Unbroken Interlude

There is not a soul in the Empire that does not know the name of the Golden Tree Sect; they are spoken of in the same breath as the Cloudy Sword, and Soaring Heaven’s Isle.

The sect has chapter-houses and branches spanning the Empire; they have been at the forefront of every battle fought, and the last to retreat, if they choose to retreat at all, for in this world, the Masters of the Golden Tree have come the closest to Immortality, for at the pinnacle of their art is the [Preserving Gingko Leaves] A technique that renders the user unable to be killed, as long as their conviction does not waver. And the grim warriors of the Golden Tree do not waver. There are a hundred thousand stories of them holding, oftentimes alone, against demonic armies and breaking them.

Such is their ubiquitous presence, and the feats of their martial prowess, that the mortals have given them the title “The Blades of the Emperor” for it is said there is no call they will refuse, the most stalwart soldiers in all the world.

The Golden Tree Sect says nothing. For they are the Blades of the Emperor. Just not the one that sits upon the Phoenix throne.

No, they follow the commandments of their liege lord, a secret task given to them and them alone, they who kept the faith for the Divine Ancestor Tianlan.

“Please. Protect my siblings.”

The earth lives. The land lives. And they are the protectors of the world entire against the demonic menace. The Guardians of the Earth Spirits. Not once have they let this task slip from them. Not once have they faltered, for they have a Divine Mandate, given to them by their god.

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The seat of Power of the Golden Tree Sect was the Golden Tree itself. The original Golden Tree, which resided in the heart of the Azure Mountains.

The tree was as large around as the Azure Palace, and within its trunk were the quarters for the entire sect to gather if need be. It was a creation of the Divine Ancestor—and what gave them their power.

The seeds that it grew were two fold in purpose. The first, they were used to grow the other trees they used as their bases in other provinces. The second, was when one became a part of the inner sect, they would be given the honor of having the Tree planted within them. Each seed contained a shard of the Divine One’s power, a signature that let other Earth Spirits, even asleep, recognise them as friends. 

Their steps would not falter. They would be rooted as the mountains, and each breath they took would only be of nourishing Qi.

The Grand Master of the Sect, the bearer of three Seeds was deep into his meditations. He was seated before the tree upon the base earth. The falling golden leaves that fell from the tree had settled around him, and upon his shoulders.

Once, he had been a man without worth. A man obsessed only with his personal strength. A petty, jealous thing who liked to lord his power over others.

He dominated, and crushed all before him, yet it was still not enough. He, in his arrogance, challenged a Master of the Golden Tree, and he was defeated soundly. It could barely be called a fight. 

Defeated utterly, he felt his rage spike. He expected humiliation from this man who suppressed him. His feeling turned ugly, and in a different time this defeat would have sent him down the wrong path.

Yet in this time, the master gazed upon him and declared: “Such aimless strength. It is no wonder you were defeated. Come with me, young man. And I shall temper your strength with duty and conviction.”

The moment when he first meditated beneath the tree was seared into his memory; it was the moment he beheld the glory of Tianlan, the Golden Heart beneath the earth that cared for and nourished them all. All of his strength was not his alone; it had been granted to him; taken from one who allowed it, for he was her child, and she loved him.

He had been crushing and belittling his brothers and sisters. He had been fighting enemies where there were none. The tears came to his face, flowing freely—and then he was shown the true purpose of the Golden Tree. How the demons gnawed upon the bones of the very world, and their lust for power was uncomfortably, horrifyingly like his own.

On that day, he swore himself to the Azure, and to the Golden Tree. He donned armor of Pale Moonlight, and learned the barest secrets of eternity. Through his battles, the hundreds of thousands of battles, he learned, and he knew. That immortality was not the goal. It was the consequence. He got to witness his master ascend, his duty done; for their goddess did not begrudge them their desires for the heavens—only that they lend their strength while they were upon the earth and preserve it for those who came after them.

His eyes were closed, his mind was at perfect peace. His cultivation grew slowly, like the great tree, but unstoppably, with a foundation that could not be shaken.

And then, he completed his meditations, as he felt the last of his men gather. The Grand Master opened his eyes. He glanced to the side, where his dearest companion, the Blade Wolf known as the Just Blade, was seated. His regal, noble form was still, but he had a satisfied smile upon his face.

The Grand Master knew why.

For in the muster-field stood a hundred thousand soldiers. Most of them were mortals, bearing leaves of the tree upon their armor. Ten thousand were of the Azure Imperial Guard, standing tall in their Jade armours. Five thousand cultivators of the Golden Tree. Each of them was standing ramrod straight at attention; their Pale Moon Armor reflected the gold of the leaves, and the blue of the cloth was the colour of the purest sky. Most were human, but there were Blade Wolves, Roadspinners, Medicine Serpents and Forest Bears, all clad for war.

Where once, the golden leaf of the sect would have flown high, now the banners all bore a single word.

Tianlan.

And these were merely the ones in the province. The others would need to take the pilgrimage to the Azure Mountains, to truly bask in the Tree’s light and Qi.

“We go now to serve our true Master.” he stated, his voice reaching the ears of every one of his soldiers present. “The Divine Ancestor has returned to us. ”

At first, there was stunned silence. And then, he saw the fervor overtake them. The shock, and the rapture. The Divine Ancestor who had cast low the demons, who had given them their power, and the peace their kin enjoyed, had returned to them.

The roar boomed forth from a hundred thousand voices.

“Tianlan! Tianlan! Tianlan! Tianlan!”

Sun Ken, Grand Master of the Golden Tree Sect, gazed upon the roaring soldiers, and new contentment.

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All over the hills, they gathered. 

In the city of Atlan at the Grand Ravine, A massive celebration was held; The Great Preserver had returned to them. The Earth could once more speak. Though they had retained some of their warrior traditions, they had been largely unneeded. 

Xiaoshi and Tianlan’s promise to defend their people had lasted since it was made, and the garb of most in the Riverlands and the great forest could trace at least half their bloodline to the people of the Ravine; and even those that didn’t wore the bright colours and geometric designs, or bore the tattoos of the tribes.

In the Sects, elders stepped out from Closed Door Cultivation, and recalled their members.

In the mortal towns and villages, they heard a whisper on the wind, of a returned and legendary hero.

In the Misty Lake, a truly ancient dragon opened one eye from his thousand year slumber.

The Dueling Peaks shuddered, its systems pausing and rebooting, as it once more recognised its true master.

In the Manor of the Verdant Fan Sect Princess Cai Xiulan opened her beautiful blue eyes, the pulse resonating with her soul.

And In Pale Moon City, the Lord Regent stood upon the balcony of his palace, watching over his city as all of his scribes and bureaucrats scrambled to figure out what this meant. They took strength from his firm back, and his stern eyes; truly he was Kongming, the King’s good friend and Prime Minister, reborn.

‘WHY ME? Why Under MY rule? WHYYYYYYY?!’