- Location
- New Brunswick, NJ
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
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.
[X] The Young Woman
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
The vote did close, but your choice won.
She was likely much too young to have done so.
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
Meizhen's mom was a spymaster. Spymasters are rarely the ones sent out to do the actually killing. She may have planned the deed, but I doubt she was physically involved.
In royalroad chapter 146,
She was also a very good Assassin.
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
Nowhere in my reply did I deny that.
- Location
- Colorado
We don't know exactly how old she was, but given she was 'the best of us'/ran the Bai intel network at the time of her death, she was probably Prism at that point. So probably at least a few centuries old at her death. So I'd guess she was a Violet rising star when the Empress' mom got killed.
If it helps with the timescale, Cai Shenhua is still a young whippersnapper by the standards of top-tier cultivators, but she was already a duchess at the Empress' coronation when she gave her a badass leaf dress. As a Prism, Bai Meillin was probably a contemporary/peer of Elder Jiao in the imperial intel game.
Sorry. I thought you were implying she was a spymaster so she wasn't a good assassin.
Even if she is normally behind the scene, empress will be a secure enough target that they will probably send their best. And they can't really afford to get caught doing this.
- Location
- Canada
Discord said:
Too young to have been the assassinDiscord said:
Empress Xiang is in her late 300's while Meilin died in her late 200's
Meizhen's mom wasn't even born yet when Xiang lost her mother
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Even without that (though that settles it), she was mentioned to be the youngest daughter. She would have had to been the at least the oldest daughter to have it make any sense.
- Location
- Colorado
Huh, that's me told. The Bai's spymistress was really only a 5th realm? I guess only having one kid pointed to her being relatively young, but she still sounded like a bigger deal.
I mean their current spymaster is only a 5th realm, but he's also clearly a placeholder.
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- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
I would assume the Bai have multiple spymasters. She was just one, if an important one given her position in the clan.
...fifth realm is a pretty big deal you know. In anywhere but a ducal house she'd be a Power in her own right.
- Location
- Colorado
I guess this makes a bit more sense. If the Imperial Throne had tried to demand the Bai hand over a near Bai Suzhen level talent to be executed on trumped up charges the Bai would've just gone 'Fuck you, come and take her if you've got the balls.'
5th realm is a big deal, but when I heard 'ducal clan tier spymaster' my mind went to Elder Jiao or Diao Linquin. You said it yourself 'anywhere but a ducal house.' In a ducal house a 5th realm is barely even a player, it's middle tier, maybe upper middle tier for the Bai right now. Especially since her husband is explicitly only a placeholder until a new spymistress can be trained up and he's a 5th realm. I was expecting 6th realm at least.
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EternalObserver
eYe Gaze baCk
- Location
- The Void
vote's locked. Young Woman won.
Uh...you know even in a ducal clan going above fourth realm is going to be rare as all fuck right? They generally aren't going to have more than their Counts put together
Would average high realm cultivator ever want to be spymaster? How much time would that job take, and how much can he/she profit from doing this personally? Better give this job to trustworthy minion.
The same can be said about pretty much anything. The Hui pawned off rulership on minions to focus on their political games and self gratification. Everyone has their niece, the things they do to remain valuable, and spycraft is up there in the things higher realms do want to take care of personally. Spycraft to a high realm is like Perception is to our level, something of which some have little and some have much but most have some because without it you're blind to ambushes.
Though noting that a lot of Ways suited for intrigue are going to be not suited for a whole lot else.
Intrigue is finding information and manipulating people, one that cultivates anything social at all is capable of intrigue. It's part of everything including military, politics, rulership and business. Yes not everyone will be geared towards it but all you really need to play intrigue is the ability to interact with and understand people, and all you need to have at least some spycraft is allies and servants willing to tell you things. There are degrees but to completely abstain from it means not interacting with the larger empire and dedicating oneself at least in part to it is how you survive court and dealing with others, if you're the kind of clan that reaches the higher realms someone is going to have to do it to not get screwed by your peers. You don't have to be Sima Jiao but there isn't exactly a newsletter either, unless you're a hermit you need ways to get information outside your sphere.