Yohualtecuhtin, Lord of the Night

Yohualtecuhtin, Lord of the Night,^{[Note 1]} also known as the Lord of the Crossroads, is the ruler and god^[6][7] of the Night Kingdom. In the ancient past, she used to be an Angel, the same race that Seelies devolved from.^[5] She created the Night Kingdom and gave the tribes of Natlan guidance in ancient history, leading to the foundation of modern Natlan.

Profile

Appearance

The Lord of the Night has yet to be shown with a physical or humanoid appearance, only appearing as a mystical swirl of smoke-like Ley Line energy.

However, based on depictions of angels found in Dragonspine's Mural Room and during the World Quest Revelations from the Past, it can be surmised that like her sisters, the Lord of the Night once had a winged humanoid form with a long crest, horns, or headdress extending behind her head. It is also possible that she stood several times taller than a human, though this may have simply been artistic license.

Quests and Events

Archon Quests

• Chapter V
  • Act IV: The Rainbow Destined to Burn
    • Beneath the Secret Source
    • As One We Watch the Setting Sun
    • A Fuel Named "Fate"
  • Act V: Incandescent Ode of Resurrection
    • Journey of Stars and Flames
    • Where All Hopes Lie
    • When All Becomes a Monument

World Quests

• Dreamy Paititi

Story

Under the guidance of Ronova, the Lord of the Night created the Night Kingdom after the original Ley Lines of Natlan were severely damaged during the War of Funerary Flame. To aid the people of Natlan, she used the fragments of the old Ley Lines to reconstruct a similar network, forming the Night Kingdom, which would later be strengthened by Xbalanque.^[5]

In ancient Natlan, the human Chaac was the first to make contact with the Night Kingdom, later leading to the creation of the Wayob and a permanent relationship between the tribes of Natlan and the Lord of the Night.^[7] The tribes communicated with the Lord of the Night through the mediums of both obsidian^[8] and living human sacrifices (often prisoners of war), and she gave them guidance in turn. The Lord of the Crossroads instructed the tribes to spread the "Essence of Sacrifice" over Natlan's sterile soil, a practice which closely resembles the Watatsumi Goryou Matsuri practiced by Watatsumi Island, to make the land habitable for humans at the ancient dragons' expense.^[6]

During the reign of Och-Kan, worship of the Wayob and the Lord of the Night was forbidden. A Nameless Priest believed the Lord of the Night was enraged by this, and cursed the citizens of Ochkanatlan with some kind of horrific transformation as a result.^[9]

Due to Abyssal Corrosion in the Night Kingdom, the Lord of the Night became severely weakened and fell into a deep slumber, until Capitano awakened her with the Secret Source mechanism in an attempt to rewrite Natlan's Ley Lines. She initially agreed to sacrifice herself for the sake of the nation, but Mavuika denied the attempt, and thus she decided to watch over them. She gave Citlali and Xilonen a Pilgrim's Chronicle to allow the Traveler's deeds to be recorded in Natlan. After the Abyss was repelled from Natlan, Capitano approached the Lord of the Night, wanting to help save the souls of the dead by substituting his own death for Mavuika's, as a death was required as payment for Mavuika's use of Ronova's powers.^[10]

Having agreed to this plan, when the time came for Mavuika to offer her life as payment, the Lord of Night ultimately absorbed Capitano's life force instead, making her essentially immortal. The Lord of the Night thanked Mavuika, the Traveler, Citlali, and Ororon for their role in saving the nation before returning to the Night Kingdom.^[11]

Later, the Traveler's Sibling met with the Lord of the Night in the Night Kingdom, having the Abyss Order perform some skirmishes on the Masters of the Night-Wind as a cover. The Traveler's Sibling desired some space within the Night Kingdom to weave new Ley Lines for Khaenri'ah using the Loom of Fate, and negotiated with her to do so. After confirming that their plan would not affect Natlan, she agreed to let them do so, albeit with a condition. As a result, the Sibling created the Atlas of the New World, which held the new Khaenri'ah's Ley Lines. She informed Citlali of this after the Order retreated from Natlan, though she did not reveal what the hidden condition was.^[12]

Character Mentions

Character Stories

Character	Stories
Nicole	Character Story 4 Vision
Ororon	Character Story 4

Trivia

• Lord of the Crossroads is a title shared with Columbina.^[13]
  • "Trivia," an epithet given to the Three Moons,^[14] likewise refers to goddesses presiding over the crossroads.
• Yohualtecuhtin's spectral form strongly resembles the Kuuvahki Dewdrops encountered during the Nod-Krai World Quest Whisper Beneath the Waves.

Aliases and Titles

• Yohualtecuhtin, Lord of the Night, is known by these aliases or titles:
  • Lord of the Crossroads.^[6]
  • Guardian of the Land of Night.^[6]
  • Father in Black.^[6]
  • Keykeeper of Countless Secrets.^[6]
  • Papa Witch-Doctor.^[15]
  • Mama Dream-Realm.^[15]
  • Lord of Silence.^[16]
  • She-With-The-Broken-Visage.^[17]

Etymology

• In Mesoamerican mythology, the Yohualtecuhtin, meaning "Lords of the Night" in Nahuatl, were deities who each ruled over one night in a nine-night cycle. Each lord represented a different omen, which applied to their respective night.
  • The Lord of the Night which Genshin's Yohualtecuhtin most strongly resembles is Tezcatlipoca, who is very strongly connnected to obsidian.

Notes

Other Languages

Language	Official Name	Literal Meaning
English	Yohualtecuhtin, Lord of the Night	—
Chinese (Simplified)	夜神 Yèshén	Night God
Chinese (Traditional)	夜神 Yèshén
Japanese	夜神 Yagami	Night God
Korean	밤의 신 Bam-ui Sin	God of the Night
Spanish	Señora de la Noche	Lady of the Night
French	Yohualtecuhtin, seigneur de la nuit	Yohualtecuhtin, Lord of the Night
Russian	Владыка Ночи Vladyka Nochi	Lord of the Night
Thai	เทพราตรี Yohualtecuhtin	Yohualtecuhtin, Night God
Vietnamese	Yohualtecuhtin, ‍Dạ Thần夜神‍	Yohualtecuhtin, Night God
German	Herrscher der Nacht	Ruler of the Night
Indonesian	Yohualtecuhtin, Lord of the Night	—
Portuguese	Yohualtecuhtin, Dama da Noite	Yohualtecuhtin, Lady of the Night
Turkish	Yohualtecuhtin, Gece Lordu	Yohualtecuhtin, Night Lord
Italian	Yohualtecuhtin, Signora della Notte	Yohualtecuhtin, Lady of the Night

Change History

References