The shrine, enveloped beneath the enormous Sacred Sakura Tree, was bathed in bright moonlight.
The pond reflected the moon above, the warm lantern lights, and drifting pink sakura petals.
Most of the shrine maidens had their attention fixed on Qiuqian and Yae Miko.
Although Lady Guuji often laughed like this normally, and they couldn't quite hear what she and the mysterious gentleman were discussing—
They had never seen Lady Guuji display such rich expressions before.
In their eyes, that mysterious man's aura even surpassed Yae Miko's.
"What's so funny?" Qiuqian looked at the suddenly laughing Miko beside him, thoroughly puzzled.
"Nothing." Yae Miko smiled and shook her head.
"But the Grand Narukami Shrine at night…"
"It really has a unique kind of beauty."
Qiuqian turned around and praised the nighttime scenery before him.
"Twelve crimson torii stand in rows, where sakura fall beneath glowing lights. Reflected within the moonlit pond, eternal prayers shine bright forever."
Looking at the scenery before him, inspiration struck Qiuqian and he casually recited a poem.
"It really rolls off the tongue nicely."
"And honestly, it fits the Grand Narukami Shrine quite well."
Yae Miko rested one hand against her chin and smiled as she commented on it.
"I don't think it fits that perfectly."
Qiuqian shook his head slightly.
"But you made that poem yourself, didn't you?"
"Could it be the final words, 'shine forever,' that don't fit?"
"After all, didn't you once say that true eternity doesn't exist?"
Yae Miko looked at him curiously.
"Yes… I truly don't believe eternity exists."
"Even seemingly everlasting things like Teyvat and the countless worlds within the sea of stars will eventually disappear at the end of time."
"And in this universe, only two laws will exist eternally alongside it."
"If only those two laws remain forever while everything else perishes… then does everything else truly hold no meaning?"
Qiuqian's tone remained calm as always.
But the indifferent look in his eyes suddenly changed.
"The 'eternal light' mentioned in the poem is more like a longing and hope for beautiful things."
"Miko, you once thought the idea of changing Ei's will was laughable."
"Then wouldn't what I wish to accomplish be even more laughable?"
Qiuqian turned to Yae Miko with a faint smile.
Yae Miko froze.
But then, as though she suddenly understood something, her violet eyes instantly contracted.
Though she couldn't fully comprehend most of what this ancient god was saying—
She did understand one sentence.
And it was simply… insane.
"Isn't this…"
"Far too distant for beings like us?"
Yae Miko asked blankly.
"Distant?"
"On the way to the Grand Narukami Shrine…"
"Didn't I already erase part of the projection of one of those laws within this world?"
Qiuqian asked while gazing at the scenery before them.
Yae Miko's beautiful eyes widened instantly.
At that moment, it felt as though she had learned knowledge she was never meant to know.
"And just when you believed you could never change Ei's will…"
"A traveler from beyond Teyvat arrived in Inazuma."
"Teyvat has its own laws."
"And even a traveler from another world can bring new vitality to this sea."
"So all of this… is not meaningless."
Qiuqian smiled softly while looking at the scenery ahead.
"…"
At this point, Miko completely failed to understand what Qiuqian was talking about anymore.
She only grasped vague fragments.
The moment she learned that Abyssal power was actually some kind of projection, she had already been shocked beyond comprehension.
Afterward, she barely managed to understand a few pieces.
It seemed this ancient god was comparing Teyvat itself to the universe.
If Teyvat possessed its own laws, then the universe naturally possessed its own laws as well.
As for everything after that—
She simply couldn't understand it.
Though she didn't know what Qiuqian was trying to compare things to, she could still sense one thing clearly—
This ancient god's goal was so vast it exceeded her imagination.
And he was simply too mysterious.
Although Sister Ganyu had once spoken of Guixu, her memories of him only remained at three thousand years ago.
The records preserved in Inazuma were the same.
Everything stopped three thousand years in the past.
As though after that point, the ancient god Guixu had simply vanished from existence.
But the more Yae Miko thought about it, the stranger it felt.
An ancient god like Guixu, who carried such grand and insane ambitions—
Was he truly not even stronger than Orobashi?
And he claimed he was heavily injured.
If he was truly so weakened, how could he possibly achieve such a goal?
The more she thought about it, the less sense it made.
At this point, Yae Miko had completely fallen into confusion.
So she decided that next time she visited Liyue, she would ask Sister Ganyu about Orobashi during the Archon War.
After all, Orobashi originally belonged to Liyue's territory.
"Although I can't understand most of what you're saying…"
"I still wish you success."
Yae Miko smiled softly while looking at the scenery ahead.
"By the way, what are we eating for dinner?" Qiuqian suddenly asked with a light laugh.
Yae Miko's mouth twitched slightly.
One second ago, this guy had been discussing things like the universe, worlds within the sea of stars, and Teyvat's laws—
Topics so grand and profound that she couldn't even comprehend them.
And the very next second—
He was asking what they were having for dinner.
For a moment, Yae Miko genuinely didn't know what to say anymore.
"There's still some tamagoyaki on the table over there. Just make do with that."
"I already had someone prepare a room for you."
"I haven't slept in three days, so I'm going to get some proper rest."
Yae Miko rolled her eyes before turning around and walking off into the distance.
"Hahaha…"
Qiuqian watched her departing figure and couldn't help laughing.
Then he walked over toward another wooden table.
Looking at the several plates of tamagoyaki sitting on top of it, Qiuqian didn't stand on ceremony and immediately picked one up and took a bite.
Afterward, he lifted his head and continued admiring the sakura drifting beneath the moonlight.
"Mm…"
"I didn't expect I'd end up telling Miko so much…"
Qiuqian murmured inwardly while watching the falling sakura petals.
After finishing the tamagoyaki, he followed a shrine maiden into a room.
The room was very Japanese in style, with a floor mattress laid neatly on the ground alongside properly arranged blankets and pillows.
Even the door was the sliding kind.
After guiding him there, the shrine maiden quietly left.
"Time for a good night's sleep."
Qiuqian looked around the room, removed his shoes, and lay directly onto the mattress.
It was surprisingly comfortable—different from the bedding in Liyue.
With that thought, Qiuqian closed his eyes and gradually drifted off to sleep.
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