Torsten Hewson
patreon
Unbroken Interlude
🕑 Added 2024-04-10 21:16:19 +0000 UTCThere 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.
====================
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.
======================================================
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?!’
Comments
Idan tal
As the main storyline is in a relaxed period right now, we really need more of this AU pls!
Grant
damm that was good please write more unbroken its awesome ! old sun ken
Precentor Van Zandt, Matthew King
Please give us more of this AU! It's so good!
Matt Grayson
Hah! Delightful.
Katharine Gould
@Casualfarmer why is it that everything you write is god tier? I literally can't find anything that you have written that has not moved me to tears and laughter! I would herald you the second coming of some famous writer. But it would be a disservice to you as you have by far written the best works of art in existence! Can I start a cult that worships you?
ben regnard
This seems like the beginning of a fun romp
Angela Roberts
I get that you were blowing off steam but honestly, this is good! Took me a mo to adjust but then I got *into* it.
jord
I was not aware of these AU's, tell me more?
Palmer Evans
Any chance we get another chapter or two of this timeline at some point?
John D Jones
I really want more of this timeline.
Michael Foat
Then, when they finally deal with the demon infestation a Sixth Shen Yu comes and asks for help from the other 5 to track down the Jin that went into the wastes. (Yes, I know Cloud and wastes aren't done by Casualfarmer but it's funnier.)
Michael Foat
All versions of the Empire collectively shit bricks when they realize there are now 5 Shen Yus they have to keep track of until the Emperors get things straightened out.
Michael Foat
Beware of Cloud Jin just kinda gets flopped into the mix and now he has 3 Shennong Cultivators and another classic cultivator that all pretty much his brothers helping clean up the Azure hills.
Michael Foat
So, Canon Jin, Yellow Rock Jin, Soaring Isles Jin, and Unbroken Jin meet up and start trading farming tips and drinks.
V01D
You know what would be awesome? A ‘crossover episode’ where the various versions of Jin meet.
AG
You’re welcome
Old Dog
Awesome AU. Thank you CF.
Kuratenshi
Thanks AG.
BlueMage_VT
I.... honestly have no idea how I misread this so badly...
Truedragon5374
Agreed. And let's be honest, no matter how much they sect members fear/respect Jin, someone is going to blab eventually. Plus Jin is thr kind of guy who just has to help people. So even if he doesn't get his own army, Jin Prime might end up with a city's worth of people at his gates wanting him to be thier lord.
Randall Brynsvold
@AG, thanks for that link! All hail the new Azure King!
AG
Here’s the answer to your question in case you didn’t feel like reading the entire thing “ Basically, in no breaking, They power up Tianlan, and exposively detonate the mist wall outwards, blowing up the Demon Gates, and then the armies of the Azure March forth, armed with Pale Moon Ore Weapons and armor, which would have been basically a cross between mithril and adamantium”
AG
Casual actually explained how they did it on space battles https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/beware-of-chicken-xianxia.910799/page-1846?post=100336408#post-100336408
Idan tal
He is talking about the fact that without the backlash from the breaking that killed millions of them, the demons were still at full power surrounding all the closed realm the humans survived in.
BlueMage_VT
My guess would be that Xiaoshi didn't alter the formation, spoke more openly with Tianlan, and their trusted friend survived and wasn't killed and replaced by the Twilight Cuckoo's Triumph.
Kuratenshi
One thing about this AU that was bothering me has been trying to figure out how the demons were pushed back. In core universe it is effectively the sacrifice of Tianlan and her original soulmate that crippled the demons and allowed the resurgence of humanity. In this AU, it seems like it was Tianlan and co slowly awakening other earth spirits. the demons got crushed when the world itself stopped being neutral and started actively fighting back.
Rene Christensen
Yeah not sure how long that will last once the land starts ascending with most of the population following. Peasants will migrate by the millions, especially people in the borderareas that see neighbors a few miles over benefitting. Who wouldnt move if it means adding decades of life, protection by cultivators and increased yields from the fields? Even if 99% of them seek out the grand Marshall and other authorities, there could still be thousands searching for the hidden master responsible for the transformation.
Lonnie Sizemore
I'm glad that you are taking a break and resetting. A few authors I follow are doing the same and are writing unrelated stories. It's really neat, and I think your fan base in here will appreciate what you share regardless if it's BoC adjacent or just you wanting to write about space wizards or Alexander the Great as a palette cleanser. Thank you for the fun stories!
Randall Brynsvold
Yes, and [Preserving Ginkgo Leaves] was mentioned in "Interlude: Inheritance of Ragged Leaves", 2/6/24.
Arin Storm
From what I remember, sometime around when the dandelion oath was made, Tianlan described what some of the participants' cultivations manifested as, and she said Rags' was a battered soldier with gingko leaves growing off of him.
Randall Norman Pick
Some things are universal.
Randall Brynsvold
Fortunately, Jin Prime already has Xiulan in place as Grand Marshal of all cultivator issues beyond internal Sect affairs. Jin and Tianlan have permitted and encouraged Xiulan to act as their intermediary, proxy, and guarantor of their privacy.
N0ct3m
this. i qols love an anthology of the AUs
Valderan
"Oh man, wouldn't it be great if literally the entirety of the population of the Azure Hills went to Fa Ram?"
Grant Daniel
Hahahahahaha! TLM will never change his desire for a “peaceful” position. And it is so cool to see the expansion upon different characters and different ideas in this au as it makes it feel unique but also of the land that we know and love so much.
Truedragon5374
Oh God. This is what I'm afraid will eventually happen to Jin Prime, thousands of people pledging loyalty to him, when all he want to do is farm.
Gg
Heh good old lord regent never change
Featherweight
Their’s a chance Rags found Equivalent of the “napkin doodle” of what would have become the golden tree style if things hadn’t gone boom
Just A Dude
It's a Doom quote. One man, standing against hordes of demons, literally too angry to die.
Lanter
There's our stressed, inwardly screaming official! Hahahahaha!
St Chef
Hey Casualfarmer, have you thought about having an anthology AU book that takes all these AUs you've been writing and putting them in one place for the general audience that follow your work?
Randall Brynsvold
Rags did base his cultivation on a series of pictograms on the wall of his "hideout", but it wasn't the remains of a tree. It was a "fortress" that "looked almost like the design of the Dueling Peaks".
Randall Brynsvold
... all going to be okay EXCEPT for the ulcer of the Lord Regent.
Andrew Denton
Pretty sure he's already living in the remains of their HQ.
William Johnson
Huh, Sun Ken and the Wicked Blade did much better in this timeline. Also main timeline Xiaoshi sure was a piece of crap wasn't he, this could have been his legacy if he didn't decide eating his best friend was a great idea. Also also, I loved the building dread of all this falling on poor Jin's head, and then the Lord f'in Regent shows up and you know it's all going to be okay.
Just A Dude
Is it just me or does the description of [Preserving Ginko Leaves] sound a lot like it might as well be "They are rage, brutal, without mercy, but you will be worse,"?
Randall Brynsvold
So in the main timeline, will Rags find and grow a seed of the Golden Tree?
Randall Brynsvold
Yeah, it's more obvious if you've been following the AU. Catch-22.
Seth Richter
Can you mark it as AU in the title? I've been skipping them, and thought this was the return to the main storyline... And was VERY confused
Elias A Rosado
The timeline may change, but the good lord regent remains a character from the Office.
Orims
Such a bittersweet chapter, knowing that this could have been what had happened that everyone we saw in the main story (even Sun Ken) were capable of greatness is kinda sad. Hopefully in couple more centuries this will be the minimum that Azure Hills will be capable or maybe it will have acsended to the heavens by that time completely.
Some guy
Ah yes mighty lord regent as stoic as ever
Kasinki
Lord Magistrate always the same personality, I love it. Thanks CF!
LazyF0x02
I can see why Tianlan worried about Jin's reaction.
AG
I know that this may sound ungrateful, but TOO SHORT, NEED MOOOORRRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lelouch Lamperouge
MOOOOAAAAAAR!
BargleNawdleZouss
Aww, I hoped that at least in this AU, The Lord Magistrate and Lady Wu Zei Qi would not be traumatized. Otherwise, 👍😱🔥
V01D
Once more, the Lord Regent and Jin are of the same wavelength. I have a feeling that Xulian will be interesting in Jin BECAUSE he isn’t tempted (or at least, explicitly controls himself) by her appearance. Given that she’d be a much higher level in this timeline, and Shen Yu’s comment about her appearance, she’d likely be even worse off. She’d already be friends with Xinghua, because of how Xinghua treats her no differently from anyone else, and possibly with Mei, given Mei would poke fun at it. An interesting thing to note is how Jin’s farming has similarities to Dual Cultivation, where the Qi is cycled between two so that it keeps growing…
Seaspike
So many alternate versions of people...
Kat Wilton
Ah, bless his organized heart - the Lord Magistrate never changes! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Lurker
😂 gonna need a boatload of heartburn and headache meds
Brandon Yarberry
JJonahJamesoncackle. gif
Loah
TLM never changes. We love him. Also Sun Ken is good now? Best timeline
Andrew Bazhaw
The Lord magistrate has been upgraded to the Lord Regent
Benjamin Lawton
Yup. Even under a different title, The Lord Magistrate will always be The Lord Magistrate.
WarStrider72
Thanks so much boss!
