Clouded Soul - Setting Notes

Place names will be in English rather than using faux Chinese. These names will try to emulate the feel of translated Chinese and how flowery it often sounds. Some of them might sound like DnD place names, but I’m fine with that.

The main character comes from a small island off the coast of the mainland continent. The continent is known as the Threefold Kingdom,  the island is called Little Haven. References to the continent will be very vague on purpose in this first story so that I don't have to do extensive world building right off the bat, but I will try and think of some stuff for it in this document just so I have a few things to draw from.

The Threefold Kingdom is named as such because for many years now it’s been three separate kingdoms locked in a stalemate with each other, none of them able to get a leg up on the other. Obviously a reference to the 3 kingdoms era. We have the Azure Dominion, the Emerald Expanse, and the Vermillion Empire. They are separated by three giant rivers stemming from a giant mountain range.

The Ran clan rules the Expanse, Tsao the Dominion, and Zun the Empire.

I’ll make an extremely crude map showing the boundaries sometime when it’s relevant but the important thing to know is that the Expanse is in the south, as that ties into some god lore down below.

Azure Dominion is the most cultured of the three, with a focus on magic and crafting and high society. Emerald Expanse is the biggest with the most land and agriculture, but a large portion of the southern land is jungle that are only inhabited by unaligned natives. Vermillion Empire is the most warlike, possessing the best smiths and a large mountain range that provides the metal that field their armies.

Putting it here that I don’t want there to be a definitive good guy between the the factions.

A big part of the deadlock is that all three kingdoms are reliant on each other for different things. The Dominion supplies elixirs, pills, and knowledge, the Expanse produces the most food, and the Empire makes the best weapons and armor. Things aren’t entirely peaceful like they were in my setting of Karnalle, though, and there are still routinely battles between the three factions. They’re just mostly minor squabbles and border disputes, and any land gained from the conflict is never held long. It’s an uneasy state that none of the three are happy with, especially since it’s been the status quo for a very long time.

In addition to the Threefold Kingdom, I reserve the right to mention islands and smaller continents as vassal states or independent forces should the need arise. Might just come up with a list of such sometime for reference’s sake and expand on them if need be.

Little Haven is a mostly temperate island. It has one large mountain named Frostflow Peak, whose summit is at odds with the temperate climate because of the family of ice-themed refiners who live there. There are a total of five small islets off the coast of Little Haven but only one is big enough for people to live on. The population of Little Haven in general is small and sparse, spread across multiple villages that stick mainly to the coast because of the rolling hills and the dominance of Frostflow Peak. The biggest city, Shard Spray Bay, is on the northernmost tip of Little Haven.

There are three other medium cities on the island. Sanctitude, located at the base of Frostflow Peak, which is mostly a wintery village set up by the clan of refiners living on top of the peak for their own benefit, tending livestock and harvesting mountainous herbs. Bountiful Meadow, a city on a river where most of the agriculture is centered, before being taken upriver to Shard Spray Bay. Break Ridge, a city on the way to Frostflow Peak surrounded by little mountains where most of the mining is done on the island.

One of the most notable features of Little Haven’s geography is that the entire island is surrounded by big glass pillars rising out of the sea that makes it hard to sail in or out, save for Shard Spray Bay, where these pillars have been cleared at great expense. The city is named for the bits of glass that wash up on the beach. Swimming is not advised in these waters, and the local ocean life has suffered greatly from the presence of the glass. Most food is from fishermen who sail beyond the glassy waters, or traded from the mainland or other cities on the island.

These are the result of a battle between Little Haven’s most famous refiner and the main worshiped deity of the island, Wo Manlai, and an ancient rival of his, Bai Do. Manlai is revered throughout the whole of Little Haven, more so than some of the greater gods.

I will probably be making up details of Little Haven when writing up the story, but it’s an island with lots of foothills and mountainous terrain, with most settlements sticking around the coast. Several scattered forests dot the landscape, and there are numerous sects hidden throughout the land.

Gods.

There are four greater Gods who rule from the heavens, and each God has a large cohort of lesser deities and demigods who serve them. They largely ignore the mortal world, intervening only when it amuses them or they have something to gain from it. The four greater gods are commonly known throughout the world and are worshiped as such, even if most places prefer to worship their own local deities primarily. Even in cases such as this, they still defer to the greater gods if you were to push them on the topic unless you're dealing with people who have inherent biases against one of the gods.

The greater gods are loosely based on the four heavenly Kings of Buddhism to give myself a starting point.

Wen Duohi

God of the North, started life as a single raindrop that fell into a pool of sacred water and slowly gained awareness, becoming a worldly spirit over countless years. Water is his domain and he is depicted as an armored warrior wielding an umbrella. He is the benefactor of all worldly spirits and they all worship him as such. As the Lord of rain, his attention can be either a blessing or a curse, but he is more prone to the curse side of things and will withhold his blessings to cause droughts or create floods when angered. His court is primarily worldly spirits and those who align with his principles.

Ran Zengtian

God of the South, once a human refiner who transformed the southern deserts of the Threefold Kingdom into a lush paradise. In her time period, the land that would become the Emerald Expanse was barren and dry, so she focused on developing her powers until she had total control over nature. Her symbol is the sword she was most known for and she Carrie’s it everywhere. She was the one who established the Expanse and became its first Queen, serving for many prosperous centuries until ascending to godhood. She still shows favor to her homeland to this day, but does little to ensure true victory for her people to keep the delicate balance of nature. More war will only cause more destruction, and that is not in her interest. Has the most balanced portion of men, beasts, worldly spirits and soulful treasures in her court of lesser gods.

Angua-chi

God of the East, began life as a soulful treasure, a lute, who was played by dozens of kindhearted musicians over hundreds of years, each of whom left their mark on what would become this God of mirth and merriment. He is the most active of the greater gods in the mortal realm, genuinely enjoying shirking his duties in favor of going out and wandering around for a little bit, helping those he comes across in little ways. Often viewed(by assumption) as the weakest of the four great gods, and his court of lesser deities are an eclectic and random bunch. Slight preference to soulful treasures, but welcomes anyone who knows how to have a good time.

Guang Ti

God of the West, ascended Dragon, takes the form of a man with draconic features and snakes coiled around his arms. Unlike many trueborn dragons, Guang Ti started life as a carp that had an impossible thought. It dreamed of climbing up a waterfall. Day by day the carp struggled until achieving this goal and achieving the first level of soul refinement at its zenith. With its new human form, the sacred beast traveled the world and accumulated power- all without ever taking a human contractor or a spiritual marriage. Over time, the carp grew stronger and evolved into a dragon. Other dragons laughed at who they called the king of fishes, but his dominance was so overwhelming that he made all other dragons now before him until he was their king. He is the patron god of all sacred beasts and watches them from on high, caring little for the squabbles of man. His court of lesser gods is exclusively sacred beasts and their contractors/spouses.

God of the Yiansha, Kang Yanma

Kang Yanma is the first Yiansha to come into existence, and serves as a recurring demon lord figure throughout this world’s history as well as a satanic figure who whispers in the ears of mortals, directing human history to ensure there is more bloodshed and need of his spawn. He appears as a well dressed magistrate holding a fan in one hand and a long spear in the other. He is the most corrupted soul in existence, having single-handedly caused the most suffering whether you’re talking directly or indirectly. All Yiansha are descended from him, with his first wife being the first human he ever corrupted and their children having since filled the hellish pocket realm known as the Land of Shade. Has no interest in openly going to war with Heaven, as the Gods and their courts would likely be an equal match for them. He would rather hide his time and wait as unlike the four great gods, he is actively still gaining in power and they are not as they are too afraid of the potential final step.

Godhead

This was brought up in the other document but I figured I’d bring this up here as well to reinforce it. Your average peasant may not understand the intricacies, but it’s a commonly held religious belief that everything used to be part of a whole and that the end of the refinement path is to rejoin that whole or something along the lines. No one is really sure, but praising the godhead or including it in casual conversation would be relatively common even among rural folk. It’s also generally understood that Yiansha are antithetical to this whole and that they are something else in opposition, and thus widely despised. The actual nature of the godhead is a hot topic among scholars, and there are many interpretations of it, but it’s almost universally believed to have actually existed since there is unquestionably a force that binds all of reality together and is demonstrably provable that growing more in tune with this force makes one stronger.

Lesser Gods

Wo Manlai

Detailing him here a little bit since he's going to be frequently referenced during the early series. He is the only recorded man from Little Haven to ascend into godhood, so he's worshipped across it as if he's a big deal. Wo Manlai was a clever, less than scrupulous man in life, but had a heart of gold. There are all sorts of records of his exploits throughout Little Haven that the gang might come across during their journeys, adding a bit of culture to random places. Oh, there's the rock he sat atop while eating breakfast one time, and things like that. He was a big, wiry man famous for his use of a staff. His main aspect was Ingenuity, affinities being wind and staff. He had more powers but a lot of time has passed since his era so much has been forgotten/I'll make them up as it goes along if it's relevant. Statues make him look sort of monkey-ish and he's often depicted with a few monkeys close at hand.

Heaven

Will have its own name when I’m making all the official terminology, but I should say it’s your typical Chinese depiction of the heavens. Endless clouds stretching on for infinity. Ten pillars on earth hold up the sky and keep heaven from falling. There are four distinct districts in heaven, with each belonging to one of the gods. The Wondrous Arcadia, the Overgrown Palisade, the House of Infinite Treasures, and the Palace of Beasts respectively. Names not final.

Beyond these huge districts, every lesser god also has their own little slice of heaven floating around the vicinity of the god they serve under, or really wherever they want them to float if they are unaligned.