Who Are The Dragon Sovereigns Of All Nations?

The kings that once ruled Teyvat are now a relic of the past, yet their ideals and magnificent power still looms in the shadows of every nation. Before the Primordial One descended upon Teyvat and reshaped the land so it was more fit for humans, the Seven Dragon Sovereigns ruled the world. Each Dragon was the source of all elemental power in Teyvat and was considered to be the most powerful in their respective elements.

Unfortunately, the Dragon Sovereigns lost in the battle against the Primordial One and were stripped of their powers, and total control of the element. This means that their authority over the element is no more, thus making it extremely difficult for them to return to their original state as a Dragon. Part of their authority was given to the Seven Archons of Teyvat, and it’s only upon an Archon’s death do the Dragons receive their full dragonhood. Here are all the known Dragon Sovereigns of Teyvat and where they are now.

Nibelung – The Dragon King

Nibelung was known to be the King of the Seven Sovereign Dragons, who was also killed during the fight with the Primordial One. Nibelung was the first species in Teyvat to dabble in the forbidden knowledge of the Abyss as he believed it was the only way to defeat the Primordial One. However, that knowledge grew uncontrollably and eventually led to his demise. It was by this reason that the Heavenly Principles cast down the Divine Nails to help quell the leak of forbidden knowledge.

There is not much information after Nibelung’s death, but Apep has mentioned that there is a possibility a new Dragon King has been reborn. This new Dragon King’s name doesn’t necessarily have to be Nibelung, but it would be ideal to know that even though a dragon sovereign ‘dies’, that doesn’t mean they are gone forever. They can indeed be reborn from the purest element form, but that also means that they do not have their full dragonhood OR memories from their past.

Apep – Dragon of Verdure

Apep is the Dendro Dragon and the one who ruled over Sumeru before the Heavenly Principles reshaped her land. The Ancient Sumeru land that she once ruled used to be a lush rainforest, but once the Divine Nail fell onto the area, Apep’s entire rainforest was reduced to what Genshin Impact players see as the Desert.

It has been confirmed that after Nibelung’s death, Apep herself too became obsessed with obtaining forbidden knowledge to overthrow the Heavenly Principles. But after obtaining it from King Deshret, she went mad from its corruption and eventually had to be cleansed with the help of the Traveler. Since Apep is one of the original Seven Sovereigns, she’s the oldest known dragon in Genshin Impact. She appears as a massive serpentine dragon that also has the ability to create a whole world within herself.

Neuvillette – Dragon of Water

The original Hydro Dragon Sovereign was the dragon-lord that ruled over the nation of Fontaine in the old world. After his demise during the war against the Heavenly Principles, he reincarnated 500 years before the start of Genshin Impact as Neuvillette – Fontaine’s Chief Justice. According to a legend, the Hydro Dragon Sovereign was considered to be “the beating heart of the Primordial Sea”, but after the Heavenly Principles stole its powers and locked the original Hydro Archon Egeria in the deep sea, the Hydro Dragon was unable to immediately reincarnate.

For Neuvillette, things were a little different since not only was his authority of the Hydro element stolen, but because he was reincarnated in human form, he lost a portion of his memories as the Sovereign incarnate. He was mainly unable to remember his divine link to the Primordial Sea and his ability to even control it. It’s only after Focalors severed her divinity from humanity and then executed herself to return the Hydro authority to Neuvillette. Only then was he able to pardon the Fontainians from their sins and rise to the position as the new ‘Hydro Archon’ or Chief Justice of Fontaine.

Azhdaha – Earth (Geo) Dragon

As the Lord of Geovishaps mentioned in Liyue’s history, Azhdaha was once a friend of Morax, the Geo Archon. He slumbered for eons underneath Nantianmen and when he would occasionally awaken, any movement would cause earthquakes on the surface above. Morax eventually ventured deep to find Azhdaha and found him to be blind. He unearthed him from the depths and then gave him a pair of eyes, since Azhdaha longed to see the world. They made a pact that Azhdaha should not harm the civilians of Liyue or endanger the environment, otherwise Morax would take back what he gave him and seal him away. Unfortunately, Azhdaha ‘began to suffer from erosion’ and soon forgot Morax’s face and contract over time.

This caused rage to spread within him as he believed Morax was the one who betrayed him, but in truth, he was the one who broke the contract first by killing humans. It has been said that when Morax tried to reseal Azhdaha in the depths of the Dragon Queller, it was exceptionally difficult, and he required the help of other Adepti. Azhdaha’s ability and authority as an ancient elemental being proposed the likelihood that he might be the Dragon Sovereign of Geo – who was also known to be the overlord of the geovishaps and the mountain that could not be moved.

Xiuhcoatl – Dragon of Flame (Flamelord)

Xiuhcoatl was once a Dragon King that ruled Natlan alongside the Saurians. He was known as the ‘Flamelord’ of the nation and extremely hostile to anyone that came close to his territory. As Natlan does not have an Archon that is a God, but a human that has received divinity through the Pilgrimage, Xbalanque was the first human to slay Xiuhcoatl and rise to the position of Pyro Archon.

He used to live inside the main volcano in Natlan and thus has been theorized multiple times as the Pyro Dragon Sovereign. One specific moment is when the NPC Pacal, Chief of the Children of Echoes tribe, mentions how Xiuhcoatl’s reign immediately ended the moment Xbalanque rose to power as the first Pyro Archon of Natlan. There is yet to be confirmation on a reincarnation of the Pyro Dragon Sovereign, so Genshin Impact players can hope for more news in the future.

Honorable Mentions

Dvalin – The Wind Dragon of the East

Also known as Stormterror, Dvalin is an Anemo elemental dragon and has been the Anemo Archon’s friend for the past 2000 years. It is said that Dvalin was born from the ‘convergence of elemental energy’ and, despite his enormous size, he was always curious about the lives of humans. He happened upon Barbatos playing the Holy Lyre der Himmel and was immediately infatuated by the Anemo Archon’s kindness. From then, they became friends and wherever Barbatos went, Dvalin would follow.

Since Dvalin is said to have been born from the purest of elemental forms, just like every other Sovereign Dragon, it can be theorized that he is the reincarnated or original Anemo Dragon Sovereign. The theory leans more heavily into the ‘reincarnated’ side, since shortly before Dvalin met Barbatos, he was born in the heavens, making him quite young when they became friends. Furthermore, Nahida also likens Dvalin’s might and power to that of Apep, a confirmed Dragon Sovereign. Thus, until there is hard proof, Genshin Impact players could theorize that Dvalin is indeed the Anemo Dragon Sovereign.