Villain Simulator, Ch 277

[After all, having lost the authority of the Gnosis, the so-called Cryo Archon is nothing more than an empty shell.]

[And having lost her authority, the Tsaritsa completely sealed herself within the palace of ice and snow, unwilling to even meet with the Fatui Harbingers. After all, it was these very Harbingers who sold her nation to others.]

[The only ones who could approach the Tsaritsa were the guards who accompanied her day and night, especially Tonia. The Tsaritsa knew she had a blood feud with you for the murder of her brother and would never betray her. But how could she have foreseen that, in just a few nights, you had already turned Tonia into your pawn?]

[Meanwhile, you held several meetings with the Fatui Harbingers, drafting plans for the path ahead.]

[Once all matters were settled, you departed on your journey home, accompanied by the three Harbingers—La Signora, Pantalone, and Sandrone.]

[Age 40: Upon returning to Liyue, you felt a surreal sense of dislocation. As the victorious Tian Kui Star, you were naturally met with a hero's welcome, with the citizens of Liyue lining the streets to celebrate your triumph. Your accomplishment in bringing Snezhnaya to heel further elevated your status. In the history of Liyue, the only person to have ever reached such heights was the now-deceased Geo Archon himself.]

[You visited the cemetery to pay respects to your late wife, Huixin. She had long understood most of what you had done but had never spoken of it. After all, you had indeed inherited the will of the previous Tianshu. However, the burden had weighed heavily on her over the years, and perhaps, for her, death had been a release.]

[You placed her favorite bouquet before her gravestone and whispered your plan to her: "One day, I will make Liyue stand at the pinnacle of the Seven Nations."]

[This was not merely a patriot's declaration—it was also your ultimate goal. Simply ruling Liyue was no longer enough to satisfy your ever-growing ambition. Only by making Liyue tower above the Seven Nations could you, the Tian Kui, truly reign supreme over all.]

This feeling...

Lucas couldn't help but feel puzzled. Was this another path of conquest across the Seven Nations?

But hadn't he already played through a similar scenario when simulating the King of the Tempest? Was history repeating itself?

Yet he soon realized he was mistaken.

After all, the Tian Kui was not the God of Storms. More importantly, under his command were the Fatui—unruly, but invaluable as chess pieces.

[Age 41: With Snezhnaya now under Liyue's rule, you leveraged the influence of the Northland Bank and the power to create Mora, transforming Liyue Harbor into the economic and transportation hub of the entire continent of Teyvat. The prosperity drew envoys from all Seven Nations, creating an unprecedented spectacle.]

[To achieve your grand ambition of reigning over the Seven Nations, the Gnosis was an indispensable asset. The pursuit of these divine artifacts was the very reason the Fatui willingly served under you.]

[However, this time, you planned to take a "gentler" approach to your conquest.]

[Age 42: Of the remaining five Gnoses, you set your sights on the Hydro Gnosis of Fontaine first. While Fontaine's military strength was far inferior to Liyue's, waging an unprovoked war under Liyue's growing international influence would be an irrational course of action.]

[So, you adopted a different method. Fontaine was renowned as the City of Art but lacked natural resources—especially heating fuel, which it relied on importing from Snezhnaya.]

[Along with the Fatui, you orchestrated a series of hidden maneuvers, engineering "natural disasters" to disrupt the Fontaine-Snezhnaya trade route known as the North Xi. This led to a skyrocketing fuel crisis in Fontaine, leaving many citizens facing a bitterly cold winter without sufficient resources.]

[Liyue extended a "helping hand" at this crucial moment, offering large quantities of affordable fuel—on one condition: the surrender of the Hydro Gnosis.]

[The ensuing debate within Fontaine was fierce, but in the end, the people took their grievances to court, using the very laws that Fontaine prided itself on to force their Archon to relinquish her Gnosis.]

[And so, in this nation of justice, the Hydro Archon became the first god in history to be openly betrayed by her people and the first divine defendant in a court of law.]

[Age 43: The dragon calamity in Mondstadt presented you with the perfect opportunity. Barbatos, the Anemo Archon, exhausted much of his divine power to quell the disaster. You then dispatched La Signora to seize his Gnosis at the opportune moment.]

[Manipulating Barbatos' lingering guilt over Rosalyne, you easily took the Anemo Gnosis from him. As a form of "compensation," you promised to send him a bottle of Liyue's finest wine every month.]

...

[Age 47: In the years that followed, with the help of the Fatui, you secured the remaining three Gnoses—Sumeru's Dendro Gnosis, Natlan's Pyro Gnosis, and Inazuma's Electro Gnosis. Though not without challenges, none of these conquests caused significant upheaval.]

[Perhaps, to the Seven Archons, the so-called "Gnosis" was never truly "essential". But you remained steadfast in your "principle of interest": as long as the benefits were sufficient, there was nothing that couldn't be traded—not even the authority of the Seven Archons.]

[Age 48: With all seven Gnoses in your possession, the next phase of your plan could finally begin. Beyond collecting the Gnoses, you had tasked the Fatui with locating the "ley lines" scattered across Teyvat and marking them all.]

[Using the power of the Gnoses, you altered the ley lines, causing a strange "tectonic drift" across the entire Teyvat continent. This drift did not affect the geology or structures, but in a single night, it pulled the other six nations towards Liyue, centering them around Liyue Harbor.]

[Thus, the next morning, many who woke up in a daze were astonished to find a magnificent floating pavilion in the sky, and the once distant Liyue Harbor now right before their eyes!]

[For most humans, this was undoubtedly a divine miracle. The act of drawing the six nations towards Liyue, creating a situation where they revolved around it like stars around the moon, only solidified one truth—Liyue was the heart of Teyvat!]

[Of course, they were unaware that this was all the work of man, not fate. As everyone stood in shock, a colossal figure suddenly appeared atop the grand floating pavilion...]