The Path Unending (A Cultivation Quest)

Omake for the omake god:

Yi Tai found his face meeting the cavern floor again. It was the third time already that day, and he could not say he found the crater floor any more comfortable than the last two times. Still, he did not rest there, but staggered to his feet. He did not offer his thanks to his Lord for the instruction. The Zhuan were demanding beyond measure, but they did not demand obeisance, merely obedience. Besides, Lord Zhuan had already moved on, without acknowledging his vassal. So Yi Tai made his way to his resting spot near the edge of the crater, and watched Lord Zhuan demolish another pair of disciples. Yi Tai studied all of their movements. He knew Lord Zhuan's style more intimately than anyone, and had observed the other combatants before. But to believe there was nothing new to be learned through observation was always a mistake, and so he watched, in the hopes of learning.

"Is he aware?" The voice was feminine, but not soft in the least. He turned and saw a disciple of remarkable beauty, with short hair and a powdered face. He recognized Mei Daiyu, of course, though they had never exchanged words.

Raising an eyebrow, he spoke, "My Lord sees many things, but no one sees everything under Heaven. What do you mean?"

Her gaze drifted towards Zhuan as his elbow sent one of his sparring partners reeling. "This is humiliation for them. Is that his purpose? To intimidate and cow his followers?"

Yi Tai was quiet for a moment. He raised his head to speak, to make a statement about Zhuan Kun's dedication to his training, and the care that he exerted over all of his followers and fellow disciples. It would not have been an untruth. Lord Zhuan had expressed those sentiments to him, about the value of the instruction he provided, and how his own strength would help any who fell under his protection. They were well-spoken words.

After all, Yi Tai had written them for him.

The words died on Yi Tai's lips as Mei Daiyu's eyes pared him like a knife. He met her eyes, and gave a diffident shrug. Her lips thin. "No, he really does not see it. He leads, and others follow if they know what's good for them. Is that right?"

He doesn't say anything, but he doesn't need to. She looks at the scroll he carries. "Is that the ranking list?"

He nods, waiting for her to ask. She doesn't. Instead, she sweeps past him into the training crater. She steps aside as a disciple goes stumbling past her, and exchanges words with Zhuan Kun - he acknowledges her request for a bout.

The bout begins, and Zhuan steps forward with a kick. It's one Yi Tai has seen him use more than a hundred times - simple, overwhelmingly fast and powerful and deadly accurate.

Mei Daiyu evades it by virtue of never having been where the kick was aimed.

Zhuan eyes narrow and turns the kick into a lunge forward, using the transfer of weight to put power behind a punch to her midsection. It lands, but Mei is already turning with the blow, retaliating with a palm strike to Zhuan's chin that he barely blocks, and then she's stepping, no, dancing away from him.

The training crater is quiet now, aside from panting and the yells of the two circling combatants. Aside from Lord Zhuan's bouts against Sun Yijun, they have rarely seen a contest like this. When Mei throws Zhuan to the ground, Yi Tai finds himself holding his breath - the fact that Zhuan recovers almost instantly and sweeps Mei's leg from under her while on the ground is only little recompense.

The battle grinds on This is not the first time Yi Tai has seen this Hummingbird's Step in action - he recognizes the roots that the crafter Kong Zhi had employed in his own bout with lord Zhuan. But he has never seen it executed so well. Zhuan has both speed and power in overwhelming supply, but the painted disciple is so often afield of where Zhuan's strikes are aimed. Still, he observes that for every blow Mei has landed on Zhuan, he has landed two - and his strikes are far more brutal.

The battle ends with yet another feint, followed by a kick to Zhuan's knee. It lands, but he turns with the blow and his own leg hooks Mei's, and he follows through with a hammer blow that drives her to the ground. She looks up, but does not rise, and after a few moments, Zhuan nods, and steps away. "Yi Tai!"

Yi Tai scrambles to his feet. "My Lord."

Zhuan's expression is a mask. "You ranked Mei Daiyu between fifteen and twenty, did you not?"

Yi Tai bowed his head. "That matched what information I had gathered, my lord."

Yi Tai can see something glint there. Irritation, perhaps, but also a hint of interest. "The information was incorrect. It will have to be updated."

Yi Tai did not let his lord's displeasure touch him.. "What is her correct ranking, my lord?"

"Ninth." Zhuan Kun turned and stalked away to a small boulder, resting his muscles briefly before his next bout. Yi Tai relaxed internally, and went to make the appropriate adjustments on the scroll.

One of the other disciples went to help Mei rise, but was waved off as she rose to her feet, with the almost eerie grace of someone whose willpower was overriding their abused muscles. To Yi Tai's surprise, she approached him again. Yi Tai wondered what paints she used on her face, because the fight had barely affected them at all. An affectation, then, but not a sign of being controlled by vanity.

She went to examine the scroll, but he raised a hand. "I am only permitted to share certain information. If you wish to know, Lord Zhuan is ranked fifth."

Mei's gaze drifted from the scroll to Yi Tai. "...very well." She turned to depart, but after taking a step, looked back. "Is he aware?" She paused a moment. "That you are cycling knowledge anam."

"My Lord knows many things." He met her gaze, and did not flinch away. He was confident that there was nothing to be read there.

This time, she broke the eye contact. Yi Tai observed her as she walked away.

He turned back to the new bout in the training crater. He watched, and took in the flow of the fight, every attack, every step and every shift in weight. He took in every bit of information he could.

And he learned.

A/N: A big thanks to the 23 people who have pledged to me on Patreon! If you'd like to join them, you can do so here. If you'd like to check out the Royal Road crosspost, head on over and check it out! Leave a rating while you're there. It really does help me out.
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When you sent your last letter home, you made the decision to send it directly to your Father. It seemed like he would be the proper recipient. Elder Siani mentioned him right before you took your Soldier's Step and your letter home informed your family of said Step. But you weren't entirely certain what the response would be. Another letter from your Mother would not have been unexpected. She tends to handle all correspondence for Father after all, so it would not have been out of the ordinary. Or perhaps a quick note from He Ning, Father's concubine and assistant, telling you not to waste his valuable time. Or one of your Aunts or Uncles would have sent you that same response, or you could have heard from one of your cousins again.

What you were not expecting was for Father to actually write back.

But when you return home to the Spire, there is a folded square of paper waiting for you on your nightstand. It is leaning against a small purse, but you pay no attention to what you presume is your allowance. All of your focus is on the seal holding the paper shut. The shadow of a spider is pressed in blue wax, leaving no doubt in your mind who sealed this letter. One does not simply use Father's seal after all- not unless one wishes to tempt the Lord of the Grave. You cannot help but stop and stare, transfixed by the simple lines of the spider's legs.

You absently empty the purse into your own with numb fingers before reaching out for your Father's letter. Several moments are spent studying the seal in different lights, trying to verify that your eyes are not playing tricks on you. But no matter where you place the paper, the spider doesn't miraculously become something else.

Money Gained: 10 Bronze Talents!

Finally you can delay no longer. You slide a finger beneath the fold in the paper and break the seal with a quick motion. The note unfolds in your hand, allowing you to see the words within. It only takes you seconds to read them; there is only a single line of neatly written text on the page.

Your aunt is on her way.

You read that one sentence over and over with unseeing eyes. The first time you read it, it makes no sense. The second time is no better. The third time though, the words begin to have meaning. And on the fourth....

You turn and sprint from your chambers, barely remembering to fold the note and slide it into your pocket. Any thought you may have had about resting or relaxing is banished from your mind. There's no time for anything as wasteful as sleep or as unnecessary as relaxation. No, you need to work. You need to carve. There is only one person Father could be referring to, only one of your aunts that he would consult about your circumstances, and you will not be showing her an unfinished charm when she arrives.

You blow by the Jai twins as you sprint down the stairs, barely dodging in between them to avoid a collision. You'll stop to apologize later; right now, there's work to be done. You skid to a stop in front of your workbench. The triptych still sits open and unfinished atop the surface. Your hand lashes out and you grab your tooth-chisel, already worn down substantially from your previous work, and dive back into the process of creation.

As you carve, footsteps sound behind you. "Kong Zhi?" you vaguely hear Jai Shouxi say. "Is everything quite alright?"

"Yes," you bite back. "I am doing well." That's all the focus you can spare as you drag the tooth across one of the trees, deepening the line that forms the trunk. The added definition makes the tree stand out even among its fellows- you can't have that. You move to repeat the motion with the rest of the forest.

But the Jai twins haven't left. You can still sense them behind you. A moment later, Jai Fa speaks up. "Perhaps I am misunderstanding the situation, but you seem agitated. Has something changed since we returned home?"

"Agitated? No." The girl sitting on the wagon is not quite right. You smooth out the wood and begin lengthening the hair. "I have merely received a letter from home. My Aunt is on her way to the sect. I will have this finished before she arrives."

You can feel them trading a look. This time, it's Jai Shouxi that interrupts your focus. "I see. When shall she be arriving?"

"I have no idea," you tell him frankly. "It could be in an hour. It could be a week from now. It could be next month. She could already be here and is just waiting for me to drop my guard. My Father's note did not give a timeframe-" You stop short as a thought hits you.

...your Aunt could be in attendance for your challenge.

Your charms need to be absolutely perfect.

You dive back in and continue your carving. Jai Shouxi pays your focus no mind. Instead he strokes his chin. "I do not doubt you, but I am certain there is no need to rush your work. Your Aunt, no matter how powerful she is, won't simple be able to walk-"

You turn and jab the tooth at Jai Shouxi. "Don't," you hiss.

Jai Fa takes a step forward, placing herself in between you and her brother. "Kong Zhi," she begins, her voice taking on the soft quality you associate with her managing Jai Shouxi's clarity. "You should-"

"Don't!" you repeat. "Do not say that Auntie Bi won't do something, or that she cannot do something. She will know. She will take it as a challenge. If you say that there is no way she's already here, I promise you, she will walk through our front door half a second after you have spoken."

Your carving is starting to look respectable. You put the nub of a tooth down and move to your gemstones. As you spread dust on your work, you continue. "Let me tell you a story about Auntie Bi. Once, when I was first learning my craft, she arrived and decided to take a personal hand in my tutelage. One of the first things she did was test to see if I had any potential as a refiner."

"She did this," you continue as you add a trace of opal. "By handing me a brush and a pot and telling me to get started. I had no idea what to do, and I told her so. She took them back right then and told me that that answered her question. I had no future in the refining arts."

You shake your head. "I did not like hearing that, of course. So that night I studied. I found scrolls with basic formations and I taught myself as best I could. The next day, I showed her what I learned. I painted four formations from memory that were perfect. They may as well have been pulled right from the diagrams. And do you know what she did?"

"She told me that I clearly had no talent as a refiner. If I did, I would not need to study books. If I were a natural, I would be able to paint formations on instinct. And then she proceeded to make up a formation right in front of me and test it."

Jai Shouxi's face is pale as he replies, "But… that… did it work?"

"Oh, no. It failed to such a spectacular degree that it nearly burned down the entire compound."

You stop, memories flashing before your eyes. "And she laughed as it burned. She could have stopped the fire at any time. But she chose not to- she did not want to cheat herself of the consequences of failed experimentation. Her only objection came at the end, when Father extinguished the blaze. She nearly challenged him for quote 'destroying the fruits of her labor'."

Jai Shouxi's jaw works soundlessly. Beside him, Jai Fa nods slowly. "I see," she says flatly. "So what you are saying is that your Aunt is an eccentric."

"Exactly."

Your friend considers your words for a long moment. Then she turns to her brother. "We should go. He needs to work."

And then they are gone, vanishing upstairs once more. You barely notice. You're too busy adding the lacquer to your triptych. Only once it dries and hardens do you breathe out a sigh of relief. Not much of one though- you still need to attach it to the rest of the box. Thankfully, your joins were measured well, and the last wall slides neatly into place. Two more coatings of lacquer, some leather straps threaded through the sides, and a small handle of rope on the doors later, and your box stands ready.

Craft (Woodworking) Check: 11d10s7(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target -23 (28-1-8-3-5-3-1-7-10-4-9). Dice Rolled: 6, 2, 7, 2, 10, 5, 3, 5, 3, 9, 3, 1. 3.9, rounded up to 4 successes!
Craft (Woodworking) Check: 11d10s7(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target -27 (28-1-8-3-5-3-1-7-10-4-9-4). Dice Rolled: 3, 5, 4, 4, 10, 6, 9, 5, 7, 1, 7, 7. 5.2, rounded down to 5 successes!
Craft (Woodworking) Check: 11d10s7(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target -32 (28-1-8-3-5-3-1-7-10-4-9-4-5). Dice Rolled: 2, 10, 4, 2, 9, 5, 4, 4, 5, 6, 2, 7. 3.9, rounded up to 4 successes!
Craft (Woodworking) Check: 11d10s7(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target -36 (28-1-8-3-5-3-1-7-10-4-9-4-5-4). Dice Rolled: 4, 5, 4, 4, 6, 8, 4, 6, 2, 3, 4. 1.3, rounded down to 1 success!

Build Target Doubled! Infusion Build Target becomes 42!

But you have only finished the construction. The infusion still awaits, and you will not let your charm sit empty of anam for long. You shoulder your incomplete charm, take several steps to find your balance with this new weight on your back, and-

No, no! You cannot infuse it just yet. You need to fix the Rainbow Eyes first!

You place the box back down and leave, making a beeline towards the Market. Half an hour later and you're back, your pockets jangling with the odds and ends you need to recharge perhaps the most valuable of your charms. You make quick work of the repairs, practice making your fingers light, and snap the repaired work back on your wrist. Only then do you re-shoulder the box and run for the side tunnels.

As you run, your mind races. You could go to the Second of Eternity, but it is by far weaker than the Lost Armory, especially after you gave the Armory the meteor hammer. But on the other hand, you just used the Armory to infuse the Vitriolic Retort. Not to mention that Jai Fa has been using it to contemplate her own steel techniques. It likely has no more anam than the Second does. But still-

The sound of dripping water catches your attention. You blink and leave your thoughts to find that you're surrounded by the stalactites and steadily beating water of the Second of Eternity.

Well. That certainly solves that problem. You drop down in your usual cycling spot and open your box. The ivory demon's mask stares back at you, ruby eyes blank and waiting for your care. You smile, put a hand on both sides of the box, and fall into your breathing pattern.

Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 38(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)). Dice Rolled: 10, 4, 1 (Rerolled due to Rainbow Eyes), 5, 2, 7, 4, 8. 3.9, rounded up to 4 Successes!
Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 34(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)-4). Dice Rolled: 9, 9, 10 ,3, 5, 2, 10, 1 (Rerolled due to Rainbow Eyes), 10, 8. 7.8, rounded up to 8 successes!
Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 26(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)-4-8). Dice Rolled: 6, 9, 4, 3, 8, 3. 3.9, rounded up to 4 Successes!
Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 22(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)-4-8-4). Dice Rolled: 5, 8, 3, 7, 6, 9. 5.2, rounded down to 5 Successes!
Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 17(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)-4-8-4-5). Dice Rolled: 3, 2, 5, 7, 2, 4. 1.3, rounded down to 1 Success!
Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 16(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)-4-8-4-5-1). Dice Rolled: 10, 5, 6, 1 (Rerolled due to Rainbow Eyes), 5, 2, 9, 7. 5.2, rounded down to 5 Successes!

7 charges remain on the Rainbow Eyes!
A Second of Eternity: 25/25 -> 0/25
Cloud's Breath: 7/7 -> 6/7
Build Target Remaining: 11!

Time anam leaps into you the moment you start drawing. But it's more than the usual flood of power you get when you cycle the Second of Eternity. No, this energy isn't playful like time usually is. It feels focused, almost eager. You barely have to guide it all; indeed, you feel entirely superfluous to the act of cycling. The anam is barely in your body before it leeches out into your box.

But that doesn't mean you take your focus off the anam. Just because it's being unusually compliant doesn't mean you don't have to pay attention. It's because of that focus that you notice that the time anam feels somehow different than it normally does. There's something familiar in the patterns it traces through your spirit as it courses into the box. Something that-

The feeling is gone, and with it, the anam.

You blink and look around the Moment once more. The usual steady staccato of the water droplets is gone. Instead, the water is simply leaking down onto the floor as if from a bucket with a hole punched in it. The usual feeling of otherness you associate with Natural Wonders is almost completely absent from the cavern. It's still there, but it feels buried, muted.

So this is what it feels like when you completely drain a Wonder. You breathe out a slow sigh as you take in the feeling. The anam moved so quickly that you finished cycling it before you had realized it- and judging from the heat coming from the small bottle in your pocket, you even unconsciously tapped Cloud's Breath.

But you're not done. The box still hungers for anam, and there is no more of it to be had in the Second of Eternity. You leap to your feet, shoulder the box once more, and run back into the tunnels, this time heading for the Lost Armory.

It takes hours to get from the Second to the Armory. But you make it there without pausing and throw yourself into your cycling position before you've even fully stopped moving.

Heart of Stone taken! 5 successes automatically funneled to the charm!

Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 6(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)-4-8-4-5-1-5-5). Dice Rolled: 5, 2, 4, 3, 8, 1 (Rerolled due to Rainbow Eyes), 4. 1.3, rounded down to 1 Success!
Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 5(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)-4-8-4-5-1-5-5-1). Dice Rolled: 3, 5, 1 (Rerolled due to Rainbow Eyes), 3, 7, 9, 3. 2.6, rounded up to 3 Successes!
Cycling Check: 6d10s6(1.3)(Son of Kong Shuren) vs. Build Target 2(42(0.9(The Kong Family Cycling Technique)-4-8-4-5-1-5-5-1-3). DIce Rolled: 2, 4, 8, 6, 9, 4. 3.9, rounded up to 4 Successes!

5 charges remain on the Rainbow Eyes!
The Lost Armory: 39/50 -> 31/50
Build Target Met!

Unlike the time anam, the steel does not leap into action the moment you touch it. You have to coax it into you with every ounce of will and skill you've developed in your time as an Artist. And even then, it's slow moving. The anam marches into place steadily enough, but it marches like an army on maneuvers, not one charging into battle.

It needs a boost. And thankfully, you have one. A quick motion to your pocket produces your pill chute. A flick of your wrist sends a pill down your throat and into your stomach. It blooms into pure earth anam moments later, which you push into the box alongside the last of the steel.

And just like that, you're done.

Skills Up! Cycling +1, Craft (Charm) +1!

Around you, the Armory's light is slightly faded. The noises of the invisible crowd are muted and the weapons on the wall seem foggy and ephemeral. But you barely pay it any attention. All of your focus is on your completed charm.

The triptych inside the box gleams with light. Your gem-dusted carvings shimmer and almost seem to move with infused energy. The bows on the trees blow back and forth in an invisible wind which also catches the girl's hair, shrouding her in her own darkness. The grass moves as small shapes shift their position, growing more comfortable as they lie in wait. But that's nothing compared to the mask. The wood has absorbed the powdered teeth, turning it into a uniform ivory with eyes that burn with a light all their own.

But that's just the physical box- and in the case of this charm, the physical vessel is far less important than what it creates. With an effort of will you send the smallest tracery of anam you can muster out into the wood before you. The runes carved in the box walls glow with a faint amethyst light that starts at the front and rushes towards the back, until the art on the triptych shines with a dull glow. The ruby eyes flash, and right before the mask, a small figure congeals from the darkness.

The shape that forms in the box is just as ephemeral as the weapons on the walls around you. But unlike those weapons, which are light made solid, the new form seems to be darkness barely formed into a cohesive whole. Looking at your creation makes your eyes water; you have to focus and stare to see any part of it beyond the inky blackness that makes up its body. But once you do, your focus goes right to its arms. They are the most eye-catching part of your new summon- perhaps because it has four of them. And they are not regular arms either; they are inhumanly long and lanky, with a sharp protrusion sticking out from each arm's elbow. Your eyes linger on those for a moment before following the arms to their end, where they join the heavily robed body of your creation. Atop the creature's neck sits a demonic face identical to the mask you carved in the triptych, only dark instead of the ivory white. At the other end, beneath where the robe ends, you…

...are those cat feet?

You cannot say you were expecting that.

Item Gained: Unnamed Night/Hunger/Mind Traveler Charm!
But the cat feet are not important. The many arms? Not important. The odd familiarity to how it moves? You will figure that out later. Right now, all that is important is that you have finished another charm before your challenge.

And it is beautiful.

What do you name your finished charm?
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