Everything about Guizhong [Persona of Genshin Impact]
So here’s the thing, a few days ago the PV about Guizhong was released, and when I heard Cloud Retainer was going to tell the story of the past, I couldn’t help but exclaim: this is the story of version 1.0, finally !. So this time, let’s talk about Guizhong’s story in light of the history told to us by Cloud Retainer.
The Prosperous Guili Assembly
In Guili Plains, Cloud Retainer said, “Long ago, this region was once a prosperous gathering place.”
From this, we learn the Archon’s name of Guizhong, which is Haagentus. This historical account corresponds to a book called “Stone Tablet Compilations: Vol. I,” which states that “one could walk all the way to Stone Gate without ever leaving the network of pathways between the fields.” Additionally, in last year’s “The Moonchase Festival” PV called “Flavors of the World,” it was mentioned that “Millennia ago, the people sought to expand their city. They built a dwelling on the plains and called it the Guili Assembly.”
This is the predecessor of the Guili Plains, a glimpse of its former prosperity now in ruins.
But how was the Guili Assembly established before this? We can also find relevant records, but this historical account goes back to the time when Morax signed a contract with the Adepti to establish the region of Liyue.
After Morax established Liyue, the people at that time mainly made a living by mining. Fortunately, Liyue was rich in mineral resources, and the people’s lives were relatively affluent. The only real concern was being located near the sea.
At that time, there was a beast in the sea called “Baqiu”. It only surfaced occasionally, but when it did, it could create huge waves that destroyed people’s homes and boats.So the Geo Archon fashioned a black kite by hand with jade and stones.The stone bird took to the unbound skies once forged.Into the heart of the ocean it dove, into the battlefield with the behemoth and the whale.Into the depths of the sea the behemoth sank, there to stay forever.After calming the hidden dangers of the sea, Morax began to consider expanding the city. He discovered a dwelling on a plain where people made a living by farming. An Archon had also descended upon this place, and this is where Morax first met Guizhong.
“…In the beginning, when the people assembled to farm the land… A god named Guizhong descended, whose dominion was over Dust, and whose reach shrouded the skies for thousands of miles around…”
“…The god laid down four commandments for the people… Then another god descended, whose dominion was over Geo, and who brought the people of Liyue to this place. Jointly they shepherded the people for their protection…”
“…And the assembly was named Guili after the names of the two gods…”
The above information comes from the weapon ‘Primordial Jade Winged-Spear’ and the World Quest ‘Treasure Lost, Treasure Found’ in Genshin Impact.
The Covenant of Morax and Guizhong
During this period, the Archon War had not yet occurred in Teyvat, or perhaps there was no command for the Archons to engage in combat. In any case, the Archons did not need to resort to violence and instead could establish alliances for mutual benefit, as Guizhong did.
Interestingly, the way in which these two Archons formed their covenant was also quite strange. During their first meeting, Guizhong gave a stone lock to Morax, saying, “This is the token of our covenant, and it is also my challenge to you.” As the Archon of Contracts, Morax naturally would not violate the covenant, but he was nonetheless puzzled by this informal, unilateral way of establishing it.
Nevertheless, there was no harm in establishing a contract with Guizhong. So, the two Archons and their people supported each other, leading to the prosperity of the Guili Assembly, which corresponds to Cloud Retainer’s statement of “a prosperous assembly.”
Guizhong’s Interactions with the Adepti
Afterwards, Cloud Retainer told us some interesting stories about Guizhong’s interactions with the Adepti.
The Sea Gazer, Marchosius, and Streetward Rambler mentioned here are all old acquaintances. We first met Sea Gazer in the Archon Quest “The Crane Returns on the Wind,” where we went with Shenhe to find Plaustrite’s Abode, which belonged to him.He is also an Adeptus who is sincere and open-minded.
Marchosius appears in the Moonchase Festival storyline “Floating World Under the Moonlight,” and Xiangling’s Guoba is the empty shell of Marchosius after losing its power and intelligence. If you haven’t seen it yet, you can watch the official PV “Flavors of the World.”
Cloud Retainer’s statement here is quite amusing: “Who would dare snub the Stove God and his wondrous creations?” It’s always wise not to offend the person who cooks for you, right?
As for the Streetward Rambler, the first appearance was also in the PV “Flavors of the World,” but it only appeared for a second or two.
After saying so much, we can see that Guizhong’s relationship with the Adepti is very good. Before version 3.4, the official did not explain this in detail, but only hinted at it from the stone table at the entrance of Cloud Retainer’s Abode.
，The relationship between Guizhong and the Adepti is now confirmed to be very good, as Cloud Retainer has explicitly stated. In the CG that follows, we finally get to see Guizhong’s true form after two years. The CG talks about the “Guizhong Ballista” and the “Cleansing Bell”. In the Archon Quest in Liyue, when facing the Demon God of Vortexes (Osial), Cloud Retainer said, “And as fate would have it, one who did craft the Guizhong Ballista with one’s own hands.” I have always believed that the reason it’s called the “Guizhong” Ballista is simply to commemorate an old friend.
It seems that there is no contradiction between the statement in “Stone Tablet Compilations: Vol. I” that “the Lord of Dust, was an ally to the Lord of Rock. Around Mt. Tianheng, Guizhong set up a Crossbow to keep guard, and it was named the ‘Guizhong Ballista.’” and Cloud Retainer’s claim that she “crafted the Guizhong Ballista with one’s own hands.” According to official information, the Guizhong Ballista was originally called “Obscuro Vulpes Mechanism” and was invented by Guizhong. After her passing, Cloud Retainer improved upon it. As for who came up with the name “Guizhong Ballista,” it is unclear whether it was Guizhong herself or Cloud Retainer who chose the name to honor her late friend.
Then there is the Cleansing Bell, also in the Archon Quest in Liyue. Zhongli asked us to find Madame Ping to borrow the Cleansing Bell so that he could retire as soon as possible.
Zhongli: At present, a friend of mine named Madame Ping is the guardian of the Cleansing Bell. She lives near Yujing Terrace. If you ask her, she will know what to do.
Madame Ping’s exact words were “An old friend of mine used to wear it on his person, back when I was young…”. I remember feeling impressed by how cool she looked and how she seemed to have a lot of stories to tell when we reached this part of the Archon Quest. Now we know that the Cleansing Bell was also created by Guizhong and is an object that can create simple music. According to the PV, Streetward Rambler and Guizhong had a discussion about the Cleansing Bell, with Guizhong thinking that although mechanisms cannot completely replace human effort in composing music, they can still be used for simple compositions, while Streetward Rambler disagreed, believing that they lacked soul. It was only when Morax intervened and confiscated the Cleansing Bell that the two sides stopped arguing.
So after that, the relationship between Guizhong and Streetward Rambler became better and better. They often gathered together to discuss music and mechanics. When Guizhong passed away, Streetward Rambler asked Rex Lapis to return the Cleansing Bell to him. It was during this time that Streetward Rambler realized that “as dust settles after a storm. We too must one day return to the world below,” which led to the birth of the person we now know as “Madame Ping.”
The Archon War
I see, the story of Guizhong before the Archon War comes to an end here. Moving on to the Archon War, I won’t create a sad atmosphere since everyone knows what happened during that time. The Archon War erupted, causing chaos throughout the world, and Guizhong was one of the casualties.
According to the story, the Yakshas in the scene were sealing the Archons who were causing chaos at the Guili Assembly. The description of Cloud Retainer may give people the impression that they arrived too late, but in the weapon “Memory of Dust,” Morax mentioned that he had heard Guizhong’s last words, even though he arrived too late.
，It seems that there are different accounts of what happened during the Archon War and the role that Guizhong and the adepti played in it. Cloud Retainer’s statement about “coming too late” may give the impression that they were unable to prevent Guizhong’s death, but Morax, as revealed in the Memory of Dust, was able to hear Guizhong’s last words. On the other hand, the Stone Tablet Compilations: Vol. I gives a different account, stating that “the adepti fought to protect the Guili Plains” but were unable to stop the war that eventually claimed Guizhong’s life.
These different accounts may not necessarily contradict each other, and it’s possible that different adepti were involved in different parts of the conflict. It’s also worth noting that the Stone Tablet Compilations: Vol. I is a translation of ancient Liyue records by modern historians,
so some differences in the accounts may be expected. Overall, it’s likely that the adepti did their best to protect Liyue during the Archon War, but were ultimately unable to prevent the tragedy that occurred.Guizhong died, but the war did not end there, it was only the beginning. In the following Archon War, many adepti left, and during the time when Morax confiscated the Cleansing Bell, he used it to hold various rites. After Madame Ping wanted to take away the Cleansing Bell, if Rex Lapis wanted to hold another rite, he had to borrow the bell from Madame Ping. Madame Ping said, “It has been many years, and who knows how many times someone has come to borrow this bell.” Although this does not mean that every time the bell was borrowed was for the Rite of Parting, we can glimpse the brutality of the Archon War in Liyue to some extent. Sea Gazer, Skybracer, Pervases, and others are adepti that we are more familiar with and have already passed away. After that, Morax became one of The Seven Archons. There is no further information related to Guizhong in Cloud Retainer’s conversation, so if you want to know the rest of the story, you can experience it yourself.
Guizhong’s words
Here we have a basic understanding of Guizhong’s story. One thing that was not mentioned earlier is Guizhong’s last words.
Compared to Morax, Guizhong was obviously a weaker Archon, which allowed her to understand the fear of humans. Therefore, Guizhong kept working hard to become smarter and relentlessly studied mechanics. Apart from her own preferences, perhaps there was also a part of the reason for this behavior. Moreover, the mechanics that Guizhong studied were not as harmless as shown in the PV. The description of Liyue’s Domain “Hidden Palace of Guizang Formula” is “Though it may seem like a clear pond, the amount of treasures hidden below is enough to drive a person mad.”
Clicking on the Domain will reveal that it is the abode where Guizhong studied mechanics, and there are several ancient and sinister artifacts inside.
，What kind of thing can drive a person mad? Upon entering the domain, we can see a Ruin Hunter and a Ruin Guard inside, which leads us to speculate that in addition to studying mechanisms similar to the Cleansing Bell, Guizhong may have also researched the mechanisms of Khaenri’ah. Guizhong indeed wanted to become stronger, but unfortunately fate did not give her that opportunity.
So far, the story about Guizhong that I wanted to tell you has come to an end.
Guizhong’s Four Commandments
“Teach with wisdom, be bound by virtue, fortify the bones, unite in ambition — the convergence of these four shall be known as the ‘Guili Assembly.’”