Natlan.
People of the Springs.
Two young people, a man and a woman, stepped out of the house under the cover of night and went to a place where no one was around.
Before long, both of them became soaking wet.
"Soaking in a hot spring and looking at the stars at night when no one else is around..."
"...is the most comfortable thing."
The girl in the white swimsuit said joyfully.
She had shoulder-length white hair, red eyes that sparkled like gems, and her tanned skin looked healthy and full, giving off an impression of extraordinary vitality.
She was Mualani.
The rising star of the People of the Springs, wielder of a Hydro Vision, successor of an ancient name, the most troublesome troublemaker in Natlan... there were simply too many titles that could be applied to Mualani.
Any one of them would be enough to make many Natlan people cast envious glances.
However, compared to the boy in the same hot spring pool, Mualani's titles were not enough.
Because the boy soaking in the hot spring with Mualani at this moment was no ordinary person, but the next Pyro Archon of Natlan.
"Caelus, say something."
"Don't look down on your partners from the People of the Springs after you become the Pyro Archon."
Mualani playfully lifted her leg, and the water splashed into the hot spring, creating ripples that washed over the boy's body.
Caelus was a red-haired, gold-eyed boy; his exquisite face could be called the most handsome in Teyvat.
He just looked too young, often making people think he was still just a child rather than the Pyro Archon who was about to become the deity of a nation.
"I can only be called the Pyro Archon after I get the Gnosis."
"Right now, I can at most be called a Vision holder."
Caelus smiled gently, making a joke that only he could understand.
Over ten years ago, he transmigrated into the world of "Genshin Impact" and became an infant in Natlan.
His parents in this life were warriors of the People of the Springs who unfortunately sacrificed themselves in the battle against the Abyss, leaving him an orphan at a young age.
As a transmigrator, he didn't have a system; everything had to be done by himself.
Fortunately, his talent was very good; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was extremely strong.
From a young age, he showed combat power stronger than that of adults, and even battle-hardened warriors were no match for him.
Not long ago, he also received the gaze of a deity and obtained a Pyro Vision.
As someone who had watched anime like "Naruto," "One Piece," "Fairy Tail," and "Fire Force" before transmigrating...
Caelus's use of flames far exceeded that of the locals, and his imagination left the people of Natlan in awe.
His strength improved by leaps and bounds, and he thus gained the qualification to compete for the position of Pyro Archon.
On the continent of Teyvat, seven deities govern their respective nations; they are known as the Seven Archons.
In Natlan, however, the Pyro Archon is chosen from among mortals.
The lifespan of humans cannot compare to that of gods; even if they become the Pyro Archon, their lifespan will be exhausted in about a hundred years.
At that time, the strongest person among the Natlan people must be selected through a selection process to serve as the Pyro Archon.
Caelus fought his way through the selection process, easily defeating competitors from other Tribes.
Only in the final battle, facing Mavuika from the Scions of the Canopy, did he spend a little effort, taking 20 seconds to defeat her.
As the final winner, Caelus naturally became the next Pyro Archon.
Although he was the youngest of all the contestants.
But in Natlan, might makes right.
Since Caelus had won over everyone in Natlan with his own strength, the people of Natlan would also flock to support him as the new Pyro Archon.
"To think I was an atheist in my last life, yet in this life, I've become the Pyro Archon above ten thousand people."
"I wonder if I can do a good job."
When Caelus was online in his previous life, he was either reading novels or playing games; he hadn't even dabbled in politics.
After coming to this world, he only thought about becoming stronger and had no clue how to manage a country.
The middle school, high school, and university he attended before might have taught this knowledge, but Caelus had returned it all to his teachers after graduation.
A headache.
Even soaking in a hot spring couldn't relieve it.
"Caelus, it's rare to come out for a hot spring soak; just enjoy it and stop thinking about what happens after you become a god."
"Once you become the Pyro Archon, it'll be hard to call you out again."
Noticing the boy's expression was off, Mualani said with concern.
She had grown up with Caelus since childhood, and their relationship was like that of family.
She could sense if something was even slightly wrong with Caelus.
It was precisely because she noticed Caelus had been a bit off after gaining the qualification to become the Pyro Archon that she invited him out for a hot spring soak at night.
Mualani curled up her body, hugging her knees with her hands, her ruby-like beautiful eyes looking over: "Stop thinking about how heavy the burden on your shoulders will be after becoming the Pyro Archon."
"If there are problems you can't solve, you can ask us from the People of the Springs for help; we will definitely help you."
"We will not fight alone; this is something all Natlan people say."
The girl's comfort reached Caelus's ears.
Caelus nodded: "Okay, then I won't think about it."
The pressure was still high.
But as Mualani said, if he encountered problems he couldn't solve, he could still seek help from others.
Mavuika was a very suitable candidate.
If Caelus remembered correctly, in the original work, Mavuika was the one who became the Pyro Archon and managed Natlan very well, indicating her working ability was excellent.
Once Caelus became the Pyro Archon, he could try to dump important tasks on Mavuika.
If a leader doesn't leave the troublesome matters to subordinates, wouldn't being a leader be for nothing?
Just as Caelus calmed his mind to soak in the hot spring, a voice ringing in his head prevented his heart from settling.
[Genshin Impact Plot - Fontaine Chapter is about to end]
[Popularity Character System activated]
Accompanied by a mechanical voice, a blue screen appeared before Caelus's eyes, with data about him written on it.
"So it turns out I have a system?"
If Mualani weren't still by his side, Caelus would probably have laughed out loud on the spot.
He hadn't gotten a system for so many years, and only when he was about to become the Pyro Archon did one appear; it came a bit too late.
Fortunately, he had made the corresponding psychological preparations long ago and could accept awakening a system a long time after transmigrating.
After all, many novels purposely make the system's arrival very late for dramatic effect.
It is said that in some novels, the protagonist has already become a Great Golden Immortal when the system finally arrives.
Compared to those people, Caelus, who got the system just as he was becoming the Pyro Archon, was much luckier.
"I thought I was the talent type, but it turns out I'm still the stat-boost type."
"Say no more, let's see what functions the system has first."
After a moment of regret, Caelus looked at his system.
Name: Caelus.
Gender: Male.
Gnosis: None.
Rank: Five-star.
Weapon: ???
Current Shock Value: 0.
"Isn't this a popularity system?"
"Why did something called Shock Value appear at the end?"
Caelus vaguely remembered the popularity system genre.
Simply put, his experiences in this world would be observed by another world, namely the world of the players.
If his performance could gain the players' favor, he could obtain popularity points, which could then be exchanged for various useful items and props.
But Caelus looked around the panel and didn't see popularity points, only Shock Value.
[Replying to host.]
[Because the host is already the Pyro Archon, you inherently possess extremely high popularity, which wouldn't reflect your performance.]
[Therefore, this system has modified popularity points into Shock Value; you can only obtain Shock Value after bringing surprise to others.]
"So you're saying I lost out?"
Caelus also knew how high his popularity as the Pyro Archon would be.
As long as his characterization didn't have issues, his popularity wouldn't be bad.
But the system also realized this, so it changed popularity points to Shock Value, making his position as the Pyro Archon useless.
[Host, it's actually not a loss.]
[Although you don't have the popularity boost brought by your status as the Pyro Archon, the way to obtain Shock Value is easier than popularity points.]
[Popularity points can only be obtained from players in the player world.]
[But Shock Value can be obtained not only from the player world but also from the world where the host is located.]
Hearing the system's explanation, Caelus's eyes lit up.
"So, if I do some outrageous things after becoming the Pyro Archon tomorrow..."
"...won't I be able to get a large amount of Shock Value from the people of Natlan?"
[Exactly so.]
"I have an idea."
"Making the people of Natlan shocked—that's easy."
"Wouldn't it be enough to just cancel the Holy Night of the Return of Fire and the Night Warden War?"