An Updated History of the Land of Blades (Patreon)

I am BACK! It's been a while since I posted here - freelance commitments and taking care of my family have been my priority for the last month. However, I now have an updated history of the Land of Blades (combined with a revised version of the last lore post I made)! I hope you enjoy it!

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The Age of Mortals and Gods

During the Age of Mortals and Gods, the divine children of the Sun King and Lunar Queen roamed the land alongside humanity. The most benevolent and powerful of them were known as the Six Immortals (shortened to The Six by scholars). They were given the duty of guiding humanity and transforming the Land of Blades into a thriving domain.

The Divine Archer taught humanity about mercy and how to hunt with his magical bow, Guardian of the Lost.

The Divine Architect  taught humanity woodworking, engineering, and how to shape the earth with her magical axe, Mountain Cleaver.

The Divine Farmer taught humanity agriculture and medicine - taming the floods that plagued the land and harnessed their power with irrigation canals.

The Divine Dragon brought rain to the parts of the land untouched by the flood, fought back typhoons, and granted great leaders of humanity with auspicious powers.  

The Divine Tutor taught humanity art, scholarly traditions, and how to harness the inner alchemy.

The Divine Glow was the youngest of The Six and was tasked with bringing warmth (the primordial flame) to land.

Once humanity showed signs of prosperity and longevity, the Lunar Queen granted her immortal children eternal repose on an island in the Azure Expanse - in a home under a grand mulberry tree.

But the Divine Glow had grown into a raging fire of greed. While the rest of the Immortals no longer wanted wanted to meddle in the affairs of humanity, the Divine Glow one would not leave and instead rallied humanity against the remaining Immortals in an attempt to establish his own domain below heaven.

However, the power of Divine Glow could not match that of the benevolent Immortals, who fought a destructive battle against their corrupt sibling and banished him into the limitless miasma between space and time. In that battle, the progress made by the Immortals had come undone. No longer an embodiment of their divine virtues, humanity now carried the spark of the Divine Glow's ambition.

The Age of Warring Sovereigns

After the immortal children of the Sun King and Lunar Queen left for their home in the Azure Expanse, the Land of Blades became divided and ravaged by perpetual conflict. The rule of the feeble King Min had eroded so greatly that his dukes and marquesses were able to established their own powerful, independent states. The commands of the court, they waged war amongst themselves. Bringing the Land of Blades into a 200 year period of turmoil. This was the Age of Warring Sovereigns - a time of violent diplomacy and bitter conflict.

Amidst the chaos, a ruthless warrior named Zhao Yang emerged and claimed control of the small state of Ji. Wielding an ancient power known as the Decree of Fire, he led his followers on a ruthless 10 year campaign to conquer the Land of Blades. He laid waste to the land and his enemies uniting the fragmented lands by force. In the aftermath of his conquest, proclaimed himself the Flame Emperor and established the Zhao Dynasty.

The Reign of the Flame Emperor

Under the rule of the Flame Emperor, many economic and political reforms were enacted to suppress scholarship and strengthen the military might of the land. As grand fortresses were constructed, scholars who survived the Age of Warring Sovereigns were executed and their libraries were reduced to ash.

The Flame Emperor's expansionist ambitions didn't end with the Land of Blades. He ordered a his forces to conquer the Land of Mist, the home of Shunxia the Great's. This campaign ended in a humiliating defeat. With this failure, he once more consolidated his power, enacted isolationist policies, and retreated to his Burning Sanctum - never to venture out beyond his stronghold again.

Despite his great power, even the Flame Emperor's body could not defeat the passage of time. As he grew old, as did his obsession with everlasting life - sending countless doomed voyages out to the fabled Immortal Islands in search of answers. The Land of Blades descended into misrule and suffering as he ruled over the land through violence and fear. But fear of the Flame Emperor soon faded and became fury and revolt.

As the people suffered and the land fell into ruin, a heroic swordsman of upright moral character named Xing staged a daring rebellion to overthrow the Flame Emperor and end the hardships endured by the people of this land. Knowing that hope and courage would not be enough to free the people from their wicked ruler, Xing sought the help of the legendary Gibbon Marquis, master of Monkey Valley and guardian of the nether world. Using a magical staff crafted from a branch of a plum tree and inlaid with three pieces of carved jade that fell from the moon, Xing was able to perceive the location of the hidden sanctum to plead with the legendary snow-white monkey.

The Great War Under Heaven

Wielding a blade known as Zhanlu, the Noble Shadow (a gift from the god of fire Zhurong), Xing and the Gibbon Marquis led a rebellion against the Flame Emperor alongside six famous martial artists. In what was referred to as the Great War Under Heaven, they vanquished the Flame Emperor and sealed his spirit into a prison in the darkest depths of a river in Monkey Valley - forever weakening the immortal Decree of Fire. The Burning Sanctum, the seat of his empire, was cast into the Azure Expanse and never to be seen again.

At last victorious, Xing established a new dynasty known as Yue and the smoldering land was made anew by the hard work of the people.

The Reforging of the Land

In a period known as the Reforging of the Land, Xing took on the name Yuchang and established the Yue Dynasty - of which he was crowned King. Under his leadership, the Land of Blades became the forge of heroes and scholars; the home for those with an unbreakable spirit. King Yuchang established a new capital in Old Dragon's Nest, a natural stronghold at the base of Paradise Mountain in the White Valley (North). From his seat of power, he allocated local domains (provinces) for the Noble Families of Yue that contributed to the Great War Under Heaven. These regions became known as the Vermillion Hills (East), the Azure Lowlands (South), and the Sable Highlands (West).

To ensure that the Flame Emperor's prison could not be found and to respect the secrecy of the Gibbon Marquis' home, the Staff of Xing was broken into pieces and entrusted to the martial arts masters - who called themselves the Virtuous Confederacy. This alliance of warriors grew into six orthodox martial arts sects representing the most cherished aspects of Yue culture - swordplay (Red Plumb Blossom Sect), spirituality (Mountain Orchid Sect), freedom (Vagabond Sect), medicine (Divine Physician Sect), art (Moon Joy Sect), and scholarship (Radiant Ink Sect).

Stories of the Flame Emperor and the Staff of Xing would then fade from the annals of history as Yue entered a five century period of prosperity...