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.
Assassinating Weeping Anvil, the leader of the Sorrowful Blacksmiths, because he left the rebelling blood path NS junior of his to flee to Old Cannibal and we can't afford him to be eaten by the NSs under Old Cannibal.
He pissed away his chance to kill the rebels and we aren't stupid to lgo against OC when there is a small realm difference between him and Manuel, especially when OC has numerical superiority.
She had promised him a seat on the inner Council, a Yuan representative who would be privy to almost any secrets within the Clan. Dangerous, and in all honesty she had not wanted to give it, but he had insisted and had offered no alternative.
There would be a triumph for her at the Dawn Fortress, no doubt. Sheng Yu would appreciate having an entirely new war to plan for on the fly, she knew he loved that.
Flavius took his conversation with his mentor very seriously. He had promised he would find a hobby, and so he would! The only problem was figuring out what people did for fun. It shouldn't have been a particularly hard task, considering Flavius was himself a person who had fun, but he was really struggling!
The obvious answer was eating and drinking. Almost every time Flavius spent time with friends outside of training, there was food and drink involved. As lowly trainees, they had spent their nights at cheap bars, but as he had gotten older and accumulated more wealth than he knew what to do with, Flavius had started taking his friends to nicer and nicer venues. Indeed, going to fine restaurants was what he spent a great deal of money on, just under the funds he sent back to his home village and of course that which he reinvested into cultivation.
But when he wasn't with friends, Flavius tended to eat extremely cheap and simple fair. There simply wasn't any reason to deviate from his meal plan, which was both very inexpensive and provided enough healthy energy to get through his intense training regiments. The idea of going out to a bar or restaurant alone had never even occurred to him. Still, Flavius had promised to try out the whole finding hobbies thing, so he gave it a go.
It quickly became apparent, however, that his initial instincts were correct. First of all, it felt like a tremendous waste of time and money. Sure he enjoyed good food well enough, but not more so than the training he could have been doing instead. Without the requisite addition of friends, the whole experience just felt sad and lonely.
Having dismissed his first attempt as a dismal failure, Flavius moved on to other pursuits. They were unfortunately similarly unsuccessful.
He'd tried betting on Scorpion Races, but the whole time he'd just been fantasizing about fighting them himself. Besides, he had lost money on every bet, and it just wasn't fun to see his hard earned cash flow away. He'd considered giving scorpion riding ago, but Flavius was pretty sure that would have counted as training, so he just moved on.
Next he'd tried music. He knew of a surprisingly large number of cultivators who also played an instrument of some kind. It seemed many were hopeful to emulate certain incredible talents who could use music to turn the tides of battles and defy the heavens themselves. Flavius decided it didn't count as training, however, as his cultivation had nothing to do with music. Yet, when he first tried playing the lyre, he accidentally snapped one of the strings. Obviously he tried singing next, but he still lived in the barracks and after giving it a shot the rest of the barracks had unanimously voted to never let Flavius sing again. It was an incredible display of unity, so he bowed to their wishes and turned to the next pursuit.
Sewing had been his next choice. His skin had a bronze firmness to it after his years of cultivation that made the threat of pricking his finger nonexistent, and Flavius actually did have some experience. He had insisted on being allowed to help mend torn clothes as a youth after all. Yet it had not taken long for Flavius to grow restless, and sewing tears in an already made shirt was quite different from sewing a shirt from scratch. If he'd enjoyed it more he would have put the time into learning, but truthfully the needle had felt no more right in his hands than the spear.
Unfortunately, he was rather running out of time to find hobbies in the Dawn Fortress. He'd taken the job of escorting some more trade caravans through the Colossus Footsteps Pass, and he couldn't exactly show up late. Still, he wasn't about to be defeated by his quest to find a hobby. Flavius had one final idea, and it was one he could pursue while traveling.
So he sought out a book store and asked for the most thrilling story available. The clerk seemed quite happy to have a new customer, especially when Flavius explained he was searching for a new hobby, and directed him to a recent novel called The Invincible. Of course, everyone knew tales of the Invincible Thirteen and the Miracle at Pleuron, and the clerk happily explained that this was not the most accurate of telling (for that one would have to read Tisamenos' Miracle at Pleuron). Instead, the author had taken certain artistic liberties to novelize the historical record, sacrificing somewhat on accuracy for the sake of narrative. Still, Flavius was assured that the story was mostly accurate, and a thoroughly riveting read.
Flavius was somewhat skeptical, but trusted the clerk to know his own craft. He had purchased the book, and began reading it even as he started his run towards Emporikipolis. And he didn't put it down until he finally reached Chengshipolis.
Now, Flavius' parents had insisted that he learn how to read, and he had been happy to oblige. Still, there wasn't many opportunities to practice the skill in their little village. Things changed once he came to the Dawn Fortress. The urban environment and high concentration of cultivators (who were generally expected to be literate) meant that he had to read relatively often. It also meant there was surprisingly affordable access to books. All of this was to say that Flavius was fully literate and as a Golden Devil cultivator he was forced to use his literacy fairly regularly. Even so, he'd never tried reading a book for fun before.
It was a remarkably invigorating experience. He truly felt the dread of the The Trial, the hopelessness of the Siege of Pleuron. He understood the desperation of the thirteen, desperately holding out for the one tool that could put an end to the siege. He felt horror at the brutality of the fifth sea invaders, little better than blood sect cultivators who gorged on the blood of the innocents.
And he felt their triumphs too. The expert command of Ferenike, the incredible genius of Mechanikos Adephos, the dance of Eirene of Nowhere, the song of Aretaphilia, and more. The final victory, a combination of poison mastery and sheer dedication, and the first manifestation of Rena Callista's single pillar, was so thrilling he had started to sprint instead of maintaining his easy pace. The author was truly admirable, for so effectively weaving together thirteen storylines, though Flavius wasn't well-read enough to know just how difficult that was.
When he finished, he wasn't sure how to feel. Excited of course, a natural result of such a well written book, but almost disappointed as well. Flavius felt, for the first time in his life, that he had perhaps been born a little too late. For as long as he had been alive, the clan had been on the upswing, but he understood that this was a great reversal of thousands of years of decline. In many ways, the Invincible Thirteen were the embodiment of that reversal. If he had been amongst their generation, he could have climbed alongside some of the greatest talents the world had ever seen. But he had been born too late.
Of course, that came with a second tragedy. Everyone knew the likes of Rina Callista, Minerva Barda, and the Ninth Prince, who were all far above Flavius' stage of cultivation. Yet others had died or retired. If even these legends could falter, what chance did Flavius have of reaching his goal?
But then, it was not as if these were the only heroes of the Golden Devils. Gaius Antonius had not been amongst the Invincible Thirteen, yet he was spoken of in the same breath as Callista herself. Flavius had not set out to be a hero or a legend. He had never really wanted glory. His quest towards ascension felt at times less like a choice so much as a burning need to climb until he was above even the heavens themselves. This didn't change that.
But he did want to be amongst legends. Patroclus Narses and Gaius Wu were his good friends, but they didn't understand his drive. In a way, Flavius appreciated that. They could provide insight and understanding that Flavius himself did not possess. Yet now he wondered if there wouldn't be something more to gain from finding another like him, who shared his desire to grow.
Flavius made two resolutions to himself as his slipped The Invincible back into his pack. First, that when he returned to the Dawn Fortress, he would begin to really search for a training partner that could keep up with him. Second, Flavius resolved to stop back at the book store and ask the clerk for another good read.
She had promised him a seat on the inner Council, a Yuan representative who would be privy to almost any secrets within the Clan. Dangerous, and in all honesty she had not wanted to give it, but he had insisted and had offered no alternative.
This seems like a huge miscalculation on our part, giving the Yuan access to inner Council secrets AND influencing internal decisions for every turn vote? Could they still leak intel the same way as the "Blood Divination"? I was given the impression that the winning plan avoided giving up any sensitive knowledge, but this is pretty much the opposite.
If this was the result of Yuan Ministry, then it would've been better to take "Blood Divination" as well since Manuel will inevitably share some secrets regarding the BP occasionally with the Clan Council, and they'll be privy to our strategic gambles by deduction when Manuel tells the Council to do X stuff to prepare for something.
This seems like a huge miscalculation on our part, giving the Yuan access to inner Council secrets AND influencing internal decisions for every turn vote? Could they still leak intel the same way as the "Blood Divination"? I was given the impression that the winning plan avoided giving up any sensitive knowledge, but this is pretty much the opposite.
If this was the result of Yuan Ministry, then it would've been better to take "Blood Divination" as well since Manuel will inevitably share some secrets regarding the BP occasionally with the Clan Council, and they'll be privy to our strategic gambles by deduction when Manuel tells the Council to do X stuff to prepare for something.
I'm not entirely pleased with how the vote came out, but the point here is... for the moment, they can't afford to turn against us. We're the one thing keeping them alive and around, and also their Nascent is sworn by life oath for 200 years. We can trust them for that long. 200 years is a lot of time for maneuvering things around, though, and, importantly, we're heading into a critical time that will decide... basically everything. Once 200 years are past, it won't really matter anymore, one way or the other.
Song Ling stared out past the walls of her sect. The Golden Devils had started their assault on her home once again, attempting to breach the myriad walls of the sect with their brazen arms and armor and hoplites made of Qi. She had figured it would come to this when her Sect Leader decided to head North. Even as spears of bronzed qi flashed out against her peers and her lessers she had time to contemplate why things had turned out this way.
She had just risen to Foundation establishment when The Sect Leader, Flesh Tenderizer had ascended to Core. It was a joyous occasion for her, not only because of her leader's success but because she had earned an epithet that wasn't horrible nor a poor mockery of her name. No longer was she Singing ling, she was the crimson dervish, her Harridan knife art and resplendent carnivore body turning her hair a nice vibrant red, combined with her speed and ability with knives giving her a newer proper name she could be proud of. One that let her set at the same table as the Sect leader himself and enjoy the most succulent and tender bits of long pork she'd ever had, the magistrate of a nearby town who had gotten fat in flesh and fat in qi off his station. Even now the feast she had been so prominently seated in brought back fond memories. But that feast also brought about the seeds of this current predicament. Master Flesh Tenderizer had spoken to them all that day after they had made merry and eaten to their heart's content. "My sons and Daughters, we need to move North. Now that I have broken through to Core Formation, the hateful Golden Devils, those who have always and ever sought to keep power to themselves and from us true citizens of the Third sea will come, and our current abode can no longer cloak us from their hateful sight. They will hound us, until we are ground down under their brazen feet, or have been chased from their grasp. So, we go North! North out of the Organ Meat desert to where we will be met with open arms by our brother in the path of the Soup Chef! There, we will grow strong, and grow fast and rise until we can come back and rid this Dead corpse of a world of the Golden devils forever!" She had cheered at his words as had most of her fellows, but she really didn't understand what that entailed, or why some of the more veteran of the sect were more subdued.
The long trek North had begun, and she had won more accolades through dealing with scouts and helping them slip by town and cities, and in some cases opening them up so the Sect could grab some quick bites to eat and for the road before escaping. Yet, they could not fully denude the populace simply due to time constraints, lest the Golden Devils mobilize and catch them. The pace that was set was difficult even for one such as her, QI condensation juniors rose and fell under it, more joining either to rise quickly to the Foundation or to be ground under as fodder for those who did. Some of her juniors even struck out at the Crimson Dervish, sensing her to be weak or an easy meal. She ate well those days and only grew in power despite how poor the quality and cut of their meat was under her hand, a far cry from that heady meal at the start of their odyssey. All the while Flesh tenderizer's power grew.
It had nearly been a year since their journey had started when he deigned to stop the breakneck pace of movement and hit a target to feed his sect a proper meal. At Five Winds City, did Sect Master and Bandit Lord Flesh Tenderizer make the full weight of his Cultivation know, shattering the cities gates wide open and devouring the peak Foundation lord of the city in but one snap of his teeth even as his fists tenderized the flesh of his family into masterful cuts of meat that his senior disciples fought over for the simple pleasure of consumption. Song Ling herself had won a smaller cut and it was even better than the cut from the fallen magistrate she had been given a year earlier, only whetting her appetite for more. So, she danced amongst the city that was soon to be ruined, knifes flashing out from behind a black robe and crimson hair, carving succulent cuts seasoned with poison and herbs for to consume, and she grew even stronger too, her foundational pillar numbers four now. It was a good battle, a triumphant victory and one that would surely announce to the world their strength.
And it did, and also brought the furious spear of the Golden Devil down on them as well. Several legions from the nearby Seven Heavens Trade city were dispatched and force marched directly into their path. Rather than face them in pitched battle Flesh tenderizer took his forces around and made his way to a nearby mountain, and with his incomparable might made obstacles for them even as his disciples split amongst themselves to avoid being caught. They suffered losses, true many qi condensation juniors had fallen, but they were easy enough to replace, fed to the Devils so as the Disciples of actual worth could escape and make their way ever northward. and for a time, this worked, they were so close to a pass to escape, only to find that it was blocked off by a Legion and another was moving from behind to hem them in. A simple but effective Hammer and Anvil.
So, to avoid the obvious doom awaiting them Flesh Tenderizer took them to a ruin near where they were, and there they fortified it against enemy incursion daring the Devils to root them out. So now they were waiting, waiting for the one legion chasing them to catch up against them. To glut themselves in battle enough that the worthy can break away while those who were lesser would fall behind and buy their greaters time. With her five Pillars, Song Ling, The Crimson Dervish, the Dancing Scourge of Blades, was convinced she would the former, and not the latter.
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The first wall had been broken through, the patch jobs on it insufficient to actually stop the gleaming sentinels of the Golden devils moving forwards through the gaps they had formed from sheer obdurate brutal force, backed by the formation of cultivators than gave them the power necessary to do such. They would not be ready for the Sect Master's Surprise. Thousand Years Screaming Head Beets, transplanted from the corpses of a hidden cultivator Graveyard where in her master had found a snippet of the Soup Chef's divine scripture, to the ground between the first and second walls of the ruin. Such an immense qi bearing plant held no real value for her and hers except as a garnish for the finest meals, but when triggered properly they would use all the qi they gathered to create a terrible, terrifying mind rending scream, something that the Hoplites could not defend against and would shatter the Dao Hearts of the formation, leaving the Devils vulnerable and easy prey.
She watched the Dao Hearts of the formations shatter as men and women started to falter and shudder, shaking in their boots even as the most Eager of the Foundation Builders and many Qi Condensation juniors rushed forwards, eager to claim the rewards of battle for themselves. Song Ling did not. Instead, she watched, watched as the Legion's Officers scrambled to maintain order even as legionnaires broke ranks in fear. Watched hundreds retreat, and even a few particularly brave souls move forwards, to by time for their fellow to muster back into a cohesive force. One such brute of a man was slowly marching forward from the Formation overwrought and likely overweight club on his shoulder she watched him as several QI condensation juniors, dross her sect had picked up simply passing by charged the man. Eager disciples ten of them albeit at the lowest of the heavenstages charged him, surety in their numbers given them confidence, until the man moved. There was no shaping of Qi, there was no technique, not that she could discern instead he simply swung his club with one hand and smashed into the first three cultivators at once shattered bones and the barbs on the club ripping the flesh of the unfortunates apart. He stepped again solid and sure and another swing from the back hand came through just as quickly, smashing another who thought he could close the distance into a meaty pulp. Thus did the battle proceed, while her overzealous peers attempted to keep the formation from reforming, juniors battled juniors, and the brute kept walking forward, a force that had to be answered lest he be left unattended, but few could seemingly contend with him for long.
Lao Ji a spearman of note who was on the cusp of being able to break through charged the man, his spear skewer coated with a fulminating current of energy. Despite this the man who had drawn his shield blocked every blow, the usual loss of poise from massive amounts of electricity coursing through his body absent. This threw Lao Ji off as he expected his foe to react slowly, if at all, and she saw how he was wary of the man's strength and reach, the fight going against her junior, every technique either blocked or shrugged off, every blow met with a counterblow, every maneuver intercepted adroitly. Lao Ji jumped back to get clearances, martialing his qi into his trump technique, a lotus of fulmination blooming around him even as his skewer lit up in a light that would be blinding for someone at the level of Qi Condensation. Then he shot forward, over the shield and over the massive man's guard, the shield bypassed as the point of Lao ji's weapon split armor, flesh and bone puncturing out the other side entirely under a massive coruscating current that cooks and chars even as it penetrated. The brute tensed up until the electricity had dissipated, then his arm fell, and his legs sagged. The devil's club hit the earth. All a ruse to get Lao ji to drop his guard, as the arm of the shoulder pierced lashed out with vicious alacrity, the thumb of the hand digging into Lao ji's eye, as the edge of the shield kept him from falling back, even as the other arm grabbed her junior's head, before both hands met together ignoring whatever lay between. Lao ji feel to the ground hopeless and headless, while the Devil snapped his spear and yanked it out, and then grabbed his weapon and continued on.
Following that Ng Chow a promising archer started shooting at him with her great bow, skewering arrows whistling in the wind from a dozen direction to entrap and envenom the man, yet with a simple step to the side or flick of the wrist of his club to deflect them away. Seeing how normal shots were fruitless, her junior started using specialty arrows, one taht exploded into flames, or created biting chills that created shards of ice that then exploded with force, and in the case of a few arrows, caustic acid that would eat throw flesh of someone unprotected. The Massive Golden Devil bore all without complaint slowly closing in, even as Chow kept falling back, until the Man suddenly blurred a great cacophony of multiple ripping noises echoing as he feet and body blurred across the sands, closing the distance rapidly and his club smashed the archer into the sandy grains, never to rise again.
Her Juniors were not content to let the behemoth rest as a giant fist from Lee Guanzhi smashed into him, the robed man faking being a less accomplished junior until the massive man had closed the distance, using his compatriot to bait him out into a perfect range to send the ogre flying. Guanzhi jumped expanding his legs as he did so, his mastery of the Giant's transformation serving him well, using his now much larger and longer limbs to smash into the giant again, kicking him backwards into the Earth. Withdrawing his legs, his fists ballooning out and coming down upon the devil like a twin comet of destruction; a rumbling of qi and force rippling outwards from the impact of the blow. Yet Guanzhi has little enough time to take pride in the success of his ploy as a hand grabbed onto his pinky finger and pulled. The giant slammed him into the dirt, picking him up and slamming him into the dirt again, back and forth like how an Earth Skipping Terrier would shake a Sandrat to death, stunning Guanzhi enough for the brutal and large Golden devil to spin him around, focusing qi into a technique and sending him flying into a nearby wall hard enough to create a splatter upon the ruin itself.
Despite being burned, covered in gore, punctured and partially dissolved the large man in Qi condensation stood tall, and that was not acceptable. Not at all. He was fouling up the plan, and while none of the Golden Devil's experts had seen fit to reveal themselves here, if he continued to press the lines, they would not be able to break the legion enough to break free. Song Ling, the Crimson Dervish blurred forwards, knives aimed to cut the jugular nice and neat, only for the giant's club to lash out into blind spot she was coming from. She aborted her charge and leapt back even as his head snapped to her position. "I had hoped to make this quick, are you sure that you can't just turn your neck? It'll be painless."
A bumpkin's drawl emitted from the young Devil's mouth, "I ain't built that way." before raising his dented and mangled shield despite his bad shoulder. So, the hard way it is, she'd make it quick. Hopefully otherwise she might get caught out by one of their experts, which would be bad for her. She threw a dagger, hidden from his gaze until it left her billowing sleeve, he of course side stepped it, only for her to appear where the dagger was behind him, three more disposable throwing blades coated poisons rated for her peers lashing out and catching him in the back going through his armor like tissue paper. Witches Witbane, something that would defray and degrade the mental acuity of the foe, Blooming Agony, a poison that starts off creating an inescapable itch before escalating into an agony that would leave the bearer clawing their own skin off for relief, and Limb-breaker's Lash a poison that would incapacitate the foe by cutting off the nerve impulses and qi foe to the limbs. Anyone of these would be overkill on a normal QI condensation junior but given the sheer durability and endurance he'd displayed thus far; she was erring on the side of caution. He turned to her, but she could see him struggling even now, and his limbs started to lock up. usually that wasn't something they did, but this close he couldn't fool her like he did Lao Ji.
"Oh you thought you could actually hold me off? How cute you should know you were outmatched." She boasted as she strode up to him, carver in hand ready to cut him up for some prime cut of meat. She was caught entirely off guard however when he still retained enough of himself to shape his qi and attempt to headbutt her, her dodge sending his body spinning forwards, his legs catching her in the face, bereft of much of the killing force intended but still marking her.
Recovering from a large boot to the face, she growled. "Oh, you're going to pay for that you piece of shit!"
Her prey slowly picked himself up off the ground, an impossibility that she deduced from the threads of qi emanating from his body, pulling at his body like one would a marionette, if without an expert hand given how slowly he moved, barring the times he needed to defend himself from her blades. Then his movements were jerks, overcompensating for the loss of mobility with more strength. Still despite his inexpert movement Song Ling couldn't line up a proper kill shot, hitting him was easy, she had already spent three dozen daggers, most of which were not coated with poison simply because adding more seemed wasteful, but while they had hit, it was nowhere vital, the foul dark mauve sludge that was his blood flowed like mud, freely and without reserve, yet he still stood. Well tottered o his feet more like.
"You mind falter, your body submits, why then does you spirit still resist?" She asked, genuinely confused, he was in sheer agony, a beast trapped in a cage and partially flayed alive already. He had no chance of victory here; she was as beyond him as Master Flesh Tenderizer was beyond her. Nothing could be achieved by him here. Every dodge he made, and every punch thrown only served to prolong his misery. He should just roll over and die so she might feast.
Of course, he didn't see it that way even as she slid in for another cleaving slash of her Carver, her hacking deep into his armor and drawing another gush of sludge from his body, the fifteenth one she'd down so far, his qi reserves being spent so heavily he couldn't afford to dodge anymore except the most immediately fatal stabs, something he seemed to know on instinct. Something that were it not so frustrating she'd have found praiseworthy. AS it was, he was spent now, and she could finally put him down.
A flicker of intent was all the warning she had to dodge. The area in front of the stricken man exploding as suddenly another combatant was there. One that was as broad as the younger man, but far far shorter. She couldn't even see his face because of a huge and meticulously well kempt beard in the way, but his bronze armor signaled his allegiances easily enough.
"Stay away from my apprentice you two-bit Bint." The man growled even as he leveled his hammer at her.
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Notice to Sheng Yu
The Flesh Tenderizing Bandits have been eliminated, their 'Sect master' attempted to flee North realizing his actions were to have fatal consequence. He failed, Entire sect torn out by the root, all treasures and legacies obliterated. Legion will be ready for next mission within 3 months.
3169 words. Not my best but I had to get my muse moving somehow.
Twenty years ago, when Flavius first saw Chengshipolis, it had made him feel small. Twenty years later, having lived in the Dawn Fortress and seen Emporikipolis more times than he could count, this city near the mountains felt rather more homely. He always stopped here before traveling home, though admittedly that was somewhat more out of necessity than anything else. Chengshipolis was a common stop for traders planning on traveling through the Colossus Footstep Pass, where he tended to take jobs. Flavius tended to lead caravans through his village on the way to the pass. It was barely a detour, and traders tended to enjoy the exceedingly warm welcomes they received.
He walked with the ease of experience, navigating the chaos of a bustling city. Chengshipolis was a fascinating study in the meeting between the culture of the Golden Devils and the natives of this realm. Architectural styles of both groups stood side by side, and yet rather than clashing they had a strange synergy. Gaius Wu would love the city, though Flavius' friend preferred to stick closer to the Dawn Fortress.
It was strange how something once so awe inspiring became normal through long experience and understanding. Flavius hoped that such a truth wasn't universal. He never wanted the mountains to lose their majesty in his eyes.
But now wasn't the time to contemplate philosophy. He rounded a corner to find himself at a large and colorful building, helpfully titled "Zhong Enterprises." It was painted in red and bronze, and a man in full armor stood outside. Flavius' eyes widened in surprise. The man was a cultivator, though only of the third heavenstage. When Flavius tried to go past and enter, the man put a hand up to stop him, "I'm afraid you'll have to wait outside. Mr. Zhong is very busy."
Flavius couldn't help but look at the man in shock, unable to decide he was brave or just stupid. Surely the bodyguard could tell he was a full six heavenstages above him? And more importantly, did he not know who Flavius was? "I'm the bodyguard hired to escort Mr. Zhong through the Colossus Footstep Pass. I really don't think you should keep me waiting."
"If you're the bodyguard, you'd be waiting at the caravans."
"I'm a friend of his, we've known each other for years. I understand you're just doing your job, and you do it admirably, but you really should let me in. Ma won't like that you held me up."
The man instead chose to move bodily in front of Flavius, "Like I haven't heard that before. I'm giving you one last chance to leave, or I'll force you to do so."
So the man was an idiot. Flavius supposed there was a slight chance the bodyguard was suppressing his true cultivation level somehow or wielded some artifact to even the odds, but he doubted it. With a sigh, he stepped back to wait, "Well, don't say I didn't warn you."
The bodyguard's eyes narrowed, and his hand fell to the sword at his waste. In response to the aggressive motion, Flavius fell into a fluid defensive stance. He very much did not want to get into a fight here, but it the bodyguard attacked he would have no choice. Flavius would just have to make sure to end it quickly, before too much damage could be done.
Thankfully, that was when the door opened, and out stepped Zhong Ma. His eyes flickered across the two figures in confusion, and he took a fearful step back. Before he could retreat further, however, Flavius spoke up, "Ma, can you please explain to your bodyguard that I'm a friend? I'd rather not have to hurt him."
That seemed to snap the businessman out of his stunned stupor, and immediately a boisterous grin grew on his face, "Ahh, Flavius, I was worried you were an assassin! Cai, haven't I told you about Flavius? Without him I'd be cannibal-chow! Cai wasn't giving you any trouble, was he Flavius?"
Despite the innocent questioning, Flavius knew Ma. That knowledge, won from long experience, told him that if he said Cai had given him trouble, the man would be fired in an instant. Ma rewarded success generously, but he was very unforgiving when it came to failures. Thus, Flavius shook his head, "No, he was just doing his job. I'm glad you finally hired a more permanent bodyguard, I've been worried given your recent success."
Ma laughed, "Well, it did feel like time. Of course, I'll always prefer working with you. Now, should we be off?"
Before Flavius could answer, the businessman started walking, taking the lead towards where Flavius knew his trade caravans were stored. There was nothing to do but follow along. But then, Ma had that effect on people. He may be greedy and cowardly and careless with secrets after too much alcohol, but buried under all that was a shrewd mind and a surprising charisma. Since Flavius had defended him from Man Eater, the man had sold the ten leaf fire bloom lotus of purity for a truly exorbitant sum, and used it to start truly growing his business. As Flavius understand it, the man had gone from success to success since then. And, deservingly or not, he seemed to contribute a non-insignificant amount of that success to Flavius.
It was good to have friends in high places, and this was a relationship Flavius always made sure to cultivate. It was strange though. Ma was perhaps Flavius' only mortal friend, and they were around the same age. Yet, while Flavius seemed to grow more and more handsome but never age, Ma's hair was beginning to turn grey. He couldn't help but wonder, then, how much longer the relationship would last. Would Flavius be doing this same route with Ma's son, after the man retired?
Flavius had not contemplated such things when he began his cultivation journey. He shook his head in an attempt to clear it of such thoughts. It was not good to dwell on such things, especially in the presence of friends. Ma had not retired yet, after all.
———
They traveled more slowly than they had in the past. Back then, Ma had only owned a single caravan, but now he directed a whole train. Indeed, Flavius wasn't the only bodyguard, or even the only cultivator, though he was the highest ranking. Ma hadn't risen far enough to need foundation establishment guards, even if he'd been willing to pay the price.
Still, as he walked along the first caravan in the line, Flavius couldn't help but ask, "Why do you lead these expeditions in person? Couldn't you afford to have someone else do it for you? Surely staying in your office would be safer."
Ma scoffed, "And risk having them walk off with all my goods and leave me destitute? I think not! Besides, while I do not enjoy the danger, I do enjoy the thrill of a good negotiation. I wouldn't have made it so far if I didn't."
"It just seems strange to me. I don't understand why you'd take the risk. I know you don't enjoy being in dangerous situations."
Here Ma gave him a strange look, "Well I suppose it's not so different than for you. I can't say I entirely understand you cultivator types, but whatever you get out of this must make the fear of going into battle worth it."
Flavius hummed in contemplation, "I suppose I've never really thought about it. There are things that scare me, of course, but fighting doesn't. Why would I be a cultivator if fighting scared me?"
"Truly? Even when you faced Man Eater, you were not scared at all? Were you so confident in your victory?"
"Of course not, I was well aware I would probably die. But I did not feel fear. I felt," he grasped at the air, as if grasping for words, "awake. Present. Alive. Like I had no choice but to push to my limit and then even further beyond. If I felt fear, I'd probably have died."
"You're a crazy bastard, you know that? I expected you to say something about overcoming fear in service of your clan, or something like that. You truly feel no fear?"
Flavius waggled his hand back and forth, "I do feel fear, but not from proximity to death. I should have died long ago, and instead I began to live. I fear that I will lose that drive some day, and go back to simply getting by. That would be a death truer than death itself."
"Huh. You think you know a guy. Well, I always knew you were a little crazy. In a good way, of course! In a good way."
And they talking until they reached their destination.
———
Flavius' village had grown exponentially in the twenty years since he'd left it. There were two reasons for this, though they compounded on each other. For one, Flavius invested a great deal of his pay back into his village. It had started as just some money sent back to his parents, though they insisted they didn't need it. But he felt like everything he saw in the Dawn Fortress could benefit his village, and he didn't have that many things to spend his money on (besides cultivation, of course) so when he had those thoughts he often followed through on them.
That alone would not have done more but led to a moderately better furnished village with wealthier protectors, but Flavius also made a habit of leading traders through his village before going to the pass. They had brought money and goods, and had done a tremendous amount for the minuscule village economy. And then, of course, Ma had decided to invest in the village more seriously. He had become a major employer in the village, providing options besides agriculture. It had happened gradually, but if he had showed the Flavius of twenty years ago the village now, he would have found it unrecognizable.
And there was one more thing. The village had never truly had a name, everyone had always just called it the village. Ma had insisted such a thing couldn't stand. Truthfully, Flavius had feared the man would name it Zhong Village or something, but Flavius had been foolish. The man's choice was so much worse. Flavius wanted desperately to hide his face in embarrassment, but such a thing would be unbecoming of a bodyguard. Thus he simply kept his gaze straight ahead as he passed the jaunty sign built along the road into his home, proclaiming the place as Eirenikos Village.
They arrived in the village with quite a bit of fanfare. Part of what had first kept caravaners agreeing to come back after they realized Flavius' home was a relatively poor village was the excessive hospitality shown by its inhabitants. The city dwellers quite enjoyed their 'quaint countryside hospitality,' and frankly it was worth bearing such condescension for the wealth they brought. The welcoming, thus, was at first filled with the sort of false warmth that most visitors couldn't distinguish from the genuine article. When they realized who had come, however, things changed.
When he had been growing up, Flavius had been an oddity in the village, tolerated due to the power and prestige of his parents but never truly fitting in. Now, however, he was a successful cultivator who had not forgotten where he came from. The people of Eirenikos Village were now very happy to claim him as their own.
Still, they hardly stopped for the greeters. There were two people anyone visiting the village had to greet first after all, and they were the two people Flavius most wanted to see in the world. Their carriage rolled along the road to the largest house in town. It still had a chicken coop and in the back he knew were both cows and a great deal of land being farmed, but the house itself had grown quite a bit. It was a solid brick structure, and painted a clean white. Even years after the painting was done, there was not a speck of dirt that Flavius could see. His father had always been obsessive about such things.
They were standing there, presumably having left the house upon hearing the commotion. His parents still looked young, and he smiled when he saw them. Flavius did not ask permission to walk ahead of Ma to greet his parents, the man wouldn't mind.
He did not bother with words, instead engulfing his parents in a great hug. "It's so good to see you."
He heard his father speak first, "It is good to see you too, son. It always warms our hearts when you come to visit."
And then his mother, "You two are far too formal! By the Imperator, I feel like you grow every time we see you. Ninth Heavenstage in twenty years, it's hard to imagine. We always knew you were destined for greatness."
His parents had both found themselves blocked at third Heavenstage for one hundred and forty years, before having him. Flavius didn't know if they'd decided to enter their semi-retirement because of his birth, or if they'd had him upon deciding to live safer lives, but he supposed it did not matter. They lacked the drive to advance either way, for all that Flavius did not fault them for it.
"Thank you, mom, dad. How have you been?"
"We have been doing very well, though quite busy lately. It was twenty years ago that you first started cultivation, you know? Well, the whole village has decided to throw a festival to celebrate it."
His mother grinned, looking almost mischievous as he processed the information. A festival for him! He wouldn't begrudge the village a chance to celebrate, but it sounded so strange. He wasn't sure how he felt about it, yet.
"I wanted to wait to tell you," his father said somewhat pointedly, "but your mother insisted on not keeping it a secret. Still, you know no one would turn down a chance to party, and you truly have done a great deal for the village."
"Well, I suppose I'll have to help you all prepare," His parent made noises of protestation, but he just continued on, "you know I want to. But maybe we can talk about this later? Ma is here too, it would be good not to leave him waiting too long, or he may get bored and run off to a bar or something."
His parents let him get away with the distraction, turning to great the businessman who had done far more for the village than Flavius felt he himself had. A party for him. It was a strange though indeed.
Preparing for festivities was much easier with cultivators involved. Of course, Flavius' parents were rather closed to mortals in terms of their capabilities, but Flavius himself was incredibly fast and strong, and capable of using a variety of qi arts. He could raise great stone tables with enough time, which was useful for a village wide feast. Of course, when they saw him doing so, Flavius found himself conscripted into countless other tasks. It wasn't long before he found himself pulled away from celebration preparations altogether, instead being put to work helping to build a new house and repairing the cobblestone road. It was nice being able to help, and it was good practice besides.
Flavius was not a natural in qi arts. He found himself the best at earth shaping arts, but even then it had taken years or practice to be able to apply them semi-effectively in battle. All but the most basic external effects took far too long to be practical, and Flavius had found his Blood of Bronze more effective than any skin hardening techniques he knew. Of course, just because he lacked natural talent didn't mean he was going to give up.
Still, there was only so much work to be done. The village was in better repair than it had ever been, in truth, and most of the preparation for the festival involved cooking. Flavius wasn't a terrible chef, but his father had monopolized the kitchen for as long as he could remember. Besides, he had his own part to play. After all, it would be Flavius who procured the meat for his father to cook.
———
Every year, Flavius set out up the mountain. He did so following the same path he had set out on twenty years ago, the first time he's tried climbing the mountain. It was there he achieved some of his greatest breakthroughs, but more importantly he was able to get further and further each time.
It was strange. Flavius passed by a boulder he remembered struggling to climb, and knew he could jump to the top with ease. He'd done so before, in fact. What took days of climbing for a mortal took him but an hour now. It was a sign of how far Flavius had come, a clear indication of his growth. It was always comforting to come back on years when he felt he had not grown, and find he could still progress further up the mountain.
In this case, however, Flavius wasn't just looking to climb. As he passed by the stream that had saved his life twenty years ago, Flavius kept his eyes and ears alert. Every year he came here, he eventually found a Spirit Goat, battling it and consuming its core. It was somewhat strange, he supposed, though not incredibly so. Goats were native to the mountains, and spirit beasts grew more common and powerful the further up he climbed.
Flavius climbed higher and higher. The path he followed grew narrow and winding, and occasionally was broken up by rocky cliff faces stretching higher up into the mountains. None of these were smooth walls, and with his current strength he found them relatively easy to climb. A simple chip in the rock was enough for Flavius to hold as firmly as the rungs of a ladder, and stand on as if it were solid ground. Truly, his years of training had paid off, and though it was not useful in combat, the advancement was more satisfying than any perfected martial technique.
The danger of the mountains was not in the physical exertion of the climb, however, but in those beasts which made it their home. Flavius knew better than to climb too far too fast. After all, he couldn't ascend above the heavens themselves if he was dead. Perhaps if he was here purely to climb, he would risk traveling to heights where he knew spirit beasts on the level of foundation establishment would begin to appear, but such was not the case. Instead, he stopped right on the edge and began to really search. Somewhere, he knew, was a goat large enough to feed a village.
There were few trees in this part of the mountain, though there was a scant layer of shrubs. Flavius crouched down, attempting to obscure himself as best he could within them as he began to creep forward. He did not know exactly where to find his prey, and he did not follow the path of the hunter. Still, Flavius had one trick up his sleeve.
Flavius touched his hand to the earth, and closed his eyes. Slowly, as best he could, he shut out every sense except for that of his qi, ignoring all other sensations. As his surroundings fully disappeared around his, he spoke, "Mineral Seeking Art: Rock Salt Revelation."
It was a simple detection art, which Flavius had found deep within the clan's records. From what he understood, it was for finding the somewhat rarer Spirit Salt, which could of course provide benefits to cultivation. Still, it functioned by searching for certain mineral impurities throughout the earth at a wide range, and could be used to find regular rock salt. It did not take long using such a method to find a particularly large deposit exposed to the air.
With a deep breath out, Flavius opened his eyes and set out. There may have been no goats nearby, as far as he could tell, but he knew that they loved such salt deposits. He rounded upon the deposit with only a few minutes of running, and quickly set about hiding himself in wait.
———
Two hours later, a Spirit Goat came into view. It was a large creature, such that at full heigh Flavius would just be looking it in the eyes. And, notably, it had not noticed him in hiding.
While it was not his preferred weapon, Flavius did generally carry a standard issue gladius. In a fight he was generally better off without it, but the weapon was useful for cutting things. In this case, his aim was to cut the goat's throat before it noticed his presence.
Flavius sprang from his hiding place, half buried in dirt and shrubs, and in one smooth motion sliced through the spirit goat's neck. Or at least, that's what he tried to do. Yet, moments before his attack could land, the goat shifted, and in an incredible technical display it matched his blade with horn. The goat spun in a smooth motion, deflecting his sword to the side and then launching a powerful kick from its back legs at Flavius.
In a split second decision, Flavius allowed the blade to fly out of his hands and threw himself back, barely avoiding the blow. The goat spun back around and huffed condescendingly. Fabius could not help but be impressed. He had fought many spirit goats in his time, but never had he faced one with such technical skill!
Flavius fell back into a defensive stance, but he felt that he could not allow such a worthy foe to go unacknowledged, "You are truly an impressive goat. I will enjoy testing myself against you!"
In response, the goat charged. This time, Flavius did not move to evade the blow. He took a wide stance, holding his hands out wide, and with a roar of exertion Flavius grabbed the goat by the horns. Immediately, his arms jolted and creaked from the force, and he began to slide backwards. But he did not give in. Instead, Flavius dug his heels further into the ground and began to push back.
Slowly, his backwards movement slowed. The goat was pushing him up hill, and that would be its doom. With a final shout, he began to pull backwards instead of forewords, falling to the ground as he flipped the spirit goat over his head. It slammed into the mountain above him with a mighty thud.
Flavius kicked himself back onto his feet and spun to face the goat. It was attempting to right itself, but was clearly unused to ending up on its back in such a matter. Flavius had a moment's reprieve, and he used it well.
Flavius sprinted up the mountain at full speed. He sprinted until the goat began to grow small in his perception, and then he spun and began to run down the hill. The goat by this time had managed to clamber back to its feet. Though still somewhat stunned by the impact, it was not out of the fight yet, and readied its horns. If Flavius was going to charge at it with such speed, he would simply impale himself more deeply.
But Flavius had other plans. As he grew near the goat, he slid, bronze skin protecting him from the friction. In mere moments, he was underneath the goat's head. Then Flavius pushed himself upwards, launching himself into a handstand that saw his feet crash into the goat's jaw. The force carried the both of them into the air, if just for the moment, as the goat was flipped for the second time in the fight.
Flavius landed straddled around the goat's neck. The goat surely realized the danger it was in, and despite the concussion it had surely suffered began to thrash. Even now, the battle was not won. Truly, this goat was a worthy foe.
Rather than allow the goat to get to its feet, Flavius jammed his hands down into the earth, anchoring them on either side of the goat's neck. Then he began to squeeze with his legs. The goat's thrashing grew more desperate, but Flavius' grip held firm. It could not dislodge Flavius from the earth, nor weaken the vice around its neck. Slowly, the goat's struggled began to weaken.
Flavius let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. The battle was well fought, but he had won.
And then the goat surged one final time. Flavius' grip did not break, but the earth did, the ground cratering as the goat uprooted him and finally twisted to its feet. Now it was Flavius whose head was slammed into the earth as he found himself hanging upside down on a giant spirit goat. It raised a hoof, ready to bring it down onto Flavius' head until it shattered. The hoof hung there for a few moments before it fell, but not into Flavius's skull. The goat slumped forward, the lack of oxygen finally too much even for its prodigious constitution.
Flavius stayed like that, lying awkwardly against the ground, legs wrapped around the mighty beast's neck, until he was finally sure it had died. Finally, he allowed himself to rise, giving a bow to the dead spirit beast, "You fought with great strength and technique. Rest knowing you strove to the very end."
What a strange, melancholy feeling. Flavius could not help but feel like he had cut a great life short. There was nothing to be done about it, he supposed. At the very least, the goat was large enough to help feed a village.
With a sigh, Flavius hoisted the massive corpse up over his shoulders. It would be good training, carrying it one his trek back down the mountain.
———
Flavius did not play much of a role in the preparation of the spirit goat. He offered, of course, but his father had seen the massive thing and seemed to take it as a challenge. Honestly, if the man put half as much work into his cultivation as he had his cooking, Flavius felt that his father would have made it to foundation establishment by now.
In the meantime, Flavius bathed. The heated bath was one of the first luxuries he had purchased for his parents, and he had to admit he enjoyed the hot water on his skin. Still, he did not stay long. It didn't feel right, while others were working.
Yet when he returned to the central street, he found it relatively empty. People had retreated to their homes in order to cook or do chores, it seemed. Or perhaps to sleep. Flavius supposed it had grown rather late. He considered seeking out Ma, but decided again if. There would be more than enough time to talk with his friend during the festivities tomorrow. With nothing better to do, Flavius retreated back to his room.
The room looked different than it had when he was younger. This was unsurprising, of course, because it was a different room. The whole building was relatively new, after all. Still, it was just as devoid of decoration or ornament as his childhood room had been. Yet it didn't feel like his own. Flavius supposed he had spent as much of his life living in the Dawn Fortress as he had in his village. And, well, this was a different room.
He supposed the bed was more comfortable, which was a plus. Without any more ceremony, Flavius settled down to cultivate. After all, his impurities weren't going to burn out themselves.
———
The following day, the festivities began. Of course, the most important part of any festival was that people took the day off. Thus, people did not emerge from their homes until the sun had risen over the horizon and the cool night air began to warm. It was a slow and happy morning, and Flavius enjoyed a thoroughly nostalgic meal of eggs, milk, and bread.
He considered going out into the day, but had a feeling his help would be denied wherever he went. This was, after all, theoretically a festival thanking him for his contributions to the village. Thus, Flavius absconded back to his room, and began to get some more cultivation done. He found it was always good to sneak in cultivation whenever he could, especially on days which he knew would be busy.
A few hours later, his father came to tell him the festivities had begun. Together they left the house to enjoy themselves. Everywhere, people were talking and eating. Ma's caravans had opened up to reveal a number of games and small stores, which were seeing a remarkable amount of traffic. It was a sign of how much wealth had come into the village, that its people could afford such things.
Perhaps most obnoxiously of all, there was a man singing. It was not that he was singing that annoyed Flavius, for the man was clearly a professional, but rather the contents of the song. Honestly, how much had Ma payed to have someone write an epic song of Flavius' battle with Man Eater? It wasn't even that impressive, not compared to stories like the Miracle at Pleuron.
After a few hours of festivities, it was finally time to begin eating. Flavius carried out the massive stone tables that he had made earlier into the central road, and soon after they were laden with food. There were eggs, cheeses, numerous breads, a number of different meats and vegetables, and a few delicacies Ma had apparently brought from the city. And in the center was the goat Flavius had slain, every part cooked and ready to eat, except of course the Beast Core, which had been removed and stored safely to bring back to the Dawn Fortress.
It all smelled delicious. Flavius stepped forward. He wasn't exactly experienced in public speaking, but he supposed he had to say something. "Forty years ago, I was born in this village. Twenty years ago, I left to become a cultivator at the Dawn Fortress. Today—"
His impromptu speech was interrupted by a rumbling sounds. Immediately, he stopped speaking and spun. The sounds was coming from the mountain. He sent out his senses a grimaced.
Three figures emerged from the path up the mountain, and approached the gathered partygoers. Two were in qi cultivation, one at the seventh stage and another at the ninth. But the third, from what Flavius could tell, was in foundation establishment. And they were all riding giant goats.
Flavius felt mouth move before he could think to stop, "Who are you?"
The lead figure, the man in foundation establishment, spoke, "I am Shining Goat, of the Shining Goat Sect!"
The man put his hands on his hips, thrusting out his chest. He did look somewhat goat like, with a wispy beard and a bony face. Most noticeable, however, were the two shining horns of qi that sprouted from his head. His two disciples road up next to him, thrusting out their own chests. In lieu of horns of qi, they held up their hands in a rough approximation, fingers pointing towards the sky. Their goat mounts did their best to pose majestically as well.
The self-declared Shining Goat continued to speak, "And you are the perfidious poacher who has been killing our goats!"
Bloodstorm Empty Desert, Jingshen Border Territories, Year 235
War was…something else.
On the one hand, it was a lot like a normal turf brawl between mortals. Fighting over borders, keeping watch for tricky bullshit in the dark, having to run food and drink out to the guys keeping watch, keeping spirits up and spoiling for a fight. On the other hand, war was...tiring in a whole different way and I was pretty fuckin' sick of it.
Physically, I was fine. I hadn't felt genuinely tired since Old Gold knows when and since way back at the Tenth Heavenstage, it was a ghost of a feeling from the few times I worked hard enough to cause it. And even that was something that got brushed into a corner as long as I had enough qi. I still slept every once in a while, but...it didn't do anything for this.
We were in the...the...shit, how many years has it been? What year is it?
I think it's been over ten years since the start of the war: ten years of sweeping territory for Jingshen spies, sniffing out hidden dens of Blood Path activity before they could bother a valuable outpost or supply routes, years of just...never stopping. I'd barely seen my squad. I'd barely seen anyone twice, for that matter. For the most part, it was just Si and me, wading across the dunes, shimmying over softsand, and hiding in the shadows of rocks.
Si'd gotten a lot better at...everything. She could glide across the sand like a ghost, she'd gorged herself on spirit beasts we'd hunted until she rose to the fifth heavenstage, and she was almost as sensitive to the bitter scent of blood qi as I was. She'd also...grown. Seemed like that guy was right, but her physical age and real age didn't seem to match up. Physically, she'd gained about a cun of height, putting her around my eyeline. She was the (second) tallest woman in the squad, and she'd made good use of how willow-y she'd gotten. Mentally, she was still a couple years short of the grown-ass woman she looked like.
At some point, she'd discovered dimachaerus and decided to go whole hog on the style. Thick leather-banded manica around her arms and legs, padded greaves, and a girdle of laminated armour at her waist. She'd picked up a pair of siccae, curved short swords with the edge on the inside of the bend, and she'd manage to hide how perpetually ready to fuckin' rumble she was by putting the whole thing under a pretty maroon peplos, and a navy himation covering everything but her face and sandals in it's folds.
But she still only hissed, which meant she did nothing to help my shitty constant tiredness since I could barely even complain to her. She understood me now, but how the hell am I supposed to share being miserable if she can't agree with me?
Not that she was bothered; the damn snakewoman always seemed to have a hidden reserve of energy, no matter how long we'd walked or how deep into the fight we were. And she didn't need to talk to me, since somebody kept her sending her goddamn letters. Who the fuck was writing her letters?
I took a drink from my waterskin, then a much longer drink from my wineskin. I'd shelled out some contribution points to get the good stuff: Five Century Night Plum Wine, strong enough to knock out a herd of oxen or your stavraton back.
Unfortunately, fucking up my physical development by starting to bronze my muscles in Qi Condensation meant my alcohol tolerance was through the roof. Anything strong enough to get me pissed would just be poison. Instead, it just made me slightly more miserable and contemplative.
A few years ago, I'd encountered Remus by accident in one of the supply posts and ended up talking to him about the whole shitty thing. He just bought me an extra bottle of wine and told me I wasn't firm enough in my convictions, then fucked off into the desert to...I don't know, jerk off to engravings. The worst part is I complained about my shitty squad leader to some other Foundation Building experts in a different bar, and they agreed with him.
Fuckin' useless ass 'experts'. They can take their Dao and shove it up their ass.
Hell was I talking about? Wine? No, being stuck in the desert for ten years and how much it sucked. See, being stuck with nothing but wine, a mute snakewoman, and my thoughts meant I did a lot of looking back on my life so far. Why the hell was I in the Legions? I mean, I knew why I joined but I was doing a lot of fucking work for a guy who got pressed into service. And at this point, I'd already learned all the tricks around avoiding the seal siphoning my Qi off (don't plan against the clan, don't plot against mortals, baby stuff). Why did I keep cultivating? It sucked and I hated meditating and, honestly, most of my strength was the result of getting real lucky with easy marks and stolen fortunes - but I could have just stopped there. I could just sit at the peak of Qi Condensation for the rest of my life, but...I kept trying. I'd never admitted it to anyone, but being at this step, feeling stuck for so many years burned in the worst way. Yeah, some people spent more time getting to my level than I had been alive but that didn't make me feel better. Just like I was wasting my one shot of good fortune. In theory, I could try and firm my foundation to break through from here but...would I? Should I?
I'd seen the rest of the squad and how hard they worked for every step. I'd seen Jiyue bleeding herself dry to try and keep up with me, when techniques like Reflected Purities came naturally but she had to practice a lot to grasp them. The brief terror when I came back after just months away in Yuan as suddenly the second strongest member of the squad. Aelia fighting to pass the bottleneck of the Fifth to Sixth Heavenstages, Hua fighting to push her arrows closer and closer to the barrier of sound, Chun Bo, Junius, Lucius all putting in the work…and then me.
I wasn't someone who was used to having things handed to me, if that wasn't obvious. I wasn't going to refuse to use techniques just because I didn't have to struggle to master them, or suppress my cultivation because I got it from shoving a fistful of plants into my mouth, but...it didn't feel right to me. I didn't earn it. Not stolen honestly, but just…given to me. Like a spoiled heir, or some other soft bitch kid with a bellyful of rice and no worries under heaven.
With those kinds of thoughts swirling in my head, you have to understand why the sudden scent of bitter blood qi settling its stink on everything and blood-red mists surging towards me from the horizon was equally terrifying - and exciting. At last, one way or another, I'd be out of this empty stretch of fucking desert.
Si hissed, pointing into the distance with one hand while the other pulled her himation up to cover her nose. Danger.
I nodded, putting a hand over my eyes as the mists surged towards us. "I see it," I said. It was coming too fast, there was no way to outrun it, and nothing around for cover. I grabbed Si by the shoulder, hauling her to the ground and throwing one hand over her head as I buried my face in the sand.
I waited for a dozen dozen heartbeats before I peeked my head back out, noting that the mists didn't peel all the skin off my body, and stared at the gigantic shapes shining across the sky.
天下万物
My heart beat faster at the sight, and I could feel my qi starting to circulate of its own volition. The air tasted sweeter and strength pounded through my limbs, as the sight burned itself into my mind. This was important, and I felt like I'd remember this for the rest of my life. Goddamn, was I hungry though.
"Wow. Wish I knew what the fuck that said."
Si hissed at me in annoyance, batting my hand off her head. She gazed into the sky and froze, working her jaw silently, before clambering to her feet. I climbed up after her, brushing the rough grains away before it worked too deep into my armour. "You're welcome," I told her. My stomach roiled in hunger and I circulated my qi, to suppress it.
Si hissed, short and inflected. Return?
I grunted, reaching into the pouch on my sword belt and pulling out a hunk of dried Venom-Spitting Dromedary from our last hunt. I chewed on it idly, swallowing it before I responded. "Yeah, probably should. Whatever the hell that was, it was probably a big deal."
Si hissed something else but I missed whatever meaning was there as my stomach heaved, defying my attempts to soothe my hunger with food or cultivation. It burned like the worst starvation I'd ever felt, bubbling and lighting my throat on fire with bile until my eyes watered and I couldn't breathe. My qi moved faster in and out of my dantian in the way I'd learned would calm my mortal needs, but it only got worse.
A hand appeared in front of my face with a wave. I- I was on my knees? How did I get here, hunched over on the soil and dripping drool? I leaned forward to close my mouth around a finger but it darted out of the way before I could get a bite.
Something hissed at me and I rose to my feet, staring at the black-haired woman giving me a wary appraisal. I knew her, knew that beneath the wild black mane were two fleshy ridges on her scalp, that she had two blades hidden on her person, and that she was more dangerous than her meagre cultivation should be in comparison to my own. Hiss.Si. Right, that was her name.
She frowned at me, hissing something I didn't understand as she pointed a pale and dainty finger at my nose. My mouth watered at the sight. I staggered to my feet, staring at the hand, and she quickly pulled it back out of sight, hidden beneath the folds of her clothes. I glared at her, taking a deep breath. I could smell it: tender meat hidden in the folds of her clothes, buried under the sour scents of snakes, and mortal sweat.
Goddamn it, she knew I was hungry. I hadn't eaten in days and she was holding out on me? Fucking bitch. I took a step forward-
Si narrowed her eyes, drawing both her swords and lowering her stance.
She wanted to draw her blades on me? On me? I let my hands fall away from my stomach, drawing my own sword underhand with the left. We kept our eyes on each other, but I could see the nervousness in her. Five heartbeats passed- but she didn't want to come to me? Fine, then.
I threw my sword at her and activated Reflected Purities, my skin instantly a crisp bronze sheen as the technique manifested. I chased after it, the snakewoman dipping to the side with an adjustment of her stance, the sword passing just by her head as she kept her gaze focused on me.
I let Reflected Purities begin to fall away, my attention going to the ground as I firmed it with Silent Steps Resounding. The sandy soil rebounded like a tarp and I catapulted forward, catching up to the sword in flight with my right hand, and chopping heavily down into my insolent 'spirit beast'.
Si's eyes widened and her legs shifted again, tilting her body away. Her swords cut up towards my blade, attacking my sword and pushing my attack just slightly off-course. My sword hit the ground and jammed as it cut a crack into the earth. I twisted around on the pommel, punching at her forearm.
She didn't have time to parry me, but she didn't need to. Four snakes erupted from the folds of her clothes, their fangs closing on my fist before they exploded into meaty pulp. They barely slowed me down - but they did slow me down, and she took the opportunity to scramble backwards before I could strike her again.
My feet touched the ground again and I hefted my sword up, casually throwing dirt into the air, and I rested it on my shoulder as I looked her over. That was not a sparring attack. That was a genuine blow meant to kill, and...she survived. Terrified, fleeing, and clinging to life in an unsightly manner but...she lived.
Si was dangerous, because she fought like me. Ready to risk death and willing to gamble anything to win, because we knew the other guy wouldn't be willing to lose an arm even if it meant killing us. Threatening mutual death could even keep you alive when fighting across great realms. Then we stabbed each other in the heart in our first spar, and we were both forced to adapt our plans.
I was stronger than her. I was faster than her, too, and my qi was more plentiful and denser by virtue of my higher cultivation - enough so that my plan to beat her for real was to crush her with overwhelming force and speed. But she lived. And she hadn't even drawn her strongest weapon.
That meant I needed to stop holding back.
"I am going to punch you," I said harshly, tossing my sword and catching it in my left hand. I'd need my right hand for this, and I flexed my fingers, feeling the familiar burning pain in my arm. The leather of my cestus creaked, the bronze studs on the surface shining brightly.
...no, that wasn't right. It was true, but it wasn't right. I needed to be more honest, more direct to embody my Intent. I inhaled deeply, pointing my sword at Si. "I will punch you."
She flinched at my declaration and I took advantage, cutting across the landscape between us at full speed. Si darted back twice before I caught up to her, throwing herself around as she quickly reversed her stance, just slipping out of the way of my blade at the last second on shuffling feet. I led her with my blade, cutting at angles that restricted where she could dodge until I had her trapped in reach of my fist, boxed in like a rat in a trap. I let go of the sword, my right hand dropping back to my waist as it fell. I relaxed, feeling my breathing, my qi, and my soul align in purpose. I punched.
The chest of her himation exploded backwards over the desert in fabric shreds and flesh, the layers shaking from the wind of my attack.
That was shit on my part: if I was better, there would be no wind because all of my punch would be contained by my Intent. I would only punch what I wanted to punch, and nothing else. Still, this was good enou- no.
I sniffed, frowning as I caught the sour scent of snakes from the slumping figure in front of me. Snakes...and nothing else. I reached forward with my sword to poke at Si's head- and she dissolved into a heap of hand-long snakes in a black wig, the crushed corpses of their brothers abandoned in the clothes.
Qi erupted from behind me and I spun around, realizing I was too late as Si stabbed down at me with a second pair of sicae in her hands. My legs seized with fear as I felt the eyes of a predator on me, the heat of danger on my neck as the image of a ghostly snake yawned open before me and threatened to devour me whole.
Fang Intent. The one trump card she had that could reliably threaten me. The damn woman had awoken Fang Intent, something that marked her as an unusual talent, and almost untouchable in Qi Condensation. Somehow, she had managed to steal a look at the Dao and understand it, moving her entire being in unison into an attack that menaced me on every level. The fear that made my toes tingle and eyes water was the fear we all remembered as base mortals, when death loomed closely.
But I was far away from those days now, wasn't I?
I flooded my entire body with qi, overriding the feeling of fear, and slashed at her left wrist while I threw my fist straight into her bare chest.
I heard her bones shatter and my slash tink against steel as she was forced to deflect it to the side with one sword. Then my flesh burned, her sicae Fang cutting through the bronze of my skin like paper. Her body fell onto mine, an iron grip on the two blades keeping her locked to me and sending us tumbling across the desert. We slammed into a small boulder and pulverized it, my lungs burning from Si's attack and every single breath filling the air with the harsh scent of blood qi, like I was a wineskin someone sat on.
The snakewoman panted, lying on top of me. Her eyes were tired but fixed on mine, while I stared at the arm pressed lifelessly against my neck. My mouth watered and my stomach demanded attention. I clutched at her elbow and brought it to my mouth, taking a bite-
"What," I coughed, the taste of dirty, sweaty arm filling my mouth and choking me. "What the fuck. Holy shit."
Si gave me a tired look and hissed something rude, then let her head drop on my chest.
I coughed again, my lungs tickling against the tip of the sword she had buried in my chest, and then let my head fall on the ground.
What the fuck-? Was that what Blood Path corruption was like? The rush of power, the terrible hunger that promised to never end, the urge to push and fight and do anything to relieve it…I don't want to sound like I've got sympathy for them, but every minute of being a Blood Path adherent seemed like torture. I barely even noticed I was acting differently until it was over.
I sat up, pulling the sword out my chest, and rolled Si over to poke at her definitely broken sternum and ribs, before fishing out the field kit to treat her. She gave me a stink look, but kept her thoughts to herself.
When I'd pushed myself beyond my limits to save Aelia, cursing myself with the constant grinding pain of bronze in my body to put down one Blood Path adherent, I'd asked myself if it was worth it. If sacrificing myself and my own progress to save one person I cared about - that I...I might have loved - was a good trade.
The Eleventh Heavenstage was one of Qi Purification, clearing spiritual imperfections from it to leave behind richer, more powerful qi. It was so difficult to attain, it was said to be equal to accomplishing the previous ten Heavenstages. Would it have been enough to keep me safe from whatever the fuck this was? Would that extra bit of strength matter, when the real monsters of the world could wipe me away with a wave of my hand?
Maybe. Maybe not. But I knew to live with myself, I would need to achieve that level of strength on purpose. I'd need to become that strong, and by seeking it, not just falling into it. Because I also knew that it didn't matter if it was a good trade or not. I was attached to my life, but it had been shit enough long enough that in the moment? I'd spend it cheaply to save someone important to me.
==============================
Legionnaires glanced at Si and the exposed section of cleavage in her clothes as we passed through the camp. While her little 'fake snake body' trick worked pretty well to copy her, it didn't extend to anything she was carrying - hence the extra pair of swords, and the blown out section of fabric left in her clothes.
Unfortunately, something I apparently hadn't picked up on during our decade in the desert, was that my tall, pale snakewoman minion had turned into a Golddamn honeypot.
"Hey, sweet lady," the fourth big-eyed bastard said, jogging over to us.
"She's not interested," I said, grabbing them by the face and shoving them back over to the side of the road. "And could you cover up? This shit is getting annoying."
Si shrugged at me helplessly with a staccato hiss, miming at the hole in her clothes. No.
I grit my teeth and stomped through the camp, scaring off the next five horny beasts with my stare. By the time we made it to my squad, Si was giggling to herself like an idiot and I was seething at how much faster we could have taken all the Jingshen territory if we'd motivated these bastards with Horny.
"Janus, Si," Remus said as we stepped into the building. His back was turned to us, and he'd apparently given up on pretending he was using his eyes to notice me come in. "I appreciate the wardrobe change." His tone was...a shadow of its usual self, heavy with seriousness.
I glanced around the room, noting Aelia and Lucius seated at the table with him while Junius glowered in a corner and Chun Bo whispered urgently to him. Junius caught my gaze for a moment, giving me a half-nod of acknowledgement, before he went back to staring a hole in the wall.
"Something happened?" I asked, walking over to spin a chair around and take a seat at Remus' table.
Remus drummed his fingers on the surface and nodded once. "Hua."
I paused, then rocked my chair in place. I glanced over at Junius in the corner, the man's bitter stare telling a different story. "She died?"
Remus didn't answer for a long while, and my stomach fell as I realized what his answer would be. "Blood Path."
"Fuck," I said, wiping my hand over my forehead and through my hair. "What are we doing about it?"
"We aren't doing anything," Remus corrected me. "Based on her last known location, she'll likely fall to another squad to deal with before we can even get there."
"She's one of us," I said, looking to Aelia for support, then quickly shifting my gaze to Lucius. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her look hurt before mastering her expression. "We should handle it ourselves."
"Not how it works," Remus said quietly. "And that's exactly why we shouldn't." He tapped his finger on the table twice, then sighed. "Word is coming down that we've sundered the Jingshen."
"We took their castles?" Lucius asked, rubbing his chin in thought.
"We took their heads. There are no Jingshen cultivators remaining above Golden Core, or so they say. The war is ours." Remus stared into an empty point of nothing on the wall, something unsettling after getting used to him meeting my eyes through the blindfold. "But our orders don't end just because the war might. The Blood Mist caused no host of other problems on its own, and the war was already creating a massive backlog of other issues to be addressed. I'll put in a request to the Praefectus to request we handle tracking and eradicating the former Devil Hua, but in the meantime, we have things to see to."
I nodded along until the end, grimacing at the name. "And Jieyue? Any word? Is she…?"
"No bad news," Aelia said, and I had enough self-discipline to look at her without reacting. Fuck, seeing her again kind of made me miss the desert though. "Her last letter said she was already packing up to be redeployed, since they'd moved the battle lines and didn't need forward scouts. Shouldn't take her long to just head this way. It's been about two weeks, so there might be another letter getting here this week."
Remus chuckled. "Two weeks? I don't think she sends me more than one every month."
Good health is a treasure only really appreciated after it has been lost and then won back at great cost. Jiang Chrysanthos agreed unreservedly with the sentiment of that saying. After all, they had experienced the truth of it firsthand to know the saying's worth.
Chrys breathed in deeply, pulling into their lungs a volume of air that would have seen a mortal dead halfway through attempting the folly of such a feat. A bright smile blossomed on their face as they held in their breath easily, no pain accompanying the expansion of their chest or the flattening of their diaphragm. Delight sparkled in their eyes as they released a powerful exhalation, the stream of air stirring up the red-gold leaves fallen from the Flame-Crowned Oaks planted in the courtyard Chrys currently stood barefoot in.
The weather agreed with Chrys' good spirits. The day was picturesquely perfect from the crystal clear skies above with nary a cloud in sight and the welcome heat of the afternoon sun overhead pleasantly warmed the stone surface of the tiled courtyard ground. Chrys gave into the irrepressible energy thrumming within their body and leapt into the motions of a dance-kata, taking advantage of the freedom of movement afforded them by the close-hugging fit of the black silk training attire they wore. More acrobatic spectacle than martial training, the energetic movements of the Monkey-Seduces-the-Leopard were the perfect medium for expressing Chry's recovered zest for life in the form of leaps, tumbles, splits and all manner of gymnastic exertion. Coming to a perfect landing after launching themselves into the air from a one-fingered handstand, Chrys laughed happily as they took stock of their physical condition and they detected no strain or ache, everything in their body functioning with the superhuman ability of a hale and hearty Foundation Establishment Expert.
"How I've missed feeling like this," Chrys whispered happily to themselves, "No bone deep pains or spitting up blood randomly after physical exercise, but just being able to move as I will. Nothing could make my afternoon better."
"Perhaps, a bit of appreciation for the doctor who made your healing possible would be a better celebration, but who am I to talk? I'm just the woman who used her skill and ability earned over decades of medical practice to create a treatment regime that sped up your recovery time from several decades to under a year, treatment mind you that a certain distrusting soul had to be persuaded to undergo, but hey, all's well that ends well right?" The warmth of the noon day weakened around Chrys as the quite literally chilly presence of the heretofore silent observer moved closer.
Turning on their heel smartly, Chrys bowed deeply towards the approaching woman, holding their bow until she had halted within arm's reach. Straightening out of their bow, Chrys tipped their head gratefully towards tribunus medicae Alexia Gong.
"Please pardon my ingratitude. You have gone above and beyond in your care of this ignorant fool," Chrys said solemnly, "The Clan and your Legion are the better for having you in their service."
Surprisingly lush lips painted violet parted as Alexia scoffed, rolling her eyes while doing so.
"So now you remember my contribution to your current improvement and recollect your manners?" She said, standing a head taller than the younger Expert and using that height to loom over Chrys, crimson eyes catching Chrys' gaze. The senior medicae of the 607th Legion as ever projected the presence of a cultivator with an affinity for the dead rather than the living, whether that was ironic or fitting considering her profession, Chrys could not quite decide. That afternoon, Alexia had chosen to wear plain white robes with scenes of tortured figures meticulously stitched in crimson thread along the ends of the sleeves and hem. A pair of tiny bird skulls bleached white dangled from her earlobes and the supple leather of the gloves she wore were unmistakably tanned human skin.
Chrys grinned wryly as they answered. "Far be it for me to try to excuse my poor manners, but the rate of improvement in these last few sessions with the coffin pestle have been nothing short of miraculous. I must confess that I was still felling mildly afflicted before undergoing this morning's treatment but now I feel as though I had never been injured."
Alexia smiled, black teeth gleaming in the sunlight like polished obsidian. "I would expect nothing less. I have been constantly refining the application of the Iron Pestle Grave to your particular circumstances. The early projections of decades worth of treatment needed for your full recovery required too much of my time so I endeavored to speed up the process. The Evernight Blossoms from the Scorpion Trade Palace were a novel catalyst that increased the efficacy of the herbal bath and tempering massages by a magnitude with an acceptable increase in discomfort."
Chrys shuddered as they recollected the torment Alexia blithely referenced. Being battered by a mechanical piston while lying a Soulsteel coffin had been uncomfortable to start with but doing so while caught in the throes of nightmarish hallucinations brought on by Alexia's tinkering with the herbal bath composition had almost been enough to make Chrys accept the chronic pain of their slow healing injuries from being nearly liquified in a sentient solvent. However, the benefits of the modifications to the creation of the late and unmourned Elder Three Deaths Defiant had proven their utility near immediately so the longsuffering Expert had persevered with the course of treatment.
"Your expertise was certainly not to be doubted," Chrys said, overlooking remembered suffering.
"Well, this should conclude our dealings together apart from a few follow up assessments I have scheduled for you in the next couple of months," Alexia said, standing straight from her looimng posture, "You have been an agreeable patient, obedient to instructions if a little unruly but punctual with all payments and attendance required. I believe this is goodbye unless there's anything else?"
"Actually, there is," Chrys said.
"Oh, and what could that be?" Alexia asked, surprised.
"I was hoping that I could persuade you to take be on as a student for the next decade or so. I have some experience with the healing arts but my injury and your ministrations have only highlighted how much more I am lacking," Chrys replied, "You had mentioned your discontent with the average quality of the Clan's healthcare regime and your own efforts to improve upon what was available."
"Interesting," Alexia said, cocking her head, "Not too many of the Clan seriously pursue the study of healing. I had thought you a mere dabbler like most but it seems you wish to wade into deeper waters."
Nodding sharply, Alexia quickly agreed. "I could always use an extra set of hands in my practice, particularly those of an Expert. Besides, I can't well be complaining that there's too much reliance on the Blood of Bronze to make up for lacking knowledge and technology in matters of healing and then turn around and deny an interested student."
"Come along, students don't get the pampering patients are used to. The best time to start is now." Alexia said, rubbing her hands eagerly, and then marched Chrys back towards the clinic attached to the courtyard, ignoring Chrys' protests of surprise.
AN: 1250 words. I am definitely rusty but let's see if I can't shake it off.
Gabriel Pompeius 1: Show Me a Sign Bandit Territories, Year 281
The journey of a thousand li began with a single step, they said. Yet Gabriel Pompeius had committed himself to taking a road even longer and more impossible, even for cultivators. Well, if he found the Sephirot, it would be worth it. Patience, determination, and being alert to the signs when they presented themselves. But first, his duties to the Clan. The Contribution Board said they needed materials to tend the gardens, and it seemed a task within his capabilities as a fledgling Qi Condensation cultivator. The sun seemed to shine ever more brightly when he first left the Clan walls, setting out on his first mission.
And it had started auspiciously enough, let there be no doubt about that. No spirit beasts ambushing him on his travels out, the roads clear and the weather calm and serene. The young man even had the joy of being feted by a village after cutting down the bevy of mortal raiders who tried plundering it.
And then the False Heaven had decided to start cursing him. The initial target had been a small garden held by a pack of bandits ostentatiously named the Mighty Manifold Mantis Lords. Despite the unsophisticated walls and enclosure, it was rife with with Resonant Embergrass. According to the briefing he'd received, the red-hued plant had a way of concentrating qi within itself, thereby containing an astonishing quantity and quality of qi a relative to the Organ Meat Desert's thin environment. As a reagent, it would grant the same benefit to concoctions making use of it. Gabriel had scouted out the situation, and he frowned at what he'd found. The Mantis Lords had nothing more than a Foundation Establishment leader (which they thought somehow merited great boasting), but a surprising amount of Qi Condensation cultivators, ironically due to the Embergrass.
Enough that four could be specifically assigned to watching the garden at all times. Gabriel thought, observing the one at the front gate, a scarred man wearing a dusty brown jerkin and trousers, that they were all at least a couple realms above him. Hubris to think he could win a direct fight. Too many to sneak around. Gabriel groaned internally. He was a member of the Imperial Optimates, he could not fail this.
The only feasible option, from what he could see, would be to create a distraction. The compound rested in the shade of forest at the base of a - well, defining it was difficult. More than a hillside, less than a mountain slope. Was there anything to work with?
The answer, as it turned out, not so much. Gabriel took a swig from his canteen as he reviewed the dismal findings after a week's efforts. No predators worth anything in the area, probably hunted out by the Mantis Lords. Nor any other spirit beasts of any ability. This was hopeless. At this point Gabriel considered just steeling himself and dare to infiltrate the garden.
A squawk interrupted his ruminations. Gabriel's head shot up, hand to his gladius sword. Another squawk drew his gave to a tree. On a branch eight feet off the ground, a bird with plumage almost the same shade as the Embergrass stared at him, before chirping more calmly. It flapped its wings, rising off the branch, before crying out against and swooping off.
The Golden Devil watched as its path took up and straight for the heights of the demi-mountain. Was it an sign? Yes, it could all merely be coincidence... Gabriel took a deep breath and decided. No, it had to be an omen. His path to the Embergrass required him to climb higher, to find what he needed. This was not a fool's errand.
Hours later, wiping off sweat, he concluded that perhaps it was a sign from the Sephirot. Obviously, he never saw the bird again, but very close to the pinnacle, he'd discovered a large boulder. Could he launch or roll this down upon the Mantis guards and the walls? As it turned out, why yes, there was a relatively suitable section of slope for the task, an incline without obstructions or obstacles to break their speed, and directed fortuitously at the garden.
By the time he'd strained to move it into position, night was falling. That was fine, its cover would help shield him further. Gabriel Pompeius focused his mind and pushed. It pitched forward and rushed down, gathering speed. Ignoring the ache of his muscles, the Golden Devil ran down from the heights to see the results of his labors without even pausing to watch.
Time was of the essence!
Gabriel sucked in a breath under an oak tree. It had worked. The boulder had broken through one of the walls, and somehow badly injured one of the guards. Thankfully, the undisciplined scoundrels were still incessantly arguing over who would bring their carry their comrade to get help by the time Gabriel returned to the ground floor. Nor did they appear to suspect anything other than natural calamity. Finally, the scarred man gave in and hoisted a younger man - oh dear, his right arm and leg were certainly at bad angles - up and hurried off.
That left a third man, with hair in a ponytail, and a woman with narrow eyes, both in the Third Heavenstage, bickering over who would remove the boulder. Carefully, the Optimate crept little bit closer, smiling. His chance was coming. Finally, after some vicious cursing, the duo agreed to work together. Gabriel drew his sword.
Their backs were open, hands reaching onto the rock. Gabriel burst out, and in one swift stroke, thrust the blade through the back of the woman's neck, splitting spine and windpipe. He withdrew his sword and stabbed out again...
An arm snapped out, diverting his trajectory. The bandit cultivator did not go unscathed, a deep cut across his left arm, but the element of surprise had been ruined.
"Bastard! So you're behind this." The bandit sneered, in the moment of Gabriel's shock. Before he could draw the saber at his side, Gabriel desperately struck again and again. Yet, the speed difference allowed the bandit to partly block the second strike while unsheathing his blade, then block and shove the Devil back.
The thought rushed through the mind of the child of the Pompeius line: The moment he regains his initiative, I am going to die. Gabriel flung himself forward, trusting to the Blood of Bronze.
Flesh tore, and blood splashed the grass. Gabriel gasped, and pulled back. He felt the deep cut on the left side of his stomach and heading up across his chest. But his blade pierced the bandit's heart, and the criminal fell forward in a heap. Despite the pain, the youth clenched his green eyes shut and told himself to ignore it.
The Emberglass was his now. Victory to the Imperial Optimates. Glory to the Sephirot and the signs it would show him, now that he had the faith to see it.
AN: I hope this makes a respectable first omake. Requesting LST as bonus.
Flavius stared at the group of individuals. Just moments ago, he had been worried that his village was in danger. Now, well, it was somewhat harder to take the danger seriously. Seriously, why were they posing?
Flavius coughed awkwardly. No matter how ridiculous these people were, their leader was still in foundation establishment. Even if Flavius was confident in his ability to fight three cultivators and three spirit beasts at once, some of which were a full realm above him, he knew he couldn't do so and protect the village. He would have to engage them in diplomacy.
Flavius stepped forward, giving a respectful bow, "I am Flavius Eirenikos of the Golden Devil Clan. If it is true that it was your goat that I killed, I am sure we can come to an arrangement."
Strangely, the self-proclaimed Shining Goat paled. His retinue, seemingly sensing a sudden shift in mood, faltered. His disciples and their goats stopped posing, as if having realized that they looked silly rather than impressive. Indeed, Flavius thought he saw a glowing red flush growing on the cheeks of the ninth heavenstage cultivator. She seemed to shrink in on herself, looking impressively mousy for a cultivator. The other cultivator, in the seventh stage, just looked around challengingly.
Shining Goat spoke cautiously, "The Golden Devil Clan you say? The clan that rules over most of the great desert?"
"Is there another Golden Devil Clan I don't know about?"
Shining Goat's shining goat horns faded from his forehead, and he dismounted to give a bow of his own, far too low for one in his current position of power, "My apologies. Of course I came here to spite the goat thief who has been plaguing my sect, but it is clear we had the wrong man. Please enjoy your festivities, we will be on our way."
Flavius felt himself relax at the man's words. It seemed like this wouldn't turn into a conflict.
Then, of course, the seventh heavenstage cultivator spoke up, "What are you talking about, I saw him killing one of our goats! You can't just let him get away, father! If you won't do it yourself, I will!"
Flavius turned to the man. Flavius supposed be could see the resemblance, but whereas Shining Goat's face was angular and bearded, this man's was clean shaven and soft. He looked remarkably like a teenager, though Flavius knew that was unlikely given his stage of cultivation.
Shining Goat spoke in a hushed tone to his son, though in such a way that it was still clearly audible to everyone involved, "We don't want to start a feud with the Golden Devils! Don't you even remember the bedtime stories I told you about Old Gold? Did you learn nothing from them?"
The boy frowned, "Don't take things from others?"
"No! The lesson was don't upset the Golden Devils!"
"Well even if you're too much of a coward to defend our honor, I'm not! Flavius Eirenikos, I challenge you to a duel!"
His declaration was met with dead silence. Of course, Flavius could say no, and there was little the other cultivator could do. Shining Goat was clearly terrified of the Golden Devils, and would surely act to stop his son from invoking their potential wrath. On the other hand, a duel wasn't necessarily a bad idea. There was a possibility it could resolve the bad blood between them, and it offered something of an opportunity. After all, the so-called Shining Goat Sect presumably lived in the mountains, they could have knowledge Flavius himself did not possess.
And besides, it would be good to fight against someone at his own level.
"I accept the challenge of a duel," Flavius spoke, his words carrying an implied authority he did not actually possess, "but you are two heavenstages below me. I would duel her in your stead."
Flavius pointed to the girl on the other side of Shining Goat, whose eyes widened in shock. Regardless of her surprise, he continued, "This will not be to the death, but instead to surrender. If she wins, I cannot offer you the goat that has been killed, but I can return the beast core, and I will pay you extra for taking up your valuable time. However, if I win, you will all swear to abandon any grudge, and teach me what you know of the mountains."
The boy opened his mouth to protest, but Shining Goat interrupted him, "You, a Golden Devil, wish to learn from me? Very well. The Shining Goat Sect accepts your terms."
Flavius nodded, "Follow me, we shall go somewhere we can fight without breaking anything."
He set off, trusting the Shining Goat Sect to follow him. And, if he knew his village, and he hoped he did, they would follow too. Well, Flavius couldn't complain. He would make sure Shining Goat would keep them safe, and it would be nice to show off a little bit. Flavius would enjoy showing his parents how far he had come.
———
They ended up in the sands, far enough from the village that nothing would be damaged, but not so far that it was out of sight. Flavius and his opponent were only in the ninth heavenstage, after all. He doubted either of them could destroy villages from a distance, and certainly not by accident.
"This duel will be between Flavius Eirenikos of the Golden Devils Clan and Guang Qiao of the Shining Goat Sect. The first to surrender or fall unconscious loses. Fatalities are not permitted. Are both sides ready to duel?"
Flavius bowed to his opponent, and then turned to Shining Goat, "I'm ready."
Across from him, Guang Qiao returned the bow. She seemed nervous, but took a deep breath, and then turned to Shining Goat as well, "I'm ready."
"Then the fight will begin… now!"
Flavius moved forward, planning to open things with a strong frontal assault. He didn't know what his opponent's cultivation was like, but she didn't seem aggressive. Yet, as he approached her, he felt her qi flair.
"Shining Goat Art: Billy Goat Buff!"
Flavius' eyes widened as, in an instant, the small woman before him physically grew in size, her muscles bulking up to the size of a body builder's. He threw himself back as the first punch came rocketing towards his face. He barely managed to avoid the blow, but even so felt a rush of wind as her fist flew past.
Quite against his original plan, Flavius found himself quickly on the defensive. He didn't exactly want to take a single hit from Qiao's massive fists, and so he focused on dodging and weaving between punches. The Golden Devil Bloodline was something of a malus in terms of speed, however, and he found himself avoiding hits by only the narrowest margins. Already, Flavius was on the back foot. Something had to change.
Flavius dodged another one of Qiao's jabs, and this time stepped towards his opponent. He lashed out with a vicious uppercut, impacting her straight to the chin. Qiao, fell back a single step. And then she flashed him a grin, "So you can hit back. I was starting to get worried. I'll have to take this more seriously then."
Qiao rose her fists to the sky, "Shining Goat Art: Horned Fists of Fury!"
Flavius watched as a sheen of glowing qi flowed out from her wrists and covered her fists, sharpening into points reminiscent of goat horns. He grimaced. Flavius doubted she could maintain the technique she was using to increase her strength so significantly alongside her horned fists for long, but a direct hit would probably end their duel on the spot.
Flavius took a deep breath. This was going to be a fight of endurance, and that was his specialty.
Qiao charged forward once more. She threw forward a probing jab at Flavius' head, but he avoided by swaying to the side. She followed up with a punch to his gut, and he took a step backwards to dodge, but Flavius hadn't gotten used to her longer reach. He felt the point dig into his stomach, just deep enough to draw blood.
Flavius threw himself back to gain distance, but Qiao was relentless. She lunged forward with another straight jab, but this time he was ready. Flavius stepped to the outside of the punch, responding with his own hit to Qiao's jaw. She barely seemed fazed, responding with a brutal backhand that forced him back once more.
Thus began a deadly dance. Flavius had no time for his own complex qi techniques as Qiao constantly hounded him. Her style, however, threw defense largely to the wind. It was, he had to admit, surprisingly goat-like, inviting opponents to lock horns in a contest of strength. Such a thing would be folly, of course, but it meant he could sneak in his own hits in the process of avoiding Qiao's attacks.
From an external perspective, it must have looked bad for Flavius. He was bleeding from a number of tiny puncture wounds, and unable to escape his enemy's assault. Despite that, he knew he was winning. Qiao had bet on finishing the fight quickly, and expending energy far faster than Flavius as a result. If she didn't win soon, she never would. And Qiao knew it.
Flavius grinned, "I admit I misjudged your sect. The Shining Goat Art is far more impressive than I had expected."
She returned the smile, though it appeared more like a grimace, "And I misjudged the Golden Devils. I never would have expected you'd be so slippery!"
She ran forward once more, though at a strange angle. Flavius prepared to dodge backwards, only for her to leap into the air. He watched in confusion as she jumped up and to the side, only for his eyes to widen as her foot seemed to press off against the air and she pivoted. He spun desperately as she landed behind him, horned fist aimed straight at his chest.
Just before it managed to punch deep into his chest, Flavius caught the glowing horn between his hands. The qi construct burned his bronze skin as he held it, arms shaking. Slowly, painfully, it began to press deeper. But not fast enough.
The technique stopped, suddenly, and it was all Flavius could do to clench his hands into fists as the momentum carried Qiao forward. She slammed into his knuckles and seemed to bounce off, falling to the ground as her muscles visibly began to shrink. Flavius spoke loudly, so that everyone could hear, "Do you surrender?"
Qiao's responded in an exhausted voice, "I surrender."
Shining Goat looked unpleased, though not terribly surprised. Still, it seemed like Qiao had done more to defeat herself than Flavius had, and hopefully wasn't too injured as a result. Hopefully the foundation establishment cultivator wouldn't hold his student's loss against him.
Indeed, after checking on Qiao, he grabbed Flavius' hand and rose it up into the air, "The winner is Flavius Eirenikos of the Golden Devil Clan!"
If I may offer some advice, for first time writers you don't need a Cultivation Boost off the bat. You can get the same effect with a raising Juniors collaboration while also nabbing the Omake bonus of a life saving treasure.
If I may offer some advice, for first time writers you don't need a Cultivation Boost off the bat. You can get the same effect with a raising Juniors collaboration while also nabbing the Omake bonus of a life saving treasure.
As things stand, New Seeds are going to find it incredibly hard to even halfway catchup or become more relevant, so this is the first mechanic (maybe more in future) to help them catch up. By doing a joint omake with someone in Foundation Establishment, Qi Condensation seeds gain 20...
Snakes and Chatter Snakeblood Town, Grandiloquent Staff Province, Year 235
"Ah, sir, may I have a word?"
"Huh? Sure, kid." I shook the half-dozen clinging snakebrats off my back, sending them to the ground in a giggling heap. "You guys are like 14 now, you're getting too old for this."
The oldest of the lot - Ianua, I think? - stuck her tongue out at me, and rolled off her pile of siblings. She was already looking like a full-grown woman, something that was starting to cause some problems with the locals in town. The youngest set of the kids were growing up the slowest, and weren't that different from mortal humans, but…they looked just old enough to cause problems. And they definitely didn't have the experience someone that age would need to get by.
At least the oldest of them had stopped growing years ago, pretty much when we'd head off to the Jingshen War, and they were already the most responsible back then. Without Si around to keep everybody fed and out of trouble, they'd taken up the job of keeping all the other kids in line and taking care of the food and house. Yeah, I was paying for it - directly, because I paid for the masons, and indirectly, because I was paying Si who bought the food - but they put in the work. They'd actually picked up Si's style and named themselves after random snake shit, and they were most of the reason a bunch of horny men hadn't run in and made off with unfortunately built eight year olds.
Just to mention it, the youngest bunch had decided I was their favourite and mostly named themselves after me. Hell if I knew why; I just bought them candy until they burnt out, and hauled them around town when they dogpiled me. It worked: eventually they'd get tired and stop bothering me, but fuck if I knew why that made them like me. When I was their age, I was too busy thinking about easy pockets to pick and where to get cheap rice rather than having a favourite uncle.
"So, what'd you need?" I looked over at the kid standing beside me, trying his best not to look uncomfortable and failing. He was dressed in gray robes with blue trim, with about four feet of hair swept forward over one shoulder. If I remembered right, he was one of the younger group; quiet, observant, easily bullied. His face was too…close to the rest of them and I couldn't put a name to it, but I had memories of Si spanking the shit out of some of his sisters over something they'd done to him. Now though, all the other kids were giving him quiet looks of approval.
"Ah, sir," he hesitated. I made a motion for him to spit it out. "May we speak…in private?"
I shrugged. "Sure."
"There is a room in the- oh no!"
I grabbed him under the arms and leapt, angling to land on one of the flat sections of the manor's roof. I put the kid down on his feet as I landed, and he took a breath to steady himself, pulling his robes neat. I covered my chin thoughtfully, and hid my laugh. "Go on." He gave me an embarrassed look, so…whoops? He'd get over it.
"Yes, right," he said. He put his hands together. "Well, you see, sir, er. I seem to, er." I raised an eyebrow, and folded my arms. He took a breath, and then blurted it out. "I'veawokenasacultivatorandwanttosupportmyfamily."
"You what?" I frowned.
"I…I've awoken as a-"
"I know, kid, I'm fucking with you," I said, grabbing him around the neck and dragging him down so I could knuckle his forehead. "Feels like you're almost at the Second Heavenstage. Pretty impressive." I wasn't even kidding. Most of the snakes hadn't taken to cultivation, something that surprised me given how naturally Si did, but they also had absolutely no sign of the snake bullshit she did. Jieyue had guessed that Si was probably the first, and had absorbed all the snakely energies or whatever-the-fuck-it-was so the rest were basically normal snake-people.
Also, he was like…15, tops? Two heavenstages was pretty damn ridiculous. "Do you…approve, sir?"
"Approve?" I stopped rubbing his head for a second, and he craned his neck to look up at me. "Why wouldn't I? Not like you need my permission, but you've got a solid reason for it. Just make sure you remember the rules."
He sighed, and I tapped him on the forehead with two fingers. "Respect the elders," he grumbled. "Have faith in myself. Keep my head down until it is time to strike. And stay alive."
I paused, frowning. Wasn't exactly how I remembered saying it but I couldn't fault him. He had the spirit of it, at least. "Close enough, kid," I said, going back to rubbing his head and mussing his hair. "It'll be interesting to have one of you kids in the Legions. You'll be the first, so I can rub that in Si's face. Gonna need to pack on some muscle to haul a spear and shield around, though."
"Actually, sir, I think I…I want to be a Pill Maker."
I stopped. "Pill Making?" I didn't know a damn thing about Pill Making. I mean, I knew you made pills by throwing shit into a pot and…waving your hands around but that was about it.
"Yes, sir," he said, taking a breath. "I know it's not what you would have liked, but I think there is great potential in it. The poisoned crops here are mostly untouched, and unharvestable to the average person, but my siblings and I have made numerous forays into the forest. We've found dozens of trees bearing fruit, unusual flowers, and a few small poison-aligned spirit beasts that nest there. Without our skillset, it is unlikely for anyone else to be able to harvest the bounty and I suspect with enough skill, we could render numerous reagents from filtering the plants there."
"Hm," I said, thinking about it. Kid had a point, Pill Makers in normal situations were fairly high value and Old Gold knows these bastards needed to start feeding themselves soon. I couldn't keep burning contribution points to keep them going. I was basically running on fumes and charity techniques from the rest of the squad because I couldn't afford to hit the library. I mean, it hadn't gotten me killed so far but I'd already been pressured a couple times by weaker cultivators with just more…effective techniques. If I wasn't disgustingly jacked from years of Reflected Purities and surpassing the 9th Heavenstage, I'd probably have been in real trouble by now.
Good thing I'm me.
And I wasn't bitter at all that Si had awoken a once-in-a-century affinity and could overpower anything I threw at her straight-up. Why would you think that?
Still, this sounded like it was an overall win. A chance for them to be able to feed themselves? Maybe make some weird pill shit we could turn in for Contribution Points? Hell, we might even be able to make some weird poison-fruit booze.
…oh shit, we might be able to make poison-fruit booze.
"-and sir, I know that you've done a lot for us, and I really do not want to bring shame to your name or my family. I truly believe this is where my best talents lie, but if you wish otherwise, simply say it and…"
I stood him up and put my hand on his shoulder, trying to remember what he'd just said before writing it off as a bad deal. Better to just wing it. "Son," I said. "I trust you on this. Anything you need, any way I can help, I'll do it."
He looked at me and his eyes started watering, and I gave him a pat on the shoulder. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his sleeve, nodding, and I turned to look out over the manor's courtyard.
Fuckin' kids, man. I tell him I'm going to help him and he starts crying? Literally what the fuck.
"Thank you, father- I mean, sir. I swear by the name Ianix, I won't disappoint you."
That was his name!
======================================
Still 45 years behind current timeline!
Jiang Chrysanthos 19: A Barely Glimpsed Destination
Jiang Chyrsanthos would never be a great physician. They were not ashamed to admit this. Five years of study and practice under the ghoulish supervision of Alexia Gong had thoroughly eradicated any illusions Chrys might have ever had about becoming a paragon of the medical profession. The experienced Centurion had wasted no time in seizing the offer to be trained Chrys had made and plunged her unwary pupil into the dark and bloody depths of the reality of the physician's labor. Chrys had enough self-awareness after the first year of studying anatomical manuscripts, practicing surgery on dummies and live specimens, concocting tinctures and ointments, among other projects, to come to the realization that the interest they had in the arts of the physician was insufficient motivation to produce excellence. To aspire to greatness demanded more than Chrys had or wanted to give, but that was acceptable to Chrys. Becoming a good enough physician was a prize they were fine settling for in their medical pursuits.
Now if only Alexia could quickly come to share that realization and match her assessment of Chrys' submitted proposal to treat a hypothetical outbreak of Scarlet Fever among a Legion maniple deployed outside Clan territory to that standard, that would have been great.
"You know, just because you've settled for mediocre doesn't mean I have to accommodate you?" Alexia broke off her critique of Chrys' work to stare pointedly across her desk at the other Legionnaire nodding blithely as she went along, arms crossed in their seat in Alexia's office.
Chrys cocked an eyebrow and said, "This is the third time you have had me re-submit a treatment plan for this scenario and you and I both well know that the first and second iterations were perfectly serviceable for my expected skill and competency. No amount of additional strictness is going to compel a moment of genius that hasn't already shown itself."
"Bah," Alexia said, disgruntedly setting aside the thick sheaf of paper she had been holding and picking up the pill case containing the restorative medicines Chrys had created as part of their latest submission, "See these? They are acceptable treatments for the fever but that's all they are. Everything you presented was the standard uninspired material that I taught you. There's no innovation here, no spark."
After five years, Chrys was more than comfortable with Alexia to roll their eyes. "The whole point of my studying with you was to learn that standard uninspired material. Both of us know that I'm not some pioneering medical saint in the making. What I am is an averagely competent physician trained by an excellent medicae to a standard above the average bonesetter of the Clan."
"Flattery isn't going to be winning you any extra points with me," Alexia said, tapping obsidian fingernails on the stone surface of her desk and then she sighed, "But I can see that we've reached the limit of what I can easily pass on to you with an accelerated program of study. Anything more without a deeper commitment from you would be a waste of both of our time. You have enough of a foundation now, that the only limit to any improvement in your ability to grow as a physician in the future would be yourself. It's a shame though, you could have been great if you only had more interest but I have little hope of that happening."
"It is what it is," Chrys shrugged, "Dedicating myself to the path of medicine was never my aim even at the start of this time with you. An interest in medicine does not a passion make to master all the technical ability required to excel as a physician. I have other paths I am pursuing in my cultivation but I have no regrets about broadening the shallow puddle of my medical skill into a slight bigger pond even if I'm not invested enough to fully take up alchemy, herblore and all else needed."
"Some things cannot be forced I suppose," Alexia said, relaxing into her chair, "At least you weren't the worst student I ever had. You'd think all the advantages of a cultivator in the second great realm would make teaching them manageable but you would be surprised at the extent to which people can disappoint. I'd take most of the squeaky juniors fresh out of Aspirant training over some of the headaches I've had to deal from my peers. At the very least, the juniors don't have to unlearn bad habits they've picked up letting the Bronze make up for awful skill."
"You're fighting against tradition here and that's a mostly losing bet," Chrys pointed out, "Need drives action and the Clan has never needed to focus on medical skill. There's a reason array-crafting is our specialty and that's by leaning into tradition."
"How I hate that you're right," Alexia said, "Setting aside that stone in my shoe, I believe you're planning to be part of more immediate trouble in the Verdant South. I have a couple of special requests I'd be most grateful if you could keep an eye out for while you're on the Protostrator's errand reminding Old Cannibal that the Clan can afford to do focus on more than one thing at a time. I don't expect you to do this for free of course, I have a few reagents and herbs that I have no pressing need for but that should be useful for your own personal use or trade."
Chrys nodded, "That would be acceptable. I'm making some headway in my personal growth but it's been difficult making the cultivation method I practice work as I try to move beyond the early stages of Foundation Establishment."
"You have a mutated bloodline and that always makes it tricky to make gains past Qi Condensation," Alexia stated, "Just accumulation of spiritual energy is no longer going to suffice for developing your cultivation base. I have a few notes on blended yin-yang cultivation techniques that I can have you take a look at. Perhaps they can help."
"There's quite a generous heart under all that morbid curiosity," Chrys said, surprised by the easy offer.
Alexia narrowed her eyes at Chrys, "Say thank you and don't test me or I might think my notes are worth more than your gratitude."
"Thank you for your gracious offer to help," Chrys said, "I truly do appreciate your interest."
"Good, now let's go over these recipes you used for the pills to treat Scarlet Fever. You could have used cheaper substitutes for half the herbs in your recipe and produced comparably effective treatment," Alexia said, looking side-eyed at where she'd left them on her table, "If you're going to be a middling physician, at the very least I'll get you to be an economical one so that you can share your mediocrity with as many unfortunates as possible."
AN: 1316 words.
AN2: So I have been playing around with AI generated art and got some interesting pictures out of the matter.
The second one is more of what I was aiming for. The dancing swordsman of the desert is what I always have in mind when I write Chrys in combat.
The first was an attempt to get some imagery for Chrys' raijin but that didn't go as well as intended. Lightning strikes were not what I was hoping for.
Trying for Alexia Gong did not go as planned but I still think it's very cool so that's my third entry. I might try this with a few other Good Seeds I write.
"Why don't things ever seem to work on a large scale even when they seem like they should be simple!?" Abel says in frustration.
In a very rare moment of rest, The Second Builder sits with Gaius's Recruits and Abel Angelus. Replied. "Its probably Heaven, it always the damn Heaven', the rest of the Brotherhood (among the recruits) sitting and even other recruits nod to that.
"Really that seems like a way of saying 'I don't know' well hiding ignorance. The answer to a question by appealing to a bigger mystery." Abel seems to calm down a bit.
The still depressed Builder, for the the trial that was to come "indeed, my brothers and I are simple devils, we eat and we work, we talk while we work, and continue to do until we are dust" "I lost the count of buildings that we created that should be More, but, yeah I don't know".
"Like take that time we evacuated all those mortals from the Song empire by mass producing bicycles. A worthy endeavor don't get me wrong, but then all the bikes broke apart almost immediately afterwards and not a single mortal among those millions set about recreating them? I expected to see a sea change after that, but instead a whole lot of nothing."
Taking a moment to focus and drinking his tea, the unenergetic Builder answered "Using the native tongue. My Brother and I are just silly and dumb frogs, my Whole family tries to implement some of your ideas, but indeed nothing last. Our whole goal is basically making the entire desert population to last and matter more. But we believe that is impossible. We still try anything".
"Average quality of life likely matters more than total population numbers in my mind, but that seems even harder." Abel shugs.
To those words the Builder nods firmly and seems to get a bit more of a focus on his eyes "Indeed I would make that trade in a heartbeat. But we are still children in the cultivation world. Old Gold probably knows the reason for why things are like this. Even following the Clan's Board, and using the wisdom of our ancestors. Fails. It should not, but that is the way. I still believe we just need to try until someone succeeds". The builder said while thinking of this 'great era' and how much life improved in the desert.
"History is long. Very long/" Privately Abel considers his past life that life that now seems like a dream now. Maybe things were not actually that great in the past world? Maybe he is just remembering with nostalgia?
"Using the frog comparison. Something is being the walls of our well. But well, it should be impossible for Qi gathering cultivators to kill a core elder. The 13 still did that. Maybe this is the reason Old Gold Favors us so much? The Seeds that will become Trees, and give many fruits?" loudly thought the Second Brother.
"Personally, I don't really care about that. Killing people or them dying isn't really that hard in the scheme of things. All it takes is a single mistake. A single miscalculation. Building something is much more important and seemingly difficult" So much heroic effort to just tread water and make things not get worse as the heavens ground us down.
"And perhaps this will be the thing which will be our salvation. We will find a hole in the well. There are stories like the origin of the blood path. That was so much stronger until Heaven weakened the whole idea. We will find holes in this old well and Build…Or Break something new". Even if they take the Breaker to do so. Some mortal children in the future WILL have a better life. No matter the cost. This is basically why 'one for all' is the Brotherhood's true motto.
"No matter the cost? So even if we have to destroy the world or turn it into some hellpit spitting heaven is worth any cost?"
Blinking for note that once more he talked his last thought loudly. Once more the Builder nods. "Once in the past we thought of forcing duels on our children so they got our powers using blood paths. By becoming 'sanctioned blood paths', but we got the amulet of true will. Once we thought of going to even more insane suicide missions to give our children our power, but we got new oportunies. And with your help, We made our own heaven. A tiny one. One that will break. But that is the Brotherhood afterlife. Why can't we build a World of our own then?" the Builder said in a single (huge) breath.
Abel smiles "Ya that would be nice. Make our own world. It might be a small world. We would be frogs in well, but we would be happy frogs and the well would have strong walls"
Blink once more, the Second Builder and the recruits listen closer got Huge Smiles in their faces. "And to that I drink and salute your idea. Why not indeed" said the green devil while putting alcohol in his tea and taking the whole thing down (and then the bottle).
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Collab with @adamashield. I would like a LST. pinging @Swordomatic, @Alectai, @Quest, @TehChron, @Insane-Not-Crazy, @Humbaba, @ReaderOfFate, @Kaboomatic, @no.
Abel Angelus/The Builder - Frogs in a Well Collab Link
Abel Angelus The Builder Frogs in a well “Why don’t things ever seem to work on a large scale even when they seem like they should be simple!?” Abel says in frustration. In a very rare moment of rest, The Second Builder sits with Gaius’s Recruits and Abel Angelus. Replied. “Its probably...
