The era where the Three Eternal Companion-Gods ruled over Sumeru was known to be a glorious one. Where war raged and devastated the lands of the other nations because gods warred with each other to earn the right to sit on the divine throne, peace was the norm in Sumeru due to the immovable alliance forged from the friendship between King Deshret, Nabu Malikata, and Lord Rukkhadevata.
The three gods who co-reigned Sumeru during that era often spend their time sharing and debating their own views on "wisdom" with one another as friends. Sometimes they might convince the other, oftentimes they simply agreed to disagree. It was Sumeru's golden age and it wasn't an exaggeration to say that Sumeru was the most peaceful and prosperous nation among the seven during that era.
As with all gods, each of the Three Eternal Companion-Gods had their own followers. One in particular stood out to them, the man who went by the name of Adham which Rukkhadevata had picked up in one of her periodic trips to the forest where she would bask herself in the embrace of mother nature. King Deshret took a liking to his view on wisdom and bestowed upon him a fragment of his own power, recognising him as a sage and granting him a long lease of life that would be otherwise impossible to possess as a human.
Nabu Malikata enjoyed his company. After coming to know about his unique ability to manipulate time to a certain degree she couldn't help but compare it to her power to foresee the future. She taught and guided the sage on how he could better control and use this power based on her own understanding of time. He, in turn, was an avid audience of her original Dance of Sabzeruz and there's no performer who doesn't love an avid audience who truly love their art and performance.
Rukkhadevata was the god that Sage Adham followed, and the only person who knew the truth of his origins. In turn, he shared with her his knowledge that he gained from his prior cycles and she dreaded the day where things would eventually play out as per his experiences. Regrettably, things did eventually happen in the manner which Adham had foretold. Rukkahdevata was unable to reconcile the rift that was created between her friends and eventually took her followers and left the great civilisation which they co-reigned. She created the Varuna Contraption and nurtured a great rainforest, establishing her new territory, and created her own familiars which she fondly named as the Aranara. The Varuna Contraption also unexpectedly gave birth to a tiger-like divine beast Viaghara, the first lord of the forest, and together with the Aranara they worked together to protect the Varuna Contraption that was essential in creating the great rainforest.
Rukkhadevata's eternal pursuit of wisdom eventually led her to establish the Amurta Darshan of Sumeru Akademiya. She appointed Adham as the Akademiya's Grand Sage, the first Grand Sage, as he was the most suitable candidate to assist her since he now possessed a significantly longer lifespan as a human who received the blessings of King Deshret and earned the acknowledgement of all three gods.
"Are you not returning to see them?" He asked. Rukkhadeveta shook her head from where she sat by the window overlooking the direction of the great desert with a melancholic look on her face. The difference in their ideals would mean that things would no longer revert to what it used to be before, and any attempts from any party to convince the other to accept their view would only lead to more conflicts and arguments. If so, she would rather remain here in her rainforest and not risk sullying those joyful memories that she had forged with her friends.
"They miss your presence."
"I know. I miss their presence too," Rukkhadevata replied before conjuring a small wooden box from thin air. "It will be Nabu Malikata's birthday in a few days' time. I won't be there, but I hope you can help me deliver my present and celebrate the occasion with her."
"Is there any other message you would like me to convey to them?"
"Just like how they are awaiting my return to the desert, I will always be awaiting their arrival to my rainforest. My doors will be open to them, always."
Tasked with a new assignment handed down to him by Rukkhadevata, the Grand Sage left the Akademiya to head for the neighbouring glorious civilisation located in the desert which he once lived in. However, Sumeru has a massive landmass and even for him, it's very difficult to reach King Deshret and Nabu Malikata's civilisation on his own power in such a short time.
He made a slight detour and sought out the lord of the forest.
"If it isn't the Grand Sage. What brings you here to my humble abode?"
"I'm here once again–"
" – to request for my assistance. Of course you would be here for one thing and one thing only, why am I still expecting otherwise?" Viaghara rolled his eyes but readily lent him his assistance, lowering his body for the Grand Sage to climb upon his large back. It was evident that this wasn't the first time the Grand Sage had come to him for help to reach the civilisation that the Dendro Archon once ruled over with her friends.
The stripes of the great tiger resembled blazing flames and were constantly changing, never sticking to a single form. The lord of the forest easily traversed a large span of distance with a single leap and they reached the civilisation in the blink of an eye. King Deshret and Nabu Malikata welcomed them warmly and of course, they wanted to know if Rukkhadevata had a change in heart.
"I'm afraid not," Adham shook his head and brought out the gift that Rukkhadevata entrusted him to deliver, "but my lord still wanted to wish Nabu Malikata a very happy birthday nonetheless. Your ideals and pursuits may have diverged, but my lord still sees the both of you as her friends. Lord Rukkhadevata promised that the doors of her kingdom will always be open to you. Happy birthday, Nabu Malikata."
The Goddess of Flowers accepted the gift and invited Adham to stay for a few days. The two gods were also curious about the Sumeru Akademiya that they heard Rukkhadevata had recently founded and used this opportunity to have Adham answer their queries. Adham answered their queries and a spontaneous discussion came into being between the two gods, if they should set up their own learning institute within their own kingdom in a manner similar to what Rukkhadevata had done.
Adham and Viaghara returned to the great rainforest a couple of days later. Personally, Adham was moved by the friendship between the three gods. His time here in this era of Sumeru was the most peaceful period of the Archon War he had ever experienced. During his journey back to the rainforest he couldn't help but wonder if there's a way for him to mend the rift that was formed between them when their ideals diverged.
He was the First Sage of Buer in his third cycle and had spent years immersing himself within the knowledge of Irminsul with Nahida's permission. He wouldn't say he understood every single historical event which had transpired that led to the eventual downfall of King Deshret's civilisation, but he knew enough.
In his opinion, Nabu Malikata, despite being all smiles and revered as the Lord of Joy and Happiness, hid a deeply traumatised side of her that influenced her actions to this day. There was no doubt in his mind that the Goddess of Flowers truly saw King Deshret and Lord Rukkhadevata as her close friends, but he was also certain that she had her own agenda all along and that her intentions were not totally pure. The fact that Rukkhadevata had talked with Nabu Malikata shortly before the separation which then evolved to a very fierce disagreement about something which he wasn't privy to was very telling in itself.
King Deshret had a noble character and a strong spirit, but his ambitions are too big and his incapability to put down his obsessions was what led to his eventual downfall in every cycle he had been that shaped modern Sumeru into what it will eventually become. He had no idea what prompted King Deshret to pursue his obsessions the way he did, all he understood was that Nabu Malikata's death certainly wasn't the only factor. All he knew was that the tragedy that befell his civilisation could be avoided if he was able to put his obsession aside.
Adham and Viaghara returned to the rainforest and Adham went to look for his archon that resided within the Akademiya. Imagine his surprise when he entered her room and saw the one person who he never expected to be able to live long enough to meet in this cycle.
Nahida?
"Surprised?" Rukkhadevata smothered a laugh, fully enjoying the gobsmacked expression on her sage's face. "After hearing what you had to share about Sumeru's future I figured that her fate could have been averted if I had the chance and time to introduce her to our people as my intended successor. Nobody would dare to disrespect her in my presence and if my foretold fate was truly inevitable, by the time I'm gone she would have grown into my position and also been accepted by the populace as the new Dendro Archon."
"I… see…" Adham trailed off lamely, still unsure what he should think or say with this unexpected development of events. Nahida was obviously a newborn, still ignorant of many things in this world and held the innocence of a child. He was only gone for a few days and he returned to suddenly find that Rukkhadevata had created Nahida in his absence.
"I will be publicly announcing her as my successor and younger sister. I believe that it will be easier for our people to accept her that way. I will be counting on you to show her around our city, okay?"
Adham did like this turn of events. In the days that followed Lesser Lord Kusanali would be seen following the Grand Sage around like a curious child with a heavy thirst for knowledge that cannot be quenched, and the Grand Sage would patiently teach and guide her about things that she cannot yet understand. The people of the rainforest love their Lesser Lord as much as they do for their Greater Lord, and Adham held hope that Nahida's fate in this cycle would be much kinder and happier for her.
If Adham had to list out one good thing that turned out from his last visit to King Deshret and Nabu Malikata, it's that while neither faction had made moves to reconcile the differences in their ideologies, there had been increased exchanges and interactions between the people of the desert and the people of the rainforest. Most of it was academic in nature. Not surprising, considering that Sumeru is the Nation of Wisdom. He did not know if this would be enough to mend the relationship between the three gods, but one can hope.
Rukkhadevata had not yet brought herself to be able to agree to her friends' plans and neither did King Deshret and Nabu Malikata had managed to cast aside their obsessions and ambitions. The doors of the respective kingdoms were still open to the other party but neither gods had moved to make a personal visit, for the act of doing so would mean that they had accepted the other's ideology. Thus, while the gods' relationship with each other had turned a little stale, their people had frequent exchanges and often visited the other kingdom for various purposes.
Living in a Sumeru without being coloured by prejudice and hatred really was a refreshing experience for Adham, and he hoped that it could remain that way for a very long time.
"Adham, my brother! I'm so glad to see you!"
Hermanubis had come to visit the rainforest where the Akademiya was located. As the person who was recognised by the people of the sands as the Greatest of Sages he was greatly looked up to and also a very good friend of Adham. Adham welcomed him warmly into the kingdom that he and Rukkhadevata had built and showed him around.
"Ever since your last visit King Deshret had been seriously contemplating if he should set up a similar institution in his kingdom as well," Hermanubis told Adham as they both shared a drink just like old times within the privacy of Adham's home. "I'm fully on board with that plan, but my king seemed to be distracted with other pursuits as of late."
"Other pursuits?"
"He had been seeking greater forms of knowledge that originate beyond our world. I do not dare presume to understand what he meant by that, but it sounded like a dangerous pursuit to me. No child of the desert would shirk at the first sight of danger but I cannot help but wonder– is the pursuit of such knowledge really necessary for our kingdom?"
Hermanubis' words alerted Adham. This sounded like a sign that the tragedy that would consume King Deshret's civilisation would soon take place. He immediately went to look for Rukkhadevata after his meeting with Hermanubis, who was meditating within the Sanctuary of Surasthana. She had made sure that nobody would be able to tinker with her creation and use it to imprison another person inside of her invention ever since she had learnt of Nahida's fate from Adham, so it was possible to reach out to her from the outside.
Rukkhadevata had a troubled look on her beautiful face after hearing what her Grand Sage had to say. Ultimately, she could not bring herself to turn a blind eye to what she knew would most likely happen. Be it on account of her friendship with King Deshret and Nabu Malikata, or on the account of the innocent people of the desert who might lose their lives should King Deshret and Nabu Malikata were to proceed with their plans, she had to act.
"Let's go, Adham. To the desert."
To say that King Deshret and Nabu Malikata were shocked by the sudden appearance of their dear friend which they had sorely missed was an understatement, but they were overjoyed to finally have her back. Songs, dances, food and wine flowed in celebration at the reunion of the Three Eternal Companion-Gods that day but the joyful reunion was eventually cut short when the elephant in the room had to be addressed.
"The pursuit of forbidden knowledge will bring nothing but pain and suffering for our people, Al-Ahmar!"
Rukkhadevata was definitely livid. The fact that she called King Deshret by the name of Al-Ahmar was a sign in itself because that would only happen if and when King Deshret did something that made his friend really mad.
"Nobody can control the damage that forbidden knowledge will taint our land with once the floodgates are opened! Not me, not the both of you, and not even that dragon that lays beneath the sands! That's the kind of power that you are trying to mess with!" Rukkhadevata was on a tirade and she had no plans to stop anytime soon. "As your friend I truly sympathise with your experiences that led you to want to defy the principles but we have lived long enough to know– that knowledge always comes at a price! Al-Ahmar, Nabu Malikata, we are gods and rulers, we are responsible for the countless lives that rely on us and who placed their faith in us to act in their best interests! Coming into contact with forbidden knowledge might very well ruin their homes and lives! Creating tragedies that will span and last for the coming thousands of years! Our mistake, just one mistake, will betray the trust and beliefs of our people and that is the last thing that a responsible ruler should do!"
A deafening silence fell upon the Three Eternal Companion-Gods. After an undetermined period of time, Adham, who had been a silent spectator to this argument together with Hermanubis, stepped up to speak.
"My Lords, if I may interject," the voice of the Grand Sage of the Akademiya had the gods turned their heads to face him, "it might be bold of me to stick my nose into your affairs as a human, but as a third party who had bore witness to your friendship and the greatness that your wisdom had brought for the people of Sumeru, I truly believe that Sumeru's peace and happiness heavily hinges on your presence and well-being. I know none of you are willing to budge in your respective stances regarding the issue of forbidden knowledge so why don't we use my power to influence time to see what might happen if this plan were to proceed? And then we shall decide if we should go through with this decision at all."
"Adham," Rukkhadevata warned sternly. A suspicion began to form in her mind about what her Grand Sage really was trying to do. His secret as a samsaric wanderer was one that he told nobody except for her and Nahida, with very good reasons too.
Adham's existence is a form of forbidden knowledge in itself.
"King Deshret, you seek forbidden knowledge. I have to confess, my existence in itself is a form of forbidden knowledge." Rukkhadeveta's worst fears were confirmed when she heard this statement from her Grand Sage but she was too late to stop him. "If you wish to know about the legacy of your actions when you seek to understand forbidden knowledge and what it meant for your people and kingdom in the far future, if you wish to know the price of knowing too much–"
The sage extended his hand to the King of the Great Red Sand and the Goddess of Flowers.
"Please take my hand."
The rulers of the desert civilisation shared a look with each other but eventually chose to take the sage's offer. Memories and knowledge of twenty-seven other variations and futures of Sumeru entered their minds and the secret of the Grand Sage was laid bare for them to see. Whatever happened next within the room remained a secret that only the occupants that day would know, but their people rejoiced when they learnt that the relationship between the Three Eternal Companion-Gods was finally mended when the sun rose the next day. Uncertainty had clouded their minds when Greater Lord Rukkhadevata left the desert because her departure signified a change in the golden peace that they were so accustomed to, but now that the Three Eternal Companion-Gods were friends again, they knew that the era of peace would continue to flourish.
The Grand Sage of the Akademiya had fallen critically ill not long after he returned from that trip to the desert that would eventually mark a historical milestone in Sumeru's history. The Grand Sage was respected and loved by the people of Sumeru for his wisdom and contributions to the nation and so they were worried about his sudden decline in health. Unfortunately, not even the wisdom of the Three Eternal Companion-Gods was able to defy death and the Grand Sage eventually passed away in his sleep a year later, and his title and responsibilities was eventually inherited by Lesser Lord Kusanali. Grand Sage Adham was then later immortalised by the people of Sumeru as the Sage of the Three Gods, referencing to his past as being a sage whose wisdom was recognised by the Three Eternal Companion-Gods and also acknowledging the pivotal role he played in laying the foundations for modern Sumeru.
Many people believed that the death of the Grand Sage was unavoidable, that it was perhaps time for him to go since he was after all, only human. He had already lived for a few centuries by the grace and benevolence of King Deshret when he first recognised Sage Adham as a sage in acknowledgement of his wisdom. Life can be prolonged, but death will come to claim it eventually.
Only the Three Eternal Companion-Gods and Hermanubis knew that Adham's death was a price he willingly paid for the continued peace of Sumeru for the coming hundreds and thousands of years. To share the memories and knowledge of twenty-seven cycles was a herculean effort that overtaxed Adham's body. The end result was the sudden decline of his health that eventually led to his death.
King Deshret and Nabu Malikata expressed remorse for being responsible for the untimely demise of the mortal whom they respected the wisdom of. They could only take solace in the fact that Adham will never truly die and that they might meet again in one of his future cycles where they could once again indulge in philosophical discussions and debates.
Adham's actions that day allowed the three gods to know about the future tribulations that Sumeru and Teyvat will one day face and so, now that they were warned in advance, the Three Eternal Companion-Gods took concrete steps to ensure that the mistakes that their other incarnations had made would not be repeated in this cycle.
Arrogance diminishes wisdom– that was one of the Grand Sage's last words to Lesser Lord Kusanali when he imparted to her his final lesson before he departed the world. His words were eventually carved onto the entrance of Sumeru City and also on the entrance of the Akademiya, reminding countless generations of students who come and go to always remain humble in their pursuit for knowledge.
Such is the legendary tale of the first Grand Sage of Sumeru Akademiya, the Sage of the Three Gods.
– Tales of a Hundred Cycles, Vol XXVIII
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The Akademiya is the most prestigious institute of learning in all of Teyvat. The current Grand Sage, Lesser Lord Kusanali, had been overseeing its operations for a very long time ever since she took on the mantle that the Sage of the Three Gods once shouldered.
Lesser Lord Kusanali was known to be very approachable despite being a god. She's also greatly respected and well-loved by all of Sumeru as the younger sister of Greater Lord Rukkhadevata. If the Lesser Lord is not in her office, she could usually be seen walking around the city or the institution interacting with her people, sometimes in the company of her (somewhat rude) assistant that only wants to be known by his alias of Hat Guy.
"Tch, another genius too smart for her own good," Junjou scoffed as he spotted the very familiar name that had been making waves in the Akademiya in the past couple of years. Lisa Minci of Mondstadt, the oh-so-bright-and-talented student, the best the Akademiya had in over two hundred years. What harebrained research topic is she submitting to him for approval this time– oh, wait a second… is she applying to leave the Akademiya?
Hmph, he stood corrected. She's a genius that's smart enough to know what's for her own good.
"Ah, Lisa had talked to me about this previously," Nahida looked over Junjou's shoulder and he irritatedly pushed her head away with his hand, not that Nahida was bothered about it– she had over four hundred years to get to know Junjou to know that he's actually all bark and no bite. It would seem that Lisa had understood the price of uninhibited erudition, a worrying trend that has been observed in the Akademiya in the last few decades. Nahida had vowed to do something to change this but it takes time to see the effects of the implemented change. However, she's confident that she can pull the Akademiya back onto the right track.
Adham's last words still stood big and bold at the entrances of the city and the Akademiya, but it would seem that very few actually understood what Adham's teachings really meant and took it to heart. Arrogance diminishes wisdom. The folly that King Deshret and Nabu Malikata nearly made and was only prevented at the cost of Adham's life was a reflection of those three words.
Hmm… how can she make the students see those words? Are they not big enough where they were plastered at the entrance of the Akademiya? Should she make them even bigger?
"So do you want to let her go? She's the brightest we have had in two hundred years."
"We shall respect her wishes. If the other sages had any opinions they can take it up to me," Nahida habitually ignored Junjou's sneer and made her reply. Junjou stamped the chop of approval onto that piece of document very vindictively and happily. If the sages had any opinions they do not need to take it up to Nahida, they will have to deal with him first.
Or, he could very kindly direct their "grievances" to the Dendro Archon Greater Lord Rukkhadevata on their behalf and tell her how they had been bullying Nahida and taking advantage of her boundless kindness, oh the poor thing… heh, that will be a spectacle that he's willing to watch.
Or perhaps, he could somehow get King Deshret or Nabu Malikata involved? He would have to make a long trip to the desert but it would be worth the visit. He's looking forward to see how those darn sages who don't deserve the title they had attached to their names would shake like a trembling leaf in their presence, the powerful gods that were instrumental in defending the nation from the Cataclysm with such precision, effectiveness and efficiency that impressed even Rex Lapis of Liyue.
Or maybe he could send them on a trip to Fontaine's Opera Epiclese. Laws and trials and judgement are their schtick, isn't it? Lady Egeria owed a life debt to Greater Lord Rukkhadevata for saving her life during the Cataclysm, maybe he could somehow leverage on it just a little to get rid of those annoying sages once and for all and replace them with obedient puppets who can actually behave–
"Junjou, are you plotting something bad again?"
"Stop reading my damn mind."
"I did not. It's written all over your face."
"Tch. Stop bossing me around."
"Junjou…" Nahida narrowed her eyes in disapproval at the rude behaviour displayed by the puppet who gained a heart. Just where and how did she go wrong in raising him? He used to be such a sweet and polite child!
It's times like this that she really missed Adham and his wisdom. He would know how to discipline this unruly child, she's sure.