The recent civil war
of Qiankun had reshaped the boundaries of Zhongyuan(1),
dividing it into two nations: the nation of Shengjie in the north, a world of
orthodox cultivation and ancient religious practices, and the nation of Xuyi in
the south, shrouded in the mystery of the dark arts. They were now standing
divided but uneasy in their fragile peace, their borders almost hostile. For
some time now, the violent clashing of swords and wails of soldiers in the
battlefields had dissipated, but the relentless complaints of the civilians did
not subside alongside the war. The civilians were not satisfied. They demanded
more; a neutral zone, where neither orthodox sects nor demonic sects would be
able to rule. They wanted a peaceful place to be able to visit family and not
have to cross the dangerous border.
After years of battling, not just the soldiers of both
sides but also cultivators were relieved to finally catch a break and have some
rest, but they were still demanded of more. But
would they sacrifice their hard-earned relief just to make a neutral zone? F*ck
no! This was why the civilians had decided to take matters into their own
hands. They had begun to protest.
Some groups would sit together at the border, refusing
to move,
(1) The Central Plains,
or modern-day China.
and some groups would march through the border, not
cowering if the risk of arrest were served to them
on a platter. Some would even go on hunger strikes, declaring that they would
starve themselves until a neutral zone was created.
The government's response? Dream on!
It wasn't just that people were tired and didn't have
enough energy to create the neutral zone; there wasn't enough space in the
first place. Shengjie had a few sects at the border, which would have to be
painstakingly relocated, and Xuyi simply refused to
give up their land. The neutral zone's creation seemed impossible with these
circumstances, but the protesters were stubborn—if the government did not do
anything, the volcano of suppressed rage would soon erupt.