The rest of the post makes it crystal clear that selling for less is not a position the poster is advocating for. It is nakedly dishonest on your part to first use it as a counterargument then turn around and say it's totally the other guy's idea.
Forge of Destiny(Xianxia Quest)
- Thread starter yrsillar
- Start date
- Original Fantasy
Uh...*squints*
He's advocating for liquidating it for income entirely after that sentence though?
Like, the entire post is an argument for "selling it right now" even down to its railing against people who want to sit on it and how difficult it'll be to get momentum behind the hypothetical sale down the line. The context of taking a hit on income is something he states is a worthwhile price to pay towards that end.
What post were you reading?
Edit: im totally willing to let this go btw, but if youre going to continue to insist on lying the least you could do is fudge some evidence or something.
Im kinda feeling bad about this derail.
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DeAnno
Sometimes words have two meanings
I am advocating either starting the auction process immediately or selling it immediately. Without knowing many more specifics, such as the availability of 3rd realm talismans, the worth of our Mirror, the likely return on the mirror from both an immediate sale and from the auction house, the time the auction house would require for the sale, and so on and so forth, it is impossible to know which is better right now.
But the position of many posters is that they want to save the entire Mirror's value for the fief, simply because Bai Meizhen made a one sentence statement which wasn't qualified by any actual numbers or even orders of magnitude. This has the logical extension that we have 14 months to sell it in, so it's not even worth bothering with investigating now. This is the main thread of logic I'm fighting against.
If the mirror's liquidation for gear by tournament time is for whatever reason extremely unfeasible (< 50% returns, or us having money to fully gear anyway, or whatever.) Then so be it. But even if we don't get that money from this auction until after the tournament, it will be more valuable in our pockets ASAP rather that languishing away locked in a mirror we don't want to actually use for a year. So we should absolutely get all our facts straight (probably by talking to CRX) and either start the auction process immediately or sell it immediately. I'm just arguing against general delaying and waiting.
I absolutely agree with this. For completeness I would add that we should confirm that upgrading our gear is worth investing the time in the auction plus purchase instead of training (likely one or two minors and one or two majors all told). I'm pretty sure that this is a no-brainer.
We just commissioned a custom talisman from an out of sect crafter including sending tier 4 materials for no action cost. Commissioning from the inner sect should also be free if the outside commission is free (And we know we can order custom items for no time cost already). Based on a similar level of commitment an auction is likely to be free unless we have special requests.
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- Location
- Panama City
.......we were only able to commission outside of the sect due to Cai. And it was also due to Cai that it was essentially free action to do so. One thing does not equal the other.
Now, if we were to arrange an auction through our liege lord, then yeah, I expect this to take no actions on our part. But I also expect to take a bit of a cut for doing so as that would be expected for Cai to want recompense for the trouble.
Motile Mollusc
Bitten by a radioactive were-tilde
- Location
- Here
Just to confirm, if it looked like getting it sold in time for the tournament meant we would get less than 50% of the value estimated for waiting, would you decide not to not sell it or would you go lower? If so, by how much?
(I'm aware that without any information this is extremely subjective and variable. Humour me?)
For that matter is anyone else on either side willing to state their acceptable loss for swift cash injections? A 1% loss is probably acceptable to almost all, a 99% loss is likely not.
So far, I've got one person going down to a third, and another saying that pretty much any price is worth paying to increase inner sect chances, even a thousand GSS. Not sure if I've missed any outside of that.
- Location
- Panama City
.......1000 GSS is, at current market rates IIRC, is 500K RSS. Yeah, we're not getting that for a mere 4th grade material
Now if you meant 1000 YSS or a 1000 RSS, then your point might be more reasonable, and a typo like that IS understandable
As for your point, let's assume we'd get several thousand RSS for the mirror-call it 5k. If selling now gets us a 50% payout, that's still 2.5k RSS. That's a good amount, but if even waiting a month gets us the full 5k, then let's not rush it.
Of course, my position is also that there isn't any sort of pay cut in play, but that it'll take a while to get the sale going due to needing to find interested buyers in a medieval china analogue. So yeah, get the acution process going asap, just don't expect a payout in a any sort of timeframe measured in just weeks.
- Location
- The United States
- Pronouns
- He/They
The biggest obstacle to getting it sold and getting a good price is that Death cultivators are rare, and we want as many in the room as possible for an auction.
On the other hand the Ministry of Integrity is being expanded and they all have to have a death spirit. So the number of death cultivators should be on the rise.
Motile Mollusc
Bitten by a radioactive were-tilde
- Location
- Here
That's what they said for their example........1000 GSS is, at current market rates IIRC, is 500K RSS. Yeah, we're not getting that for a mere 4th grade material
Now if you meant 1000 YSS or a 1000 RSS, then your point might be more reasonable, and a typo like that IS understandable
Thanks for your response!
You've brought it up to a sample size of 4.
DeAnno
Sometimes words have two meanings
I think it depends mostly on the total loss, actually, rather than the percentage loss, now that I think about it. Essentially, whatever loss on the rush-sell we take would equivalently be imagined as a raise in price of the talismans we commission with the sale.
Let's say for the sake of argument that without selling we will have 1000 RSS available purely for talisman expenses, and that we think we could spend about 3000 RSS on talismans effectively if we had the money. I think in this case if the Mirror was 5,000 RSS it's very reasonable to sell it for 2,000 RSS, taking a 60% loss (3,000 RSS) to be fully geared for the tourney, essentially paying 250% for the last 2kRSS worth of gear. This is because I think that full gear is likely to add at least 10% to our chances of Inner and also will give some similar boost to our placement, and I think that if the price of Inner was flat out 30k RSS upfront (rather than this tourney system) that would certainly be worth it.
On the other hand, in the same situation if the Mirror is worth 50,000 RSS, selling it at a 60% loss is a lot worse because we aren't actually capitalizing the full resources of the sale. Then we're losing 30k RSS for a similar gain as we had before, which probably isn't worth it. Of course we could probably still capitalize even more of it in pre-tourney cultivation resources, and yet still more post-tourney on similar expenses, the balance is definitely thrown a lot against the worth of a rush sale.
I think I'm probably pretty receptive to any rush sale where we can immediately spend at least half as much as the amount we lose due to rush-selling. (ie if we're losing 3k RSS on a rush sale, I'd want to immediately be able to spend 1.5k of the money.)
EDIT: This puts a theoretical floor of 33%, assuming perfect capitalization. "Overflow" money we can't spend well effectively increases my threshold.
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Until we have a concrete plan on what to do with the money if we do sell it I'm not interested in liquidating. We already have more than 2000RSS in liquid cash; if we manage to spend that we can look at selling the mirror to recoup our costs and fuel our cultivation in the weeks afterward.
So are you ready to put an action into going to a crafter in the next big turnset? Until then we are working with the ballpark prices from a few posters, and while they seem pretty reasonable to me we won't ever know until we put the work in.
Motile Mollusc
Bitten by a radioactive were-tilde
- Location
- Here
Incidentally, do we want one of our hypothetical talismans to have qi regen?
From arts we've got 3 different sources, giving us between 0 and 4+, depending on how the round went.
Which is great!
On the other hand, sometimes that could be 0 qi, and if it isnt even more qi never hurts.
So, worth a slot, or utterly superfluous?
From arts we've got 3 different sources, giving us between 0 and 4+, depending on how the round went.
Which is great!
On the other hand, sometimes that could be 0 qi, and if it isnt even more qi never hurts.
So, worth a slot, or utterly superfluous?
- Location
- Panama City
eeeeehhhhh, maybe if we combine it with spiritual attack and defense buff. I can see that being in "theme".
BungieONI
Seven gremlins in a trench coat
- Location
- Lickwidget
- Pronouns
- She/Her
It fits into the "annoyingly persistent" thing we kinda got going. I think? Now my personal opinion is that Qi regen is never particularly "superfluous", but having too much of it can hurt your build. I'd have to see a cost comparison between a qi regen talisman and some of the other talisman ideas to give a yea or nay on whether it's worth a slot personally.
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There's no point in going to a crafter until we know what we want to buy. It's not like yrsillar is going to give us a general price list, or he would have given it to us when we visited the special market in the first place.
We only have three weeks.
If we don't order by the Week 47 action plan, then we won't receive our items in time for the tournament.
Since we're accelerating, after the two week SLP plan, that's when we have to order. That's the second vote from now. Now is the correct time to decide what to buy and ensure we have the money for it. At best we get two SLP weeks worth of training before we decide.
We don't get a chance to order something, receive it, order something else, receive that. We don't have time for that.
If we don't order by the Week 47 action plan, then we won't receive our items in time for the tournament.
Since we're accelerating, after the two week SLP plan, that's when we have to order. That's the second vote from now. Now is the correct time to decide what to buy and ensure we have the money for it. At best we get two SLP weeks worth of training before we decide.
We don't get a chance to order something, receive it, order something else, receive that. We don't have time for that.
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I guess we can't exactly go around stealing things anymore, since it'd be the head of the new Ling Clan, vassal of Cai, doing it instead of a random nobody.
We should hopefully be able to ask Cai about commissioning other talismans and maybe pills with our money through her contacts, as a favour. We've built up a few, and it'll better establish the benefits of joining her.
Now's the time to buy new stuff, though I'm kinda worried about doing well in front of so many higher ups. That's just me though.
I wonder if we could include a noncombatant cultivating talisman. Silverblood might make something alongside those lines possible.
We should hopefully be able to ask Cai about commissioning other talismans and maybe pills with our money through her contacts, as a favour. We've built up a few, and it'll better establish the benefits of joining her.
Now's the time to buy new stuff, though I'm kinda worried about doing well in front of so many higher ups. That's just me though.
I wonder if we could include a noncombatant cultivating talisman. Silverblood might make something alongside those lines possible.
I mean, we can't do it without making potentially official enemies for our House and Cai's own stance means there's a more limited amount of acceptable targets, but even right now noone's going to bat their eyes at us continuing to fleece YR.
I'd even argue our current issue is more that the only others really worth stealing from anymore are either more or less on our side or protected by a grown-up treaty, rather than theft being no longer in our toolbox.
I guess we could go rob Chu Song though, if we really wanted, and we'd only get minor frowning from Cai and a Meizhen torn about whether she supports us proactively undermining someone firmly set against our liege before they can grow further or whether she disapproves at us making another personal enemy before we deal with the last one.
And in more general terms for the future, there's gonna be lots of cases where legal ownership of something is disputable and getting actual judgement and enforcement of that judgement on the matter is absurdly slow, if it ever arrives at all.
Cai's province is probably better in that regard than most, but filing an official complaint is still not gonna solve all your issues in an acceptable timeframe.
And in those cases the ability to remedy the de facto state of affairs, while we wait for de jure matters to be settled, without actually escalating to outright violence ourselves is quite convenient.
Stop: This is not Civil
- Location
- Australia
- Pronouns
- She/Her
this is not civil
This is a clear violation of Rule Three: Be Civil, and as such @1986ctcel has been issued a 25 point infraction and a three day threadban.
Year 43, week 44, Part 2
The last notes of Ling Qi's newest attempt at composition drifted away on the wind, sending their faint ripples through the flow of the worlds qi. Yet for all their technical perfection, Ling Qi remained unsatisfied with the work. The melody she was trying to compose still rang hollow in both her ears and her more spiritual senses.
"Looks like you still can't quite manage upbeat, huh?" Sixiang said, from where he lounged, resting against the spindly trunk of one of the scraggly trees that clung to the cliff face that overlooked the lower reaches of the mountain. "You're such a gloomy girl," he teased. The androgynous spirit, wore a robe of pale rose pink today, which hung open across the chest, leaving his current gender rather obvious.
"I am not gloomy," Ling Qi shot back a bit irritably. She frowned in consternation, toying with her flute. "Be serious. What is it I am lacking here? I wanted to compose something cheerful for Mother. Spring and summer motifs should be perfect for that, shouldn't they?" While she hadn't much free time this week, what she did have had been spent stopping in to at least greet Mother each day.
"Wellll," Sixiang began, idly kicking his legs, unmindful of the scattering of stones it sent tumbling down the crumbling cliffside. "Limiting yourself to mortal comprehension is quite a handicap, but I don't really think that's your problem. You're not so far from the mortal world as all that," he mused.
"Then what is?" Ling Qi asked, frustrated. "I've tried so many different forms and arrangements, yet none of them ever seem right."
"Well, like I said, you're a gloomy girl," Sixiang replied matter of factly. "Of course you can't give life to that kind of melody, thinking like you do." He waved his hand flippantly. "Don't get me wrong, you can arrange a few cheerful phrases, but that's hardly the sort of optimism that your trying to convey, right?"
She gave the spirit a dirty look. "You're really good at not answering questions properly, you know?" She said, rolling her eyes.
"Well of course," he replied, sticking out his tongue childishly. "If I was direct, I'd be one of those hard nosed, pushy sun spirits, you know?"
Ling Qi let out an annoyed huff, but closed her eyes, surrendering the point. For several minutes, she remained silent, thinking on her failures and Sixiang's words. "...I just don't think that way, do I?" She mused, breaking the silence.
"Yep," Sixiang agreed. "You don't have that kind of expectation that things will go well, so of course you can't put it into song."
She grimaced, it was true. Though things had been going well, better than she could have realistically hoped a year ago. Some part of her was still waiting for the other shoe to drop, for the things she had built to come crashing down around her ears. For all that had happened in the last year, and for all that she had changed… some things were simply slow to fade.
"Well, a different theme would probably work better for now," Sixiang offered cheerfully, breaking Ling Qi out of her thoughts. "Changing yourself is slow going for a human, or so I've heard," he said with an air of received wisdom.
"I suppose so," Ling Qi said."I'm still not gloomy," she added, shooting a scowl at the relaxing spirit as she raised her flute to begin another attempt.
"Then why do you always dress like you're headed to a funeral?" Sixiang teased. "You're just missing the mourning veil."
Ling Qi huffed and didn't respond, so what if she wore somewhat somber colors, that didn't make her gloomy. Besides, there was no point in wearing anything else given the quality of her gown.
...She resolved not to express that to Xiulan, lest the other girl drag her out for emergency shopping. Then again, that too was something that had faded, it was difficult to match the almost fanatically driven Xiulan of today to the one who would spend time frivolously poking around a tailor's shop.
Ling Qi grimaced and dismissed the thought, they could all take a breath when the tournament was over.
"See, I can practically see the cloud over your head," Sixiang said lightly, drawing a snort from Ling Qi. Maybe the spirit wasn't wholly wrong.
"Fine, why don't you show me how it's done then," Ling Qi shot back. "Since I apparently can't manage."
"Hm… I suppose I can play a piece or two," he mused, "If only to lighten the atmosphere a little."
Ling Qi closed her own eyes as a set of reed pipes coalesced from shimmering mist in the spirits hands. Relaxing herself, she focused on the faster tempo of the song flowing from Sixiang's pipes.
There was definitely something in the spirits notes that she lacked, but… she knew somehow that it wouldn't be so simple as copying phrases and notes. For all that she was composing for her Mother… she couldn;t be satisfied by a piece that was only competent on a mortal level.
As much as she found herself enjoying trading melodies with the spirit, with the passing of another hour, Ling Qi took her leave, with the promise to meet the next day and continue their exchange. Descending the mountain, Ling Qi then made her way toward Xiulan;s increasingly charred training grounds.
Xiulan's mastery of her arts was growing pretty swiftly she found, even the girls lightest attacks burned blue with heat, and her stronger ones could be compared to Lady Cai's Light Art's in appearance, if not effect.
She spent the rest of the afternoon with her friend, and though she left feeling sweaty and a bit overheated, she didn't regret it. Xiulan did mention that she would be busy with closed door cultivation in the immediate future though, so she would have to find a different training partner in the following week.
After cleansing herself, and taking a light meal in the evening, Ling QI spent most of the night in meditation, leaving early in the morning to report for the Sect Job she had accepted. The directions given at the main hall sent her down the mountain to meet the person who had put the request on the board in town. Rather than the disciple and owner of the mansion himself, the job giver turned out to be a rather elderly woman in the first realm, waiting for her at the edge of the mansions grounds.
"So, this is the place," Ling Qi mused, looking up at the peaked roof visible of the wooden barrier that surrounded the grounds. "Do you mind if I ask why the home got into this state?"
"Of course, honored Miss," the elderly woman, who was the head housekeeper and the only member of the staff still around, said as she lead her toward the gates. "The house staff was called away by the Lord Seung, for other duties, and the Young Master has been too occupied with his Sect duties to approve new hiring, and so we have fallen behind."
Ling Qi considered those words for a moment, and the short woman who had spoken them. There was pretty obviously some details being left out there, but it would be rude to press. "Ah, what unfortunate timing," Ling Qi mused. "And what has caused the house spirit to grow so unruly? While I have little practical experience with such matters, my studies have indicated that such spirits are usually rather tame."
They reached the gates then, and Ling Qi glanced over them, taking in the security arrays visible to her eyes, woven into the carvings on the wooden doors. It didn't seem like anything she couldn't bypass with focused effort. She made sure to keep some attention on her companion though. "You are correct of course, Miss," the housekeeper agreed. "House spirits are friendly things… but this property only recently came under the ownership of the Clan Seung. The house spirit does not yet recognize it's new owners," she explained, fishing a flat grey disc from her sleeve. She pressed it to the indent in the center of the gates, and it shimmered, causing them to swing open.
"I see," Ling Qi said with a frown. "How was anyone living here at all then?"
"The staff had been performing the proper rites to suppress and suborne the spirit, after the Young Master enacted a sealing," The old woman sighed. "When they were called away, those rascals failed to do their final duties, and so the spirit broke free. These old bones were not up to the task of suppressing it at that point I am afraid."
Ling QI nodded, looking past the gates and across the garden inside. The flowerbeds and grass had an unkempt look to them, and the windows seemed dark, she could feel a fairly potent presence from the place, though it was riddled with weakness pulling it down into the second realm. "I see," she had only briefly encountered the concept of house spirits, as a subset of object spirits, things like this must really make property transfers among immortals a pain. "What need I do then?"
"The Spirit Tablet lies in the second basement," the elderly woman explained, even as she pressed the disc that had opened the gates into Ling Qi's hand. "And this will disable the locks," she continued pragmatically. "You need but reach the Tablet, and sprinkle this across its face," she continued, adding a vial of red powder and a few sticks of rather expensive looking incense to the kit. "Then perform a pacification rite."
Ling Qi nodded, she was familiar enough with basic spiritual rites at this point, though she didn't recognize the powder, studying it for a moment, she frowned… dried blood? It was the blood of a potent cultivator too, by the aura. She… supposed that made sense, if this was meant to bind the spirit to a new master and he wasn't present. "Consider it done then," Ling Qi said, putting on a smile. "I will be back shortly."
"Spirits bless you honored disciple," The old woman said, bowing deeply. "You have my thanks."
Ling Qi nodded absently as she stepped inside, putting the woman from her mind as she focused on the task ahead. She could feel the spirits qi, threaded all through the structure. Avoiding it's attention wouldn't be easy.
Ling Qi let the edges of her being fray into the shadows as she crept across the grounds, melting into the shadows cast by the wall under the late afternoon sun, maintaining a slow pace as she eyed the vast, complex web of spiritual awareness that engulfed the house. It might have been a beautiful thing once, but now it was laced through with lines of wrath and disgust, and ragged holes, where something new was growing.
It felt like studying a tapestry, which was being replaced thread by thread with a whole other weaving, the holes were places where new and old had torn apart, and the dark lines… well that was where the metaphor broke apart a little. Still, she supposed she should be glad for it, as she very nearly allowed her qi to trip the web at her first step, so dense it was. If it had been whole… well, it seemed like she wouldn't simply be able to rest on her laurels in the future, when it came to sneaking.
Her near failure only made her more determined though, and soon Ling Qi made it onto the porch, taking one careful step at a time. There were no eyes to hide from here, only the spiritual senses of the house itself, and so she had to adjust her method of skulking, leaving aside her focus on the physical aspects. While she did have the key, Ling Qi did not want to alert the spirit, and so instead of the door, she crept around the perimeter until she found an open window, leading into the kitchen. Such things could usually be relied upon, it seemed, even in a cultivator house.
That wasn't to say that there weren't alarm formations layered around the window, but she managed to bypass them slipping between the figurative 'bars'. Inside though, things changed. As Ling Qi slipped down the dimly lit halls, she could feel a pressure on her back, the weight of the house spirit, an incoherent mass of negative emotion that raised the hairs on her neck.
Decorative vases rattled, and floorboards creaked without rhyme or reason, and out of the corner of her eyes, she would often catch movement. Shadows crawling unnaturally on the walls and faintly human silhouettes passing from room to room. The sounds were the worst though.
From the moment that she entered the building, the faint sound of sobbing had reached her ears, unending and uninterrupted, save by an occasional snippet of feeling-that-became-words.
Where have you gone…
Ling Qi simply grit her teeth though, doing her best to ignore the grief pressing down on her like the cold pressure of a lake in winter.
Come back, please!
It was hard though, as the visions in the corner of her eye grew more numerous, the indistinct figures of people going through the motions of daily life, happy and sad. It made it difficult to not jump when one of the sightless wraiths would pass right by or through her. A child chasing a ball, a proud woman sweeping down the hall, trailed by the images of handmaidens, men deep in arguments, their words garbled beyond recognition.
Please do not leave me…
She soon found the door leading to the basement, and here she finally made use of the key, for there were no other entrances to be found.
Usurper… Thief…
She grimaced as she felt the attention redouble, and the house grow darker still. She darted her way down the stairs as the volume of the sobbing grew greater, and took on a furious edge. Still, she slipped undetected through the web of the spirits attention, for all that she could hear the furniture rattling even as the door behind her swept shut with a loud bang. It new someone was here, but it had not 'seen' her yet.
Ling Qi slipped between wine racks and storage shelves as she made her way down to the second level of the basement, ignoring the crashing sounds of things falling behind her as the shelves rocked and the ground quaked. The second floor was thankfully bare, most of it's contents apparently removed, leaving only empty alcoves. Only one remained full, an ornate little shrine holding a stone tablet as wide as her hands placed together and only a few centimeters thick. Characters were carved in it's surface, but they were unreadable, as if the stone had melted like wax, leaving the characters warped and broken.
The sobs rose into a shriek as Ling Qi darted forward and popped the stopper off the blood vial with her thumb, and a quick flick of her wrist sprinkled the coppery scented dust over the warped tablet. It gleamed as it landed upon the stone and the foundations of the house shook violently for a moment.
...And then all was still and silent. Ling Qi grimaced as she felt something like pain shoot through the web of spirit all around her, and the feeling of grief and fury rose. For the moment though, the spirit was impotent, and so she did not waste any time lighting the incense and beginning the pacification rites.
By the time she was done, the the web around her was reduced to a fuzzy cloud, barely coherent, and the last feelings of struggle had faded.
Ling Qi grimaced, that had been far more unpleasant than she had expected, even if she had avoided real conflict with the spirit. If she ever purchased a house old enough to have a spirit, she would definitely have to make sure the thing wasn't hostile first.
+25 Sect points
Later, once she had returned the key and collected her wage in Sect points, Ling Qi made her way up the mountain to join Zeqing for further lessons, over the course of the week, she had felt that she was making good progress further mastering the Serenade and improving her singing ability. When she arrived at the black pool though, she found only Hanyi waiting.
The little spirit was perched on the stone bench where she sat with Zeqing, kicking her bare feet idly when she arrived. "Hiya Big Sister," the little spirit said cheerfully, she held a little snow mouse in one hand, caught by the tail. The beast squeaked and kicked as she poked at it, trying to escape the snow girls grasp. "Momma is gonna be a little late today, Auntie Xin came to talk about grown up stuff."
"That's fine," Ling Qi replied, glancing at the little girls prize as she seated herself on the bench beside her, the snow crunching faintly under her weight. It no longer melted and soaked her gown though. "Hanyi, why are you… playing with that?"
The blue skinned little girl blinked, looking up from the distressed animal trapped between her fingers. "Oh! I was being a good girl and practicing, like Momma said," she answered, with a grrin the cried out for praise as only a child's could. "I caught the mousey 'cause he couldn't resist my voice!" She added, puffing her chest out proudly.
Ling Qi glanced at the struggling animal, a weak first grade beast, and calmly patted the little spirit on the head. "Good job. You should play around with it like that though," she added, not wanting to make Hanyi get into a huff.
She pouted a little. "Big Sister acts too much like Momma," she huffed. "But fine, I won't play with my food anymore," Ling Qi blinked, nonplussed. She had never seen either the mother or daughter spirits eat anything, so what did she…
The mouse let out a strangled squeak and twitched violently then, frost spreading across its fur and skin as it visibly withered and blackened in the little spirits grasp, like a corpse left to freeze on a mountaintop. Hanyi let out a delighted sound, and Ling Qi caught the slight shimmer in the air as she breathed in the stream of heat that arose from the beasts remains. "Hehe, don't tell Momma I was snacking before dinner, okay Big Sister?" Hanyi said, looking up at her as she tossed the remains aside carelessly. The carcass landed in a heap of snow with a soft sound, disappearing from sight.
"...Sure," Ling Qi said, she supposed it wasn't the weirdest thing she had ever seen. "Have you been getting along with Zhengui?" She asked, in an effort to change the subject.
Hanyi pouted, crossing her arms. "He's being a big jerk-y head," she huffed. "He keeps saying he's too busy to play. 'Cause he has to beat up an eel. I don't get it. I'm way more fun to play with than some doofy eel."
Ah, it looked like Zhengui might have taken to training with Heizui a little too well. "I'll have a chat with him," Ling Qi said. "About not neglecting his friends."
"He's a big jerk," Hanyi sniffed, eyeing her suspiciously. "I just want my sled back, it's not cause I miss him or something."
"Of course," Ling Qi replied, hiding her grin with her sleeve, that was kind of cute. It did remind her that she would be leaving the mountain in years to come though. What would happen then?
Thankfully Zeqing arrived soon, before Hanyi could pick up on the drop in her mood. Allowing her to forget the future for the moment and immerse herself in her lessons.
Later though, as the finished up and the sun sank below the horizon, casting the ravine into darkness, she found herself reminded.
Zeqing now sat beside Ling Qi, and Hanyi lay with her head in her Mother's lap, tired out from several hours of hard practice. Asleep, the little spirit shimmered in and out of solidity, blue flesh fading to reveal swirling snow before fading back in again. The elder spirit rested a hand of transparent ice on her daughter's head as the two of them watched the last light fade from the sky.
"I have heard that you will be leaving the Sect," her teacher said quietly, without any accusation in her tone.
"I will," Ling Qi replied, not looking over. "I am incredibly thankful to you and the Sect… but I want to make something that is mine."
"I understand," Zeqing replied, bringing relief to Ling Qi. "Still, it will be… less interesting without you. You have been a good student."
"I will still be here a year yet," Ling Qi replied, before her features fell in a frown. "...Assuming an Inner Sect student can visit this peak."
"It should not be difficult to obtain dispensation, so long as you do not interfere with the operation of the outer sect," Zeqing replied without worry. "I suppose a year still seems like a great length of time to you."
"It does," Ling Qi admitted quietly. "I have been happy here for the most part. I think I want that year to seem long."
Zeqing let out an amused laugh, like the tinkling of crystal chimes on the wind. "What an honest answer."
"I try," Ling Qi replied with a grin. "Sometimes anyway."
The spirit gave a shallow nod in reply, brushing her fingers through Hanyi's hair. "Let me ask you then, what do you think of my daughter?"
Ling Qi blinked, glancing at her musical mentor sidelong. "She can be… difficult, and maybe a little spoiled," Ling Qi replied, thinking back to the girls cries of unfairness at the end of their game of tag. "...but I think she is a bit lonely too."
Zeqing did not reply for a time, and her billowing hair blocked her features from sight as she lowered her head. Ling Qi remained silent until she spoke again. "So you see it as well," Zeqing mused. "She has shown much more cheer since that spirit of yours began coming here," the ice spirit said.
"I hope Zhengui has behaved himself," Ling Qi replied, aware of how territorial Zeqing could be.
She flicked her sleeve in dismissal of the words. "Once I might have scoured the mountain clean to remove the presence of a beast like him, but it no longer bothers me," she replied. "But… I cannot say that seeing my daughter with so joyful in the presence of another does not… vex me in some ways," she added, her voice growing dark.
Ling Qi shifted uncomfortably as the temperature dropped. "...Will it be a problem?"
"I will not let it be," Zeqing replied, her blood red lips curving down in a frown. "I am not as I was. The same instinct which demands that her joy be in me alone are the ones which would cause me to devour her as well. Humanity is a vexing thing, bringing such uncertainty."
"I don't think you regret it though, do you?" Ling Qi replied carefully.
"I do not," Zeqing replied. "Yet… I know one day I will need let her go," Ling Qi flinched at the icy wind that cut through her defenses, chilling her to the bone the moment those words left the spirits mouth. "That is the human thing to do, is it not?"
Ling Qi shivered as the snow and ice slashed through the air around her, leaving only the mother and daughter spirits untouched. "...Maybe," she admitted. "Do you think that would help her?"
"She will not ever be more than she is, if she remains," Zeqing replied, her soft voice audible over the shrieking wind. "And that no longer seems as acceptable as it was. Did you know, that before I began teaching you, the thought of teaching my daughter never crossed my mind as more than an idle fancy, to pass the nights?"
The wind was quieting down, thankfully enough, the snowfall growing slower and gentler. "You seem very proud of her progress though," Ling Qi said, looking over at them.
"I am," Zeqing replied. "And such is my conflict. I wish to see my daughter mature, but she cannot do so with me," the spirit sounded as if those words physically pained her, and well… perhaps they did. "Do you understand my meaning, Disciple Ling Qi?"
Ling Qi nodded. "I will be happy to continue my lessons Teacher Zeqing, alone and alongside your daughter. As your student, I am her older sister, in a way, after all," she replied carefully. "I will of course look after my junior if need be."
Zeqing nodded shallowly, straightening her shoulder as the last of the whipping wind faded. "I speak only as a consideration for the future," She said, still somewhat stiffly. "A year remains to us after all, and the future may bring change."
Income: 115 Red Stones
Okay, so the next voting period will cover weeks 44 and 45, which will be closed cultivation weeks, as discussed previously. So you will have 12 major action slots which may be devoted to training since you are doing this across two weeks and particular cultivation may be selected up to twice without penalty. Similarly, you may assign the white room up to two times, Meizhen up to two times, etc.
[] Train at the vent with Su Ling
-[] Any
[] Train Music arts with Zeqing
[] Take a job
-[] Specify
[] Visit the Archive
-[] Search for a technique
-[] Study another subject
-[] Look into the items you found during your quest
[] Study Formations with Li Suyin
-[] Select up to two formations
[] Train with Meizhen
-[] Any
[] Cultivate with Cai Renxiang
-[] Any
[] Cultivate in the White Room
-[] What?
-[] With who?
[] Cultivate on your own
-[] Any
Now this time, the minor actions will be voted for separately from the training plan, and will operate off approval voting. Cai Renxiang will not be included, since she will be getting some automatic scenes due to the chosen path. As before with the weapons, you may vote for up to three minor options.
[] Su Ling and the Ma Sisters are looking to acquire spirit beasts, maybe you can help a bit?
[] Zhengui and Heizui could use a bit of extra attention to be sure that their interactions don't get unhealthy
[] Tag along to make sure Zhengui and Hanyi get along the next time they play
[] Be prepared to take Xiulan out for some fun, whether in commiseration or celebration
[] Learn of the ancient and venerable art of... fishing. Meizhen will be happy to show you, you're sure, and perhaps you can leanr more about her family.
[] Mother has had some time to settle, so you should spend some more time with her, and see if she needs anything
[] Sixiang will be casting off their physical form soon enough, and you have had some fun. See if there is something the spirit would like to do before they go?
Do not worry about voting for talisman sales or purchases or the status of your materials, we will do that later, same goes for Yan renshu
"Looks like you still can't quite manage upbeat, huh?" Sixiang said, from where he lounged, resting against the spindly trunk of one of the scraggly trees that clung to the cliff face that overlooked the lower reaches of the mountain. "You're such a gloomy girl," he teased. The androgynous spirit, wore a robe of pale rose pink today, which hung open across the chest, leaving his current gender rather obvious.
"I am not gloomy," Ling Qi shot back a bit irritably. She frowned in consternation, toying with her flute. "Be serious. What is it I am lacking here? I wanted to compose something cheerful for Mother. Spring and summer motifs should be perfect for that, shouldn't they?" While she hadn't much free time this week, what she did have had been spent stopping in to at least greet Mother each day.
"Wellll," Sixiang began, idly kicking his legs, unmindful of the scattering of stones it sent tumbling down the crumbling cliffside. "Limiting yourself to mortal comprehension is quite a handicap, but I don't really think that's your problem. You're not so far from the mortal world as all that," he mused.
"Then what is?" Ling Qi asked, frustrated. "I've tried so many different forms and arrangements, yet none of them ever seem right."
"Well, like I said, you're a gloomy girl," Sixiang replied matter of factly. "Of course you can't give life to that kind of melody, thinking like you do." He waved his hand flippantly. "Don't get me wrong, you can arrange a few cheerful phrases, but that's hardly the sort of optimism that your trying to convey, right?"
She gave the spirit a dirty look. "You're really good at not answering questions properly, you know?" She said, rolling her eyes.
"Well of course," he replied, sticking out his tongue childishly. "If I was direct, I'd be one of those hard nosed, pushy sun spirits, you know?"
Ling Qi let out an annoyed huff, but closed her eyes, surrendering the point. For several minutes, she remained silent, thinking on her failures and Sixiang's words. "...I just don't think that way, do I?" She mused, breaking the silence.
"Yep," Sixiang agreed. "You don't have that kind of expectation that things will go well, so of course you can't put it into song."
She grimaced, it was true. Though things had been going well, better than she could have realistically hoped a year ago. Some part of her was still waiting for the other shoe to drop, for the things she had built to come crashing down around her ears. For all that had happened in the last year, and for all that she had changed… some things were simply slow to fade.
"Well, a different theme would probably work better for now," Sixiang offered cheerfully, breaking Ling Qi out of her thoughts. "Changing yourself is slow going for a human, or so I've heard," he said with an air of received wisdom.
"I suppose so," Ling Qi said."I'm still not gloomy," she added, shooting a scowl at the relaxing spirit as she raised her flute to begin another attempt.
"Then why do you always dress like you're headed to a funeral?" Sixiang teased. "You're just missing the mourning veil."
Ling Qi huffed and didn't respond, so what if she wore somewhat somber colors, that didn't make her gloomy. Besides, there was no point in wearing anything else given the quality of her gown.
...She resolved not to express that to Xiulan, lest the other girl drag her out for emergency shopping. Then again, that too was something that had faded, it was difficult to match the almost fanatically driven Xiulan of today to the one who would spend time frivolously poking around a tailor's shop.
Ling Qi grimaced and dismissed the thought, they could all take a breath when the tournament was over.
"See, I can practically see the cloud over your head," Sixiang said lightly, drawing a snort from Ling Qi. Maybe the spirit wasn't wholly wrong.
"Fine, why don't you show me how it's done then," Ling Qi shot back. "Since I apparently can't manage."
"Hm… I suppose I can play a piece or two," he mused, "If only to lighten the atmosphere a little."
Ling Qi closed her own eyes as a set of reed pipes coalesced from shimmering mist in the spirits hands. Relaxing herself, she focused on the faster tempo of the song flowing from Sixiang's pipes.
There was definitely something in the spirits notes that she lacked, but… she knew somehow that it wouldn't be so simple as copying phrases and notes. For all that she was composing for her Mother… she couldn;t be satisfied by a piece that was only competent on a mortal level.
As much as she found herself enjoying trading melodies with the spirit, with the passing of another hour, Ling Qi took her leave, with the promise to meet the next day and continue their exchange. Descending the mountain, Ling Qi then made her way toward Xiulan;s increasingly charred training grounds.
Talent 6 + YSS 35 + Lan Lan 4 + Mystic Vale 9 + Pills 10 + Spine 4 + Heart 10 + Zhengui 10 = 88 dice.
8 10 8 8 8 10 9 1 9 9 10 2 3 6 5 6 8 4 7 10 9 9 3 3 2 7 9 5 8 3 1 7 4 10 7 1 9 5 3 9 6 4 3 10 1 7 5 8 2 3 7 1 3 1 3 4 7 1 10 6 5 2 3 1 1 1 3 1 5 8 10 2 1 4 2 2 2 8 1 4 1 10 4 5 10 8 1 9. 48 successes
Rerolling 15
4 8 9 2 3 5 2 5 2 2 8 8 6 9 2. 9 successes. 57
165/300
8 10 8 8 8 10 9 1 9 9 10 2 3 6 5 6 8 4 7 10 9 9 3 3 2 7 9 5 8 3 1 7 4 10 7 1 9 5 3 9 6 4 3 10 1 7 5 8 2 3 7 1 3 1 3 4 7 1 10 6 5 2 3 1 1 1 3 1 5 8 10 2 1 4 2 2 2 8 1 4 1 10 4 5 10 8 1 9. 48 successes
Rerolling 15
4 8 9 2 3 5 2 5 2 2 8 8 6 9 2. 9 successes. 57
165/300
Xiulan's mastery of her arts was growing pretty swiftly she found, even the girls lightest attacks burned blue with heat, and her stronger ones could be compared to Lady Cai's Light Art's in appearance, if not effect.
She spent the rest of the afternoon with her friend, and though she left feeling sweaty and a bit overheated, she didn't regret it. Xiulan did mention that she would be busy with closed door cultivation in the immediate future though, so she would have to find a different training partner in the following week.
After cleansing herself, and taking a light meal in the evening, Ling QI spent most of the night in meditation, leaving early in the morning to report for the Sect Job she had accepted. The directions given at the main hall sent her down the mountain to meet the person who had put the request on the board in town. Rather than the disciple and owner of the mansion himself, the job giver turned out to be a rather elderly woman in the first realm, waiting for her at the edge of the mansions grounds.
"So, this is the place," Ling Qi mused, looking up at the peaked roof visible of the wooden barrier that surrounded the grounds. "Do you mind if I ask why the home got into this state?"
"Of course, honored Miss," the elderly woman, who was the head housekeeper and the only member of the staff still around, said as she lead her toward the gates. "The house staff was called away by the Lord Seung, for other duties, and the Young Master has been too occupied with his Sect duties to approve new hiring, and so we have fallen behind."
Ling Qi considered those words for a moment, and the short woman who had spoken them. There was pretty obviously some details being left out there, but it would be rude to press. "Ah, what unfortunate timing," Ling Qi mused. "And what has caused the house spirit to grow so unruly? While I have little practical experience with such matters, my studies have indicated that such spirits are usually rather tame."
They reached the gates then, and Ling Qi glanced over them, taking in the security arrays visible to her eyes, woven into the carvings on the wooden doors. It didn't seem like anything she couldn't bypass with focused effort. She made sure to keep some attention on her companion though. "You are correct of course, Miss," the housekeeper agreed. "House spirits are friendly things… but this property only recently came under the ownership of the Clan Seung. The house spirit does not yet recognize it's new owners," she explained, fishing a flat grey disc from her sleeve. She pressed it to the indent in the center of the gates, and it shimmered, causing them to swing open.
"I see," Ling Qi said with a frown. "How was anyone living here at all then?"
"The staff had been performing the proper rites to suppress and suborne the spirit, after the Young Master enacted a sealing," The old woman sighed. "When they were called away, those rascals failed to do their final duties, and so the spirit broke free. These old bones were not up to the task of suppressing it at that point I am afraid."
Ling QI nodded, looking past the gates and across the garden inside. The flowerbeds and grass had an unkempt look to them, and the windows seemed dark, she could feel a fairly potent presence from the place, though it was riddled with weakness pulling it down into the second realm. "I see," she had only briefly encountered the concept of house spirits, as a subset of object spirits, things like this must really make property transfers among immortals a pain. "What need I do then?"
"The Spirit Tablet lies in the second basement," the elderly woman explained, even as she pressed the disc that had opened the gates into Ling Qi's hand. "And this will disable the locks," she continued pragmatically. "You need but reach the Tablet, and sprinkle this across its face," she continued, adding a vial of red powder and a few sticks of rather expensive looking incense to the kit. "Then perform a pacification rite."
Ling Qi nodded, she was familiar enough with basic spiritual rites at this point, though she didn't recognize the powder, studying it for a moment, she frowned… dried blood? It was the blood of a potent cultivator too, by the aura. She… supposed that made sense, if this was meant to bind the spirit to a new master and he wasn't present. "Consider it done then," Ling Qi said, putting on a smile. "I will be back shortly."
"Spirits bless you honored disciple," The old woman said, bowing deeply. "You have my thanks."
Ling Qi nodded absently as she stepped inside, putting the woman from her mind as she focused on the task ahead. She could feel the spirits qi, threaded all through the structure. Avoiding it's attention wouldn't be easy.
Dex 6 + Stealth 6 + Speciality 1 + Passives 0 + Equip 8 (Robe 4, slippers, band) + Buff 2 (EPC 2) + 2 autos (SCS)= 23 dice + 9autos.
3 1 2 7 9 1 3 2 5 2 5 1 1 1 4 4 9 5 1 10 7 7 1. 6 successes. 15 total
Fail
Rerolling
4 4 7 1 9 6 6 6 7 3 6 4 1 5 7 10 7 10 2 8 4 6 2. 8 successes. 17 total
First roll bare pass
Second Roll
7 10 8 3 7 9 3 4 9 8 7 3 3 9 10 3 3 9 1 9 9 2 6. 13 successes. 22 total
3 1 2 7 9 1 3 2 5 2 5 1 1 1 4 4 9 5 1 10 7 7 1. 6 successes. 15 total
Fail
Rerolling
4 4 7 1 9 6 6 6 7 3 6 4 1 5 7 10 7 10 2 8 4 6 2. 8 successes. 17 total
First roll bare pass
Second Roll
7 10 8 3 7 9 3 4 9 8 7 3 3 9 10 3 3 9 1 9 9 2 6. 13 successes. 22 total
Ling Qi let the edges of her being fray into the shadows as she crept across the grounds, melting into the shadows cast by the wall under the late afternoon sun, maintaining a slow pace as she eyed the vast, complex web of spiritual awareness that engulfed the house. It might have been a beautiful thing once, but now it was laced through with lines of wrath and disgust, and ragged holes, where something new was growing.
It felt like studying a tapestry, which was being replaced thread by thread with a whole other weaving, the holes were places where new and old had torn apart, and the dark lines… well that was where the metaphor broke apart a little. Still, she supposed she should be glad for it, as she very nearly allowed her qi to trip the web at her first step, so dense it was. If it had been whole… well, it seemed like she wouldn't simply be able to rest on her laurels in the future, when it came to sneaking.
Her near failure only made her more determined though, and soon Ling Qi made it onto the porch, taking one careful step at a time. There were no eyes to hide from here, only the spiritual senses of the house itself, and so she had to adjust her method of skulking, leaving aside her focus on the physical aspects. While she did have the key, Ling Qi did not want to alert the spirit, and so instead of the door, she crept around the perimeter until she found an open window, leading into the kitchen. Such things could usually be relied upon, it seemed, even in a cultivator house.
That wasn't to say that there weren't alarm formations layered around the window, but she managed to bypass them slipping between the figurative 'bars'. Inside though, things changed. As Ling Qi slipped down the dimly lit halls, she could feel a pressure on her back, the weight of the house spirit, an incoherent mass of negative emotion that raised the hairs on her neck.
Decorative vases rattled, and floorboards creaked without rhyme or reason, and out of the corner of her eyes, she would often catch movement. Shadows crawling unnaturally on the walls and faintly human silhouettes passing from room to room. The sounds were the worst though.
From the moment that she entered the building, the faint sound of sobbing had reached her ears, unending and uninterrupted, save by an occasional snippet of feeling-that-became-words.
Where have you gone…
Ling Qi simply grit her teeth though, doing her best to ignore the grief pressing down on her like the cold pressure of a lake in winter.
Come back, please!
It was hard though, as the visions in the corner of her eye grew more numerous, the indistinct figures of people going through the motions of daily life, happy and sad. It made it difficult to not jump when one of the sightless wraiths would pass right by or through her. A child chasing a ball, a proud woman sweeping down the hall, trailed by the images of handmaidens, men deep in arguments, their words garbled beyond recognition.
Please do not leave me…
She soon found the door leading to the basement, and here she finally made use of the key, for there were no other entrances to be found.
Usurper… Thief…
She grimaced as she felt the attention redouble, and the house grow darker still. She darted her way down the stairs as the volume of the sobbing grew greater, and took on a furious edge. Still, she slipped undetected through the web of the spirits attention, for all that she could hear the furniture rattling even as the door behind her swept shut with a loud bang. It new someone was here, but it had not 'seen' her yet.
Ling Qi slipped between wine racks and storage shelves as she made her way down to the second level of the basement, ignoring the crashing sounds of things falling behind her as the shelves rocked and the ground quaked. The second floor was thankfully bare, most of it's contents apparently removed, leaving only empty alcoves. Only one remained full, an ornate little shrine holding a stone tablet as wide as her hands placed together and only a few centimeters thick. Characters were carved in it's surface, but they were unreadable, as if the stone had melted like wax, leaving the characters warped and broken.
The sobs rose into a shriek as Ling Qi darted forward and popped the stopper off the blood vial with her thumb, and a quick flick of her wrist sprinkled the coppery scented dust over the warped tablet. It gleamed as it landed upon the stone and the foundations of the house shook violently for a moment.
...And then all was still and silent. Ling Qi grimaced as she felt something like pain shoot through the web of spirit all around her, and the feeling of grief and fury rose. For the moment though, the spirit was impotent, and so she did not waste any time lighting the incense and beginning the pacification rites.
By the time she was done, the the web around her was reduced to a fuzzy cloud, barely coherent, and the last feelings of struggle had faded.
Ling Qi grimaced, that had been far more unpleasant than she had expected, even if she had avoided real conflict with the spirit. If she ever purchased a house old enough to have a spirit, she would definitely have to make sure the thing wasn't hostile first.
+25 Sect points
Talent 6 + YSS 35 + Zeqing 15 + Dark Pool 6 + EPC 15 + Pills 10 + Lung 10 = 97 dice + 10 autos (Music 5, Imperial 5).
6 3 3 2 1 3 4 8 9 4 1 3 5 5 7 9 7 6 3 2 7 9 3 3 5 4 4 9 5 10 4 3 2 9 6 4 3 9 1 2 4 1 4 9 5 2 9 1 8 2 2 4 2 7 9 8 2 4 7 7 3 10 1 6 8 6 9 1 6 9 4 9 9 9 9 6 10 8 8 9 1 2 3 2 8 3 9 9 6 7 7 1 7 7 6 6 4. 49 successes
Rerolling 9
4 2 8 3 5 6 5 8 3. 6 successes. 10 auto. 65 total
135/250
1/4th to spiritual. Improves Resilience and Resolve
263/1200
6 3 3 2 1 3 4 8 9 4 1 3 5 5 7 9 7 6 3 2 7 9 3 3 5 4 4 9 5 10 4 3 2 9 6 4 3 9 1 2 4 1 4 9 5 2 9 1 8 2 2 4 2 7 9 8 2 4 7 7 3 10 1 6 8 6 9 1 6 9 4 9 9 9 9 6 10 8 8 9 1 2 3 2 8 3 9 9 6 7 7 1 7 7 6 6 4. 49 successes
Rerolling 9
4 2 8 3 5 6 5 8 3. 6 successes. 10 auto. 65 total
135/250
1/4th to spiritual. Improves Resilience and Resolve
263/1200
Later, once she had returned the key and collected her wage in Sect points, Ling Qi made her way up the mountain to join Zeqing for further lessons, over the course of the week, she had felt that she was making good progress further mastering the Serenade and improving her singing ability. When she arrived at the black pool though, she found only Hanyi waiting.
The little spirit was perched on the stone bench where she sat with Zeqing, kicking her bare feet idly when she arrived. "Hiya Big Sister," the little spirit said cheerfully, she held a little snow mouse in one hand, caught by the tail. The beast squeaked and kicked as she poked at it, trying to escape the snow girls grasp. "Momma is gonna be a little late today, Auntie Xin came to talk about grown up stuff."
"That's fine," Ling Qi replied, glancing at the little girls prize as she seated herself on the bench beside her, the snow crunching faintly under her weight. It no longer melted and soaked her gown though. "Hanyi, why are you… playing with that?"
The blue skinned little girl blinked, looking up from the distressed animal trapped between her fingers. "Oh! I was being a good girl and practicing, like Momma said," she answered, with a grrin the cried out for praise as only a child's could. "I caught the mousey 'cause he couldn't resist my voice!" She added, puffing her chest out proudly.
Ling Qi glanced at the struggling animal, a weak first grade beast, and calmly patted the little spirit on the head. "Good job. You should play around with it like that though," she added, not wanting to make Hanyi get into a huff.
She pouted a little. "Big Sister acts too much like Momma," she huffed. "But fine, I won't play with my food anymore," Ling Qi blinked, nonplussed. She had never seen either the mother or daughter spirits eat anything, so what did she…
The mouse let out a strangled squeak and twitched violently then, frost spreading across its fur and skin as it visibly withered and blackened in the little spirits grasp, like a corpse left to freeze on a mountaintop. Hanyi let out a delighted sound, and Ling Qi caught the slight shimmer in the air as she breathed in the stream of heat that arose from the beasts remains. "Hehe, don't tell Momma I was snacking before dinner, okay Big Sister?" Hanyi said, looking up at her as she tossed the remains aside carelessly. The carcass landed in a heap of snow with a soft sound, disappearing from sight.
"...Sure," Ling Qi said, she supposed it wasn't the weirdest thing she had ever seen. "Have you been getting along with Zhengui?" She asked, in an effort to change the subject.
Hanyi pouted, crossing her arms. "He's being a big jerk-y head," she huffed. "He keeps saying he's too busy to play. 'Cause he has to beat up an eel. I don't get it. I'm way more fun to play with than some doofy eel."
Ah, it looked like Zhengui might have taken to training with Heizui a little too well. "I'll have a chat with him," Ling Qi said. "About not neglecting his friends."
"He's a big jerk," Hanyi sniffed, eyeing her suspiciously. "I just want my sled back, it's not cause I miss him or something."
"Of course," Ling Qi replied, hiding her grin with her sleeve, that was kind of cute. It did remind her that she would be leaving the mountain in years to come though. What would happen then?
Thankfully Zeqing arrived soon, before Hanyi could pick up on the drop in her mood. Allowing her to forget the future for the moment and immerse herself in her lessons.
Later though, as the finished up and the sun sank below the horizon, casting the ravine into darkness, she found herself reminded.
Zeqing now sat beside Ling Qi, and Hanyi lay with her head in her Mother's lap, tired out from several hours of hard practice. Asleep, the little spirit shimmered in and out of solidity, blue flesh fading to reveal swirling snow before fading back in again. The elder spirit rested a hand of transparent ice on her daughter's head as the two of them watched the last light fade from the sky.
"I have heard that you will be leaving the Sect," her teacher said quietly, without any accusation in her tone.
"I will," Ling Qi replied, not looking over. "I am incredibly thankful to you and the Sect… but I want to make something that is mine."
"I understand," Zeqing replied, bringing relief to Ling Qi. "Still, it will be… less interesting without you. You have been a good student."
"I will still be here a year yet," Ling Qi replied, before her features fell in a frown. "...Assuming an Inner Sect student can visit this peak."
"It should not be difficult to obtain dispensation, so long as you do not interfere with the operation of the outer sect," Zeqing replied without worry. "I suppose a year still seems like a great length of time to you."
"It does," Ling Qi admitted quietly. "I have been happy here for the most part. I think I want that year to seem long."
Zeqing let out an amused laugh, like the tinkling of crystal chimes on the wind. "What an honest answer."
"I try," Ling Qi replied with a grin. "Sometimes anyway."
The spirit gave a shallow nod in reply, brushing her fingers through Hanyi's hair. "Let me ask you then, what do you think of my daughter?"
Ling Qi blinked, glancing at her musical mentor sidelong. "She can be… difficult, and maybe a little spoiled," Ling Qi replied, thinking back to the girls cries of unfairness at the end of their game of tag. "...but I think she is a bit lonely too."
Zeqing did not reply for a time, and her billowing hair blocked her features from sight as she lowered her head. Ling Qi remained silent until she spoke again. "So you see it as well," Zeqing mused. "She has shown much more cheer since that spirit of yours began coming here," the ice spirit said.
"I hope Zhengui has behaved himself," Ling Qi replied, aware of how territorial Zeqing could be.
She flicked her sleeve in dismissal of the words. "Once I might have scoured the mountain clean to remove the presence of a beast like him, but it no longer bothers me," she replied. "But… I cannot say that seeing my daughter with so joyful in the presence of another does not… vex me in some ways," she added, her voice growing dark.
Ling Qi shifted uncomfortably as the temperature dropped. "...Will it be a problem?"
"I will not let it be," Zeqing replied, her blood red lips curving down in a frown. "I am not as I was. The same instinct which demands that her joy be in me alone are the ones which would cause me to devour her as well. Humanity is a vexing thing, bringing such uncertainty."
"I don't think you regret it though, do you?" Ling Qi replied carefully.
"I do not," Zeqing replied. "Yet… I know one day I will need let her go," Ling Qi flinched at the icy wind that cut through her defenses, chilling her to the bone the moment those words left the spirits mouth. "That is the human thing to do, is it not?"
Ling Qi shivered as the snow and ice slashed through the air around her, leaving only the mother and daughter spirits untouched. "...Maybe," she admitted. "Do you think that would help her?"
"She will not ever be more than she is, if she remains," Zeqing replied, her soft voice audible over the shrieking wind. "And that no longer seems as acceptable as it was. Did you know, that before I began teaching you, the thought of teaching my daughter never crossed my mind as more than an idle fancy, to pass the nights?"
The wind was quieting down, thankfully enough, the snowfall growing slower and gentler. "You seem very proud of her progress though," Ling Qi said, looking over at them.
"I am," Zeqing replied. "And such is my conflict. I wish to see my daughter mature, but she cannot do so with me," the spirit sounded as if those words physically pained her, and well… perhaps they did. "Do you understand my meaning, Disciple Ling Qi?"
Ling Qi nodded. "I will be happy to continue my lessons Teacher Zeqing, alone and alongside your daughter. As your student, I am her older sister, in a way, after all," she replied carefully. "I will of course look after my junior if need be."
Zeqing nodded shallowly, straightening her shoulder as the last of the whipping wind faded. "I speak only as a consideration for the future," She said, still somewhat stiffly. "A year remains to us after all, and the future may bring change."
Dexterity 8/45
Stamina 18/35
Intelligence 9/35
Wits 2/35
Resolve 12/35
Manipulation 9/45
Composure 9/35
+11 domain successes
Formations 9/21
Occult 5/15
Athletics 8/30
Ride ⅚
Stealth 10/30
Expression 15/42
-specialty: Vocals gained
Dodge 5/30
Resilience 5/21
+15 successes to qi
+5 to Argent Current
+30 to Sable crescent Step
+8 to Sable Crescent Step
Stamina 18/35
Intelligence 9/35
Wits 2/35
Resolve 12/35
Manipulation 9/45
Composure 9/35
+11 domain successes
Formations 9/21
Occult 5/15
Athletics 8/30
Ride ⅚
Stealth 10/30
Expression 15/42
-specialty: Vocals gained
Dodge 5/30
Resilience 5/21
+15 successes to qi
+5 to Argent Current
+30 to Sable crescent Step
+8 to Sable Crescent Step
Income: 115 Red Stones
Okay, so the next voting period will cover weeks 44 and 45, which will be closed cultivation weeks, as discussed previously. So you will have 12 major action slots which may be devoted to training since you are doing this across two weeks and particular cultivation may be selected up to twice without penalty. Similarly, you may assign the white room up to two times, Meizhen up to two times, etc.
[] Train at the vent with Su Ling
-[] Any
[] Train Music arts with Zeqing
[] Take a job
-[] Specify
[] Visit the Archive
-[] Search for a technique
-[] Study another subject
-[] Look into the items you found during your quest
[] Study Formations with Li Suyin
-[] Select up to two formations
[] Train with Meizhen
-[] Any
[] Cultivate with Cai Renxiang
-[] Any
[] Cultivate in the White Room
-[] What?
-[] With who?
[] Cultivate on your own
-[] Any
Now this time, the minor actions will be voted for separately from the training plan, and will operate off approval voting. Cai Renxiang will not be included, since she will be getting some automatic scenes due to the chosen path. As before with the weapons, you may vote for up to three minor options.
[] Su Ling and the Ma Sisters are looking to acquire spirit beasts, maybe you can help a bit?
[] Zhengui and Heizui could use a bit of extra attention to be sure that their interactions don't get unhealthy
[] Tag along to make sure Zhengui and Hanyi get along the next time they play
[] Be prepared to take Xiulan out for some fun, whether in commiseration or celebration
[] Learn of the ancient and venerable art of... fishing. Meizhen will be happy to show you, you're sure, and perhaps you can leanr more about her family.
[] Mother has had some time to settle, so you should spend some more time with her, and see if she needs anything
[] Sixiang will be casting off their physical form soon enough, and you have had some fun. See if there is something the spirit would like to do before they go?
Do not worry about voting for talisman sales or purchases or the status of your materials, we will do that later, same goes for Yan renshu
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- Location
- Elsewhere
[x] Tag along to make sure Zhengui and Hanyi get along the next time they play
[x] Mother has had some time to settle, so you should spend some more time with her, and see if she needs anything
[x] Sixiang will be casting off their physical form soon enough, and you have had some fun. See if there is something the spirit would like to do before they go?
Tempted by Meizhen, but sticking with these.
Not making a plan, and the votes are seperate anyway.
[x] Mother has had some time to settle, so you should spend some more time with her, and see if she needs anything
[x] Sixiang will be casting off their physical form soon enough, and you have had some fun. See if there is something the spirit would like to do before they go?
Tempted by Meizhen, but sticking with these.
Not making a plan, and the votes are seperate anyway.
Quest
The Great One
- Location
- Everywhere
I wonder about this. While she's certainly gloomy and doesn't exactly expect everything to work out, she's definitely decided to forge her own happy ending.