Immortal Ascension Tower

< The Four Primordial Emperors >

Other moniker/s: ”Them ”, ”The Four ”, ”The Square in the Circle ”.

A long time ago, Space had ruptured and broken off into countless, boundless plateaus seething with Spiritual Energy: the Planes of Existence.

Each of the innumerable Planes held its own Earth and Heaven, strictly followed the Laws and Regulations written in the Qi, and were rich in Spiritual Energy. However, differentiating itself from many others, there was only one Plane that held a Heaven capable of birthing life.

Amidst the uncountable vast lands, it was the grandest Plane: its Earth was the True Earth, and its Heaven the True Heaven.

And from that True Heaven, taking form in its heat, the first Beasts came to be.

They were the first generation of existences, born straight the primordial sky and its cascading Spiritual Energy. These olden ones, as the forefathers of all life, were the Primordial Beasts.

Amongst many Primordial Beasts, four stood out amongst the rest, each incarnation of a grand Dao: whether it be their might or their Status, none could hope to contend with them. Simply put, they were to Primordial Beasts what gods would be amongst mortals.

Starting from four opposing corners of Creation, they conquered their way to its centre. There, the unmatched finally met their equals: instead of fighting, as the pinnacle beings of the world, the Four acknowledged each others hegemony over their territories.

Each became a monarch of their portion of True Heaven, and the four gathered into a single power ruling over existence: the Heavenly Realm came to be!

Thus, as overlords of the Grandest era, they became the Primordial Emperors.

Even then though, Conflict wouldn subside. Slaughter persisted as countless factions formed beneath them: some rose one day just to be slaughtered the next, in a manner that showed no signs of stopping. A vicious cycle that only sought to birth itself, a wave that drowned all but those at its crest.

Witnessing the first and foremost Law of Nature, the Four eventually grew to reject and despise it.

The Emperors grew tired of mundane matters and were disgusted by the never-ending struggles for power. They left the world and disappeared from the Heavenly Realm. The other Primordial Beasts took this as tacit approval for an all-out conflict, and this led to the largest scale war that would bathe the Heavens in the golden blood of the forefathers.

The Endless Slaughter.

[…]

End of ”The Four Primordial Emperors ”, an excerpt from ”Records of the Olden Era: an edition for the youth ”, penned by Empyrean Scribe Kong Xiu and curated by Head Scholar Lao Tse.

…

< Lord of the Underworld >

Other moniker/s: ”King Yama ”, ”Highest Judge ”, ”The Fifth ”, ”The Triangle in the Square ”

A summer bug once experienced the disaster of torrential rains.

Ah, it grieved, how I envy the maples. And how cruel this world is! The oaks, the pines, and the spruces. Their roots hold steadfast, while their branches sway in the winds and seldom snap! Oh, how it wished to be a tree…

A cypress heard its pitiful plea, watchin