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The Path Unending (A Cultivation Quest)

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The Elder is the lynchpin around whom the whole play revolves. So far, he is the only one to interact with us of his own free will. Everyone else seems to follow his example.

I think focusing our efforts on him is the correct move forward. Quite honestly, we might want to jump ahead of the line here. Keep Daiyu and Zhuan with Clerk Ni, going as slow as Clerk Ni permits while we race ahead to observe the village before Clerk Ni reaches them and perhaps interact with the Elder first. If we can get to them quickly, we might have more time to learn about what's happening. Especially since we seem to have more time this round with our memories.
 
Alright, so some theories running around in my head.

The headman is important; he is able to direct the villagers to new performances. And he seems to react to what we've been doing. He is the sole person who interacts with us without provocation. This makes him unique, which makes him a focus of our attempts.

Second, the Kukuni that we are playing against isn't experienced in how he is setting this situation up. He has a strategy and he won't deviate from it. Which is good for us! Figuring out a different win than through pure force is going to undermine the Kukuni's ability to act.

Third Liyu likely has a spark. The timeloop restarts when she is in the testing. The only thing I can think of that would trigger the loop is Liyu discovering she has the spark. Something about that alters the play, or her ability to perform her parts and the Kukuni triggers the time loop again.

Fourth, Liyu remembers us and makes a conscious effort not to engage with us. I think we can use this, but it'll be tricky to do so.
 
Thor's Twin said:
Third Liyu likely has a spark. The timeloop restarts when she is in the testing. The only thing I can think of that would trigger the loop is Liyu discovering she has the spark. Something about that alters the play, or her ability to perform her parts and the Kukuni triggers the time loop again.
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Assuming this is true, the loop likely resets because that would mean someone would have to leave the village. At least, that's my assumption.

Also, Zhi got his memory back earlier this time. Maybe the Kukuni was rushing?
 
Vesvius said:
the Pig Farmer's Gambit
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We can floop the pig, confirmed.

Alright, observations:
The loop changed, obviously, but it seems to have changed in such a way to make us the new fisherman. If Zhi had been properly obliterated then the group might have been taking the place of the old merchants. Notably, the merchant's cart is not mentioned this time. It may be that Zhi zoned out and passed it but I would have expected Ni and Zhuan Kun to react at the very least when encountering it. So I think we've been properly set up to be the new hook so the loop can 'continue to gain new points', with the assumption that Kong Zhi would have been dead this time.

Secondly, some of the villagers may be in direct contact with the originator of this thing. I suspect the headman and Liyu at the very least because they were surprised to see us and not just making note of us. For the headman he directly got new lines which is a dead giveaway that he can get information on what to expect at least, but for the other villagers it might just be that they're used to people who trigger the elimination also being eliminated. Uncertain.
Countered by the idea of the merchants already being eliminated. More support for the 'direct communication theory'

Outta time tho, I'll come back later with more if it isn't covered by then.

tl;dr
The merchant's cart is not mentioned and the headman's line is changed to expect us instead. This implies that they have direct communication with the loop creator and that the examination team has been set up in the plot to be the new 'fishermen' connecting the loop to the outside world.
 
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[X] [APPROACH] Something in the testing has caused the day to begin anew. I will tell Clerk Ni he was correct earlier, that something has likely been attempting to conceal those with the spark for quite some time, and we will need to buy time to investigate.

[X] [SMALL] Ask Zhuan Kun if he has any techniques which would secure his memory.
 
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Falconis said:
tl;dr
The merchant's cart is not mentioned and the headman's line is changed to expect us instead. This implies that they have direct communication with the loop creator and that the examination team has been set up in the plot to be the new 'fishermen' connecting the loop to the outside world.
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The cart was mentioned last chapter, as was the ox. So they should still be here.
 
Zhi played along and thus he was not targeted by the second wave of time anam assault (despite being the Kukuni's enemy).

So, for whatever reason, it is important to the Kukuni that the script is followed.

Also, it seems that it is either incapable of or unwilling (presumably it costs too much) to try and erase Zhi willy-nilly.
 
Just put the Examination off for tomorrow. Give the gang time to investigate the area.

[X] [APPROACH] There will be no testing this village today, Clerk Ni will simply have to test them tomorrow. Head to the village and claim a room for Clerk for the night, then investigate.
 
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Well, the loop reset, but we didn't get assaulted by the mastermind here. That's... good? At the very least, this doesn't seem to have been a 'wasted' action.

Zhuan Kun's insight on the GoB game we saw is actually quite informative.
Vesvius said:
"I have not sought victory through pacification since I was first beginning with the game," Zhuan Kun states. "At first, it seemed the most logical way to win, but experience has taught me that it is a costly and ineffective way to play. If there is one unit remaining on your opponent's side of the board, you cannot grasp victory, and they are free to strive for their own winning conditions."

"That is what your game reminds me of," the noble finally states, decisively nodding as if everything is resolved. "It is the game of one untested by true foes, a novice who has only ever found a single way to win. They pursue their victory condition to the exclusion of all others without truly realizing there are other, better ways to claim it."
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A) As long as one of us remains alive, we can still win. In the event that ZK or MD suddenly disappear, that's not a game-ender. It's possible that they'll just join the voices that told us to flee at the start of this, and that we can get them all out.

B) If this is a Time Kukuni, then quite possibly it's not a very powerful one, as such things go. Even if they've been here an absurd amount of "time", they don't have a lot of experience.

Vesvius said:
Huan is the young man who I've seen sitting at the edge of the village's pasture working diligently at his art. He is brought before me by an elder sister and is the first to see Clerk Ni. He walks into the headman's hut and leaves quickly. I mark him as lacking the spark.

Tuo is the hunter haggling with the village butcher over the price of his latest catch. That same butcher walks with him now, patting him on the shoulder companionably as he goes before the treasure. His examination takes a long time, but Daiyu shakes her head when he emerges. I mark him as lacking the spark.

Ai is one of the young girls I've seen playing Tides and Torrents. She is the most hesitant to go into the headman's house, but she is reassured by her grandmother. When she comes back out of the examination, tears have gathered in the corners of her eyes. I mark her as lacking the spark.

Rong is the oldest person to join the line. He looks awkward as he stands and waits, casting the occasional glance at his usual spot with the rest of the fishermen. More than once he tries to leave the line only to be chided back into place by the calls of his fellows. He is hurried when he goes to see Clerk Ni and nearly sprints from the hut upon his failure. I mark him as lacking the spark.

Lao is another of the playing children. He stands out more in my memory, as he was the 'Young Master' when the game was Dusk and Dawn. He glances at me more than once as he is ushered along by a wizened grandmother, but doesn't say a word. He is silent when he walks into the hut and just as silent when he leaves. I mark him as lacking the spark.

Liyu is a very young girl I know quite well. She was the ringleader of the game and it was at her urging that the children fled from me on my first trip through Shoubiao's Wake. Her gaze is impassive except for a brief moment when she first joins the line. Her eyes widen when she spots me, much as the headman's did, before she schools her face to an impassive expression once more. She steadfastly refuses to look at me during her wait, instead simply trudging forward with arms wrapped around herself as if fighting to stay warm. She stares blankly ahead as she makes her way into the hut, and-
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Yeah, I'm inclined to think that Liyu has the spark and the presumed-Time-Kukuni reset the loop on purpose when she entered the examination room, so that she wouldn't leave.

I think we should try to seek her out again and try to establish a rapport by speaking in code with her. Assuming she's here next loop, of course.
 
I'm going to point out to the people who suspect the headsman -
Vesvius said:
Liyu is a very young girl I know quite well. She was the ringleader of the game and it was at her urging that the children fled from me on my first trip through Shoubiao's Wake. Her gaze is impassive except for a brief moment when she first joins the line. Her eyes widen when she spots me, much as the headman's did, before she schools her face to an impassive expression once more. She steadfastly refuses to look at me during her wait, instead simply trudging forward with arms wrapped around herself as if fighting to stay warm. She stares blankly ahead as she makes her way into the hut, and-
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The little girl recognizes us too. It could absolutely be him, he does seem to have a bit more leeway to change up his behavior than most which is suspicious, but I wouldn't commit too hard to the idea just yet. (Re: The Headsman, There's a part of my brain suggesting that the plot here is just the plot of Hot Fuzz, have the perfectest little village possible for no other reason than having done so, but it's probably not that.)
 
So, one thing I would like to try is to pretend to be the courier from the Twelve Fields with a couple of quickly scribbled letters to the Headman and Liyu. The letters could be innocuous, but it would let them both know that we know about the timeloop, and it would mess up the new groove that the Headsman seems to want to play.

If we could delay Clerk Ni from getting to the village while we race ahead, we might be able to secure some more time at the village before any timelooping occurred.
 
Thor's Twin said:
So, one thing I would like to try is to pretend to be the courier from the Twelve Fields with a couple of quickly scribbled letters to the Headman and Liyu. The letters could be innocuous, but it would let them both know that we know about the timeloop, and it would mess up the new groove that the Headsman seems to want to play.

If we could delay Clerk Ni from getting to the village while we race ahead, we might be able to secure some more time at the village before any timelooping occurred.
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… y'know, we could just tie Clerk Ni up and leave him behind. He'll just reset next loop so it's not like he's in danger, nor will he remember.
 
Horium said:
Also, it seems that it is either incapable of or unwilling (presumably it costs too much) to try and erase Zhi willy-nilly.
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When you throw a massive energy field at someone and it's larger than their head and they still somehow eat it and get stronger from it, you tend to not want to try that attack again. Same sort of pain as having to not use Fire type moves in Pokémon when someone switches in a mon with flash-fire/ well-baked body or similar. the kukuni probably wants too, but if we get stronger every time it uses it on us, well it's not the brightest but it's not stupid either.

We should also as part of the examination, ask about any nearby natural wonders, places where kids go. Frame it as some children with the gift might be unconsciously seeking a source of anam...
 
Vesvius said:
"That is what your game reminds me of," the noble finally states, decisively nodding as if everything is resolved. "It is the game of one untested by true foes, a novice who has only ever found a single way to win. They pursue their victory condition to the exclusion of all others without truly realizing there are other, better ways to claim it."
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Interesting!

I'll accept the WoG here, but my own interpretation was to assume that the entity doesn't really have a playstyle for Garden of Beasts so much as it just directly copypastes its normal mindset and behavior - and that in this case, it pursues victory through pacification because that's the only way to win Garden of Beasts that it can make sense of. That the idea of defeating an enemy through any means other than their complete and total annihilation simply doesn't scan to its alien mind, and thus it ignored the game's other win conditions as confusing gibberish.

I wonder if this is meant to imply that the entity was 'born' within the timeloop? That could certainly lead to it being 'untested'.


Vesvius said:
I stare blankly at them all for a long time. Each of their faces are clear in my memory. But as I force myself to act as if everything is normal and begin registering them for the test, I am finally able to put names to faces, faces that seem more alert and engaged than I've seen in the past.
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Not surprising. For one thing, this is a change to the routine which isn't immediately conjuring the Hounds of Tindalos, which is probably more unnerving for them than the alternative. For another, they have to be wondering whether, if they prove to have the spark, the new narrative might allow them to *leave* this hell by playing the part of the joyous newfound Artist-in-waiting, off to go make his way in the world.


Vesvius said:
She steadfastly refuses to look at me during her wait, instead simply trudging forward with arms wrapped around herself as if fighting to stay warm. She stares blankly ahead as she makes her way into the hut, and-

-a heavy hand falls on my shoulder.
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Ah. If I had to guess, this girl does have the spark, but confirming that pushed the narrative of the village into a dead end - caught between "nobody leaves the village" and "this person leaving the village is the only coherent conclusion to this narrative", the entity threw up its hands and pushed the reset button.

Given her behavior while waiting for the examination, she might have even been through this before with previous testers.
 
Kun's analysis of the game strongly suggests that the kukuni is slow to adapt and potentially unable to consider any other solution to a problem than yeeting it out a window.

I'm not sure what value this insight is though, unless there is a puzzle here that the kukuni is trying to solve by making this village perform certain actions. If that is the case, then perhaps we can resolve this by finding another solution.
 
I'm mostly curious what the Kukuni's, er, win condition is, now? We sort of...ate its attempt to deal with us, and it didn't really try to do anything to us this loop, but at the same time I can't really imagine it being willing to just sit there and let us keep looping through until we dismantle its whole operation, and while it's a bit meta I can't really imagine one good roll on our part being enough to just negate any threat this scenario represented so we can stroll through the rest of the mystery solving.
 
After much consideration, Liyu definitely remembers us so we should try to make contact with her. Carefully, of course.

[X] [APPROACH] Something that is more clear than ever is that there is something very wrong with the villagers in Shoubiao's Wake. Kong Zhi will try and gain answers from one whether they like it or not.
-[X] Liyu, the ringleader of the children

And... well, I don't want to have Daiyu be the only one to consistently remember things with the Horizon, so we might as well ask something of Kun:

[X] [SMALL] Ask Zhuan Kun if he happens to have a technique that can help him protect his memories. If he doesn't, to better convince him on future loops, ask him to tell you something minor about himself that you'd have no reasonable way of knowing (e.g. his favorite food).
 
So now that the loop has started at dawn how will we best use this position? Send a person ahead to scope out the village? Avoid the crab? Arrive at the village late enough in the day leaving no time for the examination to be done?
 
Maybe the reason they were surprised is that they thought we died to whatever happened?
(Also, a reassurance that we don't have to flee at first opportunity I see?)
 
Vesvius said:
We ride into the village amidst the familiar chorus of clucking chickens, snapping winds, and gossiping villagers. Our mounts take us down the central path between the huts and towards the village square. Around us, half a dozen villagers loiter, each going merrily about their day. Washerwomen bicker with their neighbors, children play their Artist games, and elders enjoy their time in the sun before the storm breaks.

…but there is one less of the latter than I expected.

A simple, nondescript stool sits at the end of one of the paths. It is empty, with a simple wooden frame leaning against it. Loose threads dangle from the frame, tangling with the grass and blowing in the breeze.

Of the Weaver to whom it belongs, there is no sign.
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The Weaver lady is gone, she is either dead, consumed by the time kukuni for whatever the fuck happened last time, or reassigned to a different "role" in the play. So if Zhi fucks with the script enough it could result in serious collateral.
 
[X] [APPROACH] Shoubiao's Wake is dangerous, and the wise thing to do would be to retreat. Zhi will attempt to redirect the examination towards Twelve Fields, where a more learned expert may be contacted.
-[X] Tell Daiyu and Zhuan Kun about the time loop and ask Daiyu to use the Twilight Horizon to confirm.
-[X] Attempt to contact Chui Dao and see if there ok
-[X] Tell the clerk that there is a time loop and that we have lost at least 4 days already and that the danger to the testing artifact is too great to risk.

Honestly I'm tired of the time loop.

Also I've seen a lot of comments on how only the headmen or the little girl is aware of what's happening and I have to wonder if you've been paying attention. Everyone in the village knows about the time loop and is aware. Guys remember how the kids played there game and ignored us, the whole interaction with the impossibly skilled weaver lady and what each of the kids who lined up did. They all have a roll they play out and if they fulfill it they get to redo it again and again and again. We've already deduced that if they act outside of their roll they disappear so there's no point in trying to question them. It's not our job right now to save those villagers and it's more likely that a more experienced specialist would fix this. Also I really want to finish this examination escort quest.
 
[X] [APPROACH] There is no longer any question about it; this village is dangerous. Kong Zhi will approach Clerk Ni and ask him to wait outside of the village while he enters to investigate in a more subtle way.

[X] [SMALL] Inform Daiyu and Kun about the time loop.
[X] [SMALL] Let Mei Daiyu attempt to be a courier.
[X] [SMALL] Try to observe what the time is before the reset.
[X] [SMALL] Try to confirm "today's" date in the village.

Forcing information out of the headman is likely going to erase him, so trying the subtle way...
For some reason I felt like the dog didn't bark because there was less time in the village this round. Not sure why.
 
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