Chapter 69

The voice of the Great Dendro Archon, Nahida, spread throughout Sumeru. The Void left behind by the Great Dendro Archon was just a computational device, transformed into its current form by successive generations of sages from the Akademiya over the past five hundred years. It can be said to be Teyvat's version of the Internet, even more powerful than the Internet.

The sages of the Akademiya never imagined that the Void device they had modified and perfected would one day become the tool that dragged them into the abyss.

At this moment, all of Sumeru seemed to press the pause button. Merchants doing business in Sumeru City, residents buying daily necessities, adventurers from the other six nations, members of the Eremites trading ores and meat with the people of Sumeru, and the Corps of Thirty defending Sumeru City—everyone stopped what they were doing and listened to the voice of the god in their Void terminals. It was the first time they heard the voice of their god.

"What's going on? Why did the first thing the Great Archon did upon her return was to declare the Akademiya guilty?"

"What happened? Did the Akademiya do something?"

"Could it be that the disappearance of the Dendro Archon for five hundred years has something to do with the Akademiya?"

"Could it be that the Great Archon disapproves of what the Akademiya has done?"

Human imagination is endless, and at the moment when Nahida pronounced the will of the god, everyone began to speculate on what crime the Akademiya had committed. Apart from the Akademiya members themselves, no one doubted the judgment of the Great Archon.

Human nature is such: "Once the seeds of doubt are sown, the fruits of sin will grow." No matter how you explain it, doubt only deepens.

Cyno, the General Mahamatra, who was arresting criminals for selling canned knowledge outside of Sumeru City, stopped in his tracks, his expression instantly turning pale.

"What's going on? What did the Akademiya do to cause the Great Archon to start a reckoning as soon as she returned?"

Many within the Akademiya had done terrible things—this much he knew. He had been investigating, but every time he reached a critical moment, the evidence would vanish, or he would be blocked by the Grand Sage, preventing him from continuing his investigation.

"Something earth-shattering is about to happen." He muttered.

"The case of selling canned knowledge will have to wait for now. I must organize all the Matra to return to Sumeru City and assist the Great Archon in the investigation." Cyno instructed decisively.

"Also, the rangers who are far from Sumeru's political core must be notified."

Since Cyno witnessed the corruption within the Akademiya, he had resolved to bring all criminals to justice. When he arrested the researcher studying the Delusion, his Vision lit up. The gods had approved his resolve, and thus, what he did would not be obstructed by the sages.

Avidya Forest—

Tighnari, who was tending to Collei, whose Eleazar had just been cured, heard the voice of the Great Dendro Archon. He paused and looked towards the direction of Sumeru City.

"Collei, inform all the rangers in the Avidya Forest. We need to head to Sumeru City to understand what's happening. Things might be changing."

Collei nodded, though she didn't fully understand the situation. She trusted her mentor, and the Great Archon had declared the Akademiya guilty. Tighnari had exiled himself to the forest due to his disapproval of the Akademiya's actions.

In Sumeru City—

Faruzan, who had just returned to Sumeru from her hundred-year exile, remained calm as she watched the chaos outside the classroom caused by the Great Archon's words.

She had traveled far and wide in search of the Red King's ruins, and had witnessed many wrongdoings—scholars abusing their power, bullying the weak. It was inevitable that there would be a reckoning.

Layla, a student at Rtawahist studying astrology, wasn't entirely surprised by the news.

The day before, she had seen the stars align in a way that foretold the downfall of those in power within the Akademiya. Her mentor had brushed her off, but now she understood. The Great Archon was back to judge those who had committed heinous deeds.

Elsewhere—

Alhaitham, the Acting Grand Sage, sighed and set his book aside. "Something big has happened. I'll have to pause my reading for now. If this isn't addressed, it will disrupt my routine."

The door to his study was kicked open, and Kaveh rushed in. "Alhaitham, stop reading! Something big has happened!"

Alhaitham looked at Kaveh, his eyes conveying the usual sense of disbelief.

As time moved forward, discussions became louder, suspicions grew deeper, and resentment rose to the surface—all directed at the Akademiya. People had begun recounting their grievances.

"You ask what the Akademiya did? Just yesterday, a scholar took my daughter away to work as a servant."

"The supplies I shipped from Fontaine were all seized by the Akademiya on grounds of insufficient customs duty!"

"You people in the rainforest have it easy. In the desert, there's a human experimentation facility set up by the Akademiya. You can hear screams every day."

"Yeah, I checked it out after they left. Corpses cut into pieces. Even for a desert dweller, it was revolting."

"My land was stolen by a scholar, and my son was beaten to death!"

"The Great Archon is finally back to bring us justice."

In the Grand Bazaar—

Nilou, a performer at the Zubair Theater, stood with her hands clasped tightly in front of her chest, watching the people express their grievances. Tears welled in her eyes.

"The gods of Sumeru have returned. Though I don't know everything, I know things will be better from now on."

Meanwhile, in the Akademiya—

Panic spread among the sages. Their once-imperious attitudes vanished, and they became frantic.

Grand Sage Azar slammed his desk, yelling, "What's happening? Why did the Great Archon declare us guilty?"

The Sage of Amurta, Khajeh, looked terrified. "Could it be because of that child deity we imprisoned?"

The Sage of Spantamad, Iskandar, shouted, "She must be the daughter of the Great Dendro Archon! That's why she looks just like her!"

"This was the decision of the first Grand Sage, not ours. Why should we pay for it?"

Azar retorted, "The first Grand Sage did the right thing! That child was no god. She lacked the wisdom to govern Sumeru! Without our work, this nation would have collapsed! The Great Archon must understand that."

"Yes, the Great Archon will understand. We are the representatives of wisdom. She must see reason."

Just as the sages were trying to justify their actions, images began to play across everyone's Void terminals.

The scenes that appeared drained the color from the sages' faces. They were rendered speechless, drenched in cold sweat.

The entire nation of Sumeru watched in shock as their worst suspicions were confirmed.