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Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)

Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
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[X] Her oldest active art, which had seen her through so many trials Forgotten Vale Melody
 
[X] Her oldest active art, which had seen her through so many trials Forgotten Vale Melody
 
[X] Her oldest active art, which had seen her through so many trials Forgotten Vale Melody

Seems like this is going to be another uphill vote, but let's not despair.
 
Humbaba said:
Since several of you don't seem to be getting the point I am trying to make I will try and be more clear. The issue isn't that Ling Qi is performing Integration. It's the narrative process of getting her there.

Ling Qi clearly didn't do her research on what integration actually is. Hence asking Renxiang. She is then clearly disturbed by the revelation of what is involved and in particular the effects this can have on personality. However, rather than take some time to think about this and it's consequences., or do some research she immediately decides to press on in what is clearly established as a decision she has previously come to on what art to integrate despite new information coming to light on the possible effects this could have on her personality.

Essentially Ling Qi goes from clearly disturbed about this new medical procedure she is to perform on herself and what it did to Renxiang to entirely accepting and ready to go within 2 lines.

This could easily be solved by having a couple of lines about Ling Qi having done some more research before hand and merely asking Renxiang for a more personal account. Or by having a short period of "break" (a few hours or days) where Ling Qi narratively takes some time away to do research on what the old "trial and error" was, and to think about which art to pick in light of the new information about personality changes.

@yrsillar Pinging to try and clarify what my issues were.
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I bet that the Cloud tribe puts the art into their spirit beast and likely vis versa.
 
[X] Her oldest active art, which had seen her through so many trials Forgotten Vale Melody
 
[X] Her oldest active art, which had seen her through so many trials Forgotten Vale Melody

yrsillar said:
Cai Renxiang let out a dissatisfied hum, but did not admonish her. Ling Qi took it as a tentatively good sign. Since that day at Zhengui's hill, her liege had… not relaxed per say, but had been a little more permissive in private. "At the most base mechanical level, it is an exercise in spiritual surgery, transferring an art and the meridians it occupies to new housing. It is permanent, and so it is wise to think hard on what is being sacrificed."

Ling Qi looked worriedly at the blade. That was a troubling thought. "And what is the point of that?"

"It trains the mind for the stages which come after," Cai Renxiang replied calmly, letting her eyes drift shut again. "A cultivator is not merely their body, and a cultivator's body is not merely flesh. Even if you can speak the words, you do not understand them without experience. These exercises replace much trial and error which our ancestors needed perform to ascend the realms."

Ling Qi understood. "You called that explanation base and mechanical. Is there something more to it?" She asked, and she felt Sixiang chuckle.

Cai Renxiang was silent for a time, but eventually she answered. "It is not possible to excise and transfer a piece of ones spirit to a new bodily vessel without affecting the self. You know that climbing the realms of cultivation requires sacrifices, things cast aside. What you place in your domain weapon is something which will remain with you always."
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Okay so we actually knew about this. Its in our lecture:
yrsillar said:
"I see the question in your minds, those of you with lesser backgrounds. For the vast majority of cultivators, only the lower dantian is relevant, and so common parlance, it is simply referred to in the singular. You however, are among those for whom the others may be relevant. The middle dantian," he began tapping a spindly finger against his chest. "Is opened in the fourth realm, and acts as a forge to refine your qi into a purer form, known as shen, in doing you will sever your mortal vulnerabilities one by one, and their vital functions will be incorporated into the middle dantian as energy constructs referred to as pearls."
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The 'trial and error' method is because you need to perform spiritual surgery. You're literally severing the function of your respiratory system, circulatory system, immune system, digestive system, and nervous system from your meatbag.

The Domain Weapon is a massive boon in advancement in this case, because it lets you practice.
Severing a Domain Insight Art in this way is vastly safer than severing a vital system. If you fail you need to rebuild your domain to repair the damage, but if you fail in severing your core bodily functions you'd just die right there. Being able to perform this act on an Art gives you the first step of pearl formation.
Its the same reason you aren't recommended to start with a Heart meridian, once you accomplish it, you can do it reliably, but since you're manipulating an intangible, if you fuck up theres no fixing it and theres no way to know you aren't doing it wrong until you do it.

Having a tangible external focus serves as a crutch, the Domain Weapon is an extension of your self. This is less of a leap than you'd think, humans are already naturally inclined to integrate tools into their self image(its one reason why road rage is so bad, people consider their car to be as much a part of them as their leg while driving), but this goes from "tool operated by my physical body" to "tool operated by my spiritual body".
Its like learning to gain conscious control of your body heat with a sensor toy, it gives you tangible feedback to focus on while learning.
Without it, you could say...accidentally transplant your liver function into the air instead of your spiritual self. This would be very unwise.
 
fictionfan said:
I bet that the Cloud tribe puts the art into their spirit beast and likely vis versa.
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The cloud tribe likely don't even need this step since the very process of bonding effectively makes man and beast 2 parts of the same whole; investing significantly more than a few meridians and a single art in the other.
 
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