the Vorpal wielding Jabberwock

It first appears here, in the mechanical duck level up material.

(note the use of the words "perpetually" and "machine".)

This says clearly that Xuihcoatl had indeed pondered this conundrum and went against it.

Then we have this other instance of "using up the planet", the allegorical tale of the day king.

(note the use of the same words, "perpetual" and "machine".)

I had first thought this was a tale about Khaenri'ah (because "perpetual motion machine" is a Khaenri'ahn concept, but now it seems it was as old as the dragons). However, after the moon lore, I realized this could also go for Phanes. He did try to "perpetuate" this cycle into infinity to attain "eternity".

Also, since Xui was wary about reincarnation, then it stands to reason that the one that applied the reincarnation system Lusalim was working on was Phanes and not the dragons. (and we established in my previous theory post that it was applied because Neuvillette is walking proof.)

There is also another weirder case though, that it was not Phanes, but actually really was Khaenri'ah, that eventually found the dragons' research and applied the reincarnation system. Hence them getting cursed with immortality so they cannot die and reincarnate and use up the planet and doom it in the process. But for some inexplicable reason (could be because they are vishap people), it also applied to the dragons, hence Neuvillette got reincarnated but only after the cataclysm. (He was dead for a while, this explains why the timing. It happened one century after the cataclysm when he's been dead for millennia... rather odd timing.)

This also kind of aligns with how intrinsically connected the Khaenri'ahns are to the dragons. We have yet to know why for sure, but Khaenri'ahns are full of dragon motifs (just look at Thrain), and there is also the Nibelung/Alberich connection. Those two names come from the same story and if you know it you understand why it's so weird we have an Alberich in Khaenri'ah. Not to mention Rhinedottir "gold". There are also other weird coincidences, like Irminsul the king that is named after the dragons' tree.

Then, there is the slightly crazier theory that sort of combines all of this. That Khaenri'ah, being hidden from Phanes' gaze and not being a part of the system of the seven, never got Phanes' reincarnation update, so they made their own. And it "competed" with Phanes' system so they were "inhibited".

And the curse "must" stand... like it was not about punishment at all.

She forsook her own rule for it... That's how necessary it is.

Also

First let me remind you how this Lusalim was the dragon that betrayed dragonkin and bargained with the reaver using all the dragon's research data to preserve the frost moon just so he can send a message into nothingness.

That research was the basis for the fake sky, the data manipulation Irminsul is capable of, and even cognitive disruptions... in short, everything Phanes has moddified in Teyvat you will find an explanation for in the dragon's findings.

In any case, this is important for only one reason, that even if the dragons did not have time to implement this reincarnation system, then Phanes likely did. There is also the possibility that Lusalim continued to work on it while on Phanes's side.

This also lines up with how Dottore was talking about his soul last patch and refering to it as "data", just like in this research log.

So the takeaway is, the reincarnation system is in place.

But this was already evident due to a certain sovereign. Neuvillette.

Think on it, the dragons were looking for a way to reincarnate, that means that they did not naturally do so. Which means if one of them did reincarnate, then that research was finally completed.

Also, I had previously talked about why Neuvillette being reborn in human form was not due to "vishap purity", and I had come to that conclusion due to a contradiction in the logic of the people of Enkanomiya (the ones that said that). Here is the post in case you are interested.

Moreover, the dragons specify clearly that the form could be different from that of a dragon's... it lines up perfectly with Neuvillette's case.

This gives us one interesting case study... dragon king Nibelung.

Nibelung came back to Teyvat and was allegedly defeated. No one is clear on that at all. Some even phrase it as an assumption. But in the end, there are only three possiblities. Nibelung died. Nibelung did not die. Or that was not Nibelung at all. (some say its was the abyss in his form and he is still out in space and I think that is very valid and I might write about it at some point.)

Case one, he died. Then according to Neuvillette's vision story, he likely already reincarnated and made the Gnoses with Phanes. There is also the slight possibility, though small, that Nibelung is not the second descender. This would just mean he will reincarnate eventually like Neuvillette anyway. The answer is always the same with this case because Neuvillette proves the reincarnation system is working. This also means Nibelung is/will be likely in human form. (I think it might be Vedrfolnir.)

Case two, he did not die. That means he is hiding somewhere and we just need to find him.

Case three, that was not Nibelung. That means he is still in deep space and we also just need to find him.

So in conclusion, either the dragon king is in human form... or we need to find him.

Then enters this mf:

The Archon quests alone are not exactly enough. At least do the world quests with them. And the character quests. So just all quests in general are important as a basis. Some hangouts have some interesting bits, but those are not on the same level at all though. (only Kaeya's is but he is in a different category all together.)

And certain previous event quests have a lot of important lore. Like the "three realms gateway" event and durin events and simulanka and stuff like that. You might want to watch those (since event quests are not permanent content, meaning they are no longer available in the game), but that is if their topic interests you. Otherwise ignore them, they can be a lot at first.

With all that, you get the bare minimum of lore I think. A very solid basis.

Then there are many sources for supplementary lore if you need it or are just curious.

First come the books, especially ones like "before sun and moon", "hymns of the far north", "perinheri", etc. They have a lot of important lore. Some books are even posed as fairy tales because they are allegories so that phanes doesn't smite the writer. (You will understand more on this in the sumeru archon quest.) This makes books very important as they have hidden lore, but they are also fallible. (Again, sumeru archon quest.) But note that some books are useless, not all are lore books.

The artifact set descriptions however are infallible, unlike books, for some reason no one understands even today, and full of lore as well. They are mostly as obscure as those allegory books, but at least you know that their information is true and not subject to tampering. That is the only reason I have read them all. (No I don't read all the books. The only source I cover completely is the quests. And the artifacts.)

Then there are character stories (The written ones that you can read when you get a character) and their voicelines. Those have a lot of lore too, and even if you don't want the character but the character is important or their lore is connected to a topic you are interested in, I'd recommend reading them from the wiki. Just pick and choose what interests you.

All three previous points (books, artifacts, character info) are on the same level of importance I think. The level right after "quest" level. So the next source to look into when you want more information.

Then there comes things like weapon descriptions and item descriptions, even drops have some interesting lore. But all of that feels far more secondary. There are a few very important weapon descriptions however, but they are mostly tied to their characters lore so you can usually tell when you would want to read a weapon description or when it would not interest you. Like Ineffa's weapon description has lore tied to her own lore so it was obvious I would have wanted to read that. (I will not say the subject since that is a spoiler.)

After that there is the lowest tier, videos. Genshin makes a lot of videos and some contain lore too.

Videos like "a winter nights lazzo" and "the gods limits" and stuff like that have some neat lore. Especially the "travail" video. In it, Dainsleif introduces every region and a bit of lore about it. I recommend watching it if you haven't.

Then there is something that few consider lore these days, but as someone who spent years used to it, I think it was very important and I hate how they stopped it after Natlan. Dainsleif's collected miscellany videos. He used to describe how the new character works then lore dump at the end. Those end lines were usually very interesting.

Overall, I just want you to know that even I have never read every piece of lore in genshin. We mostly focus on the topics that interest us (me with dragons as a main, then fatui, khaenriah, and abyss secondary) and move from there. Genshin lore is a lot, so apart from quests, the rest is not mandatory but very helpful if you want a deeper picture on certain topics.

As for the heavenly principles that you seem interested in.... well, start with the book "before sun and moon" that you will find once you reach a region called "Enkanomiya" or "Byakuyakoku" (its in Inazuma). The rest will make itself apparent with the quests as you go, and you will eventually know whether this character or this book or whatever is related to what you want to know.

So, take it slow, don't overwhelm yourself, and dive in when you feel like it. But quests are the basis so keep that in mind.

Also, if you ever need a veteran player and lore enthusiast to ask, you are always free to ask me. I hope you enjoy genshin and find your own little lore focus. <3

What Pantalone says in this part firmly cements my opinion that the traveler is an idiot and ultimately and unwittingly opposes those trying to break free of the shackles imposed by the heavenly principles, because the traveler simply does "what is right" without having even a slight understanding of this world. They even unwittingly oppose their own sibling...

How can you know what is "right" if you don't even understand this world. Pantalone is right. It's something that I too have noticed for a while and even wrote about at some point. The traveler is simply obeying commands, especially those of the usurpers, and in doing so is only reinforcing the sorry state of affairs this world is in.

Also, Pierro's little "lecture" in the nod krai teaser tells me the traveler is very likely to "intervene" and try to stop their plans.

Pierro says "Lives will be lost. A nation brought to ruins. So be it. It is nothing I have not endured before." To me this says he is more than willing to ruin Snezhnaya for the completion of his plans. And rightfully so. Teyvat is already at the end of its cycle. If something can be done, it should be done now.

But I have no doubt the traveler is going to meet a few vision users in Snezhnaya, sympathize with them, then storm the palace to stop whatever is going on. No heed for the will of those involved. No foresight into why this is being done. Like always.

As long as they are labeled as "villains", the traveler does not even think before they act. Trampling on whatever it is that they are doing to stop them.

Dottore proved that to us so painfully, I have never hated the traveler more. Not because they stopped Dottore, but because they did not even think. They did not consider. He was always the "villain" therefore he should not even be heard...

Neuvillette was born in human form, and according to the Enka notes, it's because vishaps were "impure"... but not only does that imply humans are purer, it also negates what the Enka notes said later, about how the light realm creatures (vishaps) and the human realm creatures (orobashi) are incompatible.

So its either that was not the reason Neuvillette was born in human form, or light realm and human realm are not THAT incompatible and they were just very shabby researchers. It also means that Orobashi could have been also reborn into a "human" realm form. Not a human per se, but still belonging to the human realm.

In either case, it reminds me of what Kukulkan said. How when the "holy soil" (yes same as Enka, and it simply means soil rich in light realm energy) was destroyed by the reaver, the dragons in Natlan devolved into the saurians.

I am almost certain that if Orobashi was human realm, so are the saurians... which mean that it is highly likely Vivi simply devolved. Which also means the same could have happened to Bashi. And even if Vivi is simply in human form but still part of the light realm... that begs the question WHY the human form is part of the light realm at all. So we are still back to square one.

Anyway, this is just one line of thought. This topic of dragon evolution has so many other conclusions, I have multiple posts where we take a different path of reasoning and come to wildly different conclusions.

Like dragons originally looked human, and they either evolved or devolved to their current forms thanks to Phanes. Or that there is no human realm at all to begin with and the human form is also draconic and Phanes copied it (like everything else) and is lying to everyone's face like always. And all those conclusions are still plausible because the Enka notes have a clear contradiction.

"The vishap lord is reborn in human form due to vishaps being impure, but at the same time vishaps and humans are incompatible." The implication on the human form due to that contradicting sentence is far greater than most realize. And trying to make sense of it leads to wild results. I simply hope they address it some day. Vivi still wonders why he is in the form he is in, and I personally don't think the Enka notes are a sufficient explanation. So I hope they at least answer him on that.

I am also certain that if anyone knows the answer, its Bashi. Regardless of whether he is a sovereign or not. If only the usurpers didn't kill him... His home is also a source of a lot of lore that I think might be relevant to Vedrfolnir too. Alas, Bashi is dead, so we can only wait and see.