Mmmm, had the other option won, while we might avoid causing big collateral damage since it would've been 1 degree of success, we would've still killed the creature. A shame, I was personally rooting to capture it to make up for that super close roll the last time we encountered a star boy.
Yeah but since capture or kill depended on degrees of success and we only had a single one we would have killed it. And caused more collateral damage at that.
(50% success. Beast captured or slain depending on degree of success. Higher risk of damage. More intelligence on similar creatures)
Yeah but since capture or kill depended on degrees of success and we only had a single one we would have killed it. And caused more collateral damage at that.
It is worded as "captured or slain depending in the degree of success". And I doubt 1 degree of success is enough to make it into a capture, when slaying it is still a success as mentioned by the vote itself.
It is worded as "captured or slain depending in the degree of success". And I doubt 1 degree of success is enough to make it into a capture, when slaying it is still a success as mentioned by the vote itself.
Yeah they are saying we probably would have needed to roll at least a 50 to capture it if we had full omake points and picked the other option. So we still wouldn't have captured it with the actual roll of 35.
"Are you certain about using yourself as bait?" Ling Qi asked, giving her companion a concerned look.
"Miss Ling, I am aware that my cultivation has fallen behind, that is why I suggest it, a predator is more likely to strike for a meal it believes it can swallow," he said. "You've decided then?"
"I don't think a capture now is worth risking damage, and… by these beasts' own words, there is an infestation."
"I have never heard a single creature called an infestation before," Gan Guangli agreed with a grin.
Ling Qi gave a terse nod and then they were her flying, and Gan Guangli following with a powerful leap that carried him across the lake. He began to leak his qi into the air, trailing streamers of light from the joints in his armor. Ling Qi did the opposite, flitting into the shadow of the canopy of trees on the lakes other side.
Above, the gleaming light took a lazy turn, following their trail as Gan Guangli ran and ran.
In the shadows of the branches, Ling Qi dissolved herself entirely. Compared to her earlier efforts it was as easy as breathing, formless as a spring breeze, weightless as a shadow, in that moment, she ceased to be, and yet she could still see and hear. Gan Guangli landed atop a high boulder, perhaps or perhaps an ancient bone. It was white and chalky and rose high among the trees. It crunched under his boots raining pebbles, and Gan Guangli staggered, a wheeze of breath escaping his lips. Even his qi fluctuated wildly.
For just a moment, Ling Qi actually worried, but no, it was a ruse. In the same vein as what he had done against Lu Feng.
"A wise soldier knows deception is an invaluable tool, an enemy who sees what they wish to see rather than what is has already defeated themselves."
The voice in her mind was not Sixiang, but a deep, smooth masculine baritone.
"Yeah, yeah keep telling yourself its all about practicality you solar tightwad," Sixiang grumbled, even as colors spun themselves into bloodied wounds and skin flushed with exertion across Gan Guangli's body. "You have as much fun with this as we do."
"A well considered stratagem is hardly a lunatic whim," the voice that could only be Gan Guangli's. "But, then again, you are remarkably restrained."
"Ling Qi, you've ruined me. I'm getting compliments from a solar!" Sixiang complained.
If Ling Qi had lips, she would have smiled, but she left the good natured bickering of spirits for what it was. The enemy was approaching. It was descending, having begun to dive as Gan Guangli 'caught his breath'. It was a good ruse, good enough for a bestial enemy certainly.
She got her first look at the creature then. It had the vague silhouette of an eagle or condor, but only in vague terms, like something Biyu might squash together from a handful of clay and present as a 'bird'. It had no feathers, only slick, transparent flesh that had the texture of a maggot. It's wings were thus nothing more than misshapen membranes, shot through with twitching pulsing veins of wormy color. Shapes that might be bones or organs squirmed within its body distorted by the light passing through, but its transparent flesh darkened to a deep gray black where taloned feet emerged, more like sickle blades of bone than something that could be walked on. Worst was the beasts 'head' which was nothing more than a wedge like lump, lined with four pairs of beady eyes.
As the spirit dove, that head split apart into four sections, lined by crystalline teeth, exposing a black gullet full of glimmering rainbow color that seemed to have little too do with its physical form. The sound that erupted from that well of nauseating color could not be called a roar or a screech, but only a horrible, indefinable noise so high as to be at the very edge of hearing.
Ling Qi saw the trees themselves bending as if to sway away from it, branches withering and needles crumbling to choking grey dust as the aura of distorted air around the beast came into contact with them. Gan Guangli turned atop the stone, already crossing his arms in front of him.
And chaotic light erupted from the beast's open maw.
It scoured the air, a line of eye searing colors, and yet it did not tear up the earth or kick up a storm of winds. Instead, in its wake, things crumbled. The brush and the soil became a drifting dust that glimmered in the same sickening color, trees disintegrated where it touched them, not melting or burning but simply ceasing.
She saw the light engulf Gan Guangli, and felt Sixiang wince as their woven illusion came apart. She trusted Gan Guangli to weather it though. The beast hung in midair, it's membranous wings pushing down to maintain its position, mouth opened and reared back.
Ling Qi materialized above the beast, and the gale of her raised voice struck it like a hammer. The moist air froze in a spontaneous sheet of sleet. But it didn't fully reach the creature she could feel her qi unraveling around the creature, weakening the effect. But it did not effect the mist billowing out among the trees, constrained to only a small space, a cage and trap. Unlike her technique, the beasts strange aura did not repel her Mist very much.
But the beast was not helpless, even with parts of its ghastly flesh blackening with frostbite, it spun on her in defiance of its form, turning in the air as easily as she did, and Ling Qi felt her eyes sting as it closed the distance without moving, its four part jaws trying to snap shut around her head.
It closed on her, and bit through nothing more than air and motes of shadow, the image of a future that wasn't and the soft laugh of escaping air. Ling Qi sang wordless in response as she faded back into the mist, the cold and the shadows settling like a heavy cloak as she contracted the world down to only herself and her foe
…This was her Mist, a little world, an ugly world, an empty world, the elegy of a lost child where there were no friends, only foes and uncaring shadows. Forsaken, as Huisheng had said. It was sad that this mindless brute could not appreciate it much, Ling Qi thought as another horrific noise erupted from the spirit, scattering the mist in a small circle as the beast reared back and violently vomited another disintegrating ray of light.
Ling Qi raised her hand, the little bells and fine chains wrapped around her wrist, tinkling softly as she activated the talisman and swiped away the nauseous light like painter contemptuous of the canvas before them. Unusually though she felt the talisman grow warm, and her eyes flicked toward it, seeing tarnish creep over the silver.
…Well once would be enough, she hoped. Because, although this murderous brute could not feel the depths of isolation, it was still blinded to all but her.
And it's blindness did not stop a stone the size of wagon burning white and gold with sunfire from smashing it into the ground like a meteor hammer.
Gan Guangli stood like a lighthouse in her mist, three meters tall and shrouded in golden light. His armor was pitted, much of his forearms bare and the flesh red and scoured, there were splotches of blood here and there where that light had scraped away skin and flesh. He wore a grimace, but Ling Qi thought that the six golden hands flaring behind his back, hefting similar chunks of stone beginning to glow with his qi were the more memorable part of the image.
She sang a song of marching glaciers as the beast fell under the burning stone, and the gale force of the wind sent it hurtling down all the harder.
It struck the ground with a boom, splintering the earth and felling trees, but it was not enough. The rock crumbling, disintegrating into a cloud of sickening dust, and its glistening form shot up. Ling Qi saw in the blur of motion, the beast inhaling, its chest and the strange organs within inflating, and the dust was drawn in. She saw flesh knit, and what passed for qi ignite, reserves refilling as it devoured a portion of what it had destroyed. It spun in midair, weaving past one stone and then a second. It dropped straight down to avoid the third, and Ling Qi was there in front of it, carried by the breeze.
Her fingers burned as if she had dipped them into molten metal as she laid her fingertips on the beasts back and sang a note of silence with the full weight of her qi behind it.
The distorted air ceased around the beast, its crumbling aura halted as heat, energy and everything else was ripped from the area, and the beast spasmed as its gummy flesh froze and shattered revealing beating organs covered in frost and splitting from the cold.
But it didn't die.
A scythe like talon lashed out as the beasts limbs abruptly reversed, flesh tearing and squirming as its back became a front, and Ling Qi barely had the time to throw herself out of the way as a line of scouring unmaking light caught her across the flank, shearing unneringly past the images that fled in every other direction.
Ling Qi hissed in pain at the feeling of heat and impact, but it was nothing compared to the wail that went up in her head, mindless and bestial as the hems of her dress suddenly went wild snapping and flapping in winds that weren't there.
Ling Qi looked down in alarm, seeing the blackened threads curling back from the cut in her gown, wriggling threads trying and failing to knit back together.
And then the fists came down, and smashed the beast back to the ground, a dozen blows, smashing it flat in a blur of gold, and then as it tried to rise a palm composed of liquid golden sunlight.
And still, something tried to rise from the blackened handprint left behind, sucking in the kicked up dust like a vortex.
For the second time that day, Ling Qi sang a note of absolute silence, and only then did the movement stop.
"I feel for our neighbors," Ling Qi said, alighting on a fallen tree. This section of the woods was devastated by even the brief combat, she saw as her mist faded away. Wherever its light had touched the earth was dead. She fingered the cut in her gown, and let out a breath of relief, the threads were still restoring themselves, the ruined silk flaking away as new threads grew, but it was agonizingly slow.
Gan Guangli grimaced, rubbing his forearms, and she saw the crumbled metal of his armor doing the same. "I suspect without its high pedigree we might both be out our talismans."
Ling Qi nodded silently, dangerous, these beasts, even one so mindless. She peered suspiciously into the burnt and now frozen brush. Sure enough the thing was disintegrating into a grayish powder before her eyes. "We may need to inform someone of this, if these beasts are a related species…"
"I am informed."
Ling Qi stiffened her head whipping around at the sudden voice, recognizing it as Shu Yue, but there was no one there.
"Well, I suppose we'll just have to assume it is something we can handle if no one says otherwise," she grumbled.
Naturally there was no reply to her words.
Gan Guangli chuckled. "Now, now Miss Ling, there's no use in that. Shall we dispose of this and let our neighbors know the danger has passed?"
"I suppose," Ling Qi sighed, considering her burnt fingertips. The skin was red angry, little blisters forming here and there. "But I am not putting that dust in my storage ring."
"Probably for the best," he said with a grimace. "Hm give me a moment to hollow out a stone."
They took it a little slower returning, but as they came near the great manor nest they found the old spirit beast and his grandson awaiting them. Both of those beasts kept up appearances, but Ling Qi could feel the shock and surprise practically emanating from the old beasts litter bearers.
"We have exterminated the beast, though I assume it is only one of many," Ling Qi said as she alighted on the grass. Gan Guangli still trundled along behind. He had hollowed out a small boulder with his hands to carry the dust and ash in, and though it did still seem mildly corrosive, it would probably be enough until they got back.
"It was, so long as the demon light infects the ice, and the shrines within, they will continue to come," the Elder beast said, stroking his whiskers thoughtfully.
"...Your works are potent," the younger said, eyeing them. Ling Qi's gown was finished repairing, but the plates of Gan Guangli's bracers were still slowly regenerating.
"Our Lady has access to many potent things," Ling Qi said blandly. "Of course, we would be willing to aid you, as good neighbors should."
"We know the ways of the Great Work, and could repair the prison if protected, ending such poisonous infestations would be most neighborly for us both," the old beast said, dipping his head.
"Of course, you won't object if we visit for further talks then?" Ling Qi asked.
Adventure Location, Will be added to actions on next turn
All things told, a very successful trip, in Ling Qi's mind. Though she wasn't looking forward to telling Renxiang that there was another infected tumor of alien qi in their land.
But, such was the life of a new baron.
Probably. It definitely wasn't just her, right?
Arc End
To prep for the next arc, please vote for one of the following regions to gain more information and a potential rep boost in for the Hou Zhuang project. Both have a 30% chance of gaining +1 rep if selected.
[ ] The Foundations
[ ] The Central Valley
Map and region key will shortly be on the front page
I think hitting 3 is a more worthwhile breakpoint than reaching 2, since at three there's the possibility of active institutional aid, so I favor the Foundations over the Central Valley.
Central Valley is the under the Diao, Foundations is under the Wang IIRC. Given that the Diao are much more delicate, it seems like that would be a good place to improve our stuff more.
But didn't we do that last time? I mean we could keep hammering at it and gain some serious support from people already in power. But the Wang Matriarch (IIRC) has a dream that's basically what we want. And they are our neighbors. I feel like boosting there, where hill tribes and cloud nomads mix with imperial culture, and maybe we can get some insight into our own projects, and improve their visions of a united Emerald Seas under the Cai.
Mmm, so in terms of immediate arcs this turn we've got Wang group and Long Hand of the Law, where we're going to the town of Feixian, north and west of the Argent Sect.
Foundations might be most relevant to these maybe?
The distorted air ceased around the beast, its crumbling aura halted as heat, energy and everything else was ripped from the area, and the beast spasmed as its gummy flesh froze and shattered revealing beating organs covered in frost and splitting from the cold.
Okay yeah we're really starting to need FSS+. Dangerous enemies tanking our finisher leaving us in melee range with a suprised expression is not good for our health.
On turn 14 we already focus on Central Valley, maybe now it's time for Foundations?
[/] Focus your network building effort on the Central Valley (+1 to region rep on completion of the Hou Zhuang's gift project. 50% chance on completion of gaining a +1 rep boost with Thundering Hills or South River Jing region)
I feel like something channeling the concept of finality and cessation should, you know, cease things. Finally. Except when LQ pulls the punch like when she used it in her duel.
