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Greed, hatred, envy, violence... This utopian world existed only for a brief page in history books.

[As filth corrupts the earth's veins, calamities arise, and the vitality of all things weakens.]

[Fanes, connected to the earth's ley lines, is corrupted by filth, its consciousness weakened, and it suffers from a terminal illness. Civilization seems to be nearing its end.]

As darkness fell, His shadow emerged from behind Him, pressing the pause button for the end of civilization.

Since the filth is integrated with the earth's veins, the crisis will resolve itself once all the filth is absorbed and then purified.

The angels rejected the proposal; they did not wish to kill the father who had conceived them.

A battle ensued, and the high and mighty celestial messenger was crushed into dust, transformed into mindless spirits.

The primordial being absorbed all the impurities from the earth's veins, transforming into a mindless entity that began its battle against the four shadows.

The earth shattered, the seas overflowed, and the protracted war ravaged the world, leaving countless lives lost. Many gods perished as a result.

Ultimately, the four shadows killed their master and became 'Heavenly Principle'.

[Shortly after the world found peace, the Dragon King Nibelungen, wielding power from beyond the world, sought revenge against the primordial beings. Countless rulers perished in this battle, and ultimately, Nibelungen's body transformed into the Heart of God.]

Having suffered repeated blows, the Heavenly Principles were no longer able to govern in order to repair the world. They crafted the body of the Nibelungs into the Heart of God and selected seven agents to safeguard it.

Thus begins the war between demons.

The land gave birth to demons, and faith made the demons powerful.

The Heart of God can control the seven primordial elemental forces. When the seven Hearts of God are united, the Dragon King will be reborn.

Jiang Bai stared at the displayed content in silence for a long time.

So, did Phanes actually die willingly to save the world?

So, the so-called second throne is not an outsider at all, but the successor of Phanes' will?

Therefore, Heaven did not betray Phanes at all.

Therefore, the Ice Queen collected the Heart of God in order to resurrect the Nibelungen.

All previous speculations have been answered, and it is no longer important who is currently in power.

All he needed to know was that in order to save this world from destruction once again, "Heavenly Principles" were the ones they had to defeat.

If even the obstacle of "natural law" cannot be overcome, then any talk of breaking the world is nothing but wishful thinking.

Jiang Bai took a deep breath. Now, it was time to go to Zhidong.

Go and meet the Ice Queen, and present her with the Heart of God.

Chapter 906 Welcoming

Jiang Bai spent about half a month on this trip to Kanria, most of which was spent traveling, and the rest of the time was spent clearing out monsters.

After parting ways with Dain, he went to Fontaine, intending to tell Sora about his experiences, only to find out after making a few inquiries that Sora had already gone to Nata.

Jiang Bai had no intention of going to Nata. He wasn't there specifically for tourism, and since he already had the answer, there was no need to make a special trip to Nata.

I wanted to go to Sumeru to ask Ah Mao what kind of goddess the Ice Queen was and whether she was easy to talk to, but I couldn't find her.

Only then did I realize that he had gone to Inazuma.

He then tried to find D'Artagnan, but after the crisis in Fontaine was resolved, D'Artagnan returned to Winter, and his servants also went back!

Jiang Bai was somewhat helpless; when he tried to find these executives, he couldn't find a single one.

There's no other way, let's set off for winter.

Winterlands is located north of Teyvat. You can enter Winterlands by heading northeast from Fontaine.

The land area of ​​Zhidong is quite large, no smaller than Mount Sumeru, but most of the region is in a cold and dry state.

Winter is a land of ice, and cold is synonymous with winter.

The plains of Sicily stretched as far as the eye could see, and the breath exhaled by people naturally turned into a cloud of white mist. After walking for a short while, Jiang Bai felt a layer of frost forming on his eyebrows.

But winter isn't all cold; the region has a highly developed industrial sector.

A kind passerby saw Jiang Bai walking in the snow and, knowing he was going to Winter City, offered to take him to ride the train.

“In winter, we rely on railcars for transportation, as it is too cold to walk.”

Jiang Bai wasn't particularly afraid of the cold, but why walk when you can take a car?

"Are there railcars everywhere?"

“Yes, the railcars connect all the towns and villages. Although there is a fee, it is very cheap, unlike the patrol boats in Fontaine, which only connect the main cities.” The Winterborn man could not hide his pride when he mentioned this.

Of the seven countries, the one in winter undoubtedly has the best-developed industry.

The architecture here is magnificent, rugged, and full of artistic flair.

Before long, Jiang Bai saw towering spires and sculptures, gray and white steel buildings, carrying a sense of power and sorrow, yet like a person standing tall in the wind and snow, covered in snow but with a straight back.

“Every railway station has such a spire, it’s very eye-catching, isn’t it?”

Jiang Bai really wanted to say that this color wasn't very eye-catching. If it were, why would he still be walking?

Why not add some color?

"Why bother with colors? Once the snow covers it, you can't see any colors at all."

That makes a lot of sense.

After buying a ticket to Winter City, Jiang Bai sat in the warm carriage, looking out at the snowy landscape through the glass, feeling a sense of desolation amidst the vastness of nature and his own loneliness.

"The temperament of each country is truly completely different..."

Liyue is like rock, steady and solid.

Mondstadt belongs to the wind; standing on its land, one can feel the breath of freedom.

The land of Mount Sumeru is vibrant with life on one side and a vast desert on the other.

The water in Fontainebleau is also light and bright.

But in winter, the ice and snow here are desolate and lonely.

It is very much like the will of that Ice Queen who no longer loves anyone.

The train started moving, and amidst the sound of the wheels rubbing against the rails, Jiang Bai unknowingly fell asleep.

When I opened my eyes again, I had already entered Winterhold.

As Jiang Bai stepped out of the carriage, his body froze instantly.

Before him stood two rows of neatly dressed, upright soldiers, each holding a musket. Their eyes, hidden beneath their armor, were fixed on him, as if welcoming him or escorting him.

A man with white hair, wearing a half-mask and a cloak, stood at the front, exuding an imposing aura.

"Welcome to Winter Solstice."

"you are?"

"You should have heard of me. My name is Piero."

Jiang Bai suddenly realized.

[The Clown] Piero. According to Dain, he was once the court mage of Canria.

They are the opponents of the Abyss faction.

Judging from his appearance, it seems that, like Dain, half of his body has turned into a monster.

Moreover, it seems that he recruited all of the Fatui's executives, and he may have been instrumental in the Ice Queen's idea of ​​collecting the Heart of God.

In short, this is a person who knows the truth of the world and has been working tirelessly to save it for five hundred years.

It's somewhat ironic that among those who left Kanria, Dain became a Branch Collector, Rhinedot continued his alchemy research, Piero became the Ice Queen's executor, and many more became Abyss Apostles.

Their goals were the same, but each person's ideas and directions were completely different.

Nobody knows how to break the world, so everyone is trying.

The sage who had been waiting in the ocean had misunderstood; many people already knew the truth about the world.

"I never imagined I had such influence that even a clown would personally come to greet me..."

Jiang Bai almost couldn't resist the urge to hand him a flyer, but thankfully she managed to restrain herself.

He's here to do serious business; his image is very important!

Moreover, with the great war about to break out, the crematorium's incinerators would probably not be enough, so he shouldn't find work for himself.

"You underestimate yourself."

Piero looked at Jiang Bai, wanting to show friendliness, but he had forgotten how to smile.

Although Jiang Bai is not as famous as Kong, his deeds are certainly not uncommon.

In particular, he possessed a Heart of God.

Don't ask how I knew such a secret. Apart from the Heart of God of Vulcan, the only thing missing right now is the Heart of Thor.

Although divination cannot accurately predict the location of Thor's heart, bold speculation based on the clues obtained through divination yields obvious results.

Jiang Bai sighed, "As expected, my excellence cannot be hidden."

"..."

The station was bustling with people, and many curiously looked over, but they all sensibly refrained from coming closer.

Although he was somewhat impressed by the strength of Zhidong's intelligence network, it was clearly not a good idea for him to go see the Ice Queen as soon as he got off the train.

"Although I am eager to see the Ice Queen, it would be inappropriate for me, as the disciple of the Rock King, to go now. I would like to rest a bit, bathe and change, and then choose a sunny day to pay my respects to the Ice Queen."

He no longer hides himself; he is Jiang Bai, a disciple of the Rock God, possessing the heart of a god!

Whether these people are there to escort him or to welcome him, they have to put on airs.

Besides, they're already here, so what's a little extra time?

"Your accommodation has been arranged. Shall we go now?"

Piero's attitude was quite friendly.

"You've really come to greet me?"

"otherwise?"

"I thought you brought these two squads of soldiers here specifically to intimidate me."

Judging from the Fools' style, it's quite possible.

"This is the proper courtesy to welcome distinguished guests."

Chapter 907 The True Meaning of the Game Changer

Jiang Bai followed Piero out of the railway station and finally saw the sight of Winterfell.

This is a magnificent city built amidst wind and snow; as far as the eye can see, six- or seven-story buildings stretch to the horizon.

He discovered that the people of Zhidong had a very special mental outlook, completely different from people in other countries.

Most of them had serious, solemn expressions on their faces, rarely smiling, as if they were carrying a heavy burden, bearing a collective sorrow of the entire nation.

"Why do people look so serious when winter comes?" Jiang Bai asked Piero, who was leading him to his lodgings.

Piero looked at this industrial megacity that almost never stopped operating, head held high, back ramrod straight.

"Because we all know that Teyvat is standing on the edge of a cliff. We're going all in, ready for the final battle."

Hearing Piero's words, Jiang Bai was filled with respect.

The unity of the people at the end of winter is so much like the old days of Canria.

In comparison, the people of Fontainebleau, facing the end of the world yet doing almost nothing, hoping for divine salvation and blaming the gods, are utterly pathetic.

Perhaps, this is the charm of the Ice Queen.

Even though His fools were utterly wicked, all I felt was admiration for them.

Unlike other gods who concealed the coming of the end times from the people, almost all of these people of Winter knew the news and were already prepared to die.

Is this the God who no longer loves people?