Cai Ren Xiang can create a hell of a lightshow
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Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)
- Thread starter yrsillar
- Start date
- Original Users' Choice!
Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
DarkLight140
Credit to Team
- Location
- Lost in my thoughts
Omake was fun. I will say, though, that
my reaction on getting to this line was "Ling Qi, opening an entire gate in order to move instead of ghosting through or around it? That's not like her at all! But we're out of other Lings...."
TimEd
Meteor maker
Obviously in everything related to fire, its Gu Xuilan. She can provide the fire, and her spirit can make it work.
- Location
- United States of America
Yeah, but that's what Ling Qi did in the actual story, so that's what I used. It would have been much more entertaining if she had simply warped past the gate though. Just imagine the poor servant's reaction!
Yeah, there's firecrackers mortals use to ward off spirit beasts.
Theunderbolt
"Prepare for trouble..."
- Location
- USoA
...Should have picked the moon moth. Then we'd have a Mothra to go up against Ghidora.
That uh never really works out for Mothra.
Ancient china developed gunpowder pretty early in its pursuit of what would basically be a cultivator drug.
Its known as Huo Yao, the Fire Medicine and was in fact used as medicine for a time before people out it to the task of exploding spears, exploding arrows, exploding boats, exploding walls, exploding pits and the many many ways to set people on fire listed in the Huo Long Jing.
Turn 5: Arc 2-4
"You sure this is what you want to do?" Sixiang asked, the breeze kicked up by her speech sending Ling Qi's hair fluttering. "You decided yesterday that sticking together was better."
"It is," Ling Qi agreed, looking down from the cliffside at the shrinking backs of her subordinates as they descended into the valley. "Which is why they're staying in a loose formation while they do their tasks. They'll be able to support each other."
"That's not what I mean and you know it," Sixiang replied dryly.
"I know," she sighed, looking toward the south. "And I'll link up with them in the afternoon, but I need to check out the south. I just have a bad feeling."
"Well, I guess I can't tell you to ignore that. Adventure ho then, eh?" Sixiang said.
"You guys are so weird. It's not like you're going by yourself," Hanyi huffed in annoyance.
"Hanyi is right! There's nothing to worry about!" Zhengui agreed.
Well Hanyi wasn't wrong, Ling Qi thought wryly, turning to the south as her feet left the ground. They weren't far from the area she wanted to search, so she would not have to fly far. Their hunt for the source of the poison in the earth had already taken them to the southeastern quadrant of their assigned area. The edge of the zone was easy to see, little mountains, hills and vales gave way to ramparts of sheer stone that rose up to pierce the clouds, marked only by occasional straggling patches of vegetation.
As she soared over the land, Ling Qi had to wonder at that. Here, just south of the jutting peaks where the Sect made its helm, the wall was green and vibrant, these stretches of verdant valleys and little mountains stretching across the landscape, interrupted by chains of much higher peaks, but go only a short distance further and the Wall rose in truth. The peaks that rose south were massive things, White Cloud Mountain pierced the clouds at its peak, but the mountains of the Wall blocked out almost the whole of the southern sky.
At least those mountains were not moving, Ling Qi thought wryly. They would all be in trouble then. Even still, however there was something ominous and humbling about them, like being in the presence of a higher cultivator, it brought to mind troubling thoughts about how very small she was. Now was not the time for philosophical quandaries however, and so Ling Qi put such thoughts from her mind and instead focused on her destination, and flew ever higher. She had learned in her lessons that the Cloud Tribes preferred to make their camps near to the cloud line. Camps above the clouds were more common for raiders, who did not have to worry about the survival of younger and less hardy individuals.
With that in mind, Ling Qi flew through the clouds, the dense moisture failing to so much as wet the tips of her hair or the hems of her gown. Soon, she soared above the slowly churning cloudscape, and began her search of the bare masses of stone that jutted into the sky through it. Without a spirit like her mentor, no snow could fall here, and yet many were still dotted with thick sheets of ice.
The high mountains were a unique place, very little lived or grew here, but what did was always strange, and a little alien. She searched through fields of pale lichen as thick as grasses below, and soared over strange plants with pale fronds that rustled and seemed to follow her with their upturned leaves. At the very highest peaks, where the sky began to grow dark, and the faintest twinkle of starlight peaked through, even Ling Qi did not linger long. There was no air fit for breath there, and even the world's qi grew thin, making her skin prickle uncomfortably.
However, Ling Qi did not pay too much attention to the region's natural features, and instead focused on what signs she could find of barbarian activity. The distortions in the natural qi left behind by their passage, old bones and the scorch marks on the ground from old campsites, and other signs. She did not meet with much success.
There were marks of their passage of course, even now she knew the tribes did not recognize imperial borders, viewing the whole of the mountains as their domain. However, what she found were only old hunting camps, months old at best, certainly nothing that she could really follow up on, nor anything that would legitimize the niggling ill feeling in her stomach. As the day wore on, and the sun reached its zenith and began to descend without her having found anything, Ling Qi began to think she had just let her nerves from last night's discovery and her Senior Brother's little tale get the better of her.
Perception Bonus Activated
As she began her descent toward the clouds she caught sight of something out of the corner of her eye. It was far away, little more than a blurry dot, perhaps a bird or a spirit, but it drew her attention all the same, and when she turned her head and focused on it, she saw that it was neither of those things.
Letting qi flood her eyes, Ling Qi focused, and saw a stout horse with deep russet red fur and a trailing mane that glimmered wetly in the afternoon sun. It ran in the sky, hooves churning the clouds beneath it as it ran. More importantly, there was a man on its back. She recognized his dress, from both stories and the simulation from Elder Jiao's trial the year before. He wore layers of fur and leather, rendering his figure bulky and indistinct, but she recognized the peaked fur hat and bone mask which covered his face perfectly well. She had only a moment to take in the sight before he dipped back into the clouds.
Ling Qi paused only a moment on the ground before the trailing hem of her mantle fluttered and she shot off in the direction that he had gone. Heeding Sixiang's murmured words of caution in her thoughts, she blurred and faded as she activated technique after technique to cloak both her body and spirit from detection. By the time she slipped into the clouds, she was little more than a dark blur flitting between thicker concentrations of cloud. Even so, she flew as fast as she could, wanting to find the barbarians trail before it faded away into the ambient water and wind qi which made up the clouds.
Soon, she could feel the trail he had left in the air, it was like the scent of a storm, approaching on the breeze. She grew more cautious now that she had his trail, and even caught a glimpse of the barbarian now and then, far ahead. He was in the third realm, though she couldn't identify clearly what level he was… if barbarians even cultivated their realms in the same way. His qi did not feel more or less potent than hers though. Luckily, the weather had been slowly worsening all morning, clouds bunching up to grow thick and dark. Here and there thunder rumbled and lightning flashed in their bellies. While it did make hiding her own qi easier however, it also made her target harder to follow
...And he was moving south still. They were swiftly heading toward the edge of the region she had been assigned too. However, after spending all morning searching for signs of barbarians, she was loathe to give up pursuit… What if he was a scout himself, heading back to camp to give the all clear?
Liao Zhu had surely seen as well, so perhaps she could assume that he would message the Sect if he truly thought there was peril… but if there was danger and she ignored it, that could reflect poorly on her. On the other hand…
"It's just one guy," Sixiang voiced her thoughts. "Could just be a hunter."
...And she could just be leaving imperial lands and putting herself in danger for nothing. She focused her attention on the qi trail she was following, his spirit didn't taste of urgency or bloodlust, but there was a certain eagerness, like an electric tingle on the wind. Through the churning cloud, she caught a glimpse of his flapping cloak in the wind. Ling Qi bit her lip, considering whether to follow him further.
As the man she had been following galloped up out of the clouds toward the mountain that loomed like a godly rampart ahead, the air changed. Arriving all too suddenly, like a freak summer shower that unleashed a torrential downpour from a formerly clear sky, two other presences leaping down from the mountain to meet him. Two more figures in bulky furs, riding red furred horses galloped down from the cliffs and across the sky to meet the man in mid air, and the power of their spirits was not less than his, though she still could not clearly sense their level of cultivation, she estimated that these two were significantly stronger, somewhere between threshold and formation, perhaps?
Even as she thought that, she one of them stiffen in his saddle, straightening up as he turned his gaze to the clouds below, where Ling Qi hid. Her eyes widening in alarm, Ling Qi immediately sank deeper into the clouds, darting between arcing threads of lightning to hide in the dark belly of the storm. Despite that, she saw the man raise a hand to the others and ride past them, galloping down on his horse toward her hiding place.
Gritting her teeth, Ling Qi focused on tightening her hold on her qi and dispersing her presence through the shadows that suffused the stormcloud, she focused on the lessons she had learned in mastering the Sable Crescent Step, and the techniques that she had applied to better dodge attacks...
Stealth Bonus activated
Stealth Skill Advanced
Stealth C->Vanishing B
...And when the man rode through the storm, sparks of electricity dancing around the eye holes of his mask, he found only shadows lightning and a rumbling storm. Ling Qi watched him search, her thoughts feeling as unfocused and detached as the qi that had been her body as the man rode through where she had been. It was not a comfortable feeling, it was like holding her breath as a mortal, and every second that passed sent a feeling like the burning of air starved lungs through her spirit, and her focus threatened to crumble as her thoughts tried to float away, like leaves on the wind.
Yet the moment passed, and the man rode back to his companions, departing for the mountain from whence they came. Ling Qi collapsed back into a single shape, her shoulders hunched as she wheezed in a breath of moist storm charged air. Despite that, her eyes followed the barbarians toward the mountain. They were definitely out of her bounds, but…
[] She wanted to follow them anyway, she had come too far.
[] One close call was enough, she would just report the activity.
So I know I've seen some complaints that your scene bonuses to certain skills are useless/don't show up well, so I'm experimenting with just outright stating when they activate. Does it work? Or would you prefer that I not do that?
"It is," Ling Qi agreed, looking down from the cliffside at the shrinking backs of her subordinates as they descended into the valley. "Which is why they're staying in a loose formation while they do their tasks. They'll be able to support each other."
"That's not what I mean and you know it," Sixiang replied dryly.
"I know," she sighed, looking toward the south. "And I'll link up with them in the afternoon, but I need to check out the south. I just have a bad feeling."
"Well, I guess I can't tell you to ignore that. Adventure ho then, eh?" Sixiang said.
"You guys are so weird. It's not like you're going by yourself," Hanyi huffed in annoyance.
"Hanyi is right! There's nothing to worry about!" Zhengui agreed.
Well Hanyi wasn't wrong, Ling Qi thought wryly, turning to the south as her feet left the ground. They weren't far from the area she wanted to search, so she would not have to fly far. Their hunt for the source of the poison in the earth had already taken them to the southeastern quadrant of their assigned area. The edge of the zone was easy to see, little mountains, hills and vales gave way to ramparts of sheer stone that rose up to pierce the clouds, marked only by occasional straggling patches of vegetation.
As she soared over the land, Ling Qi had to wonder at that. Here, just south of the jutting peaks where the Sect made its helm, the wall was green and vibrant, these stretches of verdant valleys and little mountains stretching across the landscape, interrupted by chains of much higher peaks, but go only a short distance further and the Wall rose in truth. The peaks that rose south were massive things, White Cloud Mountain pierced the clouds at its peak, but the mountains of the Wall blocked out almost the whole of the southern sky.
At least those mountains were not moving, Ling Qi thought wryly. They would all be in trouble then. Even still, however there was something ominous and humbling about them, like being in the presence of a higher cultivator, it brought to mind troubling thoughts about how very small she was. Now was not the time for philosophical quandaries however, and so Ling Qi put such thoughts from her mind and instead focused on her destination, and flew ever higher. She had learned in her lessons that the Cloud Tribes preferred to make their camps near to the cloud line. Camps above the clouds were more common for raiders, who did not have to worry about the survival of younger and less hardy individuals.
With that in mind, Ling Qi flew through the clouds, the dense moisture failing to so much as wet the tips of her hair or the hems of her gown. Soon, she soared above the slowly churning cloudscape, and began her search of the bare masses of stone that jutted into the sky through it. Without a spirit like her mentor, no snow could fall here, and yet many were still dotted with thick sheets of ice.
The high mountains were a unique place, very little lived or grew here, but what did was always strange, and a little alien. She searched through fields of pale lichen as thick as grasses below, and soared over strange plants with pale fronds that rustled and seemed to follow her with their upturned leaves. At the very highest peaks, where the sky began to grow dark, and the faintest twinkle of starlight peaked through, even Ling Qi did not linger long. There was no air fit for breath there, and even the world's qi grew thin, making her skin prickle uncomfortably.
However, Ling Qi did not pay too much attention to the region's natural features, and instead focused on what signs she could find of barbarian activity. The distortions in the natural qi left behind by their passage, old bones and the scorch marks on the ground from old campsites, and other signs. She did not meet with much success.
There were marks of their passage of course, even now she knew the tribes did not recognize imperial borders, viewing the whole of the mountains as their domain. However, what she found were only old hunting camps, months old at best, certainly nothing that she could really follow up on, nor anything that would legitimize the niggling ill feeling in her stomach. As the day wore on, and the sun reached its zenith and began to descend without her having found anything, Ling Qi began to think she had just let her nerves from last night's discovery and her Senior Brother's little tale get the better of her.
Perception Bonus Activated
As she began her descent toward the clouds she caught sight of something out of the corner of her eye. It was far away, little more than a blurry dot, perhaps a bird or a spirit, but it drew her attention all the same, and when she turned her head and focused on it, she saw that it was neither of those things.
Letting qi flood her eyes, Ling Qi focused, and saw a stout horse with deep russet red fur and a trailing mane that glimmered wetly in the afternoon sun. It ran in the sky, hooves churning the clouds beneath it as it ran. More importantly, there was a man on its back. She recognized his dress, from both stories and the simulation from Elder Jiao's trial the year before. He wore layers of fur and leather, rendering his figure bulky and indistinct, but she recognized the peaked fur hat and bone mask which covered his face perfectly well. She had only a moment to take in the sight before he dipped back into the clouds.
Ling Qi paused only a moment on the ground before the trailing hem of her mantle fluttered and she shot off in the direction that he had gone. Heeding Sixiang's murmured words of caution in her thoughts, she blurred and faded as she activated technique after technique to cloak both her body and spirit from detection. By the time she slipped into the clouds, she was little more than a dark blur flitting between thicker concentrations of cloud. Even so, she flew as fast as she could, wanting to find the barbarians trail before it faded away into the ambient water and wind qi which made up the clouds.
Soon, she could feel the trail he had left in the air, it was like the scent of a storm, approaching on the breeze. She grew more cautious now that she had his trail, and even caught a glimpse of the barbarian now and then, far ahead. He was in the third realm, though she couldn't identify clearly what level he was… if barbarians even cultivated their realms in the same way. His qi did not feel more or less potent than hers though. Luckily, the weather had been slowly worsening all morning, clouds bunching up to grow thick and dark. Here and there thunder rumbled and lightning flashed in their bellies. While it did make hiding her own qi easier however, it also made her target harder to follow
...And he was moving south still. They were swiftly heading toward the edge of the region she had been assigned too. However, after spending all morning searching for signs of barbarians, she was loathe to give up pursuit… What if he was a scout himself, heading back to camp to give the all clear?
Liao Zhu had surely seen as well, so perhaps she could assume that he would message the Sect if he truly thought there was peril… but if there was danger and she ignored it, that could reflect poorly on her. On the other hand…
"It's just one guy," Sixiang voiced her thoughts. "Could just be a hunter."
...And she could just be leaving imperial lands and putting herself in danger for nothing. She focused her attention on the qi trail she was following, his spirit didn't taste of urgency or bloodlust, but there was a certain eagerness, like an electric tingle on the wind. Through the churning cloud, she caught a glimpse of his flapping cloak in the wind. Ling Qi bit her lip, considering whether to follow him further.
As the man she had been following galloped up out of the clouds toward the mountain that loomed like a godly rampart ahead, the air changed. Arriving all too suddenly, like a freak summer shower that unleashed a torrential downpour from a formerly clear sky, two other presences leaping down from the mountain to meet him. Two more figures in bulky furs, riding red furred horses galloped down from the cliffs and across the sky to meet the man in mid air, and the power of their spirits was not less than his, though she still could not clearly sense their level of cultivation, she estimated that these two were significantly stronger, somewhere between threshold and formation, perhaps?
Even as she thought that, she one of them stiffen in his saddle, straightening up as he turned his gaze to the clouds below, where Ling Qi hid. Her eyes widening in alarm, Ling Qi immediately sank deeper into the clouds, darting between arcing threads of lightning to hide in the dark belly of the storm. Despite that, she saw the man raise a hand to the others and ride past them, galloping down on his horse toward her hiding place.
Gritting her teeth, Ling Qi focused on tightening her hold on her qi and dispersing her presence through the shadows that suffused the stormcloud, she focused on the lessons she had learned in mastering the Sable Crescent Step, and the techniques that she had applied to better dodge attacks...
Stealth Bonus activated
Stealth Skill Advanced
Stealth C->Vanishing B
...And when the man rode through the storm, sparks of electricity dancing around the eye holes of his mask, he found only shadows lightning and a rumbling storm. Ling Qi watched him search, her thoughts feeling as unfocused and detached as the qi that had been her body as the man rode through where she had been. It was not a comfortable feeling, it was like holding her breath as a mortal, and every second that passed sent a feeling like the burning of air starved lungs through her spirit, and her focus threatened to crumble as her thoughts tried to float away, like leaves on the wind.
Yet the moment passed, and the man rode back to his companions, departing for the mountain from whence they came. Ling Qi collapsed back into a single shape, her shoulders hunched as she wheezed in a breath of moist storm charged air. Despite that, her eyes followed the barbarians toward the mountain. They were definitely out of her bounds, but…
[] She wanted to follow them anyway, she had come too far.
[] One close call was enough, she would just report the activity.
So I know I've seen some complaints that your scene bonuses to certain skills are useless/don't show up well, so I'm experimenting with just outright stating when they activate. Does it work? Or would you prefer that I not do that?
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- Location
- Who Knows
Oh that was really cool. I'm leaning towards just reporting the activity, but I could be persuaded otherwise lol
I like seeing when these bonuses activate like this actually, but some other people might find it interruptive? Hmm.
I like seeing when these bonuses activate like this actually, but some other people might find it interruptive? Hmm.
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
Thanks for the great update! Right now I am thinking of just reporting the activity. No need to chase them down.
Interesting stealth skill. Seems like she shattered herself into shadows and then reformed. Dont know if it can only be used in situations where LQ needs to hide though.
- Location
- Staring into the void
[] One close call was enough, she would just report the activity.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Yay, Advanced Stealth!
[] One close call was enough, she would just report the activity.
This feels right, don't double down and go for bonus points when you haven't finished your assignment, and don't play things this risky.
[] One close call was enough, she would just report the activity.
This feels right, don't double down and go for bonus points when you haven't finished your assignment, and don't play things this risky.
DeAnno
Sometimes words have two meanings
I found seeing the notification helpful. Lets us know when something was hard, if we could repeat it, etc.
- Location
- UK
- Pronouns
- They/Them
I like the idea of seeing them activate, I don't really pay attention to mechanics that doesn't clearly show up in story. Bonus seems pretty cool though, fitting for an art that's served us so well through our time as a cultivator.
Agreed on reporting in too. Doing otherwise feels like playing hero when we're already outnumbered and moving out of our assigned area.
Agreed on reporting in too. Doing otherwise feels like playing hero when we're already outnumbered and moving out of our assigned area.
- Location
- California
Yeah, stating when the scene bonuses activate doesn't really take away from anything. If anything, it increases the impact of the moment.
[X] One close call was enough, she would just report the activity.
This is when we actually have to heed the advice of not seeking glory beyond what we can handle. There are far too many risks if we choose to pursue and few potential gains, especially since Liao Zhu should be aware of the situation.
[X] One close call was enough, she would just report the activity.
This is when we actually have to heed the advice of not seeking glory beyond what we can handle. There are far too many risks if we choose to pursue and few potential gains, especially since Liao Zhu should be aware of the situation.
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Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
and yeah, even if it's just those three, three mid greens is out of our weight class, and we know they can detect us if we're not popping our cooldowns.
Back off, a confirmed group of mid green outsiders combined with the Color out of Space is cause for considerable concern.
Back off, a confirmed group of mid green outsiders combined with the Color out of Space is cause for considerable concern.
- Location
- Leeds
If you're worried about it interupting the flow of the text or intruding on people who aren't complaining maybe put it in invisitext.
Unless you have a reason not to train us to always check for invisitext.
There is no excuse here for defying clear orders and following.
Ling Qi should not act like she's the hero of the story and the center of events. She's part of an army. That means playing her role and reporting information that can be followed up or not later. Not hot dogging it trying to be the Big Damn Hero by uncovering some nefarious barbarian plot.
Ling Qi should not act like she's the hero of the story and the center of events. She's part of an army. That means playing her role and reporting information that can be followed up or not later. Not hot dogging it trying to be the Big Damn Hero by uncovering some nefarious barbarian plot.
It worked nicely.
Black Noise
Curious
- Location
- About 1AU from Sol
Phew, close calls and a call for both A-rank Perception and mid-A~low S rank stealth* for the success seen here; these do appear to be a multi-person scout team.
* C.Perception: B20 + bonus -> A10, Stealth; B12 (before skill-derive) -> B27 (with Vanishing) -> A17 with bonus, maybe S with stacking stealth effects from SCS/sixiang.
Vote-wise I'll advice caution, we can only use 1 more 30-point stealth bonus this turn and while SCS and our base skills are strong, we're in trouble if we run into someone with even better perception than the guy that noticed something.
* C.Perception: B20 + bonus -> A10, Stealth; B12 (before skill-derive) -> B27 (with Vanishing) -> A17 with bonus, maybe S with stacking stealth effects from SCS/sixiang.
Vote-wise I'll advice caution, we can only use 1 more 30-point stealth bonus this turn and while SCS and our base skills are strong, we're in trouble if we run into someone with even better perception than the guy that noticed something.
I think it works and provides us useful information to gauge difficulty (e.g if we're relying on limited-use bonuses then the challenge is significant), though for the rewrite these can be replaced with a line emphasizing the extraordinary effort aspect if not dropped outright.
- Location
- United States
I like it because it gives us feedback on which skills are helpful and which to focus Ling Qi's training on during cultivation. If you want, you could just put the info in spoiler boxes so you only need to read it if you're interested.