Traveler has gone to 6 Lantern Rites. Lantern Rite is an annual festival in Liyue, meaning the Traveler should have been traveling for about 6 years. However, children such as Diona, Timmie, Yaoyao etc. have not aged a day in this time.

This led many people to view the 'present' as a floating timeline: Anything mentioned as happening 'x years ago' would be x years before the game started. Anything that happened during the events of the story is just 'Some Time Ago'.

Like how a comic or cartoon series could have 20 christmas specials without the characters aging a day or any real time passing. Like The Simpsons or Marvel Comics.

However, recent dialogues in Snezhnaya make this entire notion moot.

https://preview.redd.it/8ayd1h5nbfth1.png?width=2182&format=png&auto=webp&s=eaff1a6e5977dd05b3925ecff6bf6a5834939fcd

https://preview.redd.it/zt299tntbfth1.png?width=2061&format=png&auto=webp&s=be5e3d5a7cb9de59e0a46c81b8e1f74e439f4094

Danica's timeline:

• She is raised learning how to be a maid..
• She spends 8 years traveling Teyvat.
  • During her Travels, she is unable to enter Inazuma due to the Sakoku Decree.
• She returns to Snezhnaya.
• She spends 3 years and 2 months in her position as a maid.

This means the Sakoku Decree was active at minimum 3 years and 2 months before the 'present' story in Snezhnaya.

--

Sakoku Decree:

• Was called into effect alongside the Vision Hunt Decree
• Had been in effect since the previous year by the time of the Osial crisis
• Was abolished after Traveler's interventions in Inazuma

The Sakoku Decree must have been in effect for somewhere between 1-2 years before its abolishment.

https://preview.redd.it/d4jhr4py7fth1.png?width=2305&format=png&auto=webp&s=39ddf58f698e211404cd86b858676b6bf454515f

Side note: Paimon mentions in this conversation that she remembers Inazuma's situation 1 year ago. Is she talking about before, or after she was in the water? We presumably spent months with her before setting out for Mondstadt, so it could be about after.

--

If Danica followed floating timeline rules, her attempt to enter Inazuma could not have been thwarted by the Sakoku Decree, as it would have to have taken place 2 years before the Sakoku Decree was called into effect.

Getting a clear view on the exact year is a bit difficult

This definitely reframes how we should consider what characters say about the passage of time. If someone says 'this happens x years ago', it's not x years before the events of the game. It's x years before that exact moment.

Which does of course beg the question: What's wrong with the children?

He sees you.

It's been there since the start of the game, as far as we know it might just be a random arrangement they chose to do. However, there's so much meticulous detail that goes into crafting the game's lore that there just has to be some kind of explanation why the order of the elements is the way it is.

Now the game is wrapping up, I wonder if we have a better explanation of what the order is possibly for. I've seen a some explanations that didn't hold up as we got further into the game (for example: Gnosis Chess Piece assignment, Birthdays)

Here's the element arrangement for reference:

Pyro Hydro Anemo Electro Dendro Cryo Geo

My current theory is the arrangement is the ranking of archons by power. Here's my reasoning for all of the elements (except electro):

Pyro: Mavuika was born human, even with the power granted by Celestia as the archon, she's limited by her morality compared to other archons

Hydro: Focalors was at the very least non human, we don't really know how strong they were but they were able to turn oceanid bodies into humanlike bodies.

Anemo: Venti was able to change landscapes and isolate Mare Jivari at his peak, It's hard to compare this to the accomplishment of Focalors alone. However, he also has been blessed by the Shade of Time, so he probably is stronger.

Electro: This one I am not so sure about, archonhood was passed down to Raiden and I can't confidently compare either twin's feats to Venti's at the very least.

Dendro: Considering Rukkhadevata/Nahida was able to cleanse Sumeru of forbidden knowledge, she was quite powerful at her peak. She also has access to the iriminsul and that alone gives her an edge above the above archons.

Cryo: The Tsaritsa is the ancestor of all Khanrians, we've yet to see her full power. She is set to challenge the Heavenly Principles soon, which I believe should cement her at a higher power ranking.

Geo: Zhongli being the strongest archon is another theory, basically I believe he is at the very least at a higher standing than just archons. I can't really justify this since the game itself is trying to obscure a lot of information about what he really is and what he could be capable of.

I want to hear if anyone else has a good theory on what it might represent, or if you want to criticize my theory, please feel free.

Edit: Focalors didn't turn oceanids into human-like creatures, Egeria did (thanks for the correction)

Traveler = Third Descender Theory

What the theory is

The theory is that the Traveler and Saarelainen, the Third Descender, are actually the same underlying being in some way.

During the Traveler’s first passage by Teyvat thousands of years ago, some part or version of them may have stayed behind and became Saarelainen. Saarelainen then lived in Teyvat, had descendants, and eventually died, with his body being split into the seven Gnoses.

The Traveler we play now could therefore be a remaining, revived, reconstructed, or reincarnated version of Saarelainen, which is why Teyvat sees them as the Fourth Descender.

This could also explain why the Traveler spends the whole game collecting all seven elements: they may actually be slowly recovering parts of what originally belonged to them.

1. The Traveler’s ship was already near Teyvat thousands of years ago

The twins’ ship passed Teyvat thousands of years before the current story, left, and later returned.

This means the Traveler was already around Teyvat during roughly the same ancient period when Saarelainen appeared.

2. Saarelainen came from the stars during the same ancient period

Saarelainen arrived from the sea of stars around 6,000+ years ago.

So we basically have:

Traveler’s extraterrestrial ship passes Teyvat
↓
An extraterrestrial Descender appears in Teyvat around the same period

That timing is pretty suspicious.

3. Saarelainen and the Traveler both have a strange connection to all the elements

The Traveler can use multiple elements without a Vision.

Saarelainen also had an extremely unusual elemental nature, considering his body was later turned into the seven Gnoses.

Both the Third and Fourth Descenders sharing this rare elemental ability could point to them being connected, as this doesn't seem to be an ability that's common to all descenders.

4. Saarelainen was split into seven Gnoses while Traveler collects seven elements

Saarelainen’s body was divided into the seven elemental Gnoses.

Meanwhile, the Traveler’s entire journey is basically:

Anemo → Geo → Electro → Dendro → Hydro → Pyro → Cryo

Under this theory, Traveler might not just be gaining new powers. They could be recovering the seven parts of their original elemental power.

5. The ship’s return to Teyvat is still unexplained

The ship passed Teyvat, left, and then came back aeons later.

We still don’t really know why it returned to the exact same world.

One possibility I'd suggest in favour of my theory:

Saarelainen dies
→ the remaining Traveler or ship senses something happened
→ the ship returns toward Teyvat

This could explain why the Traveler ended up coming back after such a long time.

6. Traveler does not remember everything about their ancient past

The Traveler remembers their sibling and their original world, but their memory of the ancient journey is clearly incomplete.

There are still gaps involving the ship, the first passage around Teyvat, and what exactly happened before the crash.

This gives room for the Traveler to have had an earlier existence in Teyvat that they no longer remember.

7. Something weird happened to the sibling too

The sibling woke up before Traveler without remembering them at first.

They later spent years in Khaenri’ah, slowly recovered their memories, and even searched Teyvat for Traveler without being able to find them.

That suggests something much stranger happened to the twins than one simply waking before the other.

8. The sibling is recorded in Irminsul while Traveler isn’t

Both twins came from outside Teyvat.

But Traveler is still considered an outside Descender, while the sibling somehow became recorded inside Irminsul as if they belonged to Teyvat.

Scaramouche even suggests Khaenri’ah may have had something to do with it.

This could connect to whatever happened to the twins after their return to Teyvat.

9. Saarelainen is an ancestor of Khaenri’ah

Saarelainen and Anastasya’s descendants eventually became connected to Khaenri’ah.

If Traveler = Saarelainen, then Traveler would basically be one of the ancestors of Khaenri’ah.

That could explain why the Traveler’s entire story keeps becoming more and more connected to Khaenri’ah.

10. Khaenri’ahns often share the Traveler’s blond/golden features

A lot of important Khaenri’ahn characters have blond, golden, or very light hair, like Dainsleif and Rhinedottir.

The Traveler twins also have very noticeable golden/blond hair.

Anastasya does not.

So if Saarelainen eventually gets revealed with similar golden hair or eyes to Traveler, it could suggest that these features in Khaenri’ah came from Saarelainen’s side of the bloodline.

11. Saarelainen was noble-born, while the twins are connected to the crowned heirs

Saarelainen is specifically described as noble-born and nobly raised.

Meanwhile, Aether and Lumine are connected to the prophecy about the two blond crowned heirs and the Genesis Pearl.

This could mean Saarelainen’s noble background is connected to the Traveler’s original identity outside Teyvat.

12. Venti says “we meet again — you don’t remember me?”

Venti’s greeting to Traveler is:

“Ah, Traveler, we meet again! What? You don’t remember me?”

This becomes way more interesting when you remember that Venti is extremely ancient and directly connected to Istaroth and the power of Time.

He also knows the story of the two crowned heirs.

If Traveler had another existence in Teyvat thousands of years ago, Venti could be one of the few people who actually remembers them.

Under this theory:

Venti knew Saarelainen.
Traveler doesn’t remember being Saarelainen.
Venti sees Traveler again and recognizes them.

I really think Hoyo could pull this off given what we've seen they did with Columbina

The real weapon is the Exaiphanes Blade

playing a game of 4D chess

In norse mythology, "Mistilteinn" is usually a weapon crafted from mistletoe used to kill invincible gods which makes sense given that Project Mistilteinn's purpose is to create a weapon that can compete with The Heavenly Principles. In the archon quests, we are led to believe that this weapon is still in the making, is the very anti-celestia technology that Ronova tried to stop from being completed. Then there is the weapon or power Peirro uses against her with great success- which instead was created with help from The Wise and the delusion experiments run on Arlechinno due to her connection to the Crimson Moon. That's all cool and everything, but there's still another weapon to consider that we have yet to understand the purpose of:

The Exaiphanes Blade*.* Before we even meet The Tsarista and agree to work with her and The Fatui, her statues have already been prepared to "gift us" something to use that not only comes with the power of cryo, but also this weapon. We have seen how The Tsarista plans in advance, and many of us reasonably assume that she had always had The Traveler as part of her goals, possibly explaining why she is friendly to us despite that given past events we should be enemies. I don't think it is much of a jump to think that she figured The Traveler would try to connect with her statues because she has been aware of our actions across Teyvat.

Why would she want to guarantee The Traveler's help? Well, the whole issue she has been trying to overcome is that she does not have the authority or power to really fight The Heavenly Principles. Even though she has 6 out of 7 gnoses and can pull of a feat like slowing down time without even The Shade of Life knowing, Gold still tells her even against Ronova this amount of strength would only give her "a snowball's chance in hell." In that battle, it is ultimately still Celesita that is really able to cripple Ronova by taking her authority for breaking the rules. Suffice to say, it is likely that things end up where still only someone with a title of Descender could have a chance against the HP.

Let's look at another few things about the sword:

• The blade is described as "A longsword that once shone with the light of the very stars. In the voyager's hand, it becomes a brand-new light that has nothing to do with any past era."
  • The Voyager's soul was once on Teyvat, inhabiting a human who could have wielded and left behind the sword purposely because they have the ability to see the future, and they have showed care in preventing Teyvat's destruction multiple times, so.
    • In a similar vein, the sinner The Visionary can also see the future, and what they told The Wise of it was why they summoned our sibling to Teyvat in the first place.
• In the descriptions given as you upgrade the sword, it is clear that this sword is rightfully meant for The Traveler. It tells their story. Again, hinting at The Voyager's foresight and watching of the universe having been at play.

Yes, I am suggesting that The Tsarista knows the weapon once belonged to/was created by The Voyager and all of that information and about her powers. How? Well...

• The Tsarista knew and talked with The Belyi Tsar before she took his archon seat, and he was there when The Voyager(aka Anacharsis/Seutervoinen) became partners with Koitar, which ended up being the demise of Hyperborea and the angels.

Um, so basically, what if he told The Tsarista everything or she just figured it out and found the sword? There are still two tiers upgrades to the blade we have yet to unlock in the future, and we have yet to ask The Tsarista about it in general in game, so perhaps these details will be explained. This is just my guess as to what will be revealed.

Ronova's "parting gift" was an attack on Phanes

death death death

Also in norse mythology,"Eitr" usually refers to a primordial poisonous fluid, venom, or corrupting substance. And In Sheznayan fashion, in one popular norse story, The Creation of Ymir, Eitr was created from melting frost.

You might think "well that just further proves she did shit to the nails where the abyss is going to attack everyone from those portal looking stars in the sky." and I would like to stop you there. Her last actions were that of revenge, but let's review exactly what relevant things Ronova said:

• First, before the battle against her, there are the things Traveler says to "stall her". They call her out about being anchored down and restricted by The Heavenly Principles, saying she has never known freedom and that she is just their object. And the whole bit about how Paimon is better then her, etc.
  • Ronova has nothing to say on these matters, unable to deny or argue. Even the Traveler wonders if they went too far rage baiting her.
  • But she does say "I will make you hate The Heavenly Principles more than ever."
    • This...would not benefit Phanes, but rather get them in more trouble- because again, The Traveler is a descender, and we know what happens when descenders get pissed at them.
• When her authority is then later taken by Celestia, Ronova says "this is pure foly...it makes no sense...they stripped it from me, just like that..."
• When we fight her after her authority is lost, the subtitle under her name is "Paralogism's Outcast"
  • This implies she is no longer part of the "paralogism"(hey, wasn't that the name of Mondstadt's last archon quest? heheheh), and has been kicked out of the shades, Celestia, etc.
    • A paralogism is defined as a fallacious argument. "Fallacious" then basically meaning delusional...
• In her final moments, at the Celesital nail, Ronova looks upwards to Celestia, and says "I need not despise you any longer."
• Then she pulls out "The Eitr", which she describes as once "hidden by Hyperborea in the depths of The Shadow Realm"
  • Note that the things in The Shadow Realm are unreachable to The Heavens, as that is how the Belyi Tsar escaped their punishment.
    • This connects back to the norse mythology term because there it is poison for primordial lifeforms, and we know that The Belyi Tsar was one such lifeform. They could have created it in case he went out of control, but also maybe to hurt Phanes because they are also considered primordial and they wanted to overthrow him too.
• Finally, looking back up again to the light of the heavens, Ronova's last words are "...This is my parting gift."

All that to say that I think Ronova's true revenge was betraying The Heavenly Principles.

Conclusion

To conclude and cap off my overarching theory here, I will put it this way:

The Project Mistiltein that has been revealed to us and known by the Fatui has lowkey been a cover story. The purpose of the technology The Fatui have been trying to develop was only to summon Ronova, and it and Project Stuzha kept getting pushed because The Tsarsita needed to bide time until the Traveler's arrival. And in case they never did, it would also serve still as a back up plan. The true and only reason The Tsarista wants all of the gnoses is for the seal and to trick Gold to make Ronova lose her authority, but she was able to do that with 6 out of 7.

The real Project Mistiltein is now almost complete. The traveler has the weapon, and Ronova has already "been made" to apply the "mistletoe" or poison. All that is left is for the Traveler to finish enhancing the sword, which will (in my speculation) be completed by it taking the Etir laced in the celestial nails in battle against whatever abyss junk comes from the portals/gates that have been placed in the skies. Meanwhile, the technology of the Fatui, including that of Mitya's project and Peirro's ultimate delusion creation, will just be valuable bonus assets in destroying the celestial nails for good in order to save everyone from this whole, uh, side effect of The Tsarista's master plan here.

Then she will want to find the pyro gnosis in the leylines somehow, and open that seal her husband left behind, where she must be hoping for an answer in how to get the traveler to Phanes so we can kill them in their sleep. Or maybe by then they will be waking up. For extra pressure I imagine it would be a race of time to get there before they fully awake. But, as the prepared woman I think she is, she will have all the gnoses as an extra bargaining chip in case they do wake up and we must face them head on.

So the ultimate lie in these recent patches I think has been that The Tsarsita aims to be the one to end Phanes, all to ensure The Traveler is manipulated to do it in her stead because she knows how hard it would be for her to compete with Phanes herself despite how much it seems she is trying to become more powerful for that purpose. And everything is going according to her plans so far. It's possible she even knew Paimon would be targeted by Ronova because Peirro told her about her, and so she used that to make sure The Traveler would want to also defeat Ronova with them.

All just theoretical. I'm done now I think. Feel free to voice your own thoughts.

Reminder: Just a theory so be nice please!

Brief explanation: I always thought the 'Gateway to Celestia' theory was too simple to be true, especially for something that was released towards the start of the game. I also am not massively keen on Teyvat Script, but i'm not here to debate that so lets save that point for another time.

So I got digging, and (to skip a long winded explanation), I found a striking resemblance to the Enochian Alphabet.

I spent hours matching these symbols to those on Venti's statue.

After this, I then used a Latin based translation to start forming English words and sentences.

Admittedly, I had to use inferences and slightly alter meanings for certain words in the context of the rest of the sentence, but here are my findings.

It felt fairly logical the entire time I was deciphering, so i'm hopefully.

Just to add one thing: I wasn't sure if 'ATR' was its translation meaning dark or darkness, or a phonetic spelling of EITR, so I have included both.

Not sure what this means yet but thought I would take to the internet for any constructive views and opinions!

https://preview.redd.it/tfpo21xuknth1.png?width=1836&format=png&auto=webp&s=08b4bdfc8975821bb2e63620ee643c1552509c36

I am part way through putting a whole theory together but if anyone is interested, I can attach images of my pairings of Enochian letters to the in game ones.

(As a little footnote, I was told by someone yesterday that the name of the font people thought Teyvat Script was written in was called Enochian)

Thank you for taking the time to read :)

I believe Anastasya is more directly related to the Cryo Sovereign than she is an Archangel. The key phrase was the 'spirit of frost' in the Wings of Silent Moon; depending on what that means for her origins, she cannot be a fae either. I am not entirely sure why she is considered or theorized to be Koitar, given her contradictory design and narrative events. I also think she is somewhat related to Noy, but we will have to wait and see

I get that Rhinedottir ate Naberius' heart and gained the powers of the Ruler of Life. However, how did Naberius even turn into a heart in the first place?

Also, is Rhinedottir supposed to a shade or not? Rhinedottir was a witch so why is she obligated to work for the HP after absorbing Naberius? From my understanding, Naberius has no agency over what Rhinedottir does. Why even agree to work with Ronova in the first place if she isn't obligated to? It's not like the HP demanded her to help Ronova as Ronova herself was working behind the HP's back.

I'm also not sure how the HP would allow Rhinedottir to exist with the powers of the Ruler of Life either. From my understanding, the HP does not approve of the Sinners, but then they are letting a Sinner work for them as the Ruler of Life?

(Okay, so this is an update on an older post since i found a few more stuff about it)

Okay, so, this is something i thought to myself after i came across the Theory of The concept that the Ideals that the Archons rule over are fundamental laws inherent to the elements themselves—and not artificial rules cooked up by Celestia. And perhaps Celestia only simply mapped out human translations for the strict, eternal laws that have existed in the Light Realm since the dawn of the planet. And it made a lot of sense to me. So, i thought to maybe Look at the Sovereigns we had mentions of to see how they behaved and if it had to do anything with the Ideal of the Element.

Hydro:

•The Hydro Sovereign's job in the Past was to act as the 'Original God of Life' for Teyvat and Manage the Primordial Sea. How does this mean 'Justice'?

•In nature, water always seeks a perfect equilibrium. If you pour water into a warped, uneven container, it doesn't matter how jagged the bottom is; the surface of the water will settle into a flat horizontal plane. To the planet, Justice is just the law of equilibrium.

•Water naturally balances things out. If one side is too high, it flows to the low side until both sides are perfectly even. To the Hydro element, "Justice" isn't a moral opinion; it is the natural physical compulsion of water to flatten out distortions and restore balance to a system.

•Because the Hydro element commands the Primordial Sea (the literal sea of life where every native soul comes from).

•Every piece of life that dissolves back into the water carries its experiences, sins, and suffering with it. In a purely physical sense, the Hydro Sovereign can't help but "judge," because as the Governor of the Primordial Sea, the element naturally filters out impurities to keep the water pure. If the water gets corrupted, life dies. Therefore, Justice is the defense mechanism of Life. The element enforces justice to keep the womb of creation clean.

So, i said 'Okay, Hydro checks out, what about the Rest?'

\\Geo\\:

•The Geo Sovereign, assuming it's Azhdaha as it's theorized, We can guess what Azhdaha’s original connection to the world was through the dialogue in Zhongli’s Second Story Quest. The game frames Azhdaha's ancient "job" as The Master of the Ley Lines and the Living Memory of the Earth.

•Unlike Neuvillette or Apep, whose Sovereign titles were juat dropped bluntly, Azhdaha’s planetary role was mapped out through the literal mechanics of him going mad.

•During the climax of his story quest, the game explains why Azhdaha suddenly went insane and attacked humanity. He wasn't just a monster throwing a tantrum; he was experiencing immense pain:

•Overexploitation and aggressive mining by the people of Liyue at the Chasm for example, caused the underground Ley Lines to fracture and quake. Because Azhdaha is the living embodiment of the Geo element, his consciousness is directly plugged into Teyvat's global Ley Line matrix. When humans damaged the veins of the earth, they were quite literally tearing apart his brain and life support system.

•In the quest, Azhdaha's good counterpart (Kun Jun) explicitly calls him "The Memory of the Earth". In Teyvat's laws, the Ley Lines are responsible for recording every single piece of history, every death, and every emotion that has ever occurred on the planet. Azhdaha's unique, raw Sovereign power is Stone Scrying. He doesn't just look at rocks; he reads the memories stored inside the stone. He can touch the ground and automatically witness historical events that happened thousands of years ago because his element is the planet's physical storage unit.

How does all this lead to 'Contracts'? A contract is a permanent, immutable record that cannot be rewritten or forgotten. Because the Geo element is physically incapable of forgetting data, its raw planetary rule is Permanence. Celestia merely took this law of data retention and translated it for humans into the concept of legal contracts.

Dendro:

•Now, we Get to Apep. Now, we learn that Apep's original Function was basically to be a Giant green ecosystem of adaptive flora and elemental lifeforms. Her job was to force the biological world to continuously grow, process environmental shifts and was basically a Living World on her body with endless plant life coming out her. As we see her Being able to Adapt.

How does this Lead to "Wisdom"? "Wisdom" in the current era is managed by the Irminsul Tree, which is basically just processing and storing the world's knowledge and memories. Dendro's raw law is endless growth, so, celestia turned it into Intellectual Growth instead.

Pyro:

•We learn in Natlan, that Xiuhcoat managed Phlogiston, which Natlan lore defines as the fundamental unit of information in the world. His job was to provide the vital force required to spark consciousness and sapience in living things. As we see with the 13 Sovereigns he made. He didn't just burn stuff. But, i'm guessing Pyro and War are pretty self explanatory already. Celestia basically took this law of friction and struggle and distilled it into the human ideal of competitive conflict and War.

So, yes, we know by now Celestia Loves to mess with dragon stuff and make them safer.

So now with four out of seven matching when seeing it through that lens, i'll get to my point:

We Got Info on Almost every sovereign(Even Dvalin being hinted as one), except the Electro Sovereign. It made me think, What if you try to connect the Ideal theory to Electro?

What is Electro's true Ideal? 'Transience.' A Flash of Lightning only lasts for a Few moments, it's never Permanent. Which made me think, "If every Sovereign had a Job that aligned with their Element and its law, what would the Sovereign of Electro be doing?" And i thought, They ensured that Nothing Lasts Forever. Like some kind of Wipe out or termination when something got stagnant.

Transience is defined as the quality of being fleeting, impermanent, and temporary.

For something to be transient, it must have an end point. If a cycle never ends, it is no longer transient—it becomes eternal.

So, the Electro Sovereign might have been the one that enforces Transience. You cannot have an element whose core, inherent law is "impermanence" without a functional system designed to terminate cycles. So, I believe The Electro Sovereign was responsible for making sure there was An end to stuff in the Old Teyvat. Now, you might say "Makoto's View of Transcience was that it was 'Eternity through Transience'.

She looked at human dreams, desires, and fleeting moments. She argued that even though an individual person, a flower, or a moment flash like lightning and disappear (Transience), the human instinct to keep dreaming, growing, and moving forward is eternal.

Her view was a gentle, protective philosophy meant to nurture human civilization. She wanted humanity to keep progressing, trusting that the continuous cycle of fleeting moments would smoothly weave an eternal future.

The Electro Sovereign wouldn't care about human dreams, political progress, or nurturing a civilization. They are a dragon—their view of Transience is pure impermanence.

The Mechanical View: To the dragon, a system that stays in place too long becomes corrupt, sluggish, and stagnant. If a civilization keeps growing forever, it becomes an evolutionary cancer that chokes the rest of the planets.

How i thought of this is because i noticed what the Sacred Sakura does. It purges Filth and Corruption. Sound familiar? Celestia Loves To take dragon stuff and Make them manageable, so, they took the Sovereign's Job and made it into a micro tree to cleanse corruption in Inazuma instead of a Big ass Dragon.

Now, we turn to the Elephant in the Room- Ei, and Her awful lot connections to Death. She's constantly portrayed with the Shadow Wings of Ronova(The shade of Death), has a Giant Statue of Her outside Tenshukaku and her whole story deals with Death, though Most people just assume She only has a connection to Ronova, i thought maybe it meant something for the Sovereign we get no mention of at all. In fact, a few of her Voicelines imply The exact opposite of Her Supposed Eternity during Her Weekly Boss Fight:

"Ruin, follows my blade!"

"Witness... the final calamity!"

Now, why would a Puppet Programmed with Eternity say about 'Final' and 'Calamity'? Even if it is just to kill the enemies to protect Eternity.

Heck, another thing i noticed. Why does a Thunder god have so many Space and Time manipulation abilities? If you wanna give it to her connection to Istaroth, go ahead! But that only answers for the help Makoto Got! But why can an Electro god just make A Timeless Dimension, Slice Open Space-Time and Open portals with her sword? That does not have to do anything with Lightning At all. ....Or does it? Because if what we said about The Electro Sovereign is true, then Obviously, a Being associated with Bringing Endings would Have Time and Space abilities! It's Erasure! Then, she's just using the Authority of that Dragon!

Plus, In recent Story, we got Info that The Iridescent Moon(Crimson Moon) was the One with Most Authority over Death. Wanna tell me what you see in the Background when you get into the Plane Of Euthymiya? A Crimson Moon!! While this might just enforce the Connections to Ronova, i don't see why it can't connect to the Sovereign's Authority. Another thing? Why did Pierro Use an ELECTRO delusion to fight and damage Ronova? What if it's because you're using death to fight death??

If the Hydro Dragon could be referred to as the 'Original God of Life ', i don't see why there couldn't be a dragon who was the 'Original God of Death ',

Heck, i found out in the Wiki that:

"However, the Heavenly Principles also created a secret rule of "cyclical eternity" which meant all human civilizations would undergo a period of flourishing before being eventually destroyed and remade anew. This knowledge was deliberately kept hidden from humanity, and humans who inquired about these matters from the Angels received only silence in return."

Cyclical Eternity?

Eternity? Like- Electro-Eternity? Huh, that sounds Familiar, like 'Only through Eternity are you the closest to the Heavenly Principles'? As if maybe they're using a Piece of the Sovereign's Termination Authority to literally be able to hit Delete on Civilizations!?

And, if The Theory about Sovereigns and the Ideals is true, Maybe the Electro Sovereign didn't even Fight. Maybe they just gave up and dipped, why? Because maybe they realized, as the Embodiment of Impermanence that even the Age of Dragons had to end, so, they just gave up their Authority and left, which is why we got no mentions of them anywhere in Inazuma, they might've not even fought to begin with! Which is why the rest of the dragons got whooped so badly!

But, yeah, this is basically it, sorry if it turned out long, i just had a lot to say, if you came this far, thank you very much that you stayed 'till the end. Please, tell me your thoughts! I'm open to suggestions!

This is a repost cus the last time I posted it wasn’t on a Wednesday oops. It’s the same but with some Vera’s Melacholy, Arcana, Finality and answers to some comments left on the last time I posted it. Also some cool tidbits from a Kurzgesagt video that’s kinda apropos to this theory. Additions are in italics.

Two summaries (one in the middle) cus it’s a ginormous chunk of text. Feel free to correct me on any mistakes.

Hundreds of Billions of years, a magnitude rarely used in Hoyoverse games between events. More typically used to describe the very age of the Imaginary Tree. Yet in this instance used to describe the time recorded before Teyvat in the hundreds. One hundred and seven to be precise. (see Wheel of Fortune Lunar Arcana)

In this age, a civilisation controls “time and space”, “leptons and baryonic matter”. Essentially manipulating the smallest forms of matter similar to the dragon’s computronium. Their equations and constants reached their oblivion, no miracle to be found. As even dwarf stars reached their end. Possibly hinting the timeline to be in the trillions unless expedited by the unnatural calamity. (see Celestial Gift)

So this civilisations as old as the tree itself, using science instead of the paths, imaginary, willpower or some random magical trick. Besides the Abyss of course. Based on how Surtalogi just waltzes around star systems, said star systems don’t seem to be seperated by any imaginary barrier. Furthermore, among them exist the empire of Andromeda and Orion Arm, a real world galaxy and cosmic location. (see Vera’s Melancholy) and a recollection of many lost Earth cultures being replicated here in Teyvat. Including actual Greek. Vera’s Melacholy doesn’t even care, it just states this “Though the explanation is delayed, you should know that Delphi is the center of Greek mythology.” And as we all know, Delphi is the name of the serpent’s heart and Dephi Pytho is the unified civilisation of Enkanomiya. As in they were taught this language by the angels who come from Phanes. Both Phanes and the author of Vera’s Melancholy come from the sea of stars. Meaning Phanes learnt everything from a place with Greece as a legitimate place. Who are we kidding that’s just undeniably Earth.

After all Surtalogi said this: “Even if only one or two survivors escape a doomed world, their will alone can become strong enough to reforge the very world they lost." (see Skirk Story 5) Earth in Hi3 has released projects into space before so it’s very plausible in this original universe it has too. But why can’t it be the Earth of Hi3 and their ARK thing? Simply because they are nowhere close to conquering leptons matter. “This Is What a Godlike Civilization Would Look Like” by Kurzgesagt basically tells you what “conquering leptons” means scientifically. One lake could power the earth for millions of years. But going even smaller could potentially recreate the Big Bang. More on this later.

Ask this ties into the AI theory where the twins genetic vault were opened and unnatural navigation lead them to find Inteyvat flowers. Said navigator was the AI with terraforming abilities, likely to be HP. (See Traveler Outfit) Which emphasises that Teyvat truly is a last resort to recreate Earth in the dying universe.

Before I go into the conclusion, reminder that the imaginary tree exists with leaves that contain worlds, each twig is a world line and each leaf is a bubble universe. Quote from the Data Bank, “Nurtured by time for billions of years, it grew into a huge, unrivaled tree.” Same units as Genshin’s universe.

Bearing that in mind, all branches start from the trunk. Growing rings from age and expanding. Creating Giant Voids like mentioned in Celestial Gift. In conjunction with the AI theory, I would think of Teyvat less like an egg and more like a seed. The “shell” is nothing more than a seed coat in which everything inside is dormant until the right external conditions present themselves.

Key Half Summary for Reference In Latter Half: The billions of years it took for the imaginary tree to grow was a billion years without the paths or the imaginary barriers. It culminated in the creation of a seed. Preserving Earth’s cultures and beholding a starry sky reminiscent of before the cosmic doom. Waiting in the hopes of reforging and recreation.

The witch in The Little Witch and the Undying Fire states that an “undying fire” is impossible. Quote “If such a thing even existed, we'd have perpetual motion machines by now, don't you think!?”. However, ruin machines powered by Khaenrian inscriptions and Azosite actually managed to gain “will”and created a perpetual mechanical array. Rene de Petrichor however, states that being so purely elemental, what Azosite lacks is “will”itself. And so the ruin machines mimicking the hypostasis is similar to the narwhals mimicking Surtalogi. A “will”to become stronger.

The abyss however, is started to directly supersede Azosite as it literally has a will of its own. To replace perpetual motion, it must be able to introduce new energy from nothingness. Which it does, evidenced by how it can create life, mimic death and defeat those who have already transcend time and space. It is literally Dainslief’s power from beyond this world that can be used to humanity’s advantage just like Imaginary Internal Energy in the Hoyoverse. The abyss is also said by Barbeloth to be “the hatred carried by all the alternate possibilities of fate that never came to pass” (see Varka SQ). So to speak, if at the end of Genshin the abyss is indeed used to “defy this world”, it will invoke upon the possibilities lost to time.

Ultimately causing what I think might be The Big Bang. So circling back to Azosite, it is merely elemental energy. Data from the Ley Lines without a “will”. Even one human’s memories is enough to recreate Khaenriah. (see Natlan Dainslief Quest) So use the “will” and data of the full Abyss and it will most definitely have the capacity to recreate billions of possibilities. Reforging the universe just like what Surtalogi suggests can happen.

From there, aspects like memory preserving frost (see Sanctifying Elixir and its CN Name), the entropy of nihility (the dark void Neuvi mentioned, “漆黑的虚无”, has the last two characters exactly that as Nihility in Star Rail. Skirk in beta had All Flows Into Nihility as a skill name), immortal reincarnating dragons and fire that can erase the past explode into the universe. Becoming present on many leaves on the tree. The cultures and similar faces are also caused by the Big Bang. Taking a copy of AI copied Earth and printing it billions of times.

Finally there’s the Lunar Arcana, The World.

"Memory" is "design,"
The scales are a symbol of reason.
The golden twins join hands,
And the silver tree sprouts buds.

You follow each tiny piece of your memory,
The "universe" stands firm.
You say:
"My work is complete."

Ik people say “but the Img Tree is gold and Irminsul is silver” like big deal. When Traveler uses his golden powers their suit turns silver, some iterations of the Img Tree is white some are also gold lol. Also the fact they explicitly state “universe” should be enough to tell you scale.

Briefly About Larger Cosmology (New):

From a logical perspective, no one in Hi3 can confidently know what came before the Imaginary Tree. From what I gathered, the Imaginary Tree is legitimate de facto time for all those that is in the Honkaiverse. As such there is no verifiable source that can possibly say “I know what happened before the Tree, ie nothing”. It’s like guessing what came before the Big Bang. At most a shot in the dark guess.

As for Dvalin Rosemary video, it’s either an Easter egg or retconned. Hi3verse def has not mastered the smallest forms of matter as a civilisation, emphasis on the latter half of the sentence. HSRverse is not facing the Abyss as a threat because everything they face is Imaginary. Both of those civilisations are just disqualified for simply being too young and facing completely different threats. Also in SR of Hi3 an Andromeda Empire doesn’t exist either.

Now about Finality. Brief recap on entropy states in regards to Finality. It can be used to recover entropy (Firefly’s syndrome), it can use negentropy to predict the future (colour of Elio’s eyes in the trailer before Irontomb) and negentropy/entropy are measures of order and randomness in a system (Youyun’s Classroom). Life feeds on negentropy to produce an unpredictability that even Finality cannot decipher down to a singular outcome (Fables About The Stars).

So my closing for explaining the larger cosmology is this. What is Hoyo’s entropy without life? What is life without a will? The fate of Entropy is unknown even to Finality yet creates the possibilities that become the Abyss. What that civilisation among the sea of stars sought to do by going deeper into the smallest particles is to seek that natural quantum randomness rather than using the entropic human will known as the imaginary. Why? Well to do what is scientifically theorised to be possible in the real world Quantum Vacuums, aka The Whole Big Bang, in the Genshinverse by recreating spaces with memories. (Traveler infinite possibility absorbtion to New Khaenriah the universe, like in the Arcana. Fully Imaginary.)

Conclusion

Think about the journey from Inazuma to Fontaine. Visions control wills, the samsara of cycles farm “Jnana Energy” from wills, a collective will to judge becomes a weapon to destroy a known boundary of the world. Then think about this simply on the scale of Teyvat itself. Teyvat farms entropy to permeate the predictable fall to the Abyss and write the new Big Bang with the Abyss’ data.

The will of life is chaotic entropy titled Imaginary in Hoyoverse. Mastery over the smallest units in the Quantum vacuum realistically can allow one to manipulate entropy. Likely what the ancient civilisation sought to do. So both in this setting can create the new Big Bang. In Genshin, memories can recreate the world, the data of the Abyss is all the possibilities that will not come to pass, using the data of all possibilities, a silver gold tree is born with myriad worlds. A “universe”as Arcana foretold. The culture of the twins is verifiably transported to Teyvat and now once more spliced into a new universe. Of hundreds of billions, potentially trillions of years, the tree itself grows. No one has the data to know what came before without evidencing it as the unit itself is impossibly colossal. Nihility and Remembrance, dragons and angels, concepts reintroduced. With the human will as all the entropy the universe will ever need.

Theory / Speculation

I've been thinking about Paimon's identity, the Primordial One, the Four Shades, Logos, memory, and divine authority. After the recent Snezhnaya lore, I actually think we can narrow the possibilities down quite a bit.

I'm not arguing that Paimon is simply "the Primordial One" or that she's secretly a fifth Shade.

My theory is more specific: Paimon may be a separated personal/experiencing aspect of the original Celestial order, while the actual authority remained elsewhere.

And I think the distinction between identity, memory, power, and authority is the key to understanding it.

1. The Five Artifact Types

One of the things that has always interested me is the five artifact slots: Flower of Life, Plume of Death, Sands of Eon, Goblet of Eonothem, Circlet of Logos.

The first four have an incredibly strong apparent correspondence with the known Celestial domains: Life → Naberius / Shade of Life, Death → Ronova, Time → Istaroth, Space → Asmoday.

And then we have the fifth: Logos.

The artifact lore itself has long invited this interpretation, with the five artifact types being associated with the Four Shades and the Heavenly Principles, while "Logos" carries the meaning of logic/reason.

But I don't think the answer is necessarily: "The Primordial One is the fifth Shade."

And I definitely don't think: "Paimon = Logos."

Instead, I think we're potentially looking at something more fundamental.

2. The Primordial One May Be the Whole

My interpretation is that the Primordial One shouldn't be reduced to any single artifact aspect.

Instead: Life + Death + Time + Space + Logos = the complete system.

The Four Shades represent specialized domains within that system.

Logos is different.

Life, Death, Time, and Space describe aspects of reality. Logos could describe the ability to perceive and understand that reality.

That means Logos doesn't necessarily need to be another form of destructive or governing power.

It could represent: Reason, Observation, Consciousness, Interpretation, Understanding, and eventually Wisdom.

3. Logos Doesn't Have to Mean Authority

This is where I think a lot of Paimon theories may be mixing two different concepts.

Power and authority aren't necessarily the same thing as consciousness or identity.

A being can possess authority without being the person who experiences that authority.

Focalors gives us an excellent example. She separated her divinity from her body and spirit, creating the human Furina while retaining her divine self and authority elsewhere. Furina then maintained the role of Hydro Archon for 500 years. Eventually, Focalors surrendered the Hydro Archon's remaining Authority to Neuvillette.

So Genshin has already established that divinity, authority, body, identity, and lived experience can be separated.

That is extremely important for Paimon.

4. Now We Have Something New About Paimon

The recent Snezhnaya story gives us an important piece of information.

Ronova describes Paimon as a creation of Celestia, but explicitly says that Paimon possesses none of Celestia's power or authority. Pierro later confirms that she descended from Celestia and that her reaction to anti-Celestia energy is because she is one of Celestia's creations.

This is fascinating.

Because if Paimon really is connected to the highest level of Celestial creation, why does she possess none of its authority?

Maybe that's not a contradiction.

Maybe authority was never what Paimon was supposed to carry.

5. What If Paimon Is the "Self"?

This is the core of my theory.

I'm not saying Paimon = Primordial One.

And I'm not saying Paimon = Fifth Shade.

Instead: What if the Primordial One separated a personal/experiencing aspect of itself, while retaining the actual cosmic authority?

In other words, the original entity kept the power, while the separated self gained individuality.

And that separated self may be Paimon.

This would explain why Paimon could be connected to Celestia while simultaneously possessing none of Celestia's authority.

She doesn't have to be the authority.

She could be the person behind the authority.

6. And This Makes Logos Much More Interesting

If Logos represents reason, consciousness, observation, and understanding, then perhaps its importance isn't about controlling reality.

It's about understanding reality.

Imagine an omnipotent creator. It knows what hunger is. It knows what fear is. It knows what sadness is. It knows what love is.

But knowing something isn't necessarily the same thing as experiencing it.

A god can understand humanity intellectually without ever knowing what it actually feels like to be human.

So what if Logos requires something more than knowledge?

Experience.

That gives us: Knowledge → Experience → Understanding → Wisdom.

And suddenly Paimon's behavior becomes much more interesting.

7. Paimon Is Constantly Experiencing Humanity

Paimon gets hungry, gets tired, becomes excited, gets scared, becomes attached, gets annoyed, laughs, cries, develops preferences, forms friendships, experiences loss, and learns. And she experiences all of this alongside the Traveler.

Maybe those aren't merely character quirks.

Maybe that's the point of her existence.

The original divine consciousness could observe humanity from above.

Paimon can experience humanity from within.

8. Memory May Be the Missing Piece

This is where Genshin's treatment of memory becomes extremely interesting.

The Aranara explicitly describe memories and dreams as their source of power. Their memories can be used as fuel for Ararakalari, and using those powers can consume memories.

We also have Marchosius. He sacrificed his divine power to sustain Liyue, and as a result his physical size and mental faculties were drastically reduced. Eventually, he became the small being we know as Guoba and had lost most of his memories and ability to speak.

So Genshin clearly has precedent for connections between Power, Memory, Mental faculties, and Physical form.

That doesn't mean this is a universal law applying to every god.

But it gives us an interesting possibility for Paimon.

9. What If Paimon's Small Form Is Related to What She Lost?

What if Paimon wasn't always exactly as she is now?

What if something happened that reduced her power, memories, knowledge, and possibly even her original form?

Maybe she wasn't simply "created small."

Maybe her current form represents a diminished state.

We don't have enough evidence to say that this is true.

But Marchosius proves that a divine being losing enormous amounts of power can result in both physical and mental reduction. And the Aranara prove that memories themselves can function as power.

So Paimon's memory loss may eventually turn out to be much more important than a simple amnesia plot.

10. Maybe Paimon Was Meant to Forget

This is where Focalors and Furina become relevant again.

Furina spent 500 years maintaining a role because Focalors' plan depended on her doing so.

That establishes a precedent for a divine plan where one version of a being lives through a false identity for an enormous period of time.

So what if Paimon's ignorance is also part of a plan?

Maybe she was not supposed to remember. Maybe her memories were sealed. Maybe they were deliberately removed. Or maybe she genuinely lost them because of whatever happened when she became separated.

And there's an even more interesting possibility: Maybe forgetting herself was necessary for her to genuinely experience humanity.

If Paimon remembered from the beginning that she was a Celestial creation connected to something far greater, then every human experience would be filtered through that knowledge.

But if she genuinely didn't know, then her emotions could be authentic. Her friendships could be authentic. Her fear could be authentic. Her attachment to the Traveler could be authentic.

She wouldn't be pretending to be human.

She would actually be living.

11. This May Explain Why the Traveler Matters

The Traveler is an outsider to Teyvat. A Descender. Someone who doesn't naturally belong to the world's established system.

And yet Paimon spends her entire journey alongside this outsider.

There's an interesting parallel here: The Traveler is searching for their sibling. Paimon may be searching for herself.

The Traveler wants to understand Teyvat. Paimon may unknowingly be helping the Traveler understand Teyvat while simultaneously learning what Teyvat means to her.

And there is already a recent narrative emphasis on Paimon being the one who helps the Traveler become emotionally attached to Teyvat and its people. That makes her role as an "experiencing" companion particularly interesting.

Maybe the Traveler isn't just Paimon's companion.

Maybe the Traveler is the external variable that allows Paimon to experience the world in a way she couldn't have done alone.

12. What Happens If Paimon Remembers?

This is where I think the distinction between memory, power, and authority becomes crucial.

If Paimon remembers who she is, there are at least three possibilities.

Possibility 1 — She remembers but remains powerless: She discovers her true identity but doesn't recover any divine authority. This would mean: Memory restored ≠ Authority restored. She simply remembers who she was.

Possibility 2 — Her memories restore some of her power: If her current state is partly caused by lost memories or diminished power, recovering those memories could potentially restore some capabilities. This would have precedent in Genshin's broader treatment of memory and divine beings, but it would still be speculation.

Possibility 3 — She remembers what she was, but the authority was never hers: This is actually the possibility I find most interesting.

What if Paimon remembers being part of the original divine structure, but discovers that the authority was deliberately left behind?

Then her revelation wouldn't be: "I am the ruler of the world."

It would be: "I remember why I was separated from the ruler of the world."

That would fit perfectly with Ronova's statement that Paimon possesses none of Celestia's power or authority.

13. What If the Creator Wanted to Experience Creation?

This is the most speculative part of the theory.

What if the Primordial One didn't merely create humanity to govern it?

What if the Creator actually wanted to understand its creation?

The Creator could know humanity.

But could it know what humanity feels like?

It could know what hunger is. But could it experience hunger?

It could understand grief. But could it experience losing someone?

It could understand friendship. But could it experience attachment?

Perhaps that was the purpose of separation.

Not to create another weapon.

Not to create another ruler.

But to create an experiencing self.

14. And Maybe That's What Logos Actually Means

This is why I don't think Logos necessarily has to be a fifth authority equivalent to Life, Death, Time, and Space.

Maybe the first four describe what exists.

And Logos describes the capacity to understand what exists.

Life.

Death.

Time.

Space.

And then:

Logos — the mind that observes them.

If so, Paimon could potentially be connected to Logos without being its "authority."

She could represent the experiencing consciousness associated with it.

The authority remains elsewhere.

The experience belongs to Paimon.

15. The Primordial One May Be the Whole, Not Paimon

This is an important distinction.

I'm not arguing: Paimon is the Primordial One.

I'm arguing: The Primordial One may be the complete whole, while Paimon may be something that was separated from that whole.

The whole could encompass: Life, Death, Time, Space, Logos.

The Four Shades govern the first four domains.

Logos may represent the consciousness/understanding aspect.

And Paimon could potentially be the separated self associated with that aspect.

That would explain why she can be connected to Celestia without possessing Celestia's authority.

16. And This Makes Her Relationship With the Traveler More Important

The Traveler doesn't just travel through Teyvat.

The Traveler changes Teyvat.

They are an external variable.

And Paimon experiences those changes alongside them.

Every nation gives her another experience: Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma, Sumeru, Fontaine, Natlan, Snezhnaya.

Every friendship.

Every loss.

Every meal.

Every argument.

Every joke.

Every moment of fear.

Every moment where she chooses to stay beside the Traveler.

If Paimon really is some kind of separated experiencing self, then the entire journey could be functioning as one enormous experiment:

What does it mean to live?

17. And Maybe the Final Revelation Isn't About Power

This is the part I think would make the theory most satisfying.

Imagine Paimon eventually remembers everything.

The Traveler expects her to become some enormous divine being.

But she doesn't.

She remains Paimon.

Because perhaps she wasn't separated to regain the throne.

She wasn't separated to become another ruler.

She was separated to experience something the Creator couldn't experience from above.

And when she finally remembers, she understands why.

Maybe she says: "Paimon remembers now."

And then she realizes that all of the experiences she thought were meaningless were actually the purpose of her existence.

The hunger.

The tiredness.

The happiness.

The sadness.

The friendships.

The journey.

The Traveler.

Everything.

18. The Biggest Question

There is one thing I still don't think we can answer.

Why did Paimon descend from Celestia in the first place?

The recent story tells us that Pierro's technology pulled something from Celestia, and what descended was Paimon. She was already present in Khaenri'ah around the Cataclysm, meaning her history clearly predates the Traveler's journey by centuries.

But why was she there?

Was she sent?

Was she separated?

Was she abandoned?

Was she already diminished?

Was she supposed to become something?

Or was she deliberately placed in the human world?

We still don't know.

And that's exactly why I think the memory question is so important.

Because if Paimon ever remembers her existence before Khaenri'ah, we may finally learn why she was separated in the first place.

#EDIT — Why Did Paimon Appear So Late?

After reading some of the comments, I realized there is one part of the theory that I didn't explain clearly enough in the original post: why would Paimon only appear much later if her purpose was to experience humanity?

I don't think Paimon necessarily needed to be present from the beginning of creation. If the Creator was still present and directly involved with the world, then there would be no reason for its separated Self to immediately enter humanity. The more important event may have been the Creator beginning to fade.

The Traveler's story contains the line: "The keeper is fading away; the creator has not yet come."

If we connect that with the possibility that Paimon is a separated Self of the Creator, then perhaps her appearance was triggered by the Creator's decline.

In other words, Paimon's purpose and Paimon's deployment don't necessarily have to happen at the same time.

The Creator could have created and protected humanity first. Then, when the Creator began to fade or could no longer directly experience the world, Paimon could have been sent into the world as part of whatever Celestia needed to accomplish next — while also allowing that separated Self to finally experience the humanity the Creator had once protected.

This would also explain why I don't think Paimon was simply "created to be human." Her purpose could have existed long before her current journey.

It may have been the Creator's changing circumstances that caused her to finally enter the world.

And this makes the Logos idea even more interesting to me.

If Logos represents understanding rather than simply authority, then perhaps Paimon's journey is about experiencing what the Creator could previously only know.

The Creator knew humanity.

Paimon experiences humanity.

The Creator knew the world.

Paimon lives in it.

So the question may not be: "Why wasn't Paimon there from the beginning?"

It may instead be: "What happened to the Creator that finally made Paimon's journey necessary?"

That's the part of the theory I think we still don't have the full answer to.

#EDIT — About the Repetition Criticism

I also noticed some comments saying that I'm repeating or convoluting the same point throughout the post.

Honestly, yes, I was repeating it intentionally. 😂 The reason is that the entire theory depends on separating concepts that are usually treated as the same thing: Identity ≠ Memory ≠ Power ≠ Authority ≠ Experience.

When I say that Paimon may be a separated "Self," I'm not simply saying "Paimon is another piece of the Primordial One."

The distinction I'm trying to establish is that the Primordial One may represent the complete whole, authority can remain with the original divine structure, power can be lost or diminished, memory can be sealed or forgotten, and the Self / consciousness / experience can potentially exist separately from all of those.

That's why I kept returning to the same idea through Focalors, Logos, memory, Paimon's behavior, and her lack of Celestial authority.

They're not meant to be completely separate arguments saying the exact same thing. They're different examples supporting the same distinction.

So if the post feels repetitive, that's fair criticism of the presentation. 😂 But the repetition itself was intentional because I wanted to establish the distinction from multiple angles rather than simply saying: "Paimon is Phanes' emotional half."

That's actually a much simpler way of describing the theory, but it misses the part I'm most interested in:

What if Paimon wasn't separated because the Creator needed another source of power — but because the Creator needed a Self capable of experiencing its own creation?

#EDIT — About "Finding" What Comes Next

Another point I want to clarify from the comments is the idea that Paimon may have been sent for a purpose beyond simply experiencing humanity.

I'm not saying we currently have confirmation that Paimon was specifically sent to "find a successor" or locate a replacement for the Heavenly Principles. That's still speculation.

What I mean is that the timing of Paimon's appearance may be connected to a change in the Celestial order itself.

If the Creator was fading, then whatever Celestia needed to accomplish afterward could have required Paimon to enter the world.

That could potentially explain why her arrival happened centuries after the original creation of humanity rather than at the beginning.

So I don't necessarily see Paimon's late appearance as a contradiction to the theory.

It may actually be another clue.

The Creator creates.

The Creator protects.

The Creator eventually begins to fade.

And then the separated Self enters the world.

At the same time, that Self begins experiencing the very humanity that the Creator had previously only observed from above.

That would make Paimon's journey both a mission and an experience.

And if her memories were deliberately suppressed, then perhaps she wasn't supposed to understand that purpose until she had actually lived through it.

Final Theory

So my theory is not simply: "Paimon is the Primordial One."

I think that's too simplistic.

My theory is: Paimon may be a separated personal/experiencing aspect of the original Celestial order, potentially connected to Logos, while the actual cosmic authority remained elsewhere.

The Primordial One may represent the complete whole: Life + Death + Time + Space + Logos.

The Four Shades administer four fundamental domains.

Logos may represent reason, observation, consciousness, and understanding rather than raw authority.

Paimon may be connected to that fifth aspect — not as its ruler, but as its experiencing self.

Her lack of Celestial authority would then not be a contradiction.

It could be the entire point.

And her lost memories may not simply be a missing piece of her backstory.

They may be the missing piece of her purpose.

Perhaps she was separated from the Creator's authority so that she could experience creation.

Perhaps she became small because she lost power and memories.

Perhaps she was deliberately made ignorant.

Perhaps the Traveler is the person who allows her to experience the world.

And perhaps, when she finally remembers, she won't become a god.

She'll simply understand why she was made to live as Paimon.

Because maybe the Creator already knew how to create the world.

Maybe the Creator already knew how to rule it.

Maybe the Creator already understood Life, Death, Time, and Space.

But there was one thing the Creator could never truly know from above:

what it was like to live inside the world it created.

So perhaps Paimon was separated to find out.

And maybe that's what Logos ultimately represents:

not power, not authority, but the journey from knowledge... to experience... to understanding... and finally, to wisdom.

• A Paimon Theory

​

Am I the only one who feels like the story of Genshin, particularly that of the 5 sinners is basically a Xianxia story?

A race of people carrying the bloodline of a descender (venerable senior from an upper realm) And 5 people carrying that bloodline, through devilish means, manage to ascend to the peak of cultivation for this lower realm. Seeing nothing in this world can facilitate further cultivation and that this realm,'s sovereign will probably be hostile, they all peace out to other realms.

Of course this was only done by the 5 sinners because they probably realized that the sovereign of this world has probably hardlocked all cultivation in this realm, allowing no one to ascend to greater power? So they had to resort to unorthodox means?

Instead of qi refining, qi building and core formation through basic cultivation , the enlightenment of their dao is fully facilitated by an external dharma treasure ( a vision), which is also regulated by the minions of said sovereign? The reason the traveler can absorb and use all elements is because he is a true orthodox cultivator able to channel energy through his own body? Unlike the external dharma treasure dependent populace born within a mutilated cultivation system?

The heavenly principles is simply a devilish senior from the upper realms trying to hide in a backwater lower realm, Its just that their usurpation was a huge fumble throughout all these years? From the original ancestor of Teyvat returning to the 3rd descender doing... Something.??

Even the part about abyssal energy. Maybe primordial cultivation at that realm is absorbing and synthesizing the power of the abyss itself... Its just that at realms lower than Sovereign they are susceptible to qi deviation....Thats why the traveler with a former realm unknown can absorb abyssal energy with no risk?

Am i cooking?

What did Narzissenkreuz mean by "I sense "reason""?

https://preview.redd.it/a0nb818e9gth1.png?width=1778&format=png&auto=webp&s=4332689e2a276bf522ae62e6a64aaa5e76276078

During the battle:

https://preview.redd.it/oigbvbrg9gth1.png?width=498&format=png&auto=webp&s=db65decfd74cfa4d8fcd45c6dc5f54036a51018e

Right after he says this, Paimon follows up with:

https://preview.redd.it/ljyghtwh9gth1.png?width=532&format=png&auto=webp&s=89bb7cd8dd220db4f7d22d02469ae1336ecb37d5

How did she get to that conclusion??? Feels like Paimon (Reason) is literally guiding/helping us escape (by telling us what to do)

The fact that "Reason" is in quotation marks too is sus.

Not related to the Paimon theory:

https://preview.redd.it/sjy5wp2j9gth1.png?width=911&format=png&auto=webp&s=42c76c736743e03c576235316aa6207fe2e90e45

(My traveler is Lumine)
Coincides with:

- Traveler doesn't have her records in leylines however abyss sibling does (because she wasnt supposed to be part of the "adventure"?)
- The BP story about abyss sibling being corrupted, he was supposed to get the genesis pearl (the "adventure"), not us.
Regardless, What could it possibly mean for the overall story?

To awaken HP, it will need a vessel. What character do you think is always called a mascot?

Yes PAIMON. PAIMON will be the vessel for HP and the moral dilemma would be. Would you kill Paimon to save the world, who considers you the world as you bonded in your time in Teyvat? Or would you side with HP/Paimon and destroy the Archons/Moon goddess and or herectics of the law and destroy the plan of Tsaritsa

I don't think the Phanes is the ship's AI. I think that the AI is the Second Who Came / One Who Came After (and probably Heimarmene).

The AI fits the best for the one who consulted with Phanes on turning the Third Descender into the Gnoses, considering that it was previously charged with taking care of the Fourth Descender's life support and would probably know how to do it better than anyone.

My overarching concept is that the AI core's ejection is effectively the catalyst for most of HP's actions. Phanes was initially peaceful when he arrived in Teyvat, but after acquiring the AI core (which had knowledge on how to produce mankind), he decided to take control of the planet and create the Human Realm. However, due to his injuries against Nibelung, he became increasingly dependent on the AI to manage the world.

The AI manages the fate/constellation system, and is likely responsible for distributing visions.

You could even argue that the "Heavenly Principles" themselves are really just the rules dictated by Phanes to the AI core that represent his vision for the world.

Preface:

A similar post was posted yesterday, we just happened to be on very similar lines of thought and I was too slow in finishing. I haven’t lifted anything from it, but it approaches things from both similar & different angles. I focus more on the abyss, but this post is defo worth reading up on before this:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Genshin_Lore/s/5vkjCiQk0I 

Introduction

The Crimson Moon has remained one of Genshin’s biggest mysteries, specifically starting from the introduction of Arlecchino & the book Perinheri. However, it has always been present throughout the game and has showed up at various points for reasons we still do not yet fully understand.
I would like to introduce new perspectives and open further discussion to try and make certain concrete distinctions between the original authorities/characteristics of the Iridescent Moon and the characteristics of the abyss to see how they both manifest themselves through the Crimson Moon, with the goal of better understanding it. The 7.1 quest makes a few things a little more clear and allows for more speculation about what else the Crimson Moon could be hiding. First post btw, so be nice.

*CM = Crimson Moon
*IM = Iridescent Moon

The Authority of Death and Corruption

So judging by what Barbeloth, Alice and the Festering Desire description says about the Abyss and also from what Arlecchino told us, we can now infer the following about the transfiguration of the IM into the CM:

- Sonnet’s IM indeed possessed the largest share of the authority of death amongst the Three Moons

https://preview.redd.it/y5e4lp525kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=c25e352f85a951dd457bc0f11bf017ebe3204f21

- When it was destroyed in the war of Funerary Flame, Sonnet fused her Moon’s remains with the Abyss in an attempt to avoid death
- The Abyss has the power to manifest unchosen possibilities that never came to pass if left unchecked
- The Abyss kept her alive in a terrible state while imposing/manifesting an alternate possibility in which the IM was never destroyed, as a result, the IM was warped into the CM

https://preview.redd.it/zbhmzwt35kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=4db642d6a9c16dc470d8cd8d94e3a3dff3c713b2

- The original authority of death it possesed along WITH the abyssal corruption is in-turn passed down to it’s Khaenrian CM Dynasty in the form of Balemoon Bloodfire

https://preview.redd.it/f0863hv45kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=f85a455d3be73c0fc7b9256a920c831a13cda500

Now that we’ve established the dual nature of the CM, we can now look at its effects and attribute these characteristics to either the iridescent moon or the abyss.

Arlecchino & Delusions

Arlecchino is a surviving descendant who is able to somewhat manifest the powers of the authority of death while also progressively suffering from abyssal corruption as a result. She is a physical manifestation of both characteristics of the CM, it is likely that other members of the dynasty before had a similar constitution.

This brings us onto the topic of delusions.

https://preview.redd.it/u60encla5kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=8989b801321f7d0d34ad3a4ae230ec03ed666e9b

https://preview.redd.it/59ikciy85kth1.jpg?width=2096&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f6a8ca26b537a04b05476ec42ce986e912d9f507

Pierro meets w/ Arlecchino and with his knowledge of her lineage, they conduct research into her powers for the sake of creating Delusions. Within the delusions, we can see the original authority of death being harnessed to drain life in exchange for power. Perhaps even the ability of delusions to allow the user to utilize any element is related to the original iridescence of the moon - Arlecchino does call on “Mistress of the Seven Hues” as a title when performing the ritual in Nod-Krai after all, however these delusions as stated by Pierro were currently incomplete. In conclusion, what we’ve spoken about with the delusions are purely manifestations of power in regards to the IM exclusively and not the Abyss. That comes later.

In the recent 7.1 quest we oversee an experiment w/ Arlecchino which seeks to look into perfecting Delusions in order to more effectively oppose the powers of Ronova. This experiment goes awry due to unexpected compilations when they push the output of the delusion to its theoretical max, leading Arlecchino to fight what seemed to be a hallucinated visage of herself - this phenomenon doesn’t seem to be perceptible by anybody else during the experiment.
The researcher overseeing the experiment hypothesizes that the delusion may have accidentally touched on a hidden authority of the Crimson Moon other than death -

https://preview.redd.it/11vc5xwc5kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=ae18f1307b47907524a14d73476604005a737de0

Specifically an ability that induces hallucinations, and causes loss of control for the user of said delusion.

https://preview.redd.it/59v7ps4e5kth1.png?width=2048&format=png&auto=webp&s=fbaedf72bc883d0be7e15c36b048549a23733a06

I believe this phenomenon to be purely attributed to the abyssal characteristics of the CM. In the Natlan Archon quest we come across the effects of abyssal corrosion syndrome (a form of abyssal corruption) on people in which the captain states this:

https://preview.redd.it/kinhu6zf5kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=affd9980fd7ee9ef39cc06d502469cc54c671f62

https://preview.redd.it/e76u8l0h5kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=74003f641acab847d4582d72ab071a373d12eafb

“Staring into my eyes is ill-advised. I can't promise you'll like what you see...” ~ Arlecchino [Chat: Eyes]

https://preview.redd.it/iiff7hfq5kth1.png?width=1000&format=png&auto=webp&s=246627524225d5600da20cd11843c937cb0dfcce

A little bit of conjecture here, but I also believe Arlecchino might have subconsciously or unintentionally manifested this abyssal phenomenon outside of herself for the traveler. Recall their fight in Fontaine in Arle’s SQ and how the traveler looked into her eyes and saw the visage of a Crimson Moon - during which the traveler becomes completely immobilized and seemingly “loses control” of the their body being completely rooted to the spot.

To me, this sounds consistent with the researcher’s conclusion.

That sums it up regarding the Authority of Death and the corruption of the Abyss in the CM manifested Arlecchino and the delusions. Now I would like to focus on the other aspects of the original IM and the Abyss which are rarely spoken about but seemingly still present.

Fleeting Halos & Eye Imagery

Back in Nod-Krai, Lauma tells us that the IM - when shining - had the ability to produce mysterious fleeting halos. In other words, the IM had some sort of influence or power specifically regarding visual phenomena.

This greatly mirrors the fleeting afterimages left behind of the people that have been consumed by Arlecchino’s bloodfire - her character story 4 specifically states that sometimes these afterimages “donned the aspect of dazzling colors” which is consistent with the aspect of iridescence. Bare in mind these are not self-contained projections within Arle’s psyche, these images are perceivable by others, with Clervie being an in-game example who was visible to other people besides Arle.

On a somewhat related note, it is also worth acknowledging that the authority of death presents itself extremely visually in the Knave similarly to how it does through Ronova.

https://preview.redd.it/7lfognet5kth1.png?width=335&format=png&auto=webp&s=445fea1da6ff7ef0c6324108199bbb02f85c223c

There are already loads of theories already looking into the similarities and shared motifs between their designs and various forms. This is important because it tells us that the imagery and connotations of sight and/or the eye is one that may exclusively be related with the original authority of death in the IM and has NOTHING to do with the Abyss since Ronova has no abyssal influences. One other example in particular that serves to strengthen the fact that the connotations of visuals and sight may be important and related to the original IM is during the Dottore (Heretic of the False Moon) weekly boss battle - directly facing him while he uses this authority warrants a penalty on the player. Bear in mind that in this weekly boss fight, he is specifically using the authority of the IM and NOT the CM through the use of its moon marrow excluding the possibility of any abyssal influences.

Splitting Realms

https://preview.redd.it/o62cajyu5kth1.png?width=480&format=png&auto=webp&s=eda7783bb8bf08b360313817a73e6e4db42d894e

Vol 2. of Hymns of the far north speaks politically about the creation of the three moons by Nibelung. The part I want to focus on is the IM being described as a “shuttle” of some sort. A lot of people have connected this to the event weapon refinement material for the Calamity of Eshu the “Shuttle of Odara” because of it’s use of the same terminology. The description of the refinement material states that it has a prism-like glow and that this shuttle symbolizes a medium that pierces through different realms. Not only that but the Calamity of Eshu description states that”Sanhaj could use this curved blade to perform rituals, blurring the boundary between the Night Kingdom and the present world.”
This draws too many parallels to the IM with its description of “prism-like light” and the ability of both to blur the boundaries between the realms of the living and the dead. Since the blueprints of both are so similar, it suggests that the IM had or still has some sort of material ability to cross between realms. We know that right now it’s physically sequestered in some sort of special domain outside of teyvat, but the abyss might have leveraged this realm-crossing ability at certain points throughout Teyvat’s history which may explain its many various but unexplained appearances.

To Bare Witness

As we can see, the idea/motif of the eye is quite integral to the lore of the CM. We know that the CM has appeared multiple times throughout the history of teyvat and is depicted in many stories and historical accounts, especially regarding mass catastrophes (e.g, Gurabad, Khaenriah), where it seems to have had an observatory/overseeing function. Because of this, the presence or visage of the CM has been conflated with the idea of judgment as if the CM is a precursor to cataclysmic events. I’d like to look at this from a different perspective by comparing the CM to Ronova since they both represent the authority of death.

Looking at death first from the lens of Ronova, her innate proclivity as the shade of death is to bare witness to death itself. There are some key reasons she does this:

Cosmic duty
Ronova is the shade of death and as such she states it is her duty and authority to oversee the domain of death. This does not mean she has to be physically present for every death - part of the function of the leylines through irminsul is to autonomously carry out the process. However in the event of an exception, when needed, she will make an appearance as demonstrated in the 7.0 Archon Quest in the situation with the souls unable to pass on through the leylines at the theatre. Other examples of this are shown in Ronova giving Hu Tao’s ancestor the Staff of Homa in order to help those tainted by the God remains to pass on.

Personal Interest
Looking at Lunar Arcanum XIII: Death - the text depicts Ronova as someone who has a certain fondness for mankind and a willingness or fascination to oversee their lives and deaths firsthand. She demonstrates this in a quite crude manner during the 7.0 archon quest much to the chagrin of Mitya and the traveler. When quizzed by the traveler on why she chose to obscure herself she states this:

https://preview.redd.it/ftmloidx5kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=938c38560181d50983ff3f07ef9173a08be67e1f

Fulfilling pacts

Near the end of the Natlan Archon quest we see Ronova coming to fulfill the terms of the pact that was made with Xbalanque to create the Ode of Resurrection. She exclaims she is to bear witness to a death as the price for using her power.

https://preview.redd.it/7smdnu9e6kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=a39e1c210c3806cb09b282fb14226a950ecb65af

Now let’s look at this from the perspective of the CM - what can we infer about it from the behavior of Ronova?

Since the CM possesses the authority of death, then we can assume it too has a duty to oversee death. As a parallel to Ronova’s personal interest, I believe the CM may have more of a morbid fascination with death instead of a purely curious one (Note Arlecchino’s voice line about insects). Lastly, if we’re drawing a parallel between the CM and Ronova’s duty to fulfill pacts, it could stand to reason that the CM appeared above Khaenriah and Gurabad to bare witness to their destruction as the price for using abyssal power en-masse as the two incidents share that trait. This may be why it’s largely considered an omen of judgment.

A Dark Will

This leads me on to my last and personally most intriguing aspect of the CM.

Starting off again with the experiment, During the 3rd phase, we crank up the Delusions power output to the maximum, fully utilizing the powers of the CM.
This causes the Abyssal energy to spike and Arlecchino hallucinates a fierce battle with a visage of herself after which she loses consciousness. She is then cleared of excess abyssal corruption by the traveler and the experiment is halted.
The most chilling part of this event is Arlecchino’s choice of referring to the phantasm as “she” almost as if she has faced this apparition before or expected this turn of events. Here is where I want to suggest something that’s quite out there but I believe the “she” that Arlecchino was referring to could be the Abyss-corrupted will of Sonnet…

The depictions of the ritual and the story of Perinheri is described to be mainly symbolic from a storytelling POV but there is one thing we can glean from it about the nature of the CM. The eye that looks back at the children who go through the ritual in the story is described as being “horrified” not horrifying- but horrified. One thing we know about Sonnet herself as the personification of the moon is that she herself had a particular fear of death which persisted all the way until she came in contact with the abyss. It could be that this trait of hers became a big facet of the Abyss corrupted version of her which currently occupies the IM’s remains.

Another thing- note that when Columbina and the Traveler had collected the IM marrow and freed the original Sonnet from her suffering, Columbina still notes that there’s still “A dark Will” that’s left here and that same will tries to prevent them both from escaping with the marrow.

https://preview.redd.it/hp3pae146kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=b30578c2b8cfb55a538021f564b800e8c315673f

https://preview.redd.it/u6nb0m756kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=dcc9f070f029442ef8876efb275810ddba102578

https://preview.redd.it/l1gbunz56kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=d3bbe43571b74ae41b4ef9821e35fa50333d89d2

It could be that now the IM marrow is within Arlecchino’s possession, that this will has accelerated it’s attacks upon her in an effort to reclaim it by any means possible. It may even be possible that if the abyss was to completely take over her body, this is the will/persona that might even impose itself on Arlecchino. This may be something that the traveler and Arlecchino will have to deal with in the near future.

Other Considerations

Descenders

It is worth noting that the authority of death struggles with the existence of descenders. When the voice of the CM calls out to the traveler as they head through the rift opened by Arle, it states it has no right to tamper with the traveler in any way. Ronova (as Alyosha) states something similar explicitly saying that she can’t separate the soul of the traveler from their body for long as it’s firmly anchored to their body by their will. This is further supported by the fact that the traveler was eventually able to return to their body almost instantly after being afflicted by the curse of death in the final boss fight against Ronova.

https://preview.redd.it/ukq0yrb76kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=548551280a670484d939436368438e32ea894a6b

https://preview.redd.it/7x79eka86kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=be6bbf4e3b0345188a8ceacef7378ef41f3bfa91

https://preview.redd.it/17c5lrmh6kth1.png?width=2096&format=png&auto=webp&s=ae91d2d76f72ca1724a5007f2d5081cd75d50ac3

Symbolic Respresentations

The stories of Kunwu’s solar pearl and the Crimson Glow of the Blackcliff weapons might both be symbolic representations of the transformation of the IM into the CM through the ”purification“ of the Abyss after it’s destruction. They both feature the element of something being submitted to some sort of process for 49 days. The significance of this is that in Chinese folklore, the number 49 carries heavy significance regarding death, the afterlife and rebirth.

With the solar pearl, Kunwu imbues the material with the “light of the heavenly bodies” and buries it in a wooden box in darkness for about 49 days. With Cor Purum which is the main material for the Blackcliff weapons, Cor Lapis is subjected to two refinement processes in which both steps last 49 days. The end result of both of these stories is that a parallel is drawn to the Crimson Moon, first through it appearing to adorn Kunwu with it’s light and secondly through the appearance of the blackcliff weapons to have a crimson glow.

Conclusion

That’s about it for this exploration of the Crimson Moon’s traits. I definitely rushed a lot just to get it out there so it may not be as coherent as it could’ve been but yeah. I also wanted to look into the connection between the statue of the omnipresent God, but I was unable to come up with anything that made sense to me. There’s so much more that I wish they would reveal about the Crimson Moon but I guess we’ll just have to wait and see because I think it’s far from over being dealt with.

First things first, Phanes.

The Primordial One *is* the AI from the siblings' ship. The Primordial One crashlanded into the Frost Moon (Moongazer records) and then appropriated technologies and systems from the Dragons there (Lunar Veil, Trilune Authority (which ARE shades of Nibelung's authority), etc).

The Primordial One creates *five* authorities from the Trilune Authority. Logos, Eonothem, Eon, Life, and Death. Logos becomes Phanes. Eonothem becomes Asmoday. Eon becomes Istaroth. Life becomes Naberius. Death becomes Ronova. These are tripartite entities (just like the Moon Goddesses): Body, Soul, Authority. To ensure the five rulers WILL act as they ought to, the Primordial One creates Heimarmene, also known as the Heavenly Principles' rules. Phanes is made into the acting ruler of the Shades, but still constrained by Heimarmene. The mission given to them: transform the world into something the crowned heirs (the twins) can then rule over.

One of the heirs is awakened to help oversee the system, this is the one who will be the abyss sibling. The other is left dormant in the ship, and the ship itself is sent into purposefully long and pre-programmed journey set to return to Teyvat once enough time has passed for the world to have been remade.

The War of the Dragons happens, the sibling does not get involved in it. The false sky is made, and Irminsul's cognitive capabilities are weaponized to control recorded and remembered history.

Humanity is created in Teyvat, but it's not as smooth-sailing as expected. Tsurumi is nailed for understanding the False Sky's existence. Lan Gang is destroyed for developing an Archaeolune-like system that weakens the Shades' powers (the fountain).

The Third Descender arrives onto Teyvat, but they're not a descender *yet*. Seutervoinen/Anacharsis/(not yet the) Third Descender meets Koitar. The Hyperborean Rebellion happens and the Golden City is destroyed by a Nail. Khaenri'ah is founded. The Moons decide to intervene.

Nibelung arrives and the War of Funerary Flame kicks off. Delphi Pytho sinks, two moons are shattered, Apep gets nailed. Sal Vindagnyr gets nailed despite apparently not being involved. Natlantea gets nailed but the damages to the ley lines were too extensive, and so the Night Kingdom is established.

A thousand years later, Monomakh is born from the remains of the Cryo Sovereign. Hyperborea's Primordial Human Project succeeded.

Another thousand years, Seutervoinen/Anacharsis/Third Descender returns in full force and... Makes a deal with Phanes with Heimarmene as a witness/enforcer. The Third's body, the TRUE body (thus why Surtalogi hasn't found her yet), is torn into the seven Gnoses. Koitar is brought back from erasure, but her memories remain locked. The sibling ("the one who came after") gets involved in the creation of the Gnoses. The Archon War starts.

Boreas reaches Amsvartnir and meets Koitar, who recovers her memories and moves north to Snezhnaya. Boreas goes to Mondstadt and clashes with Decarabian. The Archon War goes as everyone knows.

Phanes, at some point, begins the process of their own Tri-Factor Excision to bypass the Third Descender's curse. The three parts are the Body, the Soul, and the Authority. The Body is Paimon. The Soul is the Camera (yes, the fucking camera). The Authority is currently dormant in Celestia.

The sibling arrives to Khaenri'ah with NO MEMORIES of the past. The amnesia might have been Asmoday's doing, potentially at the sibling's own request. Paimon is also summoned to Khaenri'ah, thus stopping the reactivation after the Cataclysm.

The Cataclysm happens, and here's the order of events:

1. Asmoday and Ronova move to Khaenri'ah.
2. The Sinners refuse to act against them. Istaroth uses Direidyth to keep the sibling out of Khaenri'ah. The sibling, however, went and awakened the Traveler.
3. Naberius falls in battle at some point.
4. Phanes, right before the curse kicks in, moves the spaceship to the moon as a hail mary to keep the Traveler safe. But it's too late and the ship is now empty.
5. Asmoday, lacking Phanes' guidance OR knowledge, cubes the twins as they try to leave Teyvat.

The evidence? Scattered all throughout the game AND the voices inside my head. I might try to gather all the evidence and formalize this at some point, but the mere fact I've written it at all makes me call it a victory. I'm much like Nicole, I'm afraid: A literary giant (if I started writing it down).

A visual TL,DR of the post

I had some doubts about the powers and authority of Death and its relation to the Crimson Moon for some time. However, the new lore about it may reveal some interesting perspectives.

Ronova was straightforward about her authority. She uses her power to oversee deaths in Teyvat and carry souls to the leylines. When there are problems due to leyline damage, she acts personally to fix them, as we saw in Natlan with the Night Kingdom, the Ode of Resurrection, and the Power of the Six Heroes.

Her power seems to be characterized by the ability to exchange life for more power, even if only symbolically, as we saw in the deal between Xbalanque and Ronova.

>Ronova: My domain is death, and its power comes at a great price... The question is, are you prepared to pay?
Xbalanque: I need that power. Only a hero can truly wield it, and heroes are not afraid of dying.
Ronova: No, a fear of death is ingrained in all living things. If the wielder of this power cannot conquer their fear, countless innocent lives will be claimed in their stead, for only then can the price be paid.

Considering that Ronova's authority seems limited to death and souls, her deal with Xbalanque seems more like an exception than something she is permitted to do. In fact, she was punished for it.

But if Ronova has only part of Sonnet's original authority, what is the real domain of the lunar power? What mystery is hidden behind the Iridescent Moon?

The Primordial Authorities

We know from multiple sources that the Authority of the Shards once were of the Three Moons, with Sonnet having the highest share of that of Death.

I believe that the Moons held different authorities that got spitted in 4 different concepts by the PO. If we comprehend the original concepts behind the Moon Authorities, we could understand the true power of the Crimson Moon.

Looking to Simulanka as a model of Teyvat, we see that its creators are in fact three.

https://preview.redd.it/joyhlszgmath1.png?width=2256&format=png&auto=webp&s=8f3ee4755a18a9cad68725176fdb86f7cfdce679

In Simulanka, Alice, Barbeloth, and Anya played the roles of the Goddess of Creation, Prophecy, and Fate, respectively. I would guess that these are also the original functions of the three Moons. We can tentatively pair the mages with the goddesses.

Let's start with Barbeloth and Canon. Canon, like Barbeloth may be the goddess of prophecy. In fact, we know that Canon and Istaroth conversed about the nature of gravity and the metric tensor, which is reported as the law of time. In Simulanka, the Goddess of Prophecy gave the tracks that rewind time and connect to the sky. Aria may be the goddess of fate. In the Unnamed Vessels quests, she laments the fate chosen by the PO for the sake of order, even if it came at a great cost. If she is the Goddess of Fate, like Anya, then she determined the fate of all creatures in Teyvat. Therefore, she had to accept the new order to ensure the survival of life itself.

Finally, by exclusion, Sonnet should be the Goddess of Creation. The Moon dialogues do not reveal much about Sonnet's duties, but the concept of "morphological isomorphism" may refer to the mathematical concept and allude to the similarity between the structures of various living beings.

>Canon: ...Since Zbai has no objections, I have nothing more to say. However, Sonnet, as The Will of the Moon, you must not forget the basic formulae that keep the world running. Canon: Prepare yourself. I will set you some foundational problems on verifying morphological isomorphisms. You are not to go back to the surface until you have solved them all.

It's also worth noting that the Moons and their respective Mages share the same color motif in their clothing. Barbeloth and Canon are characterized by deep blue, Aria and Anya by light blue and pale yellow, and Alice has some pink elements like Sonnet.

My guess is that Creation, Prophecy, and Fate are more complex than the authority of the Shades. This could mean that some of the original power of the Moons has been lost, except for the Crimson Moon.

Cursed Death...

If Sonnet was the holder of the Authority of Creation, then Simulanka gives us another hint on what this means. In fact Alice, as the Goddess of Creation, gifted to the forest of blessing the magic tonic:

>Almond: Magic Tonic. It was gifted to the forest by the Goddess of Creation herself — a special potion that helps us maintain our vitality. T: What happens if you stop drinking it? Almond: Well... Our bodies will gradually crumple and become brittle, until they eventually disintegrate entirely. Our colors will fade, and we'll start to lose our memory, until we can't even remember our own names...

The equivalent of the magic tonic in Teyvat is the life force. Like the magic tonic, the life force is connected to memories and fuels the vitality of mortals. Authority over Creation means authority over the planet's Life Force.

We now know that the Abyss manifested the possibility that the Authority of the Crimson Moon was never taken away. The Abyss's power is to make impossible outcomes "real." As Alice said, the Abyss is formed by fates that will not come to pass. However, there is something interesting to add to this.

>Eye of Graeae: In fact, these special fluctuations appear to be caused by the condensation itself. You seem to be able to give form to some unobservable "possibility" through this step. The "condensation" you perform here... Has resulted in the chance that many worlds across the realm of possibility will also feature a "Prime Ice Construct" in that location.
Eye of Graeae: It is fine if you do not understand. No one can see the realm of possibility, as this is little different from directly beholding the Abyss.

With the presence of the traveler, the Cryo energy during condensation is capable of altering other "versions" of Teyvat. The similarity between the Abyss and the realm of possibility may have specific implications.

Returning to Crimson Moon and her authority, we can understand the relationship between the authority of Death and Creation that was tainted by the Abyss. The latter not only has the power to take life force, but also gives life to dead things, curses the souls of the living with unnatural lifespans, and allows beings cursed by the Balemoon to purge memories. It also allows death beings to linger in a state of apparent death and regenerate their bodies given enough time. These are just the known examples. There may be even deeper secrets hidden.

Let's start with the confirmed case: Arlecchino. She is cursed with the Balemoon Bloodfire, which may be a remnant of the Sonnet's resentment exploited by the Crimson Moon Dynasty. In addition to having power over these flames, Arlecchino can create afterimages of things consumed by them.

>The Knave: You see, a certain power runs through my veins. It's not unlike a curse. My flames leave behind shadows of anything they consume. Of course, the chances of those shadows morphing into a sentient entity are exceedingly slim

During the experiment testing the new delusion, she had to fight an afterimage of herself that persisted even after the experiment stopped. This means that "she" is a creation of some sort.

>The Knave: Something's changed... Has the experiment stopped? No, "she" still exists...

Afterward, the researcher confirmed that another authority had been triggered.

>Researcher: Hmm... From what I observed, I would surmise that the new model of Delusion inadvertently drew upon another of the Crimson Moon's authorities besides Death alone, introducing an unstable variable into the equation...

I think Pierro used the full authority of the Crimson Moon in his fight with Ronova. This is visible in the change in color of the energy flow, which shifts from purple to red (Authority of the Death) to magenta (Authority of the Crimson Moon).

https://preview.redd.it/8p981i0plath1.png?width=1262&format=png&auto=webp&s=df08c9504fa88bb780fec91731b612092628c93e

As reported in the comment of the cutscene, to harness the full power of the Crimson Moon, one needs the soul and the life force. During their conversation, Hroptatyr tells Pierro that to overcome the authority of death, one must not fear it. This is consistent with what Ronova said to Xbalanque.

>Hroptatyr: If the ultimate goal is to raise your status enough to achieve rule-level power, why waste so much energy on something like mitigating side effects? How can you hope to reject death and seize authority over it at the same time?

Before we continue, I want to propose a hypothesis. The "elements" of the Iridescent Moon may be Pyro and Electro. There is a connection between life so Hydro and Dendro and the other two elements. Pyro triggers the scorching state in a Dendro-based life form, while Electro triggers the activated state.

...Forbidden Creations and Impossible Life

Now, we know that we should look for things in Teyvat that are red or magenta and have an unnatural relationship with death. I hope you won't refuse a field trip for an alchemy lesson.

Our next destination is Dragonspine, where Durin's corpse lies. Dragonspine mountain was partially corrupted by Durin's poisonous blood, but the presence of the Divine Nail probably helped to mitigate its effects. The original Durin possessed an unlimited life force that was slowly regenerating the dragon, even considering the presence of the nail. In fact, Durin's heart was still alive. It's possible that Durin was created using the Authority of the Crimson Moon. One thing that suggests this is the case is that the Frostbearing Tree bears a special fruit in the form of a catalyst after its regeneration.

https://preview.redd.it/ud9p0812math1.png?width=1760&format=png&auto=webp&s=9373f13dbf0dedff50ca8d525429452c51ced576

The color pattern of the Frostbearer resembles that of Ronova, meaning that the authority over death may linger in Dragonspine in some form. My guess is that the original authority used to create Durin was purged by the Nail with the Abyss, being it a simulated thing, only to left what works under the current rules of Teyvat.

Another hint is that, after using the festering dragon marrow on the Festering Desire, the sword changes color from purple to a deep magenta. Furthermore, the marrow is obtained after Durin's blood is purified.

https://preview.redd.it/0b871tjzlath1.png?width=1239&format=png&auto=webp&s=34bc8d5da06300c84b89caab310834b0138c8681

Elynas, another of Gold's creations, shares many similarities with Durin. However, some of Elynas's physical features may provide interesting insights. Both are in an apparent state of death, but Elynas's heart is inactive, moreover the predominant color of Merusea village is deep red, similar to that of the Durin Core's cave. Additionally, Elynas's body contains many red crystals, and his blood forms reddish-pink stones.

https://preview.redd.it/x0ce0abulath1.png?width=2397&format=png&auto=webp&s=9c3565fe309a1e603b25c0047d33f42629cbaa8a

The conversation between Albedo and Alice reveals some details about how Gold may have created Durin and Elynas.

>Albedo: First would be the flesh of that immortal monster from the Mare Jivari.
Alice: Interesting...What else?
Albedo: The other is a portion of the "embryo" left by my mother, Rhinedottir.
Alice: Ah, the raw material from which she created her monsters in the past... There's not much of it left. Dragon blood, monster flesh, and embryo... Sounds to me like a formula for creating life?

One initial observation is the mention of an embryo left by Gold. Now, Eitr is an acronym that stands for Embryonic-Ichoric-Telluric-Rudiment.

>Pavlina: Within it is not only some peculiar... flesh, but also the power of the Light Realm that has been modified to specialize in acts of creation, as well as...

Pavlina noticed that the Light Realm Power had been modified to specialize in the act of creation, suggesting that it may be a type of Moon Power. We know that the Hyperboreans experimented with the Frostmoon and the Cryo sovereign's flesh to create the Primordial Human, the same project that led to Albedo's birth.

>Turning to forbidden methods, artisans forged countless fae spirits upon the bones of giant beasts. Having spun fallen Frostmoon light into flawless flesh and blood, they clad it to forms once frail and weak. Such authority to create was once the lord of the firmament's divine prerogative, yet it was handed to mortals by the rebellious envoy, Who dreamed that one day, these little creatures might create a perfect being that could merge with the world.

Furthermore, there is a third element in the mixture that we don't know. I believe that the Telluric in the acronym may refer to the Abyss. We know that Gold worked with different kinds of "soils" in her experiments and we also know that she worked with the abyss. The Eitr may be the same as the Rebis of alchemy: a combination of two opposite natures. For this reason Ronova address it as "the mother of all forbidden creations". Rhinedottir may have succeeded in recreating the Eitr.

The second observation is about Bakunawa's flesh. The note about Bakunawa reports:

>Lacking in intelligence, its actions are solely devoted to an instinct to devour. It is capable of infinite growth and is functionally immortal. However, unlike Gold's other creations, its immortality does not stem from the power of "Life," but rather a more transcendent form of Abyssal power that may be beyond even our Order's understanding.

Gold's other creations are made with the power of life. Since Albedo knew Rhinedottir before her fusion with Naberius, I suspect this power came from the Crimson Moon Authority. Bakunawa may have been another experiment to utilize more of the Abyssal aspect of the moon's power. I'm tempted to say so because of this comment Albedo made:

>Albedo: The corrosive nature of the dragon venom and the heightened vitality of the monster remnants will offset each other, keeping the constructed body in perfect balance. A powerful side effect can be triggered when festering forces and life energy collide.

Finally, considering the annotation in Perinheri, we can conclude that the Hyperborean knowledge was preserved by the Crimson Moon Dynasty:

>The black wolves of the first edition. Archaeological work on Khaenri'ah indicates that this must have been a type of warbeast created using alchemy. Alchemy and the Beastmaster Knights were a mainstay during the Crimson Moon Dynasty, but interest in mechanical engineering during the Eclipse Dynasty would cause it to fall behind.

Mystery Under Moonlight

We saw that Gold's creations a have infinite life force, the power of adapting to their environment, to resurrect themself from their remains and "resurrect" beings that came in contact with them. If we consider all these behaviors, we can see an uncanny similarity between Durin, Elynas and Rerir. Apart the predilection for the purple, red, and magenta dress code, we saw that Durin and Elynas's hearts are crystallized like that of Moon Hunter, as Flins reported.

While it isn't strange that Rerir shows powers connected to the authority of Death it is puzzling that these abilities don't come from Ronova's authority but from the Crimson Moon. This may explain also his title, Blasphemy against death, because what could be more blasphemous than an unyielding will to live in the face of death? Although this makes Rerir and Sonnet thematically similar, he shouldn't have a direct connection to moon powers.

Another strange thing is how Rerir's fragments ended up in Nod-Krai in the first place. If the Moon Reflection has no way out, his fragments should be found there. Instead, they have plagued Nod-Krai since the Cataclysm.

>The Damselette: The tale of his final fate has it that he fell into the "moon's reflection," from which there can be no return.

After the 7.1 story I remembered an interesting book of fairy tales: Tales of a Snow-Winged Goose. One tale is called "Mr. Fox and the Clockwork Guardsman." The Clockwork Guardsman is becoming forgetful and laments his long long life. His good friend suggests that it may be time for the Guardsman to die, so they start searching for death. The following paragraphs are really interesting:

>"But, my fluffiest of friends," the Clockwork Guard said, removing his alloy guard's cap and sighing, "didn't you steal Death from Ms. Toad's dressing table in that heist many years ago? It caused quite the commotion, as I recall. The living things of the world all forgot how to die."
As, we all know, Ms. Toad is Death's envoy, the queen of all that is ugly, cold, and annoying. She guards that coldest jewel, Death itself.
>
>"Ah, I was so young then. I remember I was madly in love with Ms. Jackal, and I wanted to bring her the most expensive treasure I could find."
"And?"
"I succeeded. But she died."
Death slipped from Ms. Jackal's hand and shattered on the ground. The fragments melted into the earth, never to be seen again. And as that happened, the creatures of the world started to die as normal once more, with all that should have been dead now being so. Except, that is, for Mr. Fox, who should have died, but didn't.

From this account seems that someone stole Death (it's authority, probably) from the death emissary to gift it to his loved one, only to see her die and then become immortal. I don't know how relevant this is, but it seems oddly specific to be just a coincidence. Anyway, even if this is an account of an alternate version or future event, it still doesn't explain how Rerir obtained the power of the Crimson Moon.

However, we may have overlooked specific information about his past. From his memories, we learn that Rerir is an orphan, and the most important orphanage in Khaenri'ah was the House of the Hearth. We don't know if the orphanage was still operating during the Eclipse dynasty or if it maintained its traditions. If this is true, then Rerir may have undergone the orphanage's ritual.

>The Knave: The Knave: The Crimson Moon sages looked beyond this world for beings with powers that surpassed the gods — but fearing they might lose control, they subjected these children to a process of "refinement." The adults embraced the children who passed the ritual, telling them: "Within the fireplace, you have traversed the flames between two worlds. Here and now, you are born anew."The book leaves much unsaid, but I suspect that this was their way of "branding" the children they had enrolled — leaving an indelible mark upon them, so that they would forever live in the Crimson Moon's light.

This brings us to another mystery that has been hinted at in many places, but no one has elaborated on it. I'm referring to the concept of the "two worlds."

>The Knave: Those burned away by such flames leave behind a kind of ghostly "afterimage" in the world. In the days of Khaenri'ah, people believed they could be used to bridge the gap between the "two worlds" of life and death.

This implies the existence of a 'World of the Dead', accessible through the power of the Crimson Moon. Those who pass the orphanage's ritual symbolically cross the border in opposite directions and this makes them reborn under the light of the Crimson Moon.

>Voice of the Abyss: I sense your presence, and grant to you death and rebirth...
Voice of the Abyss: Wait, you're... Why are you...
Voice of the Abyss: You have crossed over from another world... transcended fate itself... I have no right to...

Lastly, one final observation: in the Age of the Moon Sisters, the border didn't exist. As the Nod-Krai trailer reports, "In that era, there was no boundary between life and death. Willpower flowed freely among countless beings."

Addendum: Reported Appearance of the Crimson Moon and Additional Speculations

This section provides a brief overview of the appearance of the Crimson Moon in Teyvat. It seems that it may appear during mayor calamities. It is unclear whether it is an atmospheric phenomenon or the literal Crimson Moon.

Liyue:

• Solar Pearl report the appearance of the Crimson Moon after Kunwu completed the Catalyst.
• Blackcliff Agate: It seems that the Cor Purum appeared after a major calamity. Cor Purum is the red variant of Cor Lapis. It is said to wax and wane like the Crimson Moon.

Fontaine

• The Fall of the Faded Castle reports on some ominous phenomena in Fontaine that are linked to the Faded Castle in Petrichor, as well as the appearance of a Bloody Moon.

Khaenri'ah

• Appeared during the Cataclysm. According to the Crimson Moon Semblance, it is fated to reappear:

>"Until the last shadow of the ashen sun burns away the old world, until the Crimson Moon witnesses the immaculate dawn"

Inazuma:

• Red Moon of Yore: A lantern decoration from several centuries ago. A red moon may have appeared during the Cataclysm.

Additional speculations on Moon Lore

Children of the Moon: In Moonlit bamboo forest, one of the Zibai mortal selves says:

>"The wolf packs are children of the moons, they remember the calamities and the tragedies that ensued. Hence, they lament the fate of their mother with each new moon... It is also why those who live among the wolves call the morning stars, the surviving love of the moon, the grievous stars."

Interestingly, Rerir's chess piece (and probably constellation) is a wolf on a crescent moon. Moreover, in the Nod-Krai trailer, the narrating voice says, 'Beyond the moonlight's reach, an ancient shadow brandishes its hunting claws, taking aim at the stars...'

Lord of the Crossroads: In the Columbina weapon, she is referred to as the 'Lord of the Crossroads'. However, in Natlan lore, this entity appears to have both male and female aspects, which are linked to death and sleep respectively.

During the "Dreamy Paititi" quest, a mysterious voice says:

>???: O Syrup Mother, o Phlogiston Father! Let us meld together like sweet honey, and burn like flames...
...The Lord of the Crossroads raises their baton, and onward floats the boat of the golden moon...
The smoldering treasures lie at the crossroads, beneath the silver moon...
The scalding treasures lie beneath the light of the false moon... ...
...
"Farewell, child of the stars! Should we not meet again in this nation... I shall await you in another..."

If the Silver Moon is Columbina and the Frost Moon, then the 'False Moon' could be the Crimson Moon. In any case, we still don't understand what these lines might suggest, even though the false moon projection disappeared after Zibai's resurrection.