Previous chapters: https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Heretic%20Cultivator%20QuestMC info Pastebin: https://pastebin.com/x5rCdZpqSect/ disciple info Doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1A0Yghkqs4WxALnnlVJ2uPpphQk9NQ4ME32DzC1qWp7Q/edit?usp=sharingFolklore: https://pastebin.com/AnbsrDcd_A very exciting match is about to start, the finale of the martial arts tournament of the Qi condensation bracket of the tournament being hosted at the Garden of the Wild Empress temple. Your temple, in your arena. Two of your disciples at the pinnacle of the Qi Condensation stage are about to face off, and you can practically feel your blood boiling from the anticipation alone. Lian Luli, who might be the most talented of the generation behind yourself, and the vengeful ghost of Yujijiao, who has grown into a most ferocious spirit and far surpassed the legacy of her short life as the Oasis guarding beast princess that was dubbed the Jade Horn. A young girl, who is overflowing with vitality, spunk and a strong determination to survive despite how heavily the odds are stacked against her, and a girl who died and lingers on in death, fuming about how tragically short her life was cut down but whose found a second life in death.Oh what the hell! Why not share your excitement with the crowd! Slapping your palms down on your knees, you shoot up from your seat, startling two of your five guests, He Ping and Ehuang, while the more well traveled Liao Gang, the heretic who is hiding behind inside the robes of a long ago extinct sect and Xue Long, your mother's annoying son who unfortunately could be called your brother, remain cool and composed as you rush to the ledge and throw up your hands"This is the peak of this event!" You declare loudly voice booming and crashing like thunder as you lift your hands above your head and clench them into fists before hopping onto the ledge, teeth lengthening to fangs in your delirious excitment as your tail sprouts just above your, currently, very human buttocks as you yowl with delight.Swinging down on hand, you point down at the ghastly visage of a human woman stapled to the neck of a giant serpent at the neck, Yujijiao preferred look and signature style!"In the northern side! We have the tragically slain princess of beasts, the protector of desert oasis, one of the numerous victims of that foul tempered ogress!" You cheer, lips parted into a grin that doesn't quite fit on your human face, as starlight glimmers from your now lifted and flowing crimson hair "Yujijiao! The Jade Horn! My regent down in the crypts I own and the fairest princess of the dead. A young, fierce spirit, who spreads famine wherever her baleful gaze falls! And the princess born of curses, to whom the lesser dead bow! THE SOLE PRACTIONER OF JIEDIQI (The Famine of Breath, 饥饿的气,) Outside of the blazing cauldrons of Daiyu! She who suckled upon the vendetta born of her own demise!"Cont
>>6157472You stop to take a breath as the crowd hushes, hanging on your every word "The dead disciple, only the one who ever will be called that if I have anything to say about it!" You finish of her introduction "Give a earth splitting, sky splitting round of applause for the most adorable of the contestants, everyone!"Xue Long shoots you a disbelieving, almost offended look, clearly not know anything about your tastes or sense of aesthetics. Snickering, you swirl your finger and jab it down at Luli"And stop, so I can introduce the cutest contestant as well!" You demand, still snickering before stifling it to introduce Luli to the crowd, thought they already know her well, but then again, they also know Yujijiao well "We have the gift given to me by my friend, Lady Lian! Her own much adored little sister, and the only flower grown from the thousand lotus hall with some real thorns. The little mistress of mushrooms, the swaying leaf dancer, the little tyke with one hell of a kick, and the young fairy of spring... Luuuuuuli~!"Luli bows her head, blushing furiously "Heiress of the Lian clan! Who shall surpass its founder! The deadliest thing beneath the heavens of her size and one of the proudest, fastest rising stars in my palace whose taken her ancestral laws to new and stranger heights and who still has some very nasty surprises tucked away in those short sleeves of hers. As well as her just darling little mushroom familiars! Give her a round of applause that will rip the very boundary between the land of the living and hell apart! I, the queen of beasts, empress of hungry ghosts, demand it! Show them your admiration, mortals, immortals, daoists, Buddhists, rich, poor, beast and man, all of you, applaud them, thank them in advance for the once in a life time show they're about to give us, NOW DAMMIT"And you relish in the thunder that follows, and the resounding roar of cheers and chants of Yujijiao and Luli. Ahhh, if only you'd placed a few calculated bets before this leg of the tournament began."Now, without further ado, they've already had their chance to exchange words, now is the time for them to exchange blows and..." You start, flicking your tongue across your teeth before"Master" Yinying says softly and you whip around and hiss at him, annoyed by the mood sullying appearance of perhaps your most faithful disciple and personal, self appointed bodyguard"WHAT!" You snarl, stomping a foot hard into the railing you're standing on, snapping it and sending dust and pebbles down onto the stands"Lord Xia has returned from the errand you requested he complete" He answers, ears flattened against the sides of his head "As has your mother, and all other disciples sent to investigate the source of the beast stampede, whole and well"Cont
>>6157473And that good news makes you nearly forget how angry you were about this interruption, but remembering how tight lipped Xia Jinse-Shayu and the messenger her sent were about what happened, even to the point of not saying if anyone was hurt or died out in the field, which thinking about again soils your good mood as soon as you'd reached it. But it doesn't spoil the hype and intoxicating rush you feel in anticipation for the finale of the Qi condensation fights"Ohoho! That's quite the face you're making, Huanliuxue, didn't think that fairy face of yours could wrinkle and screw like that" Xue Long laughs, and He Ping, Ehuang AND Liao Gang's heads twist to look at him aghast and horrified, no doubt expecting you to violently react to that remark, and Xue Long remains as cool as his father was before you melted him with localized sun created inside of his own body. But you decide to allow what he said to slide, if only because he shares blood with your adoptive mother and thinking about it, past the raising of your hackles and demands of your pride, what he said was a little funny.You still have half a mind to cut his tongue in half, but that is neither here nor there. Reigning in your conflicted feelings, and composing yourself with a single, deep breath you smileAnd what do you decide to do, after this sudden interruption of the last match and your fun, Huanliuxue?>Tell Yinying to tell Xia to write a report, and carry on with the fight and commentate it>Put Luli and Yujijiao's fight on hold, and stomp off to listen to what Xia Jinse-Shayu has to say and what happened over the border>Invite Monu to watch this last fight, since you know she likes both Yujijiao and Luli more than she does most people, which may not be saying much, but still, you want to see her>Force Yinying and Xue Long to be your co commentors, as...Punishment?>Just step out of your body, and puppet it from a distance so you can both hear Xia and Monu's account of their mission and give a running commentary on the match (Coordination trial. DC 95)>write in
>>6157474>>Tell Yinying to tell Xia to write a report, and carry on with the fight and commentate it
>>6157474>Just step out of your body, and puppet it from a distance so you can both hear Xia and Monu's account of their mission and give a running commentary on the match (Coordination trial. DC 95)
>>6157474>Invite Monu to watch this last fight, since you know she likes both Yujijiao and Luli more than she does most people, which may not be saying much, but still, you want to see her
>>6157474>Imvite Monu, we can hear his report later.
>>6157474>Invite Monu to watch this last fight, since you know she likes both Yujijiao and Luli more than she does most people, which may not be saying much, but still, you want to see herIf something bad happened we will know the instant she appears, if things went well she can tell us how it went after the fight.
>>6157474>Invite Monu to watch this last fight, since you know she likes both Yujijiao and Luli more than she does most people, which may not be saying much, but still, you want to see herMomma is an excellent commentator too
>>6157474>>Just step out of your body, and puppet it from a distance so you can both hear Xia and Monu's account of their mission and give a running commentary on the match (Coordination trial. DC 95)oh boy, What happened?Also we can use this to train ourselves in using our spirit and body at the same time, a neat little challenege.>>6157624Junior there are children watching this tournament.
>>6157474>>Just step out of your body, and puppet it from a distance so you can both hear Xia and Monu's account of their mission and give a running commentary on the match (Coordination trial. DC 95)
>>6157474>Just step out of your body, and puppet it from a distance so you can both hear Xia and Monu's account of their mission and give a running commentary on the match (Coordination trial. DC 95)Wait, when was the last time Xue Long saw Monu? That's a reunion that'll probably give him an aneurysm
>>6157695Like that ever stopped her....
Rolled 1 (1d2)Ending and tallying the vote, hope you can forgive my tardiness juniors. Grandfather was busy over the weekend searching auctions and markets for suitable gifts and offerings to his venerable ancestors and clan mates for the seasons holidays.Tell Yinying to tell Xia to write a report, and carry on with the fight and commentate it:1Just step out of your body, and puppet it from a distance so you can both hear Xia and Monu's account of their mission and give a running commentary on the match:5Invite Monu to watch this last fight, since you know she likes both Yujijiao and Luli more than she does most people, which may not be saying much, but still, you want to see her:5There's a tie. So i'll break it quickly1- Step out of your body2- invite Monu
>>6159771Alright, so you'll attempt to hear the mission report and commentate the match, at the same timeUpdate will arrive shortly
There is no reason to be upset or panicked. Monu is alright, and no one is dead. Not that death is any obstacle in the palace of natural laws sect, but it would be a mark on the temple and your own personal pride if one of your students had died on their covert mission. And besides, there is a way for you to be in two places at once. You have a soul and a body. And your spiritual senses are honed, and have a far enough range for you to observe the match even if your mind is elsewhere. The only difficulty is observing it closely enough to accurately commentate on it and being able to puppet your empty, limp body well enough to accurately and passionately broadcast the amazing bout between Luli and Yujijiao. Which depending on what Jinse-Shayu says, might be made more difficult because who knows what happened or who got hurt when that Ling bastard showed his face and frightened your poor little sister, Jionghuagege half to death. And who knows how the sects they entered into an alliance of convivence react to that battle and the truth that more than half of their valiant saviors were all "Demonic Beasts""Hey, brother, watch this!" You declare bawdily, winking as you step out of your body, immediately making Ehuang shriek and cling to Liao Gang as He Ping nearly chokes on his tea and Xue Long stiffens his back before he narrows his eyes and hisses through your teeth."What a heretical refinement! Cutting the string between body and soul" He balks, shaking his head "Your intimacy and veneration towards the dead has gone so far for you to mutilate your own self so as to better mimic the hungry ghosts and rampaging phantoms!. Would you even die if your body was killed. What an obscene art, what eerie mysticism! To reduce one's self willingly to a wandering soul, to become a living ghost. I'd be outraged if I didn't know to expect it from the master who taught her pupil how to survive as just as head""Oh calm yourself, master snowman" The mask wearing heretic chortles, shaking his head "Just because it is macabre and strange, doesn't mean it is so obscene. To renounce ones own earthly attachments and to sever with their own hand the mortal ties between immortal spirit and frail mortal flesh, is it not enlightened? Also, think of how useful such a transformation could be, to become a spirit on the wind, unweighed by thine own earthly sins"Xue Long's expression softened and you couldn't help but to admire your fellow heretics absolute mastery of bullshiting and tricking Orthodox cultivators into believe the lies he sold them"Well" You say, waving a spectral hand as the limp vessel you left behind, caught in the arms of Liao Gang and He Ping, rises twitchily up, making Ehuang faint and He Ping shriek as you buried a few strings and twine of Ghostly Yin Qi into the still, slumbering flesh, pausing to admire and enjoy your beautiful sleeping face as you began to puppet your own lifeless body.Cont
>>6159782 Much like you would while playing Ghost Empress melody to control a corpse or someone else's living body. Of course, without the magical tool to facilitate the puppeteering, actually controlling and moving around your empty shell was a little more difficult than it would've been if you had your Guqin on hand."Grotesque" Xue Long muttered as you purposefully contorted your body's arms in a way that would've hurt even for someone as flexible as you are, just to make the process of figuring out which strings to put where and when to pull them to make your body move a certain way all the more disturbing roll 2d100. DC 95. Best out of five Also got my senior martial brother a journal containing all the lore and short stories from black myth wukong!
Rolled 58, 10 = 68 (2d100)>>6159783
Rolled 9, 26 = 35 (2d100)>>6159783Woot woot
Rolled 60, 68 = 128 (2d100)>>6159783>Also got my senior martial brother a journal containing all the lore and short stories from black myth wukong!That's rad. I was surprised at how fun that game was. And just HOW MUCH style it oozed.
Rolled 77, 21 = 98 (2d100)>>6159783Well, I'm sad that we're starting to show off more, but maybe that's also a good thing? Give our enemies more to think that we're comfortable, when we still have an entire arsenal to work with.
>>6159803Revealing this trick does sting slightly, but showing off is well worth the price to see Xue cringe.Just agree that we aren't entering the martial bracket of the competition.
>>6159807I think that's already a done deal.
>>6159809Whhhhhaaaaat?!I don't want to fight in the golden core bracket. I don't want to reveal our secrets and killing moves and I ABSOLUTELY don't want to lose because we are holding back!Everyone present is an enemy, in the future or in the past, Entering tournaments without a mega prize is a net loss for us in every metric.Fuck, we can take the alchemy and medicine and maybe spell casting trials, show off some skills that they can't easily replicate or learn from, like a formation that teleports around using astral qi or any of our poisons.
Rolled 73, 84 = 157 (2d100)>>6159783
>>6159823Incredible success! 60 over DC. Update will arrive shortly
>>6159821Hm, back in thread 24, one of the options as to how to start the tournament was with the golden core bracket, with us as a participant. I suppose it hasn't been totally decided yet, but that tells me that Huan has the intention to participate.
>>6159831I make it noted I oppose in the strongest possible terms, and instead insist we ought do an alchemy/medicine display as a form of promotion and face saving measure.Not something detrimental in the long run.
Channel blood and Qi to the lungs and throat, to create the illusion of breathing and allow your empty body to speak on your command, wrap the tongue in a thousand little spider webs to make it wag and pin and needle your jaws with ghostly tethers to let you open and close your mouth and speak. Flutter and open your eyes, sharpening them with increased blood flow, and move them with both the hooks of ghostly yin qi and the tightening and opening of the blood vessels inside of them"Uncanny" Xue Long says, sounding haunted as you bring your hands up to your hair and brush and comb it back into an acceptably messily wild man as you march your soulless body up to the top of the ledge and take in a deep breath "This is...I cannot see the difference between her puppeteering her empty vessel and her normal movements, it is a perfect recreation. That means...""We can never know if we're talking to Huanliuxue or her discarded shell" The heretic says, voice grim as he turns to face your ghost "And never know if, in the event we are thrown into battle against one another, that if victory means her death or if she will simply usurp another. Most disquieting indeed, brother daoist""She...she didn't just renter her body" He Ping gasps, face draining of color as Liao Gang strokes his beard nervously"And we can never be certain if she isn't within one of our own students, acting as them. I heard...she'd possessed that saintess doctor" He says softly, losing all of his warrior spirit and boldness as you smirk, having turned revealing one of your most elementary and early techniques into a source of paranoia and uncertainty for anyone who learned of the art Severing of the Eternal soul and Mortal vessel [刌 永恒魂会死㿾, Cǔn-Yǒnghénghún-Huìsǐzhù]"Or if she is invisible in our halls. She can repress her Cultivation Aura and ghostly presence better than any other I've met, surely, she could disguise her ethereal, haunting presence and overwhelming Deathly yin Qi just as easily, when she becomes a living ghost" Xue Long shudders as you make your body shout and get all of the arenas attention as you swiftly travel as your unique looking ghost flame to find where Xie Jinse-Shayu and Monu are waiting. As well as Qiang, Baifenchi, The Geges, Siwang, Huili and the Fa twinsYou find them waiting in this temple's ornate throne room, standing among the trees that act as both decoration and structural supports."Ah, sweet daughter!" Monu chirps excitedly as you transform your ghostly body to resemble your regal, feline self, making Lord Xia Jump and Baifenchi coo. You frown, as elsewhere you declare the opening moves of Luli and Yujijiao's match, Luli tossing a handful of seeds and sprouting them midflight as Yujijiao attempts to knock her out instantly via draining her life force.Cont
Your mother, and all of your students are bandaged, and wearing different clothes and robes than you sent them out in. Qiang has bruises across her face and shoulders and wrappings all down her arms, Huili is lounging in his human form, his entire face covered in gauze, while Baifenchi's wings are covered in paper talismans containing healing magic. Jionghuage has a cut on her cheek, and Tiexingege is practically mummified. Siwang has a wing in a brace and a bandage over one of his ever curious and intelligent eyes.And your dear mother has a nasty bruise across her belly, burns around her lips, and a black eye and bandages wrapped around her throat.Jinse-Shayu, without his wife or any of the disciples he brought with him, kneels"I am happy to report, that we've discovered the source of the beast stampede, most illustrious master!" Siwang shouts, saluting with his uninjured wing"And killed a lot of rabid beasts, Red fur!" Tiexingege mumbles from behind the bandages covering her mouth"And save just a many lives, and made a few friends" Her sister, Jionghuagege continues"And kept our true natures disguised, as you asked" Baifenchi said sweetly"Even spread some anti Ling sentiments while we were helping the foreign sects" Huili snorted, wiping some dried blood off of the back of his hand "Oh it is so nice to see you, Huan! It feels like I've been away for years and years" Your mother croaked, wiping a tear from her eye "And it fills my heart with such joy, to know you care so much for me to send your dog to save me when another comes biting at my heels. Not that I needed the help, the poor boy didn't know how to handle me""Your mother could have easily killed the Ling Elder, but the poisonous gasses and insects she was unleashing, could've easily have felled all the non aligned cultivators fighting alongside your disciples" Xie begins before you, contorting your ghostly form as your body, elsewhere describes the match as it begins to pick up and become a true battle between prodigies of cultivation, as Luli, using her newly refined body, endures a wave of ghostly yin qi and curses that could outright kill a foundation establishment cultivatorAs you tower over Xia in the monstrous appearance of a demonic cat and hungry ghost, you snarl one question "And why didn't you tell your messenger to tell me what had happened""I wanted to be the one to deliver the good news, your majesty" He squeaks, sweating as you snarl, and elsewhere cheer as Yujijiao grabs Luli with her maw and lifts her off the ground, before Luli explodes out of it with an cloud of spores "But, I did kill the Ling elder, with my own spear""And washed away my hard work when he drowned the battlefield with water, while his gorilla of a wife carried me away. What an ugly woman she is" Monu huffed and pouted "But as little Wusheng said, we found out, that the Ling created and direct the beast stampede. We don't know how, but I smelled Primordial beast essence on them"
>>6159855You smile and laugh, knowing it was probably the ling, but also because, after several minutes of fighting, Luli slowly starts to come out on top, countering everyone of Yujijiao's ghostly tricks until the longest match of the martial arts contests is brought to a close by Yujijiao formfitting as Luli...basically force feeds her so much lifeforce that it makes her unnable to move or keep her ghostly form coherent. Winning in a way only Luli could, incredible! And you move your body down to hug her, and help Yujijiao recover from her forced gorging of life essence"Of course, I expected as such, but I am still cross that that fish kept his mouth shut to try and impress me!" You declare happilyAnd then, with the end of the martial arts contest, what do you do Huanliuxue?>Opening declare your findings to all the gathered sects of Chuan, acting shocked>Ask for more details about Monu and the rest's journey and fights>Meet with the secret heretic and hear his story>Punish Xia Jinse-Shayu, somehow>Reward Lord Xia, somehow>Ask if the sects outside of chuan are friendly or not to the palace of natural laws>Write in
>>6159856>Reward Lord Xia, somehowHe did good, an ally, and not from our sect itself.
>>6159856>Openly declare our findings.Let the drums of ear start to beat and the flames of outrage burn.>Punish Xia [Slap him across the skull in our ghostly form. Just to discipline a kit.]Don't doctor or censor your reports of vital information. We care about success, failures and vital information. Withholding it doesn't impress us. But >Reward Lord XiaYou saved Monu, Killed the Ling, achieved all objectives given, and did so in the time it took 5 junior battle matches, and brought them back. Xia only has one wrinkle and that was his attempt to impress us. Which let's be real, it's us. Why would he not.I posit that he be given first pick of the bits of the beast we killed with Ao Or an offer to have his chosen students train under us for a spell. A session or two should advance their cultivation by leaps and bounds.AND he may have a small Favour to be called in later, On account of truly flawless timely behavior. /we may also have just out him into the ling War with this act so let's reward them properly.He can forfeit the first two rewards for a second minor favour. Like healing his golden core ass.
>>6159856>Punish Xia Jinse-Shayu, somehow>Reward Lord Xia, somehowReward his sect with the spoils of the ocean hunt we did and reward his wife in his stead with something cool because he witheld information.Maybe even the mountain strength pill so when he upsets her she can smack him around proper.>Meet with the secret heretic and hear his storyAs much as I want to declare the Lings as the evil they are we haven't heard the full story yet and consulted with our new Ling ally on how to spin it.
>>6159856>>6159936Support.Think this'll increase Xia's endearment towards us, or decrease it?
