The Rise of Phoenixes - Chapter 31

Welcome! If you want to jump in without any spoilers, feel free. Otherwise, here's a story primer, with a list of more specifics on what to expect from my work further below.Our story follows a fallen knight haunted by his past, in a world afflicted by war and supernatural wounds. Alken is the Headsman of Seydis, an executioner tasked by the divine powers of his homeland to hunt dark sorcerers, warlords, and traitors of all varieties, lest they drag the world into calamity.Once a paladin, this role ill suits him. Forced to cross lines that shake his beliefs, tempted by dark forces, and seen as an ill omen wherever he wanders, his path is often a bloody one. The longer he spends in the shadows of his world, the more he comes to realize just how many have been disenfranchised by the existent order. During his lonely battles through a land haunted by the restless dead and ancient magics, his journey becomes increasingly strange and personal.Enter a realm where the dead stir in every shadow and brooding demigods wage a millennia long war for a ruined heaven, where blessed knights wield gilded flames and sorcerers battle with weapons forged of their own souls. Enter a world of faustian alchemists, of saintly demons, and of time-weary elves.From Oathbreaker you can expect— A setting heavily inspired by Forgotten Realms, Planescape, Fromsoft games, and authors such as Michael Moorcock and Kentauro Miura. — A first person POV from an older protagonist who already knows a lot about his world’s history and cultures, who shares this information with the reader as it becomes relevant.— A mix of action adventure and quieter moments where the focus is on character development. Lore is shared piecemeal, usually only as it relates to a particular arc or character beat.— A heavy focus on mystery, both with the setting and the protagonist. The main character’s backstory isn’t shared up front, and a lot of the narrative involves learning about him a bit at a time, either from his own narration or other characters interacting with him.— A semi-soft magic system where many mages manifest unique powers tied to their own soul, or gain unique powers through eldritch pacts.— Romantic elements. These don’t crop up much until later in the story.— A variety of supernatural beings, such as elves, vampires, gargoyles, chimera, and trolls. Many are familiar, some are not, and most of the familiar ones have my own twists put on them.—Nobledark fantasy. This means that the world is often themed around tragedy and horror, but it’s not dedicated to being gritty. There are elements of high fantasy intermixed with the scarier stuff.—Episodic arcs. Each story arc usually has a specific locale and antagonist or set of antagonists, but certain overarching plots tie them together.— A long running narrative. I don’t have a specific projection of how long or how many arcs or books, but you should expect this to be equivalent to a long running serialized work.This is my first web serial! I hope everyone enjoys it. For trigger warnings, readers should beware that there are some heavy topics in here. When I think something might upset certain readers, I’ll put a warning in the author notes above a chapter. If I miss or overlook anything, feel free to let me know in the comments! I am currently publishing the same story on my wordpress, which is linked below and in my profile. I release three chapters a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. Thanks for reading!(I originally had a link to a wordpress, but I'm in the process of overhauling that space. It's not a priority since my readership is all here, but just in case anyone noticed and was wondering)

In his past life, Ethan Steele was an ordinary man living in a modern world—working a dead-end job, struggling through the monotony of daily life, and haunted by regrets of missed opportunities.At the age of 23, his life came to a sudden, unexpected end in a car accident. As his consciousness faded into darkness, he was sure it was over.But fate had other plans. In the divine realm, the God of Fate watched over the balance of life and death.Ethan's untimely death was a mistake, an anomaly that diverged from the preordained path of his destiny. It wasn't yet his time to die, and so, the god decided to give him another chance.“You were meant for greater things, Ethan Steele,” the god's voice boomed. “To correct this error, I will reincarnate you in another world—one filled with magic, swords, kingdoms, and adventure. You shall be reborn, but you will not remember your past until the appointed time. There is, however, a... complication.”By divine error, the god accidentally bestowed Ethan with the Harem God System without having any idea about it.This system is a powerful, reality-bending system that would allow him to charm and seduce influential women to build his harem, growing in strength and power with each conquest.“Your memories of Earth will return on your seventh birthday. I hope you enjoy your life here in this world”And with that, Ethan's soul was transported to a new world.

so, reincarnation huh?“a lot of good... a lot of bad... balanced karma.” “good news you get one boon to bring with you to the next life. unfortunately for you though, you don't get to choose. totally random. ready?”join Apollo in his new life where through sheer luck (good or bad?) is raised by an all hungry, all dominant and all loving hivemind who will burn the galaxy just to see him smile.

“Can’t I properly read stallion novels anymore!”

Shen Yuan transmigrated into someone who’d tormented the young male lead almost to death, the scum villain Shen Qingqiu.

It must be known, the original Shen Qingqiu ended up being carved alive by his disciple, Luo Binghe, into a human stick, a human stick!

Ten thousand “fuck your moms” rampaged through Shen Qingqiu’s heart:

“It’s not that I don’t want to cling to the male lead’s thighs, but who made him so fucking black. The type who seeks thousand-fold retribution!”

Why have all the female lead’s scenes been forcibly given to him.

Why, as a scum villain, does he need to constantly sacrifice himself, blocking knife and gun for the protagonist!

Shen Qingqiu: “…I think I can still save him, one more time.”

A gong who starts as a loyal dog of a small white flower, and ends up as a blackened, mental case of a maiden X a refined scum villain of a tsukkomi-holic shou

This is actually a dogblood story about a master-disciple pair never doing honest work, fighting monsters, and engaging in romance.

It’s also a story where the villain personally witnesses how the male lead transforms from a little sheep of a white lotus into a dark tyrant O(∩_∩)O~

- Description from novelupdates