Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)
- Thread starter yrsillar
- Start date
- Original Users' Choice!
Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
EternalObserver
eYe Gaze baCk
- Location
- The Void
I had a feeling someone was gonna post this ever since that episode came outRandom aside
Some day we can directly share our mobility to our spirits...
- Location
- New Brunswick, NJ
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
naw fam, this is zhengui's destiny:
- Location
- Makati Prefecture, Luzon SSR, RK Philipinnes
[X] Agree to talk to Bao Qian [Gives Hanyi income. Owe favor to Bao Qian. Reduces asking power in Zhengui negotiations]
- Location
- Yes
[X] Agree to talk to Bao Qian [Gives Hanyi income. Owe favor to Bao Qian. Reduces asking power in Zhengui negotiations]
- Location
- ?
[X] Agree to talk to Bao Qian [Gives Hanyi income. Owe favor to Bao Qian. Reduces asking power in Zhengui negotiations]
- Location
- Fabulously Rainbow Ireland
........she's literally asking to sell them, at this point you're disagreeing with the QM over your belief that you know more about their own characters than they do.
Serpent's Den
It all seemed so small at this height. Hou Zhuang peered out the window of their vessel at the cloud scape below, and the flashes of green and blue beneath. From this altitude all seemed at peace. Truly, the world had many lessons yet to teach in deception.
"Are you truly satisfied, Hou Zhuang?" Bai Suzhen's attention was an executioner's blade pressed against his throat, a blade fit to crack mountains and sunder seas. He blinked tiredly as her words cut through the pressure that had been upon him since their vessel had reached the cloud line. He looked back down at his hands, trembling involuntarily from the pressure. It was too bad that there was not enough left of him to feel the same fear in his mind.
Bai Suzhen was the perfect image of a Bai Matriarch, her steel grey hair woven through an elaborate headdress of blades and her lithe figure wrapped in layers of blue and white silk that shifted like the coils of a serpent. The tall woman looked down upon him from her seat, not bothering to hide her disdain.
He bowed his head and spread his trembling hands. "I am an open book, am I not, honored cousin?" There were no secrets he could hide from a seventh realm cultivator who wished to look. He knew what she spoke of, and in his mind's eye, he saw his daughters eyes; dismissive, contemptuous, apathetic. Yes, she had grown up well. He was proud of her maturity, those were the eyes, so like her mother's that he deserved.
"You shame Meilin," Bai Suzhen said harshly. Hou Zhuang winced at the feeling of wetness on his cheek, where the words had cut him. A spark of anger flared in his empty heart, but such sparks could not be maintained without fuel. It faded.
"You are correct, honored cousin. I will serve as well as I can all the same," Hou Zhuang replied, lowering his head.
Serving was what he was. Like the sword immortals, raised to kill, he had been raised to hide and to see. He was an important tool for his clans rise, or so he had thought. How utterly absurd it had been for his half brother to fear his cultivation. He could not want power in that way, even then there was no part of him which could have had such ambitions. Then again perhaps that was incomprehensible to one raised to rule. He supposed that it was good that the clan had elected to marry him off rather than disposing of him.
The Bai were cruel and unkind to outsiders, but he had not minded at first. His marriage had been brief in the time spans of cultivators, merely a few decades. There had been no passion between Bai Meilin and Hou Zhuang, no grand romance. Yet she had been a friend, his partner, in her way, far more than the family which had sold him. Her death had severed something, and although it had allowed him to step into the fifth realm, he was truly unworthy of their daughter.
A more worthless Father than this old man would be more difficult to find.
Bai Suzhen regarded him with the eyes of a serpent staring down at a particularly scrawny rodent. "So be it. I am proud of my niece. I will do what you cannot. Her performance severs the last barriers in the path. I suppose your fecklessness serves some purpose at least."
Hou Zhuang smiled wanly. It would not be too long before his daughter had proper parents again. "Meilin's network will remain at your disposal. I will not allow her inheritance to rot on the vine," and then with their work passed on, he could rest.
"What are your thoughts on the events of the tournament?" Bai Suzhen asked, her clipped tone brooking no disagreement on the change of subject.
"Your timing in bringing out the proposed alliance with Cai Shenhua was masterstroke," Hou Zhuang replied honestly. "It will be worth the double agents burned to keep the matter secret. Emerald Seas maintains a strong resource economy, but their ability to leverage it remains limited, the benefits to the alliance are obvious."
"I did not ask for your praise," Bai Suzhen replied.
"The trouble remains our domestic situation," Hou Zhuang replied, not missing a beat. "Cai Shenhua has her own troubles with unruly vassals not wholly brought to heel, but many of your brothers, sisters and cousins will be incensed as well. There is already much correspondence flying about."
"Mm, I assume Anxi is making noise again," Bai Suzhen said, her attention on him finally growing lighter as she looked to the side in thought, the ornaments in her hair jingling softly. "The conservatives will not countenance him, two male clan heads in sequence is already causing many to grumble, three would be beyond the pale. No matter his policies."
"I believe he is throwing his weight behind Bai Zhilan," Hou Zhuang replied, absently reaching up to wipe the blood from his cheek. "She has a great deal of support from the Red and Green lines as the General of Zhengjian."
Bai Suzhen's lips twitched down in distaste. "I see. My planned expansions to our port and naval capacity should bring the Violet lines to my side, the Blues as well, with the infrastructure expansions and repairs of the interior. Place your agents among the lesser lines and begin pushing the alliance. I will see to my brothers and sisters."
"As you say, honored cousin," Hou Zhuang said with a tired sigh. "You should know that the discontent is not wholly manufactured by your sisters. Old organizations are beginning to move among the other castes."
Bai Suzhen frowned. "I am aware of those. We allow the lesser bloodlines their outlets so long as they only grumble. Should they act, we will crush them as we have done many times before. It would be unfortunate to waste so many Bai lives at this time however. Make certain that they do not move beyond grumbling."
Saying it like that made it sound so easy. As if the growing rumbling from the commoner castes was not growing worse with each passing day. Meilin had been so much better at this, her understanding of the psychology of the Bai peoples much more visceral than his. It would be difficult to quell the spread of further xenophobic sentiment, particularly as the more conservative white serpents worked to fan the flames.
He had not remained behind, doing this work just to falter as the end approached. His daughter was coming into her own, and Bai Suzhen would soon take her own final steps. He only needed to work for a little longer yet. A worthless Father this old man was, but he would at least make sure that Bai Meilin's work remained ready for her daughter.
"Are you truly satisfied, Hou Zhuang?" Bai Suzhen's attention was an executioner's blade pressed against his throat, a blade fit to crack mountains and sunder seas. He blinked tiredly as her words cut through the pressure that had been upon him since their vessel had reached the cloud line. He looked back down at his hands, trembling involuntarily from the pressure. It was too bad that there was not enough left of him to feel the same fear in his mind.
Bai Suzhen was the perfect image of a Bai Matriarch, her steel grey hair woven through an elaborate headdress of blades and her lithe figure wrapped in layers of blue and white silk that shifted like the coils of a serpent. The tall woman looked down upon him from her seat, not bothering to hide her disdain.
He bowed his head and spread his trembling hands. "I am an open book, am I not, honored cousin?" There were no secrets he could hide from a seventh realm cultivator who wished to look. He knew what she spoke of, and in his mind's eye, he saw his daughters eyes; dismissive, contemptuous, apathetic. Yes, she had grown up well. He was proud of her maturity, those were the eyes, so like her mother's that he deserved.
"You shame Meilin," Bai Suzhen said harshly. Hou Zhuang winced at the feeling of wetness on his cheek, where the words had cut him. A spark of anger flared in his empty heart, but such sparks could not be maintained without fuel. It faded.
"You are correct, honored cousin. I will serve as well as I can all the same," Hou Zhuang replied, lowering his head.
Serving was what he was. Like the sword immortals, raised to kill, he had been raised to hide and to see. He was an important tool for his clans rise, or so he had thought. How utterly absurd it had been for his half brother to fear his cultivation. He could not want power in that way, even then there was no part of him which could have had such ambitions. Then again perhaps that was incomprehensible to one raised to rule. He supposed that it was good that the clan had elected to marry him off rather than disposing of him.
The Bai were cruel and unkind to outsiders, but he had not minded at first. His marriage had been brief in the time spans of cultivators, merely a few decades. There had been no passion between Bai Meilin and Hou Zhuang, no grand romance. Yet she had been a friend, his partner, in her way, far more than the family which had sold him. Her death had severed something, and although it had allowed him to step into the fifth realm, he was truly unworthy of their daughter.
A more worthless Father than this old man would be more difficult to find.
Bai Suzhen regarded him with the eyes of a serpent staring down at a particularly scrawny rodent. "So be it. I am proud of my niece. I will do what you cannot. Her performance severs the last barriers in the path. I suppose your fecklessness serves some purpose at least."
Hou Zhuang smiled wanly. It would not be too long before his daughter had proper parents again. "Meilin's network will remain at your disposal. I will not allow her inheritance to rot on the vine," and then with their work passed on, he could rest.
"What are your thoughts on the events of the tournament?" Bai Suzhen asked, her clipped tone brooking no disagreement on the change of subject.
"Your timing in bringing out the proposed alliance with Cai Shenhua was masterstroke," Hou Zhuang replied honestly. "It will be worth the double agents burned to keep the matter secret. Emerald Seas maintains a strong resource economy, but their ability to leverage it remains limited, the benefits to the alliance are obvious."
"I did not ask for your praise," Bai Suzhen replied.
"The trouble remains our domestic situation," Hou Zhuang replied, not missing a beat. "Cai Shenhua has her own troubles with unruly vassals not wholly brought to heel, but many of your brothers, sisters and cousins will be incensed as well. There is already much correspondence flying about."
"Mm, I assume Anxi is making noise again," Bai Suzhen said, her attention on him finally growing lighter as she looked to the side in thought, the ornaments in her hair jingling softly. "The conservatives will not countenance him, two male clan heads in sequence is already causing many to grumble, three would be beyond the pale. No matter his policies."
"I believe he is throwing his weight behind Bai Zhilan," Hou Zhuang replied, absently reaching up to wipe the blood from his cheek. "She has a great deal of support from the Red and Green lines as the General of Zhengjian."
Bai Suzhen's lips twitched down in distaste. "I see. My planned expansions to our port and naval capacity should bring the Violet lines to my side, the Blues as well, with the infrastructure expansions and repairs of the interior. Place your agents among the lesser lines and begin pushing the alliance. I will see to my brothers and sisters."
"As you say, honored cousin," Hou Zhuang said with a tired sigh. "You should know that the discontent is not wholly manufactured by your sisters. Old organizations are beginning to move among the other castes."
Bai Suzhen frowned. "I am aware of those. We allow the lesser bloodlines their outlets so long as they only grumble. Should they act, we will crush them as we have done many times before. It would be unfortunate to waste so many Bai lives at this time however. Make certain that they do not move beyond grumbling."
Saying it like that made it sound so easy. As if the growing rumbling from the commoner castes was not growing worse with each passing day. Meilin had been so much better at this, her understanding of the psychology of the Bai peoples much more visceral than his. It would be difficult to quell the spread of further xenophobic sentiment, particularly as the more conservative white serpents worked to fan the flames.
He had not remained behind, doing this work just to falter as the end approached. His daughter was coming into her own, and Bai Suzhen would soon take her own final steps. He only needed to work for a little longer yet. A worthless Father this old man was, but he would at least make sure that Bai Meilin's work remained ready for her daughter.
- Location
- United States of America
Inserted tally
This sad BestDad needs a Bro to share a beer with badly.
EternalObserver
eYe Gaze baCk
- Location
- The Void
Yeah, looking at his experience, I don't think we have anything to worry about turning to someone like Bai dad anytime soon thru domain insights (referring to ENM).
Hou Zhuang setting up to kick the bucket is fairly vexsome in the context of the tournament-arc political perk we voted for. With Meizhen apparently being set up to inherit it, it's something we had in the bag anyway. Sure, cultivator times here, so decades off at the earliest in all likelihood, but still.
TimEd
Meteor maker
Though this repeated mention of Bai Meizhen's supposed inheritance being a spy/information network is gonna be a heavy burden to her. Meizhen just doesnt seem like she would still fit the typical Bai mindset, and added with her friendly relation with CRX, will swiftly make sure she gets no friends from the Bai conservatives and only cautious regard from the progressives.
what perk is that? I dont remember that at all.
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ill have you know that the "network" is in fact a horde of a million stealth killer rabbits.
probably
probably