Genshin Impact: The Road to Reversal

"You're here." The woman smiled, her eyes were filled with the vicissitudes of life for thousands of years, but at this moment, gentle ripples appeared in them.

"You are Phoenix?" Furniture exclaimed, "How did you..."

The woman nodded: "Didn't you say you wanted to see me?"

"But the book says that you've already..."

"Yes, I was indeed dead 200 years ago. Now I am just a remnant soul parasitic in the depths of your soul. Thanks to the mysterious power of Yun Academy of Sciences, I can meet you in this way." Phoenix smiled.

"That's right..." Furninna paused for a moment, unable to recover from her shock.

Phoenix smiled slightly: "You seem to have a lot of questions?"

Finina nodded and lowered her head to ask, "Yes, I don't understand why you chose me to be your reincarnation?"

Phoenix shook his head: "It's not that I chose you, but you are the turning point of my soul."

"I sacrificed myself to bring peace to the glacier, and my soul was shattered into pieces to form the barrier of the frigid sky. Only my origin and a wisp of my consciousness drifted into the abyss."

"And then... I was created..."

"That's right." Phoenix nodded.

Finina lowered her head and hesitated for a moment. "Let's put this matter aside for now, but what about next? I know you're protecting me for my own good, but you've protected me too well. Because of your power, almost no one has dared to approach me over the years. Except for Teacher Klee, Tabak, and Linny. Everyone treats me like an alien..."

Hearing this, Phoenix smiled softly. "Really? But I don't think I've done anything wrong. Survival of the fittest, the strong preying on the weak, is the eternal rule between 'us'. The cruelty of this era is far beyond your imagination. Therefore, to protect you, and for myself, I... must do this."

"But this isn't your time anymore!" Finina suddenly shouted. "There's no endless war here, no desperate situations where you're forced to sacrifice yourselves! People will laugh for ages over a burnt cookie, argue fiercely over the lines of a new play, and even comfort me when I blame myself for losing control of my power. Aren't these things more important than your so-called rules?"

"Is that really the case?" Phoenix smiled. "Maybe your friends are taking action for you now, but don't forget that it was you who prayed in the beginning, hoping not to get hurt."

Hearing this, Funina was stunned again.

Seeing her expression, Phoenix explained, "Have you forgotten? Ever since you can remember, because you were orphans, you were often bullied by children your own age, or even a few years younger."

"They mocked you for not having parents and loved taking away your playtime. They took pleasure in your suffering and trampled on your dignity several times. Once, Linny and Tabak, unwilling to see their friends get hurt, started a fight with them, only to have their ribs broken by the older kids. Although Ms. Koli later intervened to resolve the situation, you were still overly heartbroken and begged for protection."

Finina took a half step back, the snow crunching under her feet. All those deliberately buried memories suddenly burst forth.

The bleeding corners of Linnie's mouth as she was pressed into the mud, Tabaque's trembling shoulders as he protected her and hid behind her, and the despair of himself huddled in the corner, his nails digging deep into his palms, repeating to himself over and over in his heart, "Who will save us?"

"It seems you've already remembered." Phoenix spoke again, "Yes, it was me who answered your prayer. At that time, I was awakened by your crying, and I used my strength as a shield to block all the malice for you."

There was a barely perceptible sigh in Phoenix's voice.

"You say the times are different now, but to you back then, those bullies were your wars, those ridicules were your desperate straits. How is it different from the days of the jungle?"

There was another moment of silence.

"What about Mo Yan? Even though we haven't known each other for long, he is still my friend. Why did you want to hurt him?"

Recalling what happened by the lake last night, she felt a surge of guilt. Ever since Linny Tabak had made her this garment that could insulate her from the cold, she hadn't lost control again. But last night, Mo Yan had just been trying to comfort her, and the mere touch of her shoulder had caused frostbite on his right hand, and he'd even lost control again, nearly hurting someone else.

"I don't think I did anything wrong in this matter."

Phoenix said calmly, and Furninna was once again frozen in place by her words.

"I sense a dangerous aura from him. That aura doesn't belong to the Contractor. It originates from nothingness and chaos. In more common terms, it's the 'Creator'."

She looked up at the sky, as if pointing out everything.

"'Creator'? What is that..." Furniture said slowly.

"They make 'choices', spark 'resistance', 'burn' out' in search of 'vitality' amidst the 'change' of the times, lead their 'followers' with their own 'kingly way', and create the 'rules'. In human terms, they are gods."

"God...are you talking about Mengtian?" Funina was surprised again.

Because she was born in the abyss, she has never been exposed to the outside world since she was a child, and she heard everything about Guardian and Mengtian from Teacher Keli.

It's said that Mengtian floats above the nine heavens of Teyvat, belonging to another dimension. And the "creator" Phoenix mentioned is undoubtedly the Holy Lord.

Phoenix nodded. "True, but the 'Creator' has always resided in the Dream Heavens. Why would he come to the mortal world if he had no personal business? Furthermore, while those foreigners carry his aura, they don't have any Dream Heaven contracts. So how could I not give them a second thought?"

Hearing this, Furninna lowered her head again. To be honest, she didn't know how to face his identity.

Mo Yan had saved her from the mechanical chaos before, so it would be too cold-hearted to doubt his kindness because of this. But Phoenix's warning was like a thorn in her side, and for a moment, she didn't know how to face him.

At this moment, Phoenix noticed her anxiety and smiled again: "Of course, maybe I am too suspicious. After all, he saved you back then."

She still remembered that the combined security machine had attacked Finina.

At that time, she was afraid of being tripped and fell to the ground. Seeing that the mechanical drill was about to hit her, just when she was about to release the cold air as before, Mo Yan came with a sword and blocked the fatal blow for Funina.

"But I won't let my guard down against him because you are too naive, and only naive people are the most vulnerable." Phoenix explained, shaking his head.

She looked at Funina again. The girl stood there motionless with a solemn expression. Then she looked up at the sky. As the wind and snow grew stronger, she realized that time was almost up.