East Continent

From above the clouds, East Continent was a land of layer upon layer of mountain ranges, as though Heaven and Earth were held aloft by these mountains.

In the central region of East Continent lay a small stretch of plains, crisscrossed by rivers. At a glance, it was clearly fertile land. Every few dozen kilometers stood a town, most built against the few mountains rising from the plains, with fortresses guarding their surroundings. It was obvious that war raged here year-round.

According to Dao Palace archival records, the plains should have belonged to the River Country Tribal Alliance.

They were a loose alliance formed by dozens of settled tribal towns. They believed in the First Sect and stood united against outsiders, yet tribal wars frequently erupted within the alliance. This fostered a bellicose culture and gave them abundant experience in warfare. It was precisely this style that allowed them to occupy the vast, fertile lands at the center.

The western mountain ranges belonged to the Merchant Alliance. Though the land was one mountain range piled upon another, its resources were extraordinarily abundant. The people here believed in the First Day and held extreme notions of righteousness. Yet such beliefs were only meant for the common folk at the bottom; the rulers used them to control their subjects or launch wars abroad.

Thus, though they appeared to hate evil as if it were an enemy, their wars had never ceased, and most were internal conflicts. Their cities were spread across the mountains, while the Merchant Alliance's upper ranks held only weak control over them. The only places truly belonging to the Merchant Alliance were the ports along the eastern western coastline.

Along the eastern coast of the River Country Tribal Alliance was a small, peaceful alliance called the Eastern Alliance. They