Xianle

**Xianle** (仙乐, *Xiānlè*) was a prosperous kingdom in the Central Plains with vast territory and abundant resources.

The nation was said to have four treasures: many beautiful women, a thriving culture of art and literature, many treasures of gold and jewels and their odd but popular crown prince, Xie Lian.

## Description

Xianle was located in the Central Plains. Most of the population and the busiest places were all in the eastern territory which was about three times the size of the western territory. The East of the kingdom was close to the sea and had surrounding lakes, while the West was scorchingly hot and dry.

### Locations

* **Taicang Mountain:** Taicang Mountain is a vast mountain range that primarily housed Xianle's cultivation centre, the Royal Holy Pavilion. It also had peaks dedicated to the worship of Xie Lian and Jun Wu.
* **Royal Capital:** The capital was located in the East of Xianle kingdom.
* **Palace of Xianle:** The royal palace was the most distinguished place in Xianle and incorperated all that the people loved. It had a large courtyard, crimson hallways and much was gilded or built out of jade with many masterpiece paintings hung around. Soft music also echoed through the palace.
* **Pagoda of Celestial Being:** The Celestial Pagoda was the largest building in the capital and sat at the heart of the city. It had centuries of history and was a symbol of Xie Lian's palace. It ultimately collapsed during the civil war.
* **Yong'an:** Yong'an was a large provincial city located in the West of Xianle.
* **Lan-Er Bay:** A bay located in Yong'an that housed a village.
* **Beizi Hill:** A small, densely wooded mountain located near the royal capital.
* **Buyou Forest:** This forest housed the quarantine camp for the people affected by the Human Face Disease.

## Culture

*"Regarding Xianle culture: one, they loved gold; two, they loved precious stones; three, they loved beauties; four, they loved music and five, they loved art."*

### Wealth and Poverty

Xianle's prosperity was one of the most renown traits of the kingdom. The royalty revelled in precious objects, luxurious architecture, innumerous treasures and exquisite jewels. Collectors were abundant and even noble children played with colourful gems like they were toys. A popular game among nobility was building palaces out of golden foils.

Yet despite Xianle's abundant wealth, poverty was not far. The impoverished slums in the royal capital were only a street away from the luxurious palace. Many poor children also lived in the capital, usually running together in a group.

The poor were often treated badly and were born with disadvantages in the nation. They did not have the same educational opportunities as the higher class and were often looked down upon once they did gain the chance to train and work alongside the upper rank.

Xianle's provincial city Yong'an had always been poor as well, suffering greatly when the drought began. They had no water, thus the crops wouldn't grow and everyone starved because there was no income.

The citizens of the royal capital were protective of their wealthy and indulgent life style. An example of this would be when refugees of Yong'an had built temporary shelter on an uninhabited field. The citizens of the capital saw that field as a place of leisure for them, being disgusted and complaining endlessly.

Since Yong'an people had always been poor and were born on barren land, many citizens of the royal capital believed themselves to be of purer Xianle blood.

### Festivities

Due to their prosperity, Xianle had a thriving culture of the arts and had no restraint in celebrating festivals in exceedingly big fashion. The prime example of this is Shangyuan Festival and the Heavenly Ceremonial Procession.

The parade would consist of glorious warriors, dancing women, a golden carriage which played music throughout the whole capital and a grand golden stage pulled by sixteen white horses. Upon the stage stood the God-Pleasing Warrior and the ghost, fighting a long-lasting battle that served as the main attraction for viewers.

These events were immensily enjoyed by the public, the crowd filling the streets, walls and roofs. Additionally, the Heavenly Ceremonial Procession was incredibly important to the nation as the number of parade rounds around the city symbolized how many years Xianle would be peaceful and happy.

Another tradition of theirs was the Gilded Banquet. It was a banquet celebrated by the nobility to commomerate certain events, such as birthdays of nobles. It was called "gilded" because all the cutlery, utensils, cups and instruments would be of the absolute highest quality.

### Beliefs

The god worshipped most prominently among the people of Xianle was their own crown prince, Xie Lian. He was incredibly popular and the nation built a total of eight thousand temples to worship him. There were temples dedicated to the Martial Heavenly Emperor, Jun Wu, as well.

The people of the royal capital adored Xie Lian, so much so that they promised to follow him until the end and desperately tried to push through a crowd to touch just a sleeve. They trusted him to save them from the Human Face Disease and protect them from the civil war, to the point that they became incredibly devastated when Xie Lian couldn't accomplish that.

Their sorrow and desperation eventually turned into hatred and rage. Thus, when the kingdom fell completely into chaos, they set fire to his temples.

## History

### Drought

At one point a water shortage started in the kingdom of Xianle. The whole land was affected, but the western territory was suffering worse since it was already a barren land and the eastern territory was closer to the sea.

There was a plan to irrigate the waters from the eastern side to the west by using the river, but to accomplish that the river had to be bored. This conscription would've taken a lot of time and would've resulted in a massive use of resources, so the idea was scrapped as the situation was already too critical.

The king also sent financial aid, however, almost nothing was left as each government checkpoint that the money went through would take a percentage for themselves until nothing was left. Ultimately, Mei Nianqing advised the king to stop praying for the Yong'an city and so the king left Yong'an to their fate.

### War with Yong'an

*Main article: Xianle Civil War*
The suffering of the Yong'an people escalated, leading to countless deaths and riots. The kingdom of Xianle was then ultimately destroyed in the following Xianle Civil War and due to the Human Face Disease.

Following the war, Yong'an soldiers were ordered to capture the remaining Xianle royals who had escaped.

### After the Kingdom's Fall

Many remaining citizens of Xianle never forgot their roots even though Yong'an was now ruling the land. They, as well as their descendants, lived on as the people of Xianle which caused a lot of conflict between them and the citizens of Yong'an.

For the first few years Yong'an massacred any rioting Xianle people, so alliances that called for the assassination of Yong'an nobility began to form underground. They even succeeded a few times, resulting in hatred between both sides.

Only with the rule of Lang Qianqiu's parents did things change. The king treated the Xianle descendants with kindness and sincerity since he had the wish to unite the people. The hatred was too deep however, and the sides would immediately blame each other should anything happen. Yong'an nobility even called for the annihilation of the Xianle people, but it was never executed.

## Citizens

### Royal Family

 King of Xianle | King
 Queen of Xianle | Queen
 Qi Rong | Royal Relative
 An Le | Royal Descendant

### Others

 Feng Xin | Imperial Bodyguard
 Mu Qing | Royal Servant
 Hua Cheng | Soldier
 Zhu An | Royal Holy Pavilion Disciple
 Jian Lan

## Trivia

* Xianle can also be read as Xianyue, which means "Heavenly Music".
* Since ancient times, the people of Xianle believed that a person's spiritual aura resided upon the five facial features.
* The people of Xianle believed that the pinnacle of cultivation was the harmony of yin and yang as it reflected the gods being unbound by gender restrictions.
* Other nations were envious of Xianle's abundant territory and wealth.

## References

2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Novel, Book 2, Chapter 71: God of Heaven Interferes in Mortal Matters
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Novel, Book 2, Chapter 62: Lost Red Pearl; Inadvertent Eyes Red with Desire II
4. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 87: Gilded Figure; Exertion to Block Celestial Ruin
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Novel, Book 2, Chapter 88: Vow to Never Forget, Never!
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Novel, Book 2, Chapter 69: Fishing for Offerings; Boor Meets Crown Prince
7. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 70: Fallen Golden Statue; Boor Buries Suffering Son
8. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 79: Upon Beizi Hill; Crown Prince Falls into the Devil's Nest
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Novel, Book 2, Chapter 84: From the Earth of Buyou Forest; Human Face Disease Breaks Out
10. ↑ Novel, Book 1, Chapter 32: In the Great Martial Hall; Crown Prince Meets Crown Prince
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Novel, Book 2, Chapter 61: Lost Red Pearl; Inadvertent Eyes Red with Desire
12. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 63: Lost Red Pearl; Inadvertent Eyes Red with Desire III
13. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 68: To Ascend is Human; to Fall is Also Human III
14. ↑ Novel, Book 1, Chapter 2: The Scrap-Immortal; Third Time Entering the Heavenly Capital
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Novel, Book 2, Chapter 75: Closing the Capital Gates; Survival of Yong'an Barred
16. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 58: On the Martial Deity Avenue; An Awe-Inspiring First Impression
17. ↑ Novel, Book 1, Chapter 45: The Black-Hearted Guoshi; Gilded Banquet Awash in Blood
18. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 68: To Ascend is Human; to Fall is Also Human III
19. ↑ Novel, Book 1, Chapter 56: In Search of the Past; Retracing Steps to Mount Taicang
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Novel, Book 2, Chapter 78: Quell Yong'an; Crown Prince Enters the Battlefield
21. ↑ Novel, Book 4, Chapter 181: Lantern Night; Penny for a Wandering Soul
22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 Novel, Book 1, Chapter 49: Adroit Dice for the Safety of Only One
23. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 59: On the Martial Deity Avenue; An Awe-Inspiring First Impression II
24. ↑ Novel, Book 2, Chapter 83: Land of the Tender; Body of Gold Hard-Pressed Against Desire IV