Dragon

Dragons, also known in their juvenile form as Vishaps, are enormous and powerful creatures that inhabit both land and sea of Teyvat.
They are creatures of the Light Realm and were the dominant race of the old world before the arrival of the Heavenly Principles. It defeated the Seven Sovereigns, the dragon-lords who ruled the old world, and created a new world for humanity.
==Overview==
Dragons are a naturally large species of reptilians with varying appearances. Some are quadrupedal, some are serpentine, and some either have wings or none at all. They typically have physical attributes reminiscent of their associated element: for example, the Earth Dragon Azhdaha has rough stone skin befitting of , while Dvalin has a much more sleek and svelte appearance befitting of .In Azhdaha's design notes and the Chinese version of Amidst Chaos, the Rock Is Unmoved, Azhdaha is called an rather than a Geo Dragon, which would be , although he is still affiliated with the Geo element. The English localization similarly opts to translate as "Wind Dragon" instead of "Anemo Dragon" in Breeze Amidst the Forest. A dragon's size is proportional to its strength; the immensely powerful Azhdaha, at his full strength, was as large as a mountain range, and his size when fought in Beneath the Dragon-Queller is his form after years of erosion.Design Notes: The Birth of a Dragon: A Behind the Scenes Look At the Creation of Azhdaha Dvalin is also stated to have suddenly grown in both size and power when he reemerged as Stormterror.
Vishaps and elemental dragons are born from the elements.Azhdaha claims that he was while his design notes mention that he is of the same species as Geovishaps. The ancestry of all vishaps, and thus presumably all dragons, is directly descended from the Fontemer. As elemental beings, they have far longer lifespans than mortals and even gods. They typically grow more powerful with age, and several dragons are known for having enough strength to rival the likes of Archons and other similarly powerful beings. Such dragons include Azhdaha, Dvalin, and Durin. However, other dragons like Ursa the Drake can be felled by powerful Vision or Delusion-bearers.
Dragons are not immune to erosion and are still subjected to the rules of the Heavenly Principles. Vishaps and elemental dragons in particular are also extremely susceptible to the darkness of the Void Realm.
===Vishaps===
 are reptilian creatures who have existed since primeval times. They are believed to develop into dragons after long periods of time, such as how Azhdaha is from the Geovishap species. Some vishap species, such as the Geovishaps, are able to absorb elemental energy from the Ley Lines, and some vishap species, such as the Bathysmal Vishaps, are even capable of elemental divergence through evolution, allowing them to inherit more and better combat-related characteristics than their predecessors. However, this evolution has severe consequences for their race — namely, the fact that they are no longer elementally "pure" and thus cannot have one of the Seven Sovereigns be born among them.
===Saurians===
Saurians are the descendants of the ancient dragons of Natlan, which have diverged into six lineages after being acknowledged by the Wayob and the Night Kingdom: Tepetlisaurs , Yumkasaurs , Koholasaurs , Qucusaurs , Iktomisaurs , and Tatankasaurs. Unlike dragons in other nations, they live alongside the humans of Natlan in peace and are considered equal members of the community. Like Bathysmal Vishaps, they are now considered elementally impure, and the new Pyro Sovereign cannot be born among their ranks.Interactable, Legendary Tonatiuh: Notes Someone Left Behind (II)
Some Saurians are born with a mark called the Flamelord's Blessing, which grants them the power of ancient dragons. However, this power is far greater than what modern Saurians can bear; the Wayob and the Night Kingdom also reject this power and refuse to accept these Saurians. As they grow, the power will become more uncontrollable and tear at their bodies, eventually killing them or driving them insane. According to legend, the mark can be removed by bringing two tokens to the Great Volcano of Tollan and performing a baptism on the affected Saurian. However, not a single tribal warrior has succeeded, and the tribes gradually abandoned this custom, simply taking care of the Saurians until they die.
===Melusines===
Melusines are the "daughters of Elynas" created during a Pneumousia explosion inside Elynas's corpse, during a clash between the Marechaussee Phantom and the Narzissenkreuz Ordo over 400 years ago. They are considered to be a new form of Hydro Vishap or "dragonheir" in multiple instances,Sigewinne's Character Title: Wondrous Dragonheir taking the form of young girls with features resembling sea slugs. However, they may be aligned more with the Void Realm than the Light Realm, due to the abyssal nature of their progenitor.
===Elemental Dragons===
 have not been well-documented, although several examples exist: Dvalin and the Seven Sovereigns are explicitly called elemental dragons, while Azhdaha is an elemental dragon by deduction.
Elemental dragons and ley lines will affect each other. Dvalin's rampage sent Mondstadt's elemental flow and ley lines into disarray, which forced the Knights of Favonius to cut off his connection to the other three of the Four Winds' temples.The term translated as in Knights of Favonius is translated as "elemental flow" in the rest of the game, which is a more accurate translation. Powerful Geovishaps are capable of drawing energy from ley lines. Azhdaha planned to absorb the energy from the entire world's ley lines and use it to destroy everything after freeing himself from the Dragon-Queller, and at the start of his boss fight's second phase, he draws energy from the ley lines through his limbs. Likewise, when human mining at the Chasm damaged the ley lines, it brought Azhdaha physical agony.
It is unknown whether non-elemental dragons exist, as all natural-born dragons named in the game have an elemental affiliation. Durin was created through alchemy and may not be subject to normal dragon physiology, while Ursa the Drake only appeared in the Manga and little detail went into its background or abilities.
==History==
According to legend, dragons were the dominant species of the old world and were led by the Seven Sovereigns and the Dragon King Nibelung. When the Heavenly Principles descended, it waged war against the Seven Sovereigns and, after forty years of battle, emerged victorious with the help of its Four Shades. It began recreating the world to pave the way for humanity, while those who refused to capitulate, such as the Bathysmal Vishaps, fled into the oceans. Some of the Seven Sovereigns survived, such as the Pyro Dragon Xiuhcoatl, who faked his death, and the Dendro Dragon Apep, though their elemental authorities were presumably stolen and later used to create the divine thrones of the Archons.
Since then, dragons have often come into conflict with denizens of the Human Realm, including humans and gods. Ancient gods and dragons have "never seen eye-to-eye," and on the rare occasion that gods, humans, and dragons have managed to coexist, later circumstances would drive rifts between dragons and those of the Human Realm. However, the majority of dragons that had been reborn were now free from the hatred they once harbored against gods and humans, thus mostly ending the feud between them apart from a select few.
The dragon sage Waxaklahun Ubah Kan foresaw the fall of the dragon race, due to their reliance on brute strength to maintain positions of power, and believed that salvation could only be found by sharing their wisdom with other races. He stole a seed of Phlogiston from a scion of Xiuhcoatl and traveled the world, eventually coming across humans, whom he taught how to use Phlogiston after witnessing their tenacity, unity, and courage. Seeking the path of evolution, and intending to merge the two species of dragon and human as one, Waxaklahun Ubah Kan told the people to expect the arrival of a "savior of two worlds," who would one day slay Xiuhcoatl and become the next Pyro Dragon. He intended this savior to be his son Och-Kan, a dragon mixed with a human soul who would be raised among the human tribes, and an heir of the Flamelord's Blessing.
===The Archon War===
In Liyue, Azhdaha's awakening caused the earth to tremble with every movement he made. Morax approached him, seeking to stop the earth's shaking, and managed to befriend the dragon for some time, with the dragon even participating in the Archon War on Morax's behalf. However, later on, a combination of erosion and human mining at the Chasm caused Azhdaha to forget his friends and his love for humanity. Azhdaha lashed out and attacked the Chasm, destroying the settlement at Tianqiu Valley in the process. Morax chose his duty to protect humanity and personally went to the mines to subdue him. The Geo Archon's power alone was insufficient to overpower the eroding dragon, and he needed the help of Moon Carver, Mountain Shaper, and an unnamed adeptus to create a domain that would be able to seal Azhdaha away. Even then, Azhdaha willingly allowed himself to be sealed.
In Inazuma, the serpent god Orobashi fell into Enkanomiya and eventually became its people's god, subduing the Bathysmal Vishaps which had harassed the humans and further empowering the Dainichi Mikoshi.PlayStation Blog: Genshin Impact version 2.4 brings grand celebrations and a mysterious new area to Teyvat It personally led research into Bathysmal Vishaps and their evolution. In the process, Orobashi and the researchers eventually came to the conclusion that vishaps naturally rejected Orobashi's power because they came from different realms, although they eventually succeeded in grafting Orobashi's coral onto vishaps. These coral fragments are necessary for the Watatsumi Goryou Matsuri, a ritual that prevents Watatsumi Island from being absorbed by the Elemental Realm.
As a result of the Bathysmal Vishaps' "impure" evolutions into and forms, this caused a prophecy to claim that the Hydro Dragon would be reborn in a human form.
In Sumeru, Apep, the Dendro Sovereign, was corrupted by King Deshret's body. Apep allowed Deshret to build a kingdom in her lands in return for her consuming his body for his knowledge when he died, but King Deshret died with Forbidden Knowledge, causing great anguish to Apep as she had to muster all of her strength to survive, unable to analyze the knowledge acquired.
In Fontaine, the Hydro Dragon was the "first heart" of the Primordial Sea and had absolute command over it. However, the Hydro Dragon perished in the battle of the Seven Sovereigns against the Heavenly Principles. To replace the Hydro Dragon's duty as the heart of the Primordial Sea, the Shade of Life created Egeria. Later on, when Egeria was imprisoned by the Heavenly Principles due to her sin of turning Oceanids into humans, the Dragon Prince Scylla was tasked to guard her prison. When Remus sought Egeria for the solution of the prophecy, Scylla was impressed with Remus's plan and chose to follow him to Remuria. When Phobos went rogue, Scylla was supposed to control the surge of power according to Remus's plan, but he failed to show up after being trapped by Boethius. Remuria sank underwater and Scylla was sealed in Initium Iani.
In Natlan,It can be assumed that Xbalanque lived during the end of the Archon War, as he became the Pyro Archon shortly after he killed Xiuhcoatl, similar to the other Archons being awarded with Archonhood following the end of the conflicts in their respective regions. The period of warfare described in Crown of the Saints also matches with various descriptions of the Archon War. Och-Kan was imprisoned at some point. A man named Xbalanque showed him great compassion, and after Och-Kan was freed and accepted by his old tribe, he vowed his loyalty to Xbalanque. During the people's war against the dragons, Och-Kan used his knowledge of the draconic language to decipher Iridescent Inscriptions for the human warriors. He found great satisfaction in using the skills he learned from the dragons against them, and his hatred for dragons was so great that it even concerned his allies. Meanwhile, the Pyro Dragon Xiuhcoatl, who had grown weak and decrepit from abyssal corruption, began laying waste to Old Natlan and its ley lines. Xbalanque fought him at the Great Volcano of Tollan and pierced the dragon's eyes, one of which was split in two and became the Golden Entreaties. Both Xbalanque and Xiuhcoatl fell from a great height during the battle. While Xiuhcoatl died, Xbalanque was wreathed in fire and revived, and went on to become the first Pyro Archon.
===After the Archon War===
Sometime after Barbatos became the Anemo Archon and god of Mondstadt, the newborn sky dragon Dvalin appeared before him, enamored by his music. Barbatos sang songs of Dvalin's beauty and befriended the dragon, later naming him the Dragon of the East of the Four Winds.
Around 1,000 years ago, Ursa the Drake lurked around Mondstadt, occasionally threatening the City of Mondstadt. Ten years before her rebellion, Vennessa and her tribe, having wandered far from their homeland, were attacked by the dragon and fled to Mondstadt. Although they were taken in, they were promptly enslaved by the corrupt Mondstadt Aristocracy. When Vennessa stood up to Barca Lawrence on Venti — who, unbeknownst to them, was Barbatos' mortal disguise — the Lawrence scion retaliated by purchasing Vennessa and her entire tribe, and forcing Vennessa to win successive gladiatorial battles for their freedom. The Lawrences, however, had no plans on letting Vennessa win; in exchange for peace, they negotiated with Ursa the Drake to sacrifice Vennessa and her tribe to it. In the middle of the battle, Venti revealed his true identity and drove Ursa away.
At an unknown specific time, after Egeria exited hibernation in the deep sea, the new incarnation of the Hydro Sovereign, Neuvillette, was born. He was born in a human form, as foretold by the Enkanomiyan prophecy, and lacked the full powers and memories of his predecessor, since the Ancient Dragon's Authority was still separated from him as an Archon's Divine Seat.
After Xbalanque entered the Sacred Flame, Och-Kan assumed leadership of Ochkanatlan in his stead. Though the people awaited a successor to Xbalanque, Och-Kan believed that Xbalanque should remain the one and only god and became obsessed with eliminating all possible threats to the people, inadvertently becoming a tyrant in the process. He eventually broke the commandments that Xbalanque left behind regarding the peaceful coexistence of humans and dragons, hunting down dragons and imprisoning Ix Uxul Tz'ib Bolon Ch'ule-L within a stone statue. Despite the existence of the Grand Alliance, he began consolidating his power as the sole leader and believed that having multiple rulers only led to internal strife. He used Turnfire to oppress anyone who opposed him, eliminating any possibilities of revolt.Interactables: Holy Sovereign's Notes Och-Kan was eventually overthrown by a party of heroes led by the Scarlet-Eyed Youth, and presumably fell to his death.
===The Cataclysm===
The Khaenri'ahn alchemist Rhinedottir created one of her masterpieces, the artificial dragon Durin. 500 years ago, around the time of the cataclysm, she sent Durin to the surface world; however, he ended up unleashing havoc and destruction upon Mondstadt on his arrival. Hearing the suffering of his people, Barbatos awoke from his slumber and summoned Dvalin to aid him in ending Durin's rampage. The two eventually emerged victorious, slaying Durin over Dragonspine; however, Dvalin ended up ingesting Durin's poisonous blood and fell into a deep slumber in the ruins of Old Mondstadt to recuperate.
Around 500 years ago, Focalors, the second Hydro Archon, sent Neuvillette a letter to invite him to the Court of Fontaine and serve as its Iudex. Neuvillette agreed, hoping to find the answer to his existence and his lost memory.Youtube: Character Teaser - "Neuvillette: Watcher in the Deep"
===Present Day===
Four years before the events of the game, on Diluc's eighteenth birthday, Ursa the Drake was lured into attacking his and his father Crepus's caravan.When Vennessa faced off against Ursa 1,000 years ago, it was much larger than her and only fled after Venti directly ordered it to leave. By comparison, the Ursa faced by Diluc, Crepus, and later Dottore four years ago is much smaller. Whether Ursa weakened and shrank over time, or if the two are entirely different dragons of the same species, is left unknown. Their entire retinue was slain and Diluc was defeated by the dragon when Crepus intervened, using a Delusion to repel the dragon. However, the Delusion's power backfired on him; he died shortly afterwards, either from the Delusion itself or by Diluc killing him to spare him the agony. Sometime afterwards, Il Dottore visited Mondstadt and personally slew Ursa, thus indebting Mondstadt to the Fatui.
During the events of the , the Abyss Order sought to weaponize Dvalin in their plans to destroy the nations of Teyvat and eventually, Celestia.YouTube: Story Teaser: We Will Be Reunited However, their plot was eventually foiled by the combined efforts of Venti, the Traveler, Jean, and Diluc. Freed from the poisonous blood that put him in physical agony and freed from the Abyss Order's lies, Dvalin rekindled his friendship with Venti and became Mondstadt's ally once more.
Azhdaha, through the artificial vessel Jiu, attempted to break Morax's seal at the Dragon-Queller by having miners chip away at the seal from outside, while Azhdaha overpowered it from within. The plan was eventually thwarted when Zhongli, the Traveler, and Kun Jun — who was unknowingly possessed by a fragment of Azhdaha's consciousness that retained his goodwill towards humanity — investigated the miners' disappearance and stumbled upon the plot. After a hard-fought battle, Azhdaha's body was resealed, while his spirit went dormant again.
Lesser Lord Kusanali, who was supposed to take care of Apep, had initially forgotten about her task due to her tampering of Irminsul to remove forbidden knowledge. The removal of the forbidden knowledge ended up creating a large void in Apep's body, and by the time Nahida had remembered her task, Apep was on the verge of death, which would unintentionally destroy Sumeru with its abundance of energy. Apep was successfully saved by Nahida and two elemental beings taking the form of elemental fungi that had escaped Apep's body during the cataclysm. The two fungi, and all the others' consciousness of the same species that they were carrying, sacrificed themselves to restore the Heart of Oasis in Apep's body. Although remaining distrustful of the gods and humans, Apep elected to simply watch them to see how far they could go under the Heavenly Principles.
During the events of , Neuvillette recovered his authority as part of Focalors's plan to divert the prophecy and save the people of Fontaine. As the Iudex, he declared them innocent of their original sin, granting them the true properties of humans due to his absolute control over and the Primordial Sea, ensuring that they would not be dissolved when the second flood came.
While exploring the ruins of Ochkanatlan, the Traveler and Paimon were attacked Och-Kan's body, which had been completely transformed into a full dragon and used as an Abyss conduit by Waxaklahun Ubah Kan. Och-Kan's body stole the Golden Entreaty from them, but later merged with Cocouik — his surviving consciousness — and fought the Traveler as Cocouik purged the abyssal poison from his body. After the battle, Och-Kan recognized Little One as a fellow bearer of the Flamelord's Blessing and entrusted the Golden Entreaty to him. He shared his memories of the past with the Traveler before finally passing away.
==Known Dragons==
===Confirmed Sovereigns===
===Other Dragons===
Name 	Element 	Region 	Status
Ajaw 	 	Natlan 	Alive
Azhdaha 	Can also absorb , , , and	Liyue 	Alive (sealed by Morax)
Durin 	 	Khaenri'ah	Deceased (slain by Dvalin, corpse lies in Dragonspine)
Dvalin 	 	Mondstadt 	Alive
Ix Uxul Tz'ib Bolon Ch'ule-L	 	Natlan 	Deceased as of Open Your Heart to Me
Mini Durin 	 	Simulanka 	Alive
Och-Kan (half-dragon) 	 	Natlan 	Deceased as of Moment of Awakening
Primo Geovishap 	 	Liyue 	Alive
Scylla 	 	Fontaine 	Alive
Ursa the Drake 	 	Mondstadt 	Deceased (slain by Dottore)
Waxaklahun Ubah Kan 	 	Natlan 	Alive
==Trivia==
* In the Chinese version of , Ivanovich states that Morax's Exuvia is allegedly a cross between two of Liyue's divine creatures: an Eastern dragon and a qilin. The English version does not specify what two creatures it is based on.
** In Liyue folklore and media, Morax is often depicted as a dragon, using a form nearly identical to his Exuvia's.
* Although Haishan is never explicitly called a dragon, Beidou's epithet in the Chinese version is , which is translated in the English localization as the "Uncrowned Lord of the Ocean." The exact origin of this byname is unclear, but it is likely related to her slaying of the leviathan.
* In the Chinese text, powerful, antagonistic dragons have been dubbed ; this is usually translated as "evil dragon," reinterpreted, or left out of the English localization entirely. Dragons who have been called by this phrase currently include:
** Azhdaha, by Linlang
** Durin, by Iris
** Dvalin, in his epithet 
** Ursa the Drake, whose Chinese name is 
** Och-Kan's body, as the 
* The following have been described as "dragon-like," but are never directly or explicitly linked to dragons:
** Baqiu, a behemoth of a sea monster that Morax fought against in ages past. In Chinese mythology, a is a type of horned dragon; was thus likely an eight-horned dragon-like monster.
** The Chi, another type of sea creature in the Liyue region. Morax defeated one that took over Mt. Qingce, while the Skipper defeated another one and turned its spine into the claymore Serpent Spine.The Chinese name for Serpent Spine is 
** Orobashi is, on one occasion, described as a "dragon-like serpent god."
** Elynas, described as a "great beast" and whose remains in the Beryl Region somewhat resemble those of large draconic beasts. The children of Elynas, the Melusines, are referred to as "dragons" or "vishaps" on numerous occasions, and Elynas' flesh and blood is described by Rene as having the same properties as Durin.
** Conversely, Fontainians have never been described as dragon-like, but as beings born from the Primordial Sea, they are considered forms of life requiring the Hydro Dragon Neuvillette's care.
==Notes==
==References==
==Navigation==
 
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