Atlas of Heaven and Earth - Chapter 209: Hostages

Welcome! If you want to jump in without any spoilers, feel free. Otherwise, here's a story primer, with a list of more specifics on what to expect from my work further below.Our story follows a fallen knight haunted by his past, in a world afflicted by war and supernatural wounds. Alken is the Headsman of Seydis, an executioner tasked by the divine powers of his homeland to hunt dark sorcerers, warlords, and traitors of all varieties, lest they drag the world into calamity.Once a paladin, this role ill suits him. Forced to cross lines that shake his beliefs, tempted by dark forces, and seen as an ill omen wherever he wanders, his path is often a bloody one. The longer he spends in the shadows of his world, the more he comes to realize just how many have been disenfranchised by the existent order. During his lonely battles through a land haunted by the restless dead and ancient magics, his journey becomes increasingly strange and personal.Enter a realm where the dead stir in every shadow and brooding demigods wage a millennia long war for a ruined heaven, where blessed knights wield gilded flames and sorcerers battle with weapons forged of their own souls. Enter a world of faustian alchemists, of saintly demons, and of time-weary elves.From Oathbreaker you can expect— A setting heavily inspired by Forgotten Realms, Planescape, Fromsoft games, and authors such as Michael Moorcock and Kentauro Miura. — A first person POV from an older protagonist who already knows a lot about his world’s history and cultures, who shares this information with the reader as it becomes relevant.— A mix of action adventure and quieter moments where the focus is on character development. Lore is shared piecemeal, usually only as it relates to a particular arc or character beat.— A heavy focus on mystery, both with the setting and the protagonist. The main character’s backstory isn’t shared up front, and a lot of the narrative involves learning about him a bit at a time, either from his own narration or other characters interacting with him.— A semi-soft magic system where many mages manifest unique powers tied to their own soul, or gain unique powers through eldritch pacts.— Romantic elements. These don’t crop up much until later in the story.— A variety of supernatural beings, such as elves, vampires, gargoyles, chimera, and trolls. Many are familiar, some are not, and most of the familiar ones have my own twists put on them.—Nobledark fantasy. This means that the world is often themed around tragedy and horror, but it’s not dedicated to being gritty. There are elements of high fantasy intermixed with the scarier stuff.—Episodic arcs. Each story arc usually has a specific locale and antagonist or set of antagonists, but certain overarching plots tie them together.— A long running narrative. I don’t have a specific projection of how long or how many arcs or books, but you should expect this to be equivalent to a long running serialized work.This is my first web serial! I hope everyone enjoys it. For trigger warnings, readers should beware that there are some heavy topics in here. When I think something might upset certain readers, I’ll put a warning in the author notes above a chapter. If I miss or overlook anything, feel free to let me know in the comments! I am currently publishing the same story on my wordpress, which is linked below and in my profile. I release three chapters a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. Thanks for reading!(I originally had a link to a wordpress, but I'm in the process of overhauling that space. It's not a priority since my readership is all here, but just in case anyone noticed and was wondering)

Living as a concubine’s daughter in her previous life, He Danggui got herself and her daughter tortured and killed by her family and Princess Zhou, while her husband, Lord Ning, allowed them to do so for a secret. After reborn as a child, she swore to hold back her kindness to the villains. How did she survive in a family with various secrets and conspiracies? Who would be her final choice? The love of her previous life or a new lover who could offer her a happy and simple life? Sharing the identities of doctor, political counselor and princess, was she able to bring great changes both in Jianghu and the imperial family? With her intelligence and excellent medical skills, would she let them pay for what they did to her or live differently as a new one?

Fu Yuran, a genius actor crowned as a queen upon her debut, basked in endless glory; Yuran, a prodigal, frivolous, and brainless rich third-generation heir.Fu Yuran never thought that upon her sudden death, she would become Yuran, sharing the same name but vastly different in standing, not to mention living at the mercy of others and having an infinitely dazzling movie emperor ... brother?Yuran, who had intended to keep a low profile and strive to better herself, was one day scandalized as the “little demon” cohabitating with the great movie emperor, Yen Shen. Such gossip, truly malicious and insane!Lately, Yuran replied with no expression, “No, I'm not close with Yen Shen, you've misunderstood. How could Yen Shen possibly take a fancy to me?”Just when the dust seemed to be settling, some media personnel surprisingly caught her hand in hand with Yen Shen, and she still spoke earnestly and nonsensically, “We're just acting, don't misunderstand!”Yen Shen, “Let me formally introduce, my wife, Yuran!”

At the age of 12, Shen Yue accidentally fell into a pond while feeding fish. That’s when she realized that her parents were not her real parents, and her five brothers were not her real brothers either. She was just a fake heiress to the Shen family!

Knowing she was destined to lose everything, Shen Yue decided to just lie down and give up. If she was going to lose it all anyway, she might as well just lie down and relax.

“Big brother, is working at the company fun? Let me check it out,” she thought, wanting to enjoy the perks of being a Shen daughter while she still could. Those luxuries would be out of reach soon enough.

“Second brother, is acting fun? Let me give it a try,” she schemed. What? They pay you just to lie still like a corpse? This is a job she had to get!

“Third brother, is that gun realistic? Let me see,” she said, examining the firearm. Not bad, though the recoil is too strong. She’d need to find a smaller one to play with next time.

“Fourth brother, will the teachers be mad if I sneak into your research institute? Let me take a peek,” she plotted, eyeing her handsome professor. A little hugging wouldn’t hurt!

“Fifth brother, that medicine you’re working on smells nice. Mind if I try a little taste…” she asked casually before sampling it. Tastes good! But now my head feels itchy—I better not be growing a brain!

On the day the real heiress returned, Shen Yue’s five brothers shielded her behind them. “Dear sister, can we keep her with us? She’s a bit slow, it’d be dangerous for her out there alone.”

The true heiress scoffed coldly, masking her sly intentions beneath a guise of innocence.

But in the end, she realized this Shen Yue really was quite dim-witted. Oh well, might as well let her stay.