only remaining combat forces aside from Clarisse.

If it truly came down to an irreparable conflict,

Chenyu Vale stood little chance in an all-out fight.

How many of Morax's strikes Clarisse could even withstand was a question in itself...

So, if Clarisse truly had such thoughts of negotiation, that would be for the best.

If Mu Yang were a native of Teyvat,

he might have actually believed Clarisse's words.

After all, he wasn't a god—he didn't know what the heavens had decreed to these deities.

But the problem was—he wasn't.

He knew that only one victor could remain in each region.

The God of the Stove, Marchosius, would eventually scatter all his power, returning it to the earth

to shield the people of Liyue from natural disasters,

before falling into an eternal slumber deep in the wilderness.

Similarly, the Wolf of the North, Andrius of Mondstadt, would do the same—

dissipating his strength to protect the land.

Could Clarisse accept such an outcome, indistinguishable from death?

Mu Yang couldn't be sure.

From the perspective of "loving humanity," Clarisse was indeed a proper god.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have expended so much effort to help the people of Chenyu Vale migrate and find a suitable place to settle.

Nor would she have taught them knowledge or aided their development.

Mu Yang thought of many things, but in the end, he didn't know where to begin.

This was merely a simulation, not a return to the past.

Everything he was experiencing now was already set in stone.

Even if he revealed the truth of the Archon War, it would change nothing.

In previous recollections, he had already tried.

When the timeline advanced again, events would unfold as they always had.

In the end, Mu Yang chose to trust Clarisse's words and play along with her act.

He even analyzed the possibilities and optimal timing for negotiations with Morax.

That day, the two of them had what seemed like an "open-hearted" conversation.

However, what Mu Yang didn't know was that

the moment he left,

Clarisse's expression became inscrutable.

She returned to her desk.

Spread across it were detailed reports of how other factions had been defeated by Morax.

The most brutal of them all, of course, was Chi...

Clarisse leaned back in her chair.

"...If only peaceful talks were truly possible..."

"Mu Yang, just what is your power...?"

"Why does it feel so similar to the force in my dreams... the one threatening me to join the war?"