Genshin Impact: Awakening in the Darkness

The dim light of dawn made Xuan Yue's azure eyes shine even brighter.

“He was asleep. If it weren’t for the special circumstances, it would have been almost impossible to keep it from him.”

"mysterious…"

"Shh." Xuan Yue put her index finger to her lips and said, "Don't say his name now, or he'll sense it. We only have an hour to discuss this."

"Okay," Hibarak immediately agreed.

"I heard that Nata's sacred flame is fueled by the flames of competition, which can rekindle the victor's flame, also known as resurrection."

Hibarak nodded and said, “Nata is different from other countries. Since the beginning of the Demon God War, we have been united as tribes. The Great Spirit of each tribe will pass on an Ancient Name to a specific person. This Ancient Name is the point of memory inheritance, which is brought back to the human world by the Holy Fire.”

“Stones can store memories, which makes sense now. Shibarak, I would like to ask you to give me an ancient name.”

"!" Hibarak asked uncertainly, "Are you sure?"

“Yes, the order is changing, and we will soon disappear, but his excessive desire to erase him from my memory is unacceptable to me. So, what I can do is simple: I need to preserve all memories of him. That's why I found a reason to come here. Shibarak, I hope you can help me…”

“…Okay.” After much deliberation, Hibarak decided to help him out, but there were some things that needed to be clarified: “I heard that Xuanqing is over 3 years old, so ordinary stones certainly cannot bear your ancient name. Do you have anything that can be used as a substitute?”

"A stone? Could we break a piece off its original form? That seems possible. Let me look for it. Where did the fragment we got last time go? If this one doesn't work, I wonder if Morax would be willing to break it off?" Upon hearing "stone," Xuan Yue suddenly remembered that their original forms were indeed stones. So he searched his spatial dimension for the stone he'd won in a bet with Xuan Qing a thousand years ago. But as he searched, his thoughts drifted away. He remembered placing it in…

"Found it." A translucent stone, shimmering with iridescent colors, was placed on Shibarak's tea table. As it was placed, it emitted faint sounds of dragon roars and phoenix cries.

"Where did you get this stone? I've never seen it before." Shibarak looked at the particularly beautiful stone with great curiosity, which made her house look as bright as day.

"This is a fragment of his original body, the Dragon Abyss Stone."

"Oh...wait, what did you say..." Shibarak nodded subconsciously before realizing what Xuan Yue was talking about. This was a fragment of Xuan Qing's original body? How did he take this out? The demon god's original body and the fragment are connected. Won't Xuan Qing discover that he used this stone as an ancient name?

“I know what you’re worried about. I won the bet with Xuanqing a thousand years ago. Back then, I asked him to erase the mark so I could show it off. I’ve checked it too. I can’t sense him now, but time is running out. I’m wondering if one month is enough.”

"Not enough. The conditions for the formation of ancient names are very demanding, so it takes at least 3 months."

"Deal. I'm running out of time; I need to get back before Xuanqing wakes up. So, send someone to bring Liyue over in three months." Xuanyue finished speaking and flew away in a hurry. It's no wonder he was in such a rush, as it was already getting light.

——Boundary line——

"This...is..." In Xuan Qing's vision, it seemed as if he had returned to that dark, seemingly endless space.

"Finally, I've met you." A clear female voice mixed with a male tone rang out.

Xuan Qing turned her head and looked at the person who resembled the four from Sky Island, and slowly revealed her or his identity.

“The original state”.

"Oh, not bad, you still remember me." [Primordial] smiled and walked up to Xuan Qing. "Your transformation is quite good, pretty handsome."

"..." Xuan Qing just stood there without answering.

"You're not as fun as you used to be. You're becoming more and more like a rock, you can't warm it up no matter how you try to." [Original] complained.

“So, this space is yours.” Xuan Qing looked directly into his eyes.

"Yes, but this space is unstable and can only be maintained for a short time, reflecting some things from the past."

“Things from the past, so you come from the past.” Xuan Qing quickly understood. This was the boundary between the past and the future, so the “Primordial” he was talking to was just a projection of the past.

"Sigh, Little Stone guessed it. How boring."

(Little... Stone...) Xuanqing was not used to this form of address.

"You know, I specially prepared three gifts for you when you took human form back then. I never thought that day would come in the end..." The tone of the 〖Primordial〗 was full of regret, and even a hint of loneliness flashed by.

"A gift..." Xuan Qing was somewhat speechless.

"Yes, you are the first being I created, the first extraterrestrial stone to break through this world and come before me. You are a variable in this world, so to protect you, I have prepared three gifts for you with my authority." Before Xuan Qing could speak, [Primordial] continued, "The first one is naturally the position of [Order]. Since you can accommodate different authorities, then I will grant you the power to control all things and the changing of eras, and give you the right."

"For the second gift, I give you an indelible soul, so you can see all things in the world and experience a life I never had."

"But these two gifts are a curse to me!" Xuan Qing clenched his fists, shouting in a distraught voice, "The Order has tainted me, forcing me to yield to the Heavenly Principles! The fact that my soul hasn't been annihilated forces me to watch my dearest friends depart time and time again. I... I'm truly exhausted..."

Xuan Qing knelt on the ground, his whole being consumed by negative emotions. His purple eyes gradually turned red, and there was a prelude to him losing control again.

[Yuan Chu] also knelt down, hugged Xuan Qing's body, let him bury his head in his chest, and gently patted his back to comfort him: "I'm sorry, you must be exhausted after all these years. However, I still haven't given you my third gift. Do you want to hear what it is?"

Perhaps it was because the words of the "Primordial One" were particularly gentle, but Xuan Qing's emotions were soothed in no time.

"What...is it..." Xuan Qing lifted her head from Yuan Chu's arms, her eyes slightly red, which made her look rather cute.

"Keep walking straight in that direction, and you'll see it." [Primordial] pointed in the direction, then vanished into nothingness, as if it had all been a dream.

Xuan Qing composed himself and walked in the direction indicated by "Original Source," continuing on and on, seemingly without end, into a pitch-black expanse.

(Haven't we arrived yet...?)

(How much longer...)

(Is she lying to me...? Should we walk a little further...?)

(It's so quiet...)

(How long have I been here...? Will Xuan Yue notice...?)

(Have I been scammed again...?)

As Xuanqing walked further and further, he became somewhat numb, and even began to feel the risk of losing control again.

(A crystal butterfly?) A transparent crystal butterfly entered Xuan Qing's field of vision. It seemed to have seen Xuan Qing as well, circled him a few times, and then flew away into the distance. Xuan Qing followed it and entered a space where the trees were lush and green, but the real and the unreal intertwined, creating a unique beauty.

The crystal butterfly flew to a statue and merged into its body. The statue was instantly illuminated, turning the pitch-black space into daylight.

"This is my third gift to you, a place where time, space, life, death, illusion, and reality intersect. I give you the laws to control it." The voice of the Primordial One rang out, and Xuan Qing realized that this statue—no, it wasn't a statue, because there was no god on it; it was simply a throne.

The stone tablet beside it reads: Uranus

"I'm giving you the right to make corrections, it's up to you how you use them. Goodbye, my child, Uranus, or whatever name you prefer, Noavis..." The voice of the Primal faded away, and Xuan Qing knew he was gone...

"Thank you." Xuan Qing thanked the void, but instead of immediately taking the throne, he left the space. Xuan Qing gave it a name—Void and Mysterious Forest.

When Xuan Qing regained consciousness, the sun was already high in the sky. Xuan Yue, who had materialized beside him, held his hand with a worried expression, her eyes still slightly red: "Waaah... Xuan Qing, you're finally awake! I was so worried about you!"

"Alright, Xuan Yue, I was just too tired from playing with you yesterday, so I slept a little longer." Xuan Qing smiled and rubbed Xuan Yue's head to comfort him.

"Alright then, if you feel unwell, please tell me immediately. Your spirit is too weak right now, and I'm a little worried..."

"I'm perfectly fine. Where do you want to go next, Fontaine, Sumeru, or back to Liyue?"

"You're so weak, let's go back to Liyue as soon as possible."

"Won't you stay a few more days?"

"For your safety, let's go back to Liyue as soon as possible. Your illness hasn't been cured yet, and going back to Liyue will allow us to retrieve the essence blood I stored up before."

"Okay, whatever you say..."

Xuan Qing's face was still somewhat weak, and a glint flashed in her purple eyes for a moment. Xuan Yue was also thinking about something, so she didn't notice anything unusual.