Sublime Ancestors

It happened, that at this time, a conflict had occurred in the court of the Dragon Patriarch. His second son had offered him great offense, though the particulars of the matter remain unknown. The young dragon was struck down for his temerity and his mother, Tianjing had raged at the punishment, injuring several others among the court. The Patriarch was merciful however and, still bearing some affection for Tianjing, merely exiled her for eight and hundred years. Thus was it that Tianjing, whose white scales shone like the finest jade, whose claws were as spears and whose breath was the storm, descended upon the base earth from the palaces of the dragons among the highest clouds.

Sublime Ancestors are ancient and powerful spirit beasts which a specific clan can trace their lineage back to. The clans that are able to do so are some of the most ancient clans within the Celestial Empire and are some of the most powerful. There are a limited number of these Sublime Ancestors, and it is possible for them to die or leave their clan.

However, for clans with sublime ancestors, they provide an incredible source of political power and are a huge deterrent against pushing the clan to the brink of annihilation. Sublime ancestors, for the most part, rest without being disturbed by the world outside, but should a clan believe they have nothing left to lose, a sublime ancestor can be awoken and directed toward their enemy.

The last time that occurred was when the Purifying Sun awoke to fight the Twilight King and the entire Eastern Province of the Empire was turned from fertile fields to a barren, toxic, death infested wasteland. This places them into the position as the ultimate weapons of the setting which are currently accessible to cultivators who have not ascended into a Great Spirit.

The current known sublime ancestors are:

The Celestial Dragon: "the mighty companion of the Sage Emperor himself, who challenged the proud scions of pre imperial tribes and emerged victorious in every battle. The Celestial Dragon is the most visible of the Ancestors. On a clear day, she can occasionally be seen in his eternal circling above the Imperial Capital, far, far above the clouds." The Celestial Dragon is unique, as she is not tied to any single clan, but only to the Imperial Throne.

She's the adoptive mother of the Sage Emperor.

"It happened, that at this time, a conflict had occurred in the court of the Dragon Patriarch. His second son had offered him great offense, though the particulars of the matter remain unknown. The young dragon was struck down for his temerity and his mother, Tianjing had raged at the punishment, injuring several others among the court. The Patriarch was merciful however and, still bearing some affection for Tianjing, merely exiled her for eight and hundred years. Thus was it that Tianjing, whose white scales shone like the finest jade, whose claws were as spears and whose breath was the storm, descended upon the base earth from the palaces of the dragons among the highest clouds."

The Grandmother Serpent: the sublime ancestor of the Bai clan, it is most probable that the White Serpent of Lake Hei is the oldest of the current sublime ancestors. Sleeping beneath the lake, she is the mother of eight half-spirit daughters who are the ancestors of the Bai clan. After falling asleep when the youngest of the eight ascended, the Grandmother Serpent has only woken up once to ensure that the Sage Emperor was worthy. The bay formed in the conflict still exists today.

The Reveler: the sublime ancestor of the Zheng, has a claim to contest being the oldest of the sublime ancestors, though the Bai claim is usually held as more credible. The Reveler's form is that of a black furred monkey, twice as tall as a man and reminiscent of Sun Wukong, and is thus the physically smallest of the sublime ancestors. It is, however, the most active sublime ancestor, capable of projecting fragments of it's might across the Ebon River Province to do as it wills.

The Living Isle: the sublime ancestor of the Xuan. A massive Serpent Tortoise, it is the youngest of the currently living sublime ancestors, as it did not hold that distinction at the time of the Sage Emperor. However, while it is young it is the second of the sublime ancestors to engage in true lethal combat with the enemies of the Empire.

The Herald of Endings: the sublime ancestor of the Mu Clan, current holders of the Imperial Throne. It takes the form of a great white owl, whose wings stretch across the sky and whose shadow exposes the sins of the guilty. Its perch is upon Mount Tai.

The Horned Lord: the sublime ancestor of a clan in the Emerald Seas. Disgusted by the cravenness of it's descendants, the Horned Lord vanished into the depths of the Emerald Seas.

The Purifying Sun: the sublime ancestor of a clan in the Golden Fields. It expended itself in utterly destroying the greatest threat the Empire has ever seen.

The Grandfather of Tides: the sublime ancestor of a clan in the Alabaster Sea. It fell into such a deep torpor that its body dissolved into the sea.