year 43, week 42, Part 2
"I am not the kind of person who lives up to the ideals you talk about," Ling Qi said, breaking the silence that had begun to stretch on. "But you know that already, right?"
Cai considered her words, regarding her measuringly from her higher seat. "An ideal is the end of a path, not it's beginning. I myself am flawed, purposely so, but this remains true."
"I'm not even sure I believe it is possible to achieve what you want," Ling Qi replied, lowering her head.
"Yet, you are not certain that it is not," the heiress replied shrewdly. "The question lies solely in whether you would walk the long path toward justice at my side. If I have been unclear before this point, Ling Qi, answer me this question. "Are you truly satisfied with the world as it is?"
"Talking about the world is a little grandiose, don't you think?" Ling Qi asked wryly. "Affecting such a thing is beyond my reach."
"Is that so?" Cai Renxiang replied, the eyes splashed over her chest now focusing upon Ling Qi. "I had thought you more ambitious than that. Do you not seek the highest levels of power?"
"In cultivation, of course," Ling Qi replied, frowning. "But that is a personal matter, not trying to affect the entire empire."
"You will never achieve those heights then," the other girl replied, the light around her strengthening with the conviction in her words. "Cultivation affects the world around you. Even those who focus inward shape the world with their steps, even if those effects might be small. The notion that a man or woman may live only for themselves, unlinked to the world is childish and pathetic. Leave such thoughts to barbarians and those lonely souls who would rather spend a thousand years in a cave or a meditation chamber seeking power without purpose beyond its own propogation."
"...I would probably call it beastly, rather than childish," Ling Qi replied after a moment, letting out a small laugh. "A child simply doesn't know better, but adults can still be the most vicious beasts of all, you know?"
"You would know better than I, perhaps," Cai admitted. "Which is why I reach out to those such as you and Gan Guangli, to ensure that my path does not become corrupted in ignorance. I do not have my Mother's perception. Many things are hidden from my eyes and ears. I do not expect to achieve my ideal without struggle or pain. So I will ask again. Are you satisfied, Ling Qi?"
"No, I'm not," Ling Qi sighed, closing her eyes. "I am selfish though, and often thoughtless toward others. Is that truly what you want in a retainer?"
"I believe you do yourself too little credit, there is potential in your resolve," she replied, rising gracefully from her seat, looking down at Ling Qi. "Should you stumble on the path behind me, I will see you guided back."
Ling Qi supposed that her thoughts must have been obvious then, as she stood herself. She clasped her hands in front of her and bowed low at the waist. "I will accept your generous offer then, and swear to serve you in honour and good faith." Meizhen's lessons served her well once again.
"I am glad," though she could not see the heiress' face, she could hear a note of relief in the other girls tone. "Raise your head, Baroness Ling. Though there is much to do to confirm your position, there are some matters which must be resolved before we leave this room."
Ling Qi straightened up, raising a curious eyebrow. "What would those be?"
"Ensuring that you have a regalia worthy of a retainer of the Cai clan," Cai Renxiang replied. "As I have done for Gan Guangli, I will do for you," she looked down as she spoke, and Ling Qi followed her gaze. The heiress plucked at her sleeve, working the fine cloth between her fingers. "However, in this, I also give my first command. You will not speak of this, to anyone," she met Ling Qi's eyes, as she spoke, her voice stern.
"I can hold a secret, Lady Cai," Ling Qi reassured her. She already had a few after all.
"Good, it is not my displeasure you risk should you reveal this," Surprisingly, a thread quickly came loose from the weave of her gown, a glowing string so bright that it was difficult to look directly at. It coiled around Cai's fingers like a living thing as she tugged it free. "Take this. I will bring you to a room where you may disrobe and leave your gown for the afternoon, while Liming's thread integrates itself."
Ling Qi tentatively took the thread from the heiress's offered hand. It pulsed with warmth against her skin, beating like a heart in a way that was slightly unsettling. She quickly stored it away in her ring, but the warmth remained, heating the plain iron band on her finger. "Thank you very much. May I ask if there is anything else we need to see too?"
"Matters of resource, primarily," Cai Renxiang admitted, looking her over. "My dispensations are limited in the Outer Sect, and though you have made few requests of me. I am inclined to see your equipment improved. Under my current budget. I am willing to comision a talisman from a professional craftsmen for your use, it's quality limited only by what your current cultivation can make use of."
"I suppose my current equipment is not of the highest grade, comparatively," Ling Qi said wryly. "Thank you for your generosity."
"The craftsmen of the outer sect are promising students, but students they remain," Cai agreed. "In the future, I shall ensure you some number of green stones as well, to aid your growth, but under my current budget, I will only be providing one per month. I have no doubt that you will use this resource efficiently."
"That is one thing I am pretty good at," Ling Qi agreed. "Ah… do we need to do some kind of public ceremony? I had read that there was more to swearing vassalage than this?" She wasn't looking forward to it if so.
"That is something to be left for later, once our time in the Sect is complete, however, I will require more of your time, yet," Cai replied serenely, heading for the exit. "Come, let us get you changed, so that we may go to the Sect's office while your garments are adjusted.
"Why do we need to go to the Sect office?" Ling Qi asked, curiously. She knew she would need to adjust the way she spoke to Cai in public after this, but the heiress didn't seem to mind her continuing to be somewhat casual in private.
"To take care of the paperwork of course,"Cai said blandly, opening the door to the room. "There is a significant amount which needs be done to legally bind our arrangement, transfer your tuition debt, and other such matters. I am afraid your presence will be required for a few hours yet."
Ling Qi's eyes narrowed even as she felt coldness in her gut. Just how much paperwork were they talking about? She couldn't shake the feeling that she had glimpsed a slight smile on the other girls face as she turned away either. Was this girl relishing the thought of putting her through this…?
Cai Renxiang had a disturbing number of spare outfits squirreled away in her wardrobes and closets, made in many sizes, but it did mean the light blue gown she picked out fit with only a little adjustment. Leaving her gown behind in Cai's mansion was uncomfortable though, but less so than the mind numbing hours that followed, reading through page after page of legal documents and signing again and again.
In the end, things would not change a great deal in immediate terms. Ling Qi would have to be more careful of her words and actions in public spaces, but she was intending to do that anyway. Right now the only major task Cai wanted her to accomplish was placing well in the tournament, which meant focusing on her cultivation. She would also be expected to join Cai Renxiang and Gan Guangli for training and review of the 'governments' status each week, above and beyond anything brought to the overall council.
It would allow either her or Guangli to raise issues if needed and let Cai give them instruction. It was for that reason that Ling Qi held off on mentioning Yan Renshu for now. She wasn't yet sure if she wanted to escalate it beyond a personal issue.
She also found herself a bit distracted by her newly improved gown, when the bureaucratic torture ended.
Swaying Twilight Gown:
A many layered gown of water smooth black silk with prominent white hems and a dark blue mantle split down the center like a pair of wings and embroidered with patterns of white lotus flowers. It's train trails behind the wearer, never touching the base earth. A finely painted silk panel is affixed to the front, displaying curling vines and white petaled azalea flowers, spotted with red like drops of blood. Made by an apprentice of the Duchess Cai, and infused with a thread from the spirit Liming, it's craftsmanship is near unparalleled, though its potential still sleeps. Armor 4. Reduces the cost of Darkness and Water and Wind arts by 3 to a minimum of one. Provides an additional four die to defense in low light and darkness, and two under normal light. Provides a four die bonus on intimidate and stealth tests. Self Repairs. Durability 15
-Wings in Shadow: At the cost of three qi per turn, provides flight at the user's speed, or negates any damage from a fall of two hundred meters or less
-Twilight Beauty: For one qi per turn, the user may reduce light levels to low within fifty meters.
It somehow managed to fit even more comfortably than before, the fabric feeling as light as air and comfortably cool on her skin. It also seemed completely impervious to moisture, which made her climb up the mountain to see Zeqing the following day quite a bit more comfortable.
Spending the morning on a high cliffside, breathing in the crisp mountain air and practicing her singing made for an nice, relaxing morning. Her own voice still paled in comparison to Zeqing's, but she felt that she was improving quickly. It was amusing to see Hanyi stubbornly pushing through simpler voice exercises. It seemed Zeqing really did understand her daughter well. The little ice child had a wide competitive streak and really hated losing.
Ling Qi thought it was rather cute if she was honest, though that might be due to Zeqing preventing the little girl from sulking too much. With the sun passing its zenith, she headed down the mountain, planning to meet up with Suyin for a little research time. Though it had fallen by the wayside, Ling Qi hadn't forgotten some of the ideas she had thought up in regards to the guardian formations. She met her friend at her home, and joined her in her workshop to study.
"So you won't be staying in the Sect?" Li Suyin asked as she sketched out a potential design on a wide sheet of paper, splayed over the same worktable that had doubled as a medical bed.
"Yes, I feel like it would be kind of foolish to pass up an opportunity like this," Ling Qi replied, with a sheepish shrug, her own inkbrush scribbling in details within the wider pattern.
"I can see why, to think the heir to the duchess herself would offer you such a position," Suyin said, her lips pursed as she carefully laid out the strokes to one of the larger characters.
"What about you, Li Suyin? Gotten any offers yet?" Ling Qi asked lightly, not wanting to seem like she was rubbing her good fortune in her friends face. Suyin had reached mid yellow in spiritual a little while ago, and from the intensity of her aura, her reserve of qi was getting pretty respectable as well.
Li Suyin glanced away, seeming a little embarrassed. "...One or two. Senior Sister Bao's comments on their quality were rather colorful though. I think I will remain with the Sect for a time yet… Father spent a decade of his savings and a hefty loan on the tuition, so I want to learn as much as possible, before making any further choices."
Ling Qi was glad her friend wouldn't be on the front lines at any point. She might not be the gentle girl she had been at the start of the year, but she still couldn't picture her as part of a military unit. "Speaking of low quality," Ling Qi added thoughtfully. "Did that Huang Da keep bothering you after he stopped sniffing around me?"
Li Suyin grimaced. "... A little, yes. I have not seen him in over a month though. I believe he has gone into closed door cultivation," she shook her head, dismissing the subject. "Shall we try activating the new mobile formation then?"
She wanted to offer help, but it seemed like Li Suyin wanted to handle things herself, she would have to trust her friend to come to her if she needed help. "Right, I'll handle the North and East Gates?"
"And I will activate the South and West ones. Start at the end of the three count…" Li Suyin said, looking down at their work intently. They counted down together, and channeled qi into the openings around the patterned circle…
The muffled explosion that followed blew the shutters on the workshops windows open, and scattered the birds roosting the roof.
...It was a good thing that they had decided to practice with paper,leaving them covered in fine ash rather than showered with splinters or shards of stone. Ling Qi grimaced as she brushed the smoldering embers which had landed in her hair onto the floor and stamped them out.
Li Suyin's spirit chittered worriedly from atop her masters head in the aftermath, having come rushing out of the cozy nest built into the ceiling the moment the blast had been unleashed. The fuzzy pink arachnid was two hand lengths across now. She still looked Ling Qi with eight glistening eyes brimming with suspicion too.
"I am fine Zhenli, "Li Suyin's soothed, despite her face being splotched with soot. She gently shooed her spirit down onto her shoulder, where the fuzzy arachnid clung like a particularly sullen shoulderpad. "We didn't make any errors though, I am sure of it," Suyin added, sounding frustrated.
"Which means there must be some problem with our theory," Ling Qi sighed. "I guess this means we start over from scratch?"
"It seems we have little choice," Li Suyin huffed, brushing her hand across the ashen tabletop. It shimmered wetly for a moment, moisture rising from the wood to carry the mess into a bucket at the far end of the table. "Perhaps we should modify the scouts first? We might gain some insights into the more complex formation that way."
In the end, they didn't manage to make any workable improvements by late afternoon, when Suyin had to return to the Medicine Hall, and she had to go train with Su Ling, but they were slowly working out some ways to improve on the formations further. They weren't going to give up though, and Ling Qi had an idea for getting them through this rough patch. She just had to figure out where Xuan Shi had disappeared to.
The next few days passed in relative peace as Ling Qi continued her cultivation and visits to friends and mentors alike, while doing some research on the two tasks she had set for herself this week. The mountain indicated to her in her moon quest was known for being haunted by spirits of darker nature, creatures of poison and ambush, who beguiled the senses and preyed on the unwary.
Which wasn;t terribly surprising, if there was something that would be useful to her there. Still, it would pay to be mentally prepared for that kind of thing. To that end, she tentatively set the date for her expedition at the end of the week, since it was rather far away to boot. She would rather resolve her other obligations in case it took longer than she thought.
On the other hand, the Sect job was looking like it wouldn't be terribly difficult. It seemed that the spirit she was tasked with dealing with had settled in at a thick grove of fir trees a ways north of the village and remained mostly static, going by spotty guard reports. Luckily it still hadn't harmed any humans, though one hunter reported seeing the muddy hulk bodily lift a great Emerald Boar with one arm and break the beasts spine over it's knee.
Given that such creatures high second grade and two meters tall at the shoulder at their smallest, Ling resolved not to let the thing catch her.
She brought Zhengui along for her hunt this time, though she kept him dematerialized in her dantian after impressing on him the seriousness of the situation. It was late evening when she descended the mountain, and headed out the north gate of the village, following the road only a short way before splitting off to head toward the grove where the spirit had been spotted.
Ling Qi slipped easily into stealth, a light jump carrying her up into the branches of the trees, where she could ghost along without a sound. A year ago, the branches would have bent or broken under her weight, and she would have had a hard time balancing on the thin wooden limbs even if they hadn't. Now it was as easy as walking across flat ground, and not a single leaf rustled in her wake as she darted through the forest canopy like a shadow.
Animals and spirits alike took no notice of her passage as she moved through the woods toward the targets grove, and soon enough she began to see signs of it. Places where the brush was trampled down, or masses of damp clay and loam clung to tree trunks and lower hanging branches. Even now a wisp of mixed earth and water qi remained in the material.
It didn't have the sickly feel that she remembered back from the mission with the shaman though, so that eliminated one possibility she had considered. The grove itself was rather pretty, a regular circle of tall fir trees, in which wispy, barely material first grade wind spirits danced, causing the branches to rustle and sway even in the absence of external wind.
If she did not already have the snowfield Zeqing had shown her, she might have found some good use for it as a site to cultivate wind arts in. As it was though, she merely made sure to remember the location, someone else might make better use of it.
The spirit she was hunting wasn't present at the moment though. There was a small hill of river clay in the center of the grove, with a vaguely bowl shaped depression in its top, and plenty of mud smeared across the trunks though, so it seemed the information wasn't wrong.
With that in mind, Ling Qi found a good hiding place, and settled in to wait.
She spent a little under an hour crouched in the tree, calmly meditating on the meanings of the qi flows within the Thousand Ring Fortress art, since she was in such a heavily wood aligned area. Zhengui had dozed off a little. She wanted to scold him, but she couldn't quite bring herself too.
Her patience was rewarded when her ears caught the distant sound of lumbering footsteps. They were loud and unsubtle, like boots caked in wet mud. Within a few minutes, she caught a glimpse of the creature, four meters tall and nearly as broad at the shoulder, it was a veritable mountain of river mud and black loam, rushes, weeds and moss sprouted from its half liquid surface, swaying as it walked. There was a sort of lump at the top of its shoulders, but she would be hard pressed to call it a head.
It's other features were crude too, with thick three fingered hands big enough to wrap entirely around her waist and stumpy legs lacking any definition. Still, it's qi felt natural enough, it had the earthy feel of a mud slick riverbank, placid and unthreatening. She supposed she could see how it might frighten someone with less sharp senses though.
She was about to lower the bow she held in her hands and climb down to try and communicate with it, when she saw something that send a chill down her spine. There was a human head embedded in its chest, halfway down the bulk of its torso. It had young male features that might have been handsome without the corpsely pallor. She couldn't sense a single drop of qi or life from the person either.
Her lips setting into a thin line, Ling Qi's bow came back up, and she nocked an arrow, taking aim for the space directly between the creatures shoulders. She could feel a concentration of qi there, and it would be her best guess at a vital point.
However, she must have made a mistake in drawing on so much qi, because a moment before she released the sparking missile from her bow, the creature jerked, and as her arrow howled toward it in a blinding bolt. The mud that comprised it flowed apart, a perfect circle the size of a small tree trunk opening and allowing her arrow to sail through harmlessly to explode when it embedded in the creatures nest of mud, showering the clearing with dirt.
She had only a moment to curse the failure before she saw the eyes of the corpse face snap open. A moment later, she was hurling herself backward as a tall, lanky boy burst from the beasts chest as if propelled by a rocket, trailing mud and dark earth. He wore the tattered remains of an outer disciples grey robe, little more than the scraps of the sleeves and a ragged stretch of cloth across his back, and… yes, that was a bearskin tied around his waist, and nothing else.
All of that vanished from her mind in an instant though as she saw the gleaming black claws of glimmering black crystal that had consumed his hands, each talon was half the length of her forearm, and she could already trace the path they would take, slashing across her chest. Deep green qi surged from her channels shrouding her in an aura of vitality even as she darted away from the strike, but she still felt a stinging pain as two of those talons cut through her gown and qi to score the flesh of her shoulder.
"Don't hurt Big Sister!" The dual voiced cry erupted from just beside her, and she glanced to the side to see Zhengui briefly suspended in midair as ash gushed out to engulf her opponent, followed by a hissing glob of molten venom. He nimbly dodged the latter and fell back before the the former, but she could already see in his eyes that he wouldn't back off for long, and Zhengui was already falling to the forest floor a few meters below. She should, drop down to better support him, but…
Feeling outward with her qi senses, Ling Qi had a feeling that she had made a mistake in haste. "Sect Brother," She called, even as she dropped down, keeping a careful eye on both the boy and the beast now lumbering forward to join him. "Are you in your right mind?"
Her voice caused the boy, in the middle of plunging back to earth himself, to blink, his expression of absolute concentration faltering. "...Eh?"
"I apologize for attacking your spirit beast," she apologized as she landed lightly next to Zhengui, resting a hand on his shell and shooting him a calming look. Zhen continued to glare at the body, burning venom dripping from his fangs, but Gui merely blinked up at her, surprised. "I had thought that you had been consumed."
The boy frowned at her as he landed himself, he was as tall as Gan Guangli at his baseline, but much lankier. He was also really ragged looking, his hair was long enough to reach the middle of his back, but tied into a messy tail, and there was his state of dress to consider. The only talisman Ling Qi could see on him were a pair of crude wooden bangles around his wrists.
...Which made the power and speed of his strikes all the more alarming, he was a step above her in the third realm too.
"You are not here for a duel?" he cocked his head to the side, and Ling Qi couldn't help but picture a curious dog in his place. He sounded a little disappointed.
"I was sent out to investigate, your bound spirit has been frightening villagers," she replied carefully. She hadn't been able to sense his qi at all in there. "May I ask what you were doing?"
"Cultivating of course," he replied, as if stating the obvious, the glimmering claws crumbling away from his hands as he crossed his arms over his bare chest. He was ridiculously pale, like he hadn't seen the sun in ages. "Lanhua, what have you been doing?" He turned his head to look at the lumbering golem striding up behind him. It made an odd burbling sound, which he seemed to understand. "She has been minding her own business," he said turning back to Ling Qi with a frown.
"Yet, frighten people she has, you are quite close to the village, you know," Ling Qi replied dryly, stroking Zhen soothingly.
"Ah… we are," he glanced around, scratching his head. "Did I misjudge the distances again?" He murmured to himself. "Well, no harm," he shrugged. "I will just move on a ways."
"Ah… do you mind if I ask you something?" Ling Qi asked, causing him to pause in the middle of turning away. "While I only arrived this year, I do not think I would miss someone of your strength, Sect Brother…"
"Shen Hu," he introduced himself after a moment's thought. "I have not been on the mountain since last year. Too many distractions," he explained with a shrug, seeming to already be losing interest in her. "Ah… I can't go too far though, or I'll miss the tournament again, maybe that little lake to the west…"
Ling Qi grimaced as the somewhat spacey boy took his leave It looked like there was another potential obstacle in the tournament, she could still feel the stinging pain of those claw wounds, even though her gown had already repaired itself. As if there wasn't already enough competition for those spots. She'd have to let Cai Renxiang know what she had found here. Then again, she might already know, due to Fu Xiang, but if this guy had wandered off into the woods for a year, the information dealer might have assumed him dead.
"Are you alright Big Sister?" Gui asked, while Zhen continued to stare daggers at the boys back.
"I'm fine Zhengui, just a little scratch," She reassured him. "Why don't we get a few cores before we go home," she added, to distract Zhen from his temper. This hadn't taken as long as she thought.
She did wonder what the Elders were playing at though. Surely Elder Ying at least had to have been aware that the 'monster' was just a weird disciple. She supposed trying to figure out what an Elder was thinking was mostly futile though.
After a bit of hunting, she headed back to the mountain under the cover of night, letting her minor wounds heal while she meditated and recovered her qi. In the morning, she left a message with her new liege lord and headed to the Sect office to collect her reward.
+25 Sect points
With most of her tasks done for the week, she returned to the dragon's vale to cultivate, and spent another training session with Su Ling, before rejoining Li Suyin in the afternoon, where she laid out her idea.
"I am not sure if it is appropriate to bother him like this," Li Suyin said uncomfortably as they walked the path toward Xuan Shi's workshop. A quick visit to Gan Guangli at the training fields had pointed them to where the reclusive boy had holed up in recent weeks. "I am sure he is very busy…"
"He might not seem like it, but Xuan Shi is a pretty friendly guy," Ling Qi reassured her as the building came into view. It was more of a low hill of rock than a building, with a pair of smoking chimneys disgorging fragrant, qi charged smoke. There were no windows, but there was a single door on the front side, carved from a single piece of wood. "I don't think he would mind answering a few questions. "Besides, he could probably use a conversation, if he's really been in seclusion for a month."
Li Suyin sighed a little, it was pretty similar to the way Meizhen sighed when she felt Ling Qi was being unreasonable, but she let it pass without comment. "I will trust your judgement," she said aloud, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself.
Ling Qi came to a stop as they reached his doorstep, and after a moment of searching, she found the formation Gan Guangli had mentioned and put her finger in the center of it. Channeling a tiny thread of qi into it, she was pleased when she heard the deep ringing of a bell echoing from the inside, just as Gan had said it would. That was a useful little trick.
She waited patiently as a minute or two passed, Li Suyin shifting nervously beside her. Eventually though, she caught the sound of movement, and the faint tinkle of the metal rings on Xuan Shi's staff. A moment later, she stepped back to give the door room to creak open, revealing a blinking Xuan Shi in his usual high collared robe, though she could see his hat hanging from a peg on the wall behind him. He seemed politely bewildered by their presence.
"...Sister Ling?" He greeted after a pause. "The council lays silent, the mountain peaceful. Has the princess of strife broken her bond?
"Nothing so serious," Ling Qi reassured him. "This is merely a personal call."
She saw him glance over at Li Suyin, who smiled weakly, offering a silent bow of respect. "...I see," he said, his expression unreadable. "What quest brings you to my abode then?"
"Well it's a little embarrassing to admit, but I was hoping for some advice again," she admitted, catching a flicker of something in his eyes as she did. "My friend and I were working on a formations project and I was hoping you might have a word of wisdom or two?"
She subtly nudged Li Suyin, who very much did not squeak in alarm like a frightened mouse… or so she would tell anyone who asked. "Ah, honored Brother Xuan, we are having some trouble modifying a housing guardian formation toward greater mobility. While I would not dare ask for your personal secrets. I had hoped that you might be able to point out which portions of my general knowledge are lacking."
Whatever strange expression he had before, Xuan Shi looked down at the back of Li Suyin's head with resigned amusement, before looking back to Ling Qi. "...A boon of knowledge then, of course. Enter then, and partake of my hospitality, such as it is. This one has some hours to spare while certain processes complete."
Li Suyin seemed relieved, but Ling Qi just nodded, for all his demeanor, Xuan Shi was a generous sort.
His home was small, and a bit claustrophobic for Ling Qi's taste, but it was clean and well ventilated… somehow. The furnishings were spartan though, the table they sat at to have tea was a plain thing that wouldn't have been out of place in the lower ring of Tonghou… well it's state of repair aside. Xuan Shi was able to help them through their block, pointing out some faulty assumptions in the foundations of their logic for the modification. Suyin's hands were little more than a blur as she took down every word Xuan Shi said in her notes.
Of course, there were downsides, a formation like the Silk Guard was not meant to be mobile, and while it could be made so… it came at cost, such a formation would only last twenty four hours or so at best, before the strain broke things. So it would be rather expensive… it did mean that her idle dream of mounting one on Zhengui was not impossible though. In the long term, she would probably want to invest in a talisman for the purpose, but a short lived formation was fine for the tournament.
They would still need to work on it further to iron out the kinks though.
With everything else Ling Qi had done this week, taking the next morning off to cultivate with Xiulan in the White Room was a nice little break. In her fuzzy memories of rainbow silk and warm waters, she could recall the sheer ease with which the impurities that blocked the meridian she was clearing flowing away like mist under the morning sun. Soon she would be able to practice Zeqing's gift without having to change the elemental attunement of her other meridians.
It was also nice to see some of the stress lines she had begun to notice forming at the corners of Xiulan's eyes smoothed away for the moment. In the wake of their cultivation time ending, the two of them had gone back to one of the upscale teahouses in the center of town to relax, and let the fuzziness in their heads fade.
"What a wondrous place," Xiulan mused, leaning back against the padded bench. "I do not believe I have ever opened two meridians with a single effort before," she could see the girl smiling behind her thread of gold veil.
"It is pretty amazing," Ling Qi replied freely, sipping a bit of the warm tea from her cup. It was a mild flavor, and for the moment she savored her ignorance of what that might mean. She had a feeling that she would be learning more than she had ever wanted to know about tea in the days going forward. "I had thought I was nearing my limit before Lady Cai opened it for our use."
"And yet you likely had more open then, than I do now," Xiulan shot back, only a tiny touch of bitterness in her voice.
"...I'm a little surprised that you haven't refused me yet," Ling Qi replied quietly, looking down.
Xiulan was silent for a moment, and Ling Qi couldn't miss the conflict in her eyes. "I cannot afford pride of that sort. You are my friend, I will simply have to accept your generosity in this. Do not think that I will not repay you in the future."
Ling Qi nodded, accepting the word with the seriousness that they were due, before cracking a smile. "Well, for starters, do you know a good site for cultivating fire arts? Zhen can't get much use out of the place where I am training his brother at the moment."
Xiulan raised an eyebrow, looking surprised. "Not what I meant, but I am surprised you did not ask sooner. I cannot share my sister's site, but I will make a list for you."
"Hah, well, you know how I am sometimes," Ling Qi replied, with a self deprecating smile.
Xiulan rolled her eyes. "Sometimes I worry for you. I am going to go away for a time and return to find you mossed over in a cave somewhere."
Ling Qi's smile turned a bit sad, in the future, it wasn't likely that she would be seeing Xiulan very often… but no matter which path she took, she would be leaving something behind. "You'll have to stay in contact then, and make sure I don't forget anything important."
"Hmph, you likely will not need me for that," Xiulan replied, looking down at her own cup. "You will have a fief to oversee after all. You strike me as the responsible sort."
Ling Qi nodded, by now, her status as Cai Renxiang's retainer had begun to spread. "I'm sorry, but…"
"Do not be, such an offer is not one the Gu clan can compete with," Xiulan replied. "Still… I will keep in touch, as I am able, I will remain in the Sect, and thus the province for some time, regardless of what happens."
"I appreciate it," Ling Qi replied quietly glad for the reminder that the Sect wouldn't be terribly far away, before sighing, breaking the somber mood, she would have to at least meet Tai at some point to politely turn down the offer in a formal manner, but for now, she didn't want to think on such things. "So, what other inner Sect gossip has your sister been telling you? Even if I won't be there long, I'd like to know what I am getting into…"
She was glad for the pleasant hour or so of conversation that followed, even if much of it was just laughing over the personal foibles of individual inner sect disciples. She did learn some interesting things though.
The Inner Sect ranked its disciples, from one down to whatever number matched the current amount of disciples, but it wasn't as simple as a measure of power. There were typically around one thousand Inner Sect disciples, and for the ranks under five hundred, individuals could challenge one another freely to shift rank around. However, to enter the top five hundred, one had to have contributed to the Sect in significant ways to be allowed to challenge for position.
Another ledge stood at the top one hundred and the top ten, where only those who had served in the Sect military in some capacity for an extended period could stand. Higher ranks of course came with greater resources and access to Sect materials.
She also learned far too much about the romantic inclinations of her Senior Brothers and Sisters. It seemed that Gu Yanmei was an inveterate hoarder of gossip, despite the personality that Ling Qi had previously observed.
Once she parted ways with Xiulan, Ling Qi began her preparations for her expedition out to the cave the moon had shown her, picking up Zhengui from the garden and ensuring that all of her pills and salves were stored away in her ring.
Not wanting to burn too much qi, she made the journey on foot, reaching the mountain where her target was only a bit over two hours later. She was immediately struck by the sense of foreboding which shrouded that short, stumpy mountain peak, and the the impenetrability of the shadows that clung like thick webs to the branches beneath the canopy of the trees.
Ling Qi advanced carefully under those shadows, suffused with the tranquility of her perception arts. Misleading illusions parted before her like cobweb before a brush, and hissing, shadowy thing fled her presence, only visible as wriggling shapes in the corner of her eye. Yet still, the air was heavy with foreboding, and the deep earthy scents of fungus and rot. Pale lichen grew on trees and rocks, and thick mushroom groves littered the loamy ground. After the first one released a cloud of qi qi infused spores at her approach, Ling Qi took to avoiding them as she could.
Yet she found her passage was far from unbarred, shadowy shapes, like the ghosts of dead trees reached from the darkness to catch at her gown and hair, only to be sundered by the flash of her flying sword. Slithering masses of insects with a deer's skull worn like a macabre 'helmet', spat sickly qi at her from afar, their writhing forms baring the vague shape of men, and hungry white worms, similar to those used by Yan Renshu emerged from the dirt to snap and spit.
Her flute called up a tight veil of mist that shrouded her movements and tore to shreds the things that approached her, but she kept it close, wanting to avoid riling the whole forest up, and to get further practice with her sword. The swarm spirits shrieked as the qi infused steel carved them to pieces, or Zhengui's fiery venom cooked them until they popped and burst, sundering their 'heads' and leaving the masses of vermin to disperse in her wake as she played her melody and continued her path through the haunted forest.
Yet, still despite her sharp senses, she found it difficult to maintain her path, she knew where the cave would be from her map, yet she continually found herself being turned around, not by illusion, but as if the space she was in folded strangely upon itself, such that passing through an arch of branches might leave her walking in the opposite direction a hundred meters away.
There was something broken here, Ling Qi could feel. It wasn't like the ruin left by the shaman's destruction, a sickness or wound in the process of healing. No, the atmosphere of this place instead brought to mind a twisted, crippled limb, damaged fundamentally, never to fully heal. It made her skin crawl.
Constantly keeping her technique active to penetrate the veils of this place slowly began to wear on her as well. There was a subtle drag at her qi as well, she found her ability to recover in mid combat weakened, as if the earth was drinking in the residual qi that she would have used to recover.
By the time she reached the yawning mouth a the cave, in a lifeless clearing stripped of all but a few scattered bones, human and otherwise, more than eight hours had passed. She had come here in the afternoon, and now it was night. Zhengui drooped tiredly beside her, and her own qi was low as well. She could recover with a pill or two… but no, her intuition told her that the path ahead would be more draining still. She had no doubt that the heavy fog that shrouded this part of the mountain would be no easier to navigate by air either.
However… she didn't want to be stuck in some dank mountain cave when her mother arrived. She had figured out the path, and as twisty as it was, it hadn't actually changed. Space was weird and broken here, but the destinations when blinking from one place to the next were consistent. It would only take an hour or two to get back here, now that she had the path.
...She would just have to return and finish this another day.
Income: 115 red Stones, 1 Green Stone
Cai Renxiang will commission a talisman from a professional craft cultivator for your use. What would you like?
Format:
[][Talisman]
-[] Object Type(sword, belt, shoes etc.)
-[] Up to four effects go here (eg. Bonus to attack, reduction of X element or meridian, Skill bonus, etc.)
Fewer than four abilities will result in the others being more potent. In the case of weapons, increased DV, armor piercing or range takes one slot
You have five major actions and three minor. However, I will allow up to two minor actions which are tied to major ones.
However this week, your mothers arrival will consume one Major and one minor. In addition, due to your new position, one major every other week must be [] Cultivate with Cai Renxiang
[] 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 or improve formations
-[] Study another subject
[] Train with Gu Xiulan
-[] Defensive Arts only
[] Train with Meizhen
-[] Any
[] Cultivate with Cai Renxiang
-[] Any
[] Cultivate in the White Room
-[] What?
-[] With who?
[] Go into the cavern, finish your quest
[] Take care of Yan Renshu
-[]Bring the matter up to Cai Renxiang
[] Cultivate on your own
-[] Any
[] It's time for testing! You should work for some prototypes. Suyin has invited you to join her in her mentors workshop to do some more experimentation
[] Continue training Zhengui in the Vale, and make sure to pay some attention to Zhen as well... maybe you can get Heizui to contribute?
[] Well, you've taken the plunge, Cai's invited you out to train. Time to work on your understanding of her further
[] Sixiang shouldn't be a problem for the moment, but you are interested. She said she was a muse after all, maybe she can help you improve your music?
[] Meet Gu Tai, and give him the polite refusal. It just wasn't going to happen
[] Hanyi and Zhengui have been playing on occasion, maybe you should join them and see what they're actually up too.
[] After hearing of your encounter in the woods, Gan Guangli announced that he wanted to challenge the strange boy. You... might be interested in watching.
Cai considered her words, regarding her measuringly from her higher seat. "An ideal is the end of a path, not it's beginning. I myself am flawed, purposely so, but this remains true."
"I'm not even sure I believe it is possible to achieve what you want," Ling Qi replied, lowering her head.
"Yet, you are not certain that it is not," the heiress replied shrewdly. "The question lies solely in whether you would walk the long path toward justice at my side. If I have been unclear before this point, Ling Qi, answer me this question. "Are you truly satisfied with the world as it is?"
"Talking about the world is a little grandiose, don't you think?" Ling Qi asked wryly. "Affecting such a thing is beyond my reach."
"Is that so?" Cai Renxiang replied, the eyes splashed over her chest now focusing upon Ling Qi. "I had thought you more ambitious than that. Do you not seek the highest levels of power?"
"In cultivation, of course," Ling Qi replied, frowning. "But that is a personal matter, not trying to affect the entire empire."
"You will never achieve those heights then," the other girl replied, the light around her strengthening with the conviction in her words. "Cultivation affects the world around you. Even those who focus inward shape the world with their steps, even if those effects might be small. The notion that a man or woman may live only for themselves, unlinked to the world is childish and pathetic. Leave such thoughts to barbarians and those lonely souls who would rather spend a thousand years in a cave or a meditation chamber seeking power without purpose beyond its own propogation."
"...I would probably call it beastly, rather than childish," Ling Qi replied after a moment, letting out a small laugh. "A child simply doesn't know better, but adults can still be the most vicious beasts of all, you know?"
"You would know better than I, perhaps," Cai admitted. "Which is why I reach out to those such as you and Gan Guangli, to ensure that my path does not become corrupted in ignorance. I do not have my Mother's perception. Many things are hidden from my eyes and ears. I do not expect to achieve my ideal without struggle or pain. So I will ask again. Are you satisfied, Ling Qi?"
"No, I'm not," Ling Qi sighed, closing her eyes. "I am selfish though, and often thoughtless toward others. Is that truly what you want in a retainer?"
"I believe you do yourself too little credit, there is potential in your resolve," she replied, rising gracefully from her seat, looking down at Ling Qi. "Should you stumble on the path behind me, I will see you guided back."
Ling Qi supposed that her thoughts must have been obvious then, as she stood herself. She clasped her hands in front of her and bowed low at the waist. "I will accept your generous offer then, and swear to serve you in honour and good faith." Meizhen's lessons served her well once again.
"I am glad," though she could not see the heiress' face, she could hear a note of relief in the other girls tone. "Raise your head, Baroness Ling. Though there is much to do to confirm your position, there are some matters which must be resolved before we leave this room."
Ling Qi straightened up, raising a curious eyebrow. "What would those be?"
"Ensuring that you have a regalia worthy of a retainer of the Cai clan," Cai Renxiang replied. "As I have done for Gan Guangli, I will do for you," she looked down as she spoke, and Ling Qi followed her gaze. The heiress plucked at her sleeve, working the fine cloth between her fingers. "However, in this, I also give my first command. You will not speak of this, to anyone," she met Ling Qi's eyes, as she spoke, her voice stern.
"I can hold a secret, Lady Cai," Ling Qi reassured her. She already had a few after all.
"Good, it is not my displeasure you risk should you reveal this," Surprisingly, a thread quickly came loose from the weave of her gown, a glowing string so bright that it was difficult to look directly at. It coiled around Cai's fingers like a living thing as she tugged it free. "Take this. I will bring you to a room where you may disrobe and leave your gown for the afternoon, while Liming's thread integrates itself."
Ling Qi tentatively took the thread from the heiress's offered hand. It pulsed with warmth against her skin, beating like a heart in a way that was slightly unsettling. She quickly stored it away in her ring, but the warmth remained, heating the plain iron band on her finger. "Thank you very much. May I ask if there is anything else we need to see too?"
"Matters of resource, primarily," Cai Renxiang admitted, looking her over. "My dispensations are limited in the Outer Sect, and though you have made few requests of me. I am inclined to see your equipment improved. Under my current budget. I am willing to comision a talisman from a professional craftsmen for your use, it's quality limited only by what your current cultivation can make use of."
"I suppose my current equipment is not of the highest grade, comparatively," Ling Qi said wryly. "Thank you for your generosity."
"The craftsmen of the outer sect are promising students, but students they remain," Cai agreed. "In the future, I shall ensure you some number of green stones as well, to aid your growth, but under my current budget, I will only be providing one per month. I have no doubt that you will use this resource efficiently."
"That is one thing I am pretty good at," Ling Qi agreed. "Ah… do we need to do some kind of public ceremony? I had read that there was more to swearing vassalage than this?" She wasn't looking forward to it if so.
"That is something to be left for later, once our time in the Sect is complete, however, I will require more of your time, yet," Cai replied serenely, heading for the exit. "Come, let us get you changed, so that we may go to the Sect's office while your garments are adjusted.
"Why do we need to go to the Sect office?" Ling Qi asked, curiously. She knew she would need to adjust the way she spoke to Cai in public after this, but the heiress didn't seem to mind her continuing to be somewhat casual in private.
"To take care of the paperwork of course,"Cai said blandly, opening the door to the room. "There is a significant amount which needs be done to legally bind our arrangement, transfer your tuition debt, and other such matters. I am afraid your presence will be required for a few hours yet."
Ling Qi's eyes narrowed even as she felt coldness in her gut. Just how much paperwork were they talking about? She couldn't shake the feeling that she had glimpsed a slight smile on the other girls face as she turned away either. Was this girl relishing the thought of putting her through this…?
Cai Renxiang had a disturbing number of spare outfits squirreled away in her wardrobes and closets, made in many sizes, but it did mean the light blue gown she picked out fit with only a little adjustment. Leaving her gown behind in Cai's mansion was uncomfortable though, but less so than the mind numbing hours that followed, reading through page after page of legal documents and signing again and again.
In the end, things would not change a great deal in immediate terms. Ling Qi would have to be more careful of her words and actions in public spaces, but she was intending to do that anyway. Right now the only major task Cai wanted her to accomplish was placing well in the tournament, which meant focusing on her cultivation. She would also be expected to join Cai Renxiang and Gan Guangli for training and review of the 'governments' status each week, above and beyond anything brought to the overall council.
It would allow either her or Guangli to raise issues if needed and let Cai give them instruction. It was for that reason that Ling Qi held off on mentioning Yan Renshu for now. She wasn't yet sure if she wanted to escalate it beyond a personal issue.
She also found herself a bit distracted by her newly improved gown, when the bureaucratic torture ended.
Swaying Twilight Gown:
A many layered gown of water smooth black silk with prominent white hems and a dark blue mantle split down the center like a pair of wings and embroidered with patterns of white lotus flowers. It's train trails behind the wearer, never touching the base earth. A finely painted silk panel is affixed to the front, displaying curling vines and white petaled azalea flowers, spotted with red like drops of blood. Made by an apprentice of the Duchess Cai, and infused with a thread from the spirit Liming, it's craftsmanship is near unparalleled, though its potential still sleeps. Armor 4. Reduces the cost of Darkness and Water and Wind arts by 3 to a minimum of one. Provides an additional four die to defense in low light and darkness, and two under normal light. Provides a four die bonus on intimidate and stealth tests. Self Repairs. Durability 15
-Wings in Shadow: At the cost of three qi per turn, provides flight at the user's speed, or negates any damage from a fall of two hundred meters or less
-Twilight Beauty: For one qi per turn, the user may reduce light levels to low within fifty meters.
It somehow managed to fit even more comfortably than before, the fabric feeling as light as air and comfortably cool on her skin. It also seemed completely impervious to moisture, which made her climb up the mountain to see Zeqing the following day quite a bit more comfortable.
Talent 6 + YSS 35 + Zeqing 15 + Dark Pool 6 + EPC 15 + Pills 10 + Lung 10 + Manual 6 = 103 dice + 10 autos (Music 5, Imperial 5).
3 3 2 5 2 2 4 1 3 4 4 7 6 6 1 3 10 3 1 3 6 6 7 3 6 3 1 6 9 8 8 3 2 10 9 3 3 2 5 5 8 1 2 5 8 2 8 7 6 10 9 1 8 7 5 5 1 6 1 9 5 8 3 7 7 1 1 2 5 8 6 4 10 9 8 7 2 7 5 8 9 5 10 6 4 7 10 4 4 10 5 8 8 7 6 6 10 9 7 4 8 5 9. 51 successes
Rerolling 10
7 7 6 5 2 9 4 5 5 2. 6 successes. 10 auto. 71 total
91/100
1/4th to spiritual. Improves Resilience and Resolve
17 to spiritual
199/1200
3 3 2 5 2 2 4 1 3 4 4 7 6 6 1 3 10 3 1 3 6 6 7 3 6 3 1 6 9 8 8 3 2 10 9 3 3 2 5 5 8 1 2 5 8 2 8 7 6 10 9 1 8 7 5 5 1 6 1 9 5 8 3 7 7 1 1 2 5 8 6 4 10 9 8 7 2 7 5 8 9 5 10 6 4 7 10 4 4 10 5 8 8 7 6 6 10 9 7 4 8 5 9. 51 successes
Rerolling 10
7 7 6 5 2 9 4 5 5 2. 6 successes. 10 auto. 71 total
91/100
1/4th to spiritual. Improves Resilience and Resolve
17 to spiritual
199/1200
Spending the morning on a high cliffside, breathing in the crisp mountain air and practicing her singing made for an nice, relaxing morning. Her own voice still paled in comparison to Zeqing's, but she felt that she was improving quickly. It was amusing to see Hanyi stubbornly pushing through simpler voice exercises. It seemed Zeqing really did understand her daughter well. The little ice child had a wide competitive streak and really hated losing.
Ling Qi thought it was rather cute if she was honest, though that might be due to Zeqing preventing the little girl from sulking too much. With the sun passing its zenith, she headed down the mountain, planning to meet up with Suyin for a little research time. Though it had fallen by the wayside, Ling Qi hadn't forgotten some of the ideas she had thought up in regards to the guardian formations. She met her friend at her home, and joined her in her workshop to study.
"So you won't be staying in the Sect?" Li Suyin asked as she sketched out a potential design on a wide sheet of paper, splayed over the same worktable that had doubled as a medical bed.
"Yes, I feel like it would be kind of foolish to pass up an opportunity like this," Ling Qi replied, with a sheepish shrug, her own inkbrush scribbling in details within the wider pattern.
"I can see why, to think the heir to the duchess herself would offer you such a position," Suyin said, her lips pursed as she carefully laid out the strokes to one of the larger characters.
"What about you, Li Suyin? Gotten any offers yet?" Ling Qi asked lightly, not wanting to seem like she was rubbing her good fortune in her friends face. Suyin had reached mid yellow in spiritual a little while ago, and from the intensity of her aura, her reserve of qi was getting pretty respectable as well.
Li Suyin glanced away, seeming a little embarrassed. "...One or two. Senior Sister Bao's comments on their quality were rather colorful though. I think I will remain with the Sect for a time yet… Father spent a decade of his savings and a hefty loan on the tuition, so I want to learn as much as possible, before making any further choices."
Ling Qi was glad her friend wouldn't be on the front lines at any point. She might not be the gentle girl she had been at the start of the year, but she still couldn't picture her as part of a military unit. "Speaking of low quality," Ling Qi added thoughtfully. "Did that Huang Da keep bothering you after he stopped sniffing around me?"
Li Suyin grimaced. "... A little, yes. I have not seen him in over a month though. I believe he has gone into closed door cultivation," she shook her head, dismissing the subject. "Shall we try activating the new mobile formation then?"
She wanted to offer help, but it seemed like Li Suyin wanted to handle things herself, she would have to trust her friend to come to her if she needed help. "Right, I'll handle the North and East Gates?"
"And I will activate the South and West ones. Start at the end of the three count…" Li Suyin said, looking down at their work intently. They counted down together, and channeled qi into the openings around the patterned circle…
The muffled explosion that followed blew the shutters on the workshops windows open, and scattered the birds roosting the roof.
...It was a good thing that they had decided to practice with paper,leaving them covered in fine ash rather than showered with splinters or shards of stone. Ling Qi grimaced as she brushed the smoldering embers which had landed in her hair onto the floor and stamped them out.
Li Suyin's spirit chittered worriedly from atop her masters head in the aftermath, having come rushing out of the cozy nest built into the ceiling the moment the blast had been unleashed. The fuzzy pink arachnid was two hand lengths across now. She still looked Ling Qi with eight glistening eyes brimming with suspicion too.
"I am fine Zhenli, "Li Suyin's soothed, despite her face being splotched with soot. She gently shooed her spirit down onto her shoulder, where the fuzzy arachnid clung like a particularly sullen shoulderpad. "We didn't make any errors though, I am sure of it," Suyin added, sounding frustrated.
"Which means there must be some problem with our theory," Ling Qi sighed. "I guess this means we start over from scratch?"
"It seems we have little choice," Li Suyin huffed, brushing her hand across the ashen tabletop. It shimmered wetly for a moment, moisture rising from the wood to carry the mess into a bucket at the far end of the table. "Perhaps we should modify the scouts first? We might gain some insights into the more complex formation that way."
Ossuary Scout 4/6
Li Silk Guardian 3/9
Li Silk Guardian 3/9
In the end, they didn't manage to make any workable improvements by late afternoon, when Suyin had to return to the Medicine Hall, and she had to go train with Su Ling, but they were slowly working out some ways to improve on the formations further. They weren't going to give up though, and Ling Qi had an idea for getting them through this rough patch. She just had to figure out where Xuan Shi had disappeared to.
The next few days passed in relative peace as Ling Qi continued her cultivation and visits to friends and mentors alike, while doing some research on the two tasks she had set for herself this week. The mountain indicated to her in her moon quest was known for being haunted by spirits of darker nature, creatures of poison and ambush, who beguiled the senses and preyed on the unwary.
Which wasn;t terribly surprising, if there was something that would be useful to her there. Still, it would pay to be mentally prepared for that kind of thing. To that end, she tentatively set the date for her expedition at the end of the week, since it was rather far away to boot. She would rather resolve her other obligations in case it took longer than she thought.
On the other hand, the Sect job was looking like it wouldn't be terribly difficult. It seemed that the spirit she was tasked with dealing with had settled in at a thick grove of fir trees a ways north of the village and remained mostly static, going by spotty guard reports. Luckily it still hadn't harmed any humans, though one hunter reported seeing the muddy hulk bodily lift a great Emerald Boar with one arm and break the beasts spine over it's knee.
Given that such creatures high second grade and two meters tall at the shoulder at their smallest, Ling resolved not to let the thing catch her.
She brought Zhengui along for her hunt this time, though she kept him dematerialized in her dantian after impressing on him the seriousness of the situation. It was late evening when she descended the mountain, and headed out the north gate of the village, following the road only a short way before splitting off to head toward the grove where the spirit had been spotted.
Ling Qi slipped easily into stealth, a light jump carrying her up into the branches of the trees, where she could ghost along without a sound. A year ago, the branches would have bent or broken under her weight, and she would have had a hard time balancing on the thin wooden limbs even if they hadn't. Now it was as easy as walking across flat ground, and not a single leaf rustled in her wake as she darted through the forest canopy like a shadow.
Animals and spirits alike took no notice of her passage as she moved through the woods toward the targets grove, and soon enough she began to see signs of it. Places where the brush was trampled down, or masses of damp clay and loam clung to tree trunks and lower hanging branches. Even now a wisp of mixed earth and water qi remained in the material.
It didn't have the sickly feel that she remembered back from the mission with the shaman though, so that eliminated one possibility she had considered. The grove itself was rather pretty, a regular circle of tall fir trees, in which wispy, barely material first grade wind spirits danced, causing the branches to rustle and sway even in the absence of external wind.
If she did not already have the snowfield Zeqing had shown her, she might have found some good use for it as a site to cultivate wind arts in. As it was though, she merely made sure to remember the location, someone else might make better use of it.
The spirit she was hunting wasn't present at the moment though. There was a small hill of river clay in the center of the grove, with a vaguely bowl shaped depression in its top, and plenty of mud smeared across the trunks though, so it seemed the information wasn't wrong.
With that in mind, Ling Qi found a good hiding place, and settled in to wait.
Dex 6 + Stealth 6 + Speciality 1 + Passives 0 + Equip 4 (Robe 4) + Buff 2 (EPC 2) + 2 autos (SCS)= 19 dice + 9autos.
3 8 8 8 5 8 6 2 4 6 6 5 1 4 4 2 4 2 1. 4 successes. 13 total
Fail
Rerolling
10 6 2 5 5 5 6 9 1 3 10 6 1 10 7 2 9 1 10. 7 successes. 16 total
Bare Pass
3 8 8 8 5 8 6 2 4 6 6 5 1 4 4 2 4 2 1. 4 successes. 13 total
Fail
Rerolling
10 6 2 5 5 5 6 9 1 3 10 6 1 10 7 2 9 1 10. 7 successes. 16 total
Bare Pass
She spent a little under an hour crouched in the tree, calmly meditating on the meanings of the qi flows within the Thousand Ring Fortress art, since she was in such a heavily wood aligned area. Zhengui had dozed off a little. She wanted to scold him, but she couldn't quite bring herself too.
Her patience was rewarded when her ears caught the distant sound of lumbering footsteps. They were loud and unsubtle, like boots caked in wet mud. Within a few minutes, she caught a glimpse of the creature, four meters tall and nearly as broad at the shoulder, it was a veritable mountain of river mud and black loam, rushes, weeds and moss sprouted from its half liquid surface, swaying as it walked. There was a sort of lump at the top of its shoulders, but she would be hard pressed to call it a head.
It's other features were crude too, with thick three fingered hands big enough to wrap entirely around her waist and stumpy legs lacking any definition. Still, it's qi felt natural enough, it had the earthy feel of a mud slick riverbank, placid and unthreatening. She supposed she could see how it might frighten someone with less sharp senses though.
She was about to lower the bow she held in her hands and climb down to try and communicate with it, when she saw something that send a chill down her spine. There was a human head embedded in its chest, halfway down the bulk of its torso. It had young male features that might have been handsome without the corpsely pallor. She couldn't sense a single drop of qi or life from the person either.
Her lips setting into a thin line, Ling Qi's bow came back up, and she nocked an arrow, taking aim for the space directly between the creatures shoulders. She could feel a concentration of qi there, and it would be her best guess at a vital point.
Ling Qi activates crescents grace, attacks with falling star shot
Surprise Round
Dex 6 + Archery 6 + Passives 8 (FZ 4, FSA 4) + Equip 4 (Bow 2, Pin 2)+ Speciality 1+ Activation 10 (tech 7, dot 3)+8 SCS = 43 dice
6 4 7 2 4 2 6 3 9 6 10 3 1 6 8 6 4 3 4 7 1 7 6 1 1 9 2 2 3 1 6 9 4 2 2 7 5 7 1 6 4 2 8. 11 successes
Shambler
Stamina 7+Toughness 7+Passives 9+ Amorphous Earth 8(3 dot, 5 tech)+Equip 2. 33 dice. +1 cultivation auto.
6 5 5 4 6 2 5 8 4 6 1 10 5 5 6 3 8 9 7 7 7 6 9 10 7 6 1 6 9 1 7 6 5. 12 successes. 13 total
Miss
Round 1
??? Activates Azure Crane Flight, Attacks with Black Diamond Talon.
Dex 7+ Unarmed 7+Passives 8+ACF 5+Equip 2+BDT 6. 35 dice. +2 auto(1 cult, 1 spec)
5 1 10 10 7 4 4 9 3 7 5 8 1 7 1 6 9 8 6 6 1 7 7 9 9 10 6 3 9 3 1 5 3 2 4. 15 successes. 17 total
Ling Qi activates Deepwood Vitality
Dex 6 + Dodge 6 + Passives 8 (TRF 4, AS 4) + Equip 4 (Robe 4)+CG 6+DV 5 = 35 Dice
2 7 1 7 9 7 8 2 3 9 3 8 6 6 10 8 7 1 1 2 2 6 1 4 9 6 6 7 1 9 5 2 5 6 1. 13 successes.
4 damage+4 semi perfect earth damage. Armor Pierce 3.
Ling Qi's armor negates 2. 4 qi spent to negate additional two. Ablative health boxes take 2
2 damage dealt to health.
Surprise Round
Dex 6 + Archery 6 + Passives 8 (FZ 4, FSA 4) + Equip 4 (Bow 2, Pin 2)+ Speciality 1+ Activation 10 (tech 7, dot 3)+8 SCS = 43 dice
6 4 7 2 4 2 6 3 9 6 10 3 1 6 8 6 4 3 4 7 1 7 6 1 1 9 2 2 3 1 6 9 4 2 2 7 5 7 1 6 4 2 8. 11 successes
Shambler
Stamina 7+Toughness 7+Passives 9+ Amorphous Earth 8(3 dot, 5 tech)+Equip 2. 33 dice. +1 cultivation auto.
6 5 5 4 6 2 5 8 4 6 1 10 5 5 6 3 8 9 7 7 7 6 9 10 7 6 1 6 9 1 7 6 5. 12 successes. 13 total
Miss
Round 1
??? Activates Azure Crane Flight, Attacks with Black Diamond Talon.
Dex 7+ Unarmed 7+Passives 8+ACF 5+Equip 2+BDT 6. 35 dice. +2 auto(1 cult, 1 spec)
5 1 10 10 7 4 4 9 3 7 5 8 1 7 1 6 9 8 6 6 1 7 7 9 9 10 6 3 9 3 1 5 3 2 4. 15 successes. 17 total
Ling Qi activates Deepwood Vitality
Dex 6 + Dodge 6 + Passives 8 (TRF 4, AS 4) + Equip 4 (Robe 4)+CG 6+DV 5 = 35 Dice
2 7 1 7 9 7 8 2 3 9 3 8 6 6 10 8 7 1 1 2 2 6 1 4 9 6 6 7 1 9 5 2 5 6 1. 13 successes.
4 damage+4 semi perfect earth damage. Armor Pierce 3.
Ling Qi's armor negates 2. 4 qi spent to negate additional two. Ablative health boxes take 2
2 damage dealt to health.
However, she must have made a mistake in drawing on so much qi, because a moment before she released the sparking missile from her bow, the creature jerked, and as her arrow howled toward it in a blinding bolt. The mud that comprised it flowed apart, a perfect circle the size of a small tree trunk opening and allowing her arrow to sail through harmlessly to explode when it embedded in the creatures nest of mud, showering the clearing with dirt.
She had only a moment to curse the failure before she saw the eyes of the corpse face snap open. A moment later, she was hurling herself backward as a tall, lanky boy burst from the beasts chest as if propelled by a rocket, trailing mud and dark earth. He wore the tattered remains of an outer disciples grey robe, little more than the scraps of the sleeves and a ragged stretch of cloth across his back, and… yes, that was a bearskin tied around his waist, and nothing else.
All of that vanished from her mind in an instant though as she saw the gleaming black claws of glimmering black crystal that had consumed his hands, each talon was half the length of her forearm, and she could already trace the path they would take, slashing across her chest. Deep green qi surged from her channels shrouding her in an aura of vitality even as she darted away from the strike, but she still felt a stinging pain as two of those talons cut through her gown and qi to score the flesh of her shoulder.
"Don't hurt Big Sister!" The dual voiced cry erupted from just beside her, and she glanced to the side to see Zhengui briefly suspended in midair as ash gushed out to engulf her opponent, followed by a hissing glob of molten venom. He nimbly dodged the latter and fell back before the the former, but she could already see in his eyes that he wouldn't back off for long, and Zhengui was already falling to the forest floor a few meters below. She should, drop down to better support him, but…
Feeling outward with her qi senses, Ling Qi had a feeling that she had made a mistake in haste. "Sect Brother," She called, even as she dropped down, keeping a careful eye on both the boy and the beast now lumbering forward to join him. "Are you in your right mind?"
Her voice caused the boy, in the middle of plunging back to earth himself, to blink, his expression of absolute concentration faltering. "...Eh?"
"I apologize for attacking your spirit beast," she apologized as she landed lightly next to Zhengui, resting a hand on his shell and shooting him a calming look. Zhen continued to glare at the body, burning venom dripping from his fangs, but Gui merely blinked up at her, surprised. "I had thought that you had been consumed."
The boy frowned at her as he landed himself, he was as tall as Gan Guangli at his baseline, but much lankier. He was also really ragged looking, his hair was long enough to reach the middle of his back, but tied into a messy tail, and there was his state of dress to consider. The only talisman Ling Qi could see on him were a pair of crude wooden bangles around his wrists.
...Which made the power and speed of his strikes all the more alarming, he was a step above her in the third realm too.
"You are not here for a duel?" he cocked his head to the side, and Ling Qi couldn't help but picture a curious dog in his place. He sounded a little disappointed.
"I was sent out to investigate, your bound spirit has been frightening villagers," she replied carefully. She hadn't been able to sense his qi at all in there. "May I ask what you were doing?"
"Cultivating of course," he replied, as if stating the obvious, the glimmering claws crumbling away from his hands as he crossed his arms over his bare chest. He was ridiculously pale, like he hadn't seen the sun in ages. "Lanhua, what have you been doing?" He turned his head to look at the lumbering golem striding up behind him. It made an odd burbling sound, which he seemed to understand. "She has been minding her own business," he said turning back to Ling Qi with a frown.
"Yet, frighten people she has, you are quite close to the village, you know," Ling Qi replied dryly, stroking Zhen soothingly.
"Ah… we are," he glanced around, scratching his head. "Did I misjudge the distances again?" He murmured to himself. "Well, no harm," he shrugged. "I will just move on a ways."
"Ah… do you mind if I ask you something?" Ling Qi asked, causing him to pause in the middle of turning away. "While I only arrived this year, I do not think I would miss someone of your strength, Sect Brother…"
"Shen Hu," he introduced himself after a moment's thought. "I have not been on the mountain since last year. Too many distractions," he explained with a shrug, seeming to already be losing interest in her. "Ah… I can't go too far though, or I'll miss the tournament again, maybe that little lake to the west…"
Ling Qi grimaced as the somewhat spacey boy took his leave It looked like there was another potential obstacle in the tournament, she could still feel the stinging pain of those claw wounds, even though her gown had already repaired itself. As if there wasn't already enough competition for those spots. She'd have to let Cai Renxiang know what she had found here. Then again, she might already know, due to Fu Xiang, but if this guy had wandered off into the woods for a year, the information dealer might have assumed him dead.
"Are you alright Big Sister?" Gui asked, while Zhen continued to stare daggers at the boys back.
"I'm fine Zhengui, just a little scratch," She reassured him. "Why don't we get a few cores before we go home," she added, to distract Zhen from his temper. This hadn't taken as long as she thought.
She did wonder what the Elders were playing at though. Surely Elder Ying at least had to have been aware that the 'monster' was just a weird disciple. She supposed trying to figure out what an Elder was thinking was mostly futile though.
After a bit of hunting, she headed back to the mountain under the cover of night, letting her minor wounds heal while she meditated and recovered her qi. In the morning, she left a message with her new liege lord and headed to the Sect office to collect her reward.
+25 Sect points
With most of her tasks done for the week, she returned to the dragon's vale to cultivate, and spent another training session with Su Ling, before rejoining Li Suyin in the afternoon, where she laid out her idea.
"I am not sure if it is appropriate to bother him like this," Li Suyin said uncomfortably as they walked the path toward Xuan Shi's workshop. A quick visit to Gan Guangli at the training fields had pointed them to where the reclusive boy had holed up in recent weeks. "I am sure he is very busy…"
"He might not seem like it, but Xuan Shi is a pretty friendly guy," Ling Qi reassured her as the building came into view. It was more of a low hill of rock than a building, with a pair of smoking chimneys disgorging fragrant, qi charged smoke. There were no windows, but there was a single door on the front side, carved from a single piece of wood. "I don't think he would mind answering a few questions. "Besides, he could probably use a conversation, if he's really been in seclusion for a month."
Li Suyin sighed a little, it was pretty similar to the way Meizhen sighed when she felt Ling Qi was being unreasonable, but she let it pass without comment. "I will trust your judgement," she said aloud, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself.
Ling Qi came to a stop as they reached his doorstep, and after a moment of searching, she found the formation Gan Guangli had mentioned and put her finger in the center of it. Channeling a tiny thread of qi into it, she was pleased when she heard the deep ringing of a bell echoing from the inside, just as Gan had said it would. That was a useful little trick.
She waited patiently as a minute or two passed, Li Suyin shifting nervously beside her. Eventually though, she caught the sound of movement, and the faint tinkle of the metal rings on Xuan Shi's staff. A moment later, she stepped back to give the door room to creak open, revealing a blinking Xuan Shi in his usual high collared robe, though she could see his hat hanging from a peg on the wall behind him. He seemed politely bewildered by their presence.
"...Sister Ling?" He greeted after a pause. "The council lays silent, the mountain peaceful. Has the princess of strife broken her bond?
"Nothing so serious," Ling Qi reassured him. "This is merely a personal call."
She saw him glance over at Li Suyin, who smiled weakly, offering a silent bow of respect. "...I see," he said, his expression unreadable. "What quest brings you to my abode then?"
"Well it's a little embarrassing to admit, but I was hoping for some advice again," she admitted, catching a flicker of something in his eyes as she did. "My friend and I were working on a formations project and I was hoping you might have a word of wisdom or two?"
She subtly nudged Li Suyin, who very much did not squeak in alarm like a frightened mouse… or so she would tell anyone who asked. "Ah, honored Brother Xuan, we are having some trouble modifying a housing guardian formation toward greater mobility. While I would not dare ask for your personal secrets. I had hoped that you might be able to point out which portions of my general knowledge are lacking."
Whatever strange expression he had before, Xuan Shi looked down at the back of Li Suyin's head with resigned amusement, before looking back to Ling Qi. "...A boon of knowledge then, of course. Enter then, and partake of my hospitality, such as it is. This one has some hours to spare while certain processes complete."
Li Suyin seemed relieved, but Ling Qi just nodded, for all his demeanor, Xuan Shi was a generous sort.
His home was small, and a bit claustrophobic for Ling Qi's taste, but it was clean and well ventilated… somehow. The furnishings were spartan though, the table they sat at to have tea was a plain thing that wouldn't have been out of place in the lower ring of Tonghou… well it's state of repair aside. Xuan Shi was able to help them through their block, pointing out some faulty assumptions in the foundations of their logic for the modification. Suyin's hands were little more than a blur as she took down every word Xuan Shi said in her notes.
Of course, there were downsides, a formation like the Silk Guard was not meant to be mobile, and while it could be made so… it came at cost, such a formation would only last twenty four hours or so at best, before the strain broke things. So it would be rather expensive… it did mean that her idle dream of mounting one on Zhengui was not impossible though. In the long term, she would probably want to invest in a talisman for the purpose, but a short lived formation was fine for the tournament.
They would still need to work on it further to iron out the kinks though.
White Room 30 + YSS 35 + Lan Lan 5 + Pills 6 + Larceny 5 = 81 + 11 autos (Talent 6, Bronze 5)
8 9 6 2 4 8 4 10 7 3 2 1 1 3 2 1 7 3 10 5 1 3 6 7 2 5 3 1 9 1 2 6 2 9 10 7 8 5 8 5 7 9 7 8 2 8 8 8 2 9 4 2 3 9 10 4 5 3 4 4 5 8 1 6 6 2 3 4 7 10 10 3 9 6 10 2 5 9 9 9 9. 41 successes
Rerolling 7
2 5 9 8 9 6 4. 3 successes. 55 total.
55/31 New Meridian opened
24 to spiritual
206/1200
8 9 6 2 4 8 4 10 7 3 2 1 1 3 2 1 7 3 10 5 1 3 6 7 2 5 3 1 9 1 2 6 2 9 10 7 8 5 8 5 7 9 7 8 2 8 8 8 2 9 4 2 3 9 10 4 5 3 4 4 5 8 1 6 6 2 3 4 7 10 10 3 9 6 10 2 5 9 9 9 9. 41 successes
Rerolling 7
2 5 9 8 9 6 4. 3 successes. 55 total.
55/31 New Meridian opened
24 to spiritual
206/1200
With everything else Ling Qi had done this week, taking the next morning off to cultivate with Xiulan in the White Room was a nice little break. In her fuzzy memories of rainbow silk and warm waters, she could recall the sheer ease with which the impurities that blocked the meridian she was clearing flowing away like mist under the morning sun. Soon she would be able to practice Zeqing's gift without having to change the elemental attunement of her other meridians.
It was also nice to see some of the stress lines she had begun to notice forming at the corners of Xiulan's eyes smoothed away for the moment. In the wake of their cultivation time ending, the two of them had gone back to one of the upscale teahouses in the center of town to relax, and let the fuzziness in their heads fade.
"What a wondrous place," Xiulan mused, leaning back against the padded bench. "I do not believe I have ever opened two meridians with a single effort before," she could see the girl smiling behind her thread of gold veil.
"It is pretty amazing," Ling Qi replied freely, sipping a bit of the warm tea from her cup. It was a mild flavor, and for the moment she savored her ignorance of what that might mean. She had a feeling that she would be learning more than she had ever wanted to know about tea in the days going forward. "I had thought I was nearing my limit before Lady Cai opened it for our use."
"And yet you likely had more open then, than I do now," Xiulan shot back, only a tiny touch of bitterness in her voice.
"...I'm a little surprised that you haven't refused me yet," Ling Qi replied quietly, looking down.
Xiulan was silent for a moment, and Ling Qi couldn't miss the conflict in her eyes. "I cannot afford pride of that sort. You are my friend, I will simply have to accept your generosity in this. Do not think that I will not repay you in the future."
Ling Qi nodded, accepting the word with the seriousness that they were due, before cracking a smile. "Well, for starters, do you know a good site for cultivating fire arts? Zhen can't get much use out of the place where I am training his brother at the moment."
Xiulan raised an eyebrow, looking surprised. "Not what I meant, but I am surprised you did not ask sooner. I cannot share my sister's site, but I will make a list for you."
"Hah, well, you know how I am sometimes," Ling Qi replied, with a self deprecating smile.
Xiulan rolled her eyes. "Sometimes I worry for you. I am going to go away for a time and return to find you mossed over in a cave somewhere."
Ling Qi's smile turned a bit sad, in the future, it wasn't likely that she would be seeing Xiulan very often… but no matter which path she took, she would be leaving something behind. "You'll have to stay in contact then, and make sure I don't forget anything important."
"Hmph, you likely will not need me for that," Xiulan replied, looking down at her own cup. "You will have a fief to oversee after all. You strike me as the responsible sort."
Ling Qi nodded, by now, her status as Cai Renxiang's retainer had begun to spread. "I'm sorry, but…"
"Do not be, such an offer is not one the Gu clan can compete with," Xiulan replied. "Still… I will keep in touch, as I am able, I will remain in the Sect, and thus the province for some time, regardless of what happens."
"I appreciate it," Ling Qi replied quietly glad for the reminder that the Sect wouldn't be terribly far away, before sighing, breaking the somber mood, she would have to at least meet Tai at some point to politely turn down the offer in a formal manner, but for now, she didn't want to think on such things. "So, what other inner Sect gossip has your sister been telling you? Even if I won't be there long, I'd like to know what I am getting into…"
She was glad for the pleasant hour or so of conversation that followed, even if much of it was just laughing over the personal foibles of individual inner sect disciples. She did learn some interesting things though.
The Inner Sect ranked its disciples, from one down to whatever number matched the current amount of disciples, but it wasn't as simple as a measure of power. There were typically around one thousand Inner Sect disciples, and for the ranks under five hundred, individuals could challenge one another freely to shift rank around. However, to enter the top five hundred, one had to have contributed to the Sect in significant ways to be allowed to challenge for position.
Another ledge stood at the top one hundred and the top ten, where only those who had served in the Sect military in some capacity for an extended period could stand. Higher ranks of course came with greater resources and access to Sect materials.
She also learned far too much about the romantic inclinations of her Senior Brothers and Sisters. It seemed that Gu Yanmei was an inveterate hoarder of gossip, despite the personality that Ling Qi had previously observed.
Once she parted ways with Xiulan, Ling Qi began her preparations for her expedition out to the cave the moon had shown her, picking up Zhengui from the garden and ensuring that all of her pills and salves were stored away in her ring.
Not wanting to burn too much qi, she made the journey on foot, reaching the mountain where her target was only a bit over two hours later. She was immediately struck by the sense of foreboding which shrouded that short, stumpy mountain peak, and the the impenetrability of the shadows that clung like thick webs to the branches beneath the canopy of the trees.
Ling Qi advanced carefully under those shadows, suffused with the tranquility of her perception arts. Misleading illusions parted before her like cobweb before a brush, and hissing, shadowy thing fled her presence, only visible as wriggling shapes in the corner of her eye. Yet still, the air was heavy with foreboding, and the deep earthy scents of fungus and rot. Pale lichen grew on trees and rocks, and thick mushroom groves littered the loamy ground. After the first one released a cloud of qi qi infused spores at her approach, Ling Qi took to avoiding them as she could.
Yet she found her passage was far from unbarred, shadowy shapes, like the ghosts of dead trees reached from the darkness to catch at her gown and hair, only to be sundered by the flash of her flying sword. Slithering masses of insects with a deer's skull worn like a macabre 'helmet', spat sickly qi at her from afar, their writhing forms baring the vague shape of men, and hungry white worms, similar to those used by Yan Renshu emerged from the dirt to snap and spit.
Her flute called up a tight veil of mist that shrouded her movements and tore to shreds the things that approached her, but she kept it close, wanting to avoid riling the whole forest up, and to get further practice with her sword. The swarm spirits shrieked as the qi infused steel carved them to pieces, or Zhengui's fiery venom cooked them until they popped and burst, sundering their 'heads' and leaving the masses of vermin to disperse in her wake as she played her melody and continued her path through the haunted forest.
Wits 4 + Composure 5 + Passives 3 ( AM 3)+Discerning 4 = 16 dice. +7 auto
4 9 7 9 7 2 9 6 4 3 4 3 5 10 6 8. 7 successes. 14 total
10 9 9 6 7 4 10 7 9 5 1 8 8 4 3 8. 10 successes. 17 total
4 9 7 9 7 2 9 6 4 3 4 3 5 10 6 8. 7 successes. 14 total
10 9 9 6 7 4 10 7 9 5 1 8 8 4 3 8. 10 successes. 17 total
Yet, still despite her sharp senses, she found it difficult to maintain her path, she knew where the cave would be from her map, yet she continually found herself being turned around, not by illusion, but as if the space she was in folded strangely upon itself, such that passing through an arch of branches might leave her walking in the opposite direction a hundred meters away.
There was something broken here, Ling Qi could feel. It wasn't like the ruin left by the shaman's destruction, a sickness or wound in the process of healing. No, the atmosphere of this place instead brought to mind a twisted, crippled limb, damaged fundamentally, never to fully heal. It made her skin crawl.
Constantly keeping her technique active to penetrate the veils of this place slowly began to wear on her as well. There was a subtle drag at her qi as well, she found her ability to recover in mid combat weakened, as if the earth was drinking in the residual qi that she would have used to recover.
By the time she reached the yawning mouth a the cave, in a lifeless clearing stripped of all but a few scattered bones, human and otherwise, more than eight hours had passed. She had come here in the afternoon, and now it was night. Zhengui drooped tiredly beside her, and her own qi was low as well. She could recover with a pill or two… but no, her intuition told her that the path ahead would be more draining still. She had no doubt that the heavy fog that shrouded this part of the mountain would be no easier to navigate by air either.
However… she didn't want to be stuck in some dank mountain cave when her mother arrived. She had figured out the path, and as twisty as it was, it hadn't actually changed. Space was weird and broken here, but the destinations when blinking from one place to the next were consistent. It would only take an hour or two to get back here, now that she had the path.
...She would just have to return and finish this another day.
Dexterity 5/45
Stamina 16/35
Intelligence 7/35
Wits 22/25
Resolve 8/35
Presence 10/20
Manipulation 7/45
Composure 7/35
+4 to Domain Cultivation
Bureaucracy 3/6
Investigation 3/15
Formations 7/21
Occult 4/15
Athletics 4/30
Stealth 5/30
Survival 15/15 New dot gained!
Expression 11/42
Dodge 2/30
Archery 2/28
Resilience 3/21
+10 successes to Qi
+5 to Argent Current
+16 Successes to Phantasmagoria
Stamina 16/35
Intelligence 7/35
Wits 22/25
Resolve 8/35
Presence 10/20
Manipulation 7/45
Composure 7/35
+4 to Domain Cultivation
Bureaucracy 3/6
Investigation 3/15
Formations 7/21
Occult 4/15
Athletics 4/30
Stealth 5/30
Survival 15/15 New dot gained!
Expression 11/42
Dodge 2/30
Archery 2/28
Resilience 3/21
+10 successes to Qi
+5 to Argent Current
+16 Successes to Phantasmagoria
Income: 115 red Stones, 1 Green Stone
Cai Renxiang will commission a talisman from a professional craft cultivator for your use. What would you like?
Format:
[][Talisman]
-[] Object Type(sword, belt, shoes etc.)
-[] Up to four effects go here (eg. Bonus to attack, reduction of X element or meridian, Skill bonus, etc.)
Fewer than four abilities will result in the others being more potent. In the case of weapons, increased DV, armor piercing or range takes one slot
You have five major actions and three minor. However, I will allow up to two minor actions which are tied to major ones.
However this week, your mothers arrival will consume one Major and one minor. In addition, due to your new position, one major every other week must be [] Cultivate with Cai Renxiang
[] 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 or improve formations
-[] Study another subject
[] Train with Gu Xiulan
-[] Defensive Arts only
[] Train with Meizhen
-[] Any
[] Cultivate with Cai Renxiang
-[] Any
[] Cultivate in the White Room
-[] What?
-[] With who?
[] Go into the cavern, finish your quest
[] Take care of Yan Renshu
-[]Bring the matter up to Cai Renxiang
[] Cultivate on your own
-[] Any
[] It's time for testing! You should work for some prototypes. Suyin has invited you to join her in her mentors workshop to do some more experimentation
[] Continue training Zhengui in the Vale, and make sure to pay some attention to Zhen as well... maybe you can get Heizui to contribute?
[] Well, you've taken the plunge, Cai's invited you out to train. Time to work on your understanding of her further
[] Sixiang shouldn't be a problem for the moment, but you are interested. She said she was a muse after all, maybe she can help you improve your music?
[] Meet Gu Tai, and give him the polite refusal. It just wasn't going to happen
[] Hanyi and Zhengui have been playing on occasion, maybe you should join them and see what they're actually up too.
[] After hearing of your encounter in the woods, Gan Guangli announced that he wanted to challenge the strange boy. You... might be interested in watching.