- Location
- The United States
- Pronouns
- He/They
Makes sense.
The worm infestation the next valley over is caused by them being forced up by the gnawing ones.
-
Going forward, links to content from Twitter (now X) will no longer be embedded. Pre-existing links should not be affected.
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.
Makes sense.
The worm infestation the next valley over is caused by them being forced up by the gnawing ones.
Wonder what rank a cultivator would have to be to put the fear of the Empire into a Balrog...
- Location
- Finland
White?
I have it on good authority that the two phenomena are completely unrelated and the wormholes absolutely do not lead under the mountains to somewhere of significance. Because, if there's one thing that Star Trek has taught me, it's that wormholes always go to completely useless and boring places of no interest
Last edited:
*spits blood*
Turn 5: Arc 2-3
"The matter of the moving mountains is the most important one for us to investigate," Ling Qi announced, as authoritatively as she could manage. "As long as we mark down the other two as problem areas, the main group should be better suited to handle those."
She glanced between her subordinates while they chorused 'Yes, Ma'am', but she did not notice any discontent. That was good, she thought. "I am more experienced with spirit beasts and moon spirits than earth spirits," she continued. "Do you have any advice on how to approach the task?"
There was a brief pause, but then Chang He spoke up. "The trouble with earth spirits is getting them to notice you. That goes double for wild spirits of mountain and vale."
"He is right," Mo Lian agreed. "To a mountain, we are all flickering, ephemeral things. It is difficult for them to hear our words as more than the buzzing of flies."
Their third member gave a grunt of agreement. "I mostly hit things, but that sounds about right."
Ling Qi hummed in thought. She just might have the seed of an idea.
"...Yeah that's a you idea all right," Sixiang laughed.
"Big Sister can count on me!" Gui agreed happily.
"Assuming that I can get one's attention, do you believe you can make contact?" Ling Qi asked aloud.
The three soldiers shared a glance, marked with unease. "...Yes, I believe so Ma'am," Chang He agreed.
Ling Qi slid off of her branch, floating lightly to the ground. "Well let's be off then."
It did not take too long to reach the edge of the troubled area. Little hills and peaks rose from the vale, and branches of the river threaded between like ribbons of silver. The afternoon sunlight gleamed beautifully off rocks and water. However, despite the appearance of serene majesty, it was clear that something was wrong. No birdsong rang in the air, and the rivers paths were distorted, water flooding through trees and plants rather than flowing through the proper channels. At a glance, there seemed to be no source to this, but if one watched very carefully, the mountains moved.
It was so slow as to be near imperceptible to the eye, noticeable only after minutes of watching. It would take many hours for one of the peaks to move even a meter, but when the thing involved was so large… Ling Qi could feel the vibrations of their migration in her bones when she stood upon the ground. It took some time to find what they were looking for among the moving peaks, and in that time, Ling Qi explained her plan. Soon enough, they found their target, the smallest of the peaks, more of a large hill than a mountain, moving positively quickly compared to its larger kin. Stopping on the shore of the river that wound around its base, Ling Qi released Zhengui.
Her little brother stamped his feet in happiness as he materialized, pleased that he could be of help. Ling Qi smiled, and pretended not to notice the expressions on her subordinates faces at the appearance of Zhengui.
"Are you ready to begin?" She asked instead, patting Gui on the head as he bumped his blunt snout against her affectionately.
"Y-yes Ma'am," the old Chang He replied, tearing his eye away from Zhengui. He stood at her side. The others were fanned out through the area, watching in case things became troubled. "When you are ready."
"Alright then," Ling Qi said, slipping out of her authoritative tone as she grinned. "Zhengui, make this fellow stop for a moment."
"Yes!" he announced cheerfully, turning toward the hill so very slowly moving toward them. He stomped forward, and qi flooded into the earth. Grass and shrubs gleamed with emerald light as unnatural roots churned the soil growing downward and anchoring the earth as Zhengui rammed his head into the stony hillside.
"My Big Sister wants to talk, so you had better listen," Zhen announced, eyeing the great pile of earth and stone imperiously. Behind him, Ling Qi silently breathed out, and activated the Thousand Rings Unbreaking technique, enhancing the roots laid down and making her little brother truly immovable.
For a time, there was no sound save for the growl of effort made by her little brother as the stone he had pressed his head against pushed harder and against him. Ling Qi grimaced at the expense of activating the expensive technique a second time, but she was soon rewarded as stone splintered with an audible crack and the hill shook, a noise like a sub-sonic groan rattling her bones. For the first time, she felt the weight of the hill's qi shift, changing from a dissipate half awareness to a focused attention on the obstacle in its path.
She glanced at Chang He, who nodded sharply and kneeled down digging his hands into the soil. He spoke slowly and deliberatively, clearly enunciating each syllable. "Old One, what ails you? Why do your kind move with such speed and in such numbers?" She felt the pulse of qi in his words, conveying more than spoken words. An art then, to more clearly communicate with spirits?
It took a long moment before there was any response, but eventually with much groaning and grinding, the hill's eyes opened. Two great clefts in the earth, black as pitch save for the flickering of pale blue flame in their depths. The whole hill rumbled, a long string of noise and jumbled expression that Ling Qi was nonetheless able to decipher, thanks to her skill at music.
Chang He spoke the words even as she mulled them over in her thoughts. "The fallen star stirs. Destruction burns below," the old man said slowly, sounding troubled.
"It is afraid," Ling Qi confirmed what she could sense him thinking, and wasn't that a worrying thought. "Ask it where the 'star' is."
Chang He repeated his question, but the reply was only marginally helpful. "South, always south and deep below," Chang He grimaced as the rumbling ceased.
Further questioning proved mostly useless, and they received only fragmented answers and vague references. There was 'Poison rising from the deepest depths', and the 'the winter winds would awaken the crumbling titan'. All very ominous, none of it very helpful. The longer they forced the hill to remain still the more agitated it was becoming too.
Eventually they withdrew, and as they others rejoined them, she asked the first question that came to mind. "Did any of that make sense to you? I've never heard of a real falling star." While the term was used fairly often as a poetic descriptor, stars didn't actually move, they were just hidden while the Sun moved overhead.
"Right? I don't get it," Sixiang said, sounding frustrated. "Still, I feel like I almost remember something."
Chang He and Mo Lian remained silent, the younger of the two tugging nervously at his beard. However, it Chun Yan who spoke up, a frown on her hard features. "...I remember my gran telling a story 'bout the gods sending down a star to punish a wicked dragon king. Just an old folk tale though."
They all fell silent for a moment. "...It is probably just a flowery metaphor for something," Ling Qi said, even reading the expression directly, 'the star' was just a burning radiance descending from the sky. It almost reminded her of the Duchess, but the Cai's light techniques lacked the rippling veils of color expressed by the hills 'words'. "Perhaps a powerful spirit beast died in the south and its blood is poisoning the earth."
"Seems more likely," Chun Yan agreed.
"...Yes, that seems more likely. Should we search for the source then Ma'am?" Mo Lian asked.
"That would probably be for the best," she agreed. "You'll lead us then. Focus on the ground and look for unusual traces. The rest of us will keep watch while you search."
The clear order seemed to snap them out of their thoughts, and once again Ling Qi was treated to three simultaneous 'Yes Ma'ams.'
"I dunno, something gives me a bad feeling," Sixiang murmured in her thoughts as they set off.
"I didn't like it either," Hanyi said, speaking up for the first time in awhile. "The mountain was being creepy, I don't like it."
"Do not worry, I Zhen, will frighten away the scary lights for Hanyi," Zhen hissed teasingly.
Ling Qi sighed as the noise in her head returned to normal levels. She was probably overthinking things. Once again, she took an over watch position as they began to make their way south, painstakingly searching for unusual qi in the soil. Below, her subordinates took on a triangle formation, with Mo Lian at the head and the other two fanned out behind him. The search was rather dull to begin with, with false leads appearing that lead only to minor parasitic spirits or earth gasses tainting soil, but in wholly usual ways.
She left the subdual of the former to Chun Yan, who was quick and competent about striking and cutting down spirits with strong thrusts of the spear she carried on her back. The three of them worked well as a team, strengthening her suspicion that the three were quite familiar with each other. Chun Yan was the spear, Chang He was the shield. Mo Lian was the odd man out, acting to support the other two with a more varied set of skills.
As they traveled further south however, the false starts dried up. There was a winding vein of something strange in the earth. Where it passed, grass and trees showed faint signs of withering sickness, and certain spirit beasts were more aggressive. It seemed that the more closely aligned a spirit was to earth or wood qi, the greater the effect. Even Zhengui reported feeling slightly queasy when he dug his roots into the earth where the strange taint passed.They struck down maddened beasts as necessary, and kept pressing south.
Eventually, the trail led them to a grey and withered valley, filled with bubbling muck. The grasses and plants within were twisted and grey, save for tumorous patches of color that marked the bark of some trees. They had not been able to investigate peacefully. Blighted and glowing insects had swarmed out the moment Mo Lian had stepped over a seemingly arbitrary line, and it was only a swift activation of the Forgotten Vale Melody that had driven the bugs back.
From there she had stayed with the group, her melody driving back the veritable carpet of chittering, sickly beasts that would have otherwise threatened to overwhelm them with sheer numbers. The sickness in the soil ran deep here, welling up from a depth far beyond the ability to sense. At the very center of the tainted valley, the mud gleamed with vibrant color from all across the spectrum, glowing and pulsing eerily under the darkening sky.
Even Ling Qi had little desire to linger once they had found the center of the phenomenon. They dug for a time, to see if the source could be unearthed, but it resulted only in a growing nausea among her subordinates. Even Ling Qi found her skin prickled under the strange glow, and perhaps it was only her imagination, but her gown rustled unnaturally, the trailing hems seeming to shy away from the sickly light. She had ordered the withdrawal after that, and ordered the three of them to set fire breaks around the valley. Once it was done, she had Zhen spray his venom across everything even vaguely flammable. When in doubt purifying by flame was rarely wrong. That done she resolved to mark down both the valley and trail of poison in her report and let someone more qualified deal with purging the taint.
Once they had reached a safe distance, she dismissed them to make camp. They would rest for two hours to recover their qi and then begin working on the rest of the region. As Ling Qi seated herself atop a flat rock to meditate however, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye.
"Senior Brother," she greeted calmly, refusing to rise to his bait.
"Junior Sister," Laio Zhu greeted in turn, seated on the trunk of a tree that hung crookedly from the cliffside on which she was perched. "I am glad to see your nerves remain in good condition."
"Of course," she replied dryly, she was not really in a joking mood though. "Senior Brother, what do you make of what we found today?"
"Ah but that would be telling, Junior Sister, I am disappointed that you would seek to use your Senior Brothers unmatched experience to pad your score," he replied lightly. She turned her head just enough to give him a flat look. He laughed at her, but his gaze sharpened. "It is somewhat concerning. This is not a matter for Inner disciples, I think. You did well."
"Have you ever heard of a falling star?" She asked, almost whimsically.
Liao Zhu however, considered her question very seriously. "I have, and it is why I am concerned."
Ling Qi frowned. "Where, an old village tale like Chun Yan?"
"Nay, my family is from the capital junior sister. We have served the dukes of Emerald Seas since the early days of the Hui," he laughed. "Though our current duchess has little use for physicians. Why my father told me that she performed the operation to deliver your liege herself!"
Ling Qi blinked and then shook her head, forcefully dismissing the images that called up. "You're trying to distract me," she accused.
"Perhaps," he agreed, the grin fading from his tone. "But… I have spent many long hours watching and infiltrating the Cloud Tribes," he said gravely. "There is an old tale, which they speak of in the same way that we do our Fishers, Diviners, and Conquerors. They say that, pitying the plight of the men who toiled under the dragons, Father Sky summoned the brightest star in the sky, his daughter, to free them of their bondage. Before the star, the artifice and mighty works of the dragons crumbled like dust. When the dragons fell, the star elected to remain on earth and took a husband from among the freed tribes, she bore a son who would be their first leader. However, while the star was the daughter of Father Sky, she was not born of Mother Earth, and so they and their descendants be denied the blessings of earth and live their lives in the Sky and the Mountains."
Ling Qi shifted uneasily at that no doubt abridged legend. "...Do you think the Cloud Tribes really have a Sublime Ancestor, somewhere in the Wall?"
"There is no proof of such a thing," Laio Zhu replied. "And you will be laughed at if you suggest it. Imperial scholars have long debunked their primitive myths, and the living dragons scoff at such stories," she couldn't help but feel that he was being a bit disingenuous with that statement. "But… Your Senior Brother is perhaps a touch paranoid."
"...You're pretty bad at setting the mind at ease, you know?" Ling Qi replied.
"I am no such thing," he denied, in a voice full of wounded pride. "For that was not my intent. Be careful on the morrow, Junior Sister."
Before she could reply, he was gone.
"...He's great to look at and all, but I think he likes that mysterious act a little too much," Sixiang said flatly.
"You're not wrong," Ling Qi sighed, closing her eyes to meditate. She couldn't let herself get worried over stories. If a horde of barbarians came screaming over the border, she'd worry about it then. For now, she needed to plan the rest of the scouting.
She would…
[] Work with Chang He to pacify or disperse spirits as necessary.
[] Work with Mo Lian, using her flight to help him with mapping and cataloguing.
[] Work with Chun Yan to hunt or mark down dangerous and unfriendly spirit beasts.
[] Leave them to their individual tasks and search the southern border for signs of barbarian activity.
She glanced between her subordinates while they chorused 'Yes, Ma'am', but she did not notice any discontent. That was good, she thought. "I am more experienced with spirit beasts and moon spirits than earth spirits," she continued. "Do you have any advice on how to approach the task?"
There was a brief pause, but then Chang He spoke up. "The trouble with earth spirits is getting them to notice you. That goes double for wild spirits of mountain and vale."
"He is right," Mo Lian agreed. "To a mountain, we are all flickering, ephemeral things. It is difficult for them to hear our words as more than the buzzing of flies."
Their third member gave a grunt of agreement. "I mostly hit things, but that sounds about right."
Ling Qi hummed in thought. She just might have the seed of an idea.
"...Yeah that's a you idea all right," Sixiang laughed.
"Big Sister can count on me!" Gui agreed happily.
"Assuming that I can get one's attention, do you believe you can make contact?" Ling Qi asked aloud.
The three soldiers shared a glance, marked with unease. "...Yes, I believe so Ma'am," Chang He agreed.
Ling Qi slid off of her branch, floating lightly to the ground. "Well let's be off then."
It did not take too long to reach the edge of the troubled area. Little hills and peaks rose from the vale, and branches of the river threaded between like ribbons of silver. The afternoon sunlight gleamed beautifully off rocks and water. However, despite the appearance of serene majesty, it was clear that something was wrong. No birdsong rang in the air, and the rivers paths were distorted, water flooding through trees and plants rather than flowing through the proper channels. At a glance, there seemed to be no source to this, but if one watched very carefully, the mountains moved.
It was so slow as to be near imperceptible to the eye, noticeable only after minutes of watching. It would take many hours for one of the peaks to move even a meter, but when the thing involved was so large… Ling Qi could feel the vibrations of their migration in her bones when she stood upon the ground. It took some time to find what they were looking for among the moving peaks, and in that time, Ling Qi explained her plan. Soon enough, they found their target, the smallest of the peaks, more of a large hill than a mountain, moving positively quickly compared to its larger kin. Stopping on the shore of the river that wound around its base, Ling Qi released Zhengui.
Her little brother stamped his feet in happiness as he materialized, pleased that he could be of help. Ling Qi smiled, and pretended not to notice the expressions on her subordinates faces at the appearance of Zhengui.
"Are you ready to begin?" She asked instead, patting Gui on the head as he bumped his blunt snout against her affectionately.
"Y-yes Ma'am," the old Chang He replied, tearing his eye away from Zhengui. He stood at her side. The others were fanned out through the area, watching in case things became troubled. "When you are ready."
"Alright then," Ling Qi said, slipping out of her authoritative tone as she grinned. "Zhengui, make this fellow stop for a moment."
"Yes!" he announced cheerfully, turning toward the hill so very slowly moving toward them. He stomped forward, and qi flooded into the earth. Grass and shrubs gleamed with emerald light as unnatural roots churned the soil growing downward and anchoring the earth as Zhengui rammed his head into the stony hillside.
"My Big Sister wants to talk, so you had better listen," Zhen announced, eyeing the great pile of earth and stone imperiously. Behind him, Ling Qi silently breathed out, and activated the Thousand Rings Unbreaking technique, enhancing the roots laid down and making her little brother truly immovable.
For a time, there was no sound save for the growl of effort made by her little brother as the stone he had pressed his head against pushed harder and against him. Ling Qi grimaced at the expense of activating the expensive technique a second time, but she was soon rewarded as stone splintered with an audible crack and the hill shook, a noise like a sub-sonic groan rattling her bones. For the first time, she felt the weight of the hill's qi shift, changing from a dissipate half awareness to a focused attention on the obstacle in its path.
She glanced at Chang He, who nodded sharply and kneeled down digging his hands into the soil. He spoke slowly and deliberatively, clearly enunciating each syllable. "Old One, what ails you? Why do your kind move with such speed and in such numbers?" She felt the pulse of qi in his words, conveying more than spoken words. An art then, to more clearly communicate with spirits?
It took a long moment before there was any response, but eventually with much groaning and grinding, the hill's eyes opened. Two great clefts in the earth, black as pitch save for the flickering of pale blue flame in their depths. The whole hill rumbled, a long string of noise and jumbled expression that Ling Qi was nonetheless able to decipher, thanks to her skill at music.
Chang He spoke the words even as she mulled them over in her thoughts. "The fallen star stirs. Destruction burns below," the old man said slowly, sounding troubled.
"It is afraid," Ling Qi confirmed what she could sense him thinking, and wasn't that a worrying thought. "Ask it where the 'star' is."
Chang He repeated his question, but the reply was only marginally helpful. "South, always south and deep below," Chang He grimaced as the rumbling ceased.
Further questioning proved mostly useless, and they received only fragmented answers and vague references. There was 'Poison rising from the deepest depths', and the 'the winter winds would awaken the crumbling titan'. All very ominous, none of it very helpful. The longer they forced the hill to remain still the more agitated it was becoming too.
Eventually they withdrew, and as they others rejoined them, she asked the first question that came to mind. "Did any of that make sense to you? I've never heard of a real falling star." While the term was used fairly often as a poetic descriptor, stars didn't actually move, they were just hidden while the Sun moved overhead.
"Right? I don't get it," Sixiang said, sounding frustrated. "Still, I feel like I almost remember something."
Chang He and Mo Lian remained silent, the younger of the two tugging nervously at his beard. However, it Chun Yan who spoke up, a frown on her hard features. "...I remember my gran telling a story 'bout the gods sending down a star to punish a wicked dragon king. Just an old folk tale though."
They all fell silent for a moment. "...It is probably just a flowery metaphor for something," Ling Qi said, even reading the expression directly, 'the star' was just a burning radiance descending from the sky. It almost reminded her of the Duchess, but the Cai's light techniques lacked the rippling veils of color expressed by the hills 'words'. "Perhaps a powerful spirit beast died in the south and its blood is poisoning the earth."
"Seems more likely," Chun Yan agreed.
"...Yes, that seems more likely. Should we search for the source then Ma'am?" Mo Lian asked.
"That would probably be for the best," she agreed. "You'll lead us then. Focus on the ground and look for unusual traces. The rest of us will keep watch while you search."
The clear order seemed to snap them out of their thoughts, and once again Ling Qi was treated to three simultaneous 'Yes Ma'ams.'
"I dunno, something gives me a bad feeling," Sixiang murmured in her thoughts as they set off.
"I didn't like it either," Hanyi said, speaking up for the first time in awhile. "The mountain was being creepy, I don't like it."
"Do not worry, I Zhen, will frighten away the scary lights for Hanyi," Zhen hissed teasingly.
Ling Qi sighed as the noise in her head returned to normal levels. She was probably overthinking things. Once again, she took an over watch position as they began to make their way south, painstakingly searching for unusual qi in the soil. Below, her subordinates took on a triangle formation, with Mo Lian at the head and the other two fanned out behind him. The search was rather dull to begin with, with false leads appearing that lead only to minor parasitic spirits or earth gasses tainting soil, but in wholly usual ways.
She left the subdual of the former to Chun Yan, who was quick and competent about striking and cutting down spirits with strong thrusts of the spear she carried on her back. The three of them worked well as a team, strengthening her suspicion that the three were quite familiar with each other. Chun Yan was the spear, Chang He was the shield. Mo Lian was the odd man out, acting to support the other two with a more varied set of skills.
As they traveled further south however, the false starts dried up. There was a winding vein of something strange in the earth. Where it passed, grass and trees showed faint signs of withering sickness, and certain spirit beasts were more aggressive. It seemed that the more closely aligned a spirit was to earth or wood qi, the greater the effect. Even Zhengui reported feeling slightly queasy when he dug his roots into the earth where the strange taint passed.They struck down maddened beasts as necessary, and kept pressing south.
Eventually, the trail led them to a grey and withered valley, filled with bubbling muck. The grasses and plants within were twisted and grey, save for tumorous patches of color that marked the bark of some trees. They had not been able to investigate peacefully. Blighted and glowing insects had swarmed out the moment Mo Lian had stepped over a seemingly arbitrary line, and it was only a swift activation of the Forgotten Vale Melody that had driven the bugs back.
From there she had stayed with the group, her melody driving back the veritable carpet of chittering, sickly beasts that would have otherwise threatened to overwhelm them with sheer numbers. The sickness in the soil ran deep here, welling up from a depth far beyond the ability to sense. At the very center of the tainted valley, the mud gleamed with vibrant color from all across the spectrum, glowing and pulsing eerily under the darkening sky.
Even Ling Qi had little desire to linger once they had found the center of the phenomenon. They dug for a time, to see if the source could be unearthed, but it resulted only in a growing nausea among her subordinates. Even Ling Qi found her skin prickled under the strange glow, and perhaps it was only her imagination, but her gown rustled unnaturally, the trailing hems seeming to shy away from the sickly light. She had ordered the withdrawal after that, and ordered the three of them to set fire breaks around the valley. Once it was done, she had Zhen spray his venom across everything even vaguely flammable. When in doubt purifying by flame was rarely wrong. That done she resolved to mark down both the valley and trail of poison in her report and let someone more qualified deal with purging the taint.
Once they had reached a safe distance, she dismissed them to make camp. They would rest for two hours to recover their qi and then begin working on the rest of the region. As Ling Qi seated herself atop a flat rock to meditate however, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye.
"Senior Brother," she greeted calmly, refusing to rise to his bait.
"Junior Sister," Laio Zhu greeted in turn, seated on the trunk of a tree that hung crookedly from the cliffside on which she was perched. "I am glad to see your nerves remain in good condition."
"Of course," she replied dryly, she was not really in a joking mood though. "Senior Brother, what do you make of what we found today?"
"Ah but that would be telling, Junior Sister, I am disappointed that you would seek to use your Senior Brothers unmatched experience to pad your score," he replied lightly. She turned her head just enough to give him a flat look. He laughed at her, but his gaze sharpened. "It is somewhat concerning. This is not a matter for Inner disciples, I think. You did well."
"Have you ever heard of a falling star?" She asked, almost whimsically.
Liao Zhu however, considered her question very seriously. "I have, and it is why I am concerned."
Ling Qi frowned. "Where, an old village tale like Chun Yan?"
"Nay, my family is from the capital junior sister. We have served the dukes of Emerald Seas since the early days of the Hui," he laughed. "Though our current duchess has little use for physicians. Why my father told me that she performed the operation to deliver your liege herself!"
Ling Qi blinked and then shook her head, forcefully dismissing the images that called up. "You're trying to distract me," she accused.
"Perhaps," he agreed, the grin fading from his tone. "But… I have spent many long hours watching and infiltrating the Cloud Tribes," he said gravely. "There is an old tale, which they speak of in the same way that we do our Fishers, Diviners, and Conquerors. They say that, pitying the plight of the men who toiled under the dragons, Father Sky summoned the brightest star in the sky, his daughter, to free them of their bondage. Before the star, the artifice and mighty works of the dragons crumbled like dust. When the dragons fell, the star elected to remain on earth and took a husband from among the freed tribes, she bore a son who would be their first leader. However, while the star was the daughter of Father Sky, she was not born of Mother Earth, and so they and their descendants be denied the blessings of earth and live their lives in the Sky and the Mountains."
Ling Qi shifted uneasily at that no doubt abridged legend. "...Do you think the Cloud Tribes really have a Sublime Ancestor, somewhere in the Wall?"
"There is no proof of such a thing," Laio Zhu replied. "And you will be laughed at if you suggest it. Imperial scholars have long debunked their primitive myths, and the living dragons scoff at such stories," she couldn't help but feel that he was being a bit disingenuous with that statement. "But… Your Senior Brother is perhaps a touch paranoid."
"...You're pretty bad at setting the mind at ease, you know?" Ling Qi replied.
"I am no such thing," he denied, in a voice full of wounded pride. "For that was not my intent. Be careful on the morrow, Junior Sister."
Before she could reply, he was gone.
"...He's great to look at and all, but I think he likes that mysterious act a little too much," Sixiang said flatly.
"You're not wrong," Ling Qi sighed, closing her eyes to meditate. She couldn't let herself get worried over stories. If a horde of barbarians came screaming over the border, she'd worry about it then. For now, she needed to plan the rest of the scouting.
She would…
[] Work with Chang He to pacify or disperse spirits as necessary.
[] Work with Mo Lian, using her flight to help him with mapping and cataloguing.
[] Work with Chun Yan to hunt or mark down dangerous and unfriendly spirit beasts.
[] Leave them to their individual tasks and search the southern border for signs of barbarian activity.
Last edited:
...I suppose that probably explain why nobody survives entering that tomb mentioned in the interlude. Also if they ever manage to get a white tier cultivator... just pray the Horned Lord is willing to hold to oaths even when the other party ended up not doing so.
the hills qi > hill's
the hills eyes > hill's
passed.They > passed. They
the trail lead them > led
When it doubt > in
"Nay, my family is > needs an extra blank line above
their descendants be denied > are
is there any point to mapping when the mountains are still moving?
the hills eyes > hill's
passed.They > passed. They
the trail lead them > led
When it doubt > in
"Nay, my family is > needs an extra blank line above
their descendants be denied > are
is there any point to mapping when the mountains are still moving?
Last edited:
- Location
- Fabulously Rainbow Ireland
Shenhua is hardcore!
As far as Spirits are concerned, that was blindingly straightforward. Took a bit to get all the pieces, but it is a hill.
Diomedea
A piece of the continent
- Location
- The interblag
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[] Work with Chang He to pacify or disperse spirits as necessary.
Chang He: peak of the second realm, specialties were in earth and wood arts, with a lean toward defensive and social arts.
Spirit Ken route. If we were closer to having C capped I'd push this, but we're pretty much at 0/25.
[] Work with Mo Lian, using her flight to help him with mapping and cataloguing.
Mo Lian: mid second realm in both forms of cultivation, water and earth arts- specialized in personal concealment and short range sensory arts.
This is the stealth & perception guy. Given we'd be flying around, I'm guessing using our flight and perception to get the maps as good as we can get them. Probably good utility.
[] Work with Chun Yan to hunt or mark down dangerous and unfriendly spirit beasts.
Chun Yan: mid second realm, specialized in wind arts, dabbled with heavenly ones - mobility and offensive arts
Fast and speedy stabbing. Combat cleanup of minor beasties. Ling Qi would make it go faster and clean things out more thoroughly but, eh...
[] Leave them to their individual tasks and search the southern border for signs of barbarian activity.
I think this is the best option. Someone should check to make sure the barbarians nomads are not wandering close for some reason. No one else will be doing it, so it kinda falls to Ling Qi. In light of everything being stirred up and the cause seemingly somewhat connected to cloud nomad legends, I'd prefer if someone did this.
Chang He: peak of the second realm, specialties were in earth and wood arts, with a lean toward defensive and social arts.
Spirit Ken route. If we were closer to having C capped I'd push this, but we're pretty much at 0/25.
[] Work with Mo Lian, using her flight to help him with mapping and cataloguing.
Mo Lian: mid second realm in both forms of cultivation, water and earth arts- specialized in personal concealment and short range sensory arts.
This is the stealth & perception guy. Given we'd be flying around, I'm guessing using our flight and perception to get the maps as good as we can get them. Probably good utility.
[] Work with Chun Yan to hunt or mark down dangerous and unfriendly spirit beasts.
Chun Yan: mid second realm, specialized in wind arts, dabbled with heavenly ones - mobility and offensive arts
Fast and speedy stabbing. Combat cleanup of minor beasties. Ling Qi would make it go faster and clean things out more thoroughly but, eh...
[] Leave them to their individual tasks and search the southern border for signs of barbarian activity.
I think this is the best option. Someone should check to make sure the barbarians nomads are not wandering close for some reason. No one else will be doing it, so it kinda falls to Ling Qi. In light of everything being stirred up and the cause seemingly somewhat connected to cloud nomad legends, I'd prefer if someone did this.
globalwarmth
ruining the weather.
- Location
- Polar ice caps
It certainly sounds like a star, unfiltered celestial chi was radiation in this setting right?
DimensionalGuy
Lazy Bastard
- Location
- Sweden
Reminds me of the blasted heath from the colour out of space. I'm very intrigued.
- Location
- the internet
Considering how all these signs of trouble are explicitly said to be quite ominous, I think the option of splitting up so everyone is solo might not be cautious enough. On the other hand, that last option is the most scouting-oriented job...which is our actual role so...
- Location
- United States of America
Welcome to Qi radiation! Not only does it mutate your body, like regular radiation, but it also mutates your very soul! Have fun!
- Location
- The Star Kingdom of Manticore
I really disagree with going out on our own. We have been warned not to seek glory. Going off on our own towards Barb land sounds a lot like glory seeking.
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
Eh, it depends right now. The oddity here and the connection to Cloud Nomad Legend makes doing a quick border check defensible. As long as we don't start any fights.
- Location
- Espoo, Finland
Checking for barbarian activity would make sense if there has been a falling star and it has deep religious symbolism for Cloud Tribes.
I am rather convinced that if there is a risk that there are barbarians afoot then army *should* know about it and army gains that knowledge through scouts doing their jobs - that this is exactly situation where she should go out independently.
[] Leave them to their individual tasks and search the southern border for signs of barbarian activity.
I am rather convinced that if there is a risk that there are barbarians afoot then army *should* know about it and army gains that knowledge through scouts doing their jobs - that this is exactly situation where she should go out independently.
[] Leave them to their individual tasks and search the southern border for signs of barbarian activity.
- Location
- PA
[X] Work with Mo Lian, using her flight to help him with mapping and cataloguing.
The problem I have with haring off after Cloud boyos is that this is just an old legend of theirs, nothing to say really that this means they're up to no good again.
Plus, if that Shaman we ran into was any indication I don't think that sort of thing is how they operate, typically? Or at least I hope they don't.
The problem I have with haring off after Cloud boyos is that this is just an old legend of theirs, nothing to say really that this means they're up to no good again.
Plus, if that Shaman we ran into was any indication I don't think that sort of thing is how they operate, typically? Or at least I hope they don't.
Jensaarai
Sing Victory Everlasting
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Holy shit, it's the Colour out of space. And LQ put her hands in it!
That's correct. I think it was nighttime celestial qi that's supposed to be incredibly toxic when it isn't filtered by the sky.