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shrine's Clan

Mighty Lair

near the

Highland Sanctum

Clan Info

But years are mere nothings:
Let hundreds, even thousands pass.

【 THE RED DESERT 】
“看見春天走向你我。”

The Red Desert lies far to the northeast, past the Dongbei continental plains. Hundreds of years ago, it was a lush alpine range with verdant steppes extending down the mountainside below the plateaus. Once known as the 'crown jewel' of the continent, these moorlands were overflowing with streams, rivers, and all manner of vegetation and animal life.

During the Intervention of the Heavens, the Heavenly Court came down to the mortal realm in an attempt to wrest territorial control from the ruling devils. Celestial and demonic beings, with no regard to the damage they caused to the fragile balance of life, clashed in the heavens above and lands below. What they could not capture, they burnt, creating thousands upon thousands of refugees fleeing their shattered homes. Thus the once-prosperous kingdom was reduced to a scorching, inhospitable desert: the Crimson Wastes, or the Red Desert.

Without its natural flora and fauna and its once-grand cities reduced to rubble, the Wastes were not well situated for trade or travel. Mountains scorched to the bare rock clawed at the sky as if in agony, embedded in a vast plain of arid desert and dry xeric shrubland.

Still, the Wastes were large and expansive. Many believed the Crownland's unimaginable treasures remained buried within. The Red Desert was hotly contested territory, and would continue to be for some time after the war. During that time, the condition of the lands and whether they were hospitable to life remained largely a mystery.

》 Each of the continent's greater devils have attempted to claim the Red Desert at least once: none were able to keep it.

Fourteen greater devil-kings remained on the continent after the Heavenly Court withdrew. In the two decades following the Intervention, they directed multiple armies to march into the Wastes.

But the land rejected its occupants, and each army came back half-alive or not at all. Livestock imported to settle new villages died to the heat, or were lost to the scavengers. Necrophages and restless ghouls wandered the barren plains, fiercely rebuffing attempts from armies to reconquer the ruins.

It was soon said that Red Desert had created these monsters to ward off those who would lay claim to it. The Crownlands, razed to bare rock and shattered by decades of war, were abandoned by all but the the most desperate and ravenous ghouls. They said the desert was waiting for a king that had long been lost, or perhaps had not yet been revealed.

【 THE KING NOT YET REVEALED 】
“一人一条心，黄土变成金。”

The fourteen devil-kings bestowed the Crimson Wastes to a devil known as Kolje. Four decades after the war, the greater devils had given up on reconquering the Crownlands. Naming him the emperor of the mountains and the encircled barren plains was meant as a cruel joke.

Out of sheer spite, Kolje took this duty seriously. He began a through inspection of the land he was now responsible for. Out of sheer contept for the other devils, he intended not to conquer or occupy the lands but to resettle its lost people and have it flourish once again.

Thus in the 47th year after the Intervention, the Red Desert welcomed its first true vassal-king home.

【 JIGU MOUNTAINS 】

The Jigu (named for its spine-like shape from above) is a massive series of ancient mountain ranges. Created several million years ago at the junction of two now-merged plate boundaries, Jigu separates the Eastern Marshes from the Red Desert. It runs from the Southern salt pans, through riparian shrublands fed by groundwater rivers, to the xeric woodlands in the north. Its highest mountain's summit reaches 5,895m above sea level, while canyons, ravines, and gullies run throughout the jagged spines of the range.

Jigu has a hot, dry, and harsh climate, frequently reaching temperatures of 43°C during the day. Three trade routes cut through the mountains, linking the marshes and the Wastes. The base of the mountains give rise to jagged cliffs where greater harpies and gyrfalcons nest. Monsters, chimeras, and greater undead can be found deep in the craggy recesses.

》 Antelopes and mouflon flock at the highest elevations, providing an excellent source of wild game.

Shang Lu 山路 》location: Jigu mountain range

Demand for safer travel and trade routes lead to the construction of a wider, more accessible highway. Shang Lu is most accessible route leading through the Jigu mountains from the western plains to the eastern alpines, cutting through a large canyon and gently sloping up to an elevation of 3,395m.

Sky Stairway 云山阶 》location: Jigu peak

Centuries ago, huge marble slabs were hauled from deep mountain quarries to construct this passage to the Heavenly Courts. It was destroyed for good after the war. Erosion has worn away most of the carvings on the walls and smoothed out the features of the stone statues guarding its entrance.

【 CAOYUANG PALACE 】

Caoyuang Palace is the largest and primary imperial residence in the Red Desert. Located in the leeward plains between two ridges in the Jigu mountain range, the palace enjoys relatively equitable weather and shelter from the desert's frequent sandstorms. A groundwater aquifer from the mountains runs in a river down past the palace.

Hot sands stretch for miles to the west of the palace. To the east, several miles of xeric shrublands lead to the slopes of the mountains. Mountain sheep and antelopes climb down the cliffs to graze the sparse grasses.

》 The semi-domesticated dunerunner gamefowl is kept as a hardy source of meat. They forage during the day, and return to huts at night.

Cliffside Sanctum 》location: upper palace

An open-air overhang in the cliffs with an excellent vantage point and access to thermal currents to facilitate landing and takeoff. This large shaded ledge extends from Siam's private quarters and overlooks the aquifer river below. The rocks are warmed by the sun and perfect for afternoon naps. A thick layer of sand covers the floor, providing soft cushioning and a means for leisurely dust baths.

Crimson Chambers 》location: upper palace, the eyrie

High up in the palace, in the wing named the Eyrie, are the devil-king's private quarters. Inside his office are private ledgers, rare spellbooks, journals, assorted devilish trophies, and magical paraphernalia. Detailed maps of the Red Wastes, its territorial borders, weather patterns, and geology line the walls. It is connected by a large garden skywell to the nearby Cliffside Sanctum.

The Nest 》location: upper palace, the eyrie

A loft curving through the Crimson Chambers opens to this bedroom. This large room is draped with thick curtains and soft, lush blankets, giving it the impression of a quiet and intimate space. A well-used tea set rests atop a valuable petrified redwood table. Various books and paraphernalia are scattered across benches and ledges along the room.

Deepdark Archives 》location: inner palace

A storage area for scrolls, books, and other rare volumes that should not be exposed to air and wandering hands. Some would describe the amount and baffling variety of literature in here to be hoarding-level, but others would disagree. Each of these volumes are bound to come in handy at some point or another...

Liangshui Pool 》location: palace underground

Natural groundwater springs combined with a touch of magic was used to create a luxuriously hot and cold bath. The cavern's smooth rock pebble floor and the ceramic tiles lining the baths are heated. Constantly circulating purifiers give the chamber a smell of fresh calcium. Only Kolje and Siam are permitted to enter.

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