The Sundered Firmament

You begin mortal. Everything after that you take.

A cultivation mod built inspired by four xianxia novels — I Shall Seal the Heavens, Martial God Asura, Reverend Insanity and Ancient Godly Monarch — where the ground itself decides what you can become.

Qi is in the world, unevenly. Thin plains give you almost nothing. Spirit veins and cave heavens give you a great deal. Where you open your aperture sets a foundation you cannot change, so the first thing you ever do is go looking for better ground.

Fourteen realms, each harder than the last, with deviation waiting if you push. 342 techniques, 43 scriptures, 94 astral stars, 12 physiques, 11 bloodlines.

70 desolate beasts, from Blood River Pythons to the Azure Dragon of the East, each on its own model with its own skin. They spawn by the qi around them — thin ground breeds almost nothing, a vein inside a cave heaven can hold a realm-14 beast. Every one carries its strength on its name, so you know whether to approach or run.

Sects that live without you. They grow halls, claim ground, take stances, fight each other and expand toward you whether you are watching or not. Six architectural styles, laid out on a proper central axis — paifang gate, courtyard, main hall, scripture pavilion, alchemy hall with its chimney, bell and drum towers, a training ground. Two of them were ancient before your world began and sit on floating islands.

Join one and it pays you. A stipend each month by rank, far more for deeds, spent from a catalogue your rank unlocks. Reach a realm and you are promoted automatically, which raises the stipend and opens the shelf.

Auctions every nine days. An auctioneer presents one lot, names its provenance, and you bid spirit stones against a voice from the private booths that does not run out of money quickly.

Rogue cultivators have their own lives. They sit where the qi is good, gather essence, break through, and eventually found sects of their own that the world seed never planned. Talk to one and it tells you exactly how far along it is.

Getting started

/cultivation guide — it reads where you are and tells you the next step. That is the only command you need to remembe