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[2.2] Ley Lines, Ley Line Disorders, Ambition, and Elemental Energy PART 1

A loredump/essay about energy flow and the environmental story within Genshin Impact.

Spoilers: Archon Quest through 2.1, Tsurumi Island, Seirai Stormchasers, Zhongli's Second Story Quest, and Dragonspine.

TL;DR: Ley Lines, in addition to carrying elemental energy, respond to the wishes and desires of humans, gods, and elemental beings, which in turn affects energy flow and shapes the natural environment. Normal Ley Line flow can be obstructed when desires and ambitions are corrupted into obsessions, causing Ley Line disorders.

**I wrote a follow-up to this! You can read it here**

Edit history:

3/25/2022: Changed formatting on some quotes.

11/8/2021: made a pretty significant edit to the portion arguing the sacred sakura tree and the Thunderbird perches are Irminsul trees, cuz eh the evidence wasn't really there. At the very least, they are enriched heavily by the Ley Lines, and though this isn't a canon term but I'll refer to them as "Ley Line trees" instead, distinct from the silver-white trees in Domains (which are also connected to and enriched by Ley Lines). Expanded on the Dragon-queller tree's connection to Ley Lines and how Azhdaha's tail has fused with it. Corrected a sentence about Kazari's origins to clarify that she is born of the filth in Saiguu's memories in addition to being her will to protect Inazuma.

What is energy in Teyvat?

Energy is something you can’t get away from when playing this game, whether you’re a casual player or meta-focused. Energy particles are generated in combat, particularly by using your elemental skill, which then fills the gauge of your elemental burst. Energy particles can also be found in the overworld while pilfering mora and artifacts. Energy particles can appear as small or large iridescent particles (all elements present), or as element-specific large particles that will recharge one element’s burst type at a greater rate than others.

Elemental energy flows through the natural environment of Teyvat through the Ley Lines, a network that mirrors the pattern of the Irminsul trees’ root growth.

“A mysterious network that links the whole world together, within which flow the elements. It's said the Ley Lines remember all things that happen in this world, from the surface down to the deepest depths…” -Loading Screen: Ley Lines.

“Blossoms formed from ley line deposits generated from the impeded flow of elemental energy.” - Loading Screen: Ley Line Blossom.

“The building blocks of this world and the source of many miraculous things. All sorts of things happen when elements interact. Adventurers, travelers, and warriors all use elemental reactions to get things done at a fraction of the effort it might otherwise take.” - Loading Screen: Elements

“All Domains are said to be constructed on ley lines. The energy surging through them can affect the Domains in unpredictable ways. These effects are known as ley line disorders” - Loading Screen: Ley Line Disorders.

“Sometimes, Domains fill with harmful elemental energy that can only be dispelled with elemental reactions.” -Loading Screen: Domains and Elements

From these, we also learn some important information:

Elemental energy is the building blocks of Teyvat, kind of like atoms.

Elemental energy flow can be impeded by blockages in the Ley Lines. One way that we deal with blockages is through the Ley Line Outcrops on the map.

Elemental energy can be harmful in certain scenarios, notably under Ley Line disorder scenarios. This elemental energy can negatively impact you in combat and hinder your ability to efficiently use the elements and defeat enemies.

The Ley Lines are connected to every silver Irminsul tree we redeem artifacts, talent books, and weapon ascension materials from in domains. It is my belief that the lore that accompanies these items are a part of the memories of the Ley Lines referred to in the first loading screen quote here. The Ley Line Blossoms and Irminsul trees can be revitalized by the time-gated resource, Original Resin:

“Original Resin gradually replenishes by absorbing elemental energy from the natural environment. Alternatively, you can replenish it more quickly using a certain variety of highly precious gem.” -Loading Screen: Original Resin

“A primordial crystalline gem that's beyond the mundane world. Shines with the condensed hopes and dreams of universes that once were.” -Description: Primogem

So from this we learn that resin is concentrated elemental energy drawn from the environment. We also know that when we obtain rewards from Irminsul Trees or Ley Line Outcrops, we are “revitalizing” them. So, resin, and perhaps elemental energy itself, is a life energy too. What’s really telling, however, is the Primogem description. Hopes and dreams of universes that once were can be transformed into the elemental energy present in Teyvat’s landscape...I will circle back to this, so just keep this in mind with the next section.

Elemental Energy, Elemental Beings, and the Gods

Evidently, elemental energy is crucial to Teyvat’s world structure. It’s everywhere in Teyvat’s natural environment: the Petrified Trees, the Dragon-Queller tree, the Frostbearing tree, the perches at Tsurumi Island, the Sacred Sakura tree, Orobaxi’s bones- wait, Orobaxi’s BONES??

Before we proceed, some important distinctions need to be made. Azhdaha is considered a Geo elemental dragon, similar to how Dvalin is an Anemo elemental dragon. They are different from Gods like Barbatos, Andrius, Decarabian, Osial, Morax, Orobaxi, or Ei. However, all of them can wield elemental power, and elemental dragons’ power is said to rival the power of the Gods of old.

So, why is it important that Orobaxi’s bones have the same energy veins seen in the Sacred Sakura tree, the Frostbearing tree, the Petrified Trees in the domains, the Tsurumi perches, and the Dragon-Queller tree?

We know that the Frostbearing tree is newly sprouted from the old Irminsul tree of Sal Vindagnyr that Celestia destroyed with the Skyfrost Nail. We also have confirmation that the Dragon-Queller tree connects to the ley lines from the behind the scenes video about Azhdaha. He draws power from the Ley Lines to support his elemental transformations, which is something he can accomplish as his tail has merged with the tree.

The Sacred Sakura tree and the Tsurumi perches are also connected to the Ley Lines and their energy flow. The Sacred Sakura tree, like the Tsurumi perches, have those telling veins of energy running through them. It also runs a complex network of roots and off-branches of Thunder Sakura trees brimming with electro energy throughout the islands of Inazuma, and it requires periodic purification to clear up blockages of filth, similar to how the Irminsul trees of the Domains and Ley Line outcrops require resin to clear obstructing substances blocking elemental energy flow.

The Tsurumi perches also responded significantly to Kapatcir, an elemental (if not divine) being, so much so that her elemental energy physically changed the ecology of Tsurumi Island (thank you u/LifelessFloater for your enormous brain). This is also not too different from the Frostbearing Tree growing from the energy inside of the Crimson Agate, tainted with Durin’s corrupted blood. Durin’s blood has a similar physical consequence on Dragonspine’s environment that we’ll circle back to again in a later section.

What do all of those things have in common that Orobaxi does not? It is extremely significant that Orobaxi’s bones have evidence of elemental power from the Ley Lines in them, because it can help us understand how the other Gods, not just the elemental dragons, actually work.

What do I mean “how the other Gods work”? In truth, I’m only going to discuss one in detail here, because she is key to the foundational point of this theory: Raiden Ei.

The True Nature of the Shadow

Ei was traumatized after the Cataclysm and the profound loss of her sister Makoto. Ei's response to this trauma was to turn toward a new ideal, the opposite of her sister's ideal of Transience: Eternity.

Ei's vision of eternity was meant to keep Inazuma safe from annihilation by Celestia. To do this, Ei tried to create stasis in her nation by removing technologies of ambition, her own people’s visions. But Ei's kit gives more insight into what her true role is as a demon god, and what powers her own immense strength.

She is a “Wishbearer.” She gains "resolve" stacks from team members gaining energy particles and using their elemental bursts. The higher the burst energy cost, the more resolve stacks she gains, and this is amplified if the burst is from an Electro user. Once she gains her maximum “resolve,” she uses her new secret art, Musou Shinsetsu, “gathering truths unnumbered and wishes uncounted,” to cut down the enemy. So the wishes of the people, the truths she tried to turn away from in her pursuit of stasis, are things her own elemental power responds to and turns into her strength. She also returns that strength to her teammates, amplifying the damage of their bursts in perfect synergy.

From the various Ley Line trees and Irminsul trees we encounter in the overworld and in Domains, we see that Ley Lines respond to concentrated elemental energy, which helps clear energy blockages. From the Primogems, we see that hopes and dreams, indeed ambitions themselves, also produce a response from the Ley Lines and clear those blockages. From Orobaxi’s bones, we see that Ley Line energy may even flow through the bodies of the Gods. From Ei’s kit, we see that high energy flow amplifies elemental power, and that elemental energy itself may even be generated from ambitions, hopes, and dreams. In short, these pieces of evidence may point to a key energy law in Teyvat, and that is that “wishes,” the heart’s desires, and ambition affect energy flow in the Ley Lines, and may even be partially responsible for generating Ley Line energy. Elemental power can be amplified and respond directly to those wishes.

Perhaps somewhere in here lies the key to why vision users can wield certain elements. But I don’t think we’re quite there yet with in-game info. *stares at Mihoyo*

Ambitions and the Environment

Ambitions and desires are such a key component of energy flow in Teyvat that they have environmental consequences. There are endless examples of this and the importance of the natural world to Genshin lore, but here are some favorites of mine:

“Azhdaha can be deemed as a representation of nature, whereas humans represent the spirit of expansion and development. So, what kind of damage will be done to nature in the process of mankind’s continuous exploration and usage of nature?” -Xiao Luohao, Genshin Creative Concept and Writing Team.

“A giant vine that has absorbed the ancient flame that rages within the Ley Lines. It is restless, as if fueled by an endless fury. Poets, bards, and even some academics believe that elements also contain emotions and hopes. If this is true, then one can only imagine what emotions cause the Pyro Regisvine to burn eternally, writhing like one longing to be free of the confines of the earth…” -Pyro Regisvine, Living Beings

“Some studies suggest that plants are like the organs of the world, harmonizing the turbulent elemental energies of the Ley Lines...In certain circumstances, certain plants will turn into creatures of monstrous size and intent...in the course of many years” -Cryo Regisvine, Living Beings

There’s another side to ambition that requires exploration: regret. For what is an ambition or desire unfulfilled but a deep regret? And it’s one thing when a human has a regret, but what about when a God or powerful elemental being has regrets?

“Delusions and disappointments of an ancient ambition to lead humanity are gathered here. It refuses to give up on its lofty ambitions, though it is for now consigned to fester in the cavernous depths of Guyun.” -Teleport Waypoint: Domain of Guyun

“An abnormal Electro elemental life form...That which drives the Thunder Manifestation is a much more primal fury. It is said that these life forms will only descend like lightning upon places that play host to great lingering resentment, such as the fragmented Amakumo peak, where the storm clouds ever roil. As long as the grudges of the island do not fade, so will the roaring thunder persist.” -Thunder Manifestation, Living Beings

This point is driven home again and again and again through Genshin lore, but we see several striking instances of the power of unfulfilled ambitions and regrets on the environment through:

Yashiori Island’s fierce lightning storm caused by the unsealed Tatarigami from Orobaxi’s body.

Balethunder on Tatarasuna caused by the malfunctioning reactor, meant to control the Tatarigami for jade steel production.

The eternal lightning storm and its physical effects on Seirai Island’s environment caused by Asase Hibiki unsealing Kapatcir’s regret.

Kapatcir’s curse on the Ley Lines of Tsurumi Island to repeat the past for all eternity until she heard Ruu’s song again.

The balethunder in Musoujin Gorge, from Ei’s anger and regret of losing her dear friend Sasayuri to Orobaxi and Watatsumi’s army. Musoujin Gorge, of course, is itself a physical change in the landscape caused by the immense elemental power of Ei’s slash.

To an extent, Guyun Stone Forest itself exists to seal away Osial and his ambitions.

Ruu: The clouds in the sky, the super special grass, and rocks up in the air. These were all Kapatcir's doing, right? She's so cool, too!

And the worst part is, it’s not just regret that can change the physical environment. Corruption can too.

The top two photos are more “natural” physical environmental changes, although admittedly we know very little about the Starglow plant in the top right and what power it is actually responding to (plz don’t be the skyfrost nail). The bottom three photos are more concerning.

“A bright blue grass known as Starglow can be found growing from some special power in certain areas. Correspondingly, dark red growths can also be found in other areas…” -Loading Screen: Dragonspine

Durin’s corrupted blood and his still-beating heart in Wyrmrest Valley are having a considerable impact on Dragonspine’s environment. Those scarlet sprouts look extremely different from the Triquetra-shaped Starglow. Throughout the mountain, we find Scarlet Quartz and Crimson Agate flowing with the blood’s energy. There’s even corrupted blood energy particles floating in the air. From the Frostbearer catalyst:

“A long, long time later, yet still long ago -

When the deathmatch between the dragons of darkness and wind was decided at last,

When corrosive blood stained the ashen valley red,

The tree, at last, remembered that it had not died with that entombed city,

And it extended its greedy roots towards the warm ichor that irrigated the land…”

...and we do not have the follow-up on that yet, nearly a year later! But trust and believe that the Frostbearing tree’s revitalization from Durin’s corrupted blood will have a significant impact on the environment in Dragonspine beyond this. After all, the power within his blood is strong enough to melt away Ancient Rime and temporarily neutralize Sheer Cold accumulation….which, while we’re here, is a Ley Line disorder specific to the region the same way that the Sea of Fog is specific to Tsurumi Island’s Ley Line disorder.

Away With Needless Obsession

Before we go down the Ley Line disorder rabbit hole, though, we need to think a little more about what “corruption” is:

“When a person encounters a setback, the worry that everything shall come to a fruitless conclusion appears. The advent of fear causes cracks to appear in the mind. Death follows easily in the footsteps of fear, like a damp cold that, to the unprepared, pierces to the bone. For many, it is only in the moment that death is upon them that it dawns on them that their weakness has now been targeted with fatal consequences -- and that at some point, therefore, that weakness must have been exposed.” - Heart’s Desire, vol. 3

“...And he became submerged in that thick dark mist...As though holding onto a spider’s thread hanging down in the dark, the samurai held the handle of his broken sword tightly. Amidst the dark mist, he kept stubbornly reminding himself: The result of our wager is still undecided. I must return to Asase’s side…” -Mistsplitter Reforged

“In this world, the more one clings to delusions, the more quickly they slip through one’s fingers. Only when the heart’s desires are finally cast aside can the narrow path to peace be found.” -Teleport Waypoint: Domain of the Wayward Path.

“People often say that demon-slaying arrows can drive away evil, but evil is never an objective thing. Evil often stems from within our hearts, born out of delirious minds that have turned cold and ashen from terror...I shall destroy evil with our bow and arrows, exorcising folly and needless obsession” -Shaft of Remembrance, Shimenawa’s Reminiscence

“With the passage of long years, and amid boundless darkness, even the purest gem will become dulled by dust, and even the noble dragon might be corrupted and cankered by hatred. But never forget that dust can be wiped away, and the power of doubt and poison can be shattered.” -Enemies of Note: Stormterror

I’ve talked about Takamine the Mistsplitter and Asase Hibiki in basically every lore post I’ve ever made, but it’s because their story is truly so important to Genshin and illustrating the lore. Takamine was surrounded by the dark mist of the Abyss War (the fallout from the destruction of Khaenriah, where Gold released their monsters into Teyvat). Death had marched to his front door, and he felt fear that I would argue he had never felt in his entire life. And what did his mind do? It denied the reality in front of him, and defied death to fulfill his promise with Asase. But there is a key difference between his desire and the ambitions that make one worthy of a vision: Takamine’s defiance is an obsession, a delusion of the heart, formed out of desperation and doubt, out of fear itself, rather than unwavering, unfaltering determination and resolve.

This should also call back to mind the discussion of regret, an unfulfilled desire or ambition. Regret can also fall into the category of an obsession. One last point I’d like to make here is about Gold. For what little we know about the ancient alchemist, we know that they were also “corrupted by their ambition and greed,” which is implied to be the reason they created monsters such as the Rifthounds and Durin. We don’t know what Gold’s actual ambition was, or what event may have led them to go astray, but I would argue in their case that corruption can also be born from obsessions that are a result of an excess of ambition.

Corruption is therefore a result of obsession. Obsession is born of fear, desperation, anger, and excessive ambition.

Ley Line disorders

Kun Jun: Heaven and earth, yin and yang, opposing forces...You can consider the existence of me and the Azhdaha you see there, to be a reflection of such polarities. ‘We’ are a schism of the will...the will of Azhdaha.

By now it should be apparent that elemental energy responds to strong emotions and desires indiscriminately. It will respond to the noble will to face the unknown, and it will respond to obsession and hatred from promises unfulfilled, whether those emotions come from a mortal or an immortal.

Energy flow is occasionally impeded by blockages in the Ley Lines. If we can agree that the Sacred Sakura is at least enriched by the Ley Lines and connected to them in some way, then we have to entertain the possibility that the filth it cleanses from the land and gathers in its roots over time, like the miasmic tumor we removed, is at least partially born of these “uglier” strong emotions, too. And if Ley Lines react to strong negative emotions, producing tangible environmental changes, could the Ley Line disorders we see in Domains and the Spiral Abyss be similarly produced by abnormal elemental energy flow that is responding to obsessions and fear, causing blockages in the system?

The Environmental Story of Genshin

Kun Jun: Rocks endure, but as eons pass, their memories are erased. Those memories that survive are rooted in powerful emotion or thought.

Paimon: That makes sense -- it is the same for people!

I promise we have almost arrived at The Point. I want to return to Xiao Luohao’s point about Azhdaha being a representation of nature and man being the representation of the spirit of expansion and development: this is, in a way, the very core struggle of Genshin. Ancient Civilizations advanced, developing impressive technologies from their pursuit of knowledge. They expand, they exploit the power of the Ley Lines, and advance closer and closer to the dome of the firmament. Celestia brings ruin to them for their ambition, crushing them with celestial fragments that ruin their environment...by ruining the Ley Line energy flow.

Jiu: Fate? Fate!!! So here lies the wisdom of the gods? Destroy all deemed redundant, enlist tyrants to ravage the wilderness!

Kun Jun: In the beginning, in order to open up new territory and increase production, the citizens of Liyue came to the mountains to mine. Overexploitation caused the Ley Lines to quake, which brought untold suffering to "us."

No matter the nature of the emotion or the intent of the ambition, the land and its energy will respond to it all. The Ley Lines remember everything, immortalizing all ambitions, memories, and will. It is this very fact that allowed us to meet Kazari, a manifestation of both "the filth condensed from Saiguu’s memories" and her will to protect Inazuma from the filth, or Kun Jun and Jiu, born of Azhdaha’s will to coexist with mankind and his will to destroy it.

Kun Jun: I am the remnants of Azhdaha’s benevolence, the echo of a contract set in stone. I harbor a willingness to go further, a willingness to coexist peacefully with mankind

Elemental energy, ambitions, obsession, all can impact the environment and nurture the relationship between man and nature, or harm it. Just as humans can exploit nature and damage the environment, the environment can wipe out civilizations and entire ways of living. These changes can happen suddenly, and they can happen over very long periods of time. And I know I’ve talked a lot about how ambitions can impact the environment, but this is absolutely a two-way street: the Ley Line flow, the elements within, the landscape itself, also shape the ambitions and desires of all living beings. First and foremost, Genshin Impact is an environmental story. It is highly interested in exploring the tension between “mankind” and “the natural world,” technology and energy, heaven and earth. It is woven into literally every aspect of the game’s design.

And the killer part is that this post doesn’t even cover half of how important it is to the story elements, or even half of what’s going on in No Mere Stone. I barely touched on the ancient civilizations of the Prayers circlets, didn’t even get near Delusions or erosion with a 10-foot pole. But all of these are important to Genshin’s environmental story. If you have thoughts on this, whether they’re elaborations, new information, or disagreements, I’d really love to hear them. There is simply so much information about this topic.

Thank you for reading <3

References

The Birth of a Dragon: A Behind the Scenes Look at the Creation of Azhdaha

https://genshin-impact.fandom.com/wiki/Amidst_Chaos,_the_Rock_Is_Unmoved

https://genshin-impact.fandom.com/wiki/Sacred_Sakura_Cleansing_Ritual

https://genshin-impact.fandom.com/wiki/Loading_Screen

https://www.reddit.com/r/Genshin_Lore/comments/qgfih6/tsurumi_is_made_of_trees/

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