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

Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
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[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)

As Ted Lasso put it, "Be curious, not judgmental."
 
Biyu is almost certainly talented and she has expectations as a clan member. How do these options reflect as useful career paths while still being in line with her character? I would see Wanderlust either as a diplomatic envoy like LQ or a traveling merchant like BQ. Heights are much more open-ended and she could aim to be a diplomat, painter, crafter, warrior or just about any profession that suits her bubbly personality.

I'm going with Heights because it is the responsible path but also not too restrictive in application.
 
Personally I'm thinking of this vote mostly in terms of how major a character Biyu will be. Will she be off wandering, or staying closer to home? Since I like the opportunity Yrs has set up for Biyu to be a major character, I'd rather she stayed closer to home.

There's also the fact that LQ's dreams and ambitions are more aligned with vote one than vote two, at least at this point. That's another reason to go with palaces over wanderlust for me.

Edit: also just a reminder, y'all, there's a voting moratorium for another 25 minutes. No voting!
 
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A traveling cultivation painter who goes out and sees the world, and captures it's beauty and majesty on canvas is really damn cool for a character idea.
 
Showing someone what it's like at the top and what it takes to get there doesn't inherently mean that's going to be what they dedicate themselves to. I imagine a lot of kids would reconsider their dream to be the president/an astronaut/a firefighter one day if you showed them how much work the job actually entails. I doubt it'd make her decide to do the exact opposite, since that'd be a really weird effect for a vote in this format to have, but I think assuming that taking one vote over the other is going to determine how far or fast she ascends as opposed to what direction she takes things in is equally silly.
 
Who do we think is coming to the wedding? The Empress being there essentially guarantees every Duchess/Duke will send a delegation. Perhaps every major Sect as well.

Personally I'm interested in seeing if any out of province folk will be interested in meeting LQ or if all of the attention will be directed to CRX.
 
There's already plenty of reason for Biyu to become ambitious, and having her compare herself to the highest of heights and the prodigious pace Ling Qi is likely to maintain is probably not very healthy for her.

A sense of wonder is important on its own, but a wealth of experiences and the desire to seek out more will also make for a really solid base for cultivation when things need to be put on the chopping block as sacrifice for advancement. I really don't see why we would steer her towards pushing too hard too fast, as we've seen plenty of examples for how that can turn out in less than ideal ways. (Remember, LQ is simply build different, and our perspective of healthy, reasonable advancement is hopelessly skewed.)
 
[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)

I love the idea of Ling Biyu being that Cool Aunt to the future Baby-Lings, who travels the world for most of the year and comes home once in a while, bearing stories and souvenirs.
 
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[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)
 
[x] Tsu's great palace, built around a single great branch, living wood and stone and glass, green and serene… (Gives Biyu a dream of the highest places and the striving to reach them)
 
[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)

This option immediately caught my eye. Sounds like the more fun of the two.
 
yrsillar said:
Securing her arm around her sister's waist as she watched the blurring scenery she turned to look at her mother. "How has your leg come along since your last meridian opening attempt?"

Ling Qingge grimaced. "I still receive some pains, but it is only a small ache, like a strained muscle."

"You have made progress. The blockage in the meridian is much broken up. I do think you can flush the majority of the impurity with another attempt," Ling Qi said encouragingly. Li Suyin's impurity cleansing rod was too painful for mother to use, so she was progressing the normal way. Watching her mothers attempts made her appreciate more how absurdly easy opening her earliest meridians had been. She did not know if she could have easily endured having to painfully fail again and again merely to open a single meridian.

Even if she found them much more difficult now, it was trivial to just shut off the sensation around the affected area and sip an elixir while her cycling qi fixed the damage in minutes.

"I suppose I must take your word for it," Mother said. "Perhaps I will try again when you return."
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Qingge cultivating is really rough for her put it's a good thing since it'll improve her health and lifespan.

yrsillar said:
Her little sister crossed her arms and pouted, Ling Qi wisely didn't say a word. Maybe the carriage could be easily cleaned with a good enough scrubbing reagent, but she wasn't about to contradict mother here.
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Not spoling her sister or getting in the way of her mother raising her is goo.d

yrsillar said:
"It is though," Ling Qi said. "It's just very far away. "It's even taller than the mountains back home."

"No! Trees aren't mountains!"

"This one is," Ling Qi said. "And people live on and in it, like beasts and birds do in normal trees. Xiangmen holds them all. More people than Shenglu, or White Cloud, or Tonghou, or even all of them put together."
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Xiangmen is really impressive like that.

yrsillar said:
The Empress would be there after all, if only in simulacrum form. That was one meeting she thankfully would have no part in, being far, far above her head. She felt for Renxiang though, who certainly was going to be moving in those circles during the official ceremonies.
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Being in the presence of the Empress is way way way above LQ's paygrade.

yrsillar said:
"Well, Xiangmen IS the biggest tree. It was where everyone's greatest ancestor, Tsu, hid his family when he fought the bad beasts which ruled the forests a long time ago."

Her sister's head bobbled, even a child heard the basics of that story. "Strongest Grandpa!"

"That's right, Strongest Grandpa Tsu," Ling Qi chuckled, though her mother winced at the disrespectful title, but Biyu was still little. "Well. Xiangmen is the heavenly pillar in the story. It holds up the sky and shelters everyone in it, that's why it's so big after all, and why all of the cultivators like your sister gather there."
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That's hilarious and adorable.

yrsillar said:
"Its roots go alllll the way down into the earth, beyond anyone's sight. Its trunk is wider than a mountain, people live in the big halls winding through it, in homes grown and sung from the living wood. And up at the peak, past the clouds, there are palaces in every shape and color, and countless people among them."

She let just a mote of qi work its way into her words, enhancing them. Biyu nodded absently, eyes distant, clearly seeing the picture painted with her words on the back of half closed eyelids.
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Being able to paint an actual mental picture with her words is cool.


[X] Tsu's great palace, built around a single great branch, living wood and stone and glass, green and serene… (Gives Biyu a dream of the highest places and the striving to reach them)

Want and Ambition is an importnat thing to consider and would take her far.
 
[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)
 
[x] Tsu's great palace, built around a single great branch, living wood and stone and glass, green and serene… (Gives Biyu a dream of the highest places and the striving to reach them)
 
[x] Tsu's great palace, built around a single great branch, living wood and stone and glass, green and serene… (Gives Biyu a dream of the highest places and the striving to reach them)
 
[x] Tsu's great palace, built around a single great branch, living wood and stone and glass, green and serene… (Gives Biyu a dream of the highest places and the striving to reach them)
 
GreenReveal said:
Who do we think is coming to the wedding? The Empress being there essentially guarantees every Duchess/Duke will send a delegation. Perhaps every major Sect as well.

Personally I'm interested in seeing if any out of province folk will be interested in meeting LQ or if all of the attention will be directed to CRX.
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Everyone. A Duchess is getting married. If you're important, you'll be there.
 
[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)
 
Ling clan needs more sovereigns and defenders at home while Qi adventures :V

[X] Tsu's great palace, built around a single great branch, living wood and stone and glass, green and serene… (Gives Biyu a dream of the highest places and the striving to reach them)
 
[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)
 
[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)
 
[X] Endless glittering lights, like droplets of dew on a spiderweb, catching the morning sun, stretching out too far for the eye to see, a constellation here on the earth to match the sky(Gives Biyu a dream of wanderlust, of traveling far and wide)
 
[x] Tsu's great palace, built around a single great branch, living wood and stone and glass, green and serene… (Gives Biyu a dream of the highest places and the striving to reach them)
 
[X] Tsu's great palace, built around a single great branch, living wood and stone and glass, green and serene… (Gives Biyu a dream of the highest places and the striving to reach them)
 
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