Hmmph... this junior is a good seed [Cultivation Management Quest]

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Xiuying Ten Jiang 21 - Judging

The judging took much longer than Xiuying had expected. Used to people just telling her that her food was delicious, she could only watch in boredom as the judges made lengthy comments about both dishes.

Cicero's dish was tasted first and Cicero was even kind enough to make Xiuying a serving of his gourmet roujiamo. When she ate it, Xiuying had to admit that it was way tastier than any roujiamo that she had ever eaten in her entire life. The meat was both juicy and tender and the fatty part of the pork just melted wonderfully in her mouth. The sauce and the choice of salad that was Cicero used complemented the meat perfectly, balancing out the flavours to near perfection. The judges had also enjoyed Cicero's dish as well.

When it was her turn though, there had been some protest from Cicero and his master when she had presented her Ramen Burger, claiming that her dish did not fit the theme of the match. However, the other judges thought her dish was a rather novel interpretation of what a roujiamo was and overruled Fangxin's objections. Xiuying had offered Cicero a serving of Ramen Burger as she originally planned but her opponent refused, quite rudely as well.

When the judges took a bite of Xiuying's ramen burger, however, they'd frozen in shock at how it tasted. Cicero tried to insult Xiuying about how bad her dish was but ended up eating his words when most of the judges dug into their ramen burgers with gusto. Fangxin, while not as enthusiastic as the other judges, could not stop himself from eating her ramen burger.

Much praise was heaped upon her dish for both how she had somehow infused the noodle buns with the full flavour of tonkotsu ramen, and how incredibly juicy the meat patty of their burgers were compared to Cicero's braised pork filling, even going as far as to say that she had created a new page in the history of roujiamo. Only Fangxin had anything bad to say about the meal, commenting that using soup-infused ramen noodles as a bun substitute was only a cheap trick.

The judges had to give out an appropriate score for both Cicero's gourmet roujiamo and Xiuying's ramen burger after tasting both dishes. The judges were given around fifteen minutes to discuss among themselves and ruminate on the taste of both chef's dishes. Before the match began, most of the audience believed that Cicero had the match in the bag. However, after Xiuying proved both her skill and creativity, the match's conclusion was no longer so clear-cut. It was now all up to the judges to decide whose sandwiched meat was the superior dish.

"This match was unexpectedly quite difficult to judge. Both chefs have shown great skill and creativity in their dishes. However, there can only be one winner of this match and after much deliberation, we have decided on the victor." Xinyi Guan, the culinary critic and the most influential of all the judges on the panel, paused to allow the anticipation of the results to reach its crescendo before finally continuing. "The winner of the roujiamo battle is...Xiuying Ten Jiang!"

The moment the winner was declared, the crowd went wild. Who would have thought that a newcomer from outside Fire Duck Town would be able to defeat one of the rising stars of the culinary world?

Xiuying let out a sigh of relief. She was not fond of these kinds of contests after all. All the judges looked pleased by the results except for Fangxin who only had an expression of resignation on his face. The chefs of the Wangjin Restaurant Cuisine Association could only groan and cry in misery at the loss of their group. Losing in a shokugeki was one thing but losing to a complete newcomer, and an outsider as well had dealt a tremendous blow to the reputation of their group.

Cicero Blasio stood frozen in shock, his mind trying to comprehend that he had lost, before his anger, indignation, and outrage grew strong enough to override his shock. "Impossible! How could some weird noodle sandwich thing defeat my creation!? You must have cheated, wretch!" Cicero attempted to draw his sword-knife in his anger when he felt a firm grip on his shoulder. Looking behind him, Cicero saw his master with a rueful look on their face. "M-Master?"

"Cicero Blasio, my student. Calm yourself." Fangxin requested. Being of a greater realm of cultivation than Cicero, the young chef had no choice but to accede to his master's request. Seeing the unsaid question of why on his student's face, Fangxin gestured towards the untouched Ramen Burger that Xiuying had made for Cicero. "Here, eat and you will understand."

Taking the ramen burger in his hand, Cicero frowned at the offending dish before sighing in resignation and taking a large bite. The moment it touched his taste buds, a feeling like a jolt of electricity engulfed Cicero's entire body as his senses were drowned in an ocean of flavour. It was as though he was sailing across an ocean of ramen tonkotsu soup in a boat made from the finest ramen noodles, seeking his fortune among the milky waves. As he crossed this ocean of soup, all kinds of delicious ingredients leapt out from the flavoured sea to be caught by his boat, filling his treasure hold with deliciousness. Eventually, Cicero reached the centre of this ocean of creamy savouriness, the meat island of umami flavour. There, he dug and dug until he found it. The true treasure of his dreams, his very delicious dreams.

"Blasio?" Cicero snapped out of his trance, the taste of the ramen burger still on his tongue, along with the feeling of wetness on his cheeks. Had he been crying? "What's wrong, Blasio?"

"I understand now, master. Xiuying's ramen burger was truly wonderful. Not only was she able to infuse the noodle buns with the full flavour of the rich soup that they were cooked in, but the meat patty that she made was also incredibly delicious. It was so juicy that it made my braised pork look dry and yet the noodles were able to absorb the meat juices without letting a single drop leak out. I admit defeat." Cicero's attitude had changed completely. Gone was that arrogance and conceit that he had, instead there was a softer respectful expression on his face as he turned to Xiuying and bowed to the girl. "Xiuying Ten Jiang, your ramen burger was very delicious. Thank you for your food. I apologise on behalf of the Wangjing Restaurant Cuisine Association for our horrendous actions towards your food stall. It was most improper of me to use such underhanded means to undermine your business. For that, I am truly sorry."

"Um, it was nothing. Apology accepted I guess?" Xiuying said, not really getting why Cicero was acting so weirdly. She'd won the match so that was that and this was this. Now she had another dish to put on the menu so at least this whole shokugeki thing wasn't a waste of time. "I'm gonna be serving it at my restaurant during lunch hours so you're welcome to come and order some if you want."

"I see, then I shall be there," Cicero promised, licking his lips. "However, you must tell me how you were able to get such a rich soup from such using bones of all things!"

"Well, first you start with…."

Fangxin watched his student talk with their opponent with mixed feelings. Though his student had lost and brought shame on their Wangjin Restaurant Cuisine Association reputation, his student had also gained something important in return. Cicero Blasio would surely use this loss in order to grow further as a chef upon the dao of cooking. Though he had to admit that the Xiuying girl was a talented chef to be able to create something as ridiculous as a ramen burger and somehow make it taste great as well.

Langwen was happy that Xiuying had won. He had been a bit worried when he saw her cook a pot of ramen when the theme was roujiamo but his worries were unfounded thanks to the open-mindedness of the other judges. This match would serve as a wake-up call to the WRCA and hopefully get them back on track along the path of proper cooking without having to resort to such underhanded schemes and bullying.

Xiuying was simply happy that she wasn't going to have any problem with the lack of customers anymore. Everything was looking up for Xiuying and there was nothing that could possibly go wrong.

"BANDIT RAIDERS ARE ATTACKING!" An injured man screamed out as they suddenly entered the arena hall.

Oh, shoot.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

Huoying stared up at the statue of her best friend that she was certain was not there before when she was in Fire Duck Town last time. The red-head had spent the last couple of decades constantly on missions and fighting for the clan while Xiuying was busy recovering from her injuries sustained from the Qiguai Secret Realm so she hadn't been paying much attention to what was happening in Fire Duck Town.

"Xiuying." Huoying turned to Xiuying with a questioning look whose face had turned red with embarrassment. "How the hell did you get a statue of yourself put up here in Fire Duck Town!?"

"...It's a long story." Xiuying simply said, clearly not wishing to elaborate further.

"Does this have something to do with how you're practically a household name in Fire Duck Town?" Huoying said, gesturing to the many restaurants and stalls that were all selling "Xiuying-Style" noodle dishes.

"Sort of."

"Spit it out Xiuying. Or else I'm gonna tell everyone in the legion about the statue." Huoying threatened. It was something of a common occurrence in their legion. Whenever everyone in their legion got together for whatever reason, they would do their best to embarrass the other members with embarrassing stories and the likes.

"No! It's too embarrassing!" Xiuying cried out, mortified that Huoying would do such a thing.

"Then tell me! Come on, I'm not gonna tell anyone else!"

"Okay, okay. Fine! I miscut and somehow ended up saving Fire Duck Town."

"Wait, what? No! That's not fine at all! Don't give me that half-assed answer and explain properly!"

"Tch, fine. Okay, it happened about a couple of weeks after settling in. I'd just had a shokugeki with - "

"What's a shokugeki?" Huoying interrupted, not familiar with the traditions of Fire Duck Town.

"Cooking duel of honour. It's a thing in Fire Duck Town. Anyways, I just had a shokugeki with this Cicero Blasio guy when bandit raiders attacked the town."

"Blood bandits?"

"No, just regular cultivator bandits. They were really messing things up so I'd gone around cutting down any I could find. I managed to find their boss and fight him even though it ended up messing up my body a bit and while fighting, I kinda screwed up a cut." Xiuying admitted with much shame.

"...Hang on. You're like the leading expert on cutting! How do you mess up cutting?!"

"Well, I tried to cut the bandit leader but he was able to somehow duck under my cut."

"Okay, I still don't see the problem."

"My cut ended up decapitating the mayor who was watching us fight."

"...What."

"I decapitated the mayor of Fire Duck Town," Xiuying said bluntly.

"Wait! What! How!? How did you mess up that badly and - how did you not get in trouble!?"

"Oh, turns out that the mayor was actually a secret cannibal spy who was controlling the bandits to do his biddings and destroy Fire Duck Town while he kidnapped and ate key persons of interest in Fire Duck Town," Xiuying explained.

"...Seriously!? So you accidentally saved Fire Duck Town by killing the mayor who was really a blood path cannibal? Damn, Xiuying. That's some pretty crazy stuff." Huoying was in awe at what her best friend had gotten up to during her first couple of weeks in Fire Duck Town.

"Yeah, I know. They put up a statue of me to honour my actions and I hate it"

"...But isn't that meant to be a good thing?"

"...It reminds me too much of how lacking my cutting skills are and how I've been slacking off on the path of Sword Law," Xiuying explained, making a vague cutting motion with her arm.

"What are you talking - oh. I get it. Even if the mayor was actually evil, you weren't trying to cut his head off in the first place."

"Correct. As a practitioner of Sword Law, my cut was horrible and would have killed someone that I didn't want to truly cut. Not only that, I failed to cut the bandit I was trying to cut down as well. My cutting was disgraceful and I don't want to even think about it anymore!" It was the first time that Huoying had ever seen Xiuying act so snappishly before so she decided it was best to change the subject.

"What happened to the bandits that were being controlled anyways?"

"They were freed and promised to be righteous bandits or something. I think they went off to join the Flood Dragon gang." Xiuying replied, clearly not wanting to talk further about what had happened.

"Uh-huh, so you saved Fire Duck Town from a Blood Cannibal Secret Plot and got a statue commemorating your greatest failure. Did you get anything else?"

"...No, I didn't. The administrators of Fire Duck Town could spare anything other than the statue since they needed to repair all the damage that had been done to the place." Xiuying had been disappointed that her careless cutting had earned her nothing more than a statue in her name and nothing that could help further her cultivation or cutting.

"Huh, that sucks. That's a pretty crazy first fortnight in Fire Duck Town. So how did you spend the last two decades then?"

'Oh, you know. Cooking noodles, cutting training, a couple of hundred cooking duels, you know, normal stuff."

"...Right. Normal stuff."

"...Can we leave now? I don't want a huge fuss over my departure so the sooner I leave the better."

"Alright. Alright. I'm guessing you've already said your goodbyes then?"

"I did a leaving-town sale last night."

"Good enough. So what are you gonna do now that you're capable of fighting without blowing up your meridians again?"

"I think there was a call for clan members to help out at that Apoikía Bucephalus city that's being built so I'm gonna head there. Are you going as well?"

"Sure am. I have to say though, I've really missed your cooking, Xiuying."

"And I've missed you Huoying as well."

With that, Xiuying and Huoying left Fire Duck Town and onwards to the next leg of their path towards enlightenment.

Thanks to that little trip to find a lost cat i managed to make connections with both junior centurion Argyris Totallis and his bone scorpions, Gladius and Buckler and one of the lesser branches of the Xia family, which is promising to be a great opportunity.

Argyris is at the third pillar of foundation establishment and reached it in just two hundred years! He is more focused on logistic than fight though, taking care of the legion's supplies, it's distribution, rationing and such. We made a pretty nice agreement, dropping them some luxuries when I get there and in exchange they provide me some better jobs than shopping errands, beside the spirit stones for what they put on the list of items I should bring the next time I come over.

As for the Xia family, from what rumors and facts I gathered they, as a whole, keep in close contact with each other, be it the main or side branches, however far removed they are. The branch in Thrake isn't really involved in the politics of the family, or the clan, but focus more on attracting the merchants from Seven Heavens Trade City and sending them further along the scorpion road. I do get some good tips about what to buy from them, the occasional errand and rarely, I am recommended for more… discrete works, for those close to them.

Hence, why I'm at the foothills of the Turtle Bone Mountain. Looking for some very delicate spirit herbs.

And, if I was here anyway, I decided to start training with the clones again. Nobody to see me, nobody to interrupt me asking why I'm using a useless technique like this…. Sadly, I still couldn't improve the any part of it. Not to chose the materials they are made of, not to change how they behave, and not even commanding them. They just mostly stand around, following me when I move. If something attacked me, they rush to it and start hitting, kicking and even biting it as they can. The only thing that I managed to raise is the number of clones, but as their number increase, some of the effects of my cultivation drops significantly, mostly bodily strength, endurance and qi.

Its quite interesting, to be honest, but very annoying. Most likely these are all part of the issues of a technique meant to be used by nascent soul cultivators being degraded so much that even a mere qi condensation one could use, if you can call it using it…. But regardless! Even if I can't really put it in use for now, its only a question of time or luck before I can master it!

Exercises do help with compensating for some of the drawbacks, to some degree, though its more about the basics than anything. I was thinking of getting some weighted bracers but most of my income goes to further advance my cultivation, so what little I can save are slowly adding up.

It would be a lot easier if I could access the contribution board I heard about, but only legionaries can use it fully. Even if I go and become an auxiliary, only foundation establishment would let me have a heavily restricted access to it.

So, for the time being, I will try and make ends meet playing errand boy and networking the hard way.

"If only I had a fortuitous encounter..:" I mumble to myself.

Sighing to myself, I dismiss the clones and feel as my Qi and cultivation soars once again to the fifth heaven stage of qi condensation. It still feels weird, temporarily losing the benefits higher cultivation provides.

Shaking my head, lean my staff in the crook of my elbow and pull out my map and check the indicated area I need to go for this quest.

"Let's see, north-east from Colossus Foot steps pass, south-east from Turtle Bone mountain, follow the river in the valleys until it goes around a small mountain with a rocky top shrouded in mist…."

I look up from my map and sure enough, I can see a mountain that fits the descriptions in the distance, thanks to the river going relatively straight in this valley. And, even if it isn't the one, It will be a good point to get the lay of the land for the coming day.

"it should take around…" I narrow my eyes as I think aloud."Three day? Maybe less if I run with a good pace." And so, I run, with my staff at the ready.

------

During the sprint to the mountain I encountered with some mundane beasts, a few boars in the early qi condensation realm and the occasional spirit herb or other low grade materials that will sell for a good price in the way castle or the trade city.

On the dawn of the third day, as I ascend the mountain in a spiral, I reach a cliff under the misty veil, with a beautiful view, the valley is full of lush, verdant green meadows with a carnival of wildflowers near the river that was sneaking around the mountain I'm on, with forests taking over as you get closer to the other mountains.

I sit down there, driving my staff in the dirt beside me and just look at the scenery for a while, after which, I take out the map again and sure enough, I'm at the right place.

"Lets see, how to do this then." I say, taking out the directives given by the costumer and start reading.

'On the Bald Mountain, you need to go towards the summit on it's southern side, as they prefer the shade of the mountain. Most animals beast avoid the fog veil as it is too thick to see through and dampens both smell and sounds to near nonexistent and even disturbs qi projections

'What you need to gather is a hundred of the mist churning thistles that have taken over after the great berry bush has withered. To find the thistles you should look for...' As I read on, my relief slowly faded. Sure, it's not something called Mountain Eating anything, but the mist is so thick you can't see where you step if you aren't crouching without a special talisman? Not to mention the mist is still occupied by the remnants of that over sized berry bush and who knows what else nestling in it….

Hm... Let's think a bit. There is a thick fog cloud ahead, but I don't have any techniques that would be helpful. I could make an array, the quick and dirty type, but it would eat into my spirits stone reserves, even if I narrowed its scope to only clear a corridor. Then, if go in as is, I might get lost if the mountain levels out into a field in the mist.... a beacon, perhaps?It wouldn't be that great an expense, but I'm unsure how far the light would go, not to mention the attention it might draw.

"This is a problem. I can't clear the mist, nor do I want to use anything flashy..." I think aloud and kick some pebbles in frustration, one ricocheting up from a nearby rock and hitting my staff. Which is still sticking out of the earth….

"I'm an idiot." I say, burying my face into my palms for a long moment. Then stand up, grab my walking stick and head into the mist, a line in the dirt marking my passage.

------

I spent half a day, finding, digging and properly sealing the thistles, storing them in the spacial ring specifically prepared for them by the costumer. Most of it spent on getting from one batch to the other and making sure I marked every intersection of my track to avoid getting lost while backtracking, but its almost over! I only need seven more and I have finished my task!

And look at that, there is another group of them near that cave….

"A cave?" I murmur to myself, furrowing my brows. Scanning the area around the entrance, I find no traces of any beasts passing by or other wise. Something about this just don't seem right… I take another look around and it finally hits me.

"There is no mist here." I whisper, and freeze. For a five meters radius around the cave, the air is almost crystal clear, even the ever churning mist the thistle is named after floats gently upward in a straight line.

Decisions, decisions… on one hand, I'm almost done and could, probably, maybe, hopefully, get away and find another batch and finish my task safely. On the other hand though, there is something in that cave, hidden in the mist. On a relatively short mountain, compared to the ones surrounding it, with no tall plants and next to no animals, most of which are mortal. It's not close enough to Turtle Bone Mountain to have any spirit beasts of the higher heaven stages of qi condensation, not to mention foundation establishment ones.

I backtrack into the mist, making sure to leave at least a minute of travel time between the cave and myself, then summon an earth clone. As my cultivation improved, so did the details they were created with. Since reaching the fifth heaven stage, they very clearly look like clay statues still being made, with the bigger details like the cut of clothes and the reliefs in big, rough strokes. The face is still featureless, though, at least it has the impression of what goes where. Its improvement, yes, but still… lacking. They still only follow me, unless something attacks either me or another clone. From what few memories with them I got back, its a far cry from them working on experiments I cant recall and acting on their own, yet, still in harmony with me and each other, either by doing separate steps of the same project or another one entirely.

I pat the clones shoulder, before reabsorbing my qi as I dismiss it. I wait for it to crumble to dust, firming my resolve, then start towards the cave.

I could turn back. I should turn back, after all, who knows whats in there. I could just cultivate quietly, slow and steady. But the memories… especially those glimpses I saw the clones working together…. If there is a chance that whatever in that cave can help me get them back sooner, I must go for it. After all, whats the worst thing that could be in that cave, when the strongest beasts on this mountain are in the early heaven stages?
***********
I would like another LST, please and thank you.
Saving Juniors: YES.
Turn note: infusion of the blood of bronze. If impact is gained, its due to the clones. preferably them becoming controlable and not attacking like animals, in that order. Use LST if reaching wounded or worse.
@Humbaba @TehChron @Kaboomatic

Home was where the heart is--even if home is a barren waste of inhospitable sand, intimidating crags, and winding rivers emerging from who-knows-where before providing the only regions where people can live naturally in the Organ Meat Desert.

It was still the place where the Golden Devil Clan had stubbornly made their home, defying nature and good sense alike to forge a civilization that wouldn't lose out by much to the paradise realms of the Plains. The people were protected, the next generation taught, trained, and fostered in defiance of the Clan's fated end.

Rina smiled softly from her perch, looking over the Callista Manor and its attached holdings. Though the Clan did have something of a rebirth in the past century since the last set of Trials--Old Gold's gamble paid off, the Battle Blood Cannibals set to rout (Even if they couldn't get Sun Diaxiang in the bargain), and the Clan's territory expanded to levels they hadn't held since forced into the Desert. Indeed, if these trials could be mitigated strongly enough…

It would be very hard to dislodge the Clan again, and a second Nascent Soul only a matter of time instead of a desperate attempt to look stronger than the Clan actually was.

All of that though was only if the Trials could be met.

Rina clenched her fists, and raised them before her, looking down upon her own strength. The Single-Pillar Foundation Establishment Method steadily revealed its secrets as her Cultivation increased, and as she tested it in battle. Not quite as mighty as a Core, but with a scale of effect a Core could not easily match. If these benefits followed her into the upper echelons of cultivation--Imperator Forbid, even into Nascent Soul?

She wouldn't go as far as to claim it would solve every problem, but a Dao with the strength of her [World-Lord] coupled with the transcendent divine engine that was the Nascent Soul? It would be simplicity in itself to carve a foundation that could secure the Clan's survival--Heaven's Wrath and curses be damned--with enough space to work with and enough might…

She shook her head, and lowered her hands. Woolgathering again! Imagining she was at the height of the Region just because she had a difficult ability to handle. She was hardly alone in this Great Era either! Aretaphilia was close, and there were no small number of aspirants to her position from the batch after the last Trials too! She was even a celebrity! No doubt the other powers had seen the events and were considering trying their own luck with their own rising Chosen.

On the other hand, it was more people who were dealing with the same issues she was feeling towards the end of her drive--even an overlord in Qi Condensation was still just an infant on the grand scale of the Region. Even freshly after her own breakthrough, Rina would have been capable of killing any number of her Thirteenth Heavenstage equivalents just by exerting her Emanation and cleaning up one by one.

Rina grimaced, and pushed herself away from the balcony, turning back to her chambers--a big step up from when she was just a junior--she had her own little segment of the Manor to herself now! She even had servants and pages to help collect things!

How long would it take before she started falling behind again though? Xia--No, he was Jin Muyi now--and Minevra Barda were clawing at the Great Circle of Foundation Establishment and could break through to Core at any time they pleased. The Chosen of the Virtuous Flipper Region who walked the Orthodox Path were all reaching the same level as well--and the first breakthroughs could begin at any time. Even Xu Zhen could break through whenever he wanted! If it wasn't for Scarletglyph carrying him off by the ear and dragging him off to some training ground to 'Encourage him to get good so he's not left behind by the future wifey'

Rina's cheeks flushed at that, and she banished the thought. She wasn't at the top of the Region, but she was probably in the top ten of her generation. But that was only why everyone was still in Foundation Establishment. When they were breaking through to Core, would she be falling behind again? The sixty years she lost polishing the Unorthodox Realm of Qi Condensation leaving her forever suppressed?

Her head said no--the Single-Pillar's methods weren't that simple, or it wouldn't be so difficult to reach--but her heart reminded her that the Orthodox Path wasn't to be underestimated either--an expert packing the right treasure, or practicing the right technique could neutralize her inherent advantage--and when that was gone? She was merely a strong, tough woman with respectable skill in battle.

She sighed, walking in and through her chambers, waving off the uniformed servants who were preparing to follow behind. She was just talking herself down again--she had set foot on this path for a reason, and already she was beginning to see the first glimmers of the Unorthodox Path's promise. A Dao Emanation capable of covering a battlefield, crushing the spirits of the foe and bolstering friends. She had even put a finger on the benefits of the next stage by the end of her time in the Great Battlefield. To simply will a thing and to make it manifest? Such power was previously only held by a Nascent Soul.

And beyond that? Who knows! How long had it been since the Golden Devils had a SIngle Pillar Expert? How long has it been since anybody had the same?

She steadied her gait, and marched out of her chambers. She would be fine, as long as she stayed true to herself--and besides, all of these grand philosophical self-flagellations were a moot point for now, when the Hundred Year Trials loomed over the Clan once again. The last set was a disaster, with the only real mitigating factor the Miracle at Pleuron.

This set had to be shed aside, no matter the strength the Fifth Sea brought to bear.

It was a good thing her family had something ready to contribute to that…

-----------------------------------------------------

"So, when the funding came along to raise a unit of cavalry. Our response pretty much went 'Are you joking? Do you remember how well the last time we tried to make a Callista Cavalry Regiment went?' " Helen Callista laughed it off, her braided twintails swinging as she shook her head. "So, they told us 'Well, fine, maybe not mounted cavalry but we need something fast and with a big punch', and the Head went 'We have a Rina Callista'."

The diminutive Centurion had a bounce to her step as she led Rina down into the Array-Engineer's compound of the Manor, her artisan's smock stained with lubricants and reagents alike, with tools haphazardly stuffed into various loops and pockets dotting her uniform.

"So they went 'Okay, fine, do what you want', and so we decided we were going to really lean into making you the nightmare of the Hunters this run." She grinned toothily and looked over to Rina. "Normally, investing a whole Cavalry Platoon's resources into one woman is a sucker bet… But you've got everything we need to make this doable."

"I'm glad that you have this faith in me…" Rina began, looking up at the sealed doors ahead. "But it does seem like a bit of a stretch here to put it all on my shoulders."

"Nonsense! We've read your reports closely and worked this out. I mean, yeah, if you didn't have that convenient tree--how's it growing by the way?" Helen asked, leaning over in Rina's direction as she came to a stop. Rina tapped her spatial ring and brought it out. The tiny tree had already grown several inches since it bonded to her. "It's growing well, but I don't think we'll be able to take any cuttings in time for this Trial."

"Well, it's okay, this was all dependent on you having the original tree anyway." Helen concluded, clapping her hands sharply--the doors gave off a great clamour, and slowly began to pull open. "So, we've got an invincible paragon in Pillar Construction, who crushes anyone in the same realm as long as she makes a big imperious stare and makes the big shiny ring show up."

"I wouldn't say I crush anyone in the same realm…" Rina starts, but gets shushed by a finger in her face. "The people who can resist you are lunatics who are wielding treasures way beyond their level or pushing the Unorthodox Realm to its limit. The Hunters are good, but the cream of the crop haven't appeared in most trials. We'll get at least one where they're not prepared to counter the likes of you. So we're going to exploit this as hard as we can."

The doors pull open, lights snapping on one by one to reveal the… Technological terror looming before the two women. A great harness of spirit-steel, engraved with thousands of Arrays--a bulky section in the back where Spirit Stones were even now being loaded. "Ta-dah!! I call it the Talaria Skirmish Armor!"

"It's… Impressive?" Rina admits, looking at the device open. "But how's it work? Didn't we mostly phase out heavy armor since coming to the Desert!"

"That's because it's not just Heavy Armor!" Helen waves her finger and slides forward, hopping up onto a footstool to work a spell array there--the chest portion splitting open to reveal a padded interior. "It's Skirmish Armor! This thing isn't meant for protection, it's meant for mobility."

She gestures wildly over to Rina to come close, and begins pointing out features inside. "It's based on an old project meant to compensate for our relatively sluggish movements in comparison to other Cultivators of comparable Realm. The logic being that a sufficiently sophisticated set of armor, sensitive to the thoughts and desires of its wearer, can move us on its behalf. There were a few successful examples here and there, but it was mostly gimmicks for Array-Engineers who wanted to build something to let them join in battle in a pinch. Too complicated and finicky to use for a layman. A simplified version was later developed as part of an experiment to strengthen Centurion-level combattants, but even with quality Silverine used for the core Arrays, the response time was too low to make it worthwhile."

"This is based on the simplified model then?" Rina asks, peeking inside. "I can see why you might have thought of me then…"

"Right? Right?" Helen chirped. "Your Essence naturally is imbued with your Will and under exceptional pressure to begin with! Using this should be no problem! We've rigged the whole thing up with all manner of other toys that'll give you an edge too!" She pushes back, her footstool rolling away a little to give a wider angle look. "Each arm gauntlet is plugged into the central power distribution, and can emit a large mass of sword-essence on command, just in case you need to take a whole bunch of guys down in one swing! We've got a Glass Javelin micro-array built in to give you some extra reach in a pinch--fully capable of smelting replacement as long as you can fill it with sand every once in a while. More importantly, we did a little customization with your cauldron in mind!" She rolls her footstool to the back and taps on the oblong backpack--a section opening up to reveal a circular section. "Plug it in up there, and it can transmit its flight ability into the armor! Couple that with a few other tweaks to create thrust, and you can get some pretty good long range speed to boot!"

"And it's not so big that I can't use my own weapons either." Rina muses. "Can I still bring Muqin Guo out if I need her help?"

"Oh, absolutely!" Helen claps her hands, you wouldn't be able to fly in that state, but the other speed enhancements and thrusters will function regardless, you'll just be grounded."

"Great!" Rina lets herself smile, patting the Talaria as she backs away. "So… What's the catch?"

"Ehehe…" Helen giggles--if perhaps a little nervously. "It's… A bit expensive to use."

"How much." Rina sighs, and shrinks down.

"Well… I'll spare you the actual numbers and just leave it at "A full sized Legion's yearly budget wouldn't afford ten of these."

"Figures." Rina pinches the bridge of her nose. "Okay, okay, that's fine--it's the Trials at least. Do we have enough to fuel this for One year?"

"We can do that much!" Helen gives a thumbs up. "We can't justify the Talaria for regular use--unless you find some big perpetual Essence generator anyway--but if it's just for a one year engagement, no problem at all!"

"Fantastic" Rina lets herself smile again. "I'm sure I'll be able to make good use of it, I was worried about being able to catch enough of them before they scattered, or got wise to me chasing them down. With this and my Emanation though… I should be qualified to resist even if a Core decides to throw their pride away to try to bring me down."

"That's the spirit!" Helen gives two big thumbs up. "We're all rooting for you from our own little bunkers! Make sure you give them hell when the time comes!"

"I have every intention of doing so." Rina grinned. "Let's see if we can turn the tables compared to last time...

Fort Deadsand.
We got lucky for this trial. The qi flows have shifted to make Fort Deadsand available for this trial and should remain open for the duration. Fort Deadsand is a fort built in the middle of the qi-draining desert. It never would have been built if it were not for the trials. There is nothing to protect in the qi-draining desert that we don't bring with us. However, we know the flows of this desert far better than the invaders do and are more used to working at low qi levels besides. This fort maximizes our advantages such as they are. It is also very imposing.



Fort Deadsand was built from beginning to end to minimize qi leakage. The Feng Shui and arrays built into its structure mean that not one drop more qi than absolutely necessary leaves it. Furthermore most of the fort is in fact underground. With qi drained glass coating the inside of the outer walls. It takes great effort to force qi into qi drained glass making it a prized ingredient in alchemical vials. It is actually one of the Golden Desert's biggest exports besides spirit stones of course.

Of course the reason I was assigned to this fort is obvious. All of the arrow slits in the fort now have cannons in them. I smile.

We are carefully drilled to memorize the current qi flows of the desert until we can all draw out the map from memory.

When fighting in the qi drained desert. All techniques and arts must take the dangerously low ambience qi into account. It is possible for a cultivator to lock down their body to reduce qi leakage, but using a technique if you are not careful is like putting a hole in a balloon. Same thing if you are wounded except then you are basically certain to die as the qi is sucked right out of your body even for minor wounds.
-----------------------------------------
I was out scouting. It needed to be done every now and then. First to check to see if there were any changes in the qi flows that our maps need to be upgraded with and to see if any large force of invaders are headed our way. I was in one of lower qi zones. Not exactly heathy, but I should be alright so long as I don't stay more than an hour or use any techniques.

"Well isn't it my lucky day!" I spin going pale. A 11th heavenstage invader with his sword drawn steps out behind a rock. His token gleaming on this chest.

"I knew that if I waited around one of you rats would come out of hiding eventually." He looks me over. "What are you, second condensation?" He smiles "Well that means we are technically in the same realm even if the actual difference between us is greater than the distance between the heavens and the earth!"

I responded by firing my ordinary bronze hand cannon at him. There was no way I would bring Cinder out into a lower qi zone. Still the qi-draining iron grapeshot flys out in a cone. No need for solid-shot out here. Small wounds are just as deadly as a hole in your chest and a piece of qi-draining iron inside of you might as well be poison.

The invader dashed my hopes by side stepping the blast with contemptuous ease. "Neat toy, let me show you how a real man fights!" and dashes forward sword raised. I had drilled how to fight hand to hand with my handcannon. It even has a bayonet on the muzzle for just this sort of situation.

However the invader is stronger, faster and generally outclasses me all together. His first sword swing cuts right into my handcannon and when I tried to take advantage of his sword being caught he simply ripped the cannon right out of my hands using his sword as a lever. I used the moment he takes to flick my ruined cannon off his sword to draw a sword of my own. After all, specialization is for insects and I have no intention of practicing dying gallantly if I can help it. Especially not to aid the karma of a creep like this.

Still despite my resolve things were not looking good. This monster is about 4 times faster and 6-9 times stronger than me. He can likely cut right through my sword. Actually his sword is looking worse for wear. There is a notch in it and it is a bit bent. The creep notices me looking and sees the damage. "Heavens damned desert ruining everything!" He glares at me as if his sword being damaged is somehow my fault. He sheathes his sword. "Doesn't matter, I can beat you with my bare hands."

Me armed with a sword verse him barehanded is a little bit more even. Especially when even minor cuts should mean a quick death here, but that works both ways and I can't token to safety if I get hurt.

I dash to the side picking up my ruined cannon. Jerk punches towards me reflexively send a distortion in the air, but the desert absorbs it less than a foot from his fist and he staggers as he loses far more qi than expected. I tap the sun array on my ruined cannon and throw it well jerk is still recovering.

The blast from the remaining gunpowder causes the structurally unsound cannon to shatter, sending shrapnel in all directions. I dodge a piece going by my face. Jerk wasn't so lucky. He has cuts all over this body and I can see the qi running off him as the desert bleeds him white. How is this guy still alive? I rush forward with my sword and stab him before he can get any neat ideas. And keep stabbing. I stab until my arms feel tired. I am surprised he's dead. I was sure he would token out. I suppose his pride would not allow it.

Then I almost collapse propping myself up with my sword. I have to get out of here quick. My qi reserves are running low. I quickly grab his bag and run back toward Fort Deadsand. Going to need to let them know that invaders are sniffing around the area.

Hey, I just had an actual fight to the death. That means I am no longer a hot house flower. I start laughing as I run back. I can't help it.

@Alectai, @TehChron, @Humbaba, @ReaderOfFate, @Kaboomatic One more into the breach. The trials make me nervous.

Xiao Yingzi found herself coming back to the Legion Headquarters nearly a month after she initially received her invitation from Centurion Victor. It had taken her that long to finish up her previous commitments and prepare for her new one. Even that felt rushed to her, but she had no choice. By the time she finally arrived however, she quickly realized that the situation had… evolved.

The entrance of the hall was filled with a number of the legion's centurions, many that Xiao Yingzi was certain did not know anything about medicine. They were helping around patients from qi condensation, all who were clearly infected by the Demon-Snaring Vine. Ominously, she counted a dozen in the main hall and she was confident that was the number in the beds the last time she was here. The air shimmered with heat and qi from the sheer number of people in the hallway.

How much had things progressed?

"You are Xiao Yingzi?" A curt voice cut through her thoughts causing her to freeze for a moment. She turned to see her new Legate looking at her with an annoyed expression and she quickly stood at attention. Before she could answer, Legate Seneca just nodded and continued. "Good, you're with Victor on figuring out a cure. He'll be in Hall 3A."

Xiao Yingzi bowed and left, knowing a dismissal when she heard one. She found a Qi-condensing Legionnaire wearing sealed full-body armour taking notes in the hallway and asked him for directions. After he pointed the way, she hurriedly rushed over to Victor - hoping to also get an explanation of what had occurred in her absence.

Victor was in a workroom filled with crackling arrays and various wired apparatus, likely all of his design. On one table, which had been obviously cleared, lay an infected legionnaire, groaning and twitching even through what was strong anaesthetic by it's smell. "Yingzi," The centurion greeted her, not looking up from his work. "It's good that you are here."

"Victor," She greeted back, walking over to him and then coming to a stop a short distance away from the vine. "What's going on?"

"Vine spread faster than we thought." He replied, as he examined the patient while casually incinerating any vine that dared touch him. "We thought it had to physically subdue and take root but there seems to be a second manner of infection. Luckily it hasn't made the jump to Foundation-building and seems unlikely to."

"How is the cure going?" Xiao Yingzi asked, frowning at the body in front of her. She leaned in while waving off the shimmer coming from his body. "You mentioned that heavenly tribulation worked?"

He nodded and in lieu of answering, he inserted a tiny pin into the legionnaire's skin. The pin was connected to a wire that was connected to a contraption that included a glass bottle with a lightning bolt inside it. As she watched, a touch of lightning burst out from it arcing towards the patient. It surged through his body, burning away the vines and leaving the man unconscious but seemingly unhurt.

"So you do have a cure?" Xiao Yingzi asked, giving him an encouraging smile. The smile fell when she saw his grimace. "What's the issue?"

"Supply." He replied, shaking his head. "Collecting tribulation lightning isn't an easy thing. We have a few ninth heavenstages volunteering to summon tribulation lightning but only Legate Seneca can collect it safely. He can only do it once a day, and I can cure maybe five with that?"

"How many are coming in?" Xiao Yingzi asked with a frown.

"At least a dozen a day," He replied, shaking his head. "And it's growing."

"Prognosis of my own lightning's effects?"

"It works," Victor replied, nodding his head in thanks. "But we'll need to adjust and recalibrate the machines before we can begin using you as a source."


When she had first come to the room with patients, she had seen at most a dozen affected. Now, she could see legionnaires in the hundreds, each twitching in pain even asleep with strong anaesthetic. The shimmer in the air was even worse with the sheer number of individuals inside. Have you heard of the term Tartarus? Elder Teleos' grim voice cut into her mind.

I have encountered the term in one of the centurion-only documents I had access to. She replied as she dropped the patient off to one of her peers as he gave her a quick nod in thanks. Isn't it a word from the old tongue of the clan?

The history behind it doesn't matter, I suppose. He replied. It is the name we came up with for something that we encountered during one of the campaigns I was a part of.

What was it? Xiao Yingzi asked curiously, only paying half her attention as she began to navigate her way to the quarantine zones.

I don't believe I will share the exact details with you, He answered. But suffice to say, it was a torturous place where the righteous sects of the time bound their most vilest villains for all of their remaining lifetime.

What does that have to do with this?

If such a place still existed, then this Devil-Snaring Heavenly Vine would not entirely be out of place with it's horrors.


"So, good news." Victor said, standing over a team of four other centurions including Xiao Yingzi and several legionnaires in sealed armor. "Yingzi can easily produce enough lightning to save as many as fifty patients in a day."

"And what's the bad news?" A young legionnaire from the first heavenstage asked fearfully.

"She has shit control," He replied, inclining his head at her as an apology. "She can shape it, aim it and generally use it in combat but there is no way she isn't going to fry all of you if we let her apply her lightning directly."

"Ah..." A legionnaire from the seventh heavenstage stopped before he said anything more, instead looking around at his peers in sudden understanding.

"Yes," Victor confirmed. "We are going to be doing exposure testing again so that we can refine the arrays to deliver the lightning for us."

"Why can't we simply use the configurations for heavenly tribulation?" A curious junior asked. "We are using her lighting because they are identical, aren't they?"

While your lightning mimics heaven's will, it is in the end only a mimicry summoned from your memory of facing the tribulation yourself. Elder Teleos explained in her mind. In the end, it is your will alone that powers it creating properties a touch different from the real thing.

Victor glanced at Xiao Yingzi who nodded and stood up. "My lightning only mimics heavenly tribulation." She explained, shortening the Elder's explanation. "It's good enough for the vine but not good enough for our arrays."

"Hopefully that satisfies any questions." Victor replied, glancing at everyone in the room before nodding. "We should move on to discussing implementation now. With Xiao Yingzi available and willing, we can simplify a few aspects of the original tests as we won't have to deal with actual tribulation lightning…."


There were many legionnaires who weren't affected yet but had come into contact with individuals who had been touched by the wine. As such, they were quarantined within arrays that sealed them from each other as a bored centurion watched over them. In comparison to the tense, determined atmosphere where she worked and the clinical bustle of the infected wing, the quarantine was much more relaxed.

Though separated, many of the legionnaires seemed to have gotten used to it. Some seemed to be taking it as something of a vacation and getting to know each other. Though they were held in separate arrays, someone had managed to create a rudimentary communications line using strings and cups. They seemed to be connecting to each other with the amusing method of asking the centurion to move the cups.

A few were cultivating or working out, using resources provided to them by the legion while they were trapped here and others were still working, taking up administrative tasks or composing articles for the Contribution Boards as a method to gain some extra contribution points and perhaps push their cultivation forward. It was one particular such legionnaire going through paperwork with an annoyed look on her face that got Xiao Yingzi's attention.

There was very little of the ever-present haze in the quarantine but a lot of it was concentrated on a few key individuals with the woman being the one with the thickest haze around her. "When did she get brought in?" She quietly asked the centurion, pointing towards the woman who had caught her attention.

"She's been here for a week I think," The centurion replied, looking at her curiously. "I think she was directly exposed to the vine from her friends. Only a matter of time once she progresses to full infection."

Hmmm. Xiao Yingzi nodded at her in thanks before leaving the area. There was one more area that she felt she had to see.


"Is there a reason you asked me to bring you here?" Victor asked, as he led her to a section of the headquarters that only a few select centurions had permission to enter in. One section of the headquarters had been transformed into a laboratory to directly study the demon-snaring vine.

Xiao Yingzi nodded. "I wanted to see the plant in the final stage of its growth." The stage where it began to take over the bodies of the dead and puppet them in order to seek out more victims.

They are strong. Elder Teleos remarked, as they watched the corpse-puppet of a fallen cultivator trying to smash it's way through an array. A centurion was studying it carefully with a jade slip in his hands recording his thoughts. Or rather, they are tough. Looks like they might be quite dangerous to cultivators within the same small realm.

"How good are their healing capabilities?" Xiao Yingzi asked, grimacing as the corpse's fists were beginning to heal even as it hurt itself in its attempts to escape.

"It depends upon how much energy they have stored up." He replied, shaking his head. "They have a baseline durability and recovery that I'd go as far as to compare to our own clan's bloodline but besides that, they seem to be able to recover from enough damage very quickly by expending all of their energy."

That would make them particularly dangerous when combined with our clan's bronze skin. Teleos mused, some unvoiced suspicion in his mind. It all seems primed to go horribly in the worst possible way, but it hasn't. Xiao Yingzi, could you ask the boy for the number of casualties?

Xiao Yingzi looked around the room counting almost a dozen corpse-puppets before glancing back at Victor. "How many casualties have there been?" She asked him.

"None so far." He replied, a hint of pride in his voice. Smiling at her surprise, he further explained why. "Legate Seneca's Dao of Preservation may not be the best at healing, but he excels at ensuring that the patients survive until proper treatment can be provided. Most of the corpse puppets here are the recently dead we purposely infected for testing purposes."

Interesting. Sensing her curiosity, he simply shared a titbit of his thoughts. I have a worrying suspicion but so far it's just that. If it seems more likely, I'll fill you in. Until then, focus on what's before you.

Xiao Yingzi nodded and looked at the corpses carefully, narrowing her eyes as she tried to find the thing that she came here for. ""Do you have some sort of array active that fills the air with shimmering qi?" Xiao Yinzi asked Victor, looking at that same phenomenon within the arrays of the corpse-puppets. "This is everywhere here and seems to correspond with the vine."

Immediately, Victor turned towards her and began to stare at her intently. "How long have you been seeing this?" He asked her urgently.

"Since I arrived?" Xiao Yingzi said, frowning. "Are you thinking this is the vector for infection?"

"That's what you were thinking, weren't you?" Victor asked, giving her a considering look. "That's why you've been looking at facilities and why you asked me to bring you here." Xiao Yingzi nodded and he sighed. "Do you have any treasures or techniques that enhance your spiritual sight?"

Xiao Yingzi nodded and handed over her Soul Farseer, which he also took a few moments to examine. "It is attuned to me," She explained after he began to frown. "It wouldn't work for you unless I was slain or separated from me for an unknown amount of time."

He nodded in understanding. "If something like this comes up again, don't wait to confirm things. Let me or someone else in charge know immediately." He said, his voice pitched like an order. She nodded quickly. "I'll need you to come with me now."

Xiao Yingzi frowned. "Where to?"

"We need to go see Legate Seneca."

Xiao Yingzi nodded and followed as he quickly left.


"Ah, my favorite centurions." Legate Seneca said, as they approached him in his lab. He was studying a sample of the parasite within a microscope when they found him. "Excellent work with the cure. We may well be able to put the water back into the gourd with this."

"Legate Seneca," Victor began formally, causing the Legate to look up at him. "I believe we've found how the parasite propagates."

The Legate had been only barely paying attention to them, more focused on the vine piece in front of him. But as soon as he heard the last line, he stood up straight and looked at him intently. "Report then." He replied, giving the man his full attention.

"Xiao Yingzi seems to have discovered what she describes as a shimmer that seems to match with an increase in parasite activity." He said, nodding at her. "Extenuating circumstances seem to be a device known as a Soul-Farseer that sharpens her spiritual vision."

The Legate turned to her. "Describe this shimmer to me, please?"

She did so, and when the Legate was satisfied he took her to the patient's hall-way and told her to describe it again but from several angles. Then she had to repeat those observations after closing her eyes or covering her ears as well as several other combinations of senses. Though she wasn't certain of the reasoning behind it, she did as he asked.

Finally, he nodded at her. "We'll be heading to the quarantine next."

And so they repeated the process at several sites and the entire time, he was staring at her intently. Finally, they returned to his lab and the Legate finally delivered his conclusion. "Spores." He said, grimacing in disgust.

"That shouldn't be possible." Victor replied, frowning at the Legate. "My sensory arrays should have found them, even if they were microscopic. "

The Legate shook his head. "As always, you focus too deeply on the physical." He told him, causing Victor to sigh. "The spores seem to be invisible to the naked eye, employing a technique that allows them to travel unseen." He nodded at Xiao Yingzi. "The shimmer and haze that she caught was the minute amounts of qi being released into the air."

Xiao Yingzi frowned. "Wouldn't you have been able to perceive it in some way, sir?"

"Normally, yes but the parasite's qi seems to naturally shield itself against those cursed by heaven." He replied, shaking his head. "I certainly would have found it in time but it required your rather unique heavenly dao to perceive it quickly."

"Sir," Victor cut in, frowning slightly. "This couldn't have happened naturally."

Legate Seneca sighed. "No, it couldn't." He agreed. "In fact, if Xiao Yingzi didn't happen to be here or if I didn't happen to have my particular Dao, there could have been a lot of casualties among the legionnaires."

Ugh, so my feeling was right. Elder Teleos moaned in her mind. This feels like the work of these three arrogant seniors we needed to fight back when I was alive. What did they call themselves again? Ah yes, 'The Fates.'

Is there any chance that they might still be active? Xiao Yingzi asked urgently.

Impossible. He answered immediately, but then he paused to consider it. At least, I feel like it would be phenomenally unlikely. Even if they could come to the Third Sea, they wouldn't be able to survive here.

Right. Xiao Yingzi wondered for a second where in the Third Sea the use of divination and such rare diseases interected. "Noble Knowledge Sect?" She asked out loud.

Her guess was proven true when the Legate was suddenly looking towards her with surprise, his head moving faster than her eyes could follow. "So you were definitely a target as well." He replied, sighing.

Oh no.

"Sir?" She asked, letting a touch of confusion enter her voice. Xiao Yingzi tried to make sense of the discussion occurring in front of her.

He just recently became a Legate and gained a Legion, didn't he? Elder Teleos explained. This was a greeting from a former rival. A test to see if he was just as good as before and if he was, a renewal of hostilities.

"A rival?" She continued, transitioning smoothly.

Victor frowned between them. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I follow?"

The Legate nodded. "Before your time, back when I had just become a centurion I clashed with a member of the Noble Knowledge Sect." He explained. "Our rivalry fell off as she passed me in cultivation and now that I've reached the same level as her, I suspect she is hoping to renew hostilities."

"And what does this have to do with Xiao Yingzi?" He asked, frowning.

"Given my importance to solving this particular mystery, he likely suspects she has some designs on me as well." Xiao Yingzi said, cutting in. "Isn't that right, Legate Seneca?"

He nodded. "And seeing how eerily you are guessing things, I suspect I can grasp why she found you interesting. Perhaps she has a junior she sees pairing welel with you?" He said, the last part directed as much to himself as her. Then he focused on her completely. "After the trials, you should study under me. I'll teach you what I can."

We'll have to up your training too. Elder Teleos grumbled. I'm not letting some junior with a mastermind complex take my project from under me.

Xiao Yingzi bowed in thanks, while sending a sense of appreciation to her Elder. "What about now? Do you need me to cooperate with identifying the spores?"

"I am also available, Legate Seneca." Victor added, bowing alongside her.

He smiled and shook his head. "You two are needed to continue making the cure." He replied. "Besides, now that I know what I'm dealing with..." He looked down at his microscope before conjuring a lens from somewhere - an array or storage ring - that he placed at its end. "A Dao-deceiving lens should do the trick."

"Right," Victor added, looking at both Xiao Yingzi and the Legate. "Will there be anything else, sir?"

He shook his head, looking back into the microscope. "Thank you for your work, you two. I'll make sure that you are properly rewarded. Until then, please. Return to your stations."

Seeing the dismissal, both Xiao Yingzi and Victor bowed once more before leaving the room. Even with this done, they still had a lot of work ahead of them in ensuring the output of a cure.


I need methods to deal with this. Xiao Yingzi thought to herself when she had a spare moment to think. We cannot be caught in a serious trap like this.

Diviners Elder Teleos said in disgust. I despise diviners. They are vexing in the extreme.

Is counter-divination something that is possible? Xiao Yingzi asked him.

They exist. He replied. There was a moment of silence before he continued. You will have rather potent counter-divination abilities in some time but not in centuries if things stay on track.

Xiao Yingzi's mind went to Senior Corvina who was seer and likely had access to divination arts. Would learning divination myself be useful as a valid counter here?

Bah. The Elder said. Learning divination to counter divination is the Taurus way. I suppose it can be effective but it isn't something I have much skill in.

Then how did you protect against divination? She asked instead, resolving to look into divination in her own time. She had hoped to once, before all her time was focused upon cultivation.

My Dao of Perfection lent itself well to employing the items infused with the Dao of others. Elder Teleos replied. I could shroud things with obscuring darkness or a purging light that blinded any who looked upon me. My favored was a gourd infused with dice with a Dao of Freedom. It would shake with my every movement and introduce enough randomness into my Fate that predicting me became difficult.

Xiao Yingzi sighed as he listed the possibilities. Nothing that will work for me without a Dao? She asked with a sigh.

No, nothing yet. He replied glumly. There are certainly techniques and items that may help you but you will have to seek them out yourself.

As you say, Elder. She replied, considering things. Are there any mundane methods that might help me here?

There are several things, He replied. But many of them hamper you in methods you likely wouldn't find acceptable. Not commiting to a decision might ward off certain forms of divination but it would certainly have an impact on your daily life and wouldn't work for all methods besides.

Xiao Yingzi sighed once more. Not having power is frustrating.

It usually is. Elder Teleos agreed. But we work with what we have.

A/N: Probably not my best work and I definitely wanted to add more build-up and things, but I'm tired of writing this plot so just added it as it was. It will be more fun to move on to other things.

Manuel had been plagued by thoughts of how to spend his precious free time. Patrolling the Jingshen border had potential, but in the end he'd simply infused his Dao into a few tablets and had a few Foundation Establishment lads carry them up and down around the border. The sort of irritating little things that grated at one's Dao-sense, and were clearly and obviously tricks to prevent you from striking back. Of course, that was exactly the kind of trick he was known for using to disguise the fact he was lying in wait, so it as always became a contest between Old Jingshen's cowardice and his need to retaliate.

The other man likely was simply waiting to be able push one of his juniors into Nascent Soul, on which he'd come over the border no matter the justification he had at hand. Striking back and potentially losing now, or winning with certainty later? Even Manuel would've taken the latter. Biting into the Jingshen margin didn't revoke their advantage, slowing down a victory was no victory at all. The third Jingshen Nascent Soul had been something to fear before Old Cannibal had been driven out, now it was a thing that kept him perpetually on edge.

In the end, he had yielded to Destasia's exhortation to 'come see the fine disciples she was raising'.

He had been worried.

Desperately so, in fact. He had been certain he was going to see young Golden Devils with scorpion pincers replacing their hands, three or four disciples stitched together to maximise Qi, and probably a cohort of bat cavalry somewhere, despite the fact he had declined funding for bat cavalry no less than eight times over the last forty years.

Instead, when he returned to the new cohort of Aspirants at the Dawn Fortress, he found a number of young men and women he could be proud of. Worried, admittedly, but proud of taking the first step away from mortality. The first step to challenging the fate that bound them all to ruin and despair.

He smiled, and spoke.

"A fine crop of Aspirants this year. Elder Duca tells me you are some of the finest she has seen in years."

No need to let them know Destasia said that every year as a reason why she should be granted more funding for her nonsensical Legionnaire Catapult idea. Rapid deployment had its limits, after all.

It had been a very long time since he had lectured to juniors.

Still, he played the initial part. Standing imposingly in the sky, rocketing off after a few words had been said. Engraving the heights of cultivation in the eyes of the latest Aspirants, so they might one day surpass him.

As was tradition, he left tickets for a lecture that could be purchased on the Contribution Board - for the hardest-working Aspirants. A simple use of his spiritual sense to scout out the meridians of the new Aspirants, giving them assistance in cycling Qi and racing through Qi Condensation a little faster.

This year, though, he would be focusing on others.

Kinslaughterer had taught him a valuable lesson. He could not expect his juniors to simply be avoided as was tradition. With the birth of a new era and new talents rising, he had offered three new lectures to some of the greatest talents in the Clan. From Qi Condensation to Foundation Establishment, those who entered his lecture had paid dearly in Contribution Points proportional to their levels, and for those who wished to enter without having shown great accomplishments already, a simple test was posed.

The Skin-Scouring Searing Fire Ants were a series of ants who simply caused pain. No more, no less. The mortals who were bitten by them tended to tear the skin and flesh off entirely, such was the pain. A plague, they were hunted down wherever they were found, though exceedingly carefully. The mission to retrieve a hundred thousand of them had been very well remunerated.

Anybody who wished to enter his series of lectures was forced to endure twelve hours in a pit of them.

In former years he might have sought to raise up every talent a little, to give all a boost across the board and see what came of it. Now, though, with the Trials coming, he felt it was better to raise the talents of the greatest.

In the end he gathered a group of eleven hundred. One thousand and forty seven in Qi Condensation, and fifty-three in Foundation Establishment.

There were tremendous talents there, and even among the untalented there were great wills.

He had gathered them before the Dawn Fortress, and spoke, sitting cross-legged in the air above them. A little ostentatious, but it ensured their attention. Besides, being lectured by a Nascent Soul... you expected to see the powers of the old monsters you only really knew about by hearsay. It would serve as a small treat to preface the misery to come.

"In a little over a decade, the Trials put before us will arrive. I do not doubt that one in five of you who stand here today will be dead after them, for all your talent. You are ill-prepared, though better prepared than we were a century ago."

He inclined his head.

"You will have heard tales. A few of you will have lived through those times. The Clan suffered, and then came the good times. Conquest and growth, new mines and new talents rising up. New relationships with the Righteous Path. Some of you have even travelled into the Great Battlefield, and not been killed on sight for the colour of your skin and hair. The Optimatoi suffered greatly that you could rise."

He alighted on the ground gently, and smiled. He had spent years working on this particular smile. It was cherubic and gentle, the sort of smile that told the onlooker all things would be all right, and they would be cared for, safe.

"Now you will suffer so that the Clan may rise."

There were three lectures, each designed to push the young cultivators to their limits.

The first began immediately.

"Body, soul, and Dao. The true trinity of things, connected by Qi. These are tiresome truths you should know already, but I lecture on them merely to frame what is to come. How are the three interlinked? Nobody I have ever met knows the full truth of things, but an old man's ramblings might shed a little light."

"Qi is of course the fundamental building block of the universe, as we all know. Heavenly tribulation is opposed by Qi, bodies are strengthened by it, souls are enhanced, Dao-arts are made possible. Qi is the energy of all things, and the motive force that drives reality. It is formless until given form, shapeless until carved into shape. Without it nothing is possible, but with Qi alone nothing can be done."

He took a breath.

"Firstly we come to the truth of the Body. The Body is the physical, the thing formed and shaped by the Law."

He felt a vague displeasure in the skies above him. His understanding of the Laws of Heaven and Earth was miniscule at best, and even cloaked as he was... No, better not to reveal more secrets.

"Each of your bodies obeys gravity, for the most part. It falls to the ground when lifted in the air. It is constantly pulled down by gravity, and obeys many other laws. You cannot simply will your body to move."

As if to refute his own words, Manuel rose up in the air again.

"There is a reason cultivation is the path that it is. First the body, then building the Dao, then forming the Dao, then discarding the Dao and then comes the soul. Other paths may differ, but no path I have ever heard of ignores that the body must come first. The ability of the body to channel and use Qi is the heart of all things. If you do not expel impurities, your meridians and dantian are full of muck and are useless. If you do not cleanse your acupoints, you cannot bear a thousandth of the Qi you will need to advance into Foundation Establishment. If you do not open your meridians in truth, you will never amount to much. Aligning the body with Qi is the first task of any cultivator."

He descended to the ground.

"I cannot solve all your problems, nor do I intend to. Still, one of the greatest problems of any cultivator is exploring where the true limits of your body lie. The hairsbreadth between where you exert the maximum power and your meridians burst, leaving you crippled and mortal. For most, they simply excavate nine-tenths of their power, and eventually another nine-tenths of what remains. Today, we will be reaching your absolute limit. It will be a small increase in power, but a real one."

This was difficult. He split his focus, feeling the Qi flood across the world. Even a Core Formation elder could not do this, except for someone in the lowest reaches of Qi Condensation. Most Nascent Souls couldn't either, but this particular exercise had been a speciality of his. When you were as weak as he had been, finding even another one percent of power had meant a lot.

"Circulate your Qi. Slowly increasing from your normal amount, you are to fill your dantian to bursting, channel as much as you can through your meridians. Continue increasing the amount. You will feel pain, you will feel as though you are about to shatter and die. If you stop before I stop you, you will be dismissed from the lecture and may not return."

It began. Slowly they increased their Qi circulation, Manuel feeling out each one. After a time, he stopped some of the Qi Condensation juniors, and after some more time several of the Foundation experts.

"Again. Once I stop you, begin again, but closer to the limit I stopped you at. If you stop before I stop you, will be dismissed from the lecture and may not return."

By the end of six hours the juniors were in agony, the constant maximum flow of Qi through their meridians enough to leave them in constant pain, but undamaged. It would not serve to widen their meridians or increase their power, but finding that little extra flow of Qi, the pain that could be safely endured without crippling oneself was an incredibly dangerous endeavour - but worthwhile. They would forevermore retain that sense, another tenth of a percent in power over the long-term compared to other experts of the same cultivation. More importantly, it was an edge that could not be sensed or known - the disciples would feel like ordinary cultivators of the same realm, but be just a little stronger. A tiny edge was not much, but a tiny secret edge could be quite worthwhile.

Three hundred had washed out, leaving him with eight hundred or so.

The next day he lectured again.

"The next lecture is simpler. The Soul is the thing that understands and comprehends, the thing that understands the Dao and pursues truth. It does not obey physical laws for the most part, and once coupled with sufficient understanding of the Dao and Qi can exert its will on the world. The thing we tend to think of as the Soul, though is the connection between Soul and Body. If broken, the body is killed and the Soul goes elsewhere, though I cannot say where. This is the truth of the Nascent Will. It snaps the connection between Soul and Body, leaning on the understanding a Nascent Soul has of that same connection."

He looked down at those who remained.

"For our second lecture, I will be strumming on that connection, as though a string on a lyre. Your job is to try and replicate that feeling after I do so. It will be unpleasant and dizzying. For those with the patience, even a Qi Condensation disciple can develop that feeling into an effective suicide art to prevent interrogation. I will disrupt the connection between soul and body three times over three weeks. At the end of the month, if you cannot replicate the feeling, my experience has taught me you are unlikely to do so. If you can succeed, we will proceed to the final lesson."

This was simpler. Unpleasant for all involved - the searing pain of removing soul from body was the entirety of Nascent Soul cultivation, and even the tiniest sliver of that tended to leave lower realm cultivators vomiting and dizzy for days afterwards.

Three times he came, and on the third week he left for a week, meditating and hoping many of the disciples could master it.

In the end, he was pleasantly surprised. Two hundred and thirteen remained, a number far larger than he had hoped for.

The third lecture was shorter.

"You now know how to manipulate the connection between your soul and body the tiniest amount. For those who have stepped through the 12th Heavenstage, your connection is many times stronger, a pure link between soul and body. This is why you mastered this art in hours instead of weeks. Some of you may have come to it on your own."

"Now we come to the simplest truth. You who remain are among our greatest talents, and recent events have shown me that you are not immune to the assault of a Nascent Soul. While you cannot hope to survive a serious attack without protection, you might preserve your life for a few key seconds, or perhaps resist a mass-scale attack on an army. To assist you with this, I will be bringing your soul-connections to the breaking point. This will challenge not only your manipulation of your soul as previously taught, but also your will. Without sufficient will to persist, your connection between body and soul will shatter, and you will die. I cannot teach you to resist such attacks without truly threatening you with death. My blows will be at the absolute limit of what you can endure, and if you are not confident in the strength of your will, simply leave. I will not hold it against you."

A hundred and fifty stayed, then.

Manuel launched an assault on them all, feeling his will coil around the tenuous links they had between Soul and Body, and clenched, bringing them all to the brink of death. To endure a tenth of the pain a Nascent Soul endured every day. He knew rising into Nascent Soul had been, in retrospect, the last truly enjoyable day of his life. Core Formation offered certainty and a path to follow. A Nascent Soul traded an absolute sense of purpose for relentless uncertainty and ceaseless pain. If it were not for the power, no fool would ever choose to advance.

They all collapsed, vomiting and screaming, one clawing at his eyes, others catatonic.

"I will return in three months. Those who truly wish to follow down this path, come see me then."

Sixty-four remained in the end. A good number, higher than he had hoped for.

Manuel strode out in front of them.

"Final chance to leave."

None of them spoke, and he exerted his will once more.

It would be worse, this time.

Much worse. The pain would be indescribable, and he suspected one or two would be driven mad by this. A few would live only to revenge themselves upon him, and would need to be put down. The first one died - a Foundation Establishment lad, his body going limp as the connection with his Soul shattered. Having your skin peeled off with a knife would be a mere pleasant tickle compared to this. He had been tortured when captured once in Qi Condensation, a sadistic Blood Path expert drawing out a nerve from under the skin and using needles and flensing knives to cut at it, and that pain paled compared to what his juniors would be feeling now.

The torture continued for three hours. Holding them on the edge of death, only their indomitable will able to prevent the dissolution of their self. The connection so tenuous they would not be able to see through their own eyes, hear with their ears, kept in a bubble of complete darkness and sensory isolation except for the relentless stabbing, carving, burning pain.

Four died, in the end. Two driven mad entirely. One spoke only of himself in the third person, unable to associate his body with his person any more. One had flung himself at Manuel, trying to kill him again and again until he had been sedated. Hopefully he would recover.

The remainder stood uneasily after a few days, waking up one by one. Some of them patted the bodies down in relief, others looked confused and dismayed, unable to properly command their legs and arms for hours or even days.

He spoke to them, as they looked on him with terror and hatred in equal parts.

"This will assist you in resisting soul attacks in future."

It would be more than that. Strengthening that connecting would make it easier for them to rise into the 12th Heavenstage, and for those who had advanced beyond it, the souls arts they could use would be strengthened as well. Another permanent boost, though one that came at a true cost. Normally he would not winnow the disciples like this, but something... something said that in coming years it would be needed.

He smiled.

"You have experienced the tiniest sliver of Nascent Soul cultivation. If you truly seek to climb the heights to immortality, this is the price you must pay."

With that, he flew off to seclude himself. To cultivate. He loathed it as much as ever, but duty demanded what it demanded. He etched a few images and names in his mind before he began, seeking to ensure he remembered every young cultivator who had endured all of his lectures. No Nascent Souls had risen after him, but if one of them were to arise from the cohort he had tempered, perhaps it would be worth doing again in future.

Despite the cost.

The training courtyard's been getting gradually busier since the sun came up. That isn't the problem, exactly – Maria's spent most of her life on public training fields – but it's full of chatter too, today, and that does get to her. Legate Foslia had policies about this sort of thing, and the 263rd​ trained silently when they could, or silently if they couldn't. Minimized distractions and built discipline. Also made the constant background noise of inane conversational bullshit ten times worse. Still. Maybe that's good. Maybe the extra pressure will help.


At least, that's what Maria thinks first. Then some bastard wonders out loud to one of his friends if she's single, and the mortification sends the tiny spinning spark between her hands sky-rocketing. Then she's very much in the Legate's camp, and also short an eyebrow.

"Fuck."

Nameless gives him serene smile #47, "mild concern."

"Are you alright?"

She waves him off.

" 's nothing. Lost concentration." She shoots a glare over her shoulder. A longhaired Flood Dragon reddens and looks away, his friends jeering at him in good-natured affection. Gods, she wants to beat him senseless for that. But no. She has better things to do. "Try that again…"


The technique is supposedly simple, as is the manual – 'on the nature of the flame' – she'd found it in. Fire was, first and foremost, a process; the transformation of fuel into ashes, releasing energy as it did so. Thus, any would-be pyromancer needed to understand that process before they could move on to anything else.

Hence, 'the contemplation of the single point.' Burn air in a tiny space, and only a tiny space. Cycle your qi, radiate it in a tight thread between your hands, and then spiral it right in the middle. That part isn't too difficult. She'd learnt harder in the Dawn Fortress. What is difficult is the lens. You were supposed to be learning how the process worked, after all. Couldn't just be focusing on your qi circulation. So you also had to pull off a secondary thread circling the spiral, which was also flatter and broader, to bend the light and magnify the burning air. And THEN you were supposed to watch the spark as it burnt, and meditate on that, while also maintaining the technique.

…She takes it back. It's not simple. It's fiddly as the Imperator's own sainted balls, and she hates it. But it's all she has, and she's short on alternatives.


"Slow your breathing a little, this time," suggests Nameless. He's moving through a slow kata next to her, something complex and kick-y. It's weirdly soothing to watch. "Perhaps that will help."

"Tried that already," she mutters back. "No good. Primary Qi thread doesn't travel fast enough."

"You could deepen the breaths? Try it in double time?"

"Secondary flow might get too fast. Can't alter it either, the magnification's complicated enough as it is. Fuck. This is a beginner's technique?"

Nameless turns slowly, balanced on the ball of one foot.

"It does seem a little complex. You're sure the manual was… correct?"

"Yeah. Three other ones in the library referenced it. Real big deal."


She gives a frustrated hiss and starts again, slowly. Calm. Start with calm. Slow, easy breaths, not a care in the world.

(She hates this part too, for all she's gotten good at it; meditation requires a stillness and absence of thought her mind is not inclined to reach.)

Then starts to cycle. In breath. Out breath. In breath. Out breath. Her qi is like water, flowing through her. Finds the currents, the streams, the rivers.

In breath. Out breath. In breath. Out breath. Now direct. She does not control them, any more than she controls her arms or legs; they are merely her, and thus they follow as she dictates. Runs them up, slowly, through her biceps. Down her arms. Through her palms. Out, slowly, through the warm air, to meet and interweave.

Easy, now. Easy. In breath. Out breath. In breath. Out breath. In that weave, where tiny capillaries of qi twist and shiver and dance, set them spiraling. Twist, but gently, slowly, until at last, at the very nadir…

Phwomph

The air combusts. A spark, as qi takes on its own nature, and fire is born.


Step one. Good. She allows herself the briefest flicker of satisfaction, then reaches for the next step. The woven stream splits again, further back. Slow. Sloooooooow.

In breath. Out breath. In breath. Out breath.

Let the new off-shoot run gracefully through the air, orbiting the little flame. Down, back through the main flow, and out again. Around. Slowly. Slowly. Until at last, the ring is whole. She lets herself slip towards its edges, draw it out, flatten it.

In breath. Out breath. In breath. Out breath.

The ring stretches, tightens, broadens, and is ready.

She opens her eyes, slowly. Between her hands, she can see her little spark, burning merrily away as she watches, magnified to the size of an apple between her hands.


So far so good. Now for the hard part. She lets her eye focus on the flame. The light is sharp and white, searing painfully in her retinas. She lets it register and slide past, not ignoring it so much as putting it aside. It's not important. The fire is. Feels the qi building heat, packing the air tighter and tighter, dragging against itself, tension growing, growing, growing. Watches the release, at last, as the spark splits it all apart, spitting light and warmth and fire up to disperse it.

Action. Reaction. Tension. Release. Force and counterforce, dancing back and forth around her single point.


There's something here. Something important. She knows it. But what?


Flare of frustration strikes at her calm, wobbles her breathing. The spark flickers. She breathes. Lets the stillness reassert itself as the coiling anger dies.

In breath. Out breath. In breath. Out breath.

Keeps going. The spark rises again…


"Captain?"

And goes out with a pfut, spitting up smoke. Her qi flows fracture immediately, running in all directions but these new, unfamiliar contortions she's dragged them through.

Maria bites back a curse, and looks up. Cecilia wilts under her glare.

"I- Sorry, I thought-" she babbles. "Were you busy?"

"New technique," Maria growls. Then catches herself. No. Captains don't snap at soldiers just because they're having a bad day. "What do you need?"

"Sergeant said to come find you," said Cecilia, still a little tentative. "Centurion's mustering the officers."


A little flicker of interest runs through her at that. This could be interesting. She nods.

"Where?"

"Courtyard nine."

"Good. Tell Draconis I'll meet him there."


Nameless shoots her serene smile #23, 'amused affection.'

"Running off already."

"Orders is orders."

"And so perfectly timed! Such luck."

She gives a half-grin.

"Sometimes, even a devil can catch a break. Same again tomorrow?"

"Certainly."

---

The 263rd​ were split up across nine of the Wards on the Fearless Line. Legate Foslia was up on Dragon, and the First Centurion held the Dreaming Foothill, which left Myron as commanding officer. Maria's had worse. Gaiarados in particular sprang to mind. Took a special kind of commander to beat the actual traitor.


"Squad's on call," mutters Draconis. "Armed and armoured."

"Rested?"

"Yes. Group cultivation finished up before the order came through."

"Good."

"Any idea what this is about?"

She shrugs.

"Could be a lot of things."

"Yes," says Draconis, with a hint of irritation, "but given you have a friend in tactical…"

"Letha's said nothing."


There are five or six other captains in the courtyard, and a handful of sergeants. A few dozen hushed mutterings are going back and forth. They all have that look to them – the one she'd started noticing a lot on her clansmen's faces. A combination of wariness and excitement. Something uniquely Optimatoi about it. We don't know what's coming, but we will meet it, and watch it die on our shields.

She likes that look. Maybe she's wearing it, too.


A low whoosh-clack signals the sliding doors being pushed aside, and Myron enters, face still dogged by tiredness. He doesn't bother with the formalities.

"All here?"

A chorus of affirmatives.

"Good."

He closes the doors and turns back.

"Mission," he says shortly. "Big one. We're going to be heading it, so no fucking about, alright?"

"Yes centurion."

"There's another caravan coming through. A big one. We think perhaps seven to eight hundred mortals and a few minor cultivators, none of any real relevance. Under normal circumstances, we'd be following procedure – the scouts and forward units would provide escort, and the ward would fortify for an assault when they got close. However, today we have a VIP."

Myron hands around a dozen jade slips. Captains and sergeants take them, use them, pass them on.

"That," says Myron, "is Wu Diao Shi. Not a cultivator herself, at least not yet, but the latest scion of a local clan. Her claim to fame is the worst luck I've ever seen since the Mountain Bell found out the Myia could hold a tune. The clan's blood is particularly potent when consumed. Worse, with preparation, it becomes even moreso."


The room groans.

"Quite. As you can imagine, getting Ms Shi safely behind our lines is something of a priority. Which is where we come in. As soon as the briefing is done, our array engineers are reinforcing every damn wall in this fortress. It needs to be good, and it needs to be self-sustaining. Our budget's been increased, so don't skimp. And be fast, because then you're going out beyond the line. Temporary fortifications are to be built at one mile intervals from here to the Green Road. Combatants, you'll be going with them. A squad will station at each fortification once it's finished to build them up further, and be ready for an assault. The caravan will move past each fortification towards the ward. We will hold off pursuit for as long as reasonable, then fall back to the previous fort, then the one before that, and so on until we reach the ward."

"What about the other forces?" asks Maria. Myron nods.

"Good question. One third will remain here to hold the ward. Another will travel ahead at the direction of the forward units to harass and distract the enemy, falling back once the caravan is sufficiently protected. The final third is the Flood Dragons and associates. They'll be serving as reinforcements for us on the fortifications."

There's quiet mutters of approval at that. Rolling reinforcements from the Righteous can sometimes mysteriously find themselves lost or delayed when needed. At least the Flood Dragons can be relied on to show up.

Draconis has just gotten a jade slip. His face goes leaden.


"Finally," says Myron, "the caravan itself. As can only be expected, Ms Shi has attracted a great deal of attention. As a result, her escort has taken heavy casualties. They've rotated in fresh bodies, but the situation being what it is availability is limited. Given the expected assault, that has to be remedied. Every sect is offering up what it can."

Maria knows where this is going already. Myron's going to ask for volunteers. It'd be stupid, were they anyone else but Golden Devils – as is, he can assume he'll get them. She likes that. Normally, she'd put herself forward, but the squad is still green as hell, and while they're good, she's not sure she'd bet on them for a vanguard deployment.

She takes the jade slip from Draconis, and feeds a trickle of qi into it. Then Wu Diao Shi's face appears.

A child's face. Four. Five at most. Hair (black, thick, neatly combed) falling down to a dead straight fringe, from which her little brown eyes peak curiously. Maria's breath catches in her throat.


She thinks of the mortal casualties she'd seen so far. The teethmarks they'd found on the bodies, and far worse besides.


The words are unbidden. It takes all she has to catch them in her mouth, and turn to look at Draconis. He nods once. She lets go.
"I volunteer."

---

@ReaderOfFate @Kaboomatic @TehChron , may I have a threadmark please?

My second good seed! I got @Mochinator 's permission before writing this up. Pinging @Kaboomatic @TehChron @ReaderOfFate for a new seed threadmark!



NAME: Auspicious Nine

AGE/LIFESPAN: 4 months/140 Years.

CULTIVATION: First Heavenstage.

HEALTH: Healthy.

COOL THING: Tree-Man (see backstory for details.)


TREASURES:
None.

USED TREASURES:
None.

BACKSTORY: There are many odd creatures that wander the Third Sea, born of the divine power of cultivation and the crucible of the world. Few, however, can be said to be stranger than that great champion of Pleuron, Jin Muyi. The hero's transformation as he recovered from his wounds transformed him into an entirely new form of life; the first demonic tree man to ever exist.

He was not, however, the last.

When Jin Muyi regained consciousness and left the grave/sanctuary of roots and vines he had slept in, some tiny fragment of him was left behind. Not much, admittedly – barely an echo of his qi – but enough. It lay in that cradle, and slowly, it consumed the qi that the root system fed it, the ancient blood of long-dead fifth sea cultivators trickling in drop by drop. It grew. It developed. And then, a hundred years later, it awoke.

Or more accurately, they. From the tree came twelve demonic tree people, new born and very, very confused. They were physically already fully grown, their human aspects seemingly young adults, and they possessed some language skills, but beyond that, nothing. To make things even more complicated, further investigation showed that all of them possessed the blood of bronze to some degree or another, albeit mutated to a massive degree.

The twelve were, to begin with, protected and cared for by Pleuron's governing family. There, their personalities started to emerge. Of them, Auspicious Nine was the first to go out into the wider world. A curious, clever young entity, he devoured every book he could get his hands on. Having completed his studies, he decided to do the only thing that made sense.

And joined the clan. Right before the trials.

Yeah, his definition of sense is… flexible…


IN-PLAY HISTORY:
NONE

OMAKE (1893 words overall total)

TURN 10: (1487 words total)
The March of Progress (858 words)
Decision Making: The Demon Tree's Perspective (629 words)

TURN 11: (406 words current total)
Further Ruminations of Progress (406 words)