'Sorry, Aru, I can't let you conduct trials anymore.'
Shiki apologized inwardly. If the bloodbranch coral was to disappear mysteriously on the surface, then the trial could not be reset.
Once she completed Eboshi's trial, she would directly leave Enkanomiya with the reins of resurrection. As for books like before sun and moon, they could remain there.
Anyway, they were written in ancient script, and current Teyvat people couldn't understand them at all.
Leaving them here, sealed by mechanisms, could also ensure their safety. A certain place in Serpent's Heart would be good.
There was a very large Yangyan barrier there; as long as the Mikoshi remained, the barrier would not disappear, and closing the Mikoshi required the reins of resurrection...
It could be said that this procedure was directly blocked by Shiki.
Anyone could see the books placed inside through the barrier, but they just couldn't get in. Aren't you annoyed by that?
"I still need to use the reins of resurrection."
"That's Eboshi's trial, right? I know, just take it. It would be even better if you could help me decompose it again and hide it in the trial grounds."
Shiki was speechless. Faced with Aru's cheerful words, she said nothing and simply vanished from his sight.
It was destined to be incomplete; this trial she was undertaking would be her last.
Shiki directly teleported back to Kamisato Estate, placed the bloodbranch coral in the cabinet, and then teleported back to Xiajian Street in Enkanomiya.
She looked at the wormhole in the sky, pondered for a moment, and then Shiki decided to fly over.
Swoosh!
A golden bolt of lightning shot straight up from the ground to the clouds… Oh no, there were no clouds here.
Ahem, anyway, after a short flight, Shiki arrived at an island in the northwesternmost part of Enkanomiya.
After routinely lighting up the Waypoint, a sinshadow appeared.
"I am the last Earth Walker, Uto. Brave one, I acknowledge the honor of your challenge."
"This is the trial ground of wisdom. Without wisdom, one is merely a brute…"
Uto babbled on and on, and Shiki learned that this was Yakushahiko's Land, the one to the northeast was Yakushahime's Land, and the one to the south was called Kiza Land.
The trial was to obtain four High Gate Flames, and then go to the top of the high tower.
Perhaps for ordinary people, this place indeed required a certain amount of wisdom to solve, but for Shiki, it was just something to listen to for fun.
If she was in a good mood, she'd solve the puzzles and play around; if not, she didn't care what kind of puzzle it was!
Apparently, Shiki was in a very bad mood right now.
Using her Mystic Eyes of Death Perception coupled with the magnetic control granted by her Archon clearance, Shiki easily obtained the four High Gate Flames and arrived at the high tower at the very top.
The person named Uto was waiting for her there, but compared to other sinshadows, he was more like a pre-set NPC.
Shiki's method of obtaining the High Gate Flames was quite brutish, wasn't it? Yet Uto still said things like "Excellent, you have proven your wisdom" and so on.
From beginning to end, he only said these few lines. It was clear that no matter how the challenger got there, as long as they had the four High Gate Flames, the challenge was considered complete.
Even if Shiki had bludgeoned her way through.
The high tower was lit up, and Shiki immediately rushed to the next trial ground, Yakushahime's Land.
There was nothing much to say; the trial here was even simpler, testing eyesight.
With Shiki's vision, which was comparable to a telescope, this eyesight test was practically a freebie.
Finally, there was Kiza Land, which tested combat prowess…
Heh heh, did Shiki even need to mention combat prowess?
There was a slight deviation along the way: starting the trial required lighting four torches, but the problem was Shiki couldn't use Pyro element.
It made her so angry that she went back to Inazuma City to buy a box of matches, and then vented her resentment on the manifested monsters.
The violent, dazzling golden lightning could be seen even from the Mikoshi, showing what kind of baptism those monsters had endured.
"Phew… that felt good!"
Shiki clapped her hands with a comfortable expression, then went to Serpent's Heart to find Eboshi.
"I have completed all the trials. Now you can tell me all those historical truths, right?"
"Of course, you have proven your valor, so I will answer any question," Eboshi said.
"Alright, my first question is, why did Orobas conduct the Bathysmal Vishap transplantation experiment? He seemed to know that he would die in the eastern expedition against Inazuma centuries later."
"This is because… Watatsumi Omikami had to die."
"What do you mean?" Shiki frowned slightly. What did "had to die" mean?
"He read that forbidden book. The Heavenly Capital would not tolerate such a situation. They issued a death sentence to Watatsumi Omikami. In order to preserve the people of Enkanomiya, he had to perform a sacrifice that no one would suspect."
"Watatsumi Island, bloodbranch coral, and the eastern expedition were all covers for the ritual, the purpose being to prevent anyone from noticing anything unusual."
"Forbidden book? before sun and moon?"
"Precisely."
Shiki paused. The Heavenly Capital undoubtedly referred to Celestia. Orobas was sentenced to death by Celestia just for reading before sun and moon. What about her?
However, she hadn't seen any white-haired Archons so far, so she figured it should be fine for now, right?
Moreover, Eboshi's words also confirmed her conjecture: the current Heavenly Principles was the Archon of the Second Throne.
All her conjectures aligned.
The First Throne was defeated in the great war. In order to preserve history and prevent the Heavenly Principles from noticing, he sealed the path for Enkanomiya to return to the surface.
To ensure the survival of the people of Enkanomiya, he sent one of his shadows, Istaroth, to Enkanomiya, and created the Mikoshi.
At the same time, the Second Throne launched the Archon War to reduce the traces of the First Throne.
Assuming the Archons were products born under the influence of the First Throne, then the Archon War, to put it nicely, was about selecting seven Gods; to put it harshly, it was like raising vipers.
Thousands of years ago, all kinds of Archons emerged in this world, but why was it so difficult for Archons to be born in Teyvat after the Archon War ended?
Furthermore, it was difficult to even determine if later-born Archons, such as the Ice Archon and Grass God, were still Archons…
As time passed, the seal gradually weakened. During the Archon War, a defeated combatant broke into this place, and he was Orobas.
At this point, the seal completely disappeared. Orobas, upon seeing before sun and moon, was immediately sentenced to death by Celestia.
Such a coincidence makes one wonder, was it truly an "accidental" intrusion?
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