This is not a real chapter, but instead an in-depth author's note that provides information on what to expect about the story. Feel free to skip to the next chapter if you just want to read the story.
CW / TW: Casual and common profanity, mentions of nudity, possible fade-to-black implied scenes, oftentimes detailed descriptions of violence and gore, non-glorified but still present outdated / medieval views on subjects such as sl*very. (Words censored here for CW concerns, but will not be in story.)
Alina Blake is a Nephilim and the reincarnated soul of the strongest cultivator to have ever lived. She just doesn't know it yet. Born in a small Beastkin village on the Ring, she's a social outcast amongst most of the villagers. At first, it's due to being different, a presumed Demon adopted by a poor family. Then, after she catches the attention of a Wandering Cultivator, it's due to her training under him. Most mortals hate or fear cultivators, after all.
But she wants more from the world than to live her whole life in a small backwater where she isn't welcomed by the majority of her peers, and she'll push through the pain of training and become a powerful cultivator, even if it takes hundreds or thousands of years.
Until her System unlocks and she finds out, it definitely will not take anywhere near that long.
Additional Tags: [High Fantasy] [Cultivation] [LitRPG] [Villain] [Demon Lord]
This story is going to be a power-fantasy, the main character will be much stronger than is average in this world for her level. However it will not be an instant-god-status type, but rather a gradual climb to that point. This is my second story on Royal Road, and the first story on The Ring, a Niven-like Ringworld set in a fantasy universe around a dying star being devoured by a black hole. I am not super knowledgeable about cultivation stories, but after reading several of them this year and doing a bunch of research, this one is me dipping my feet in the water. The setting is mildly influenced by D&D and other stories I've read here on RR and elsewhere, though I try to be different enough from all sources of inspiration that it becomes my own twist. This world has a decent amount of worldbuilding behind it, more on that can be found in the discord in the future.
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No set update schedule at the moment, but updates will not be infrequent. Chapters usually around 1k words but with a maximum of 3k words.
What to Expect:
- Character with an "angelic" and "demonic" side. Complex personal relationships will develop, and character will be merciful to some and unafraid of committing murderous bloodbaths against others.
- Minimal litRPG, where the System will be more of a "progress tracker" for the reader and less of a power-granting authority and without a million numbers to number crunch.
- "Overpowered" character, but not strongest in the world too early. She will be able to punch upwards and be stronger than her peers early on, but it will still take a long time before she's on equal footing with the strongest-in-verse.
- Interesting world setting, with the world set in a Niven-like Ringworld rather than a spherical planet.
- Cultivation Xianxia / Xuanhuan mix of Chinese, Japanese, Hindu/Indian, and Western fantasy. Expect lots of Asian influences in cultivation related stuff, and lots of western influences in the world building (such as multiple non-human races).
- Cultivation influences differing from the norm in addition to, but not replacing, what you're probably expecting the cultivation system to be, such as Demon Slayer-like "Breathing Techniques" and ATLA-like elemental bending.
- Bisexual female protagonist who is actually written like a real human being and not a male fantasy of what a woman should be. Romance will exist but not be a main focus, and will be treated realistically with a complex view point.
- "Nobledark" setting where suffering is common and the average mortal is powerless in the face of a hostile world full of monsters, both human and beast alike. The protagonist will not be a hero seeking to reform the world and be a good influence, the protagonist will be largely neutral or selfish in their views and actions.
- Soft Sci-Fi elements that will be recognizable to the reader (Such as the world being a Ringworld) but likely never fully explained in the story or understood by the characters.