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Two Sides of the Same Coin
Two Sides of the Same Coin
Two sides of the same coin, Celestia is described to be the illustrious abode of the gods; meanwhile, The Abyss is the otherworldly dark corners of existence that go both beyond and underneath the continent of Teyavt. Both remain elusive in nature, but ascending to Celestia or descending to the Abyss are described to be the same: both require the will to brave the unknown…
Celestia is the floating island seen in Genshin Impact, and can be viewed from almost anywhere in the overworld. Very few in Teyvat truly know anything about this area, and The Seven have chosen to keep silent for a deliberate reason.
In Teyvat, there is no general consensus on what kind of beings dwell in Celestia. In Liyue, there is a belief that the Adepti descend from Celestia and return there when their time has come. However, a contradicting belief states that Guhua, an Adeptus himself, ascended to Celestia in place of dying.
On the subject of ascension to Celestia, many in Teyvat believe that great heroes among the people are chosen for ascension. For the hero Vennessa, who led a heroic life and was the main figure involved with creating the Knights of Favonius, she is believed to have ascended at Windrise to watch over the people of Mondstadt. But despite this, it is said that her ascension “ultimately does naught but hover under the light of the gods”, implying that even individuals who ascend still remain under the gods of Celestia.
The appearance of Celestia is rather peculiar, it is described as a floating island, but it appears to be made up of several other landmasses that revolve around a central tower with an astrolabe at the top. This tower seems to descend right through the island from top to bottom, as its bottommost section can be seen looking almost like an inverted dome.The landmasses appear to have a white bridge-like structure that joins them together at certain areas; little architecture is present on these outer regions of the island. Most of the architecture on the island is centered around the areas near the central tower. There is architecture surrounding the large white tower, but it appears to be another tower, albeit smaller in size.
Dragonspine’s Skyfrost Nail is heavily implied to be something dropped from Celestia itself. Upon reaching the top of the nail, the camera pans over to Celestia, as if implying something about the nail’s origins. This would make Celestia directly responsible for the destruction of the civilization that dwelled within Dragonspine, Sal Vindagynr.
In Inazuma, Tsurumi Island is yet another example of a civilization destroyed by Celestia. Sumida, a writer you work with when exploring Tsurumi, theorizes that an artifact dropped by Celestia is the cause of the surreal nature of the island. In fact, below Tsurumi lie underground areas that house murals depicting Celestia.
But the most recent destruction of a civilization is Khaenri’ah, the nation without gods and the “pride of humanity". The effects of said destruction can still be felt even now, 500 years after the event. The cause for its disappearance remains an enigma to this day…
Many of Khaenri’ah’s inhabitants, however, live on as the Abyss Order. The people of Khaenri’ah were cursed by the gods to take on monstrous form, and now they have taken up residence in the Abyss. The darkest corners of the world in Genshin Impact.
The Deepest & Darkest of Teyvat, the Abyss.
The Deepest & Darkest of Teyvat, the Abyss.
The Abyss is a location shrouded in obscurity. A “land of endless darkness”, the Abyss can be inferred as the polar opposite of Celestia. And like Celestia, very few in Teyvat have ever been there.
As an opposing force to Celestia, it stands to reason that the otherworldly powers of the Abyss can counter that of Celestia’s own powers. Examples of this being the ice on Dragonspine, which has what is thought of as an eternal snow blanket brought upon it by Celestia, is capable of being melted with Durin’s blood, the blood of an abyssal creature. Another case would be of Morax’s stone pillars, which were tainted black by coming into contact with abyssal monsters. Dvalin and Venti were both poisoned by Durin as well, only the tree at Windrise, which has a strong connection to Celestia, could heal Venti from his poisoning.
Time & Time agai.. wait, that line doesn't work here!
Time & Time agai.. wait, that line doesn't work here!
Time in the Abyss is an interesting anomaly, as it appears to flow differently than in Teyvat. Tartaglia, the Eleventh Harbinger, is described as having spent 3 months in the Abyss, but when he returned to Teyvat, only a mere 3 days had passed. Tartaglia’s story profile also reveals another mystery of the Abyss: the fact that it is possible to physically fall there. This suggests that the Abyss is somehow connected to Teyvat, which would place it underground and beneath Teyvat… where exactly would the Abyss be then?
Perhaps the greatest mystery surrounding the Abyss is its supposed “sentience”. Entities that hail from the Abyss claim that the Abyss “grants” them strength, while the Abyss also appears to be capable of being “attracted” to individuals with strong ambition.
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