Have you ever met someone who just seemed... different? Not in an obvious way. More like they had this hidden depth, a connection to something you couldn't quite put your finger on. Maybe it was the way they could bring the most stubborn seeds to life, or how they always knew a storm was coming before the weatherman did. Little things. Easy to miss if you weren't paying attention.
These people might be Gardeners.
Where are they from?
The Peach Blossom Spring, they called it. It’s a hidden village, tucked away from the world we know. Though it looks like a physical location, in fact, it is a living, breathing, and traveling thing. Magic and nature are all tangled together like roots in its soil. There is no set location for the Peach Blossom Spring, the village floats through the mountains and ocean, following the best nutrients for its soil. This was home to the Gardeners - people of incredible power, each carrying a seed of endless potential. The seeds are the essence of their very being and the source of their magic. They use time as the nutrient for the seed, which is why 1 day in Peach Blossom Spring equals 10 years in the outside world.
Life in the Peach Blossom Spring was peaceful. The Gardeners lived in harmony with their world, learning and growing. Every day was like the perfect spring morning, where the very air hummed with life and possibility. On the rare occasion that they got random lucky visitors from the outside, they welcomed them with fresh food and water. Because they looked and spoke just like an outsider, those lucky visitors often thought that they just stumbled upon a random village deep in the mountains. They treat the outside world with the utmost respect and expect the same in return.
The earliest record of Peach Blossom Spring was created in 421 CE by a Chinese Poet called Tao Yuanming. Some visitors and writers, later on, called it Shangri-la or Utopia. Many thought it was fictional, but it is a real world, just on a slightly different time and scale.
But paradise never lasts.
Something went wrong. Chaos broke through, like ink spilled on a pristine canvas. The village was destroyed. And the Gardeners were scattered and thrown into our world like dandelion seeds on the wind.
They forgot everything: who they were, where they came from, and the power they held. All of it was locked away deep inside their mind, like a dream you can't quite remember when you wake up.
So now they're here among us. Living ordinary lives, or so they think. They go to school, find jobs, and build families with regular people. They could be the librarian who handed you the new poetry book, or the programmer who built this very site.
But those seeds they carry are starting to stir. And the Gardeners are starting to remember, bit by bit. A Mountain Druid might feel weirdly at home in the Rockies. An Ocean Siren might find themselves humming sea shanties without knowing the words. The more time they use to nurture their growth, the more the seeds within grow, and the more about their heritage they remember. Little memories connect, building up to the complete puzzle.
And as the Gardeners slowly reclaim their heritage, they uncover a truth both wondrous and terrifying: the Peach Blossom Spring and the outside world are now inseparable. The chaos that corrupted their home now seeps into our world, only the fully awakened Gardeners can hope to find the cure.
So the race against time begins. Will the Gardeners regain their powers before the forces of entropy consume all?
But the most intriguing question of all is: could you be one of them?
Have you ever felt an unexplainable pull towards nature, a sense of belonging among ancient trees or beside crashing waves? Have you experienced moments of inexplicable intuition, or found yourself capable of nurturing life in ways that seem almost magical?
These could be more than just quirks or coincidences. You might be carrying within you the legacy of the Peach Blossom Spring. Let’s unveil your true identity, and awaken the natural power within.
The Peach Blossom Spring is calling. In whispers and echoes, in the rustle of leaves and the crash of waves. Its children are scattered, but not lost. Not forever. Will you answer?
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Cover image: "The Peach Blossom Spring" by Qiu Ying (1494–1552)
