Genshin Impact: Pool Character, Nirvana of the Demon God

Such behavior, upon closer examination, is undoubtedly the work of the royalists—those parasites entrenched in the shadows of power, eroding the very foundation of the nation, are already guilty beyond redemption and should atone with their deaths.

However, the reformers, led by Caesar, remained completely innocent.

They worked tirelessly day and night, devoting all their enthusiasm to the reform and long-term stability of Mount Sumeru:

From the careful restructuring of the academic system to the gradual adjustment of grassroots governance, everything is permeated with rationality and responsibility.

After all, with a wise man like Caesar, who has lived for over five hundred years and was personally appointed and entrusted by the "Great Tree King," sitting in the center, what fear is there of a ship sailing through Mount Sumeru in the face of high winds and rough seas?

If even this rock-solid situation cannot be maintained, then he would truly be betraying the extraordinary genes flowing in his blood, genes identical to those of Dotole.

How could a work created from the genes of that “major threat” that once made even the Great Compassion Tree King take notice be so terrible?

Therefore, if Caesar could not even effectively command a loyal and pragmatic reform force, it would not only be a dereliction of duty, but a complete betrayal of his divinely ordained mission, a true tragedy of creation.

Of course, this is not the most pressing issue at present.

What truly needs clarification is that the disaster caused by the royalists should not be crudely shifted onto the entire Church.

Under Caesar’s effective guidance, the vast majority of scholars in the Instruction—those “academic hermits” who spent years buried in the quiet corridors piled with ancient books and immersed themselves in star charts and plant genealogies—became highly respected.

They were completely unaware of the royalists' rampant tyranny and abuse of power. They were simply seekers of knowledge, homebodies gently enveloped in the light of knowledge.

Nasita once pointed out in her consistently clear and resolute tone:

"Caesar's most irreplaceable achievement was not any specific accomplishment, but rather that with an almost obstinate clarity, he built an invisible yet unbreakable barrier for the Council of the Vicars—"

"It has prevented it from becoming a arena for fame and fortune or a battleground."

Admittedly, this protection also brings about a certain structural imbalance:

A large amount of resources quietly gathered towards the royalists; but at least, on this academic sanctuary, there were no more scandals of mentors stealing students' hard work or academic cliques monopolizing the lifeline of research.

This restraint and bottom line are themselves a profound and precious form of order.

Now, back to the point…

As soon as Ying finished speaking, Dixia scratched the back of her head and waved her hand with a slightly embarrassed expression, saying, "Sorry, sorry... I habitually equated things again. I'll definitely be more careful next time! But—"

She frowned slightly. "What exactly do the royalists intend to do by kidnapping the village guards?"

Sino's gaze was calm, his voice low yet sharp as a blade: "The Council of the Order has always regarded people as tools."

"This unusual activity probably means that someone has discovered a new, undisclosed 'use' for those villagers, which is very likely related to some secret research."

Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly stopped, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, and a fleeting shadow of gloom crossed his eyes, as if he had been suddenly struck by some long-forgotten memory.

But in the blink of an eye, he straightened his back again, his tone as firm as ever: "In any case, the most urgent task is to track down those people."

Candice nodded, her expression solemn: "That's right. What happened today must never be repeated."

Dixia immediately made a decision: "Then let's set off immediately—leave Aru Village and split up to investigate clues!"

“Yes, get ready immediately,” Seno replied briefly.

“No problem!” Dixia responded readily, then turned to Candice with a frank and serious look in her eyes: “Candice, I’ll leave the matter of the radicals in the village to you to keep things stable; leave everything outside the village to us.”

“Okay.” Candice nodded, her tone steady and firm.

Paimon leaped lightly into the air, waving her little hand to bring this immediately-starting mission to a bright close: "Well then—let's meet here in a bit!"

[This new mission title... The Crying at the Demon Scale Disease Hospital? Is Mingyuan involved here too?]

[With Seno, Desia, Candice, Elheisen, and if Tinari joins, then all of Sumeru's top-tier combat power, excluding the gods, will be present.]

[Is this title taken from Charles IX?]

【The Devil's Infirmary~】

My childhood glanced back at me unexpectedly.

Ying and Paimon walked out of the village chief's wooden door side by side. The cool winter breeze brushed their cheeks and swirled a few withered leaves at their feet.

As Paimon flew, he tilted his little face up, a hint of melancholy in his voice: "Sigh... Iya has only been gone for a day, and I already miss her!"

"I wonder if she will encounter any danger in the desert..."

Ying gently shook her head, her tone gentle yet firm: "The possibility is slim. Besides—"

Her gaze fell upon the distant, undulating sand dunes. “If there is any danger, we are stuck in Aru Village right now, and it will be too late to help in time.”

Paimon's shoulders slumped slightly, his voice trailing off: "That's true~"

Ying glanced sideways and smiled, gently patting her head: "Don't worry too much. With Jun Bai's mark, Yi Ya's safety is practically guaranteed. Instead of worrying about what's far away, let's focus on getting back to reality—"

"There's still a mystery right now, waiting for us to unravel it and continue our investigation."

Before he finished speaking, Paimon's eyes lit up, his previous gloom instantly dispelled, and like a dewdrop illuminated by the sun, he regained his vibrant spirit.

Indeed. Jun Bai's mark contains a meticulous protective power. If even it cannot handle the crisis, then even if they go to the scene in person, they will probably be unable to turn the tide.

Instead of worrying about uncontrollable variables, it's better to focus on the present and proceed cautiously step by step.

"Let's go get something hot first!" Paimon suggested enthusiastically, but then suddenly paused—his pupils contracted, and his little hand instinctively pointed to Ying's side, "Huh?!"

She stopped abruptly, her eyes widening as she stared intently at the tranquil shadow beneath the eaves.

Ying looked in the direction she was pointing.

Then I saw an acquaintance sitting in the shadows under the eaves.

It turned out that Elhesen, who had never participated in the investigation, was quietly sitting there:

He wore a simple, long robe, with a faintly glowing book open on his lap. His expression was as calm as an ancient well, as if he had already deduced the breath, the sound of the wind, and the silence of the entire village.

Ying followed her gaze and was also taken aback: "Elhesen? So you've been here all along?"

Almost simultaneously, Paimon blurted out, "Where the hell did you come from?!"

Al-Hysen closed the book with unhurried movements, a slight smile playing on his lips, his voice as calm as ever: "As you can see—this is merely a review of the clues and a refining of the logic. As for the 'sudden appearance'..."

He paused briefly, then looked at Ying with a gentle gaze: "Just as I expected, you are very perceptive."

The first half is a response to Paimon, while the second half is a silent commendation unique to Ying.

Because the moment she raised her eyes, she had already seen through it:

He hadn't just sat down; he had been sitting quietly for a long time, taking in every whisper and expression they had just made.

This is the difference: Paimon sees "people," while Ying sees "time."

Paimon, completely oblivious to the deeper meaning, tilted his head and muttered, "It's been so long since I've seen you. It's so strange that you're suddenly here seriously thinking. Where were you before?"

El-Hysen remained silent for a moment.

Paimon asked again, "Why aren't you saying anything?"

Al-Hysen's gaze was calm and inky: "You never seem to think before you ask questions—I'm giving you time to make up for it."

"You—!!" Paimon was so angry that he spun around on the spot, then pounced on Ying's side, angrily saying, "I'm going to give him a super awful nickname that will make people frown just by hearing it!"

Ying couldn't help but chuckle, her smile spreading like a clear spring: "Go ahead and get up, I won't stop you."

Paimon immediately circled around Elhesen carefully, then scratched his head, looking troubled: "Uh...uh...I can't figure it out!"

"This guy is too 'balanced'—no striking features, no exaggerated expressions, even the way he turns the pages is as precise as if it were measured with a ruler... It's impossible to know where to begin!"

She sighed, tilted her head up, and said in a sudden softening tone, "Sigh... if only Yiya were here. She's a master at making sarcastic remarks! She could give him a sharp and catchy nickname in just three sentences!"

[Alhesen's吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for sarcastic or witty remarks) about Paimon was a stroke of genius, a truly memorable line! I'll use this line to roast people from now on.]

"You seem to never think before you ask questions—I'm giving you time to make up for it." —Says like that without fear of getting attacked.

[↑Lies don't hurt, but the truth is the sharpest knife.]

[Alejandro González Iglesias's all-purpose quote has appeared!]

[I didn't expect there would be someone Paimon couldn't choose to give a nickname to. But speaking of which, isn't Iya better at making sarcastic remarks? I hadn't noticed that before.]

[↑Yes, Yiya is exceptionally good at making sarcastic remarks, especially after she learned to speak; her comments are always spot-on.]

[Actually, my first reaction was the same as Paimon's: Hai Ge doesn't have any obvious features, so it's really hard to come up with a nickname for him.]

Upon hearing this, Elhesen finally looked up from between the pages of his book, his gaze sweeping over the empty space beside the two of them. His tone was calm, yet contained a faint hint of inquiry: "That little demon god... isn't here?"

"She has important business to attend to and needs to leave Xumi for a while," Ying replied succinctly and gently.

“Oh.” He nodded, his expression unchanged, as if he were merely confirming a routine piece of information. He then naturally steered the conversation back on track, his tone calm and steady as ever: “You have never heard of me leaving the village—the answer is clear: I have been in the village the whole time, conducting investigations.”

"Getting back to the point—" Elhesen nodded slightly, his gaze calm yet sharp, sweeping over the two people in front of him like a thin blade being drawn from its sheath, "You plan to leave Aru Village and pursue the clues yourselves, is that right?"

Paimon nodded immediately, his tone light yet undeniably firm: "That's right! Sitting around in the village won't bring us news on its own; we should go out, see with our eyes, explore with our feet, and listen with our hearts—we might just stumble upon a clue around the corner!"

Al-Hysen remained silent for a moment, his lips slightly pursed, without uttering a word.

Paimon immediately bristled, put her hands on her hips, and raised her voice sharply: "Here we go again! Why aren't you saying anything?!"

Ying couldn't help but chuckle, her eyes crinkling slightly as she looked up at Elhesen, her tone a mix of teasing and knowing: "Are you leaving us blank spaces again, so our thoughts can settle and we can reorganize our ideas?"

"...But to be honest, you never ask questions without reason—this question must have a deeper meaning."

“Well said.” Elhesen nodded slightly, then glanced at the shadowy pillars in the dark corridor. “But this time, it’s not to give you time to think… but because I just realized—you have a companion.”

Before the words were finished, a tall, slender figure emerged slowly from the corner. Silent and unassuming, yet possessing an imposing aura. Seno stood still, arms crossed, his gaze steadily settling on Elhesen's face:

"Elheisen, since you entered the village, you haven't helped the villagers find a single person, nor have you solved a single mystery. Now, you're questioning our actions?"

Paimon's eyes suddenly lit up, like stars that had been lit: "Ah! Isn't this... the legendary 'easy for you to talk when you're not the one suffering'?!"

Al-Hysen's expression remained unchanged, his voice calm yet clear: "I have no doubts—especially about you, Seno."

"Your ability to track down and find several missing village guards proves that your judgment was accurate and your actions were efficient."

His gaze swept over the three men. "I just want to make one thing clear: while you were working in the open, I was also working in the shadows. My work was also progressing."

Paimon tilted his head and blinked suspiciously: "Really?... I don't believe a word of it."

"To be frank, we are not on the same path, let alone allies," Elhesen said frankly and without any concealment. "My actions naturally do not require reporting to anyone."

"And the real value of going it alone lies in this—I just happened to pick up the key clues that you had rushed over and hadn't examined closely."

"Huh?!" Paimon was taken aback, his pupils widening slightly. "It was also found in the village?"

Sino frowned slightly, his voice low and focused: "What clue?"

“Later, I will take you to see someone.” Al-Hysen’s gaze was as calm as an ancient well. “But before that—you must first clarify one thing: the other party’s position.”

"Standing?" Paimon repeated instinctively, his little face full of confusion.

Elhesen did not answer, but slowly shifted his gaze to Ying, his voice low and guiding: "So—what do you think the villagers of Aru Village actually think about what we are doing?"

What kind of attitude?

Ying lowered her eyes in thought, then looked up after a moment, her gaze clear and lucid: "It doesn't matter. Although the village guardians are also part of the village, and some residents consider them family."

“But their status as scholars has already built an invisible wall in the hearts of the villagers—they keep their distance and avoid talking about them.” She paused briefly, her tone growing somber. “Moreover, the power of Sumeru is in the hands of the Grass God, or under the afterglow of the Red King, which is nothing more than a passing cloud to Aru Village.”

"Therefore, they are neutral and will not show any bias towards us or the radicals."

After listening quietly, Al-Hysen finally nodded, a barely perceptible hint of approval flashing in his eyes: "An extremely accurate judgment."

He paused briefly, then his voice suddenly lowered, like wind rustling through a pine forest, "But if that's the case... how can you be sure that every word you've heard is true?"