Nine Provinces

Biodata

Geography

• Wuzhou is the undisputed central province and the most prosperous region of the Nine Provinces. Its area is comparable to two Qingzhous, its population exceeds thirty billion, and it contains twenty-seven prefectures. 137 147
• Liuchong Mountain in Wuzhou is the site of the Martial Emperor's Lost Palace. 120 137
• The continent is considered a remote small world when viewed from the wider starry sky; on Yuanhe Divine Palace's star map, it appears as a faint point of light. 183 214
• The region containing the Nine Provinces falls under the Time God Kingdom, a divine kingdom within the domain of the North Cang Divine Emperor. 213 214
• Its waters—including rivers, lakes, and seas—responded to Lin Yi during the battle against the Black Tortoise Blood Soul, lending him their momentum. This was described as a response from the world rather than complete control over it. 206 207
• The Nine Provinces Alliance maintains a Perimeter Alert Formation at key points in the surrounding starry sky. The formation is designed to record and report approaching unfamiliar power rather than stop powerful invaders; it can provide advance warning of ordinary outsiders but may fail to detect a deliberately concealed Grotto-Heaven Realm cultivator. 249 250
• The perimeter system detected a gray-robed envoy of the Three Mountains Main Family repeatedly moving through the surrounding starry sky without directly entering the Nine Provinces. 258

History

Martial Heritage

• The Martial Emperor's legacy shaped much of the Nine Provinces' martial civilization:
  • He left behind Bronze Automata used for martial training. 6
  • Alchemy, artifact crafting, and numerous other practices are described as having been founded or preserved through his legacies. 6
  • The Willpower Stone Pillar, used to measure and temper willpower, was also left by the Martial Emperor. 91 108
• The Tianshan Three Treasures are Martial Emperor legacies maintained by Tianshan Pavilion:
  • The Red Dragon Mother Pool is a superior cultivation treasure far exceeding ordinary Red Dragon Pools. 69
  • The Myriad Laws Stone Wall can produce a perfectly suited opponent to assist martial artists in improving their Power Exertion Realm. 69
  • The third treasure enhances Spiritual Soul power and is coveted even by peak Nine Provinces powers. 69
• The Martial Emperor's Lost Palace is regarded as the foremost treasure land and ultimate opportunity in the Nine Provinces. Its spirit, Tianwu, oversees assessments and inheritances left by the Martial Emperor. 120 144
• The Martial Emperor was formerly an Outer Disciple of the Yuanhe Divine Palace, although he never fully cultivated a Divine Ability. 185
• Xiantian Grandmasters are recorded on the Heaven Ranking and Earth Ranking, maintained by the Myriad Phenomena Tower. 78

Major Powers

Nine Provinces Alliance

The alliance was established after the Three Mountains Family crisis, with the stated purpose of preventing the continent's forces from remaining fragmented in the face of future starry-sky threats. 213

• Tianshan Sect — Formerly the authority under which the continent was unified; remains a central alliance member. 192 213
• Myriad Phenomena Tower — A peak power with branches across the Nine Provinces; historically neutral and unrivaled in intelligence gathering. 104 213
• Zuowang Daoist Sect — Alliance member. 213
• Great Zen Vajra Temple — Alliance member. 213
• Wanlong Chamber of Commerce — Alliance member and major commercial power. 108 213
• Shanhai Sect — Alliance member. 213
• One-Character Sword Pavilion — Alliance member. 213

Alliance Policy

• Member factions retain their own inheritances and mountain gates. 213
• Resources, intelligence, talent cultivation, and starry-sky defense are centrally coordinated. 213
• Ancestor Yan Hui was appointed to oversee the alliance during Lin Yi's absence. 213
• The alliance operates the Perimeter Alert Formation to monitor unknown approaches, record their movements, and immediately relay warnings to both the alliance and Lin Yi. 249 258

External Threats

• Before its recognition, the Nine Provinces lacked formal legitimacy and protection in the wider starry sky, making it a potential target for families, sects, merchant guilds, and world hunters. 213
• San Shanchong's force and the Three Mountains Family's White River Branch treated the Nine Provinces as a world they could conquer or exploit. 194 213
• Yuan Yi identified recognition through the Time God Kingdom's system as the lasting solution: a legitimate world of life would be protected from arbitrary invasion. 213
• The Primordial Unity Tower in Primal Unity Divine City was identified as Lin Yi's fastest route to gaining the influence needed to advance the Nine Provinces' legal status. 213 214
• Formal registration establishes the Nine Provinces' lawful ownership and prevents outsiders from credibly treating it as ownerless territory, but it does not provide absolute safety against powers willing to disregard the wider order. 250
• The Three Mountains Main Family suspects that Lin Yi or the Nine Provinces possesses an extraordinary inheritance, potentially including a Divine Ability, due to his abnormal achievements before becoming Yuan Star's disciple. 248
• The Three Mountains Main Family initially proposed setting aside the White River Branch's grievances and offering resources, Spirit Stones, divine weapons, or even the branch itself in exchange for a single opportunity to comprehend Lin Yi's inheritance. Lin Yi rejected the proposal and demanded that the family cease approaching him and the Nine Provinces. 258 259 263