In a world not unlike our own, the rapid progress of martial arts had empowered a small group of rebels with supernatural abilities and fostered an unprecedented uprising.
The long lived Emperor Taizong's vast army had been routed by the bandit Huang Chao and his gang of commoners. The emperor himself was forced to fend for his life and the fate of his empire in single combat. For the very first time it was personal prowess, not governance and strategy, that dictated the tide of history.
Although the emperor had won the battle and forced the rebels into hiding, all semblance of order had been lost and the country splintered, as what little remained of the central government could not reestablish full control of their territory. The countless sects that made up the martial arts society rose up to the occasion to fill the gaps left by the ailing empire, be it to protect or to exploit the common people.
Almost two hundred years later, what was once the martial arts underworld had become the forefront of society. What were once sects were now kingdoms, while armies had turned into lone, prodigious swords, upon the edges of which teetered the fates of countless thousands.
As law became whim, as technology stagnated, as society regressed, as chaos ruled the land...
...only a single question ran through the minds of the warlords responsible for it all.
(Cover art by zemfruit)