While I was in Mondstadt, I never imagined becoming a god.

"When Lady Fox Abbot was alive, she personally presided over the affairs."

"After that calamity five hundred years ago, I'm probably the only one left who knows about this ritual."

"And if that filth is not removed in time, it will one day erode the entire Divine Cherry Tree..."

Xu Chuan, who had been listening in for a while, then interrupted their conversation.

"I think the Great Purification of Divine Cherry Blossoms needs to cleanse more than just this one place of filth."

His voice wasn't loud, but it accurately hit the nail on the head.

“Indeed.” Hana Sanri nodded. “The root system is located below the mountain, where the filth is most concentrated.”

"In addition, there are four other branch roots that need to be removed first: the Forest of Guardians, the Wild Sea, the mudflats outside the Kamisato-yashiki, and the area near Konta Village."

"That's settled then." Xu Chuan clapped his hands, making a gesture as if assigning tasks.

"I happen to have some matters to discuss with Miss Hanahara in private. I'll leave the other four places to you, Shinji."

Yae no Miko's gaze shifted between the two, finally settling on Xu Chuan.

Hana Sanri laughed.

"Go, divine child, go do what you must do."

Her voice was gentle yet firm, like an elder comforting a worried child.

The familiar voice startled Yae no Miko.

The floodgates of memory suddenly opened, and she seemed to have returned to hundreds of years ago, to that sunny afternoon.

Fox Palace smiled and said to her, "Go, Divine Child, I'll be back soon."

But the person speaking is not the same one.

"it is good."

Yae no Miko readily agreed and turned to leave.

The hem of her skirt billowed in a clean arc behind her, and the Kagura bells jingled crisply.

She didn't turn around.

Once Yae no Miko's figure disappeared beyond the remnants of the barrier, the entire underground space fell silent once more.

All that remained was the sound of the filth surging outside the golden barrier in the distance, like distant ocean tides.

Xu Chuan turned around and met Hana Sanri's gaze.

"My name is Xu Chuan," he said, his tone casual and frank. "I'm that guy's friend."

"Lord Xu Chuan seems quite interested in me," Hua Sanli said unhurriedly. "From the moment we started, your gaze has never left me."

She said this in a calm tone, but with a hint of scrutiny.

"You guessed right." Xu Chuan readily admitted, taking a step forward.

“I’m very curious about your current state. This form, which has been formed by being tainted by the filth of the abyss, is neither a pure spirit nor completely filthy, but rather something in between.”

His gaze fell on the dark purple mist surrounding Hana Sanri, his eyes focused and burning with the intensity of a researcher looking at a rare specimen.

"What I'm curious about is, after the Divine Cherry Blossom Purification is completed and the filth is completely eradicated, will you still be able to remain in this world?"

The answer is no.

Hana Sanri shook her head, her tone calm to the point of cruelty, "I depend on the power of filth for my existence. Without it as my support, I will completely dissipate. The day the Divine Cherry Blossom Purification is completed will be the day Hana Sanri disappears."

She spoke casually, seemingly unconcerned about what might happen to her.

Xu Chuan laughed and shook his head.

"That is indeed the case under normal circumstances."

He paused, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

"But what I want to know is, would things be different if I had intervened?"

Hana Sanri paused for a moment, then looked deeply at Xu Chuan with her eyes hidden behind the fox mask.

She didn't know what the young man was planning, but she could sense that there was no malice in his eyes.

And what does she have to lose?

"If that's all there is to it, I'd be happy to cooperate with Lord Xu Chuan in the experiment."

Hana Sanri's voice was calm and composed.

After all, once the Divine Cherry Blossom Great Purification is over, I will also disappear completely.

What is there to worry about when something is destined to disappear?

"That's exactly what I've been waiting to hear."

Having received the answer he wanted, Xu Chuan immediately took action.

He raised his right hand, his five fingers slightly spread, and an invisible wave instantly spread throughout the entire space.

Spirit Capture and General Dispatch—Spirit Capture!

In an instant, all the restless, filthy spirits in the entire underground space fell still.

The warrior ghosts blocked by the golden light barrier seemed to have been paused, frozen in place in various distorted postures, even the swirling filthy mist on their bodies stagnated.

Hana Sanri's body trembled violently.

Beneath the fox mask, those calm eyes suddenly widened, revealing an expression of disbelief and shock.

She felt that her body was completely out of her control.

Even the wisps of foul mist that clung to her no longer obeyed her will.

It was as if an invisible hand was holding her whole body in its palm, and every movement and breath required the permission of that hand.

And the source of all this was the young man in front of them with a seemingly harmless smile.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Ms. Hanasanri."

Xu Chuan's tone was polite and gentle, which contrasted sharply with what he was doing.

"what are you up to?"

A slight fluctuation appeared in Hana Sanri's voice.

"Don't be nervous." Xu Chuan said as he manipulated Hana Sanri's body to walk in front of him.

"Next, I will only use some basic alchemy techniques, along with the Liyue alchemy cauldron and talisman techniques, as well as the shikigami techniques I learned from Narukami Taisha..."

He listed each dish as if reciting a menu, his tone utterly casual.

With each additional noun he uttered, the expression beneath Hana Sanri's mask became increasingly complex.

How much has this person actually learned?

Xu Chuan reached out and his fingertips touched the edge of the white fox mask.

He gently lifted it, and the mask fell off.

Beneath her shoulder-length short hair, a bright and charming face was exposed in the dim light of the underground space.

The lines of that face were soft and delicate, and her eyes were like two deep lakes, holding the sediment of hundreds of years.

Her appearance is somewhat similar to that of Yae no Miko, but her temperament is completely different, possessing a unique charm that belongs to Hana-san.

More serene and reserved, like a moon veiled by thin clouds.

"She's clearly very beautiful, so why does she wear a mask in public?"

Xu Chuan scrutinized her face, his tone tinged with genuine regret.

Hana Sanri: "..."

Faced with Xu Chuan's direct gaze, she subconsciously wanted to turn her head away to avoid his eyes.

But under the control of the spirit summoner, she couldn't even look away.

He could only let the other person look at his face inch by inch.

Gradually, a blush spread across the base of her ears.

Hana Sanri couldn't help but regret agreeing so quickly.

After Xu Chuan finished admiring it, his gaze cleared again.

And he also made a new discovery.

Just now, under the control of the spirit summoning, Xu Chuan examined Hana Sanri's current body.

She did indeed inherit the memories of the Fox Palace, but during the hundreds of years she existed in her defiled body, she had accumulated her own unique memories as "Hanasanori".

Those memories weren't from Fox Palace, they were from Flower Scattering.

It is precisely because she has her own life and memories that she deliberately wears a mask and is unwilling to meet anyone she knows from the Fox Palace.

Because she could neither respond to their longing as the Fox Palace nor bear to tell them about the person standing before them.

He is no longer the person you were waiting for.

Whether it's Fox Palace, Flower Scattering, or Ineff after them, the same applies.

Their memories shine like gold, and even when tainted by the abyss, they remain true to themselves.

And this is exactly what Xu Chuan wanted to see.

An independent soul leaves its own mark over time.

Xu Chuan held the white fox mask in his hand and examined it for a moment.

Then, golden light shone from his palm.

A rich golden light emanated from between his five fingers, like liquid gold, completely enveloping the entire mask.

The light flows, permeates, and weaves on the surface of the mask, outlining intricate and complex patterns.

Just as he had just told Hana Sanri, he wanted to try to create an alchemical artifact that could temporarily hold memories.

It's only a temporary measure, buying him time for the next step.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to such lengths.

What Xu Chuan truly wanted to do was to emulate Abedo's method of creation and forge his own path.

Abeldo created artificial life through human alchemy.

What Xu Chuan wants to do is to use his own will to reverse the life and death timeline of Teyvat.

Let those destined to vanish remain in the world, even those souls on the verge of extinction, and let them burn again.

Chapter 196 The Power Within Blood

Golden light shone in his hand, flowing between Xu Chuan's five fingers.

The moment the golden light touched it, the fox mask began to transform.

On the originally plain white fox mask, golden cloud patterns spread out like vines, climbing along the contours of the mask and outlining intricate and ancient patterns.

Each line is a miniature talisman.

Although he has not yet reached the level of the True Lord of Cloud Retention and Wind Borrowing.

However, it is still possible to connect them into a miniature formation.

This mask has been with Hana Sanri for hundreds of years.

Living together day and night is enough for an ordinary object to absorb the aura of its owner; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a sacred relic.

It is more suitable than any other material for making containers to hold memories.

Of course, he could also use a more direct method.

The Spirit Binding Technique was activated, directly drawing the filthy form of Hana Sanri into its body.

But doing so would be like planting a time bomb in her soul.

The abyssal power contained within the filth will become a part of her, gradually eroding her memories and will.

In the original storyline, Dulin, who was given a new life by Abedo, is still struggling against the power of the abyss within him.