Morax was struck dumb by Elliot's answer, as though someone had slammed a hammer over his head, leaving him dazed and confused.
"Useless...?" he managed, stunned.
"Yes."
"Why would it be useless...? Aren't you the Heavenly Principle? Even you can't do anything!?" His voice trembled with despair.
"I am—yet I am not."
"What does that mean?"
"In short, I can't save him. You should seek out the Heavenly Principle on Celestia instead."
For now, Elliot held only the primordial authorities of [Heavenly Principle] and [Time]. The other three—[Life], [Death], and [Space]—he had left behind in the Ninth Life.
With the abilities he currently controlled, he simply had no means of breaking through the Abyss.
Whether the other three authorities would help was uncertain, but Elliot sensed they would be useless as well.
In his battle against the Heavenly Principle in the Ninth Realm, even they feared being wounded by the Abyss.
The only being he currently knew capable of purging the Abyss was that unruly Lord of the Netherworld—who had once cleansed the Abyss from Elliot's own body.
"To Celestia..." Morax's brows furrowed.
He couldn't go to Celestia now.
His Gnosis was no longer in his own hands.
Without a Gnosis, he couldn't reach Celestia at all; an invisible wall would block his path.
"I must go to Snezhnaya first," he said, as though making up his mind.
"To retrieve your Gnosis?" Elliot understood immediately.
"Yes." Morax had grown accustomed to Elliot's unerring accuracy.
"You're too slow. I'll go."
Although Celestia's barrier meant nothing to Elliot, barging in directly would inevitably trigger a battle.
He didn't want to fight the Heavenly Principle now—win or lose, it didn't matter. He just wanted to live peacefully.
So he planned to go to Snezhnaya himself and speak directly with the Cryo Archon.
Elliot stepped before Shenhe, gently kissing her forehead. "Wait for me. I'll be back soon."
"Okay~" Shenhe nodded obediently like a gentle cat, giving him a soft kiss in return.
In the next instant, Elliot vanished.
Less than ten minutes later, he returned to The Chasm.
Not only had he retrieved Morax's Gnosis—he had also brought back the Gnoses of Barbatos and Zebul, returning them to their rightful owners.
"I'm going."
With his Gnosis restored, Morax shot upward into the sky, rushing toward Celestia at full speed.
As he vanished into the distance, Shenhe leaned softly into Elliot's embrace.
"I'm sorry, I—"
Before Elliot could finish, Shenhe stopped him.
"Husband, you don't need to apologize. You don't need to explain anything. I've always believed in you."
"What I want... is that you still like me, that you still love me."
"I can feel your love now—that's enough."
"Everything else... I don't care."
Hearing this, Elliot said nothing, only held her tightly.
"Having you is truly wonderful," he murmured.
"You saved me. That's what I should be saying," Shenhe replied with a gentle smile.
After quite some time, Morax finally returned.
During his absence, Azhdaha had shown signs of waking, but Elliot knocked him unconscious again with a single strike.
To prevent repeated awakenings, Elliot delivered a few extra blows—hopefully enough to keep him unconscious for a while.
"Why did you deceive me?" Morax asked suddenly, his tone grim.
The accusation caught Elliot off guard. He hadn't expected Morax's first words upon returning to be an accusation.
"What did I deceive you about?" Elliot asked, genuinely puzzled.
"Are you still pretending? What purpose do you have in lying to me like this?" Morax's voice carried agitation.
This unusual state of Morax caused Elliot to furrow his brow slightly.
"What did the Heavenly Principle tell you?" Elliot asked quietly.
"So you're still playing dumb? Heavenly Principle."
Hearing that, Elliot paused—and turned his gaze toward Celestia.
A surge of unease washed through him.
"You went to Celestia… and couldn't find the Heavenly Principle?"
"No. Celestia is completely empty. No matter how I called out, there was no response. Why would you toy with me like this?"
Elliot's expression hardened.
This was worse than he expected.
Morax couldn't find the Heavenly Principle on Celestia.
Could it be that Elliot's arrival had replaced this world's Heavenly Principle?
If that were true, then with his current abilities, he wouldn't be able to oppose the Abyss at all.
Anxious, Elliot took Shenhe with him and flew toward Celestia.
Sure enough—not a single trace of life remained.
After thoroughly searching the island, Elliot found the answer at the highest room of Celestia's lone structure.
Two pieces of good news.
Two pieces of bad news.
Good news one:
The Heavenly Principle of this world still existed—Elliot had not replaced her.
Bad news one:
She had fled.
She abandoned Teyvat without a word.
Good news two:
Elliot could inherit this world's position of Heavenly Principle, regaining the authorities of [Life], [Death], and [Space].
Bad news two:
The Heavenly Principle had run because she knew this world was beyond saving—even she was powerless.
Inheritance.
Elliot made his choice.
Soon, the lost powers returned, and he regained the authorities of [Life], [Death], and [Space].
His existing abilities—[Heavenly Principle] and [Time]—remained unchanged.
Using Celestia's surveillance, he examined all of Teyvat.
He was shocked to discover that the entire continent had plunged into chaos.
Countless Abyss monsters crawled out from the ocean depths.
Ancient gods and defeated gods sealed since the Archon War had also been infected, breaking free one after another.
The world had descended into complete disorder.
Elliot activated the maximum amount of divine power Shenhe's body could withstand, infusing her with immense strength.
Power surged endlessly into her, far beyond anything she'd ever experienced.
Her strength now ranked just below the Seven Archons.
Possessing a Vision meant she inherently had the potential to become a god—her latent power was immense.
"This world is heading toward disaster. I can't just stand by."
"Wait here for me, alright? I'll be back soon."
As he spoke, Elliot split into five figures—four shadows, each possessing formidable combat strength.
"Mm…"
"I remember you said you'd protect yourself—and protect me."
"I believe in you. I know you'll come back safely."
Elliot gave her a gentle smile.
"Don't worry."