Torsten Hewson

v3c54: The Teachings of Fa Ram

Sorry about the wait, everybody. Got hammered pretty hard by a big winter storm that took out the power, but was no match for the woodstove. I actually kind of like these big storms. They're fun, sitting and watching the fire with the family.

But without any more delay....

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Sometimes Wa Shi, great and noble dragon that he was, forgot that the outside world was not like his beautiful, bountiful home.

It was to be expected. Wh...

Challenge at the Tournament

Tigu finally letting lose against a worthy opponent.

Art by: https://twitter.com/DorD1002

v3c53.3: The Return of Senior Brother part 3

Senior Disciple Lu Ri looked on with pride as the mortals finally began to return to their homes, exhausted but triumphant smiles on their faces.

Indeed, they were right to be triumphant, for they had accomplished much. Jin Rou—or rather, just Jin, as he had been asked to be called—was speaking with the learned mortals of the Lord Magistrate, Bao and his father-in-law, Hong Xian. Both of whom had been a delight to work with.

Things would likely move swiftly now, at least in th...

On Spirit Beasts

Another Lore post. Chapter later tonight!

On Spirit Beasts:

There are several Types of Spirit Beasts

The first type is the “True Spirit Beasts”, or in general, what one thinks of when one thinks of “Spirit Beasts”

These are Spirit Beasts who are born with Qi; they all have semi-human intellect, ranging from a toddler to smarter than humans. However, they tend to have a different morality than humans, and see nothing wrong with killing humans. A lot of them fee...

v3c53.2: The Return of Senior Brother Part 2

Senior Disciple Lu Ri could honestly say that over this past week, he was more engaged and interested than he had been in years.

The Lord Magistrate of Verdant Hill had looked through Lu Ri’s notes. With some reticence at first, but once he saw what was within them, the man’s dark eyes had become intense and focused. He had understood exactly what Lu Ri had been working on, instantly recognizing its value. Upon Lu Ri’s request for assistance with making his plans reality, the man ...

v3c53: The Return of Senior Brother

Like always, the world kept on turning.

Gramps mellowed out after a week.

Well, really we all had. The tension from the day we fought had faded. Even a visit to Hong Yaowu went off without a hitch. I don’t know why I thought the old man might not react the best to Meimei’s family but he seemed to really like Pops.

I suppose a man who picked up an orphan from the streets wouldn’t really care where you came from. He had even said Pops was ‘a good egg’ after they had ...

v3c52: What Can One Be But Themselves?

It had been a week, since Shen Yu’s arrival at the farm.

Shen Yu sat upon the roof of Jin’s house, staring out at the gentle, rolling hills. He had seen most members of Jin’s household come up here, at one point or another, and he had to admit that it was a good place to sit and meditate. It was at the intersection of the heavens and the Earth, the golden power welling up from below, and touching the air, while the Pure Yang Energy from the sun, and Pure Yin energy from the moon m...

The World of Beware of Chicken: Demons and Demonic Cultivators

A bit of a lore dump, for those inclined. not a chapter, just world building stuff, and to clarify things.

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On Demonic Cultivation/Demon divide

Demons: The otherworldly invaders. Not much is actually known about the creatures, other than they are not from this plane, and seem to eat Qi. The cultivators have named this other place Hell. They have varying intelligence, and a lot of the mainline combatants are thought to be...

v3c51: Whats New in Hong Yaowu

Sorry for the wait, everybody!

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It was always fun, going back home to Hong Yaowu, in Yun Ren’s opinion. He got to watch all the little kids shouting and clamoring at his arrival, he got to see his parents, and he got to go to his usual haunts.

Except…. It really wasn’t the village of Yun Ren’s youth anymore. The fields were all in different places and the houses had been either moved or built anew. Even after being here, and helping with ...

Small update on Chapter

Hey every body! Just in the interest of keeping everybody informed, this chapter has been delayed by a second day!  

This was due to finishing up most of the meat and potatoes for Vol 2, which is hopefully going to be releasing around march. No solid date yet, but it inches closer.  In return for the delay, have a little sneak peek at the cover graphic that we're likely going to be using for Vol 2, and a belated Birthday gift given to me By Tsuu.

There will st...

v3c50.2 Shockwaves part 2

Pi Pa finished drinking some of the Mistress of the House’s hangover cure, and sighed as the potion began to take hold. The rather nasty headache she had began to fade— and she began to clean up the worst of the night’s… celebrations.

She sighed, as she started gathering the cups off the table, once more disparaging alcohol. Or at least that particular alcohol. It was quite annoying that the mead was one of the few things Pi Pa could truly taste, with the side effects o...

Announcement on December Releases:

I would also like to take this time to tell everybody that instead of the second week of December as the days I take off, I will instead be taking the last two weeks, from the 19th to the 30th, off instead.

I'm going to be spending time with family, and this is just to let everybody know what's going on then.

I apologise for leaving this until late in november to say anything about it.

If you need a refund or anything for that month, please let me know, as there will only b...

v3c50: Shockwaves P1

My apologies for the delayed chapter! yesterday was actually my birthday, and so I kind of ended up slacking a little, when I still had a chapter to get out.

But prepared it is now, with a character we haven't actually heard much from for a while...

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The first rays of dawn began to spread over the land. It dyed the grass and the water pink and gold, as it crawled across fertile soil and vibrant grass. Birdsong filled the air, as a hundred thousand lit...

Interlude: Fortuitous Encounter

“Remain here.” Shen Yu commanded. “I shall continue alone.”

With that, the old monster strode forwards along the paved road, and left Lu Ri behind.

Master Shen Yu wished to see Jin Rou alone, which was perfectly understandable. One day or thirty it mattered little— Lu Ri had been commanded to wait, so he would wait until Master Shen instructed otherwise.

At least Master Shen had left him in a town, though the wilderness would have been no object either. He...

v3 c49.3: The Heavens and the Earth Part 3

Okay, first things first: after consideration, I have descided to revamp the previous chapter, and add this one.

The other one had been edited signifgantly, and the timeline of events has changed. Instead of the party ending at the end of last Chapter, the party now happens in this chapter.

This chapter has added some, in my opinion, much needed context from Jin, before we get to the Lu Ri chapter, which is next.

Thank you for your patience!

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v349.2: The Heavens and the Earth part 2

“I died that day.”

He spoke of it without vengeance burning in his heart. Shen Yu could feel a sense of peace within him. The cultivator took a deep breath as Rou spoke, centering himself as much as he was able. His emotions dulled as he entered a partial state of meditation, lest Rou’s tale send him into a rage that would destroy the Azure Hills.

Instead, he focused on the forest they had come to to have their discussion, a quiet glade away from the central Farm. The momen...

v3c49.1: The Heavens and the Earth

Breakfast for Shen Yu turned into an act. Hong Meiling would not have the satisfaction of knowing she had unsettled him. It was certainly petty of him, but one could never let a person know when a blow had found its mark.

He once more praised the slip of a girl—not even the Demon Commander had cut him so deeply.

It was rather easy, however, to slip back into the role of Gramps. The surroundings distracted him, and his laughs turned genuine. Especially when the little dragon took...

v3c48: Seal

It was a pleasant spring night. Not too hot, but neither was it cold. The air was laden with the sounds of crickets and frogs, coming out of hibernation, and getting their groove on…. Though they were nowhere to be seen.

The sky was full of thin cracks, radiating golden light. They shone and pulsed with shared power, but they had been growing thinner and thinner, as the world healed.

A young man sat on the veranda of a house. It was an odd looking thing; a clash of styles that h...

Xiulan Pinup artwork

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1P6Sxe8woxZ_iPqpks8CV0rLd1-x1LPNH?usp=sharing

We also have some slightly spicy art, courtesy of Pokoporo. My gift for being a bit late!

https://twitter.com/PokoPoroko

v3c47: Jin Rou's grandfather p2

There was a brief moment of silence, as the beautiful fairy turned to glare at the freckled maid, who was rubbing at her nose. Her eyes were slightly unfocused. Then branches and bits of rock shot from the ground to start bouncing off the shorter woman’s head.

The assault, however, was taken with amusement.

Some of the tension broke. There were a few chuckles, and Rou even groaned at what the short woman had said.

Shen Yu raised an eyebrow at the woman’s audacity. She di...

The Reunion (Comic)

Tsuu was very, very considerate, and gave me this gift just now.

I was given permission to post this for everybody.

I did not know she was working on this. Thank you so much Tsuu, this is amazing.

v3c47: Jin Rou's Grandfather P1

“You kept it? How petty can you be, you old bastard?” Rou demanded as he pulled some of the dung out of his hair. The exact same dung Rou had sent Shen Yu.

Shen Yu laughed at the sheer incredulity in his voice.

“Of course I did! I had to return your gift—it was shit!”

Rou barked out a laugh as he brushed himself off.

Shen Yu took the time to look the boy over as Rou dusted the last of the horse dung off his clothes. The similarities from his...

v3c46.3: Marching to the Hills P3

Pale Moon Lake City, Shen Yu decided as Lu Ri led him through the place, was fascinating in its sheer… mortalness. A city’s population was always going to be predominantly mortal, but he had never yet seen one in all the Empire that was like this, with barely a hint of the touch of cultivators. It was a glimpse into a world without Qi. There were no grand stadiums or arenas for cultivators to battle, no auction houses for rare reagents. There wasn’t even a ruling Sect, as most ...

Happy Halloween!

Have some witch Mei, courtesy of https://twitter.com/pyawakit

v3c46.2: Marching to the Hills P2

Shen Yu watched the great flying ship depart from the Cloudy Sword Sect. Rising gracefully into the sky, the Soaring Heavens Isle Disciples who could fly ascended alongside as an escort.

Minyan, standing on the top of the mast, looked down and met his eyes. They offered each other a single nod before averting their eyes.

They would see each other again. Soon, hopefully. He idly wondered what would have been if his joke about sending Rou to the all female sect hadn’t been a joke....

v3c46: Marching to the Hills P1

Shen Yu stood on the bow of the great ship, the Shenfeng, as it cut through the sky. The wind was in his hair and blowing through his beard. The birds and beasts of the sky without Qi approached the construct curiously; those with any sense fled from the overwhelming power the artifice produced. Behind him, the deck was a hive of activity, and the fairies of Soaring Heaven’s Isle maintained their ship and as Brother Ge traded pointers with the new recruits of the Cloudy Sword Sect.

Sh...

v3c45: Spring

The first thing Tianlan became conscious of was noise.

It took her a moment to place the sound, so deep was her slumber. But it came to her, for it was unmistakable.

A rooster’s crow, heralding the sun as it broke the horizon in her domain, signaling the start of spring.

It was not how she normally awoke. She remembered, ages ago, waking to the acrid tang of impurities that were deposited in her “home”. It was always a slow, gradual thing, however. This was a jolt to h...

Interlude: Heavy Is the Head

The Imperial Capital of the Crimson Phoenix Empire was situated upon five hills named after the five representations of the body of Fenghuang:

Virtue, Duty, Propriety, Credibility and Mercy.

The pillars of the Phoenix were pillars of the Empire.

Upon these five hills stood the pinnacle of what the Crimson Phoenix Empire had to offer. Thousands of pagodas housing the noble clans. Hundreds of stadiums, to test the limits of cultivators and mortal warriors alike. The capital h...

Interlude: The Name

It was another good day on Fa Ram. Bi De had just returned from his patrol, going around the perimeter of their home. He had had a wonderful time examining the buds starting to grow upon the trees, seeing the awakening animals he had come across, and feeling the warm air rustling through his feathers.

When he returned there was fresh tea; His Great Master smiling upon him as Bi De spoke on the changing world.

“It is in the subtle differences that this one finds the most profound...

Character Sheets: Noodle Snake and Sun Rabbit

Finally, we have these two, which I thought I had posted already. Yin and Noodle!