Tianqiu And Nantianmen

Tianqiu and Nantianmen

I think everyone probably already noticed this, but there's a fairly obvious thread being laid down about a future boss/event in the Nantianmen area.

tl;dr since this got long:

There is a dragon sealed in the tree in Nantianmen.

It is connected to geovishaps and possibly Azhdaha in Tiangqiu Valley. There may be two separate but connected beings involved.

It(/they) will awaken soon. (Future event!!)

Now, for the details below!

Let's start with the tree:

At the foot of this Moonlit Tree is a stone tablet:

And also a creepy little girl named Jiu:

The games very sure you are aware of her via the quest "The Secret of Nantianmen" which consists of purely going to this tree, talking to her, and fighting two geovishap hatchlings.

Her dialogue (with some minor lines removed):

"The awakening is coming... and with it, the storm..."

Jiu: You're a little early... Are you here to witness the resurrection of the most ancient, most awe-inspiring individual in Liyue's history?

[about Rex Lapis] Jiu: Hah... That usurper?

Jiu: Humans... They care only about history since the dawn of the age of mankind...

Jiu: Are people really happy to just draw a line under the litany of atrocities humanity's ancestors are responsible for, call it "ye olde worlde," and just get on with their merry little lives?

Jiu: Well, I hope that anyone who willfully indulges in this fantasy world of false prosperity will be consumed by it, and thus get what they deserve.

Jiu: The adepti thought to suppress it with trees. Hah! Fools! Little did they know that after thousands of years... the trees that hold the beast shall surely become one with the beast...

Jiu: And lo, it shall stretch wide its arms, and unfurl its body, and reach out with its roots... And the ley lines of the world shall heed its call.

Jiu: Then, once the beast has quenched its great thirst for that energy which only the ley lines can provide...

Jiu: I imagine any significance we presume to have in this world will vanish for good. Wouldn't you agree?

(Worth noting: Jiu refers to a "He" in a reverent manner during The Secret of Nantianmen, but talks about "it" "the beast" instead dring her normal dialogue. These may be separate things.)

Whatever is sealed in Nantianmen is also mentioned in the description of The Unforged, a claymore that ran along side Vortex Vanquisher. (The theme presumably being "past enemies of Rex Lapis that he only sealed instead of killing properly.")

A long time ago, a dragon there was to be found in Liyue. But it was not a dragon that soared through the skies, but one whose abode was the mountains. Indeed, this ancient dragon of stone was as large as the very mountains it called home.

The legends say that it slumbered in Nantianmen, seeming not at all unlike the surrounding hills.

Then, Rex Lapis came before the dragon, seeking to stop the earth's quailing. They say that for a long while, the land knew peace, and that Rex Lapis gained another comrade by his side.

But in the end, the union of dragons, gods and men was perhaps not to be... The dragon was sealed in the bowels of the earth, and fearing the burning ire of the gods and the adepti, that great vishap, that had once caused rock and stone to tremble, fled into the roots of the mountains.

But over the passage of millennia, the dragon would stir once again...

The legends hold that those who triumphed over the dragon stabbed this sword into the giant tree that subdued the ancient dragon. As one of the seals, monsters and malevolent mortals would be unable to touch it. Indeed, if the legends are true, only those with hearts as pure as clear mirrors could even come near it. Yet, if those legends are true, how did this sword come to be lost?

Nantianmen, check. Sealed in a tree, check.

You can see, this is all connected to geovishaps in some way, and their lore ALSO talks about then returning after a long time. Two hatchlings spawn when talking to Jiu causes an earthquake, The Unforged talks about "that great vishap," the Primo Geovishap's boss area is right near Nantianmen...

Here is the Primo Geovishap description:

After many years, the awesomely powerful Ancient Geovishaps grow accustomed to changes in their elemental environment.

Folktales hold that after the great draconic calamity that led to the ruination of Tianqiu Valley, the overlord of the Geovishaps and Primo Geovishaps was imprisoned deep beneath the earth, and so too did they burrow into deep and unseen places, awaiting their chance to rise once more...

(Note again that the vague language here and in The Unforged makes it entirely possible that the "draconic calamity"/"the dragon" sealed in the tree and the "overlord of the vishaps" are two separate beings.)

But here we get to the next point: Tianqiu Valley. And with Tianqiu Valley, there is an important name: Azhdaha.

One of the associated wiki pages suggests that the dragon in Nantianmen might be the Chi. But I don't think that's likely, given how far away Qingce is and that we do find what is probably the Chi's heart in a cave near the village there. Far more likely is Azhdaha.

Now, Azhdaha is mentioned in two pieces of lore. One is a tablet in Tianqiu Valley, during the "Trails in Tianqiu" quest.

Ancient Tablet: "At Tianqiu Valley the adepti's ancient trail grows cold, I fall down and weep at the ruins I see. Though defeated is mighty Azhdaha of old, there's no restoring this past land of beauty."

(The trail "grows cold" in Tianqiu, so it might have started elsewhere, like Nantianment.)

Something in the valley is very much lingering, based on the notes of the treasure hoarders who tried to solve the puzzles first:

Scratched-Out Treasure Hoarder Notes: "I'm to the point where I'm trying to crack this puzzle in my dreams, or maybe nightmares is more accurate... I saw an old man squatting beside me with a wide grin, urging me to hurry up and solve the puzzle."

Scratched-Out Treasure Hoarder Notes: "Hmm, no... was it an old man or a young girl? ...Ugh, I can't remember."

Old Treasure Hoarder Notes: "And all of the guys who've been in start acting strange once they get out. They insist that the monsters followed them out, but I don't see any monsters."

There is more details about Azhdaha in regard to the "Nameless Treasure" items:

Linlang: I just had a look at this one. These markings are definitely those of Liyue, and you can see inscribed here an anecdote about Azhdaha.

Linlang: They say that Azhdaha was a dragon spawned by a convergence of the spirits of Geo in Liyue, and that even Rex Lapis could not easily subdue it.

Linlang: Rex Lapis thus summoned three adepti to his aid, and together they created a cavernous realm.

Linlang: Rex Lapis then battled the creature, luring it into the cavern, before ordering the adepti to seal the entrance, trapping Azhdaha within.

Linlang: The patterns on the thing you brought seem to describe the three adepti joining hands to create the cavern.

And when you get all three treasures:

Linlang: You... actually managed to put them together? Please, let me see... Indeed, these three patterns, when put together, do tell the story of Azhdaha.

Linlang: This crane must be the adeptus Mountain Shaper, and this deer might be Moon Carver. But this last one...

Linlang: Eh? It seems like this pattern has been... intentionally ground away by someone, to the point where I can't make it out. Who was this third adeptus?

Yes, who was the third adeptus??

Obviously, there is a discrepancy here, saying Azhdaha was sealed in a "cavernous realm," but it's all vague enough that the mechanics can be explained away with more detail. Also, I do feel like there might be two connected beings, once in the tree, one deep underground.