Ling Qi hummed thoughtfully. She had never studied much of the Sun, she knew of the dawn aspect, which was similar enough to the Dreaming Moon.
"It's really not," Sixiang grumbled.
"There are important differences you know! We are creation and art for its own sake! The artist expressing their inner world into the waking one. Those guys are all about showing off to other people."
<I'm sure you're not biased at all,> Ling Qi thought dryly. <What are the other sun aspects anyway?>
Sixiang made a show of grumbling further.
"Dawn, Rising, Zenith, Falling, and Dusk. Th-"
"Miss Ling, are you well?" Gan Guangli's concerned voice interrupted.
Ling Qi blinked, realizing that she had fallen silent for a long moment. "Sorry about that, I was conversing with Sixiang. I don't usually get lost like that any more."
"I understand," Gan Guangli chuckled. "Though my own companion is a taciturn one! I hope you will not fault my lack of introduction."
"Not at all," Ling Qi replied. She knew Gan was keeping his spirits existence quiet. Revealing it in front of so many eyes would pretty much guarantee that was lost, no malice among the onlookers needed. "Can I ask what aspect they are?"
Their conversation at least was screened from eavesdroppers.
"Jinzha is of the Rising Sun," Gan Guangli said cheerfully, his booming voice lowered somewhat. "I could not ask for a more valorous companion."
"Could be worse I guess," Sixiang muttered.
"Least he's not Zenith. Rising is patron of soldiers, all about personal excellence and self improvement. Pushy bunch."
Ling Qi was glad she didn't need to ask the question, it definitely made her look smarter. "That certainly suits you."
They had reached the front lines of the work crews now, and here Zhengui stopped. "Big Sister, Gui needs to start talking again," her little brother cut in, pointing his head toward a copse of trees standing atop a rocky hill, which the river poured down in a burbling spray.
Ling Qi cocked her head to the side, considering the auras of the land ahead. There was already a disciple there, performing placation ceremonies to the river spirit, smoothing the jagged edges of the energies flowing through the valley. In the trees and plant life, she read stubborn defiance.
Part of her wanted to insist on helping, but was that really for the best here? Zhengui had been successful before, barring a handful of exceptions.
In the end there was only one reasonable thing to do. "Okay. Do you want me to stay and help? I'm not busy right now."
"I Zhen would be pleased with Sister's help," he agreed eagerly.
"Yes!" Gui agreed cheerfully.
"Alright, you take the lead. Let me see how you handle it," Ling Qi said. She was glad he hadn't denied her.
She glanced to the left, and saw Gan Guangli watching her with a thoughtful expression. "Do you have any objections?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.
"None at all Miss Ling," Gan Guangli denied. "It is a pleasure to work with you again."
***
It had been a relaxing afternoon, negotiating with the spirits of the valley. The Sect's planners had easily worked her into things. As it turned out they were quite good at wrangling highly individual volunteers. Who would have thought?
...She really didn't credit Zhengui enough sometimes. She had not really had to do much, not really. At least with spirits closer to his own nature, he was better than her, in some ways. In the not-words used to communicate with inhuman spirits his own instincts served where she needed the lessons of an art.
That wasn't to say she hadn't helped, that her songs had not soothed temperamental spirits and given him more leeway to speak, but somehow in the back of her mind, she had still been expecting to be more necessary. There was something to ponder in that.
Ling Qi opened her eyes, letting the cycling of the qi in her dantian still. She sat atop the cushion-hill of Sixiang's realm, looking over the spirit's sea of colors. In the noise and motion of the Sect's warcamps, it was quite a useful cultivation aid, since she couldn't stray too far up the looming hills and cliffs to find natural silence and starlight.
"Are you almost ready?" she asked the empty air.
"Getting there," echoed Sixiang's voice, from everywhere and nowhere. The glittering rainbow stars winked and blinked down at her. "Zhengui's almost through. You can head down to the shore."
Ling Qi nodded absently, and with a thought she was there, standing ankle deep in the cool 'water'. As she watched, the rippling waves began to bubble and churn a hundred odd meters out. From the multihued waters, land emerged, black and fertile, bare of life, first a great hill in the center, and then plains spreading around.
Dull spikes erupted from the earth, followed by a fiery hiss, dirt glowed and melted, and a serpentine head punched through, the shell rose, and blunt limbs churned the dirt, dragging Zhengui up and into the realm.
"Welcome, little brother," Ling Qi said, resting her hand on his head, brushing away stray dirt. The shoreline was far behind them now, and the waters around the new island rippled, turning white as the landmasse began to move, leaving the shore behind.
"This is kinda weird," Gui said slowly peering around.
"Is the Sixiang sure we are not all the way into the Dreamplace," Zhen asked flicking his tongue warily.
"We aren't going in deep," Ling Qi said soothingly. "This place is just Sixiang."
Gui's eyes narrowed in concentration. "But if Gui is in Sixiang, who is in Sister, and Sister and Zhengui are in Sixiang, how does…"
"Don't think about it too hard, yeah?" Sixiang chuckled, their face shining down from the moon. "Doesn't do anybody any good."
"Agreed," Ling Qi said. There was a time for thinking about the actual mechanics of liminal movement and location, but she wasn't in the mood for a headache right now. "Are you ready to get to work today?"
"I have had many ideas," Zhen said. "I, Zhen think that it has been good to get away from the Sect."
"Oh, why is that?" Ling Qi asked curiously.
"Gui has not paid much attention at other times, but the Sect is weird," Gui said thoughtfully as they began to walk toward the sailing islands shore. "Um, it is…"
"Artificial," Zhen said. He looked proud of his vocabulary.
"You really think so?" Ling Qi said, furrowing her brows. "The Sect is definitely more ordered, but it's still wild enough."
"Gui does not think it is like the human homes," her little brother disagreed. "But it is not wild either. Gui thinks…"
"There is no room, for I, Zhen to be," his other half said. "Outside, there are such places."
Ling Qi was silent for a moment. It came back to the little things. She had seen the small idol in the families shrine, and the mention of the villages he had protected. Zhengui was really not an average spirit beast. "Well, we won't be at the Sect forever."
"Yes, then Sister and Gui can make a place for grandmother and little sister and Hanyi too," Gui agreed. He seemed to hesitate at the end, and Ling Qi shot him a concerned look.
"...Is that what Sister wants though?" Zhen asked quietly.
"What do you mean?" Ling Qi asked.
"Gui just wonders why Sister is doing this sometimes. Gui worries that she is just humoring him," he said, looking out over into the water.
Ling Qi frowned, feeling a pang in her chest. She wasn't humoring him, she wanted to do this. Because...
[] He was her little brother, and she wanted to work on something as equals. (Combination technique route)
[] Because she wanted him to be happy, and she wanted to be part of that. (Tech alteration route)
AN: Here we go. It's time to vote on where the mechanical rewards of this route are going. The first choice will lead to unlocking combinations with Zhengui, the second will lead to eventually altering one or more arts to better fit Zhengui's themes, who will alter some of his techniques as well.
