EternalObserver
eYe Gaze baCk
- Location
- The Void
Yeah, other people in discord have pointed this out as well. E-book has already been edited, unfortunately nothing can be done now about the audiobook.
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.
I have fixed the e-book edition audio is uncertain for the moment. On that note though two hour warning for the vote.
Sect Promotional: Adamant Deeps Sect
AN: And here we have the last of sect promotionals, enjoy!
Introduction:
Honor, Excellence, and Integrity. These are the bywords of the Adamant Deeps Sect. Located in the northern fens of the Thousand Lakes province, the sect strives to forge all applicants into exemplary Imperial citizens, and instill in them a strong sense of civic duty and pride along with the skills and trades which are taught in its halls. As crude ores and base metals may become superlative alloys, the Adamant Deeps Sect aims to prove that the many disparate peoples of the Empire are stronger together.
Specializing in the arts of metallurgy, the Adamant Deeps Sect teaches many related fields, smithing, talisman craft, prospecting and ecological studies are all taught in the Sects halls, by experts provided by the Imperial Court. Disciples are naturally tutored in the honorable ways of martial excellence and discipline as well, for all nobles of the empire should be equipped to defend it. However, the Sect's primary focus remains the mysteries of metal in specific, and advances the Empire's understanding of the material properties of the world in general.
Experience in the Adamant Deeps Sect provides important skills for both masters of craftering and natural philosophers. Inner Sect members who leave will find their Sect Education useful no matter their station, the principles taught here being sufficient to make any student an exemplary member of clan and court.
Sect History:
The Adamant Deeps Sect has its origins deep in the pre-imperial past, under the individuals who the legendary Yao the fisher commissioned to discern the properties of the sacred metals dredged from the fathomless deeps of lake Hei. These individuals, whose names are sadly lost to public histories, were the ones who discovered the methods by which copper could become bronze, and the powerful properties that this alloy held. Previously tools of copper, stone and wood were often all that was available, with jade tools sometimes in use by the wealthiest individuals.
These materials, lacked the ability to withstand the energies of complex formationwork, but the new alloy, bronze, held an edge far more easily than copper or stone, even unenhanced, and while jade was more resilient, it was far less flexible useful for holding martially useful arrays, and bronze could be produced in much higher quantities, with the cooperation of the White Serpent and her kin.
So it was with gleaming spears in hand, spears that pierced the simple armors of hide and bark which the other peoples of the Lakes wore at this time, that mighty Yao and the earliest Bai brought the Thousand Lakes under their rule. However, over the millenia these individuals were slowly taken for granted and forgotten, and complacence prevented their art from advancing.
When the smiths of other lands discovered ways that iron could be smelted to if not exceed than at least compete with the bronzesmith's work some interest was revived, but when, a few millenia later, the mad smith Zheng Bo disseminated the secrets of steel, previously thought to be enhanced iron, producible only by certain master blacksmiths, such efforts once again fell by the wayside.
The Adamant Deeps Sect was raised from the remains of a minor sect dedicated to studying metals, neglected in funding after the great westward march. Granted charter and funding by the Imperial Throne, infrastructure was built and experts flocked to test their theories and experiment among the ancient forges. Given the directive to focus on producing metals superior to steel in quantities useful at the level of the state, many promising studies have already begun.
Enrollment:
Enrollment in the Adamant Deeps Sect is a simple and efficient matter. Applicants are required to pay an up front fee to enter the Outer Sect, after which they have three years to impress an Elder or Core Sect member with either a significant project or display of personal virtue. Outer Sect members who fail to do so may stay on as Sect workers or return to their families with the lessons taught in the Outer Sect. As stated in the Imperial Decrees, troubled applicants receive a loan to cover the entry fee, which must be repaid with labor or military service. Inner Sect members receive up to three years of further instruction, after which they may apply to the Core Sect for testing, or pay an additional fee for further lessons.
Careers:
The Adamant Deeps Sect focuses on turning its applicants into exemplary members of society over specific career applications. For the majority of our disciples it is expected that they will go on to serve their clans and the Empire above any particular vocation. Nonetheless the education offered by the Sect opens many roads.
Master Metalsmith: The most obvious career, but one which should not be discounted. The preparation of superlative materials is an absolute requirement for supporting the creation of powerful and reliable Talismans, even should the disciple not choose to become such a craftsman themselves.
Court Philosopher: It is popular among the wise clan heads of the empire to gather thoughtful scholars and philosophers into their courts in the modern day. This ensures the intellectual vibrancy of their court, and provides opportunities to make advancements in various fields and improve upon their lands and people.
Imperial Officer: The ranks of the Empress' armies have been slowly expanding since the days of her father. An officer of the Imperial Army is expected to be a solid and dependable gentleman or woman of excellent breeding and intellectual rigor. Conveniently, the Adamant Deeps Sect officers an education complementary to this expectation.
Prominent Sect Members:
Sect Head Gong Shan: There are many materials which the laymen refer to as 'Adamant' from mystical alloys created by the highest level craftsmen, to certain natural ores, to the strange and indecipherable blue metal that sometimes filters through the exotic trading ports of the Xuan. Even steel was once called adamant, before its properties were fully documented. Gong Shan, is an expert on these varied materials. Having discovered ways to produce several alloys thought lost after their creators passed without apprentices, as well as having developed an improved type of steel which remains inviolate to rust and wear, even without formation work. He is the foremost expert on metallurgy still living in the Empire, and a natural head for the Adamant Deeps Sect!
Introduction:
Honor, Excellence, and Integrity. These are the bywords of the Adamant Deeps Sect. Located in the northern fens of the Thousand Lakes province, the sect strives to forge all applicants into exemplary Imperial citizens, and instill in them a strong sense of civic duty and pride along with the skills and trades which are taught in its halls. As crude ores and base metals may become superlative alloys, the Adamant Deeps Sect aims to prove that the many disparate peoples of the Empire are stronger together.
Specializing in the arts of metallurgy, the Adamant Deeps Sect teaches many related fields, smithing, talisman craft, prospecting and ecological studies are all taught in the Sects halls, by experts provided by the Imperial Court. Disciples are naturally tutored in the honorable ways of martial excellence and discipline as well, for all nobles of the empire should be equipped to defend it. However, the Sect's primary focus remains the mysteries of metal in specific, and advances the Empire's understanding of the material properties of the world in general.
Experience in the Adamant Deeps Sect provides important skills for both masters of craftering and natural philosophers. Inner Sect members who leave will find their Sect Education useful no matter their station, the principles taught here being sufficient to make any student an exemplary member of clan and court.
Sect History:
The Adamant Deeps Sect has its origins deep in the pre-imperial past, under the individuals who the legendary Yao the fisher commissioned to discern the properties of the sacred metals dredged from the fathomless deeps of lake Hei. These individuals, whose names are sadly lost to public histories, were the ones who discovered the methods by which copper could become bronze, and the powerful properties that this alloy held. Previously tools of copper, stone and wood were often all that was available, with jade tools sometimes in use by the wealthiest individuals.
These materials, lacked the ability to withstand the energies of complex formationwork, but the new alloy, bronze, held an edge far more easily than copper or stone, even unenhanced, and while jade was more resilient, it was far less flexible useful for holding martially useful arrays, and bronze could be produced in much higher quantities, with the cooperation of the White Serpent and her kin.
So it was with gleaming spears in hand, spears that pierced the simple armors of hide and bark which the other peoples of the Lakes wore at this time, that mighty Yao and the earliest Bai brought the Thousand Lakes under their rule. However, over the millenia these individuals were slowly taken for granted and forgotten, and complacence prevented their art from advancing.
When the smiths of other lands discovered ways that iron could be smelted to if not exceed than at least compete with the bronzesmith's work some interest was revived, but when, a few millenia later, the mad smith Zheng Bo disseminated the secrets of steel, previously thought to be enhanced iron, producible only by certain master blacksmiths, such efforts once again fell by the wayside.
The Adamant Deeps Sect was raised from the remains of a minor sect dedicated to studying metals, neglected in funding after the great westward march. Granted charter and funding by the Imperial Throne, infrastructure was built and experts flocked to test their theories and experiment among the ancient forges. Given the directive to focus on producing metals superior to steel in quantities useful at the level of the state, many promising studies have already begun.
Enrollment:
Enrollment in the Adamant Deeps Sect is a simple and efficient matter. Applicants are required to pay an up front fee to enter the Outer Sect, after which they have three years to impress an Elder or Core Sect member with either a significant project or display of personal virtue. Outer Sect members who fail to do so may stay on as Sect workers or return to their families with the lessons taught in the Outer Sect. As stated in the Imperial Decrees, troubled applicants receive a loan to cover the entry fee, which must be repaid with labor or military service. Inner Sect members receive up to three years of further instruction, after which they may apply to the Core Sect for testing, or pay an additional fee for further lessons.
Careers:
The Adamant Deeps Sect focuses on turning its applicants into exemplary members of society over specific career applications. For the majority of our disciples it is expected that they will go on to serve their clans and the Empire above any particular vocation. Nonetheless the education offered by the Sect opens many roads.
Master Metalsmith: The most obvious career, but one which should not be discounted. The preparation of superlative materials is an absolute requirement for supporting the creation of powerful and reliable Talismans, even should the disciple not choose to become such a craftsman themselves.
Court Philosopher: It is popular among the wise clan heads of the empire to gather thoughtful scholars and philosophers into their courts in the modern day. This ensures the intellectual vibrancy of their court, and provides opportunities to make advancements in various fields and improve upon their lands and people.
Imperial Officer: The ranks of the Empress' armies have been slowly expanding since the days of her father. An officer of the Imperial Army is expected to be a solid and dependable gentleman or woman of excellent breeding and intellectual rigor. Conveniently, the Adamant Deeps Sect officers an education complementary to this expectation.
Prominent Sect Members:
Sect Head Gong Shan: There are many materials which the laymen refer to as 'Adamant' from mystical alloys created by the highest level craftsmen, to certain natural ores, to the strange and indecipherable blue metal that sometimes filters through the exotic trading ports of the Xuan. Even steel was once called adamant, before its properties were fully documented. Gong Shan, is an expert on these varied materials. Having discovered ways to produce several alloys thought lost after their creators passed without apprentices, as well as having developed an improved type of steel which remains inviolate to rust and wear, even without formation work. He is the foremost expert on metallurgy still living in the Empire, and a natural head for the Adamant Deeps Sect!
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
Cool they made stainless steel. Also they are not friends with the Bai that's for sure.
I wonder if the Adamant Sect also gets into magnetism and electricity, which are properties which interact with metal quite well. Gong Shan = Mystical Magneto.
ImperatorV
The Laughing One
- Location
- The Voyaging Realm
Trying to read into the subtext here is... Interesting. Very few mentions of the Bai in this promotional, despite literally being in their province. High loyalty to the Imperial Throne signaled in several sections. It seems clear that this sect was deliberately made to be an outpost of Imperial Authority in the Thousand Lakes.
Also, on a re-read, one thing in particular stands out:
Calling Sun Shao's actions "The Great Westward March" is certainly one hell of a statement, as is the implied accusation of negligence towards the Bai. I imagine a lot of Bai would want to demolish the Adamant Deeps Sect for that single line in a pamphlet alone, much less if that is an indication of the Sect's attitudes in general.
Overall, I do not expect this Sect to last long when the Bai start gaining more independence.
Also, on a re-read, one thing in particular stands out:
Calling Sun Shao's actions "The Great Westward March" is certainly one hell of a statement, as is the implied accusation of negligence towards the Bai. I imagine a lot of Bai would want to demolish the Adamant Deeps Sect for that single line in a pamphlet alone, much less if that is an indication of the Sect's attitudes in general.
Overall, I do not expect this Sect to last long when the Bai start gaining more independence.
Ah. I guess the answer would be that Zhengui and Renxiang are different people, and have different relationships with Ling Qi too.
Zhengui is, quite simply, younger. Ling Qi treats him as something in between a little brother and a child (though that second one is unspoken and she feels uncomfortable even acknowledging or thinking that).
Renxiang is older and more mature. (Than Zhengui, anyway. I don't know if she's older than Ling Qi specifically. More mature than Ling Qi?, probably yes, at least in some ways.)
The obligations and duties and connections that Ling Qi has towards those two are different.
Maybe what Ling Qi needs to do is to acknowledge Friends as yet another category, beyond just "Home" and "Family."
So...basically the Sect was already gone so they salvaged the libaries and took the name?
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
The implication, to me, is also that the minor sect supported Sun, likely leaving with him. Which is quite a statement. Rather than raise any minor sects that still existed, or stayed loyal to the Bai, an abandoned sect was chosen.
EternalObserver
eYe Gaze baCk
- Location
- The Void
Neglected in funding suggests their patrons left them out to dry, former Sun vassal fits
- Location
- Somewhere in the vicinity of Houston
I don't think any of the other sect pamphlets mentioned anything about kicking out inner sect members, and three years really isn't enough time for most people to get to cyan. I suppose their requirements for core sect could be lower, but even still they must really need the money.
- Location
- Staring into the void
So the sect for middle children, whom you've already forgotten about...
Future Days: Meeting with Ling Jie
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
Future Days: A Meeting with Ling Jie
Light from the morning sun burned away mist as Yang Xuefeng sat pondering problems. New and old problems. Writing, so small as to be barely legible, covered the pages and with quick efficient strokes of her brush Yang was adding to the character count. Quickly. It still amazed her how much faster her writing was, how much neater, and how many more pages she needed.
Space for writing was quickly running out. Yang had ideas for how to get more blank books, but they were just ideas and with how everything was justifying buying from the market was difficult.
Just practicing formations was expensive. Good ink was always in high demand.
Wood shifted in her grip as the brush she was using creaked. Money would always be a problem while the Tao clan held her family's debt. It was a sign of her luck that Tao Ruogang had talent and been sent to the same sect as her. Using red stones to pay off her family debt was a better deal than she had expected. Yet she hadn't realized how much harder her cultivation would be, and Ruogang held her family's livelihood over her neck like a headsman's ax. Even now she was forced to guide study sessions. Hard won insights into cultivation given away for free to other mortal born cultivators Ruogang was gathering together. Those leeches only returned empty smiles. Taking, taking, taking, giving nothing back. Yang's brush snapped.
Picking splinters of wood out of her hand was a more painful experience than Yang remembered. Early gold gave some benefits, but the splinters that made it past her reinforced skin embedded themselves deep. New found strength outweighed new found toughness, was that the same for everyone? Something to think on later. Still it was only the work of minutes to remove all the bloody pieces of wood and wrap her hand in spare cloth. That had been her last brush though. Now she either needed to get the funds to buy one from the market, or beg Tao Ruogang for credit.
"Do you need a new brush? Here you are!" A cheery voice said from Yang's side.
Looking up and shielding her eyes with a bandaged hand Yang saw the cheerful smile of a girl holding out a brush to her. Blue eyes, summer skies blue, were framed by black hair that reached down to her shoulders. A dress, Midnight black with silver and gold stitching racing up one side, covered the other girls figure completely. Only the dusky hand holding out the brush and the smiling face were visible. The brush was a thing of beauty as well. Bristles drank in light, a void in the world, while the brush handle was blue, almost black, wood. Silver etchings twirled up and down the handle causing the illusion that the brush was spinning in place.
"Thank...you?" Yang said as she took the brush out of habit. She startled. Qi sang in the wood and bristles. This was a talisman. Something incomparable to a brush made from goat hair and gnarly, withered trees that dotted her home's hills. "I can't take this. It's far too valuable."
"Valuable?" The girl said, head cocked like a confused bird. "Hm! Not really." At this the girl held up her other hand, four identical brushes were held between her fingers, like a tiger's claws.
Yang was brought up short. Looking over the brush in her hand Yang was certain that it was talisman. If her burgeoning qi sense could tell it was a talisman it must be potent, after all most days she struggled to feel qi inside of the stones. What was with this disdainful expression of wealth? Was the girl noble? She must be. Who else would even have a brush like this?
"I still cannot accept it." Yang said, mind whirling. Nobility had few reasons to give away anything, unless… "I have no desire to be indebted." More debt was the last thing she needed.
The girl clapped her hands, brushes disappearing like they appeared. "It is a gift, Hm!" She said. "I insist."
Yang's mouth went dry. A noble insisting. Things never went well after that. "Very well." She said, working to keep her mouth moving through the fear. "If I am to accept your gift, may I know your name?" Yang would need to figure out how much trouble she was in.
Light bloomed behind the girl as she smiled. Even with the dawn sun growing stronger by the minute it was a bit blinding. As she talked her hands moved to exacting positions, snapping into different poses as she danced.
"I am beauty!" The girl said. "I am the resplendent cherry blossom in spring, the sensual rose in summer, the splendid maple tree in fall, the glittering first snow in winter. I am beauty and its seeker! You may call me Ling Jie, Hm!"
Silence descended after Lady Ling's performance. What else could you call it? The girl had moved frantically yet was breathing the same steady pace as when she started. Yang would have been breathing hard. Some of those poses had looked more painful than what the elders had them do for physical cultivation lessons.
"I will… keep that in mind." Yang said even as her mind tried to come to grips with the person in front of them. "Is there anything that your noble person requires of me at this moment? I am afraid I have commitments now." A small lie. Study group gathered in thirty minutes.
"Hm! Yes. If you have any questions about cultivation I am willing to answer." Lady Ling said.
Mind grinding to a halt for the second time Yang tried to recover. "Cultivation questions?"
"Yes!" Lady Ling said. "This entire first month I have been watching this tree. It is a truly beautiful tree after all, Hm! And every morning you come and sit here, writing away, looking sad. That's not very beautiful, so I asked around. You have done well, Awakening within a week than taking only another to get to early gold. Very beautiful progress, Hm! Yet you sit here joyless." Lady Ling crossed her arms in an X. "Not beautiful! So I have decided to make you my next project, Hm! I will get your beauty to shine through!"
"I will consider your offer." Yang said, having no intention to do so.
"Very well! That is all I can ask. If you wish to find me, come to my house, I am often there working on my art."
"Where is your house?" Yang said, trying and failing to stop words from spilling away.
Cocking her head Lady Ling looked confused again. "The most beautiful one." She said, pointing above the other houses of the residential district. Above Yang Xuefeng's hovel, above the small homes, above the manors. Her delicate finger pointed to the mansion. With a simple gesture Lady Ling made clear the gulf between the two girls.
Yang bowed her head in silence and cursed her misfortune.
"So," Tao Ruogang said as Yang Xuefeng slid the door to the rented room close. "I heard you made an interesting friend today."
Stiffening Yang turned to face the boy. Muscular and tall Tao Ruogang played the part of a chiseled immortal warrior perfectly. If only others knew.
"I would not call our encounter the start of a friendship, Lord Tao." Yang said as she bowed a touch too low for his status. Tao Ruogang was not a noble, but his merchant clan was rich. Egging on his ego was a relatively safe way to keep on the moneygrubber's good side.
"Still it is a friendship that you could pursue." Tao said, a red stone dancing across his knuckles. "I have approached almost every new sect brother or sister, not those truly above me of course, but everyone else. Lady Ling pretended that I was invisible when I tried to speak with her. Vexing, very vexing."
Yang watched the red stone closely. It kept moving, so Tao wasn't upset. Yet.
"So when I heard that Lady Ling spoke with you I was overjoyed. This is a chance our little group could sorely use."
"How so, Lord Tao?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Tao said, the red stone spinning faster and faster through his fingers. "Take up the girl on her offer, then come to us and share. Noble cultivators have been unwilling to answer questions about cultivation, so this is a perfect opportunity."
Shifting her weight between her feet Yang tried to look around the room, yet her gaze kept being drawn to the flickering red stone. "I do not feel comfortable associating with Lady Ling." Yang said, tearing her eyes away, if just for a moment, before they snapped back to the stone. "Something is very wrong with her."
The stone stopped and Yang shifted her gaze to her feet in that instant.
"Perhaps you did not understand me." Tao said, voice pleasant. "Make friends with Lady Ling, then report back."
"Very well, Lord Tao." Yang said, her voice a whisper.
When Yang dared to look up the stone had resumed its path around Tao's hand.
"Good. I will write up some questions I would like answered. Please ask in my stead."
"Of course, Lord Tao."
"Excellent, excellent. I am sure your additions will aid this group a great deal." Tao said, as he stood up.
"I will endeavor to make it so."
"Of course you will, your parents would be so proud of you." Tao said as he stretched and cracked his back. "Oh did you happen to figure out where Lady Ling lives? I have asked around but the answers I get are contradictory."
Yang wondered why Tao would want that information, but it was an easy enough answer. "Lady Ling told me to go to the mansion of the girls section."
Frowning Tao slipped the red stone into a pouch on his belt. "Odd. I thought the resplendent Cai lived alone there. Well, a mystery solved. Alas the meeting starts soon, so let's have a gander at your notes. I am sure they will be illuminating as always." Tao said, the door opening up, revealing a gaggle of other outer sect students, just as he finished speaking.
Yang dutifully pulled out her notes. Well, her second set of notes at least. Correct versions were kept safely away. Subtle mistakes now would create a gap between her and the others here. Hopefully a gap large enough to break Tao Ruogang's thumb when she made her move.
Light snow fell as Yang trudged past house after house on her way to the top of the residential district. First snow of the season, and an early snowfall at that. One more month without snow was normal, hopefully it wouldn't get too cold. Thinking on weather patterns calmed Yang's fluttering heart, reminding her of conversations around grumbling campfires and starry skies. Better to think about
Everyone could see her. Houses kept gaining opulence as Yang ascended. Her dull disciple robe stood out more and more with each step. Pulling the robe tighter she braced against the chill creeping up her spine. Not that it helped.
Leaving behind a trail in the snow dusting the world Yang finally stood at the front door of Lady Ling's house. She had to open the front gate to get here. Maybe that rudeness would be enough to get tossed out. Unlikely, but worth the try. She knocked once, then twice. Just before the third knock the door swung open.
Standing in the opening was a short woman, shorter than Yang who felt rather average about her height. The woman had blade straight black hair. Yang's heart was filled with fear. Across the dress was a crimson butterfly, the patterns on the wings looking like judging eyes. Tao had said Cai had lived here didn't he? This was a mistake. A shepherdess shouldn't get involved with the Cai.
"Ten thousand apologies, honored Lady Cai. I can only beg forgiveness for disturbing you." Yang said, voice breaking as she bent in half.
Cai gazed at her, eyes half closed yet brimming with white light. "Ling Jie told me to expect you. Enter, please." Her voice was rigid, perfect in some strange geometric way that Yang had never thought possible.
Turning away from the door Cai motioned Yang to follow. Hesitating only briefly Yang passed the doorway.
Art. Art dominated the new world that Yang found through the door frame. Paintings of every season, every phase of the day, every subject hung on the walls. Frames touched frames, and no trace of the walls could be seen. Each painting slid together like some great puzzle, a jigsaw beyond Yang's understanding. Colors bled together in cascading currents, flowing through different paintings as rivers. What caught Yang's breath though wasn't of the hundreds, or thousands surrounding her. No. It was the two paintings displayed where the hallway split. One of Lady Ling. One of Lady Cai.
Lady Ling stood atop of a golden stage. Pale red rose petals drifted down from an unseen roof while the picture danced amongst them. In one hand she held a sword of shimmering silver that had a rainbow rippling down its middle and the other grasped a goblet etched with motif's of the sun. Golden liquid, bright as dawn's first light, was at the cusp of spilling over the goblet's edge. Carved pillars of white jade split the background into perfect thirds. Between each pillar, in balconies of dark wood, stood cheering crowds. Faces overcome with joy and cheer blurred together into a tessellation of adulation.
Lady Cai's painting was equally impressive. Xiangmen almost swayed behind the stoic girl, leaves glinting with starlight . A saber, equal parts white and grey steel, was planted in front of the Cai who had both hands resting on the hilt. Geometric lines rose from behind the girls shoulders, weaving together in elaborate ways that hurt Yang's eyes to look at, but gave the impression of vast wings frozen on the verge of encompassing the girl.
"Stunning, are they not?" Cai said, from Yang's side.
Flushing Yang bowed and muttered an apology, which Cai waved away.
"I understand the reaction. Lady Ling's works are unparalleled for her age." Cai said. A dark expression flickered over the girl's face. A solitary cloud on a clear day. There then gone. "It can be difficult to work with her." Cai said, as though nothing had happened, and perhaps nothing had. "Yet, she is a genius at cultivation. If you can endure you would learn much." Then in a much quieter voice, less than a whisper, Cai continued. "She is also homesick, but very excited for a new friend. Please try."
Yang mutely nodded.
"Very well." Cai said, voice returning to a normal volume. "Lady Ling is to the right. Last door to the right. If for some reason you need me I will be in the office. It's at the end of the left hallway. Farewell."
Then Yang was alone. Perfectly clipped steps echoed through the hallway as Cai withdrew deeper into the house. Gathering her courage Yang stepped forward, following the directions given.
Last doorway on the right. Last doorway on the right. There. Silver wood made up the door. Different from the dark brown of other doors in the hallway. Knocking once made Yang jump back. The door hadn't felt like wood, even the knock sounded wrong, like the door was metal. Perhaps it was? It was hard to tell with the features of the door refusing to stay still in her mind. Swimming away from her memory the instant Yang stopped paying attention. A rustle of cloth sounded from the room behind the door. Then the chirpy voice of Lady Ling called out.
"Come in! Come in! The door isn't locked, Hm!"
Turning the handle and peering in Yang saw a quaint little room. A single window took up most of one wall, a sliver of light shining through the heavy curtains drawn over it. Another wall was dominated by a roaring fire, the heat of which now blasted Yang's face. Small picture frames stood on the fireplace. Paintings of grinning faces, most human with a turtle and snake mixed in, along with what looked like finger paintings. Crude stick figures that danced under blank skies. Frankly it was a little cute, but who would keep such childish paintings?
Even distracted as she was, Yang couldn't miss the figure waving at her from the center of the room. Two chairs filled out the room, each had an elegant stand next to it. Lady Ling occupied one of the chairs, almost hidden under the mound of blankets piled on top of her. Her stand held a fluted glass cup half full with some ruby liquid.
"Yang Xuefeng! Sit down. Sit down, Hm!" Lady Ling said, voice muffled but eyes half peeking above the blankets. "Did you bring your book?"
Forcing her feet forward one at a time Yang approached the other chair. "Yes." She said. "I brought several." She sat in the chair. It was richly upholstered and padded. Within moments Yang knew that this chair was the most comfortable thing she had ever sat in.
"You were writing formations when I talked to you. Did you bring that book?"
Pausing in her movements Yang wondered how Lady Ling had gotten such a good look at her journal yesterday. That one wasn't even a decoy. A potent reminder to keep such work completely out of sight, no need to let Tao know about her formation work.
"I did." Yang said, a lie. She had brought a tertiary copy, whose solutions were lacking.
"Excellent. I am a formation crafter as well, so I likely have much insight to share with you, Hm!" Lady Ling said.
"Formations?" Yang said, shuffling through her bag as she looked for the correct book. "Truly? I thought you were more of a painter."
"I am a painter! One can be many different things. Hm!" Lady Ling said. "I am also a performer, sculptor, writer, seamstress, and tailor. I dabble in musical fields, but I struggle with those. Still, most of my paintings include formation work in them. The ones in the hall all have some formations."
A chill crept up Yang's spine. All of those paintings had formations? Hundreds of paintings had been arrayed on those walls. What did they all do?
"Well," Yang said, pulling out her formation book with a sheet of paper and trying to calm her nerves. "I would be interested in talking formations with you, but I do have some basic cultivation questions first, if you would be so kind to look over them." Yang took the piece of paper and handed it towards the mound of blankets.
Blankets shook and writhed before a dusky arm shot out and grabbed the piece of paper before withdrawing. There was a beat of awkward silence and Yang grimaced. The questions on that sheet were basic, questions she could puzzle out given time. Questions Tao had told her to ask. They dealt with his cultivation, little regard given to problems others in the study group faced. Expected really.
"Nope!" Lady Ling said. The paper shot out of Mount Blanket and into the roaring fireplace. "We are here to talk about questions you have, not questions some ugly little river worm wants you to ask, Hm! If he wants to ask me a question then he needs to do two things. First, he needs to kowtow, in public, east three times. Second, while prostrating, he must beg forgiveness from the great guardian of my clan for defiling my ears with his small ugly words. Then I will deign to hear a question from him. Of course, for each question he'll need to repeat the two steps, Hm! Be sure to tell that ugly little thing, alright?"
Stunned silence held the room until Yang remembered to breath. That was not the reaction she expected. What had Tao done to anger Lady Ling so much?
"How did you know those questions were from Tao Ruogang?"
"Is that the boy's name? I know his handwriting. He wrote to several girls, asking them to keep an eye on me. As if I am some rabbit to be hunted. Very ugly. Do remember to bring my words to him. After this stunt I'll have no patience for him."
"I will bring your words to him." Yang said, having no intention of doing so.
"Excellent, your formation book?"
Yang started, but handed it out. Again the blankets writhed and undulated as Lady Ling struggled to sneak her hand out. Once the hand had snatched the book it darted back into the welcoming embrace of the blankets.
"Hmm… Yes, yes. I see. Clever. Very clever." Lady Ling said, as her eyes dipped under the blankets to study the book.
"Well… thank you." Yang said. She didn't really think the answers in this copy of her journal were very praise worthy. Perhaps she had misjudged?
"Yes. Keeping formation work secret is important. I would know, Hm! Dulling answers to obfuscate personal solutions is not the path I would choose, but still smart."
"Du… dulling answers?" Yang said, her mind skidding to a stop. "Wh… what do you mean?"
"Given the solutions that I saw you jotting down yesterday your grasp on formations is far stronger than what's written here." Lady Ling said. "If I had to guess your true solutions are something like… this!" Yang's journal slid out from the blankets.
One of the copied problems was circled. Below her fake answer stood Lady Ling's solution, or rather what Lady Ling believed Yang's solution to be. And it was. The lines sharper, the characters smaller, but it was the exact same solution Yang had spent nights working and revising.
"How?" Yang whispered.
"I've seen your formation work, well your formation answers. Judging your level wasn't hard from those."
Cai's statement about Lady Ling being a cultivation genius drifted in the back of Yang's thoughts. "I see."
"I do have a question for you, if you don't mind." Lady Ling said, her blankets vibrating. "You don't have to answer of course."
"Of course, however I can help." Yang said, mind still reeling from the idea that someone could just know her skill in formations from a single glance at a single page.
"Where did you get these formation problems?" Lady Ling said. "Library access is restricted by sect points, and those won't come for two more months. I wouldn't expect mortal families to be able get you beginner material, or if they did nothing as comprehensive as you've shown."
"Ah.. I asked the sect elder in charge of spiritual instructions if the library had a time limit, she had given me a library pass for my progress." Yang said, her hand drifting up to twirl hair. "Apparently you could spend as long in the library as you wanted, so I planned the trip like I would plan a shepherding trip, bringing food, water, materials, and a blanket. I stayed in the library coping formation books for three, four days before leaving with my art."
Laughter spilled out from the blankets. High pitched and sweet, it sounded like the small bells priests rung to pacify any spirits that inhabited grazing fields.
"Clever! With a mind as quick as that I am sure you'll go places, Hm! Now! Let's talk formations, the third problem down on that page. Your solution, while acceptable, has some issues. Workshop time!"
Hours passed in a haze for Yang as she struggled to keep pace with Lady Ling. Each word shared was written down, her brush moved as lightning to keep up. False assumptions were explored, how different materials interacted with formations were exposed, ideas for basic talismans were gathered. It was the best evening Yang could remember having at the sect and it was a pity when it ended.
Their meeting ended with a simple cough. It had interrupted Lady Ling's talking points about safe talisman construction. Yang had always been nervous to take that final step, actually making formations, something that Lady Ling was having none of.
"Theory is fine." Lady Ling said. "But at some point you must act! If you are still nervous I can superviv urk…"
"Lady Ling?" Yang said, looking up from her notes.
A dusky hand rose from the blankets, asking for a pause. Lady Ling coughed again, and again.
Then Lady Ling's chair fell backwards taking it's stand with it, glass shattered and ruby liquid sprayed into the air. Lady Ling went sprawling across the ground. Limbs twitching and thrashing as she convulsed.
"Lady Ling!?" Yang said, jumping out of her chair. She didn't approach though, the chaotic tangle of Lady Ling's movements gave little room to help and the chair being turned to splinters piecemeal showed just how strong Lady Ling was, even without control of her limbs.
Light shone from Lady Ling's fingers and a silver bowl appeared next to the girl. As tall as Yang's forearm and just as wide it looked more like half a sphere than a conventional bowl. Silver liquid shone from the rim of the bowl. Lady Ling gasped, like a caught fish, then her back twisted so her head slammed into the liquid. Water, or whatever the liquid was, sprayed about, but even as puddles of shimmering liquid gathered, Lady Ling's convulsions slowed. Soon her arms stopped trembling and she grabbed the bowl and lifted it above her as she twisted to lay on the ground.
Yang approached and silver liquid dribbled over Lady Ling's chin.
"Lady Ling?" Yang said as she knelt by the girl.
The girl finally gasped again and set aside the bowl, now empty. "Ugly." Lady Ling said, voice far, far softer than any tone used before. "I am sorry you had to see such an ugly thing."
"Never mind that." Yang said, what was Lady Ling's obsession with beauty and ugly? "Is there anything I can do?" Now was the unfinished part of the sentence.
"No." Lady Ling said, still laying on her back staring blankly at the ceiling. "There is nothing. I am afraid our workshop will have to be cut short. Urk." Silver liquid flecked red squeezed past her lips and trailed down her cheeks. "Please tell Meizhen. She knows what to do."
"Meizhen?"
Lady Ling sighed and tilted her face away from Yang. "I am sorry, please tell Cai Meizhen. Lady Cai."
"Of course." Yang said, hurrying to stand up. "I'll do that."
Doors whirled by Yang as she rushed through the hall. Where was Lady Cai? This hallway, last door on the left. No. No. There. Her fist hammered on the door before Yang remembered the rudeness of the action. Pausing for a bit to collect her breath Yang then opened the door. Rude or not.
Lady Cai's office was a spartan thing. A stark contrast to the homeliness of Lady Ling's room. What few decorations adorned the walls were simple utilitarian things. Swords there, books there. There was no color, only steel grey and white. One spark of color existed. Tilted just enough to be visible was a framed stitching pattern, a tree with golden leaves.
"What is the problem." Lady Cai said, emotionless and brush frozen mid stroke.
"L..Lady Ling collapsed." Yang said, wringing her hands. "We were talking about formations then.. then.." Twisted just right this could look like an attack Yang realized mid sentence. Oh Sage, if Lady Cai thought she attacked a housemate, then, then…
"What color was the bowl." Lady Cai demanded as a new piece of paper slid in front of her.
"Co… color?"
"Was it silver or gold?"
"Silver! Lady Ling drank from a silver bowl." Yang said.
In a flash the brush had written something. If Yang had blinked she would have missed it. How was it possible to write so fast and not tear the paper, or smear the ink? Would she be able to do that someday? Then the paper curled up on itself, folding into a paper crane. Flying out of the window it disappeared into the murky night.
"Thank you for informing me." Lady Cai said.
"Of course Lady Cai."
Expression softening a touch Lady Cai leaned back into her chair arms resting on the armrests. "You've done nothing wrong, so rest easy. I appreciate the speed you've brought this to my attention."
Yang remained mute, head hung low. What now? Would she be punished for the earlier rudeness?
"The night grows long and while you've progressed well in your cultivation you are not able to throw off sleep yet. Go home and rest. Progress requires a cared for body and mind. I am sure that when Lady Ling is well again she will request another meeting."
"Of course, Lady Cai." Yang said, as she backed out of the room.
Yang retraced her steps through the hallway. As she turned the corner away from the two paintings of Lady Ling and Lady Cai she noticed two other people entering the house. From her time scouting out the sect she recognized the robes of medical hall disciples. They brushed past without acknowledgement and walked down towards Lady Ling's room. She failed to notice the tears of blood that now dripped down Lady Ling's painted face.
When Yang walked out into the crisp night air she shivered. She didn't know if it was from the night chill, or the bubbling memory of Lady Ling's still body staring vacantly at the ceiling. It was a long walk to the relative warmth of her hovel.
A.N
@yrsillar omake for the omake throne.
I am happy with this piece. Ling Jie was a very fun character to write. I think I could have done the opening part better, but at some point you just have to post. Thank you for reading my omake and I hoped you enjoyed the piece.
Light from the morning sun burned away mist as Yang Xuefeng sat pondering problems. New and old problems. Writing, so small as to be barely legible, covered the pages and with quick efficient strokes of her brush Yang was adding to the character count. Quickly. It still amazed her how much faster her writing was, how much neater, and how many more pages she needed.
Space for writing was quickly running out. Yang had ideas for how to get more blank books, but they were just ideas and with how everything was justifying buying from the market was difficult.
Just practicing formations was expensive. Good ink was always in high demand.
Wood shifted in her grip as the brush she was using creaked. Money would always be a problem while the Tao clan held her family's debt. It was a sign of her luck that Tao Ruogang had talent and been sent to the same sect as her. Using red stones to pay off her family debt was a better deal than she had expected. Yet she hadn't realized how much harder her cultivation would be, and Ruogang held her family's livelihood over her neck like a headsman's ax. Even now she was forced to guide study sessions. Hard won insights into cultivation given away for free to other mortal born cultivators Ruogang was gathering together. Those leeches only returned empty smiles. Taking, taking, taking, giving nothing back. Yang's brush snapped.
Picking splinters of wood out of her hand was a more painful experience than Yang remembered. Early gold gave some benefits, but the splinters that made it past her reinforced skin embedded themselves deep. New found strength outweighed new found toughness, was that the same for everyone? Something to think on later. Still it was only the work of minutes to remove all the bloody pieces of wood and wrap her hand in spare cloth. That had been her last brush though. Now she either needed to get the funds to buy one from the market, or beg Tao Ruogang for credit.
"Do you need a new brush? Here you are!" A cheery voice said from Yang's side.
Looking up and shielding her eyes with a bandaged hand Yang saw the cheerful smile of a girl holding out a brush to her. Blue eyes, summer skies blue, were framed by black hair that reached down to her shoulders. A dress, Midnight black with silver and gold stitching racing up one side, covered the other girls figure completely. Only the dusky hand holding out the brush and the smiling face were visible. The brush was a thing of beauty as well. Bristles drank in light, a void in the world, while the brush handle was blue, almost black, wood. Silver etchings twirled up and down the handle causing the illusion that the brush was spinning in place.
"Thank...you?" Yang said as she took the brush out of habit. She startled. Qi sang in the wood and bristles. This was a talisman. Something incomparable to a brush made from goat hair and gnarly, withered trees that dotted her home's hills. "I can't take this. It's far too valuable."
"Valuable?" The girl said, head cocked like a confused bird. "Hm! Not really." At this the girl held up her other hand, four identical brushes were held between her fingers, like a tiger's claws.
Yang was brought up short. Looking over the brush in her hand Yang was certain that it was talisman. If her burgeoning qi sense could tell it was a talisman it must be potent, after all most days she struggled to feel qi inside of the stones. What was with this disdainful expression of wealth? Was the girl noble? She must be. Who else would even have a brush like this?
"I still cannot accept it." Yang said, mind whirling. Nobility had few reasons to give away anything, unless… "I have no desire to be indebted." More debt was the last thing she needed.
The girl clapped her hands, brushes disappearing like they appeared. "It is a gift, Hm!" She said. "I insist."
Yang's mouth went dry. A noble insisting. Things never went well after that. "Very well." She said, working to keep her mouth moving through the fear. "If I am to accept your gift, may I know your name?" Yang would need to figure out how much trouble she was in.
Light bloomed behind the girl as she smiled. Even with the dawn sun growing stronger by the minute it was a bit blinding. As she talked her hands moved to exacting positions, snapping into different poses as she danced.
"I am beauty!" The girl said. "I am the resplendent cherry blossom in spring, the sensual rose in summer, the splendid maple tree in fall, the glittering first snow in winter. I am beauty and its seeker! You may call me Ling Jie, Hm!"
Silence descended after Lady Ling's performance. What else could you call it? The girl had moved frantically yet was breathing the same steady pace as when she started. Yang would have been breathing hard. Some of those poses had looked more painful than what the elders had them do for physical cultivation lessons.
"I will… keep that in mind." Yang said even as her mind tried to come to grips with the person in front of them. "Is there anything that your noble person requires of me at this moment? I am afraid I have commitments now." A small lie. Study group gathered in thirty minutes.
"Hm! Yes. If you have any questions about cultivation I am willing to answer." Lady Ling said.
Mind grinding to a halt for the second time Yang tried to recover. "Cultivation questions?"
"Yes!" Lady Ling said. "This entire first month I have been watching this tree. It is a truly beautiful tree after all, Hm! And every morning you come and sit here, writing away, looking sad. That's not very beautiful, so I asked around. You have done well, Awakening within a week than taking only another to get to early gold. Very beautiful progress, Hm! Yet you sit here joyless." Lady Ling crossed her arms in an X. "Not beautiful! So I have decided to make you my next project, Hm! I will get your beauty to shine through!"
"I will consider your offer." Yang said, having no intention to do so.
"Very well! That is all I can ask. If you wish to find me, come to my house, I am often there working on my art."
"Where is your house?" Yang said, trying and failing to stop words from spilling away.
Cocking her head Lady Ling looked confused again. "The most beautiful one." She said, pointing above the other houses of the residential district. Above Yang Xuefeng's hovel, above the small homes, above the manors. Her delicate finger pointed to the mansion. With a simple gesture Lady Ling made clear the gulf between the two girls.
Yang bowed her head in silence and cursed her misfortune.
"So," Tao Ruogang said as Yang Xuefeng slid the door to the rented room close. "I heard you made an interesting friend today."
Stiffening Yang turned to face the boy. Muscular and tall Tao Ruogang played the part of a chiseled immortal warrior perfectly. If only others knew.
"I would not call our encounter the start of a friendship, Lord Tao." Yang said as she bowed a touch too low for his status. Tao Ruogang was not a noble, but his merchant clan was rich. Egging on his ego was a relatively safe way to keep on the moneygrubber's good side.
"Still it is a friendship that you could pursue." Tao said, a red stone dancing across his knuckles. "I have approached almost every new sect brother or sister, not those truly above me of course, but everyone else. Lady Ling pretended that I was invisible when I tried to speak with her. Vexing, very vexing."
Yang watched the red stone closely. It kept moving, so Tao wasn't upset. Yet.
"So when I heard that Lady Ling spoke with you I was overjoyed. This is a chance our little group could sorely use."
"How so, Lord Tao?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Tao said, the red stone spinning faster and faster through his fingers. "Take up the girl on her offer, then come to us and share. Noble cultivators have been unwilling to answer questions about cultivation, so this is a perfect opportunity."
Shifting her weight between her feet Yang tried to look around the room, yet her gaze kept being drawn to the flickering red stone. "I do not feel comfortable associating with Lady Ling." Yang said, tearing her eyes away, if just for a moment, before they snapped back to the stone. "Something is very wrong with her."
The stone stopped and Yang shifted her gaze to her feet in that instant.
"Perhaps you did not understand me." Tao said, voice pleasant. "Make friends with Lady Ling, then report back."
"Very well, Lord Tao." Yang said, her voice a whisper.
When Yang dared to look up the stone had resumed its path around Tao's hand.
"Good. I will write up some questions I would like answered. Please ask in my stead."
"Of course, Lord Tao."
"Excellent, excellent. I am sure your additions will aid this group a great deal." Tao said, as he stood up.
"I will endeavor to make it so."
"Of course you will, your parents would be so proud of you." Tao said as he stretched and cracked his back. "Oh did you happen to figure out where Lady Ling lives? I have asked around but the answers I get are contradictory."
Yang wondered why Tao would want that information, but it was an easy enough answer. "Lady Ling told me to go to the mansion of the girls section."
Frowning Tao slipped the red stone into a pouch on his belt. "Odd. I thought the resplendent Cai lived alone there. Well, a mystery solved. Alas the meeting starts soon, so let's have a gander at your notes. I am sure they will be illuminating as always." Tao said, the door opening up, revealing a gaggle of other outer sect students, just as he finished speaking.
Yang dutifully pulled out her notes. Well, her second set of notes at least. Correct versions were kept safely away. Subtle mistakes now would create a gap between her and the others here. Hopefully a gap large enough to break Tao Ruogang's thumb when she made her move.
Light snow fell as Yang trudged past house after house on her way to the top of the residential district. First snow of the season, and an early snowfall at that. One more month without snow was normal, hopefully it wouldn't get too cold. Thinking on weather patterns calmed Yang's fluttering heart, reminding her of conversations around grumbling campfires and starry skies. Better to think about
Everyone could see her. Houses kept gaining opulence as Yang ascended. Her dull disciple robe stood out more and more with each step. Pulling the robe tighter she braced against the chill creeping up her spine. Not that it helped.
Leaving behind a trail in the snow dusting the world Yang finally stood at the front door of Lady Ling's house. She had to open the front gate to get here. Maybe that rudeness would be enough to get tossed out. Unlikely, but worth the try. She knocked once, then twice. Just before the third knock the door swung open.
Standing in the opening was a short woman, shorter than Yang who felt rather average about her height. The woman had blade straight black hair. Yang's heart was filled with fear. Across the dress was a crimson butterfly, the patterns on the wings looking like judging eyes. Tao had said Cai had lived here didn't he? This was a mistake. A shepherdess shouldn't get involved with the Cai.
"Ten thousand apologies, honored Lady Cai. I can only beg forgiveness for disturbing you." Yang said, voice breaking as she bent in half.
Cai gazed at her, eyes half closed yet brimming with white light. "Ling Jie told me to expect you. Enter, please." Her voice was rigid, perfect in some strange geometric way that Yang had never thought possible.
Turning away from the door Cai motioned Yang to follow. Hesitating only briefly Yang passed the doorway.
Art. Art dominated the new world that Yang found through the door frame. Paintings of every season, every phase of the day, every subject hung on the walls. Frames touched frames, and no trace of the walls could be seen. Each painting slid together like some great puzzle, a jigsaw beyond Yang's understanding. Colors bled together in cascading currents, flowing through different paintings as rivers. What caught Yang's breath though wasn't of the hundreds, or thousands surrounding her. No. It was the two paintings displayed where the hallway split. One of Lady Ling. One of Lady Cai.
Lady Ling stood atop of a golden stage. Pale red rose petals drifted down from an unseen roof while the picture danced amongst them. In one hand she held a sword of shimmering silver that had a rainbow rippling down its middle and the other grasped a goblet etched with motif's of the sun. Golden liquid, bright as dawn's first light, was at the cusp of spilling over the goblet's edge. Carved pillars of white jade split the background into perfect thirds. Between each pillar, in balconies of dark wood, stood cheering crowds. Faces overcome with joy and cheer blurred together into a tessellation of adulation.
Lady Cai's painting was equally impressive. Xiangmen almost swayed behind the stoic girl, leaves glinting with starlight . A saber, equal parts white and grey steel, was planted in front of the Cai who had both hands resting on the hilt. Geometric lines rose from behind the girls shoulders, weaving together in elaborate ways that hurt Yang's eyes to look at, but gave the impression of vast wings frozen on the verge of encompassing the girl.
"Stunning, are they not?" Cai said, from Yang's side.
Flushing Yang bowed and muttered an apology, which Cai waved away.
"I understand the reaction. Lady Ling's works are unparalleled for her age." Cai said. A dark expression flickered over the girl's face. A solitary cloud on a clear day. There then gone. "It can be difficult to work with her." Cai said, as though nothing had happened, and perhaps nothing had. "Yet, she is a genius at cultivation. If you can endure you would learn much." Then in a much quieter voice, less than a whisper, Cai continued. "She is also homesick, but very excited for a new friend. Please try."
Yang mutely nodded.
"Very well." Cai said, voice returning to a normal volume. "Lady Ling is to the right. Last door to the right. If for some reason you need me I will be in the office. It's at the end of the left hallway. Farewell."
Then Yang was alone. Perfectly clipped steps echoed through the hallway as Cai withdrew deeper into the house. Gathering her courage Yang stepped forward, following the directions given.
Last doorway on the right. Last doorway on the right. There. Silver wood made up the door. Different from the dark brown of other doors in the hallway. Knocking once made Yang jump back. The door hadn't felt like wood, even the knock sounded wrong, like the door was metal. Perhaps it was? It was hard to tell with the features of the door refusing to stay still in her mind. Swimming away from her memory the instant Yang stopped paying attention. A rustle of cloth sounded from the room behind the door. Then the chirpy voice of Lady Ling called out.
"Come in! Come in! The door isn't locked, Hm!"
Turning the handle and peering in Yang saw a quaint little room. A single window took up most of one wall, a sliver of light shining through the heavy curtains drawn over it. Another wall was dominated by a roaring fire, the heat of which now blasted Yang's face. Small picture frames stood on the fireplace. Paintings of grinning faces, most human with a turtle and snake mixed in, along with what looked like finger paintings. Crude stick figures that danced under blank skies. Frankly it was a little cute, but who would keep such childish paintings?
Even distracted as she was, Yang couldn't miss the figure waving at her from the center of the room. Two chairs filled out the room, each had an elegant stand next to it. Lady Ling occupied one of the chairs, almost hidden under the mound of blankets piled on top of her. Her stand held a fluted glass cup half full with some ruby liquid.
"Yang Xuefeng! Sit down. Sit down, Hm!" Lady Ling said, voice muffled but eyes half peeking above the blankets. "Did you bring your book?"
Forcing her feet forward one at a time Yang approached the other chair. "Yes." She said. "I brought several." She sat in the chair. It was richly upholstered and padded. Within moments Yang knew that this chair was the most comfortable thing she had ever sat in.
"You were writing formations when I talked to you. Did you bring that book?"
Pausing in her movements Yang wondered how Lady Ling had gotten such a good look at her journal yesterday. That one wasn't even a decoy. A potent reminder to keep such work completely out of sight, no need to let Tao know about her formation work.
"I did." Yang said, a lie. She had brought a tertiary copy, whose solutions were lacking.
"Excellent. I am a formation crafter as well, so I likely have much insight to share with you, Hm!" Lady Ling said.
"Formations?" Yang said, shuffling through her bag as she looked for the correct book. "Truly? I thought you were more of a painter."
"I am a painter! One can be many different things. Hm!" Lady Ling said. "I am also a performer, sculptor, writer, seamstress, and tailor. I dabble in musical fields, but I struggle with those. Still, most of my paintings include formation work in them. The ones in the hall all have some formations."
A chill crept up Yang's spine. All of those paintings had formations? Hundreds of paintings had been arrayed on those walls. What did they all do?
"Well," Yang said, pulling out her formation book with a sheet of paper and trying to calm her nerves. "I would be interested in talking formations with you, but I do have some basic cultivation questions first, if you would be so kind to look over them." Yang took the piece of paper and handed it towards the mound of blankets.
Blankets shook and writhed before a dusky arm shot out and grabbed the piece of paper before withdrawing. There was a beat of awkward silence and Yang grimaced. The questions on that sheet were basic, questions she could puzzle out given time. Questions Tao had told her to ask. They dealt with his cultivation, little regard given to problems others in the study group faced. Expected really.
"Nope!" Lady Ling said. The paper shot out of Mount Blanket and into the roaring fireplace. "We are here to talk about questions you have, not questions some ugly little river worm wants you to ask, Hm! If he wants to ask me a question then he needs to do two things. First, he needs to kowtow, in public, east three times. Second, while prostrating, he must beg forgiveness from the great guardian of my clan for defiling my ears with his small ugly words. Then I will deign to hear a question from him. Of course, for each question he'll need to repeat the two steps, Hm! Be sure to tell that ugly little thing, alright?"
Stunned silence held the room until Yang remembered to breath. That was not the reaction she expected. What had Tao done to anger Lady Ling so much?
"How did you know those questions were from Tao Ruogang?"
"Is that the boy's name? I know his handwriting. He wrote to several girls, asking them to keep an eye on me. As if I am some rabbit to be hunted. Very ugly. Do remember to bring my words to him. After this stunt I'll have no patience for him."
"I will bring your words to him." Yang said, having no intention of doing so.
"Excellent, your formation book?"
Yang started, but handed it out. Again the blankets writhed and undulated as Lady Ling struggled to sneak her hand out. Once the hand had snatched the book it darted back into the welcoming embrace of the blankets.
"Hmm… Yes, yes. I see. Clever. Very clever." Lady Ling said, as her eyes dipped under the blankets to study the book.
"Well… thank you." Yang said. She didn't really think the answers in this copy of her journal were very praise worthy. Perhaps she had misjudged?
"Yes. Keeping formation work secret is important. I would know, Hm! Dulling answers to obfuscate personal solutions is not the path I would choose, but still smart."
"Du… dulling answers?" Yang said, her mind skidding to a stop. "Wh… what do you mean?"
"Given the solutions that I saw you jotting down yesterday your grasp on formations is far stronger than what's written here." Lady Ling said. "If I had to guess your true solutions are something like… this!" Yang's journal slid out from the blankets.
One of the copied problems was circled. Below her fake answer stood Lady Ling's solution, or rather what Lady Ling believed Yang's solution to be. And it was. The lines sharper, the characters smaller, but it was the exact same solution Yang had spent nights working and revising.
"How?" Yang whispered.
"I've seen your formation work, well your formation answers. Judging your level wasn't hard from those."
Cai's statement about Lady Ling being a cultivation genius drifted in the back of Yang's thoughts. "I see."
"I do have a question for you, if you don't mind." Lady Ling said, her blankets vibrating. "You don't have to answer of course."
"Of course, however I can help." Yang said, mind still reeling from the idea that someone could just know her skill in formations from a single glance at a single page.
"Where did you get these formation problems?" Lady Ling said. "Library access is restricted by sect points, and those won't come for two more months. I wouldn't expect mortal families to be able get you beginner material, or if they did nothing as comprehensive as you've shown."
"Ah.. I asked the sect elder in charge of spiritual instructions if the library had a time limit, she had given me a library pass for my progress." Yang said, her hand drifting up to twirl hair. "Apparently you could spend as long in the library as you wanted, so I planned the trip like I would plan a shepherding trip, bringing food, water, materials, and a blanket. I stayed in the library coping formation books for three, four days before leaving with my art."
Laughter spilled out from the blankets. High pitched and sweet, it sounded like the small bells priests rung to pacify any spirits that inhabited grazing fields.
"Clever! With a mind as quick as that I am sure you'll go places, Hm! Now! Let's talk formations, the third problem down on that page. Your solution, while acceptable, has some issues. Workshop time!"
Hours passed in a haze for Yang as she struggled to keep pace with Lady Ling. Each word shared was written down, her brush moved as lightning to keep up. False assumptions were explored, how different materials interacted with formations were exposed, ideas for basic talismans were gathered. It was the best evening Yang could remember having at the sect and it was a pity when it ended.
Their meeting ended with a simple cough. It had interrupted Lady Ling's talking points about safe talisman construction. Yang had always been nervous to take that final step, actually making formations, something that Lady Ling was having none of.
"Theory is fine." Lady Ling said. "But at some point you must act! If you are still nervous I can superviv urk…"
"Lady Ling?" Yang said, looking up from her notes.
A dusky hand rose from the blankets, asking for a pause. Lady Ling coughed again, and again.
Then Lady Ling's chair fell backwards taking it's stand with it, glass shattered and ruby liquid sprayed into the air. Lady Ling went sprawling across the ground. Limbs twitching and thrashing as she convulsed.
"Lady Ling!?" Yang said, jumping out of her chair. She didn't approach though, the chaotic tangle of Lady Ling's movements gave little room to help and the chair being turned to splinters piecemeal showed just how strong Lady Ling was, even without control of her limbs.
Light shone from Lady Ling's fingers and a silver bowl appeared next to the girl. As tall as Yang's forearm and just as wide it looked more like half a sphere than a conventional bowl. Silver liquid shone from the rim of the bowl. Lady Ling gasped, like a caught fish, then her back twisted so her head slammed into the liquid. Water, or whatever the liquid was, sprayed about, but even as puddles of shimmering liquid gathered, Lady Ling's convulsions slowed. Soon her arms stopped trembling and she grabbed the bowl and lifted it above her as she twisted to lay on the ground.
Yang approached and silver liquid dribbled over Lady Ling's chin.
"Lady Ling?" Yang said as she knelt by the girl.
The girl finally gasped again and set aside the bowl, now empty. "Ugly." Lady Ling said, voice far, far softer than any tone used before. "I am sorry you had to see such an ugly thing."
"Never mind that." Yang said, what was Lady Ling's obsession with beauty and ugly? "Is there anything I can do?" Now was the unfinished part of the sentence.
"No." Lady Ling said, still laying on her back staring blankly at the ceiling. "There is nothing. I am afraid our workshop will have to be cut short. Urk." Silver liquid flecked red squeezed past her lips and trailed down her cheeks. "Please tell Meizhen. She knows what to do."
"Meizhen?"
Lady Ling sighed and tilted her face away from Yang. "I am sorry, please tell Cai Meizhen. Lady Cai."
"Of course." Yang said, hurrying to stand up. "I'll do that."
Doors whirled by Yang as she rushed through the hall. Where was Lady Cai? This hallway, last door on the left. No. No. There. Her fist hammered on the door before Yang remembered the rudeness of the action. Pausing for a bit to collect her breath Yang then opened the door. Rude or not.
Lady Cai's office was a spartan thing. A stark contrast to the homeliness of Lady Ling's room. What few decorations adorned the walls were simple utilitarian things. Swords there, books there. There was no color, only steel grey and white. One spark of color existed. Tilted just enough to be visible was a framed stitching pattern, a tree with golden leaves.
"What is the problem." Lady Cai said, emotionless and brush frozen mid stroke.
"L..Lady Ling collapsed." Yang said, wringing her hands. "We were talking about formations then.. then.." Twisted just right this could look like an attack Yang realized mid sentence. Oh Sage, if Lady Cai thought she attacked a housemate, then, then…
"What color was the bowl." Lady Cai demanded as a new piece of paper slid in front of her.
"Co… color?"
"Was it silver or gold?"
"Silver! Lady Ling drank from a silver bowl." Yang said.
In a flash the brush had written something. If Yang had blinked she would have missed it. How was it possible to write so fast and not tear the paper, or smear the ink? Would she be able to do that someday? Then the paper curled up on itself, folding into a paper crane. Flying out of the window it disappeared into the murky night.
"Thank you for informing me." Lady Cai said.
"Of course Lady Cai."
Expression softening a touch Lady Cai leaned back into her chair arms resting on the armrests. "You've done nothing wrong, so rest easy. I appreciate the speed you've brought this to my attention."
Yang remained mute, head hung low. What now? Would she be punished for the earlier rudeness?
"The night grows long and while you've progressed well in your cultivation you are not able to throw off sleep yet. Go home and rest. Progress requires a cared for body and mind. I am sure that when Lady Ling is well again she will request another meeting."
"Of course, Lady Cai." Yang said, as she backed out of the room.
Yang retraced her steps through the hallway. As she turned the corner away from the two paintings of Lady Ling and Lady Cai she noticed two other people entering the house. From her time scouting out the sect she recognized the robes of medical hall disciples. They brushed past without acknowledgement and walked down towards Lady Ling's room. She failed to notice the tears of blood that now dripped down Lady Ling's painted face.
When Yang walked out into the crisp night air she shivered. She didn't know if it was from the night chill, or the bubbling memory of Lady Ling's still body staring vacantly at the ceiling. It was a long walk to the relative warmth of her hovel.
A.N
@yrsillar omake for the omake throne.
I am happy with this piece. Ling Jie was a very fun character to write. I think I could have done the opening part better, but at some point you just have to post. Thank you for reading my omake and I hoped you enjoyed the piece.
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- Location
- somewhere over there.
- Pronouns
- They/It
How far in the future is this set? It feels like it would be at least 20-30 years, considering there's a new generation of Cai and Ling around, but it could just as easily be 200 or more.
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Sirrocco
Pedantic
So let's look at it...
- Lady Cai is Cai Meizhen. Based on that name, she probably isn't the heir, but probably is CRX's direct child.
- Both Cai and Ling have had time to grow into themselves enough to get married, and then have kids, and then have those kids grow up.
- Ling and Cai are the same age. The timing was almost certainly coordinated. Admittedly, that makes sense if the Ling are turning themselves into the Xiao of Cai Renxiang's line... which, honestly, is entirely plausible.
- Ling Jie is outside of the main line of familial arts - no darkness, precious little music, and a formations focus. She also clearly has enormous resources to call on. At the same time, my read of her has her... with relatively little direct parental supervision? She reads to me like someone who's been raised primarily by servants. She's very much a creature of impulse. Those that could reign her in do not spend what little time they have with her doing so. That combination of "she's not important enough for a great deal of direct personal attention from clan heads" and "she has access to ridiculous amounts of resources" speaks to the idea that the Ling are... pretty much fabulously wealthy at this point. If we assume that CRX has not yet succeeded her mother (and we've every reason to expect that that would take a very long time) then that speaks to a Ling Qi who's more than just Cyan.
Not sure how long it would be, but I'd guess rather more than 20-30 years.
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
I generally try to keep things vague in regards to how far in the future things are, but this one is intended for when the Ling are quite established, so more than 20-30 years.
While I didn't think of where Ling Jie fits into the overall Ling Clan a lot of this is on point. The Ling clan is very very rich with Zhengui pulling his weight and more, but there's just are not very members to use that wealth on. Ling Jie was assigned to Cai Meizhen partly because of their friendship but mostly because Ling Jie is a monstrously good formation crafter, especially for a yellow. I am thinking about continuing this piece to explore just what Ling Jie is doing with her paintings. Probably not the next omake I do, but eventually. Ling Jie was just too fun a character for me to write.
Sirrocco
Pedantic
The issue with that is... they're both outers. That means that they're both the same year, which means that their births pretty much had to be coordinated. (There aren't that many Ling, after all. You're certainly not going to have more than one a year.) Ling Jie would have to have been "assigned" to Cai Meizhen, at least to some degree, before either of them was born.
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- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
I mean, there are things people implicitly understand, and then there are the reasons people are told for choices made. It is a bitter pill to swallow to be told that your son/daughter never stood a chance. It's much easier for everyone to accept when they see just what Ling Jie's specialty is.
That very much depends on how long things take, and if Biyu survives long enough to have kids herself. Biyu is almost certainly drive a significant proportion of the Clan's membership for quite a long time meaning that if the story takes place just 80 years in the future, it would actually be pretty good odds that Ling Jie and Cai Meizhen are within 12-20 months of each other, with 0 collusion to arrange that to happen.