West of Jadebrook Mountain lies Mercyheart Town, once called Stonemason Town, where the people made their livi…
West of Jadebrook Mountain lies Mercyheart Town, once called Stonemason Town, where the people made their living by quarrying stone.
During the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, the emperor established the Fahua Temple on the town's outskirts, enshrining thousands of Buddhist scriptures. A master sculptor surnamed Yang arrived from afar with his disciples, settling in the town. For years, they journeyed between the quarry and the monastery, studying the sutras, sculpting countless stone figures. Arhats, Guanyin, and bodhisattvas flowed from their chisels, each statue imbued with both exquisite detail and divine spirit. Their work was praised throughout the land, and so Stonemason Town came to be known as Mercyheart Town.
For generations thereafter, the townsfolk made their livelihood through Buddhist sculpture. But in the last dynasty, with Buddhism banned, the craft fell into decline. Now, upon entering Mercyheart Town, one sees only toppled statues buried in wild grass, moss creeping over faces once radiant with sacred grace. The master sculptors are long gone—scattered, forgotten. The quarries are choked with weeds; the carving halls echo with silence.
Only a few dozen villagers remain. Day and night, they move through the town with strange purpose, planting grotesque flowers in every corner. They nourish them with their very flesh. Their presence, their rituals—unnatural. The sight alone chills the blood.