January 1, 2026. A blood moon hung in the sky.
After that night, the supernatural returned in a bizarre fashion. Evil spirits descended, and chaos engulfed the world.
Thankfully, the gods took pity on humanity and sent down temples. People could offer up their faith in exchange for a safe place to live.
*
A Yun knelt before the temple.
His father had fallen from a cliff while building a temple to the Corpse God, and his body was never found.
His mother had used her body to nurture the Gu God's egg. When she reached the two-hundredth one, she never woke again.
His elder sister had been taken away by the Cave God, and there had been no word of her since.
"O gods, please protect us..."
As monsters pounded at the door outside, A Yun held his younger brother and knelt at the feet of the Wutong God statue, bowing his head in prayer.
The next moment, the Wutong God opened its mouth. "Mortal, offer that baby to me, and I will keep you safe tonight."
"O god, I..."
Just as A Yun fell into despair, he saw a bodhisattva walking beneath the red moon.
The boy who had transferred to their school from the depths of the mountains wore silver ornaments that jingled all over him. The red mole between his brows was vivid as fresh blood. Holding a yellowed ancient scroll, he came step by step, treading through clouds and moonlight.
A Yun heard the boy speak in a voice that was both ethereal and cold:
"Gods of heaven and earth, heed my command."
"I now appoint the Great Emperor of Dongyue, Tianqi, Daxing, Renyuan, and Shengdi, ruler over life and death, whose merciful light rescues the suffering. May he manifest his compassionate form and open the gate through which all living things are born and transformed!"
The next moment, a light unlike anything ever seen pierced the darkness and illuminated the mountains.
The all-powerful Wutong God in A Yun's eyes wailed and died, becoming the first god to perish since the supernatural resurgence.
And the prologue to a new world.
"He is my Blood Bodhisattva, my living Buddha, my only god, an obsession that will never fade."
Reader's guide:
1. Pairing: aloof, proud beauty bottom x dark-hearted underworld emperor top whose family has been stolen (characterization may change before the story starts)
2. Leans toward folk horror and strange tales, with local specialties from western Hunan.
3. The protagonist's public identity early on is a Miaojiang Gu master. The story will also include scenes abroad.
Theme: We must be our own saviors.
