#azdaha

Genshin Character Ask game: Zhongli <3

There are entire several page long essays about the cultural inspirations of his character, stories, design, everything. Imo, he is Genshin's favorite in terms of level of cultural inspiration and pride to this day. You can read about a lot of them here!

One of these is his left thumb ring, which is called a 韘 / Shè in ancient China, and 扳指 / Bān Zhǐ now, implying he can shoot arrows with his left hand!

The English translation did not do justice for a number of translations in his 2nd Story Quest, which you can read about here!

Most notably, Azdaha (aka Re Tuo in Chinese), wrote a whole poem about just how amazing Morax is, and that the title of the question "No Mere Stone" is also inspired by a Chinese poem: "我心匪石 不可转也, 我心匪席 不可卷也"

azhdaha + zhongli doodle. belief me they are t4t

Design by @harpoontheinkyloric ^_^

additional silly under the cut

Hi! First time posting a fanfic on here. Have some Zhongli/Azdaha slowburn(?) Enjoy! :3 (yes Zhongli is referred to as Morax in this) "Morax... Morax! You cannot keep me sealed here!" Morax could still hear Azhdaha's voice, the growl of the geovishap etched into his memory, just like every other event the Geo Archon had lived through. But unlike other events and memories, Morax just couldn't seem to stop the pang in his heart every time he thought of sealing the other dragon in the depths of the chasm. It had been a few centuries since their... parting. Morax felt like no other word fit the situation of sealing Azhdaha away. Of sealing... his feelings away. No, no, no. He wasn't allowed to think about that. He was the type of Archon to release his feelings quickly, and to never replay on his moments of so called 'weakness'. After all, he couldn't focus on his contracts and battles with silly feelings in the way. That's just not who Morax was. Feelings weren't important to the Archon, especially when concerned with ruling a nation. He was never allowed to let go. But... Morax supposed that now, after faking his death and leaving Liyue to the people, he had allowed himself to let go. He had let himself feel things, really truly feel things. Not just anger, not just a sense of responsibility. But, joy, annoyance, comfort. He allowed himself to finally grieve the ones he had lost. Guizhong, the yakshas, every single minor god that fell during the archon war. And while, yes, he kept his moments of true anger, and moments of fully letting go of his composure private, Morax believed he was making steps to really seem human. He even had his carefully crafted persona of Zhongli, that was actually passing, although he did keep forgetting that since he no longer had his Gnosis, he could not make the amount of mora he needed to hand. Damn, he really needed to start remembering that. Anyway, ah yes, back to the matter at hand. Azhdaha. Even though he and the Traveler had resealed the other dragon, seeing him after all those centuries broke a dam in Morax's heart. Feelings that he wasn't supposed to feel. Care and love. But not like the same care and love he felt for the people of Liyue. No. Something akin to the same love he had felt all those years ago for Guizhong. He wasn't supposed to feel that way for Azhdaha, right? To his knowledge, he wasn't supposed to fall in love twice. What in Celestia's sake was he meant to do? What was he meant to feel? Morax didn't think feeling were meant to be this difficult and thought consuming. Well, overthinking did nothing for him.