Vol.03: The Abyss and Khaenri'ah - The Forbidden Knowledge Touched by the Godless Nation and the Full Picture of "The Cataclysm" 500 Years Ago

The greatest watershed in the history of the continent of Teyvat, and the event that determined its current cosmological structure, is The Cataclysm, which occurred 500 years ago. How did Khaenri’ah—a kingdom solely of humanity located deep underground, beyond the gaze of The Seven and the rule of The Heavenly Principles—build such an advanced civilization, and why was it doomed to a destruction tantamount to self-annihilation? This question is a philosophical proposition that interrogates the very ontological foundation of the world of Teyvat. In this study, we will unravel the true nature of The Abyss touched by the godless nation. We will examine this through the ideological evolution of Khaenri’ah’s two dynasties, the zenith of alchemy based on Hermetic philosophy, the blasphemy of The Five Sinners against the fundamental laws of the universe, and the rebellion against Determinism via the Loom of Fate. By logically separating historical facts—ascertainable from in-game texts, artifacts, the book Perinheri, and fragmentary descriptions in world quests—from speculations based on religious and mythological contexts, we will systematize this lore into a single grand epic.

1. Historical Evolution of Khaenri’ah and Its Two Paradigms

The history of Khaenri’ah was by no means permeated by a single ideology; it is primarily composed of two radically different paradigms: the Crimson Moon Dynasty and the subsequent Eclipse Dynasty. This ideological evolution is the very spiritual history of how humanity approached the Void outside the universe known as The Abyss.

The Crimson Moon Dynasty was a theocratic and mystical regime that ruled the oldest era in the history of Khaenri’ah. In contrast to the later Khaenri’ah, which is widely recognized as a “godless mechanical civilization,” the people of this era fanatically worshipped the “Crimson Moon” as the ruler of all things. Due to its color, the Crimson Moon was equated with human “blood,” and the royalty and nobility claimed to be descendants of the Crimson Moon to legitimize their rule. According to in-game facts such as the book Perinheri and the text of the weapon “Crimson Moon’s Semblance,” religious rituals such as drinking the blood of the Crimson Moon existed during this era. It is also suggested that, apart from the pure-blooded Khaenri’ahns with star-shaped pupils, there existed a peculiar bloodline with “cross-shaped pupils,” connected to The Knave (Arlecchino).

Furthermore, the Crimson Moon Dynasty had already embarked on the practical application of alchemy utilizing the power of The Abyss. It has been confirmed that the space-eroding magical beasts known as Rifthounds were created in this era, and a special agency called the “Beastmaster Knights” commanded them. They also established an orphanage (considered the prototype of the Fatui’s House of the Hearth) and conducted grueling experiments to find visitors from other worlds unbound by the laws of Teyvat, namely, Descenders. The act of burning away the children’s past memories with fire to screen whether they were vessels worthy of bearing the world vividly illustrates the dynasty’s madness in its thirst to transcend fate. According to prominent theories within the community, the reason the Crimson Moon Dynasty sought a Descender was that they needed a catalyst to shatter the rule of The Heavenly Principles (the False Sky) and draw in the true laws of the universe from outside Teyvat. However, when the Crimson Moon in the sky “died” (or fell), the foundation of their faith collapsed, and a bloody revolution was sparked by the populace who realized the moon was not omnipotent. The Crimson Moon sect was subjected to an inquisition, and the survivors were forced into hiding underground.

Established through this revolution was the final dynasty of Khaenri’ah, the Eclipse Dynasty. They rejected the theocracy of the Crimson Moon and championed a fierce humanism and atheism, advocating “the pride of humanity without gods.” Khaenri’ah in this era abolished religious rituals and underwent a paradigm shift toward the development of mechanical engineering, robotics, and advanced computing devices. The “Ruin Guards” (Field Tillers) and massive Ruin Graders scattered countlessly across Teyvat today are weapons mass-produced by the Eclipse Dynasty to conquer the world solely with human power and literally “till” the land. They exploited The Abyss not as a sacred object of awe, but purely as a physical “energy source.” The highest academic institution, the “Universitus Magistrum,” was engrossed in research to mimic the elemental powers of The Seven using abyssal energy and in the development of perpetual motion machines.

The late period of the Eclipse Dynasty was ruled by the “One-Eyed King Irmin.” Under the reign of this king, who evokes the supreme god Odin of Norse mythology—who sacrificed an eye as the price for drinking from the spring of wisdom at the roots of the world tree—Khaenri’ah’s scientific arrogance reached its zenith. They put into motion a top-secret plan involving The Sibling and The Five Sinners mentioned later, which ultimately caused the cosmic abyss to run rampant, serving as the decisive trigger that brought about the divine punishment by The Heavenly Principles: The Cataclysm.

2. Khemia and the Philosophy of Life Creation

The ultimate wisdom attained by Khaenri’ah, which was simultaneously deemed the greatest sin against the world, was their unique alchemy known as Khemia. While general alchemy in Teyvat (such as that studied at the Sumeru Akademiya) is limited to the combination of existing substances and the transmutation of elements, the goal of Khemia was “the creation of life from nothing.” In the context of Gnosticism, the creation of life is a privilege granted only to the false god (Demiurge) who rules the material world. Therefore, the act of humans designing and birthing life with their own hands signified a direct and fatal rebellion against the order of The Heavenly Principles (Celestia).

It can be confirmed from the texts of the in-game character Albedo and the trajectory of Gold (Rhinedottir) that the process of Khemia in Khaenri’ah perfectly aligns with the four stages of the alchemical Magnum Opus in medieval European Hermeticism. These four stages are not merely material transformations, but also philosophical metaphors representing the purification of the soul and the attainment of universal truth.

The first stage is Nigredo (Blackening). This is the stage of putrefaction and decomposition, referring to the process where matter loses its original form and is reduced to primordial chaos (darkness). Embodying this stage is the massive venomous dragon Durin, created by Rhinedottir. Durin is also referred to as “Humus” in in-game texts, which is directly connected to the etymological meaning of Nigredo. Durin crashed into Dragonspine in Mondstadt, and its venom-filled blood blackened and corrupted the snowy mountain. As an incomplete sprout of life and a symbol of shadow and decomposition, Durin is the very embodiment of primordial chaos that failed to imitate the divine.

The second stage is Albedo (Whitening). It is the stage of purification and enlightenment, where impurities are removed from the blackened and decomposed matter to attain spiritual purity. Embodying this stage is Rhinedottir’s masterpiece and the Chalk Prince, Albedo. He is the “Chalk” (immaculate soil) created by purifying the remnants and accumulated failures of Nigredo, such as Durin, and descended upon Teyvat as a flawless, pure lifeform. The fear Albedo himself harbors—that “one day I might lose control and destroy Mondstadt”—stems from his self-awareness as an entity birthed using The Abyss as a catalyst.

The third stage is Citrinitas (Yellowing). This is the stage of understanding and growth, considered the midpoint in the transmutation from silver to gold. Between the alchemical schools of Khaenri’ah and successor organizations like the Narzissenkreuz Ordo in Fontaine, there exists a philosophical debate regarding the order of this yellowing and the subsequent reddening. According to Albedo’s ascension text, Khaenri’ahn techniques dictate that red (Rubedo) is followed by yellow (Citrinitas), whereas Narzissenkreuz records argue that “yellow is merely bait, and red is the ultimate goal.” This stage signifies a transitional period beyond the mere birth of life, where consciousness comprehends the truth of the universe and ascends toward gold (godhood).

And the final stage is Rubedo (Reddening). It signifies the completion of the Magnum Opus, namely the creation of the “Philosopher’s Stone,” indicating perfect spiritual and physical integration and the acquisition of immortal life. From the incident where the failed prototype (Primordial Albedo) that survived inside Durin’s belly attempted to establish itself as “Rubedo,” and the fact that the creator Rhinedottir herself is known by the alias Gold, it is evident that the ultimate goal of Khemia was to reach this Rubedo. According to the speculations of lore scholars, it is highly likely that Rhinedottir was attempting to transmute not merely humans or magical beasts, but an “artificial god” on par with the Gnosis of The Seven or a Descender.

What is noteworthy here is the usage of the names of the 72 demons of the Ars Goetia. In Teyvat, the gods (The Seven) belonging to the system of Celestia—such as Barbatos, Morax, Baal, Buer, and Focalors—bear the names of Solomon’s demons. This implies that the system of The Heavenly Principles is the “false god (the Demiurge and its subordinate Archons)” in Gnosticism. On the other hand, figures from the godless nation of Khaenri’ah—such as Irmin, Alberich, Rhinedottir, and Dainsleif—consistently possess names derived from Norse and Germanic mythology. This indicates that they were completely independent of the system of The Heavenly Principles (the system of Solomon’s demons), but there is one sole exception. That is the mysterious artifact or entity Naberius, with which Rhinedottir is said to have fused. Naberius is one of the 72 demons of Solomon, and as a trace of the alchemist Rhinedottir attempting to incorporate even the power of The Heavenly Principles’ side (or the remains of a god) to accomplish the Magnum Opus, it speaks to the deep contradictions and madness of the worldview.

3. The Five Sinners and the Blasphemy Against Cosmic Laws

In The Cataclysm, it is said that what sealed the doom of Khaenri’ah were The Five Sinners, who betrayed their homeland and touched the bottom of The Abyss. The reason why the Twilight Sword Dainsleif—the former captain of the royal guard who still wanders Teyvat bearing the curse of immortality—harbors endless hatred for them is not simply because they abandoned the defense of their homeland. It is because they used abyssal knowledge to fundamentally blaspheme the very “foundational laws (concepts)” that constitute the universe of Teyvat, plunging the world into the crisis of collapse. Their titles revealed in-game and the targets of the “Blasphemy” each committed perfectly correspond to the destruction of Teyvat’s physical and spiritual laws.

The first sinner is Gold (Rhinedottir). Her sin is the blasphemy against “Life.” Life is originally meant to be governed by the circulation of memories in Irminsul and the laws of life and death established by The Heavenly Principles. However, she synthesized life from nothing using Khemia, unleashing abyssal magical beasts such as Durin, Elynas, and countless Rifthounds across Teyvat, fatally polluting the world’s ecosystem and spiritual circulation. Currently, it is confirmed that she has fused with Naberius and survives as a member of the Hexenzirkel.

The second sinner is “The Chaser of the Light,” Rerir. His sin is the blasphemy against “Death.” Said to be a polearm wielder, he is theorized to have blurred the boundary between life and death, interfering with the absolute terminal process of death using the power of The Abyss. It is highly likely that he was directly or indirectly involved in the outbreak of the “Curse of Immortality” (a curse where one is not even allowed to die, and the body continues to suffer Erosion) that befell the people of Khaenri’ah.

The third sinner is “The Visionary,” Vedrfolnir. His sin is the blasphemy against “Time.” Also the biological older brother of Dainsleif, he possessed the power to see the future during the era of King Irmin, but due to the danger of his prophecies, he was imprisoned and blinded. The true identity of the massive purple crystal, The Sinner, that appeared in the Archon Quest, speaking from beyond fate, is believed to be none other than this Vedrfolnir. By connecting the power of the Ley Lines with The Abyss, altering past memories, and interfering with future events, he tramples upon the irreversible law of “Time.”

The fourth sinner is The Foul, Surtalogi. His sin is the blasphemy against “Space / Void.” This absolute martial artist, who profoundly influenced the Fatui Harbinger Tartaglia and his master Skirk, possesses the art of drawing the power of other dimensions existing outside the shell of Teyvat (the False Sky) into the present world. As is evident from the fact that he tamed the All-Devouring Narwhal that brought about the crisis in Fontaine as a pet, he is an entity that shatters the spatial logic of the closed system of Teyvat, continuously opening gates to the Void (The Abyss) of the outer universe.

The fifth sinner is “The Wise,” Hroptatyr. His sin is the blasphemy against “Reason.” Just as humans who touch forbidden knowledge in the Cthulhu Mythos go mad, he touched the unfathomable truth of The Abyss (Forbidden Knowledge), unhinged his reason, and abused it. His actions of destroying the world’s causality and logical consistency (Reason) and converting madness itself into power brought about a complete epistemological collapse, standing in stark contrast to the ideals of Sumeru, which reveres wisdom.

The grave sins committed by these five are not Christian moral depravity, but rather a Gnostic “deviation from and usurpation of the system of the Archons (false gods).” The moment they attempted to rewrite with their own hands the five descriptive languages that constitute the universe—life, death, time, space, and reason—they claimed authority equal to that of the gods. This is none other than the true reason why Celestia had to ontologically obliterate the entire nation of Khaenri’ah to maintain The Heavenly Principles.

4. The Loom of Fate and the Rebellion Against Determinism

After the fall of Khaenri’ah, the remnants enchanted by The Abyss formed the Abyss Order. The ultimate plan they have been advancing over the course of 500 years is the Loom of Fate. This plan embodies the clash between Determinism and Free Will, the most important philosophical theme in Teyvat’s cosmology.

The concept of the “Loom of Fate” has a structure that strongly corresponds to the Moirai (the three Fates) in Greek mythology and the Norns in Norse mythology. In Greek mythology, the first goddess Clotho spins the thread of fate, the second goddess Lachesis measures its length, and the third goddess Atropos cuts the thread. The name of the founder of the Abyss Order, Chlothar Alberich, is clearly derived from this “Clotho.” He is the very progenitor who rejected the fate decreed by The Heavenly Principles and spun the new thread of fate that is the plan of The Abyss.

In the worldview of Teyvat, as indicated by the remarks of Scaramouche and The Doctor (Il Dottore) that “the stars are a lie” (the False Sky), an individual’s fate (Constellation) is predetermined by the web of memories in Irminsul. This rigid determinism of fate (Heimarmene) is the very system by which The Heavenly Principles rule humanity. The true objective of the Abyss Order is to sever this imposed thread of fate, artificially create “new Ley Lines” entirely distinct from the network of Irminsul with their own hands, and reweave the fate of the world.

The core of this plan was the tragedy of Chlothar’s son, Caribert. While Chlothar himself received the curse of immortality as a pure-blooded Khaenri’ahn, his mixed-blood son Caribert, born to a woman from Mondstadt, was transformed into a monster bereft of intellect (a Hilichurl). Met with silence even after seeking salvation from the gods (such as the previous Dendro Archon of Sumeru), Chlothar, at the end of his despair, encountered the crystal of The Sinner (Vedrfolnir). By touching the abyssal power overflowing from Vedrfolnir, Caribert temporarily regained his reason and ability to speak. Witnessing this miracle, Chlothar swore revenge against the gods and reached a certain maddening conclusion. It was the conviction that when “extreme sorrow and agony, hope and regret, and the power of The Abyss beyond human comprehension” fused into one, his son himself would become the device to reweave fate—the core of the Loom of Fate.

As a historical fact, Caribert lost his life at the mere age of eight. However, his consciousness and the power of The Abyss were extracted and continued to be used as the spiritual foundation (core) to construct the Loom of Fate. In the initial stages, the Order schemed to create a “mechanical god” by using the body of the god Osial as a base and incorporating the eye of the first Ruin Guard (Field Tiller) as its core. This was merely a prototype of the Loom of Fate as a physical weapon of mass destruction. The ultimate goal is to use the completed Loom of Fate to create a “new Ley Line space” belonging nowhere in Teyvat, and to fundamentally overwrite (hack) the codes of history and fate recorded in Irminsul. The reason The Sibling leads the Order is that they possess the properties of the outer universe as a Descender unbound by the laws of Teyvat, making them an indispensable existence for the Order’s ultimate goal of using that will to overturn The Heavenly Principles.

5. The Global Catastrophe Brought by The Cataclysm

The fall of Khaenri’ah and the rampage of The Abyss dealt a devastating blow not just to one nation, but to the entirety of Teyvat, irreversibly rewriting the ecosystems and histories of various regions. We will overview the full picture of how multifaceted the impacts of the disaster 500 years ago were, based on the historical records of each nation.

In Mondstadt, the magical dragon Durin unleashed by Rhinedottir invaded, and after a desperate struggle with the Anemo Archon Barbatos and the wind dragon Dvalin, it crashed into Dragonspine. Its venom would torment Dvalin for a long time to come. In Liyue, abyssal magical beasts swarmed from the underground of The Chasm, and the Millelith and the Yaksha (Bosacius) sacrificed themselves to seal them away.

The damage in Inazuma was particularly gruesome. The previous Electro Archon, Makoto (Baal), went to the battlefield of Khaenri’ah and lost her life there. Her surviving twin sister, Ei (Beelzebul), experienced the overwhelming loss of Khaenri’ah’s destruction and her sister’s death, driving her toward the pursuit of “Eternity,” rejecting the very change (progress) of the world. The fact that the Crimson Moon, the symbol of Khaenri’ah, hangs in the sky of her inner world, the Plane of Euthymia, is conclusive evidence of how deep a psychological trauma she bears. Furthermore, to counter the abyssal invasion in Teyvat, many youkai, including Kitsune Saiguu, became sacrifices.

In Sumeru, the disaster manifested in the form of the pollution of Irminsul by “Forbidden Knowledge.” The Ruin Golems of Dahri (the Sumerian term for Khaenri’ah) marched into the desert regions, and the “Schwanenritter” (Knights of the Swan) engaged in mortal combat with the magical beasts of The Abyss. Additionally, in the forest regions, the corruption of the Ley Lines known as The Withering (Marana) progressed, and the spirits known as Aranara defended the forest at the cost of their memories and power. Ultimately, the previous Dendro Archon, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, was forced to choose the self-sacrifice of completely erasing her own existence from history in order to purify the pollution of Irminsul.

In Fontaine, the nation was ravaged by the invasion of the massive sea beast Elynas. Basil, the vice-director of the Narzissenkreuz Institute (orphanage), died in battle, and the fates of the surviving children (Rene, Jakob, Alain, and Mary-Ann) were drastically derailed. The genius Rene de Petrichor discovered Khaenri’ahn technology and the World Formula in the deserts of Sumeru, and through calculations, derived the unavoidable fate (Determinism) that Fontaine would inevitably be submerged in the future. To escape this despairing future, Rene stepped into the same mistake as the former sinners of Khaenri’ah: “the forced evolution of humanity into neo-humans using the power of The Abyss.” He injected the power of The Abyss into his sickly best friend Jakob, mutating him into a neo-human, and dissolved his own physical body to fuse with the Oceanid Lyris, becoming the “Master of the Narzissenkreuz Ordo.” Rene’s goal was to avert ruin by dissolving individual wills and returning to the Primordial Sea, but this serves as a tragic example of how easily abyssal knowledge can lead human reason into fanaticism and self-righteousness.

Even in Natlan (the Nation of War), the disaster of 500 years ago has taken root as an ongoing existential threat. Natlan lacks the generally stable Ley Lines of Teyvat; as an alternative, a spiritual and unconscious network called the Night Kingdom functions. This space is a deep realm considered the “boundary between body and spirit, life and death,” created by Yohualtecuhtli (the Lord of the Night). Since the Cataclysm of Khaenri’ah, The Abyss has continuously targeted Natlan, with its fragile alternative Ley Line system, as a primary breakthrough point for the erosion of Teyvat. The people of Natlan are forced into an endless war of attrition with The Abyss, utilizing a resurrection system for the dead known as the “Ode of Resurrection.” In the latest campaigns (the Archon Quest as of 2025-2026), the situation escalated to the point where abyssal-tainted magical dragons and the forces of the Void directly invaded the Night Kingdom, and the Pyro Archon Mavuika had to hold them back at the cost of her own divine power. What is noteworthy is the fact that the abyssal forces attacking Natlan contain almost no intelligent entities like the Lectors or Heralds of the Abyss Order, but are primarily composed of “pure magical beasts” such as Rifthounds and Hilichurls. This indicates that the will of The Abyss is by no means completely controlled by a single organization like the Abyss Order, but functions as a more primordial and aimless “devouring of the world (the erosion of the Void).”

Finally, Snezhnaya, which is currently advancing its rebellion against The Heavenly Principles (the collection of Gnoses), is also deeply bound by the echoes of Khaenri’ah. Pierro, the Director of the Fatui gathered under The Tsaritsa, is a former royal mage of Khaenri’ah. He harbors the ultimate Ressentiment of having been unable to stop the madness of King Irmin and the sages, and failing to prevent the destruction of his homeland, which serves as the driving force behind his extreme rebellious action of “burning the old world.” Furthermore, according to the latest regional information, the autonomous dominion “Nod-Krai” located at the southernmost tip of Snezhnaya is said to retain the ancient custom of worshipping the “Moon Goddess” rather than the Cryo Archon of The Seven, suggesting a deep connection with The Abyss and Khaenri’ah’s Crimson Moon Dynasty. In this far northern land where the faction known as the “Frostmoon Scions” runs rampant, it is an unavoidable fate that abyssal knowledge and the system of The Heavenly Principles will meet their final collision.

Final Chapter: The Abyss and Humanity’s Existential Struggle

The true identity of The Abyss touched by the nation of Khaenri’ah is not merely a den of evil magic or monsters. From a Gnostic perspective, Teyvat (the interior of the False Sky and elemental laws created by The Heavenly Principles) is a closed material world ruled by the Demiurge, and The Abyss is the “absolute void” (Kenoma) spreading outside it, or the primordial chaos that nullifies all existing laws. The Crimson Moon Dynasty sought entities from outside the stars (Descenders) through alchemy and blood rituals, while the Eclipse Dynasty attempted to elevate themselves to the heights of gods through mechanical engineering and the extraction of abyssal energy. They believed in the potential of the human species to the utmost limit and built an independent civilization that did not rely on the gods. However, the moment The Five Sinners attempted to rewrite “the very descriptive languages of this universe”—life, time, space, death, and reason—they were swallowed by the abyssal void they could neither understand nor control, ultimately resulting in the destruction of their homeland.

The struggle of the Abyss Order using the Loom of Fate is a resistance against the unreasonable fate (Determinism) decreed by The Heavenly Principles, and a tragic existential struggle to acquire Free Will. But at the same time, it is an extremely dangerous act of rewriting the world using the power of The Abyss, which could sink Teyvat itself back into the sea of the Void. When the power extracted from Caribert’s endless agony and sorrow weaves new Ley Lines, the concepts of “history” and “fate” in Teyvat will fundamentally collapse.

Because the people of Khaenri’ah prided themselves on their supreme intellect as humans, they rejected dependence on the safe cage that was the gods ruling the world. As the price, they came to embody an existential tragedy, receiving the cruelest curses of “monsterification (turning into Hilichurls)” and “immortal Erosion.” The history of The Abyss and Khaenri’ah is a story on the borderline where human wisdom transforms into arrogance, confronting us with the fundamental contradiction of Teyvat: “a safe cage bound by fate (The Heavenly Principles)” or “destructive chaos in the name of freedom (The Abyss).” Until the day the False Sky shatters and the true starry sky reveals itself, the deep scars left by The Cataclysm and the rebellious will of the godless will never fade from Teyvat.