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

[occipitallobe]

Good Seed and Omake Spreadsheet Rules:

Firstly, if you have questions about Good Seeds and the like please read here. If that doesn't answer your question please ping me in thread, or on Discord.

If you write a new Good Seed, or write an omake, please update the spreadsheet if you have access.

If you do not have access, please ping a collaborator (Swordomatic, Alectai, Quest, TehChron, Insane-Not-Crazy, Humbaba, ReaderOfFate, Kaboomatic, no., BungieONI) letting them know what you want and they will update the spreadsheet here. To gain access, you will need a gmail account of some kind. Throwaway emails are fine (I'm using one for the spreadsheet), but to gain access it's as simple as sending me either your email via PM, via DM in Discord, or just in Discord's #spreadsheet-requests channel.

This is mandatory. If a Good Seed does not record their omake by pinging collabs (or just requesting access and editing things themselves - this is the preferred option), I won't give out awards. If a new Good Seed is not recorded here, they won't advance. By doing this it makes the whole thing manageable for me - it's gotten pretty unwieldy!

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Omake Writer Instructions:

There are four fields you need to fill out.

Omake Link, which is just a link to your first omake for the turn. This makes it easier for me to read them as I do the update - without this it's tough to know off the bat which omake were written this turn, and to properly

Requested Bonus, which is your requested bonus for your omake. You can leave it up to me if you like. You can see more info in the Good Seed infopost here.

Cultivation Aims. For those following unorthodox paths - higher than 9th Heavenstage or later than 7th Dao Pillar paths. Please put in what you are aiming for before you break through. I have left it as 'default'. If you do not edit it, I'll go with that.

Turn Notes - Do you want to do something specific? Enter a Secret Realm? Help the Clan out in some way? If you have something specific you want to accomplish on this turn, put it in turn notes so I can adjust your Fate around it.

All other fields are for QM use to record character information to properly run the flow of the game.

 

[Zephias]

Tasos Basilakes -
Omake Reward - Tribulation Boost

As before, excluding the Basilake boy's efforts at Pleuron. Grand Elder, Basilakes entered the Yuan Clan Secret Realm, the Man-As-Mountain Array offering so much before the Trials began.

If we named him the second-luckiest to enter the Realm this year, only one would dare claim to be first.

Firstly, he claimed a Well of Magnetism from an ancient mountain, allowing him to curve any metals, deflecting those used against him, homing his allies weapons in against his enemies. All iron and steel is weak before him now, and he fights above where he did previously. It was the Well that allowed him that absurd stand at Pleuron, holding out for seven hours as the Core-Ruining Poison was brewed.

Secondly came the Thousand Arrow Mirror, a magical mirror into which a single arrow could be placed, living in a shadowy world. The longer it spends inside the mirror, the more it duplicates itself - an arrow left in the mirror for a year and a day will split itself into a thousand, and can be split further with arrow arts. It is not impossible for such arrows to be split themselves hundreds of times with other arts, allowing the wielder to potentially shoot at tens of thousands of foes. Seven of these arrows were used at Pleuron, driving back an assault seven times.

Third was the Magnetic Pig-Iron Squealing Dagger, a poor treasure for most. However, when combined with the Well it can fight independently, offering Tasos a melee ally equivalent in strength to himself for ten or fifteen minutes in any given combat.

Last and not at all least came the Blood-Burning Herb, a herb in that magnificent array. Used only at direst need, it costs cultivation - nearly twenty years worth, but in burning it Tasos can briefly become the equal of any in Foundation Establishment, slaughtering those in the Early and Middle stage, and even those in the Late stage would need to flee him.

Aside from this outside of the Realm, little enough happened. Ordinary cultivation, avoiding wounding or maiming in the Trials.

Another of the Indomitable Thirteen. Unrivalled Under Heaven, truly.

Cultivation - 9th Heavenstage. [1 turns from 10th]
Health - Currently healthy.

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This is a lot. Like, complaining about slow cultivation would be bad form. Also goddamn, what did we do.

I think the entire Clan know of the Indomitable Thirteen, Unrivalled Beneath Heaven, and their slaying of a Core Formation enemy.

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Whatever we did, lads, it was absolutely incredible. I am absolutely quaking with anticipation now.

 

[Mochinator]

Let us exclude for a moment the Callista girl's efforts at Pleuron, magnificent as they were. Grand Elder, Rina Callista entered the Yuan Clan Secret Realm, that mighty Array transforming the world into something else entirely.

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Aii! Rina's luck strikes again! I think the Heavens support her choice to challenge it

Secondly came the Thousand Arrow Mirror, a magical mirror into which a single arrow could be placed, living in a shadowy world. The longer it spends inside the mirror, the more it duplicates itself - an arrow left in the mirror for a year and a day will split itself into a thousand, and can be split further with arrow arts. It is not impossible for such arrows to be split themselves hundreds of times with other arts, allowing the wielder to potentially shoot at tens of thousands of foes. Seven of these arrows were used at Pleuron, driving back an assault seven times.

Click to shrink...

This is really fucking sweet. @Zephias I remember he has a Arrow that works as a Realm Surpassing Attack? I wonder if he can clone that.

The third of the Indomitable Thirteen. Unrivalled Under Heaven, it has been said, Grand Elder, and with each of them I can see why together they are named so.

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Greatu Luck! It's a really good sign that the 3 Omake writers who requested for prompts all got great rolls! Let's hope this continues on for the rest!

Legatus Alypius Lucaenus had told them to hold the line last week, that he'd 'lead them to survival'. He had disappeared two days ago, saying 'he needed to help the Grand Elder'.

Ridiculous excuse. He was abandoning them to their deaths, just as the Grand Elder was! Tisamenos couldn't blame them. He'd heard all the Clan sayings about 'helping the weak', and 'promoting justice'.

What justice was there in the world, really? He knew the truth, now. The weak were sacrificed for the strong, the strong did as they willed. Was the Clan any different to anyone else? Of course not, and he'd been a fool to believe it.

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Ouch. I think i will vote for Lecturing next turn because of this. So that Manuel can teach the juniors on why the sacrifice they went through was necessary and how it help the Clan prosper.

Before him stood three cultivators, brown-skinned and dark-eyed. Shorter than him, and with finely-braided hair. Were he less terrified, he would have thought of them as beautiful women. As he was... they were just monsters. Creatures of terror.

One spoke, her voice full of charm.

"Why, it looks like you're running away, little Devil. Chandhi Randhawa will put you in your place, don't worry about tha- HURK!"

From the sky plummeted a cauldron, smashing two of them into pieces and leaving the girl who was speaking on the ground, ribs poking out of her skin, legs bent in peculiar directions.

She looked over in disbelief, and shattered a token she was holding, disappearing in a flash of light.

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I LOLed at the looney tunes style execution. Go Rina! @Alectai I'm really curious on Rina's thoughts on when it happens! My guess is she would be all Oops !

He made it a few hundred metres, and a man emerged from a side street, moving almost too fast for Tisamenos to see. Whereas the others had cultivation too deep for him to probe, this man was oppressive. He felt like lying down and dying. The man eyed him.

"Not even prey worth my time. I suppose I'll hold you here until my little brother can have you, demon. Stay."

Tisamenos gulped.

With a roar, a bear barreled out of a different side road, a girl atop his back.

With a mighty paw, the man was thrown aside, a token shattering, Tisamenos saved once more.

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@Mr. Prokosch Bearly Nice! What a Bearcellent attack! Can't help but imagine those moments in Comedies where the guy shouts BEAR! except here it's Bearly Serious

As he reached the gate, though, he saw a woman. All brass and glass and misery, like something out of a nightmare.

He had heard of her, though. Seen her portrait on the Board. He had read Stand at Guo Wo, and it had been the reason he'd cultivated in the first place!

"Golden Scorpion...", he breathed out.

Barely a moment spent for him, Ferenike barked.

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@BungieONI Congrats on the Legend and the Nickname!

 

[Zephias]

This is really fucking sweet. @Zephias I remember he has a Arrow that works as a Realm Surpassing Attack? I wonder if he can clone that.

Click to shrink...

I may be able to clone the Sovereign Arrow, but it might be a tad too busted so maybe not. But yeah, Tasos's archery grows beyond measure every passing turn.

 

[BungieONI]

He turned and fled, and ran down the street. Get out of the city, get into the spirit mine. Surely that would save him.

Before him stood three cultivators, brown-skinned and dark-eyed. Shorter than him, and with finely-braided hair. Were he less terrified, he would have thought of them as beautiful women. As he was... they were just monsters. Creatures of terror.

One spoke, her voice full of charm.

"Why, it looks like you're running away, little Devil. Chandhi Randhawa will put you in your place, don't worry about tha- HURK!"

From the sky plummeted a cauldron, smashing two of them into pieces and leaving the girl who was speaking on the ground, ribs poking out of her skin, legs bent in peculiar directions.

She looked over in disbelief, and shattered a token she was holding, disappearing in a flash of light.

From the cauldron emerged a Clan woman. Tisamenos would have said she was beautiful, but if she had been a monster made of warts and vomit he would have called her beautiful in that moment. His life was saved! He didn't even notice her looks, or her armour. He was alive, and that was enough.

She spoke, curtly.

"South gate, move."

Then she was gone, cauldron rocketing off into the sky.

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*excited noises*

SPLAT!

He made it a few hundred metres, and a man emerged from a side street, moving almost too fast for Tisamenos to see. Whereas the others had cultivation too deep for him to probe, this man was oppressive. He felt like lying down and dying. The man eyed him.

"Not even prey worth my time. I suppose I'll hold you here until my little brother can have you, demon. Stay."

Tisamenos gulped.

With a roar, a bear barreled out of a different side road, a girl atop his back.

With a mighty paw, the man was thrown aside, a token shattering, Tisamenos saved once more.

He ran and ran, legs pounding, blood pounding in his ears, all things around him ignored. Perhaps he should have died.

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YEEEEEEEEEEEE! GO BEAR AND HIS SISTER!

He ran and ran, legs pounding, blood pounding in his ears, all things around him ignored. Perhaps he should have died.

As he reached the gate, though, he saw a woman. All brass and glass and misery, like something out of a nightmare.

He had heard of her, though. Seen her portrait on the Board. He had read Stand at Guo Wo, and it had been the reason he'd cultivated in the first place!

"Golden Scorpion...", he breathed out.

Barely a moment spent for him, Ferenike barked.

"Form up. Form up!"

Behind her were hundreds of Qi Condensation cultivators, forming up, preparing Eagles to fly them away. He didn't know how they'd find the Qi, how they'd escape, where they'd run to. Still, for the first time in weeks, Tisamenos felt like there was someone else in charge. He wasn't going to die right away! Oh, he might die tomorrow or next week, but death was merely a few steps behind, no longer breathing down his neck!

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*more excited noises*

Yep. Terror and misery is definitely a Proper Ferenike Aesthetic.

I may be able to clone the Sovereign Arrow, but it might be a tad too busted so maybe not. But yeah, Tasos's archery grows beyond measure every passing turn.

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FILL THE HORIZON! THERE MUST NOT BE EVEN A MOTE OF AIR BETWEEN YOUR ARROWS!

*incredible screaming off to the side*

Fucking hyped.

 

[Mochinator]

I may be able to clone the Sovereign Arrow, but it might be a tad too busted so maybe not. But yeah, Tasos's archery grows beyond measure every passing turn.

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Arrow Rain? Arrow Rain. I mean ignoring that arrow, any future arrows that Tasos get's as a Cool Thing Bonus will be multiplied like crazy. I think it will definatently lead to a rise of cultivators chasing the Dao of Archery. So i'll guess we have lot's of Hawkeye incoming

Fucking hyped.

Click to shrink...

I'm Hyped and worried.

Rough count of the Saving Juniors in the Google Sheet tells me there's about 17 Good Seeds doing that and we only have 13 here (+ 1 Bear) so i'm hoping it goes well for the rest!

Although earning a Nick/rep in this turn will be fucking sweet

 

[BungieONI]

Arrow Rain? Arrow Rain. I mean ignoring that arrow, any future arrows that Tasos get's as a Cool Thing Bonus will be multiplied like crazy. I think it will definatently lead to a rise of cultivators chasing the Dao of Archery. So i'll guess we have lot's of Hawkeye incoming


I'm Hyped and worried.

Rough count of the Saving Juniors in the Google Sheet tells me there's about 17 Good Seeds doing that and we only have 13 here (+ 1 Bear) so i'm hoping it goes well for the rest!

Although earning a Nick/rep in this turn will be fucking sweet

Click to shrink...

27 actually, all totaled up, you can see it on the sheet.

E: You were counting the number of Good Seeds doing that, not the number of bonus rolls, sorry!

 

[Mochinator]

27 actually, all totaled up, you can see it on the sheet.

Click to shrink...

I think the 27 is the rolls, because Good Seedwise, i only spotted 17 entries that has " Saving Juniors " written down. But if you add in the 10+ additional rolls, the numbers tally.

Regardless, i do hope the others make it out or at least that their sacrifice will not be in vain

 

[CircleTheSkies]

Confirmed enemy fatalities, good - I wonder how many the Saving Juniors group will manage to slay? If a significant number, that might change the next Trial...

I think the 27 is the rolls, because Good Seedwise, i only spotted 17 entries that has " Saving Juniors " written down. But if you add in the 10+ additional rolls, the numbers tally.

Regardless, i do hope the others make it out or at least that their sacrifice will not be in vain

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At the very least, it looks like the lower disciples, even if they're unhappy at the top, are going to have good feelings about future leaders.

Manuel just needs to hold on for his successor, and so on down the line until the current generation of seeds grows into their potential.

 

[Mochinator]

At the very least, it looks like the lower disciples, even if they're unhappy at the top, are going to have good feelings about future leaders.

Manuel just needs to hold on for his successor, and so on down the line until the current generation of seeds grows into their potential.

Click to shrink...

Oh yes. I'm not sure if we ever get that far questwise, but it should help prevent any internal conflicts from the juniors since all of the Good Seeds understand why the choice was made.

Hmm, something that just occurred to me as well is that if the small minus from the Karma issue malus was removed from the Yuan rolls for the 3 prompts. Not to diss, but we never had such good results for the Qiguai Secret Realms.

And while i know that the Yuan realm is less risky, i was honestly still expecting some bad stuff and not the clean sweep the 3 of them got.

 

[BungieONI]

Ferenike 20 - Desolate Winds​

Over the horizon the mountains held court, their white capped peaks crowned with storms. Towering cumulonimbus cloud unleashing their mass of rain but sparing none for the Desert and its tired denizens.

Ferenike's Iron Hump Camel carried her to the top as the hissing wind rustled her robes. Her head was held tall and straight as she took in the fortress carved into the foothills, with its seven towers and tall wall, but her eyes only half saw it. Fatigue weighed down her mind like leaden chains.

Months of constant combat and travel, more than she'd ever done before. Only the commitment to Action in her heart kept her going. That commitment shuddered as she remembered the story she'd heard. Of Fuxi's Stand and the heroism of the last of her squad, her heart held out in the world. She remembered the story and the words echoed around her soul like a ripple in a lake.

...for more than an hour she had fought before the gate, her enemy's blows ringing out over the sands. The terror of the clan as the gates rumbled and shook. Then the thunderous cry of a hawk and a blast of thunder heralding silence and a miracle.

Her Fuxi was dead.

Tiu Shen, Gallius Armenicus, Markus Salviati, Nan Fuxi. Mei Ling and Tiu Fen, Tiu's wife and daughter were dead too, his manor shattered and their bones scattered to ash when she wasn't there.

Dead.

The camel trudged slowly across the sands to the fortress gate, where a small gathering of tents surrounded a glinting gold figure. A statue standing in the sands. Ferenike shivered, the heat of her soul and the desert not enough to stave off death's chill. She'd been feeling age creep up on her for decades now as a quiet study and contemplation of the world and her actions, a flow and confidence she could guide her irrepressible drive with.

But the wind dug at her glassy bones now and the weight on her heart brought her face to face with it. Another cruel joke of Heaven.

She passed amongst the tents and heard the mortals speaking in hushed tones over stew pots and slices of cactus and desert gourd. The camp was full of the story and it dogged her heels as she reached the statue. It was set on no plinth or stand, though around it was a small circle of protective arrays staked into the ground to keep the sand from swallowing it. She got off her horse and landed with a quiet thump. It was so quiet nowadays with the wind hissing like it did. Barely anything but the wind and spare few voices now.

She walked up to the statue, crossing over the line of arrays unimpeded. There she was. Rendered in the most beautiful bronze whose shine remained even after a month in the sands and the wind. In its hands it held a blackened skull and part of a spine, as if strangling it, the rest of the body blasted to dust. The skull and spine were as impervious to the elements as the statue however. Hanging over the statue's wrists and neck were small brass bells. They started tinkling in the wind, adding another sound to the meagre noise of the world.

Ferenike stepped up next to the statue and leaned against it as friends do, wrapping her arm around its shoulders and running her fingers over the contours of its solid hair. She wished it wasn't like this. But she was coming to realize that this world was inimical to peace or harmony or true mercy unless one brought it in, from your self. It wasn't enough, you had to do more. What that more was, she wasn't sure yet.

Her breath shook as she stood next to the corpse of her friend, fingers moving swiftly over a bubble of glass. She barely had any time here to spare. She had to be moving soon. Not enough time to take a moment to cry. She breathed, holding up the little glass bell in her hand, not bigger than the end of her finger. It was inscribed with a small poem.

Spread your wings
Thunderous Cry
Fall in peace

Three, four, three. Fuxi liked that pattern. Carefully, Ferenike took the tiny bell and strung it onto the necklace of bells around her friend's neck. She stepped away from it and looked at her friend's final resting place. She took another breath and took out her last bottle of Ice Peach Wine, the dregs sloshing in its bottom. If she couldn't cry, couldn't spend the time to mourn, then she'd let herself feel it within her inner mind to remind her of the importance of making this world better.

Rain began to fall within her dantian as she took her last drink from this bottle and then bent to set it into the sands at Fuxi's feet. In her heart she could feel a shift as she imagined setting it at the feet of all of her friends who had passed beyond. It bent her, wracking her back with a phantom pain, but it did not break her and she stood again with a quiet confidence.

Every drop of rain a step against this suffering. Every action driven by patience and mercy and a driving hope that hadn't left her even now. She had more to do, more people to save, and the world would be made better. Even if she had to crack the vault of Heaven itself and lead all the people of the world out of this cycle of suffering.

A million grains of sand to build a hurricane of change. That was what she had devoted herself too.

Over the wind there came a whisper. "Acrocorinth." She mounted in a flutter of cloth and was off again at a gallop.

Over the whisper of the desolate winds she heard the cry of a soaring hawk, and it echoed after her until she disappeared over the horizon.

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@occipitallobe another really short omake as I tie up the step by step build up of the Trials and open up the way for the conclusion Pleuron and Acrocorinth! Another fate bonus please if I have managed to squeeeeeeeze in!

 

[TimEd]

Can that Token sensing tree be mixed into our Eye Array thing?

 

[LordEdric]

I'm starting to think I should have gone to a secret realm this turn instead of getting another LST, looks like they did well

 

[Alectai]

I'm starting to think I should have gone to a secret realm this turn instead of getting another LST, looks like they did well

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You should try to have two LSTs if you can is my feeling.

 

[LordEdric]

You should try to have two LSTs if you can is my feeling.

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Well, after the trials my seed is headed for the secret realms

 

[Alectai]

(re-reading the first update)

Eyyy!

Rina just goomba stomped the perspective girl from the first Fifth Sea interlude! Amazing!

 

[BungieONI]

(re-reading the first update)

Eyyy!

Rina just goomba stomped the perspective girl from the first Fifth Sea interlude! Amazing!

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Yeeee!

Squish squish! I hope she goomba stomps many more.

 

[Alectai]

Honestly, it's impressive as hell she didn't die outright to a Rina that wasn't actively pulling her blows. The difference between 8th Heavenstage and 12th Heavenstage is astronomical even if you disregard all the Cool Stuff bonuses on each side.

Her friends did get killed outright, which suggests their lack of important names ruined them.

I will say though that it's hilariously ironic that she was going "I'm clever and unassuming and that'll make them hold back while I don't need to!" and then she gets dumpstered by an even smaller and less assuming girl incidentally.

 

[veekie]

A continuous saving motion it seems

 

[Garlak]

I wonder if she's going to blame her cousin's death on the Golden Devils too? Or if it's going to be known that her cousin died before even getting into the Trials.

If the former, then... She's going to be portalling back to her home. Grievously wounded. And then, on top of that... she'll wait and never receive news of her cousin. Her lucky cousin, her powerful and talented cousin. She's probably going to be nursing a grudge from this. Next time around she'll probably be a lot more vicious in the Trials. She'd probably be Core Formation (or higher) next time around, given how fast they progress in that Sea.

If her cousin's disappearance is not blamed on the Golden Devils though, then maybe that motivation will be put into advancing in order to find out who killed her and get vengeance. Or maybe not. Not everybody is story-character-like in the world.

 

[Shard]

27 actually, all totaled up, you can see it on the sheet.

E: You were counting the number of Good Seeds doing that, not the number of bonus rolls, sorry!

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Some were doubled some weren't.

 

[Alectai]

A continuous saving motion it seems

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Hey man we've got to work overtime to carry our team there's no time to be doing anything but saving

 

[BungieONI]

Some were doubled some weren't.

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Yeah pretty much.

 

[Gore17]

Rough count of the Saving Juniors in the Google Sheet tells me there's about 17 Good Seeds doing that and we only have 13 here (+ 1 Bear) so i'm hoping it goes well for the rest!

Click to shrink...

27 actually, all totaled up, you can see it on the sheet.

Click to shrink...

I think the 27 is the rolls, because Good Seedwise, i only spotted 17 entries that has " Saving Juniors " written down. But if you add in the 10+ additional rolls, the numbers tally.

Click to shrink...

Some were doubled some weren't.

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Actually, that raises a question: there were 13 participants in that giant omake. I count 18 listed as "Saving Juniors", and 1(Keiros by FixerUpper) having "rescuing idiots".

Of the 13, not all them have the fact that they get dual-Saving Junior rolls listed:
Achille Adephos by Ninjastar: Saving Juniors x2
Amaranth Castellanos by ReaderOfFate: Saving Juniors x2
Aretaphila Myia by TehChron: Saving Juniors x2
Diogenes Aparámillos by The Fourth Monado: Nothing! No bonus listed.
Eirene of Nowhere by Liliet: Saving Juniors
Ferenike by BungieOni: Saving Juniors x2
Magnus Centenius by Magnus Centenius: Saving Juniors
Morgraine by Leon12431: Saving Juniors
Ninth Prince by Kaboomatic: Saving Juniors
Peta and Wajo by Mr. Prokosch: Saving Juniors x2
Rina Callista by Alectai: Saving Juniors x2
Tasos Basilakes by Zephias: Saving Juniors x2
Wei Feng by Humbaba: Saving Juniors x2

I really hope that the ones that forgot to put down that they get to roll for it twice did, in fact, get those two rolls, as that's 26 rolls in total. Additionally, there's another 5 "Saving Juniors" listed by Qi Condensation Cultivators:
Demetrius Ceres by Nordlending
Juturna Cerintha by Olivebirdy
Lihua Kokinos by Veekie
Savvas Nicolidis by Shard
Yan by uri

Finally, 2 Foundation Cultivators, Minervina Barda by Katana1515 and Xiao Yi by Mochinator also put down "Saving Juniors", but I'm not sure how applicably they'll be.

So that should be 31-34 rolls, depending on whether Minervina, Xiao and Keiros count with the others. If the ones that forgot to list it in the spreadsheet don't receive it, it'd have been 25-28 rolls instead.

 

[exerty]

I am guessing we will trying to play safe for a bit as we took gambles this turn?

 

[FixerUpper]

To be 100% fair I put down rescuing idiots before the saving juniors process had been formalized and completely failed to realize you needed to write something specific.