From Prison Guard to Celestial Lord

A thousand iron chains bury names and bloodlines; who sits upon the high dais to judge old debts and grudges? One day, a spark sets the provinces alight. Old shackles are smelted into swords; even prisoners may become princes. Where twenty-eight star banners flicker, the scars of blades still mark the soldiers' cloaks. City lights shine upon boats returning home. An old place remains at the table, as wind and rain sweep across the river tower. In this world of cultivation, some seek immortality, some fight for dominion, and others simply endure the night, hoping for a hot bowl of rice tomorrow. Their aims may differ, but all might end up in the same prison. That prison lies in the Broken Heaven Mountains. It is called Broken Heaven Prison. The people who once commanded all realms are chained atop the mountain. Below it live the common folk who deliver food to the prison, haul coal, and sew clothes. The road up the mountain has been rebuilt time and again, and countless prison carts have come and gone, yet the iron plaque above the gate has never changed. The guards say that everyone locked up here deserves their punishment. Few ever ask who wrote the charges. Later, twenty-eight star banners would rise from this place. Some would cross mountain passes, while others would remain by old fortifications. By the time the names on those banners had spread across all realms, not everyone from those days would still be alive. Those who once drank together might find themselves arrayed on opposite riverbanks; those who once drew blades against each other might be willing to guard one another's way home. But that comes later. At the beginning of the story, those banners had yet to be woven. The only new name added to Broken Heaven Prison's register was that of a newly appointed jailer. His surname was Qin, his given name Xiao. On the day he took up his post, the first thing he received was a small knife for gouging out eyes.