Akademiya – The House of Wisdom
There were no Grand Sages left here anymore.
In the ten days spent cleansing forbidden knowledge, the Grand Sage and the faction leaders colluding with him had grown increasingly irrelevant.
Suitable replacements had been found for their positions, and once it became clear that their absence wouldn't significantly impact the Akademiya's operations, Nahida made their crimes public and—just as in the original story—exiled them to the forests.
Now, they could only live as ascetic scholars, enduring harsh conditions in the wilderness.
Frankly, that still felt too lenient, but it was Nahida's decision—and internal affairs of Sumeru.
Naturally, Nolan had no intention of interfering.
"You've all helped me so much, and I want to repay you in some way," Nahida said, tilting her small head up at them. "Is there anything I can help you with? I'll do everything I can."
"Hehe, it was no big deal! But if you really want to thank us, how about treating us to a feast?"
Paimon grinned happily.
"You never stop thinking about food, do you, Paimon…" Lumine said, exasperated.
"To invite guests who've helped you to a meal is proper hospitality. Even if Paimon hadn't said it, I'd have done it anyway."
Nahida smiled, her fair little face gentle and sincere.
"...Hmm, if that's the case, then Paimon can't really think of anything else Paimon need,"
Paimon said, surprisingly content.
After all, her food, lodging, and daily needs were all covered by Lumine. Even if she had Mora, she rarely needed to spend it.
So she genuinely didn't have any particular desires.
After thinking for a moment, Paimon suddenly remembered that Nolan needed treasure to expand his portable space.
She gave his shoulder a pat and said,
"How about giving him some kind of treasure, Nahida? This guy could really use it."
"Treasure, huh…"
Nahida recalled that when Nolan rescued her, he had already taken the divine artifact left behind by the Great Lord Rukkhadevata.
At the moment, she honestly didn't have anything else especially valuable to give…
With a troubled expression, she tapped a finger to her lip.
"There's no need for treasure," Nolan said, shaking his head. "Actually, I happen to have something I'd like your help with."
"Please, go ahead—what is it?" Nahida nodded gently, indicating she was ready to listen.
"Nahida, you're an Archon. You must have sensed that both Lumine and I aren't from this world, right?"
Nolan asked.
"Mm," Nahida replied. "People like you are extremely rare in Teyvat. In the records of the World Tree, those like you are known as Descenders."
"Descenders… People who've come from beyond this world. That name fits surprisingly well."
Paimon rubbed her chin thoughtfully.
"That's right," Nolan continued. "Lumine came to Teyvat traveling with her brother, and I ended up here by accident. But if the opportunity ever arises, I'd still like to return to my homeland.
"The thing is, beyond this planet lies the vast and endless cosmos. If we want to navigate the universe, we'll need a spacefaring vessel.
"With Teyvat's current technological level, such a spacecraft is obviously out of reach—but perhaps, by leveraging Teyvat's unique elemental power, we can accelerate technological development.
"So I want to cooperate with you, to actively promote the advancement of elemental science, and bring closer the day when we can build a ship capable of interstellar travel."
Nolan laid out his plan clearly.
"I see. Improving technological development could indeed help people live better lives. And I certainly have no objection to what you're proposing," Nahida said, folding her arms and nodding slightly.
She then added, "So, do you have any ideas about how to start developing elemental science?"
"…Yes. First of all, while the Akademiya is the most renowned academic institution on the continent, technological progress can't be achieved by a single person or group.
"So my first step is to see whether we can make use of the 'Akasha' system—to bring together wisdom from across the entire world!"
Nolan then introduced the concept of the internet on Earth.
The modern prosperity of Earth couldn't have happened without the internet—it played a critical role.
If its beneficial aspects could be replicated here, it would essentially catapult Teyvat into the Information Age overnight!
With information able to flow freely across any distance, one could only imagine how much communication cost would be saved—greatly boosting societal development.
And the "Akasha" system had one enormous advantage beyond that:
It could directly transmit knowledge—something even better than what the internet could offer…
Finding answers through a search engine that you might not even understand yourself—this kind of information gap is practically a dimensional blow!
The potential of the Akasha System is enormous—it would be a huge waste not to utilize it.
"The internet can connect people all over the world... that's really incredible!"
Nahida looked astonished.
In comparison, the Akasha System possessed all the traits of the internet—and even more. It didn't require a vast network of signal towers.
All it needed was a low-cost "Akasha Terminal" to connect seamlessly and instantaneously to the system.
It could accomplish everything the internet could. No wonder Nolan had brought it up specifically with her.
"So, what do you think of this proposal?"
Nolan asked with a smile.
"The Akasha System can certainly achieve all the things you mentioned, but it's not without its limitations,"
Nahida said with a touch of regret.
"For example, it can't allow someone to connect to the Akasha System from anywhere on Teyvat just by carrying a terminal.
"Moreover, other nations have their own gods—if the Akasha System suddenly extended into their territories, it could provoke hostility."
The Dendro Archon's Heart could serve as the core power source, but at best, it could only cover all of Sumeru.
To expand the system beyond Sumeru would require far more than just the power of the Dendro Archon.
"That's okay. Even if it's limited to Sumeru for now, that's enough to start. We can refine the functions of the Akasha System and do a trial run within Sumeru first.
"Once it's mature, expanding it outward won't be a problem. And as for whether other nations' gods would approve—there's really no need to worry.
"Lumine and I are friends with Mondstadt's Anemo Archon, Liyue's Geo Archon, and Inazuma's Raiden Shogun. I'm sure they wouldn't oppose something that promotes societal advancement."
Nolan said with a relaxed smile.
"In that case, alright. I agree. Let's take a look this afternoon at how to use the Akasha System."
As the God of Wisdom, Nahida was naturally excited by new and unfamiliar ideas—her voice even carried a hint of anticipation.
"No problem," Nolan nodded.
During the ten days they spent purging forbidden knowledge in the World Tree space, Lisa had successfully developed a method for mass-producing the storage-type Delusions.
What's more, their cost was much lower than the custom Delusion she'd made for Nolan—these new ones could be made from elemental ore alone.
Meanwhile, the "Sweet Flower Merchant Association" had made major progress on the elemental steam engine. Thanks to the many researchers Ningguang had recruited, they had significantly downsized the machine—making it suitable for commercial sale.
Now, with the Akasha System under his control as well, it felt like a full-blown breakthrough in elemental science across Teyvat was just around the corner!
Afternoon.
Nolan, Lumine, and Paimon enjoyed the grand feast Nahida had arranged for them at the Akademiya.
After the meal, Nahida couldn't wait to pull them back to the upper levels of the House of Wisdom—to where the core of the Akasha System was housed.
"The Akasha System currently has functions like object recognition, knowledge transmission, and extracting knowledge to make canned knowledge. What new feature do you think we should add?"
Nahida looked at Nolan and asked.
"I think the first priority should be solving the issue of people not being able to communicate remotely," Nolan replied.
If everyone in a country could communicate instantly across distances just by wearing an Akasha Terminal, that would be incredibly valuable—and the sooner, the better.
"Mm, I understand. You mean something like the 'telephone,' right?"
Nahida turned her gaze to the Akasha System.
"Telephone is a good start, but since we're doing this, there's no need to stop there.
"We should also implement text messaging and video calling!"
Nolan suggested.
"In that case, implementing all those features might take more time."
Nahida nodded slightly.
As the one with the highest administrative authority over the Akasha System, she could indeed modify it.
Features like text and voice communication over distance were entirely possible. While making such changes might not seem too difficult, it still took considerable time—at least several hours to complete.
Nolan had only provided the concept—after all, he had no way to control the Akasha System himself, nor did he understand how it added new functions.
So everything had to be left to Nahida to figure out on her own, and naturally, that would take her some time.
"That's alright. It's not urgent anyway—take your time and study it at your own pace,"
Nolan said.
"Mm."
Nahida nodded, then floated upward and reached out to the Akasha System, her consciousness diving into its core to begin the process of adding new features.
Since Nolan and the others had nothing else to do, they found a place to sit and waited patiently.
Several hours later, Nahida retracted her hand from the Akasha System and gently descended to the ground.
"Hehe, Nahida, how do you feel? Is it done?"
Paimon flew up excitedly and asked.
"It should be ready. You can try using the Akasha Terminals to connect to the system and see,"
Nahida replied.
"Great!"
The group had already prepared their Akasha Terminals—they looked like glowing green patterns that emitted a soft light.
Wearing them over the ears allowed for connection to the system.
Now that there was no longer any risk of the system stealing people's dreams, Nolan, Lumine, and Paimon all put on their terminals without hesitation.
The devices floated lightly over their ears without the slightest weight—truly magical.
Soon, Nolan silently activated the connection to the Akasha System.
A green flash flickered briefly across his vision before returning to normal. Yes—this was the Akasha Terminal.
It resembled a high-tech augmented reality interface that didn't interfere with normal vision when inactive.
Nolan mentally commanded it to open the menu.
Several green, semi-transparent icons floated in front of him. The top-left icon was labeled "Knowledge."
This must have been where all the knowledge stored over time by the Akasha System could be accessed. The second icon clockwise read "Transfer."
That was surely the knowledge transfer function—used by Sumeru's people to gain understanding of subjects they previously didn't know.
The third icon was labeled "Scan." This feature likely allowed the user to capture unfamiliar objects or subjects with the Akasha Terminal and upload them.
The Akasha System would then compare the input with its database. If matching information existed, it would be displayed; if not, the system would likely store and catalog the data to expand the database.
The fourth icon was labeled "Connect"—this was clearly the new remote communication feature Nahida had added.
Nolan selected it with a thought, and a screen popped up resembling the contact list interface of a mobile phone—just as he had described to Nahida.
There were no contacts yet, so they would need to be added manually.
"After this update, each Akasha Terminal now has a unique ID number. You just need to input someone's number to connect with them," Nahida explained.
That really was just like a cellphone, Nolan thought, nodding to himself. He asked Lumine for her terminal ID, entered it into his own, and successfully connected with her.
From there, voice chats, text messages, and even video calls could all be easily carried out through the terminals.
"This is great—honestly, even better than the 'cellphones' we had back in my homeland,"
Nolan remarked.
"I'm glad to hear that. Sounds like this feature passed the test."
Nahida exhaled a soft breath of relief.
"When people who wear the Akasha Terminal suddenly discover they can use it for long-distance communication, they're going to be thrilled!"
Paimon laughed.
This new function was indeed powerful—it would greatly improve people's daily lives!
"I'll publish an announcement through the Akasha System to notify everyone. We'll just have to see how people respond.
"Let's wait and observe a bit before adding more features," Nahida said, sounding slightly tired.
Adding new functions to the Akasha System had taken a considerable toll on her mental energy. She needed a bit of rest.
"Yeah," Nolan nodded in agreement. Naturally, he respected Nahida's judgment.
After a moment of thought, he said:
"We probably won't see the public's full reaction right away. Why don't we go ask the Great Lord Rukkhadevata if she has any suggestions for the Akasha System update?"
Since the Akasha System was her creation, there was a good chance she'd have valuable insights.
(End of Chapter)
✨✨✨
Support me on Patreon/RedX43 - Read up to 20+ Advanced Chapters There!
✨✨✨