Even so, Qiu Nian decided to confirm things with the system.
He wanted to see if the answer would match what he had already guessed.
Before arriving here, the story of Genshin Impact in his previous world had already reached Natlan.
And he himself was a true-blue "Mi scholar."
Otherwise, he wouldn't have spent more than ten hours crafting that background story.
If the game's timeline had already progressed to Natlan here as well, then where exactly would he make his debut?
"Ding. The Blue Planet over there is not the host's original world."
"It is a parallel Blue Planet. In that world, the storyline of Genshin Impact has only just reached Version 1.1."
The system's voice rang out.
Hearing this, Qiu Nian wasn't surprised at all.
Because the system's answer was exactly what he had expected.
The Genshin Impact created by MiHoYo on that parallel Blue Planet was vastly superior to the version from his previous world.
The graphics were far better.
Even the buildings and maps in the game were ridiculously large.
And the game supported full cross-play between mobile and PC.
One could easily imagine just how insanely popular it had become.
At that moment, on the parallel Blue Planet, MiHoYo had released the Version 1.1 PV across multiple platforms.
Meanwhile, Qiu Nian chose to watch it on Bilibili.
"Ships built for commerce will eventually dock at port."
"And so, Liyue is where all wealth comes to rest."
The opening scene showed Zhongli, standing at the center of the Jade Chamber, his arms folded.
His expression was composed, his voice calm and steady.
Meanwhile, the bullet comments flooded the screen.
Many were jokingly pretending to be archaeologists, claiming they had pulled Zhongli and played him all the way until the game's shutdown.
Others were posting ritualistic "wish and repay" comments for good gacha luck.
And during this era, there were still countless people praying to pull Diluc.
"This meteor is the largest we've seen so far!"
Several massive meteors streaked across the night sky.
"Ah! The Fatui!"
"They're heading for the Guizhong Ballista!"
Paimon's voice echoed.
On screen, Keqing dashed forward atop the Jade Chamber, while the adepti combined their powers.
The background music grew increasingly intense.
"Just watch!"
"Will a nation that has lost its god… be swallowed once again by ancient malice?"
Tartaglia spread his arms wide, talismans swirling around him as he shouted excitedly.
The scene shifted to a colossal ancient god raising multiple heads.
Then the screen flashed—
A golden explosion swept across everything.
"Farewell… my old friend."
Ningguang's voice echoed.
Then the screen went black.
"Perhaps…"
"You should go find him…"
At that moment, Zhongli's calm voice sounded again.
As his voice faded, the blurry image slowly came into focus.
A mountaintop.
A young man stood with his back facing the camera.
He was 1.83 meters tall, with long black hair tied by a bamboo hairpin.
He wore a pale cyan and white Han-style robe patterned like flowing ink, paired with a cloak that fluttered gently in the breeze.
"You must be the ones entrusted by Mr. Zhongli… correct?"
A pleasant male voice sounded.
The young man turned his head slightly.
Because of the camera angle, viewers could only glimpse a portion of his side profile.
Then he turned fully around.
At that moment, his face gradually blurred.
The viewers watching the video could not see it clearly at all.
"Take this…"
The young man slowly raised his right hand toward the camera.
Then—
The screen went black again.
The bullet comments exploded with question marks.
[Huh???]
[That voice just got my ears pregnant!]
[What the hell—who is that?!]
[I can't see his face but the outfit alone screams handsome!]
[Wait, was this scene even in the beta?]
[MiHoYo is still hiding things!]
[This design perfectly matches my tastes!]
[Will he be in the banner?!]
The entire comment section had gone completely insane.
During the closed beta, the story had only progressed to Chapter 1, Act 1 of Liyue before ending.
Even now, players still didn't know who the Geo Archon truly was.
They only knew that the Geo Archon had been assassinated.
But honestly, figuring out who the Geo Archon was wasn't difficult at all.
It was practically written on his face.
And it wasn't just the comment section exploding.
Livestreams across multiple platforms were also going crazy.
In one livestream hosted by a streamer named Xuehua, the camera showed a very beautiful young woman.
Because of her lively personality and her habit of cosplaying different characters while streaming games, she had become extremely popular.
On top of that, her progress in the Genshin Impact storyline was among the fastest of all streamers.
That combination made her popularity skyrocket.
You could say she was already living comfortably off MiHoYo's success.
At that moment, her chat was filled entirely with question marks.
Including Xuehua herself.
After staring at the screen for a few seconds in shock, she finally reacted.
"W–Who is that?!"
"Even without seeing his face, that voice, that body, that outfit—it's hitting every single one of my preferences!"
"Isn't that basically my husband?!"
"I've decided! Besides Zhongli and Childe, I'm adding another husband!"
"Fast forward to the banner! Put him in the banner already!"
Dressed in a Fischl cosplay, Xuehua shouted excitedly toward the camera, practically losing her mind.
The chat instantly responded.
[Streamer, please calm down.]
[Streamer, please stop losing your mind.]
[Seriously though, who is he?]
[Just wait for the story. If that doesn't explain it, the Mi scholars will.]
[I like men who act cool like that.]
[I used to like female characters, but Zhongli and this new guy made me realize I like men now.]
[Yamero! I'm being turned gay!]
[Damn you MiHoYo, stop changing my preferences!]
The PV continued playing.
Next came the character demonstrations.
Tartaglia.
Zhongli.
Xinyan.
Diona.
Then came scenes of Foul Legacy Childe clearing out Ruin Guards.
And Lumine plunging a giant sword into the Jade Chamber.
Finally, the screen shifted.
The PV ended with the title "A New Star Approaches", featuring artwork of Childe and Zhongli.
In the comment section below the video on Bilibili, aside from players wishing for Zhongli or Childe…
Many people were asking the same question.
Who was that mysterious young man?
But since his face had been intentionally blurred, there was almost no usable information.
Back in Xuehua's livestream, she looked completely puzzled.
"Old Mi, you give him a single appearance in the PV but don't even put him in the banner. What exactly are you trying to do?"
"You're still hiding things! You're definitely still hiding things!"
She glared at the camera with an annoyed expression.
The chat immediately chimed in.
[Classic MiHoYo behavior.]
[Guess we'll have to wait for the story update.]
The comments continued roasting MiHoYo endlessly.
Meanwhile, Qiu Nian watched the livestreams and PV through the system interface.
He couldn't help but laugh a little.
Then he closed the panel.
"During this time… I should probably build a house somewhere in Jueyun Karst."
After saying that, Qiu Nian floated into the air and flew toward another part of the mountain region.
After all, this wasn't the game.
Jueyun Karst here was unimaginably vast.
Finding a suitable place to live would be incredibly easy.
By now, the time had already reached evening.
From high above, Qiu Nian watched the sunset slowly dip below the horizon, feeling an indescribable sense of calm.
After choosing a location, he descended to the ground.
Looking at the surrounding Cuihua Trees, he flicked a finger.
Several trees collapsed instantly.
White energy mixed with faint crimson strands surged around him.
With a single gesture toward the distance, the wood pieces lifted into the air.
They assembled themselves together using traditional mortise-and-tenon structures, forming a small wooden cabin nestled within the forest.
The uprooted trees had left pits scattered across the ground.
"Since this will be my home…"
"I should decorate it a little."
With that thought, Qiu Nian went around collecting colorful flowers and planted them in the pits left behind by the trees.
"…Hmm."
Looking at his work, Qiu Nian smiled in satisfaction.
Then he stepped into the small house he had built.
The interior was simple but neat.
Lying on the bed, Qiu Nian thought about everything that had happened today.
It all felt incredibly unreal.
Even though he no longer needed sleep…
He still wanted to rest for a while.
Just to shake off that lingering sense of unreality.