Genshin Impact: Rise of the Desert

Nogai spoke with a smug smile on his face; that past event was the pride of his life.

Kong and Paimon exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise and curiosity in each other's eyes. They hadn't expected that this seemingly kind chieftain had such a heroic past.

"And then what happened?" Paimon couldn't help but ask.

Nogai laughed: "Later, we got together, and she gave birth to two children for me. They're herding livestock on the pasture now. And then her body went out of shape, like a mushroom pig standing up."

When the topic turned to children, Nogai's eyes softened.

"What a happy family," Kong exclaimed.

Nogai nodded: "Yes, I'm content with my wife and children, and this tribe. There's no trade suppression."

At this moment, Nogai's wife came out with a pot of milk tea and a plate of milk curd, and placed them on the table.

"Come, Rongyu Nayan, try our grassland milk tea and milk tofu," Nogai warmly invited.

Kong and Paimon quickly thanked them and then began to taste it.

The aroma of the milk tea is irresistible, and the rich flavor of the milk tofu is unforgettable.

"It's delicious!" Paimon exclaimed.

Nogai laughed heartily: "If you like it, drink more! There's plenty!"

As he spoke, Nogai picked up his teacup with his right hand and took a sip: "Tsk, woman, you didn't put any sugar in."

As Noguey's wife went to the kitchen, she shouted, "Why are you eating sugar? Now that you have money, you put sugar and salt in your food every day. Last time we went to Fontainebleau, the doctor said you had high blood sugar and high cholesterol. Why are you still eating sugar?"

Nogai shrank back, muttering, "That old woman..."

Paimon chuckled to himself, but Kong noticed Nogay's hand holding the teacup—it was a mechanical hand.

Kong pointed at Nogai's hand: "Chief, what happened to your hand?"

Nogai nodded: "Oh, let me show you."

Nogai quickly stripped off his clothes and stood shirtless in front of the two men. His body was covered with scars from battle, but most striking was that his right arm was gone, replaced by a mechanical arm.

"I installed this thing in Fontaineble. After we came back from Liyue after the war, everyone in the tribe was rich, so I installed this mechanical arm too." Nogai chuckled, taking the mechanical arm off and handing it to Kong. "Look, this mechanical arm even has tools on it, screwdrivers, craft knives, and you can even replace the fingers. When I first installed it, I used it to fix everything that broke in the house. It was quite fun."

Paimon looked at the robotic arm with some envy: "This robotic arm is so cool, I want to cut off my own arm and put one on."

Kong touched the mechanical arm, examined it for a moment, and then handed it back to Nogai: "Did your arm disappear during the battle?"

While attaching the mechanical arm, Nogai said, "That was during the expedition to Liyue. You know how badly the Liyue merchants exploited us. Every desert dweller was fighting desperately, and I was no exception."

“In that battle, all our tribes suffered heavy losses, but it was also then that we completely broke free from the control of the Liyue merchants.” Nogai’s eyes deepened. “I lost my right arm, but in return, I gained freedom and dignity.”

Kong remained silent, but he could sense the firmness and pride in Nogai's words.

Paimon muttered to himself, "Although the robotic arm is cool, I still think my own arm is better."

Upon hearing this, Nogai laughed heartily: "You're right, Paimon. The mechanical arm is convenient, but it's not truly mine. However, with it, I can continue to fight for the tribe and protect our homeland."

After the casual conversation ended, Sora finally recounted what he had seen and heard as a novice.

Upon hearing this, Nogai could no longer laugh.

After a moment of contemplation, he said to Kong, "I will mobilize the nearby tribes to send reinforcements, and I entrust you with protecting the Kazekage to see the Khan and inform him of everything!"

Kong nodded: "That's right, it's the right choice. Abyssal creatures are the common enemy of all nations on the continent of Teyvat. When Ivan asks other countries for help, reinforcements will definitely come!"

Nogai smiled and shook his head: "No, traveler, there are no reinforcements."

"We launched an expedition to Liyue, destroyed tea plantations, killed countless people, and during the War of Independence, we almost turned Sumeru into a wasteland."

"You don't know yet, do you? Sumeru and Liyue have formed a military alliance. After the Khan explicitly rejected Tianquan Ningguang's open trade, Liyue joined forces with Sumeru to create a trade encirclement to restrict our development."

Paimon shook his head: "It's different. We are human after all. Those abyssal creatures, anyone can kill them."

Nogai sighed: "Little Paimon, I wonder if you have ever read the Quran?"

Paimon nodded: "Yes, the Quran is quite expensive, and I couldn't bring myself to buy it. But the Quran is inscribed in ancient Greek on the pillars of the Vatican Cathedral. I listened to the tour guide tell the story among the tourists in Fontainebleau, and it was quite an interesting fairy tale."

............

The Quran

Volume One

Flying Wolf

Section 3

The strong grasses rule over the other grasses, demanding their submission and that they hand over all the sheep's bones for their consumption. Those who refuse to submit are the reactionaries. Those who refuse to hand over their bones are the capitalist roaders.

One day, a little blade of grass said to the old blade of grass, "Father, we are all grass. They have only eaten the meat left behind by wolves. Why should we listen to them?"

The old grass said, "Because there's so much grass, because they can easily tear us apart."

The little grass retorted, "Many grasses are already preparing to rebel, and I want to join them too. Why should these strong grasses demand our submission? We submit to the wolves! Why should they ask us to hand over our bones? Those were given to us by the wolves."

Old Green Grass had been through a lot, and he just shook his head slightly: "We green grass can survive as long as we have a mouthful of water and a piece of soil. If they want it, we should give it to them, otherwise we will die."

The little green grass swayed its body, very disappointed: "But sooner or later they will oppress us until we have neither a drop of water nor a piece of soil. We must fight back! Even if we don't fight back, someone else will!"

Old Green Grass said, "Then why should it be you who rebels? Since others are going to rebel, let them do it. If you trust them, then let them do it."

The little green grass cried out, "I want to go! I want to go!"

Old Green Grass sighed, "Then let's wait two more days, and go again in two days."

Two days later, the resistance failed, and the grass that resisted were all burned to ashes by the strong grass's subordinates.

The little grass mingled among the onlookers and said to the old grass, "They are all warriors, Father, I want to go and save them."

Old Green Grass grabbed Little Green Grass, preventing him from moving: "Don't go. You didn't participate in the resistance, why should you go? It has nothing to do with you, don't get involved, or you'll get burned."