Chapter 1: Restoring Khaenri'ah, You Have to Start with Branches and Leaves

**Chapter 1: Restoring Khaenri'ah, You Have to Start with Branches and Leaves**

Khaenri'ah.

In the darkest depths, there lies a ruined royal city.

The enormous scale of the city and the broken bricks and tiles of the magnificent buildings show its former glory and strength.

However, that has all become a thing of the past.

The street market, once brightly lit, has long been in ruins. The ground is cracked, and there are ruins and debris everywhere.

It has been abandoned for hundreds of years.

Wet and sticky vines and moss have given this trauma-filled city an aged appearance.

Looking at the ruins before him, Ye Xi felt a little confused.

He had just crossed over and was still somewhat disoriented.

"Xi, this is simply a miracle!"

"I didn't expect you to break free from the curse of immortality! How did you do it?"

Next to Ye Xi was a boy with yellow hair, his face full of surprise.

This person, Ye Xi knows!

He is the male protagonist of the original game!

For people who have been playing *Genshin* for two years, seeing game characters appear in front of them is beyond shocking!

Suddenly, Ye Xi felt a sharp pain in his brain, and then strange memories emerged.

It was as if a movie was playing in his mind, with countless images flashing by.

The original owner of this body was a royal noble from the Kingdom of Khaenri'ah, five hundred years ago, who studied the Abyss and ley lines at the Kingdom's Research Institute.

Due to his powerful swordsmanship and sharp mind, he was once hailed as the next king of the royal family.

At that time, given the extremely dangerous power of the Abyss, he repeatedly advised King Irmin to abandon his plan to explore the Abyss.

Unfortunately, his advice, along with that of court mage Pierro, couldn't outweigh the counsel of the Grand Sage of the time, the alchemist of gold, Rhinedottir.

At the time, Khaenri'ah was proud of the power of the Unholy Kingdom and believed they could easily control the power of the Abyss.

Then came the disaster.

It wasn't because the power of the Abyss spiraled out of control, but rather because there was a punishment from Celestia!

When the Seven descended upon Khaenri'ah, the Golden Alchemist completely succumbed before the death of the gods, unleashing the power of darkness.

The power of the Abyss turned into a catastrophe in an instant, dragging all of Khaenri'ah into extreme peril.

Fortunately, he was skilled with a sword and survived the disaster.

He thought that was the end of it, but then the laws of heaven struck again!

All those who carry the blood of Khaenri'ah would lose their sanity under the burden of eternal life!

Those who defected to Khaenri'ah would be corroded by the power of the Abyss and turned into monsters!

By now, the citizens of Khaenri'ah have transformed into Abyssal monsters, and the curse of immortality has completely destroyed Khaenri'ah.

Later, the original owner of the body lost his sanity after five hundred years of torment.

Since he and Aether used to be good friends, after he lost himself, Aether brought him back to Khaenri'ah to meet his end.

At that moment, Ye Xi arrived.

He successfully inherited this body and miraculously freed himself from the curse of immortality!

After understanding the situation, Ye Xi fell into deep thought.

Now what to do?

"Xi, this is the beginning!"

"If you can break free from the curse of undeath, you can bring hope to Khaenri'ah!"

Ye Xi felt a headache when he saw Aether, whose expression had become fanatical, and the excited Abyssal apostles.

Against the heavens?

Against what exactly?

At that time, Aether was summoned by Khaenri'ah and considered the national treasure of Khaenri'ah, so Aether had special feelings for the kingdom.

Since the fall of Khaenri'ah, Aether has vowed to avenge the kingdom, not hesitating to use the power of the Abyss.

Now that Ye Xi has freed himself from the curse of immortality, Aether will definitely drag him into the great cause of restoring Khaenri'ah.

However, in the face of Celestia and the Seven, his strength is not enough!

Just as he was thinking this, an ethereal voice suddenly echoed.

[Ding~ The Branches and Leaves System has been activated!]

[Concubines and children, many rewards await!]

[Superpowers, divine powers, immortal abilities, advanced weapons...]

[Concubines who are willing to follow the host will also gain special abilities!]

[The host is requested to take a concubine as soon as possible and spread branches and leaves for Khaenri'ah!]

[Take the newbie gift pack, do you want to receive it?]

A series of beeps made Ye Xi rejoice.

This system is truly wonderful!

He immediately asked Aether beside him: "Aether, can I join you?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Aether nodded as if it were only natural: "Of course!"

"As the purest bloodline of Khaenri'ah, you've also escaped the curse of immortality. Naturally, you are the leader of our Khaenri'ah Restoration Plan!"

"Besides, you were once crowned king! Although you can't ascend the throne in the future, looking at the current state of Khaenri'ah, no one is qualified to ascend the throne except you."

"Me, as king..."

Ye Xi shook his head and said, "Aether, you are the Prince of the Abyss and should be the king of Khaenri'ah!"

"Stop joking, Xi!"

With sincerity in his eyes, he smiled and said, "I will travel to other worlds in the future, and you're the only one who can become the king of Khaenri'ah!"

The Abyss Mage and the Black Serpent Knight beside him knelt and bowed their heads to Ye Xi.

"His Highness is right, the only one who can become king is Ye Xi! Ye Xi is our new king!"

"My lord, please give us orders! We must let the glory of Khaenri'ah blossom once more on the continent of Teyvat!"

"We are willing to follow you! Just please defeat Celestia and avenge your people!"

"..."

These citizens of Khaenri'ah, cursed and tainted, spoke prayers that shook their souls.

"Xi, for the sake of Khaenri'ah, we need to quickly increase our strength!"

"We must overthrow the heavens' rule and rebuild a new order!"

Seeing the sincere expressions of everyone, Ye Xi had no choice but to say, "Very well."

"Since you have prayed to me with such devotion, I shall answer you!"

The Black Serpent Knights and Abyss Apostles erupted into enthusiastic cheers.

Ye Xi waved his hand, and the surroundings suddenly fell silent.

He looked at Aether and said, "Aether, I believe that the restoration of Khaenri'ah has something more important than fighting against the heavens!"

"What could be more important?"

With a puzzled look on Aether's face, Ye Xi asked, "What do you think is the key to Khaenri'ah's recovery?"

Without hesitation, Aether replied, "Of course, it's power! We must grow stronger! We must continue to grow stronger! There is still an unfinished war between us and Celestia!"

Ye Xi sighed, shook his head, and said, "Before gaining power, the population of Khaenri'ah is more important!"

"How many people are left in Khaenri'ah now? How many are deeply cursed? How many are affected by the Abyss?"

"In this situation, how can we restore the kingdom?"

Hearing these words, Aether was struck as if by lightning, nodding repeatedly: "That makes sense! I've been so focused on revenge against Celestia that I forgot about the people of Khaenri'ah!"

Ye Xi seized the moment and said, "Then, the restoration of Khaenri'ah must begin with spreading branches and leaves."

Aether suddenly fell into deep thought...

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