"Jiang Yan, you explain it."
Morax looked at Jiang Yan and spoke.
"Alright."
Jiang Yan nodded, his gaze turning toward the assembled adepti.
"You all…"
"Do you know about the Abyss?"
Jiang Yan spoke slowly.
The adepti exchanged glances, all of them wearing puzzled expressions.
The Abyss?
What was that?
"The Abyss…"
Guizhong frowned slightly, a strange glimmer flashing through her eyes.
"Guizhong, you know about it?"
Cloud Retainer asked in confusion. As her longtime friend, she knew Guizhong must be aware of something.
Guizhong nodded.
"Back when we were still at Guili Plains, I once read a few ancient books related to mechanical arts."
"In them—"
"—there were mentions of a jet-black power."
"Judging from Jiang Yan's description, this thing should be what's known as…"
"Abyssal power!"
"But at the time, Jiang Yan told me he wanted to implement an agrarian settlement system in Guili Plains. I became busy with that and never continued my research…"
"As for the exact details…"
"Sorry. I seem to have forgotten."
Guizhong frowned deeply. She tried hard to recall it, yet the information about that jet-black power felt as if it had been inexplicably erased from her memory.
Not only Morax—
Even Jiang Yan's expression tightened.
Jet-black power!
Others might not know what it was, but how could Jiang Yan not?
Wasn't that Forbidden Knowledge?!
Thankfully, Jiang Yan had already erased the existence of Forbidden Knowledge itself. Because of that, no matter how hard Guizhong tried, she would never be able to recall anything about that power.
Only now did Jiang Yan finally understand—
Why Guizhong had died during the Archon War.
In the original timeline, during Morax's battles against Osial and the others, his territory hadn't been nearly this vast.
With the Yakshas, the adepti, Azhdaha, and Marchosius all present, there was no way Guizhong should have died so easily.
But now it was clear.
In the original story, Guizhong's death wasn't due to the encirclement of rival gods—
It was because she had come into contact with Forbidden Knowledge.
Khaenri'ah studied Forbidden Knowledge, touched the Abyss, and was forcibly destroyed by the Heavenly Principles.
King Deshret came into contact with Forbidden Knowledge, was consumed by the jet-black power, lost himself, and caused his once-glorious desert civilization to collapse overnight.
Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, after touching Forbidden Knowledge, was forced to erase herself.
Every single annihilation—
Was rooted in contact with Forbidden Knowledge.
If that was the case, then Guizhong's death in the original timeline was very likely tied to Forbidden Knowledge as well…
A look of relief appeared in Jiang Yan's eyes.
Fortunately—
Fortunately, he had proposed the agrarian system back then, keeping Guizhong so busy that she never had the chance to research that thing further.
Otherwise, with the strength Jiang Yan had at the time, there would have been no way to save Guizhong.
Fortunately… truly fortunately.
"If you can't remember, then don't force yourself to."
Jiang Yan suddenly spoke.
Just to be safe—even though he was certain that the existence of Forbidden Knowledge had already been erased by him—
That thing was like something straight out of Lovecraftian mythos.
It could not be heard.
It could not be spoken.
It could not be thought of.
If it surfaced even slightly, everything Jiang Yan had done to the Irminsul would be rendered meaningless.
After saying that, he looked at the adepti.
"On the snow mountain, the humanoid machines that suddenly appeared come from an underground kingdom known as the Black Sun Dynasty."
"And that subterranean nation was founded during the Archon War by people who refused to accept the protection of the gods—who refused to worship them."
"In other words, this nation was never placed under the rule of the Seven Gods. It is a country built entirely by humans!"
Jiang Yan slowly recounted what he knew about the Black Sun Dynasty—Khaenri'ah.
The more the adepti listened, the heavier their expressions became.
Especially when they heard what kind of devastation the Abyss could bring—
Shock filled their eyes.
Only now did they truly understand why Morax's expression had been so grave after reading that document.
If such a thing were to flow into Liyue, the damage would be utterly irreparable.
"This thing must never be allowed to enter Liyue!"
Azhdaha said solemnly.
"Why not simply wipe out that kingdom and eliminate the threat at its root?"
Moon Carver spoke coldly.
As always, Moon Carver's stance was extremely aggressive.
After hearing his proposal, both Mountain Shaper and Cloud Retainer nodded in agreement.
In their view, with Liyue's current military strength, destroying a godless nation would be effortless.
"No."
Jiang Yan shook his head, his eyes calm and unwavering.
"First, we have no just cause. In terms of legitimacy, we would already be in the wrong."
"Second, wiping out a nation founded by humans without reason—what would our people think? You must remember that the vast majority of Liyue's citizens are also human."
"Third, we know nothing about the Black Sun Dynasty's hidden trump cards. If we force them into a corner and start a war, there's no guarantee they won't resort to mutual destruction."
This wasn't speculation.
In the original timeline, when Khaenri'ah fell, that was exactly what happened.
They unleashed all of their Ruin Machines, carrying Abyssal monsters, and dragged the battlefield straight into the lands of the Seven Nations—
Causing catastrophic losses across all seven.
"We can't fight them, but we also can't just stand by and watch them touch that power!"
Cloud Retainer said angrily.
She wasn't angry at Jiang Yan's decision—because everything he said was correct.
Liyue truly could not go to war with another nation without justification.
"Jiang Yan, what are you thinking?"
Guizhong asked softly, looking at him.
She knew that if Jiang Yan spoke this way, he must already have a plan.
"Wait."
Jiang Yan spoke only a single word.
Yet it left everyone completely confused.
Wait?
Wait for what?
Even Morax, who had remained silent until now, turned his gaze toward Jiang Yan, his eyes questioning.
Yes—
Jiang Yan intended to wait.
Wait for Khaenri'ah to walk down the road of no return.
Wait until the Heavenly Principles could no longer tolerate it, and summoned the gods to destroy Khaenri'ah.
When that time came—
Every bit of blame, every sin—
Would be borne by the Heavenly Principles alone.
Jiang Yan didn't care whether Khaenri'ah lived or died.
He wasn't a saint.
From the Archon War until now, no matter what he did or planned, it had always been for one simple reason—
As long as the people around him were still there,
As long as they lived happily—
That was enough.
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