Theory about the original Dendro Archon, The God of Woods.
Hello there! This night, instead of sleeping, I thought about a theory regarding the God of Woods, who I firmly believe is none other than Baizhu.
Let's start saying that this theory is about Baizhu, Changsheng and Kusanali: The story of how they met and how they...ended. Also, in the end I'm gonna talk about the present situation in Sumeru.
Also, there might be some spoilers...
Let's begin with the story of Baizhu...which I think it's not even his real name, but we'll get there.
I'm not sure how he became the Archon of Sumeru...Maybe after graduating at the Academia he got an enormous amount of knowledge in both flora and fauna and so the people of Sumeru began worshipping him like a God.
(In the ancient times, people used to worship a person just because they were knowledgeable in...pretty much everything.)
So, looking at the situation, Celestia determined he was the most trusted person by the people, and so they made Baizhu the Archon. And that's how the God of Woods was born.
Let's now talk about how he met his longlife partner, Changsheng. (Which is also a fake name.)
I believe Changsheng is like Guoba: a God who lost their powers after getting murdered. Who am I talking about? Of course it's Orobashi.
We learn that Raiden Ei slaughtered Orobashi, in order to stop them. I don't remember Orobashi's backstory, but we've already learnt that in game.
I believe, after getting slain, Orobashi got reincarnated into a young Inazuman girl's body. Like is shown in the anime Magi and...in history too, in Middle-East, which is represented by Sumeru, slavery was common. So I believe Changsheng just lied there, some sumerian rich man got her and then sold her as a slave. That's when she met Baizhu.
She was probably offered to the God since she was foreign and so "deemed valuable".
I believe the two of them got really well with each other.
I think she remembers to have been Orobashi, unlike Guoba, because that's an incentive to the two of them looking for "eternal life"...but we'll talk about this later.
Let's move on onto the third character I'm going to talk about. Yup, it's none other than Lesser Lord Kusanali.
At the end of Inazuma's quest, Yae Miko talks about where the traveler and Paimon should go next: She suggests Sumeru.
After that, we also learn from her that the most important figure in Sumeru is this 'Lesser Lord Kusanali'.
After re-watching this part, I noticed that Yae has never used the word 'Archon' to describe her...just the word 'Deity'...
Which is pretty much the same, BUT it has differences.
It's like calling a square a rectangle...it's technically correct, but there's a more appropriate termination to use.
Also, it's kinda weird that the most important and powerful person in the nation has the appellation of 'Lesser Lord'...
Now, moving into her backstory...
I've been reading some artifacts' descriptions...and after reading the Viridescent Venerer's I got an illumination.
The Viridescent Venerer and Lesser Lord Kusanali are one and the same!!
Let me explain, The VV is actually the 'Queen of Hunters' who just hunted for fun and maybe boredom...
Suddenly, she saw a boy running away from a monster.
(In the english translation, it is said that the boy was killed, but it's probably another error because in the original version, the beast only injured him.)
She proceeded to kill the monster in front of the boy, in order to protect him.
Now the theory part begins.
(Oh, forgot to mention that the boy was The God of Woods.)
But since Baizhu is technically the God of flora and fauna, he scolded her for doing so.
He was probably there to investigate because of the Calamity, which of course happened in Khaenri'ah but there may have been some minor manifestations in the other nations, too.
Maybe the animals of the forest where Baizhu was attacked were being affected by the Calamity, and Baizhu was just looking out for the cause.
However, Kusanali(She's still a Deity, after all.) knew he was the Archon and she might have asked him to be her mentor.
And Baizhu may have accepted because he had already sensed what was going to happen to him during the Cataclysm...(To let Kusanali be his heir.) Maybe the plants and animals had a bad feeling and he sensed this.
However, that's how the God of Woods, The reincarnation of Orobashi and the Queen of Hunters became acquainted.
Now...it's story time! Of course, I'm going to explain, in my opinion, what has happened in Sumeru during the Cataclysm.
First of all, why has the God of Woods 'perished'?
The answer is quite simple: he figured out Celestia's secret.
I don't know if it's true or if it's another theory, but I think Lisa knows their secret too. Celestia punishes whoever tries to uncover the truth behind them by shortening their life. What about Baizhu? He's a God, after all.
I got to the conclusion they didn't want to think about someway to curse him, so they just severely injured him, to let him die.
After having found him agonizing on the ground, both Changsheng and Kusanali tried to cure him, but there was nothing to do: his body, cursed by Celestia's slash, had lost his eternification.
So, he would be vulnerable to anyone, from random thieves to Celestia themselves. They came to the conclusion that it would be dangerous for Baizhu to stay in Sumeru.
After a while, they learn about Qiqi, a girl who was brought back to life by the Adepti. So, the three of them decide to send Baizhu to Liyue, together with Changsheng, to study this girl and to gain their immortality back.
While Baizhu is incognito in Liyue, Kusanali plays the role of the Dendro Archon.
Ironically, the dendro slime hides in the ground(Mirroring Baizhu hiding in Liyue, land of the Geo Archon.), while only a flower is visible on the outside(Mirroring Kusanali being the God of Flower.)
"But there is no way Celestia still hasn't figured out the truth!!"
What if...Baizhu and Changsheng made a contract with Morax, God of Contracts?
Simply, they could have asked him to host them in Liyue in exchange of something...that could be everything, maybe even medical care for the people of Liyue.
"Yeah but Zhongli didn't know Baizhu when he first met him!!"
My theory about this is that Changsheng and Baizhu could have just changed their appearance, in order to not act suspicious and to attract Celestia's eyes. Archons can change their appearance, so it's a plausible explanation. Also, Qiqi claims to not remember Dr.Baizhu's face, so it's another valid point. He might have changed his face multiple times but Qiqi has never noticed.
Or, Zhongli could have just lied to protect his secret, who knows.
While in Sumeru...
Let's analyze the Genshin Trailer...
"The God of Wisdom's enemy is wisdom itself."
It might mean that Kusanali, the God of Wisdom, fears the 'wisdom', because it can lead the people of Sumeru to the actual truth.
"...and the oasis of knowledge is a mirage in the desert of ignorance."
But, luckily for her, seems like only a few people know the truth, while the others who don't know it don't even question themselves about it.
"In the city of scholars there is a push for folly..."
So, everyone in Sumeru is driven away from the truth because they CAN'T know the truth, otherwise the God of Woods would be in danger.
"...yet the God of Wisdom makes no argument against it."
And well, of course it's convenient to Kusanali. She has to protect the secret, after all.
In the end, Lesser Lord Kusanali reigns over Sumeru, lying to her people about her being the Archon.
The only people who know the truth are Baizhu, Changsheng, Kusanali, Zhongli and Cyno.
Cyno...why Cyno?
First of all, Cyno is a character from Sumeru who has appeared both in the Genshin manga and in the Genshin Trailer.
His design is inspired by Anubis, the God of mummification and graveyards.
Which is why I think he's in charge of guarding the God of Woods' coffin, grave or whatever was made for him.
I don't know if this role was assigned to him because he's one of the Sages or because Kusanali trusts him. The fact is that I believe he opened the coffin(by chance or even voluntarily) and actually saw that...guess what? It's actually as empty as Zhongli's wallet!
I believe he wants to figure out the truth about this, that's why I also believe he'll ask the traveler to help him, because the other people of Sumeru refuse to acknowledge the fact that have been, in fact, deceived by their own ruler.
Last thing
When, in the manga, Cyno was called by Lisa to exorcize Collei in Mondstadt, the coffin was left unattended.
I CAN OBJECT!
When Cyno's busy(cuz boi...let that man rest at least for a while), the person who takes his place in such an important role must be a person very close to Kusanali...and who do we know that matches this description?
Yup, none other than Al-Haitam.
Al-Haitam is the expy of Su from Honkai Impact 3d, which is said to be very close to Kusanali.
Well...that's the end for today! Hope you enjoyed my theory and...let's just hope Sumeru comes fast! Stay safe guys!
