[4.3] The Complete Narzissenkreuz Questline Recap & Analysis - Genshin Impact Lore & Theory

[@kureo-liam]

I worry for Ashikai's sanity...

[@Ryuuki183]

They're already not sane

[@shadowlag6120]

Fr

[@Indian_gae_boii]

The quest was released in patches so understanding this quest was a lot better than the aranara one

[@TyroneIsHere4UrAss]

She dropped Twitter so her sanity is clearly still there.

[@Sofisasam]

​@@Indian_gae_boiitbh for me its the opposite. Having to wait 6 weeks for a follow up quests made me forget a LOT of things overtime

[@sayasakura_]

When the quest's recap exceeds 1 whole hour, you know the quest was good. (and extremely long...)

[@LizardKingRequiem]

No it means the quest likes to waste time and meander around with meaningless fluff and bloated dialogue, length has nothing to do with being good

[@miyomoon477]

​​@@LizardKingRequiem a long recap doesn't have anything to do with bloated dialogs. A long RECAP means the quest has lots of MEANINGFUL stuff in it or else Ashikai would not need it for her theory video.

[@pokelover02]

1 hr of recap covers 10+ hrs of Genshin bloat

[@aichisendou6375]

@@pokelover02 10+ hours that is filled with exploration and dialogues and more stuff to think about. but you cant see past words so all you do is complain and not learning reading skills and building understanding about how the game is constructed

[@哇-n8d]

@@LizardKingRequiem it doesn’t give you shit anyways, i never play the quest without vo i just watches them from this wonderful KZbinr.

[@anokage7403]

"From the moment I understood the weakness of my flesh, it disgusted me." -Alain Guillotin, probably

[@MrMagnetron2]

Rene, definitely

[@MildlySweetCappuccino]

@@MrMagnetron2 Did you watch the video...?

[@liszst]

definitely one of the best questlines in genshin. deserved to be voiced as many others. :(

[@hrs795]

adding 5 GB more for the update. sure all people really want it. 🙄

[@eikirby]

@@hrs795salty for what

[@niicespiice]

@@hrs795 it can be optional though

[@GenerationIcarus]

If Subutai and his team were to do a trailer for this quest line, I would be over the moon. Some of the VAs he gets to help on his projects are really talented. For those unfamiliar, he made the “Shadows in the Sands” animated short.

[@tiktacktoes]

I totally agree with your theory!! The Khaenriah's mage (and another bunch of geniuses who figured out this doomsday) knew they needed a descender as the catalyst against the black void and each one of them tried to solve this problem. 1. Pierro (as we know he is a royal mage from Khaenriah) works with Tsaritsa to 'restore' the 3rd descender from the gnoses (which contains its remains) as he/she is, in fact, a descender. 2. Renee and Rhinedottir try to create their own descender 3. Nicole tries to summon a new descender (Aether and Lumine).

[@Diabloto96]

you mean restore the 3rd descender from the gnoses (plural of gnosis)?

[@tiktacktoes]

@@Diabloto96 oops i just realize i wrote vision 😅 yes i mean the gnosis

[@F1ll1nTh3Blanks]

I feel like somethings may be missing here. The fact that the twins were summoned to Khaenri'ah and the fact that the Unknown God, instead of eliminating the twins, opted to send them back. 🤔 Also, I think there is potentially something else, I am just struggling to work out what it is.

[@heartachesnrots]

I also think that Skirk (or, most likely Surtalogi themself) attempted to create a Descender and used Childe to do so. In one of Narzissenkreuz’s notes, he mentions the play Childe was named after (“Ajax”) and apparently it has to do with a “ritual”, “forsaking the self” in order to be “reborn” as a “holy infant” and then he immediately goes on talking about how this is exactly what he’s trying to do to make himself into a “Descender” and I think there’s already a lot to unpack here… With how Hoyo completely dodged his lore in the Archon Quest despite him being pretty damn important in the Fontaine plot line overall, I think we definitely shouldn’t ignore that.

[@rotkappchenlp7032]

The Abyss is also trying to make a descender out of the travelers twin by whatever they are doing to the upside down statue of the seven and the sinner (Its starting to look like all the factions are trying to do the same thing, which is to create a descender to stop the apocalipse and reshape the world in their image, with the question being who manages to do it first)

[@miyomoon477]

"...and that's similiar to Deshret's Golden Slumber-" GOD NOT THIS GUY AGAIN. HE'S EVERYWHERE😂😂 No but seriously, what a fantastic theory! I love you Ashikai! Thank you for your hard work on this❤ Honestly, I fully expect Genshin to end almost EXACTLY as Ashikai predicts here. That just makes so much goddamn sense!

[@fazadhikarizqkoswara9429]

Dude reject being a god and make sure "The Sumeru Dragon" didn't destroy the world before going mad back then. Of course he's gonna be everywhere at the very least 😂

[@hugenose8824]

I kid you not, I had JUST thought to myself “is Ashikai really going to get through an hourlong video without at least one Deshret shoutout.” Should have known that he’d crop up.

[@AstraLuna-o9i]

Tbh I would not be surprised if Deshret is Genshin’s Otto Apocalypse.

[@fazadhikarizqkoswara9429]

@@AstraLuna-o9i ..... Oh brother 💀 That's one heck of accurate speculation to create. And one hell of a scary image to mind knowing how much Otto influences, pardon the pun, impacting the world's of 3rd impact.

[@_cybik]

​@@AstraLuna-o9i cue Deshret doing The Otto Pose in a story flashback

[@J_ey]

1:00:44 During the jade chamber scene during liyue aq, the travelers sword glows yellow, embedded with the *collective hopes and wills* of the adepti. Now, about the inazuma aq, during where the traveler fights raiden. Their sword glows, because of, and i repeat, *the collective hopes and wills* of the resistance.

[@gatra1320]

Not to mention that when traveler fight as sage of buer, he is literally proxy of nahida collective will of people of sumeru, Fontaine is the one not following this path, but then again if they ended up commit to this collective will also in the future Fontaine patch. Then damn, traveler really is GOKU 😂😂

[@beashemmad.sayson545]

Doesn’t happen in mond too

[@SabrinaIncogneto]

I cried at like 4 different sections of the quest and then during the Happy Birthday quest. I cried again. Caterpillar really got to me. And so did the relationship between Alain and Carter. I read that Alain didn’t want to move his lab just in case Carter couldn’t find it and immediately latched on.

[@Snow_therealone]

how do you unlock happy brithday? i looked it up and yet it doesn't work

[@LizardKingRequiem]

Jesus you really are easy to break down…

[@SabrinaIncogneto]

@@LizardKingRequiem nah, just fucking STONED 💀💀

[@zimagzeravla]

And you're really desperate for attention lol@@LizardKingRequiem

[@curse6186]

i could go on and on about alain and carter i love them so much...

[@vraelargetlam8375]

Did anyone else realise Jakob may have been responsible for his own death? It’s only a single line of text but he mentions that he was waiting for you so long he oiled the clock. The clock that otherwise was probably rusted in place from sitting for so long.

[@Nanaikkkkkk]

I think it's pretty cool that Genshin is not only refencing bloodborne but Nier Replicant (specifically) and Nier Automata with the Tower of Gestalt A direct reference to Project Gestalt that was made to separate mind from body to battle white chlorination within the Nier series.

[@MuteMusicalMorgan]

YES!! I had the same thought :)

[@JKKoneofakind]

Was not expecting a light Bloodborne lore tangent in the midst of a Genshin Impact lore video, but as a FromSoft fan since before the Artorias of the Abyss expansion whose also been playing Genshin since week 1, it was a welcome surprise.

[@gladiusbladeofthenorth9939]

At this point it's clear the devs are a massive fan of fromsoft. Let me just say that on leaked concept art for Arlecchino, Lady Maria is used as reference

[@bobbywibowo]

Despite not having played Bloodborne, I actually thought it was very reasonable to think it was indeed Bloodborne-inspired. Or heck, FromSoft-inspired. I have heard since around The Chasm era, that even the level design of the underground Chasm itself felt rather Dark Souls-ish. Y'know, aside from the Black Serpent Knights themselves.

[@gladiusbladeofthenorth9939]

@@bobbywibowo the black serpent knights also used to be called "darkwraiths" in the files if i recall. Darkwraiths are enemies found in dark souls

[@legendarydragon2564]

​​​@@gladiusbladeofthenorth9939 "The world was ruled by dragons until a god came in and waged wat against them, ultimately claiming victory and vanishing the dragons and then shaped the world as he liked for gods and humans to live." This is the story of both genshin and dark souls (not much the last parte, gwyn doesnt like humans as much as the primordial one does). As soon as i was reading before moon and soon i was thinking about just how similar is from dark souls intro cutscene. We can also add the parte were in both games there is an abyss which seems to attract humans and opose the gods

[@gladiusbladeofthenorth9939]

@@legendarydragon2564 You can go abit further. Both games take heavy inspiration from Greek mythology for their Genesis lore. Aka the titans getting overthrown by the gods

[@Tanuki-Sama]

I kind of feel bad for Rene and Jakob. Them being crazy notwithstanding, these two were plagued by misfortune for most of their young life. Their guardian was neglectful (the desert expedition without resources like water or food made me so mad), they were isolated from their loved ones, were ostracized due to their intelligence (until Alain and MaryAnn came along), had no positive guidance on their life and their mistakes just began to spiral out of control while dealing with the knowledge and preassure that the apocalypse is coming soon and everything you know is going to disappear/die. Their actions scream desperate, they kept trying to reach their goals but mistake after another just stressed them out more (and therefore they committed more mistakes) until it all came crashing down.

[@albino478gaming5]

They tried to do something only a descender could and they crumbled under the weight. But their efforts werent in vain. Their research went on, their world was saved (although independently). That knowledge they left behind was left with Dotori, who will likely leave something with us when we inevitably meet him

[@beashemmad.sayson545]

@@albino478gaming5i would correct that harbinger’s name but he sucks so

[@hrs795]

at least, because of them we have cute Melusine all over Fontaine.

[@elizabethkblanco4620]

⁠@@albino478gaming5That research was found and also used by Vacher for his murders and he almost murdered Navia.

[@ghelcarreon]

I love the metaphor among Renee, Caterpillar and the butterfly. I wish we can get another quest line to further explain the collective mind of oceanids and other hiveminds (if any)

[@Mishri2005]

Hiveminds are a pretty consistent narrative in Genshin - deshret, alhaitham's SQ, oceanids Hoyoverse has always been big on Neon Genesis Evangelion so I am not surprised

[@vanessachowjiaying4423]

​@@Mishri2005 even though Genshin was designed to be an exploration game, it's still a Honkai title in its core, as part of the greater multiverse. The traveller being the 4th descender fits the concept of Genshin's initial working title as Honkai 4th, until the community gave the new name. Based on Honkai part 1, Genshin was attempting to emulate the chosen traveller as the Elysia of Teyvat; through the Archon, World, and Character quests/stories to understand the world and wishes of civilization. The traveller themself emulates the highest Herrscher authorities that can change the standing of the World; Truth, Origin, and Finality. The idea of the collective minds becoming one mind to change fate/destiny is closer to the tests if civilization is able to stand the odds from beyond the protective cradle.

[@ghelcarreon]

@@vanessachowjiaying4423 this is an interesting take. i am excited to see the traveler goes beyond the firmament of teyvat ☺

[@vanessachowjiaying4423]

​@@ghelcarreon to be fair, all of Hoyoverse's interconnected games focus on the same core story/theme, in different perceptions and form. HI3 and Star Rail are slightly more direct due to their gameplay format which was designed in a visual novel format, while Genshin focuses more on exploration aspects. Unfortunately some players aren't taking into the exploration format for a bigger picture, due to time and scattered lore, though thanks to the video, it gives a better context. Considering Genshin is starting to have the writers from Honkai for the Archon quests, the connection is much more closer, but not too direct. I believe the idea of a collective mind against the void is parallel to Imaginary and Quantum being on odds against one another, plus the idea of incompatibility as seen with Forbidden Knowledge being corrosive in Teyvat. The idea of Samsara and Celestia's actions are akin to tests/trails, if Teyvat's collective wishes/dreams can survive against other civilizations dreams/wishes from beyond.

[@bronchito]

Ashikai, a quick question regarding your analysis of all the "Synthetic Descender" theories: is it possible that since the siblings, to our knowledge, would not have had any initial desire to reshape the world (as per the definition of Descenders), is it possible that the Abyss sibling's abandonment of their sibling is to give the Traveler the desire to find them, and thus, their will to do so could be strong enough to rival the world? This would mean that they are intentionally making the Traveler a descender. No idea if I'm missing something, but maybe its good fuel for a mini theory. Great work as always!

[@psychott6]

Woah.

[@jikannomajo]

Tbh, both ways of the siblings could work. It's just a matter of duality. That's why both MC can be cannon to whatever side the player pick. Something I realized as Ashi has said in this video, there're more ways than one to prepare a fight against the void. I've been thinking also for a long time now that the abyss sibling isn't the actual sibling hence they're luring the MC sibling to find them and activate the descender mode within the Traveler. It could even be that the summoning of the twins was a fluke from the start (they wanna gtfo of there ASAP during the calamity) and they unintentionally became the star of the show because of Miss Susty.

[@F1ll1nTh3Blanks]

@@jikannomajo Good point but as Jikan says, wouldn't this go both ways.. Although Nahida's dialogue about the sibling not being a Descender and being recorded in Irminsul, as if to say abruptly at some point.. maybe something happened which made them lose the Descender qualification? 🤔 Could it be, allying with the abyss.. as in to say, the abyss was not the answer but.. even then, whatever power they had before, turned out not to be enough.. hmm

[@hayakawaken9493]

The heart and soul of Fontaine lies in this questline. Excellent video as usual.

[@jikannomajo]

"The game's story is taking so long, why do they need to go thru all of this stuff let's just find their sibling." Some people who plays the game unironically say this. Not to dictate how people play the game but it's important to know the why. This is that why. It's also stated by the abyss sibling. It is stated by the original archons. The journey is more important. All the quests, big or small, are being glued together by the Traveler. Teyvat is drawing closer and closer to an impending doom peeking even from the start of the game. If people wants to digest things easily, start by paying attention to what the archons are saying; all the stories that involves them. It's such a shame that the Traveler didn't have the chance to talk to Focalors as she's the one without restrains. Also, Deshret is still the undefeated GOAT.

[@di8085]

some people really missing the main point Genshin is like visual novel games not just about RPG game lol

[@legendarydragon2564]

We found our sybling 3 yesrs ago and then told us to travel this world, this was not a obscure quest, It was a unskipable cutscene on a main quest that cant be avoided if youvwanna progress to inazuma, people who think we are still searching our sybling are stupid even ignoring what our sybling told us for the mere fact that WE ALREADY FOUND THEM

[@aichisendou6375]

i already found 2 comments on this vid alone complaining about how the quest is super long, like what? what the hell you mean by that bruh

[@Ecaea]

@@legendarydragon2564 They lack the ability to comprehend sentences , their brain is too full of freebies pulls and banners to think about it. And when things they don't like happen they will fall back to "Wheres our siblings? Why are we doing errands?" Even though we literally found her with Dainsleif in the 1st year of Genshin lol... She literally told us to not worry about her as they both have time.

[@TheGeekyRedMage]

I definitely agree with you, but I do see where criticism can be made regarding the pacing of the story. At the end of the day, the pacing of the story is incredibly slow compare to what one typically expect from a game, even though there is a creative purpose behind such a decision. Not everyone is going to have the attention span to be invested in the story with that kind of pacing, as sad as that feels. Regardless, I'm still happy with the direction they decided to take on the pacing and structure of the story, even if it can feel frustrating at times. Better from an artistic standpoint (imo) to experiment with unconventional storytelling (by mainstream standards anyways) that would work really well with the type of story you're trying to convey (when done well enough) than to stick with conventional storytelling all the way through just to make it more digestible.

[@cynthtnyc]

Everybody is always asking "what is the Descender?", but never "HOW is the Descender?" 😔 Poor twins never asked to be involved in this Teyvat mess. Great video as always, Ashi!

[@vanessachowjiaying4423]

Based on the recent chapters of Genshin's lore connected games, it's apparent in the beginning the traveller twins were caught in the mess against their violation. Both are meant to explore different worlds/stars, in a similar manner as the path of the Trailblaze, though being drawn into another star's mess was bound to happen.

[@omarjafar846]

Thanks for all your effort Ashikai I know you’ve been working on this one for a WHILE.

[@Stellascion]

Not really related to theories or as far as I know, but I thought it was neat that the Sword of Narzissenkruez’ description is the same as the Dull Blade but with an extra line at the end about the Eternal Traveler and how their journey ends. Also thank you Ashikai!!!!

[@Chris_MarMar]

This is the best quest line in the game imo. I loved everything. This quest line alone almost had Fontaine replace Liyue as my favorite region.

[@KurtacusRex]

Oceanids dreaming of becoming humans while humans are like "no wait go back" is probably the most relatable part of this story, and very Nietzsche.

[@Bubs_dayo]

THANK YOU ASHIKAI!!! I was looking for a good recap since I did this quest line in the worst order possible. Pretty much skipped all of unfinished comedy, didn’t know it was connected and I was uh kindaaa low on funds so had to speed run everything T-T Again tysmmm, hope you’re having a proper rest andd not forgetting to hydrate.

[@nanawritesstuff]

Can relate, I didn't skip but didn't think Unfinished Comedy will have significant lore... and then I saw Carter and from then I paid attention lmao

[@hinori106]

i can relate as in i started doing all at once not knowing its connected when i gets it i have to go back n forth between the quests man... i know its interesting but my brain somehow cant process it

[@Bubs_dayo]

Yeaa, the moment I saw Cater shapeshift into a hilichurl I knew I messed up lol

[@dreamday988]

Ashikai our lore hero

[@Chaffee738]

Amazing recap and theories, as usual. About Orobashi, I do think he had something to do with the Abyss, at the time of his death. It's a part of a larger theory about Forbidden Knowledge having appeared in the game since way before Sumeru. I've been thinking about the Karmic Debt in Liyue, caused by the god remains. We're told that it happens because so many gods got killed in Liyue by Morax, so their lingering hatred and resentment causes these negative effects. Thing is, in hindsight the effects of Karmic debt are _suspiciously_ similar to Forbidden Knowledge. Mental and physical pain and sickness, madness, dark aura, etc. They aren't a 1-to-1 match, such as the lack of Eleazar, but as we know there are various forms of Forbidden Knowledge. So I suspect that Liyue has these god remains problems not because many gods died in Liyue but many gods _contaminated by Forbidden Knowledge_ died in Liyue. And what do you know, Tatarigami, an effect of Orobashi's god remains, is also very similar to Karmic debt. And here's the really interesting thing: around 400 years ago, an engineer from Fontaine came to Tatarasuna and made the Mikage Furnace, using technology that can leverage the power of Orobashi's Tatarigami for a smelting process. It's revealed that said engineer was actually Dottore, but that's beside the point. The technology must have come from Fontaine. So... Technology from Fontaine, 400 years ago, capable of leveraging some harmful dark powers that might be related to Forbidden Knowledge and concerting them into useful energy? That sounds SO much like Arkhe, specifically the Ousia technology that extracts energy from Abyssal power. Even the color matches. So the Mikage Furnace is basically an Ousia generator extracting power from the Forbidden Knowledge that contaminated Orobashi. As for why Orobashi is contaminated with Forbidden Knowledge to begin with, my theory is that he somehow caused an influx of Forbidden Knowledge during his acquisition of the book Before Sun and Moon, or the timeline just happened to match, and got himself contaminated. But Enkanomiya being underground and essentially not a part of Teyvat, Celestia doesn't launch a Nail. Perhaps Celestia gave a death sentence instead, it might be a similar thing to the Fontaine Prophecy that Celestia issued to Egeria when she created mimic humans. Or perhaps there was no death sentence or even any form of intervention from Celestia at all, and Orobashi just realized what Forbidden Knowledge will do to him and how it will endanger his own people and more. So he did his best to salvage the situation by getting himself killed and having his people assimilated into Inazuma. And perhaps he didn't explain to his people in full detail, or he did explain but they don't understand Forbidden Knowledge and how utterly obsessed Celestia is about keeping it out of Teyvat very well, so their best takeaway was "Orobashi got a death sentence from Celestia for reading Before Sun and Moon". This, by the way, was built on top of your previous video theorizing that the Archon War was at least partially a purging campaign to get rid of all gods that got contaminated with Forbidden Knowledge.

[@nwoDekaTsyawlA]

Awesome take on Orobashi. We heard so many times that Celestia ordered Orobashi's death, but I don't think this was ever stated in the game (could be wrong though). This fits the facts a lot better.

[@sandylan6186]

For the sandrone part I want to reference the fact that both wanderer and tartag mention that the doll/girl is the harbinger and not the big robot.

[@CreatrixTiara]

Great video! A few thoughts: 1. I'm surprised the artist you find in Sumeru (the Pari area just before Fontaine) isn't mentioned here. He talks about how he gains his ability to paint from Caterpillar, but the "ability" is suspicious. It seems more similar to how the Melusines see the world (not like regular humans), and also Caterpillar says that the actual ability he gave the artist is more like being able to persuade the artist to believe in himself. Caterpillar actually does talk about his persuasion power - it's how he managed to get around the Fortress during the jailbreak episode. The 3.8 Oceanid Disneyland quest also has a hidden story of Idyia granting someone else (another artist?) similar powers, which made me think that Caterpillar was some kind of Oceanid. 2. The whole "partaking of the body and blood of God" thing is very Catholic, and given that so much of Genshin is based on Gnosticism (prevalent in the early Christian era), i wonder how much Catholic influence is in the story. (2.5. The one line that the Abyss Heralds in Enkanomiya keep saying when you fight them is close to "peace be upon you", which is whay Muslims commonly use as an epithet after they say Prophet Muhammad's name. We know there's a lot of Islamic influence in Genshin (see Sumeru, but especially things like the fortune teller kid's cats being Harut and Marut), so I wonder if this is deliberate.) 3. "Put in the body of a Hilichurl" is an interesting statement to make given that you then have to ask - who was the original hilichurl? Hilichurls were regular people too, so whose memories are being mixed up? Alternatively, what if Caterpillar wasn't put IN a hilichurl, but rather the process of his existence is what turns people INTO hilichurls? Perhaps the punishment for trying to mess with the natural order of life is Hilichurl-ness - kinda like Eleazar, since the symptoms are similar? Clothar managed to find a way to reverse the process via Caribert, which then makes KAEYA suspicious - like, if Clothar is an ancestor, what's the family line?

[@KingTaltia]

I just realize something, the comment on Renes and Alain actually encompass the Fatui and the Abyss order very well. The Abyss order are "heroes" who no matter what they try only make things worse for themselves, and those around them. Meanwhile the Fatui are self-proclaimed villains with dubeous methods who REPEATEDLY end up accidentally making things better for those around them, be it through their actions (Arlecchino) or by posing as a villain to unify two groups that shouldn't have been divided (Childe).

[@CreatrixTiara]

There has been a lot of efforts in game to humanize the Fatui and at least make them morally complicated. They are often a disturbance (see: Inazuma) and the whole child soldier thing is terrible, but they were decidedly a positive force in Fontaine. I do feel though that Fontaine's flood crisis was more Arlecchino's personal project and that she joined the Fatui mostly to get resources.

[@Indian_gae_boii]

yes! omg ive been waiting for this, even though ive read every single peace of readable item in fontaine (including evrything relating to the narsizenkruz quest line) i still had so much trouble in so many areas, like wtf is the real ann and how is director lyris combined with ann and rene at the same time, i have a preety good idea of the timeline, i also remeber an intersting detail, that the ordo didnt allow vision bearers to be a part of them, which remined me of the hearts desire book where a guy who recives a vision considers himself cursed and thinks he will probably ddie early

[@heartachesnrots]

As my favorite character is Childe and I still am terribly frustrated with how the Fontaine Archon Quest ended without answering a single question I had about him and only added more, I recently started burying myself down the Genshin lore rabbit hole and I can’t believe I actually came to the same conclusion that you did with the “manufactured Descenders”. It would be way too long for me to break it down in a single KZbin comment but basically, I think Childe was involved in some sort of “primordial human project” too and there is so much evidence to support it that I can’t stop thinking about it. In the same note in which Narzissenkreuz already explains wanting to make himself a “Descender”, we can also read this: “"Io, Io, Pan! That which lies beneath the great sea!"
The purpose of this line in the ritual scripture is to forsake the self and sink into the abyss, and in the abyss, to welcome rebirth as a holy infant.
The origin of this is a tragedy of unknown provenance that has been passed down by persons unknown to this day. Said play is called "Ajax," or "Aias." He was the second-strongest warrior in his alliance.
"Lies beneath the great sea" is, itself, an interesting phrase. It comes from ancient Sumeru texts, and should be read as "Narayana," which also means "primordial human."” I actually only found out about Rhinedottir’s “primordial human project” after reading this note as I missed the event it was mentioned in, and I think that everything you said in this video only adds to how suspicious this all is. And considering on top of that the whole thing with his Vision malfunctioning and his constellation being literally obliterated by the Narwhal which definitely has to do with all of Genshin’s “fate”-related stuff, there’s no way he isn’t going to be wildly important later in the game. Until then (and I hope that we aren’t gonna have to wait until Snezhnaya for a quest involving him), there definitely is enough to unpack to make it a video on its own…

[@erol4652]

I'm so in love with these videos. The workload must’ve been crazy

[@bunnyfist4697]

1:00:00 that reminds me of a saying: "Raw power by itself is akin to a dull blade, until it is sharpened by purpose."

[@neffi1941]

This talk about all life banding together as one to stop the void also reminded me of something Neuvillette said in his character demo: "In the end, the countless rivers of emotion shall flow into one, and the tumult shall give way to lasting peace". At first I thought he was talking about the prophecy of Fontaine coming to pass, but that felt weird because during the story he also wants to find a way to avoid the dissolution of the people, so why would he talk about it like something he not only doesn't mind happening, but also is certain that it will happen? Perhaps he was instead talking about the bigger picture, this hypothetical endgame. Not to mention that as he says those words, he's shown standing in what looks like clouds (or a river, but frankly it looks more like clouds to me, complete with lightning bolts) swirling towards a void or a black hole. The amount of attention to detail that goes into these things in this game is incredible.

[@amouramarie]

Oooh, damn. Nice catch!

[@invisible9445]

The bloodborne connection is actually so cool :0

[@Eftkud]

This is the best recap-theory made for Genshin's current stage in the story. I see this to be akin to the huge speculations caused by the sand civilization, caribert quest, the we will be reunited quest and the forbidden book of enkanomiya

[@Nephritesword]

Your videos like these are a huge help for me in understanding Genshin's complicated side-quests. I have brain fog from chronic pain and it makes following these stories very difficult. I'd be completely lost without your summaries and theories: thank you so much.

[@MuteMusicalMorgan]

While you were discussing Caterpillar's identity, I kept hoping you would touch on what we already know about Hillichurls, in that they are transformed Khaenri'ahn citizens. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to wonder if part of Caterpillar's consciousness includes whoever the Hillichurl was, no? Also, your video has perfect timing because I just finally finished this questline yesterday! :D

[@bella_daze3092]

0:01 THIS WAS ME TOO- I discovered this quest on accident ._.

[@xChaosFlower]

It should be a crime that this quest was unvoiced AND out of order. I did not have the willpower to pay attention to any of it and just powered through it. I'm glad there are youtubers who are willing to summarize these quests for us

[@amouramarie]

I know. I've always been a reader, and even I couldn't follow this questline. Hoyo vastly overestimates players' ability to digest such fragmented storylines. Especially when presented largely in half-smudged notes you may miss, written by characters who don't sign their name and sometimes don't even identify who they're writing about. And almost never have any specific time attached to when they were written, outside of "old and faded." But, I have to admit, it really does spark interest in the story you're _not_ getting. Which maybe is the intent, ha.

[@kevinirmiter3669]

Oh, thank you so much... Even going through this quest and reading everything carefully, there was so much that I missed. The analysis is great too.

[@saltyboy7013]

57:57 couldnt resist mentioning Deshret huh?? youre still epic ashikai keep up the good work

[@jayquellin4469]

I got a job interview in like 6 hours but best believe I’m gonna watch this entire thing before going to bed rn

[@k.amik.o]

Good luck!

[@koconnor117]

Incredible video as usual, I've been waiting for this one and you killed it!

[@idolindner8913]

The Abyss Herald you fight before meeting The Sinner is called "Fortune Lector", so him being Remurian is actually very possible!

[@elis_swan3271]

Waiting for Ashikai's videos is like waiting for a much hyped high quality film full of lore. Amazing as usual,thank you❤

[@ursmarrings27]

I didn’t think Fullmetal Alchemist, Nier Replicant, Bloodborne and the Ship of Theseus would have prepared me for this.

[@jazzhongers]

I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS AAAAAA thank you!!!

[@vengefulmonkgaming411]

It's funny, because before you even mentioned Bloodborne, you mentioned the "it's three parts, no actually 4 parts" ideology, and it reminded me of how there are 4 instances of the item "1/3 of Umbilical chord" in Bloodborne, 3 of which are needed to consume to get the "true" ending of the game, but the 4th can still be acquired as long as you don't miss its que.

[@yoisakikanade_]

Probably unrelated but this is also the case with the golden rose seeds in the sumeru desert, you only need 3 but 4 are available so u can keep 1 as a memento i guess

[@shirley3845]

Thanks so much for this video really needed a recap, there were many things that I didn't quite understand while playing myself but your explanation cleared almost all my doubts.

[@ThatKidRD97]

Incredible video, just 10/10. I was soooooooo throughly engaged idk how you do it. Also the theories about endgame have my brain swirling right now like it just makes perfect sense. Thank you sm for this video.

[@Mar-lf3ni]

I dare to say that these quests are the PEAK of genshin lore so far. I loved every single bit of it, it's the reason why I got so much into lore this year in particular, it was game changing for since I've never been that invested in the deep lore so far

[@istvancsanyi1344]

The Alain and Mary Ann part made me scream because it makes so much heckin sense! If its true Im going to find a way to celebrate you Ashi because you are a lore and connection GENIUS! Love the video!

[@chickenflippers]

What a beautiful, terrifying story. I'm so happy to have experienced this in the game. Thank you for summing it up so well!

[@Phantom-z9y]

You are a life saver for me. I love the lord of Genshin but I rarely get time to play the game to fully enjoy the storyline so I skip through the world quest and side quests and only fully see the archon quests. Normally with a job I only do the daily quest and grind domains hardly got enough time to sit through such long quest.

[@Zo-sf1ui]

I have been waiting for you to do a video on this cuz I really didnt understand the story even though I played all the quests and never skipped any dialogues. Thank you for your hard work

[@baguette_connoisseur]

This is an excellent video. So well written. The voice is lively, the presentation is easy to understand and follow, and the theory making part made so much sense.

[@anaplaysstuff]

I appreciate this recap, there was a lot I missed in the Narcissenkreuz quest stuff and it left me really questioning a lot of things because I wasn't able to put the pieces together (since I still have pieces missing and also just from doing it slowly over time and forgetting things in between).

[@azomy2940]

i think it might be good to also mention that on some of the concept art for Arlecchino screenshots of Lady Maria were used as refrences

[@ProwersEdits]

Tysm for your work. You’re a big part of the reason why I even continue to play this game ngl

[@CarlosAnglada]

someone had to say it!

[@Kurogane3]

The descender part reminded me of the Caribert quest. Just before the twin reveal, Clothar was ranting at us (our twin) saying we were the Abyss to them and how we (our twin) disappointed them. It kinda felt like he was complaining about a defective product. It is likely that at the point of summoning, our twin already lost their descender status / will / sword...

[@deg503]

Man I love these deep-dives. As someone who tends to fly through the content I appreciate the concise analysis, your work makes me appreciate the story all the better.

[@Shogun_A.I.]

Given Remus, Jacob, Renee, the sages locking away Nahida, and khaenri'ah, i think we may be starting to understand what the sustainer meant by, "the arrogation of man"

[@SimpleViber]

You get a like and subscription for this because, wow, the effort you put into this and made it comprehensible? Thank you so much for your work!

[@ACloudCat]

What a great video! I had to pause halfway through when I found out there were more quests that I didn’t complete yet, and didn’t want to get spoiled on them. I’m glad I did, it really made the video hit hard. Love your work!

[@tenou213]

This world quest chain was really engaging. It's easy to miss quite a lot of it though - specially when you don't read the picked up text

[@danielehartmann2787]

Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you Ashikai! For putting some light into the darkness of our minds. Narzissenkreuzquest was THE prime example of how not to design a long lore/story-line at all. As a "dumb" player like me - you dont get anything. Its just a chaotic mess of namedropping, hopping between places and whatnot. So I hope you will stick with us in this long journey till the end of Chapter:tevyat at least that people like me can understand the story, the underlying lore and how everything is connected.

[@countswagula77]

the way i GASPED when i heard the comparison between the doll and sandrone, because i NEVER would’ve connected the two characters, but it’s just so clear after you pointed it out. lord do i love me some fromsoft in genshin lore vids.

[@Psycha978]

That theory came from the genshin lore subreddit. Months ago. Before 4.2. You should check out their write up on it.

[@anonymousgreen5080]

Wow. The ending part is crazy. Hope its true or similar.

[@parmaxolotl]

Before I watch the video, let me drop a theory of mine related to the Narzissenkreuz quest (to see if we happened to come to similar conclusions). I am noticing Genshin has a theme of finding a balance between the past, future, and present, and touches a lot on fearing for the future as well as being unhealthily nostalgic for the past. I believe it's very likely the Primordial One is a demiurge of sorts, with a force beyond Teyvat (the Abyss?) perhaps representing the true god, or Monad. My personal theory on how they'll tie the themes of unhealthy relationships with the past and future into the PO's story is with something like this: Teyvat is/was an attempt by the PO/Phanes to create a happy life, perhaps based on an idealized version of their previous life on their homeworld before they left. This is why the people of Teyvat have scripted fates; because they're all characters in Phanes's neverending dollhouse. Mary-Anne's story is quite similar to this, with her creating an idealized world to relive her childhood fantasies to escape the pain of life moving on in hard ways and her being experimented on (iirc at least, the Narzissenkreuz quests were kinda confusing). The reality she was running from included her friend, Rene, becoming a madman hell bent on essentially becoming a god in order to save the world. Perhaps something similar is what made Phanes leave his home. Edit: your theory was COMPLETELY differernt lol

[@kingskyless]

This after the peripheri book is SO-

[@KurtacusRex]

I think this quest was masterful. a note, though, these quests pretty much embody Fontaine's non-archon content. In the archon content, for prior nations too, we are constantly focused on celestia. Nahida discusses the heavenly principles, zhongli mentions, ei mentions the heavenly principles, etc. Non-archon quests keep leading the other way, to the abyss. Enkanomiya, the chasm, i suspect jeht has wandered off there somehow, though i hope we meet her in natlan. The more i observe this pattern the more Dain's introduction in the original trailer re-contextualizes. Because our quest to find our sibling explicitly is taking us to the abyss, NOT Celestia. (maybe celestia too, but our siblings leading the abyssal order, and that plotline the archons have not addressed) It feels like a magic show. Our eyes are SUPPOSED to be focused on the archons, elements, celestia. Im not sure where its going, but i feel a setup here.

[@morgandubeux]

Thank you SO MUCH for the recap. I have an extreme difficult time focusing on world quests because of my ADHD and I missed so much of its plotline.

[@sully6832]

Thank you so much for uploading this i kinda can’t read the quests in full because of my adhd so i was praying that someone explained that quest in a much simpler way ♥️

[@Shawls_and_Minecraft]

Thank you for making this video. You helped resolve much confusion for me about what was happening and what the conversations were alluding to within the multiple quests involving Caterpillar and the others.

[@amrwalidahmed8755]

Thank you so much this saved me honestly because i had skipped some of the quest at the start because i didnt know it was inportant😭😭

[@SandB]

thank you for this. i took a 4 month break between the early narzissenkreuz quests and the finale and was completely lost.

[@quickredf0x143]

God I love this channel. Thank you for another video Ashikai. On the detail of not wanting to cover ground you have already tread, I would actually love if we could have update videos to older theories. For example, updates on the crack theories and how accurate they may have been or how much more information has come about to make them seem less like crack and more likely.

[@soharbennett8079]

Three minutes in and I already understand the story so much better than I did watching other creator’s videos on the Narzissenkreuz quest. Thanks Ashikai!

[@alienaed]

the narzissenkreuz is probably my favorite quest of the whole game

[@Kolbitar-p3y]

I really appreciate the time and effort put into these amazing videos! Everytime, I learn something new and I enjoy Genshin a little bit more! Please to take a nap or a rest if you do need, we will be here when you have the strength and time to learn more about whatever incredibly well researched connection you will have come up next time!

[@paulholleger8538]

I'm gonna need to watch this one a couple times to pick up on everything. The Narzissenkreuz questline was very opaque to me (and I was honestly more interested in the archon quest, so I didn't remember everything across 3 patches). But I do like where you're headed with your theory here!

[@yudhihi]

Okay I'm only just at the first minutes of the video, but I just want to say I'm so grateful for your content I hope the best for you and thank god I discover your channel. Here I go for the loreeeeee 🎉

[@Crysis2424]

That was awesome and I learned so much more about all these quests that I never even noticed doing them. Thank you for all the time and effort you put into these!

[@deletedflame8424]

You are definitely right about using weak threads to tie series together. Me and a friend actually have a running joke where we tie every game we play back to genshin somehow. It's really fun.

[@joshhaworth2155]

I really appreciate these videos because Genshin has a bad habit of dumping a TON of information on you at one, usually with terminology that's easy to forget. Plus, the quests with the most dense information tend to be unvoiced, so it's easy to miss something buried in a wall of text. These videos help me appreciate a story in a format I can actually digest.

[@syysyy3526]

The best world request SERIE for me, compare with previous world requests, I just can’t stop digging all those details in the story. But what saddens me the most, is that when l try to share how glorious the Narzissenkreuz story is, all my friends just admit they didn’t not really read the story because it’s too long and also voiceless. The Narzissenkreuz should be le bijou de Fontaine.😢

[@impostorsyndrome1350]

Please make a video about 4 samsaras, Remuria and everything else you've talked about at the start of the video, your theories and recaps are awesome!

[@mintypurrs4022]

Something to watch while I'm having my morning cup of coffee! Thanks for this Ashikai!

[@quantumlandbooks4005]

Thank you for the analysis. Narzissenkreuz was almost as messed up as Ancient Colours. Fontaine World Quests are another level.

[@sortileges5474]

There's a me stuck underground, a me left on the shelf, a me that gets paraded: the me that's shown to everyone else. And who will pay the toll? The Heart, the Mind or the Soul?

[@lathamtk]

Always a pleasure to hear your recap videos & lore theories!

[@winterdragon2004]

That bit at the end about the Traveler being that sword metaphorically, do you think the Abyss twin could be that sword for Khanrieah and the Abyss? An "manufactured" copy of the one held captive by Celestia, explaining why Irmansul considers them a Tevyat native, because they were "born" in Tevyat?

[@0_isha_041]

This is so unrelated but when you mentioned Bloodborne, I got whiplashed bc I had recently made a sketch of the twins as Hunters just for fun and when I first played Genshin, I saw Good Hunter in Mondstadt and went “Haha Bloodborne”

[@ajergely6230]

I think it would be really good writing if Sandrone wasnt exactly Alain Guillotin himself, but him « reborn through technology » like Narzissenkreuz was René « reborn through water », and just like him missing a part of his former self. A machine that is almost Alain, but not exactly him, possibly quite anguished by its chimera-like nature which would mimic its creators suffering because it is supposed to be him but also prevent it from ever solving its problems

[@airacousland232]

Love the connections to Bloodborne. Also it reminds me how René and Laurence are both that kind of characters who tried to save people but fcked up badly.

[@mariahhaney7306]

This questline snuck up on me as well! I was totally blindsided by the convergence at the end. Such a good questline

[@cybervagabond2945]

The connections with Alan Turing and Alain as well as Bletchley Park are great I totally missed that. I wanna add though that it seems like a lot of people are relating the "golems" of Remuria with "Neohumans" and Abysslings, but I would look at lore descriptions such as Alains "Ancient log" or "Golden Song's Variation" and honestly just Cassiodor Lore in general. Seeing as these "statues" mentioned in the lore surrounding Petrichor and Remuria are most likely our "golems" these things are MECHANICAL in nature! These aren't people with black skin or "stone" golems or Hilichurls. The iron legion of Remuria was most likely this army of golems and also very likely MECHANICAL! These "golems" could even be the progenitor of Khaenri'an "field tillers". Seeing as "Ruin Machines" are seen everywhere around Teyvat and they're hinted as being fairly old, it is likely some version of these things were also built in Remuria, but used to imprison peoples souls. Honestly the theory that Alain could be the one uploaded into the Harbinger "Sandrone" and that it looks like a Ruin machine points to Remuria being a potential target of his research into machine intelligence as well as the area around Petrichor. That thing could potentially have been built and Alains mind implanted using the same principles behind the golems of Remuria.

[@thisenable]

Was that final fantasy tactics music in the intro??? Also the whole Narzissenkreuz history and questline was chefs kiss, so I know this analysis will be great

[@pokelover02]

As always, I prefer watching your lore recap over playing the world quest itself 👏

[@tiagom3278]

With "Cater" being referenced so much, the name "Katherine" seems like a sick joke to me.

[@ZECRA602]

This whole storyline reminded me of Evillous Chronicles, where characters have multiple souls and memories in a single person, thus creating a new person entirely