MTL - The Crimson Dragon - Chapter 52

Lan Hengsheng was once the pride of the Lan Clan, a child prodigy with limitless potential—until his fifth birthday changed everything.Declared spirit coreless, he was abandoned by those who once praised him, dismissed as a mortal in a world ruled by cultivators. His so-called friends turned their backs on him, and the clan that once held him in high regard saw him as nothing more than a disappointment.But Hengsheng holds a secret—one that defies the natural laws of this world.Ding![Make a wish] He wished for everything! With the ability to create a system, he doesn’t need talent. He doesn’t need fate’s blessing. He can program his own path to immortality.Why struggle for enlightenment when he can create a Cultivation Optimization System?Why waste decades training when he can install a Time Acceleration System?Why risk his life searching for treasures when he can develop an Auto-Farming System?While other cultivators beg the heavens for guidance, Hengsheng writes his own cultivation manual.Armed with his cheat-like power, he will challenge geniuses, reshape sects, and rewrite the very foundation of cultivation itself.The strongest cultivator is a system maker!

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)

“Doc, it’s like the game I made is becoming a reality.”“Isn’t that nice? People are under so much pressure at work these days, but you can get away from it all, play the game, and live the life of your dreams.”“But I’m a famous ghost story game designer, I’ve conceived one hundred and twenty-six mu*der cases, portrayed dozens of mu*derers with different personalities, and to find material I’ve watched ninety-five thriller movies, more than four hundred horror comics, and collected more than two thousand urban weird tales. Now they all seem to be true!”“So …… do I look familiar to you?”

Soul Piercing Konoha, born as a civilian, will go to the battlefield of the Third Ninja World War tomorrow.

Just graduated from “Ninja School”, Yangtai, who only knows three body techniques and a D-level hemostasis technique, looked at the full of energy, and finally made up his mind – “The battlefield is too dangerous, I’d better go to other worlds to hide. !”

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