Mask of Humanity

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A centuries old cyberpunk assassin is reborn into a world of Cultivation.

Heaven's Great Game begins anew. It extends grasping arms through the Material, clutching at hundreds of planets and peoples, none of whom have any idea of what they are about to be plunged into.

One of these arms reaches for a planet known as Earth.

In the streets of New London, year 2493, Nicolai is a centuries-old killer whose brain was implanted into the body of Zero-Twelve, a militarized killbot. He spends his days mostly numb and apathetic, a cog in a machine.

But when Heaven arrives, and the Great Game with it, Nicolai is reborn as a human, his old body recreated—along with the madness and blood rage that characterised his past. To orient himself in this new world he is only given one direction: find the Lizard.

Watch Nicolai try to survive when thrown into Nightmare, a world of Cultivation, Undead, Demons, Spirit Beasts, Sects and Clans, and much, much more. He finds himself in a rambling castle constructed long ago by the mysterious People. Now it is a decaying ruin, filled with undead who lack a purpose. But there is a war raging in this castle, one that started long ago and which is now entering its final stages, with no care for the human arrivals. In the midst of this he seeks to remain in control of himself, struggling against the dark urges which are ever eager to erupt from him.

For Nicolai, in spite of all difficulties, this new world is a dream come true. After a century trapped within Zero-Twelve, he is free. Now, he can resume his endless goal.

To become the greatest fighter alive.

What you can expect

EARLY:

The MC starts off as a somewhat insane psychopath. His character arc revolves around gaining control of himself and working out who he is, and who he wants to be. I would say the MC has quite a bit of personality, an odd way of viewing the world, and is very focused on getting what he wants. It takes a while for him to start having significant interactions with other chars but once he does, this personality leads to some........ interesting character interactions.

It is solo progression at first but later on the MC groups up (for better or worse). In the longer run, there will be a split, periods of solo, periods of group, over the series as a whole. It is unlikely the MC will ever develop a dedicated Forever Friend Group, but there will be a kind of bromance.

There are humorous/darkly humorous moments.

The MC is not OP at the start; it is a weak-to-strong and there is a lot of struggling early on. But, as he gains in power, his options grow and he can start improving his strength much faster. There is a focus on making use of everything available, thinking things through, and the MC does not rely on others.

To be entirely honest, the story pacing can be a little off at times; most especially the first 20 chapters are quite slow - this is probably the main feedback/critique I have received from readers. This is because I didn't really understand pacing when I started writing. However, as it goes on, the pacing begins to speed up. I would say from chapters 20-50ish it gradually speeds up, and then from 50+ it speeds up fairly significantly. But there are still bits where it slows down then speeds back up; pacing is still something I'm trying to improve at.

There is LitRPG stuff from relatively early. Cultivation magic starts to show up more and more later on.

Finally, this is intended to be a long story. It will likely go for thousands of chapters/10-20 books. So, if you are looking for a quick story where everything neatly resolves in 120,000 words, this is probably not for you.

LATER:

- Cyberpunk vs Xianxia

- Cultivation system inspired by Reverend Insanity/Deckbuilders/Devil May Cry.

- Deep world building, smart characters, schemes, grounded and satisfying progression.

- This story is going to last for quite a long time (10+ books), but it has an ending planned and will not be endless-power-up-without-purpose.

Schedule and Info:Releasing three chapters a week, on the Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule.They release at 12:03pm EST (noon).So far I have written 330,000 words over 150 chapters, so I will not be going anywhere.

Read 10 chapters ahead on the Patreon. Come chat on the Discord.For those who like the cover art, it was done by Yam4817.

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  • Mask of Humanity
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https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/80031
https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/80031/mask-of-humanity

Releases found: 73

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Series Releases:

Latest release - ch. 73.0
View Series Vol Chap Extra Group/Host
Mask of Humanity 73 73: Disagreement RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 72 72: Home at Last RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 71 71: Nicolai "the Hero" RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 70 70: "Friends" RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 69 69: My Seed! RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 68 68: Murderer! RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 67 67: Hello, Fellow Humans RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 66 66: Cool Like a Cucumber RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 65 65: Rescue Mission RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 64 64: Toys RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 63 63: The Invisible Man RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 62 62: Treasure Shrine RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 61 61: Thief RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 60 60: Demon RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 59 59: Snake versus Devil RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 58 58: Monster RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 57 57: Heart of Darkness RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 56 56: War Under Earth RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 55 55: Harvest RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 54 54: Progress! RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 53 53: Making a Friend RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 52 52: The Chained Giant RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 51 51: "Prisoner" RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 50 50: Forgotten in the Prison RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 49 49: Unlikely Ally RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 48 48: A Worthy Adversary RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 47 47: Soul Trap RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 46 46: Radio RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 45 45: Voices in the Dark RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 44 44: The Beast RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 43 43: Tales of Old RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 42 42: The Sniper RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 41 41: Dead, But Ambitious RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 40 40: Devil Chair RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 39 39: The Library RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 38 38: Pegasi, Ring of Flight RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 37 37: Bloody Barbed Arrows RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 36 36: Random Encounter RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 35 35: The Fish Catches The Fisherman RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 34 34: A Bad Man Encounters Bad People RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 33 33: Get Your Hooks In RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 32 32: Soul Sense RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 31 31: Wind Caller RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 30 30: The Witnesses RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 29 29: Killing People RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 28 28: A Dark Soul RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 27 27: Faceless Archers RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 26 26: The Bridge Itself RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 25 25: Endless Retreat RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 24 24: Decrepit Patrol RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 23 23: The Gauntlet RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 22 22: Seven Winds of Torment RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 21 21: First Day RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 20 20: Getting Ahead RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 19 19: Dead to Rest RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 18 18: MetroidVania RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 17 17: Taste of Flesh RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 16 16: Greed RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 15 15: Vicious RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 14 14: An Ancient Evil Reborn RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 13 13: Trial of Combat RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 12 12: Trial of Resistance RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 11 11: Burning Alive RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 10 10: Red and Raw RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 9 09: Snake in Human Skin RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 8 08: Trial of Courage RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 7 07: Seed of an Undefined Soul RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 6 06: Human RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 5 05: Purgatory RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 4 04: Welcome to Reality RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 3 03: Fox in the Henhouse RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 2 02: Poseidon Tower RoyalRoadL
Mask of Humanity 1 01: Free Market With Teeth RoyalRoadL