Genshin Impact: Towards Godhood

Rama spent a little time thinking.

Although he hadn't noticed any prying eyes, there were definitely people waiting for the outcome.

To be blunt, the Fatui were certainly waiting.

Rama walked alone in the desert.

This wasn't the road to the factory; he was going to find another kind of treasure.

Of course, waiting for guests was just a relaxing part of the process.

"After talking with the Fatui, they considered me a lucky guy who happened to get the Scarlet King and Flower God's relics... Well, not necessarily just lucky, there might be more evaluations."

"After all, they've been digging up the relics of the Great Red Sand for so long, but ended up empty-handed, while I got the treasure. They can't just see me as a simple lucky guy, right?"

Rama was piecing together the truth.

The story had no fairy tale from the beginning; Candace's arrival was based on the final decision due to certain people's interests.

Only her own interests were not part of this balance.

Rama didn't care about the tribe's views, but if he wanted the Fatui to do something, he had to guess their thoughts.

Fortunately, it wasn't difficult.

"But they should have a consensus that the price to get something from me is not low."

"The Fatui can certainly afford this debt. Tartaglia spent so much money on Zhongli, which shows that as long as the value is there, they are willing to pay."

Rama stopped.

The guests had arrived.

"But Zhongli is Zhongli, and Liyue is not comparable to the Great Red Sand. Tartaglia tried to complete his work through trade because he didn't want to be kicked out by Liyue officials before his plan was finished."

"I'm different. This is a poor and remote place, and I'm just a desert dweller. The Fatui must think that doing business with me is not as good as talking with their fists."

Not that they can't afford the money, just simply... you think you deserve my money?

The guests heard the latter half of the sentence.

The guests disguised as the Eremites fell silent, not knowing how to start for a moment.

You track someone down and want to cooperate if you fail to kill them, so you wear someone else's mask just in case.

The mask is not to hide your identity but to give everyone an out.

What if?

What if there's really a need for cooperation afterward?

Taking off the mask can allow you to denounce the Eremites with the victim, and then tearfully negotiate new business.

It should have been like this... But when the soon-to-be victim calmly stated what they were going to do, it became a bit awkward.

"Rama, the current leader of the Tanit tribe."

The leader of the Eremites members was indeed the leader, calmly drawing a wanted poster.

"You are the source of chaos in the Great Red Sand. The Akademiya has placed a high bounty on you."

He even understood to act excited by licking his lips with greed in his eyes, "Once we finish this job, we will never have to worry about food and drink again!"

Temporary mercenary slang, quite common.

"But what I'm doing is leading the people of the Great Red Sand to rise. The desert people have been kneeling for too long. Don't you want your children to live in a better place?"

"Children without parents' support have a hard time living well."

Rama communicated seriously with the other party.

The best choice at this time would be to strike directly, as reasoning before action often leads to failure.

But the other party wanted to solidify the reasons... As expected of the Fatui, even when they intended to kill, they still prepared a step down in case reconciliation was needed.

"Who cares if others kneel or die! Anyway, once we make money, we can live in other countries. Who wants to stay in this barren Great Red Sand!"

It seemed they were provoked.

"True." Rama nodded, "Anyway, I'll leave once I get what I want. Who cares about those unlucky ones in the same situation as me."

"Who wants to be in the same class as them? I should be among the rulers. Why should I empathize with the ruled?"

Rama lost interest in continuing the conversation and rechecked his proficiency points on the panel.

Possibly, he didn't need to farm proficiency from the Eremites but could get it from the Fatui.

The Eremites began more formal work.

"Suddenly thought of something," Rama sighed, "The future twins would probably feel the same in this situation."

Why do you think I'm so easy to bully?

Aether and Lumine would tend to spare these ordinary people who were used.

Their long journeys and powerful strength gave them more reason to spare these ordinary people.

The gap between the twins and ordinary people of Teyvat was so large that even if these people came with killing intent, they looked at the other side's means as adults looking at a child flailing their arms.

No tension or anger could arise.

In the background story, when Aether and Lumine were at their peak strength, they were clearly not weaker than any of Teyvat's Archons.

They could even travel between worlds, possessing very special powers.

They had no reason to be too angry with these ordinary people because the gap between them was indescribable.

But Rama would.

He would take this matter very seriously.

"347 points, overestimated you."

Rama shook his head.

It seemed not all were from the Fatui; there were probably some mercenaries from the Eremites who accepted the bounty.

That's right, even daring to try assassinating the twins, normal people couldn't understand these folks' thinking.

Usually, people risk their lives for a better life, but knowing Aether and Lumine's reputation, they still took the job, which didn't seem like risking for a better life, but pure risking.

A bit hard to understand, but once they're dead, there's no need to understand.

"A person's bottom line might be tough, but just like Candace, as long as there's something they care about, there's always a way to force them to compromise."

"But they aren't sure if I would really be unable to leave this person due to a moment's indulgence."

In the tribe, Rama had no real weaknesses.

His only relationship network was his foster mother, Babel, but his power struggle with Babel wasn't a secret.

The Fatui were unlikely to rely on controlling Babel to threaten Rama.

But Candace might be his new weakness.

Uncertain, worth trying.

"To beat the snake, you must strike its head. If you act rashly without hitting the vital point, you'll be in trouble."

Rama shook his head, "No, that's wrong. The Fatui aren't afraid of offending me, so they won't worry about the consequences of failing to kill me."

Fearing the snake's retaliation means the snake can hurt you, so if you act, you must take it out in one go.

But the Fatui are unlikely to consider Rama a threat, judging by their arrogance. Their biggest worry, at most, is Rama dying without revealing the secrets of the Scarlet King and the Flower God.

Do you think I can be killed in retaliation?

I don't believe it.

"Too bad, if it were the Fatui's troops, this slaughter might intimidate them."

"But most of these people are just desert mercenaries."

Dead is dead, the Fatui won't be intimidated by killing some desert mercenaries.

First, they look down on the Eremites mercenaries. Second, the dead have nothing to do with them, so they can't be afraid of Rama's power.

"In the Fatui's view, I'm just lured out by beauty."

"These people catching me is best, but if they fail, it's just some insignificant desert folks dying."

"The next step would be to either continue trying to catch me with force or to continue using beauty to lure me."

The path doesn't matter; what matters is the result.

You want it; getting it is most important, no matter how.

Given the choice, Rama would choose forceful acquisition.

The Fatui would be more decisive than him.

This is just the beginning.

If things go normally, they'd probably target Candace next to try and force Rama to compromise.

Rama thought: "So, I need to act like a king obsessed with beauty, making them focus on Candace."

The plan was easily decided.

"I disappear, they can only target Candace."

"In this situation, it can lure out all those with ulterior motives."

The Fatui, hidden dissenting voices within the tribe...

"Great, things aren't complicated."

As long as he showed his value for Candace in front of the tribe, they'd naturally target Candace.

Rama is hard to catch, so they'll look for something he values to threaten him.

"If I don't tell Candace, her acting might be more natural." Rama finalized the plan, "But still, better notify her. Being unprepared is too easy to get hurt."

It's not that all technologies have not been pointed out. After all, Sumeru also has means such as Inception. Although it relies on the power of Lord Rukkhadevata, it has it and it can be used.

Rama plans to operate the ruin guardian.

Rama planned to activate the Ruin Guards.

These Ruin Guards were almost damaged beyond repair in the catastrophe five hundred years ago. Reports scattered across various regions indicated that the knights driving them were almost declared dead.

Later, Lumine managed to force them to start up, but they couldn't sustain operation for long and quickly became immobile again.

Rama intended to make minor repairs and then use them directly.

If he were to manufacture a new one, Rama's alchemy skills and available resources wouldn't support him in producing one in a short time.

It would be better to make some repairs and make do with what was available for now.

In terms of autonomous mechanism research, the most reliable source was naturally the Fatui. After all, Childe himself was a funded member, bringing Khaenri'ah's technology into Snezhnaya. The Fatui directly inherited the creator's data, allowing for deep research.

Lumine also relied on the data provided by the Fatui to be able to drive these Ruin Guards.

Rama didn't delve deeply into this research. He voluntarily gave up on Khaenri'ah's technological line since both of them were targeted by the authorities. This path was indeed difficult and dangerous.

But it should be enough.

He was only repairing the machines, not manufacturing a new one.

Regardless of success, this attempt would surely bring some proficiency.

Rama's inclination was to find something to occupy himself with.

Currently, there were only two enemies left: the partially disabled Legacy of the Divine King's Gilded Eremites and the Thirty-Man Corps still waiting for the Legacy of the Divine King to offer their heads first.

These two factions had absolutely no spirit of cooperation. The Thirty-Man Corps waited for the Legacy of the Divine King to sacrifice itself to gain more advantage for them.

If it weren't for the concern that the Legacy of the Divine King might simply surrender, they wouldn't even provide any support.

The Legacy of the Divine King was a force that could be won over. The Gilded Eremites, active in the desert, saw the Thirty-Man Corps in the same light as the elders did: a bunch of pampered traitors.

But they had a greater purpose.

For example, to highlight his deep affection for Candace.

"Set fire to the princes... Do what a ridiculous king should do, and let everyone believe that they can manipulate my will through Candace."

Rama had already decided the outcome for the Legacy of the Divine King, so he wouldn't strive for them.

And he firmly believed that the Fatui would definitely join in.

If he were in Rama's position, he would also start with the enemy's most valued aspects.

(End of Chapter)