>>6304280


"I've sensed that oddly predatory air around you since earlier today, which is quite shocking when combined to the motherly aura you started giving off a bit more recently" Xuebai points out

"I've been getting a craving for the sinful, fortunately for any tax collectors, they're either too spindly or fatty for my refined tastes" You joke, even though you do feel an urge to take a bite out of the neck demon that tries to threaten or terrorize you, and find yourself wondering how their sinful life energy and meat would taste raw and bleeding...

"Stop drooling after talking about eating officials! I thought you'd lost your taste for humans!" She snaps you out of your wonderings and you snicker

"Who said I was talking about human tax collectors" You titter, raising a paw to your mouth "And I never had a taste for human flesh, I just ate a few of them when I was younger. I'm a carnivore by nature, but a picky eater. Human meat is no delicacy"

Not to mention, humans can talk back unlike most other kinds of meat out there in the wide world...

"So you've gotten a taste for devils? Right around when they've gotten a taste for you?"

"Survival of the fittest, eat or be eaten" You laugh "Now lets get back to the tournament grounds and give the fighters the good news, that they can have a day or maybe a few to prepare to thrash each other in my arena"

"Mother will be delighted, I'm sure, not many ways to prepare to fight a poison master of her caliber" Xuebai, finding her good sense of human, snickers alongside you "How devilish you are sister"

"And it'll give me some time to recuperate elegantly and recover from this "Delightful" day trip down to the yellow springs" You mutter under your breath, feeling sore all the way down to the marrow of your bones...

And what is it you'll do while the contestants prepare for their matches, Huanliuxue?

>Prepare for your froggy disciples return, and hear what he and Ao found while they went tomb raiding

>Practice with the verdant path of carmine mysticism, and make a show of Pure carmine mysticism with your two "Descendants" to show the sects of Chuan its no demonic cultivation

>Get to work with Monu in making Qiang her Gu organ eye out of the Lunar Gu Fu helped you prepare! (Alchemy trial. DC 85. DC severely reduced via Monu's expertise and Huan's blood alchemy/ control)

>Mingle with and play around with the other cultivators of your level, including the five former gods, as a way to measure their strength and excite them for the grand finale to come

>Write in

>>6304281
>>Get to work with Monu in making Qiang her Gu organ eye out of the Lunar Gu Fu helped you prepare! (Alchemy trial. DC 85. DC severely reduced via Monu's expertise and Huan's blood alchemy/ control)
I am tempted to get ready for Ao and Canlan's return by making a tree to hide in and jumpscare them. But alas, not daughteru needs her eye. Would not do to tarry on our promised rewards.

>>6304281
>Get to work with Monu in making Qiang her Gu organ eye out of the Lunar Gu Fu helped you prepare! (Alchemy trial. DC 85. DC severely reduced via Monu's expertise and Huan's blood alchemy/ control)

>>6304281
>Get to work with Monu in making Qiang her Gu organ eye out of the Lunar Gu Fu helped you prepare! (Alchemy trial. DC 85. DC severely reduced via Monu's expertise and Huan's blood alchemy/ control)

>>6304281
>Get to work with Monu in making Qiang her Gu organ eye out of the Lunar Gu Fu helped you prepare! (Alchemy trial. DC 85. DC severely reduced via Monu's expertise and Huan's blood alchemy/ control)

Gotta go rescue fu in space. Should reward him by fixing up his scars. Poor guy.

>>6304281
>Get to work and make the eye

>>6304281
>Prepare for your froggy disciples return, and hear what he and Ao found while they went tomb raiding
A quick debrief of their adventure first...

>Mingle with and play around with the other cultivators of your level, including the five former gods, as a way to measure their strength and excite them for the grand finale to come
And a bit of mingling since it won't be long before they have to return to their own sects, gotta play the role of the host!

>>6304345
Didn't we bring him back already?

>>6304281
>Practice with the verdant path of carmine mysticism, and make a show of Pure carmine mysticism with your two "Descendants" to show the sects of Chuan its no demonic cultivation

Yah know what's funny since we turn water to blood. We could create blood fruits ethnically free. In fact later we could empower the divine blood drop in such a way.

>>6304281
>Get to work with Monu in making Qiang her Gu organ eye out of the Lunar Gu Fu helped you prepare! (Alchemy trial. DC 85. DC severely reduced via Monu's expertise and Huan's blood alchemy/ control)
>>6304505
Yeah we took Fu home at the same time we got the space beasts, his lungs and circulatory system got walloped, but prolonged oxygen deprivation wouldn't mess him up at this point (I think)

>>6304281
>>Prepare for your froggy disciples return, and hear what he and Ao found while they went tomb raiding

File: 1712547992597850.png (2 KB, 400x400)

2 KB PNG

Sorry juniors, time ran away from me again, but I'll end and tally the vote now

Get to work with Monu in making Qiang her Gu organ eye out of the Lunar Gu Fu helped you prepare!:6

Prepare for your froggy disciples return, and hear what he and Ao found while they went tomb raiding:2

Mingle with and play around with the other cultivators of your level, including the five former gods, as a way to measure their strength and excite them for the grand finale to come:1

Practice with the verdant path of carmine mysticism, and make a show of Pure carmine mysticism with your two "Descendants" to show the sects of Chuan its no demonic cultivation:1

So you'll get to work creating the Gu Organ Eye for Qiang out of the Lunar Gu Fu helped you prepare, with Monu's help of course

Update will arrive shortly

"You've no idea how highly your praises are being sung by those old fossils who'd once had it in their hearts to have you recieve the death by a thousand cuts" Your mother snickers as you waltz up to her as she lounges, surrounded by a dense cloud of Opium and ground spirit stones "I find it amusing how quickly cries of Maneater have turned to cheers of beneficence and tender hearted generosity, even if"

She snickers and flicks her fat tongue around the stem of her silver pipe, puffing and making the ember burn bright as she makes a lewd expression and shifts her legs

"Between the two of us, I am the bigger "Maneater" by far" She cackles, her beautiful face looking rather ugly with all the guffawing and streams of smoke spurting from her lips and nose

"The difference is, how I eat people and how you "Devour" them, is rather different isn't it mother? your "Victims" rarely complain about your "Hungers" You titter and tease as you waltz up to her, flicking the sleeve of your sleeve "How much longer is that opium going to last you, anyways?"

"Your tone tells me you aren't planning on forcing me to train to humiliate my peers in the battle to come" She, rather adroitely, points out "Some whim has struck you again, and rooted deep in your heart. Hasn't Huan~"

"Not a whim, a promise. A prize yet to be given to one of my more favored disciples" You explain and she nods along

"The eye to replace the one Qiang lost to the hands of a babbling ghost?" She drawls, lifting herself up, her exposed chest bouncing as she relaxes in her pile of cushions

"It is amazing how resistant you are to falling into an opium haze" You off handedly remark as you plop yourself down right next to her, and scare on of her night time companions, who judging from her dress, was a member of the Innocent Witch Court. Well, she's had hers taken at the hands of a true witch, Heh-Heh. You give your mother a judging look as she sneers proudly, as the sudden movment alerts her other companion and your judging look turns much more scathing

"Lord Xia's sired some rather handsome boys" Monu weakly admits, wilting as you scowl at her and the Xia clan member scrambling away as tendrils of ghostly Qi extend from your back and soak into the air

"Tch, you've got trashy tastes" You reprimand your mother, smacking her hand and taking her pipe, dumping it out as the man scurries back legs trembling, like he's afraid you'll geld him. Though you might make Lord Xia do it, probably wouldn't need to strong him at all considering the eyes he'd be throwing your mothers way. But that's a thought for another day

"Get cleaned up, we're going to make a Gu and then a Gu Organ, Ao should be back with manuals and treasures to explain how its done, and if not he can explain the basics and we can figure out the rest"

"You're not mad at me, are you?" Monu chuckles with a forced, smile

"No just disappointed in your low standards" You snicker and soon your mother is right back to cackling

Cont

>>6305658


Roll 2d100. DC 85. Best of five

Rolled 38, 54 = 92 (2d100)

>>6305659

Rolled 59, 86 = 145 (2d100)

>>6305659

Rolled 54, 44 = 98 (2d100)

>>6305659

Rolled 1, 16 = 17 (2d100)

>>6305659

>>6305675
Ooof.

Rolled 98, 37 = 135 (2d100)

>>6305659

>>6305666
Phenomenal Success! EXACTLY 60 over DC Nothing cannot be accomplished when Mother and Daughter put their heads together

Update will arrive shortly

>>6305683
I'm just glad my nat 1 didn't override the succes

>>6305685
Lucky for you (and Qiang) we have nat 1 protection as long as we aren't fighting someone like Ao

>>6305685
once again, we are pure bullshit

Ever since Monu regained her youth and was rejuvenated to her former glory, you've reluctantly and unfortunately become very familiar with your adoptive mother's lustful and covetous nature. She is, but nature, a hedonist. But the moment Fu and Feiqing bring out the barrels containing the moon critter's prepared for being used in the Gu, her eyes light up and she looks at the collected insects and vermin with a greater desire than she has ever shown towards a jade beauty, handsome Xia, or towards a bottle of her favorite Kaoling wine or pure opium powder. She examines each component of the ritual, still alive and squirming, with such intense fascination and excitement you'd wonder if the process of handpicking the poisonous, venomous and toxic creatures for the Gu didn't bring her to a greater high and pleasure than...well any of her usual habits and vices.

"After the "Surprises" You had us fight during the last round, my excitement to work with these lesser beasts cannot be overstated, Darling daughter of mine" She says as she stretches out one of the eel like you'd happened upon Fu snatching from a lake of moon dew, much to the great displeasure of the little beast who looks absolutely terrified as your mother runs her well groomed and elegantly painted nails across its shimmering and smooth scales "This is all very much unfamiliar territory for me, utterly foreign insects and beasts being used to create the gu, and then transmuting the finished Gu into a functioning organ!"

"I hope you're up for the challenge then" You say, as you hold one of the more recognizable as an insect vermin by its wings, as it tries in vein to jab your palm as you state deeply into its moonstone fractual eyes "Because failure is not an option. I am cat of my word, and promised Qiang a brand new eye, one better than the one she lost in my service"

"Tch, youngster, who do you think you're talking to. I'm the foremost poisoner of this era and the last" She snickers as she gently places the stretched and kinked moon serpent back in its bamboo container "We'll just need to take sometime to categorize and identify the poisons hidden inside all of these lunar vermin, which will be mostly accomplished through trial and error. And considering the recent boost you gave me with an injection of your own Gu..."

Before you can mouth off at her for using her own body to experiment with the poisons, venoms and toxins of all the creatures Fu picked up for you, she flashes you a truly wicked smile

"Huan~, don't be hypocritical. You did much worse than just inject a bit of venom in your arm's veins, recently" She very softly and motherly scolds you. Tch, so Xuebai did snitch on you about selling your meat and organs for profit! Damn fox! You'd twist her tail if it was tangible!

"Besides' She continues as she rolls up the sleeves of her robe "We'll need to place them in different clay pots based on the virulence of their toxin, to squeeze out as much toxin as we can"
Cont

>>6305697

"And to ensure the final Gu is the as potent as it can possibly be" You assume and Monu smiles and ruffles a hand through your crimson mane of hair

"Proving your genius every time you speak, as expected of my Huan. That is exactly right. And we need to make sure the poison is all compatible and able to be mixed together without being rendered inert and useless" She says, wagging a finger as she searches a shimmering, silk like veil of a creature for something that can expel anything toxic "Which should give the Frightening Ghost King time to return and tell us the exact process of turning Gu into Organs, that he seemingly forgot to bring up before he took Yuanquan out for a stroll in an old, moldering ruin"

"I can hear your worry, but Aodasheng is strong. Nothing in that old temple could harm Canlan Yuanquan, cause before it'd have the chance, that fight maniac would throw himself into battle!" You declare, utterly confident that Ao would bring the frog back home safely "And its good if he'll take his time, not only because it'll give us a chance to refine this Gu to perfection, but it'll give us time to spend as Mother and Daughter"

"Oh how sweet~" Monu chirps and coos, pulling you close and holding you to her chest, painfully reminding you of the one "Mountain" you've yet to conquer!

Double vote!

What do you talk about with Monu while you work

>How she plans to win the upcoming matches

>Ask her about love and why she finds it so easily

>Gu and Poisons! Give her a chance to ramble

>Tell her about the sequel to Hare and Hunting Hound you're planning

>Write in

And after learning how to make a Gu Organ, what traits/ Qualities do you give Qiang's New eye, Huanliuxue (Pick 3)

>The killing light/ Laser beam that some Cosmic beast have

>Turn her blood into poison/ Grant immunity to toxins weaker than her Gu

>Make it be able to separate + turn back into the Gu insect

> Blink short range teleportation

>Cosmic Nature Hybridization

>Venomous Glare

>Moonlit invisibility

>Blood Moon Resonance

>Mood Dew Tears

>>6305698
>Ask her about love
Time for material for our book! And not at all for a villainous romantic rival trying to split up best couple.

Hmm, Qiang is an assassin so;
Blood into poison
Seperate back into a gu insect
Moon [or mood] dew tears

So my theory is that Gu is a strong protection and attack option, the dew makes for a good barter/money option in a pinch, and the transformation back into a Gu insect is for the subtle moves

>>6305698
>Ask her about love and why she finds it so easily

>Make it be able to separate + turn back into the Gu insect
>Venomous Glare
>Mood Dew Tears

>>6305698
>>Ask her about love and why she finds it so easily

The Three to compliment her style
> Blink short range teleportation
>Moonlit invisibility
>Turn her blood into poison/ Grant immunity to toxins weaker than her Gu

These fit her best in my opinion

>>6305698
>How she plans to win the upcoming matches

>Make it be able to separate + turn back into the Gu insect
>Moonlit invisibility
>Cosmic Nature Hybridization
Qiang already follows our law which has teleportation-like techniques

>>6305698
>>Ask her about love and why she finds it so easily
Inb4 "It ain't love, I just fuck, daughter"

>The killing light/ Laser beam that some Cosmic beast have
>Turn her blood into poison/ Grant immunity to toxins weaker than her Gu
>Mood Dew Tears
I am torn between the Glare and the Tears. But considering the LASER EYE she probably doesn't need to double down on offensive options from it. And the killing light the cosmic entities have are really, really effective and dangerous, which makes it a pretty good choice IMO. And having a really "out there" option to attack with gives her a lot of diversity in tactics even if it doesn't seem to mesh with her normal strategies or style of combat.

No one expects the big guy to be the fast one, no one expects the assassins to have a flashy bright attack. And surprise more often than not determines a victor.

I'd also be worried that if the thing can turn back into an insect and attack it'd be more vulnerable to being destroyed again than it being in her face all the time.

>>6305698
Ah, Monu. Sometimes I wonder if you're not trying to make us a little brother/sister.
>Ask her about love and why she finds it so easily
I am curious about more of her past, but this topic is certainly tied to that
>The killing light/ Laser beam that some Cosmic beast have
>Turn her blood into poison/ Grant immunity to toxins weaker than her Gu
>Cosmic Nature Hybridization
Laser because it gives her a sneaky trick in a unfavorable situations, poison blood is a combination of offense and defense since she does have some blood qi control, and a good ol Mystery Box (or one step closer to her being able to pull a DMC Vergil)

>>6305698
>Cosmic Nature Hybridization
>Turn her blood into poison/ Grant immunity to toxins weaker than her Gu
>Make it be able to separate + turn back into the Gu insect

>>6305698
>> Blink short range teleportation
>>Moonlit invisibility
>>Turn her blood into poison/ Grant immunity to toxins weaker than her Gu
Supporting assassin stuff.

Just wanted too see where we were with the Eye stuff since it'll probably be messy
>Laser Beam:2
08tWTsfq
ImhPUbv+
>Poisonous Blood:6
8W19Huqd
/G0g3tP+
08tWTsfq
ImhPUbv+
uHHr4opb
yw5o7y4v
>Transforming eye:4
8W19Huqd
5wWSFaoq
E8eEU8pr
uHHr4opb
>Short Range Teleportation:2
/G0g3tP+
yw5o7y4v
>Cosmic Nature Hybridization:3
E8eEU8pr
ImhPUbv+
uHHr4opb
>Venomous Glare:1
5wWSFaoq
>Moonlit Invisibility:3
/G0g3tP+
E8eEU8pr
yw5o7y4v
>Tears:3
8W19Huqd
5wWSFaoq
08tWTsfq

If my count is accurate, Poisonous Blood and a the eye being able to separate and transform are 1 and 2 with a three way tie for the last slot. My only argument is that teleportation will become redundant as she learns the moves in our law (Broken Clock, Phantom Cat Waltz, Rancor Gallop)

>>6306290
Switching from Blink to Tears to break the tie. Cultivation materials >> an aspect without appropriate Cultivation options

Ending the vote and

>>6306508
Junior is most diligent for undertaking the tallying tribulation in Grandfather's place!

and with >>6306723
this change

The Gu Eye that Qiang will be given will have the traits/ Quality of

Poisonous Blood/ poison resistance
The ability to turn back into a Gu Insect
And let her cry moon dew tears

as for the other half of the vote, which some of you've forgotten

Ask her about Love:5

How she plans to win:1

So you'll ask Monu about love and how she finds it so easy

"Mother, you're experienced in love" You say as your hands are busy dividing Moon Creatures into the Gu Vessels in a dim chamber of the central castle of your garden temple

"Hah, that's one way of putting it" Monu titters, eyes narrowed into serpentine slits as she presides over a court of insects from the stars and stranger things yet, surrounded by foul vapors and hanging poisonous mists, her black hair drooping and dripping with the condensation of airborne toxins "A really polite way, Heh-Heh-Heh, how sweet of you my daughter"

"I just wonder how you find it so easily" You continue as your hands become a blur as you rile up one pot of Gu by shaking it rapidly to irritate its occupants and drive them to the orgy of violence and predation to turn the sole survivor and victor of their war in a clay pot into a true Gu

"I don't. I find lust easily. I admire beautiful young things and know that life is too fragile a thing to not pursue happiness and pleasure whenever you can find it" She snickers, eyes twinkling as she turns to you "Toad Witch I am, gluttonous I be, but the sort of flesh I seek I don't intend to make into a meal, Heh-Heh"

"Hah, you're still a bit of an old bat, mother" You sneer "You find love elsewhere, you love me, Xuebai, my students, especially my beastly ones, and your poisons..."

"Oh don't you start! And don't think to hide that you were asking about the romantic kind of love, no one knows a daughter better than their mother, not even themselves!" She barks back "And, for a time, I relished in a love. Actual love. Not the lust and flights of desire I drown myself into now. But you know how that turned out"

You purse your lips

"Ah but what a love it was. When we were young" She continues, wistfully, after several moments of bitter silence "I might've freely given my lust and my body to any paramour with a pretty enough face or delectable enough body, but...he was the only one who had my heart. Tragic and painful as it ended up being. But you've never known that kind of love"

You remain stoic and silent as you toil

"Oh you and I have loved, we love eachother, you love your students, your subjects, you love so many things and people even if you often disguise your affections with haughtiness and imperious arrogance" She says softly "Or show it in strange, often scary ways. But you've never known Love like I have. And wonder how I found it, once, so easily. That is what you meant when you asked how I find it so easily. Since I know you're too clever, even if you're a maiden yet, to mistake what I do with most of my lovers as love"

"I used to think you were just cursed with a perpetual cycle of heat" You joke "I still consider Lanfen to be in heat when she's around Fu"

"Is she still holding out hope that sourpuss will ever notice her?" Monu asks curiously

"I don't know" You answer honestly "Like you've said, I've never felt the Love you had once known and found"

Cont

>>6307192

"You have not, and I admit, daughter, the things you seem drawn to makes me wonder exactly how your love would look or who or what you could love like I loved..." She says, biting her tongue and scowling as the memory of how that love had ended up rises up like bile in her throat "But you want love advice! Every mother dreams of the day she can talk of love with her daughter! I can tell you much, about love and of lust. But"

"It still hurts to remember what you used to have with that piece of shit, before he betrayed you, ripped out your heart and killed Xuebai?" You say, knowing that's exactly what will keep her from spending days and nights talking your ear off about love and its dirtier and more wild growing sibling

"Love is poison" She says coldly "It can be medicinal, pleasant even, delightful and intoxicating. But too much of it, or finding it in a bad place or handling it improperly can kill you more readily and cruely than any of my concotions or techniques. So be wary Huanliuxue, when you eventually find love, to make sure it is grown from good soil and to not grow to reliant upon it"

"Hah as if I'd make such a mistake!" You brashly declare as you work shoulder to shoulder with your mother

"You never do anything in half measures, you're easily distracted, prone to whimsies and have a focus and determination that's seen you throw yourself into the jaws of death and challenge peaks beyond your reckoning. Its worked out so far, but do not underestimate love, girl" She says seriously and sternly, gently twisting your intact, pointed ear as you caterwaul in exaggerated pain "Promise me that the man, or woman, you eventually devout your heart to is trustworthy and deserving of your affections and all of you. Don't make the same mistake as this foolish, self centered and vengeful old witch has!"

"Mom" You say, breath halting in your throat, tongue all tangled and tie as she suddenly grips your shoulders, tears faintly glinting in them

"Promise me, Huan. Promise me. Don't think Love will last forever, that it is enough on its own for dragons and tigers to coexist, that it can solve any problems between you and him, fix both of you, make you your bests selves and' She rambles before stiffening and shaking her head "Just promise me you'll be more discerning than the Toad I was and am when you go looking for love, hopping from pond to pond, puddle to muddy puddle, doomed to remember waters so clear yet that had proven more toxic than anything I could create with the meager poisons of nature. Find a pool that is as pure and clear as it looks, without rot beneath it"

You, for once, don't know what to say and have nothing to say, as your mother's pained warning sinks into you as you realize just how badly she was still hurt from the betrayal of Xue Laohue and the murder of Xuebai, even after getting her revenge and satisfying her grudge. You want to promise her, but you know how you are and
Cont

>>6307193

"Did I interrupt an important conversation of the secrets and mysteries of girls and ladies?" Aodasheng asks, suddenly in the gloom and dark, and you have no idea how long he's been there "I was told you were expecting me, Master, and that you were waiting for instruction on how to transmute a Gu insect into a Gu Organ. I am of course, as scholar of sorts and seeker of secrets and mysteries both great and small, thrilled to tell you that the little boy you sent me to baby sit and I have rediscovered the method of Gu Organ creation and may have released something dire into the darker places of the world but that is not of too great concern. Those Gu Masters often took after their creations and became skittering, cowardly things. At least the ones I was acquainted with, but that may have been more caused by the fact I knew them as my enemies and as sources of easier Gu Poisons without all the hastle off.."

Both you and your mother glare at the ghost of incredibly poor timing who had interrupted your heartful mother and daughter talk and was now rambling and going on and on about some random nonsense!

What do you do Huanliuxue?

>Laugh off Ao's eccentricity and present Qiang with the completed Gu Eye, triumphantly and publically!

>Ask Ao if he's ever loved anyone...Romantically of course

>Wait what did he say "Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!"

>Yell at Ao to get out, finish your talk with Monu, then ask Yuanquan for details about what happened on their mission and the ghost king for the knowledge of how to make a Gu Organ

>Write in

>>6307194
>Hug Monu
>Laugh off the eccentricity and present Qiang with the completed Gu eye.

eh don't worry about the ancient evil. They are old hat.

>>6307193
Monu is surprisingly wise

>>6307194
>Wait what did he say "Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!"

>>6307194
>>Wait what did he say "Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!"
kek of course they let the poison balrog loose into the depths of the earth. I'm also sure Ao is too autistic to have fallen in love with some random chick who couldn't even cut his head off.

>>6307194
>Wait what did he say "Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!"

>>6307194
>Wait what did he say "Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!"

>Yell at Ao to get out, finish your talk with Monu, then ask Yuanquan for details about what happened on their mission and the ghost king for the knowledge of how to make a Gu Organ

>>6307194
>Wait what did he say "Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!"

>>6307194
>Hug Monu
Nice emotional moment between the two of them, I'm glad everything seems to going we-
>Wait what did he say "Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!"
YOU WHAT

>>6307193
>Find a pool that is as pure and clear as it looks, without rot beneath it
I think this is an oblique hint that Ao isn't necessarily a good choice despite the chemistry between him and Huan.
He does have a notion of loyalty, but whether that truly extends to Huan is unknown, and he would never let us know if it doesn't, not until he makes his move.

File: 1753541532899983.png (2.77 MB, 1728x1344)

2.77 MB PNG

Ending the vote, tallying the result now. Forgive me for my tardiness juniors.

Hug Monu:2

Laugh off the eccentricity and present Qiang with the completed Gu eye:1

Wait what did he say "Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!":6

Yell at Ao to get out, finish your talk with Monu, then ask Yuanquan for details about what happened on their mission and the ghost king for the knowledge of how to make a Gu Organ:1

So you'll calmly ask Ao if he awoke an ancient evil on a simple escort/ grave robbing mission.

And the stream of the malevolent specter's blabbering as well as your annoyance for him interrupting a touching and important bonding moment between you and your mother nearly causes you to miss how off handedly the ancient conqueror had mentioned the rousing of some ancient darkness he stumbled upon in the ruins of the temple of a long extinct lineage of Gu Masters. With all the care as if he was grousing about a hare that had been thieving into his herb garden!

"Ao did you awaken an ancient evil on a simple grave robbing mission!" You ask imperiously and with utmost composure and grace as you lunge and take the forgotten king by the collar of his robes. He halts his rambling about the interesting corpses he'd found deep beneath the ruins once scoured by some righteous sect centuries ago, and narrows his black and red eyes and cracks a truly audacious grin

"Firstly, my mission was to protect and guide Young Yuanquan in the age old and often reviled art of tomb plundering, of which I was quite adept in my time" He corrects you on the details of job you yourself had given him "And, yes I do suppose that would be the most apt and accurate description of what came crawling out of the gravestones the boy and I lifted up. An Ancient Evil. Much like I am myself may be called Venerable Maleficence"

"Were they an old companion of yours?" Monu asks, utterly calm as your eyes boggle and you look rapidly from the ghost that tracked in mud to this lovely moment and your mother who seems, more amused than the outraged or shocked you expected her to be

"The Cult were small fry during my era, and though I am many things, a kingly soul never stoops down to lay on the dirt to play with bugs" He answers conversationally, before flashing a kindly smile "I was aware of them, and had on occasion slaughtered their members, but I can't think of any sect I hadn't killed a few disciples of, simply because they had something I wanted or got in my way. Replacing the organs I had painstakingly refined had never crossed my mind..."

Realizing you were covering your face with both of your hands and had release Ao, you growl through your teeth and grab hold of his sleeve before he can get to raving about either the act of Gu Organ Transplantation or the reason why he had a habit of killing other cultivators to loot their corpses.

"Ao. Where did this Venerable Gu Master Skitter off to and why did you not kill it!?" You ask serenely, as you give the crazed ghost king a few gentle shakes

"Your orders to me were to "Take young Yuanquan, guard him as you would my own body, and have the poison dart frog explore the depths of the Ruins left behind by the Gu Cult"" He says, with an upraised finger and you get a sense he's enjoying this in some sick way, either because he's more used to breaking rules, standards and taboos or because he finds the role of a servant fun for some reason "I will admit, I was tempted to summon Máodīhuìsǐsǐwáng"

Cont

>>6308599

"And the reason you didn't act like your usual bloodthirsty, fight hungry and murderous self is?" You press, advancing on him as you press your forehead against his, the heat of your head nearly steaming against his corpse cold face

"Would young Yuanquan not be gravely endangered if us two titans bared our fangs and clashed? Would our alliance and friendship not be revealed to the world if I called my spear and went wild?" He answers via a questioning "I'd have gone against your orders, and having sworn to be your servant, why it felt like it'd be rather crass"

It takes a few moments for you to be able to respond, as you freeze up as you mentally work through the forgotten king's logic and can't find a fault for it save for the fact he released an ancient evil while picking through ruins! Wait...did he?

"And you didn't release this old monster on purpose?" You ask, and then it is Ao's turn to freeze up and contemplate the question as Monu laughs and stamps her silver pipeful of opium and ground up spirit stones

"No. But my enthusiasm to delve deeper and properly plunder the ruins I was escorting young Yuanquan through did lead us to to the hidden chamber the master had hid themselves in, but your student had been just as thrilled as myself..." He continues as monu lights her pipe

"Don't lie" She warns as you glare at him and he snickers

"Well I did drag the boy along, but he can never hope to grow into a man if he's coddled. I felt he could do with being taught some brashness and daring" he laughs "He was ready to declare the quest successful, after simply find the age eaten manual containing the method of Gu organ transmutation, especially after we encounter some of the ancient Gu Beetles left slumbering beneath the ruins, but they were easily enough dispatched and"

"Ao!" You shout and he bows his head "So it is your fault!"

"Yes, I suppose it is. But this weak, coddled era could use a bit more excitement and great powers. And the Gu Master was remarkably sane despite having been imprisoned and forced to fast. Sane enough at least to accept directions elsewhere, so he could stretch his legs and recuperate without getting tangled in your tail and becoming a pest to you, Lady Huan" He explains rapidly and you loosen your death grip on his sleeve "He wasn't much for conversation, the passing of eras had taken their toll upon and reduced him much as they had done to myself..."

"That sounds an awful lot like the bug man monster thing wanted to make a meal of the innocent or else rob them of their Qi and Lifeforce" You hiss

"What's the difference?" Ao and Monu both laugh as you raise your hackles along your back fur sprouting along your collar and arms

"Where'd you point him to to begin his massacre?" You snarl
Cont

>>6308600

"Ling border. I may have distorted the facts between the conflict brewing between you and them, but they seemed interested in meeting you, once they cleared the fog of ages from their thoughts with a bit of bloodshed"

"Were they also a damned carmine mystic?!" You ask angrily, shaking Ao to calm yourself somewhat

"No, but they did need a fresh infusion of blood, perhaps the cult and the original mystics had a common ancestor" He answered with a snap of his finger "Probably a few of that Shrine's degenerated members shifting in their graves, with how much Pure blood Qi you're radiating and spreading into the world, come to think of it"

"Probably, Huan, you should really seek out those old fossils and kill them before they can become competition for your own style of blood soaked sorcery or try to steal your two inductees into the practice from under your adorable nose!" Monu agrees and declares, not even annoyed that Ao has measurably made the world worse

What do say, Huanliuxue?

>Villains! You're both Villains! Hah! Dammit! Shit! Couldn't even pretend to care, you tow heartless... Fucking.... Ao! Help my mother finish the Gu! I need to patch up this mess and squash a bug [Unlocked via good karma] (Good Karma action)

>Well they're the Ling Clan's problem for now. So long as they stay out of Chuan, I can tolerate their existence. Now, before I get mad thinking about this, tell me all the juicy secrets and insights you dug up

>...Ao, go look for any signs of old form Carmine Mystic activity around my turf. I'm still mad at you, but you did do a good job helping Yuanquan and getting what I asked for, so go be useful elsewhere until I stop seething!

>Haaaah, at least this old monster you've brought out of the past surely can't be any more annoying than the seven slaughtering swords, the secret heretic attending this sect or that reborn devil I've sent out on errands. Count the Small blessings, Huanliuxue...

>Write in

>>6308602
>Well they're the Ling Clan's problem for now. So long as they stay out of Chuan, I can tolerate their existence. Now, before I get mad thinking about this, tell me all the juicy secrets and insights you dug up

>>6308602
>...Ao, go look for any signs of old form Carmine Mystic activity around my turf. I'm still mad at you, but you did do a good job helping Yuanquan and getting what I asked for, so go be useful elsewhere until I stop seething!
We'll fix this later when we aren't already juggling a dozen things.

>>6308602
That old fuck will definitely hunt kids.
>Villains! You're both Villains! Hah! Dammit! Shit! Couldn't even pretend to care, you tow heartless... Fucking.... Ao! Help my mother finish the Gu! I need to patch up this mess and squash a bug [Unlocked via good karma] (Good Karma action)

>>6308602
>>Villains! You're both Villains! Hah! Dammit! Shit! Couldn't even pretend to care, you tow heartless... Fucking.... Ao! Help my mother finish the Gu! I need to patch up this mess and squash a bug [Unlocked via good karma] (Good Karma action)

We caused this, and if he harms a single child we fucked up our primary directive.

>>6308602
>Patch up this mess [good karma]

Killing ling is good. Killing indiscriminately in the ling Lands is bad.

>>6308602
>writen in, "Did you tell him not to hunt or hurt kids or I will kill him?"
>if no then.
>Villains! You're both Villains! Hah! Dammit! Shit! Couldn't even pretend to care, you tow heartless... Fucking.... Ao! Help my mother finish the Gu! I need to patch up this mess and squash a bug. [Unlocked via good karma] (Good Karma action)
>If yes and the old froggy said he wouldn't, then at least the ling has problems

>>6308602
Excessive good karma is a trap!
>Well they're the Ling Clan's problem for now. So long as they stay out of Chuan, I can tolerate their existence. Now, before I get mad thinking about this, tell me all the juicy secrets and insights you dug up

>>6308602
>Well they're the Ling Clan's problem for now. So long as they stay out of Chuan, I can tolerate their existence. Now, before I get mad thinking about this, tell me all the juicy secrets and insights you dug up

I completely agree that excessive good karma is bad.

>>6309151
>>6309189
that's paranoia and unfoundeded.

And if you two are only concerned with benefits, just recruit the ancient evil to serve us.

I'll switch from >>6308613 to
>Well they're the Ling Clan's problem for now. So long as they stay out of Chuan, I can tolerate their existence. Now, before I get mad thinking about this, tell me all the juicy secrets and insights you dug up
If they do end up killing children we can go smash them when that happens.

>>6309199
There's a difference between doing good deeds because you want to and doing good deeds because you feel like you have to. If it were reasonably on the table at this point, I'd vote for simply warning the Master to not harm children.

>>6309326
Then we can go and do that. We don't neccercerilly have to kill the undead bastard, we can direct them properly and assign appropriate threats and aid to point him in the right direction.

He is apparently already under a distorted view of the conflict and sees himself helping us anyway.
We go over, use some blood magic to give him a pep up and direct him at the main branch and Not the Disi-Ling or the commoners.

Which is a vote you can make possible with the reversion of your vote.
Though if he refuses, we can of course kick his ass.

We aren't saving the Ling, we are preventing a natural disaster, which we have a teleportation option to do, and preserving an innocent population.

It's entirely in our wheelhouse to mot want a recreation of events that led to our creation

>>6309341
If "warn him instead of killing him" gets traction I'm willing to switch, but I'm not budging until then.

Fuck sake, Villains, Villains the lot of you.

>>6308602
(I was on a forced 4chan timeout for reasons outside my control.)
>Have your Owl disciple fly up and string some clouds together so you can make it rain blood, if he needs it he or any other leech will hopefully be drawn to this curious weather anomaly so you can judge their character, just have Ao discreetely keep an eye out.
(I don't remember the details but if there's a storm we can just do that right? Like we did it in the winter sect war?)

>>6309460
We've got the stillborn nursemaid evolution so... I'm kind on banking on him unknowingly breaching the NAP by menacing a child so Huan can teleport in his face and delete him instantly.

>>6309477
well they have 4 votes to "it's a ling problem, so any problems happening that arent in my house are not my problem" so we ain't beating that.

2 to "hey, need to go and patch up this issue" which admittedly says "crush a bug" but we could just. Not, and fix the issue by issuing directions, as I have been saying.

and now your vote of turn water into blood to try and draw attention.
So it looks like we're just letting calamities fall around the globe, from our own house, because Karma is bad actually.

>>6309484
Eh, it's Xanxia. Somebody else will rise up to challenge this new/old villain, even the orthodox sects can probably deal with him... though I would at least tell about this matter to the Disi-Ling guy we flipped to our side since his sect IS where this guy is going.

>>6309511
Right into our allies territory, because they are the border guards.

That we, the Palace of natural laws Unleashed.
But hey, it's not in our back yard so who cares.

Yes I'm annoyed and a bit bitter!

>>6309523
An early write-in not to kill ("squash a bug") this interesting new character directly, but keeping him from doing totally evil things miiiight have helped. The Gu master might be a totally fun dude and I don't want this story arc to fizzle before anything meaningful comes out of it. Also, I'm getting bored with side quests and want to show off our new abilities in the arena. Delegating this task is hard (Ao might be tracked back if he is seen and others would peobably not survive or are busy). Moreover, we are no omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent being that could be held personally accountable when anything bad might potentially happen anywhere.

I see you have not adapted your vote to achieve a compromise. Note that write-ins have always been regarded as an important tool of collaborative story-telling. Annoyed persons alike you with bitterness (self-described) are more often found on different boards of this illustrous web page. Others, with veiled bitterness, are found on different, well-known web pages without anonymous posting.
Here is a sample write-in to which I do not give my vote (yet):
> mark our current location with a fake ghost light for a return teleport with Phantom Cat Waltz; use Rapid Coffin Journey with Lively death qi to teleport to a site of impending disaster ( Ill Omen Herald, Xiōngzhàoxiānshēng ) and make it clear to the Gu master that he shouldn't attack innocents and children. Tax collectors, Ling armies, and stone statues are totally valid targets though. Teleport back afterwards.

>>6309626
I have not attempted to make compromise because the vote is 2 days old and they possess a majority. Generally speaking, these things are set within the first 6-8 hours on a relatively quick quest as once the vote is made many do not post again until a conversation comes up or an update announced.

And lacking a genius idea, a funny idea or other such catching rhetoric, I can only attempt to call into question other's reasoning to convince them otherwise. which again, tends to become increasingly non viable as the hours go on.

I also resent the implied inexperience of myself with /Qst/s and rebuke you for it.
Actually putting effort into trying to make others engage with your position is a suggestion that might yield some results, so I will thank you for it.

I'll change >>6308700
to
> mark our current location with a fake ghost light for a return teleport with Phantom Cat Waltz; use Rapid Coffin Journey with Lively death qi to teleport to a site of impending disaster ( Ill Omen Herald, Xiōngzhàoxiānshēng ) and make it clear to the Gu master that he shouldn't attack innocents and children. Tax collectors, Ling armies, and stone statues are totally valid targets though. Teleport back afterwards.
>Buff him with our blood magics for the infusion if he agrees.

My given drive is that preventing a preventable tragedy enacted by our direct subordinate is within line of our characterisation and [annoying as the diversions are from the thing we are trying to do] we aren't doing anything so important that dropping it to go and handle this brewing crisis is a cost to us.

>>6308602
I will
>>6309627
Back this. For funsies.

>>6308805
>>6309627
Changing to support

>>6309627
Could we throw in warning our Ling allies as well? Also innocents seems just a bit too broad, children seems a good stopping point.

>>6309646
by Innocents, we generally mean the peasants and nobles who don't cultivate. Because they can't do shit to hurt the Gu master and can't do anything to defend themselves. If there is an innocent cultivator, they can handle themselves.
If we did restrict ourselves to children only, then I raise the question of what happens to children, especially small children, without parents?

Warning the Disi-Ling after handling business is probably a good idea. Unsure if we have the time to tell them before we go though

>>6309626
Your idea worked better than I thought it would, so I will apologise for my bitchiness.

>>6308602

>>6309189
>>6309627
I'll switch over so long as we can get a good warning in to Disi-Ling.

>>6309648
Iunno, they'll figure out what to do themselves, or others will come and care for them. Most folks like having more hands around to help out with.

Though, I'm fine with that definition of innocent. If they're in the Ling lands as a cultivator and have an affiliation, then they're a legit military target anyway.

Heads up Juniors, I'm going to let the vote continue since its gotten rather contentious and I figure you might need some extra time to sort everything out amongst yourselves

>>6308692
changing mine to support
>>6309627

>>6309627
Okay, I can switch from >Ling clan's problem to that.

>>6309655
in cultivation stories it's generally understood that everyone should stick to their own "level" of engagement.
Because that way everyone is mostly protected from everyone elses superweapons that do major damage to weaklings in a blast radius.

We can assume any none-cultivator holding is unrelated to any cultivator buissness, and thus an illegitimate target.
where this agreement fails is when a higher tier cultivator wants a resource, or to make a resource, of a lower tier location. Like a blood mystic eating 20k commoners to fuel their arts.

I just want to keep this asshole away from doing that, and killing the [Not Disi-]Ling proper.

>>6308602
Switching from
>>6309151
to
>>6309627
>> mark our current location with a fake ghost light for a return teleport with Phantom Cat Waltz; use Rapid Coffin Journey with Lively death qi to teleport to a site of impending disaster ( Ill Omen Herald, Xiōngzhàoxiānshēng ) and make it clear to the Gu master that he shouldn't attack innocents and children. Tax collectors, Ling armies, and stone statues are totally valid targets though. Teleport back afterwards.
>>Buff him with our blood magics for the infusion if he agrees.

Changing my vote >>6308611 to
> mark our current location with a fake ghost light for a return teleport with Phantom Cat Waltz; use Rapid Coffin Journey with Lively death qi to teleport to a site of impending disaster ( Ill Omen Herald, Xiōngzhàoxiānshēng ) and make it clear to the Gu master that he shouldn't attack innocents and children. Tax collectors, Ling armies, and stone statues are totally valid targets though. Teleport back afterwards.
>Buff him with our blood magics for the infusion if he agrees.

Vote is looking pretty intimidating atm, but I'll try to make sense of and tally it sometime later today/ tommorrow

>>6310140
to relieve some pressure

>Lings problem: 1
Azv9vGXa, Conditional that would switch if it's warn but not kill, and hasn't switched yet.

>Look for some mystic: 0

>Villains, villains: 1
E8eEU8pr

>Go make blood lure and get AO to judge: 1
jbj58wwh

>>6309626
He didn't vote. Jmh0pyi4

>Mark current location for return trip, then teleport to tell Gu master Rules of Engagement then buff him with blood if he agrees: 8

8W19Huqd = 06s8i2mu
08tWTsfq
IMwcsKky
mgXTuxGN also really wants to warn the Disi-ling about the threat
/G0g3tP
aZv9vGXa
FVQJ8sq/
5wWSFaoq

If I counted right

File: 1670129170613944.jpg (1.06 MB, 1800x2400)

1.06 MB JPG

>>6310164
A thousand blessings junior! Thank you for tallying in my stead, that certainly makes the vote much easier to understand.

So you'll set a false ghost light in the middle of your garden to teleport to via phantom cat waltz, then use Ill omen Herald and meet the Old Gu Master and make it abundantly clear that Children, Innocents and the Disi Ling are off the menu/ not to be attacked, but tax collectors, ling armies and stone statues are valid targets, and if he agrees with these conditions, you'll give him a blessing in the form of blood

update will arrive shortly. Didn't mean to do it quite this late in the day, but that is how the dice happened to fall.

Stopping yourself from acting impulsively and reactionary, as a proper ruler should always remain composed and elegant in their behavior, even if they're annoyed with the careless actions of their bodyguard and advisor and apathy of their mother, you keep your heart serene and clear and nod your head once.

"I shall meet one old fossil, mother, that which Aodasheng has dug up while pilfering that tomb with Yuanquan, I'll make certain they and I reach an understanding and can thus coexist beneath the same sky" You say imperiously and Ao and Monu both flash proud looks your way, smiling respectfully as they cup their fists and bow their backs a little "And if we can't I'll slaughter him before he can cause a calamity and bloody the earth"

"Of course, Lady Huanliuxue, his continued existence is left up to your discretion alone" The ghost king agrees amicably, teeth extending into draconic fangs as teal flames crawl from the corners of his mouth "As is the inborn right of the strongest, no?"

"Don't keep us waiting for too long, darling, I'll stay back and finish up the labor to complete Qiang's fresh eye" Monu cackles and Ao holds up a hand

"And I shall ask a leave of my duty as your shield and spear, to direct your venerable mother in completing her task" Ao says and for the first time you see your mother look displeased to be spending time alone in the company of a handsome man. Guess that means corpses, ghouls and spirits are not to her taste, Heh-Heh-Heh

"If I need your help, I expect you to arrive as sudden a calamity yourself, Ao" You tell him sternly, and snap your fingers, creating instantaneously both a mock ghost flame beacon to return back to your temple by swapping places with it and sending yourself soaring across many leagues via the Ill Omen Herald technique, sending yourself to the location of the nearest impending calamity.

And find yourself some place unpleasantly hot and bright, the sun blazing a bright gold hue that feels unnatural or at least not the result of any climate. And the scent of blood surrounds you, the ground a slick slurry of mud and muck, churned and made red from spilled gore. You don't seem to be in any town, but rather a plain, and feel the hairs on the back of your head stand up on end as you spot a putrid shade of yellow you'd recognize anywhere as belonging to the Ling Clan. And you can only faintly sense the so familiar spiritual presences and well springs that'd you'd grown so accustomed to in Chuan and your own personal fief.

Its a slaughter, broken bodies and corpses tossed every where like a ransacked butcher's shot. And in the center of it all, a crouched, hooded figure sits. So the old man has similar fashion sense to the Seven Slaughtering Swords?

"Raiding. Party. Or. Border. Guard" The rattle, something clicking beneath their coats as a long, verminous, chitinous tail flicks from beneath it, strong looking and with a spade shaped point at the end.
Cont

>>6310331

"I take it you are the old master my servant unearthed?" You question, speaking gently and delicately, to sound like a princess rather than a killer as you skip closer to the creature, over the mire of filth

"Hm. Correct.' They answer in their odd, halting, voice "Looking. For. New. Body"

"A new body?" You question, tilting your head to the side "You haven't happened to try looking to steal one from my friends on this side of the world?"

"Hm. The. Rebel. Branch? No. I. was. warned" He...it answers head bowed as it picks through the carrion like an old granny shopping at a second hand shop "Need. Strong. Muscle. to. feed. my. Gu. to. Heal"

"I see, I see" You say, not understanding at all but realizing they aren't quite the abomination Jingyu was "And, my man informed you of the current state of the world"

"Only. That. The. Sun. Became. Tyranny" He answers "And. Beasts. Roam. Free"

"And. That. I. Kill. Anything. That. Harms. Children.?" You question, mimicking and mocking their manner of speech as they grab a throat and tear out the vocal cords from it and raise it in front of their robes and you start from surprise as a crawling mass of beetles, worms and centipeds surges forth and plucks the gushing organ and draws it back into their mass.

"Need. More. Voices" The bug pile says a bit more clearly as you realize they hadn't survived, they'd merely possessed or infested their Gu insects that had devoured their flesh, or perhaps their thousandth generation of decendants "What. A. Pain. But. Yes. They. Did. Mention. That. Motherly. Side. of. You. Bloodshed"

"And innocents as well? And the Disi Ling, just to be certain you don't chop up my allies for bug feed?" You press

"...The. Palace. Of. Natural. Laws. Is. a. Righteous. Sect? The. Dead. Man. Should've. told. me" They say and make an awful chittering noise that you just assume is laughter "Would. Not. Have. Guessed. Considering. how. he. spoke. of. you. and. your. beliefs. and. sense. of. style. Ghost. cultivator. are. you. not?"

"Yes?" You ask, finding it difficult to parse exactly what they're saying with how painfully slow they speak

"I. Imagined. You. Ate. Souls" They say, off handedly as they toss back a hand like a discarded oyster shell or chicken bone "Odd. That. you. are. so. tender. hearted"

"So I've been told" You shrug off, taking it in stride as a compliment "I'm my own style of ghost cultivator"

"Your. Kind. Was. Always. Rare" They tell you, and you know they aren't speaking about magical beasts "I. Feel. We've. gotten. Off. on. the. wrong..."

"Foot" You sigh heavily

"Yes. I. am. happy. to assist. you. against. the. murderous. sun. clan" They tell you "those. who. have. broken. peace. And. far. darker. deeds"

"And you won't consume children, innocents or" you pester

"Disi. Ling. Clan. Members" They groan "Yes. No. point. repeating. it"
Cont

>>6310332

"Tax Collectors. Main Ling Branch. And Stone Statues are very much on the table" You cackle and they turn and your face starts to itch under the skin as you see their yellowed skull, crawling with all manner of vermin "Are you undead"

"No. I. Am. Surprised. You. Are. Not" They say, reeling back "Such. A. Handome. Woman. Also. Stone. Statues?"

"That sounded envious" You say, raising an eyebrow and narrow your eyes, seeing that the pile of bodies they're crouched over, are all woman and girl soldiers. And that they're being rather picky with what they take from each.

"You're a woman!" You gasp, covering your mouth

"Yes. So. are. You" They answer with that same, chittering laugh "I. hear. strong. woman. cultivators. are. put. to. the. pyre. in. this. age. in. these. sun. scorched. lands."

While that would be true for Monu and yourself if the Ling got their hands on either of you. You didn't think the Ling were that wicked. And that is the first obvious lie Aodasheng has fed this pile of squirming vermin.

"Is that why you agreed to help us kick their asses and kill as many of them as we can get our hands on?" You ask, genuinely curious as that'd make this weirdo remarkably moral and virtuous, not to mention selfless

"No. You. Sought. to. rebirth. our. techniques" They answer simply "And. Are. Daughter. to. A. Gu. User. Odd. That. a Cat. Could. Learn to. Wield Gu. But. She. and you. Must be. a. unique. Pair"

And Ao for some reason let them believe Monu is also a awakened house cat like yourself or the weirdo made that assumption on their own

"You don't think I meant to steal them?" You ask, boldly walking closer to them as they pry two pearl like blue eyes from a pretty face, flesh eating beetles gnawing away at its cheeks

"How. Close. Minded. All. That. Matters. Is. the. Art. survives" They hiss "Would. You. Not. Wish. The. Same. of. Your. Ghostly. Techniques?"

"I've already gotten several heirs for a number of the innovations i've made" You smugly snicker

"You're. deflecting." They point out

"And? Mine is a multifaceted path. I follow two Daos and dabble in others" You say with a shrug

"I've. Been. Told. The. Common. Cultivator. Restricts. Themselves. To. One. In. This. Era" They say simply as they examine the two eyes now freed from their skull intently "Wrong. Shade"

"You're remarkably vain for a pile of bugs" You tell them bluntly and maybe slightly harshly

That seems to make them sad and pouty

"You. Came. Here. To. Make. Sure. I. Behaved. And. Didn't. Make. you. Look. Bad?" They ask

"More or less. But also that you wouldn't mindlessly slaughter the underserving and innocent. Any who hurt or intend to harm kids, is doomed to end by my fangs" You tell them with a grin

"Hmm. Going. to. Be. Harder. Finding. The. Right. Materials" They gloomily state, hanging their head or loosening the bundle of bugs holding up their skulls "No. Matter. Cultivator. Flesh. Is. Better. Fodder. For. my. Gu"

Cont

>>6310334

"You are surprisingly meek and submissive as well" You titter, patting them on the back but you pull your hand away before any of the bugs squirming there can bite or crawl onto it

"I. know. my. Limits. And. The. Ghost. Did. Not. Lie. You. Can. Simply. Appear. Suddenly" They say "I. am. Too. diminished. To.Challenge. Your. Authority. So. I'll. follow. your lead'

"Until you regain your strength?"

"If. we. are. Not. bosom. friends. by. then" They make your skin crawl with that horrid, chittering laugh of theirs

"Well, lets make some headway. Since you're only going to kill Ling and other villains. And will leave the undeserving and innocent children of the world alone" You start and they turn as you command your veins to crawl from your skin and you nearly faint as they suddenly shriek and fly backwards,

"Gross! Gross! Gross!" They cry and you have to resist the urge to incinerate them for their sheer rudeness!

"I was going to offer you some of my incredibly spiritually rich and potent blood!" You snap

"Grossssss!" They hiss, shaking their heads and clacking the mandibles of some massive insect burrowed in their skull.

Your eye twitches

"Its a treasure the whole world would descend into anarchy and war fighting over" You snarl

"Urgh" They groan "I. Can. Sense. The. Raw. Power. and. incredible. Density. Of. The. Qi. and. Life. Force But. I'd. Prefer. A different. boon"

You glare up at them as they lower themselves back to the muddy ground via spidery limbs

"Help. Me. Find. Good. Parts. to. Remake. My. Body. Out. Of. High. Quality. Gu. Organs? Or. At. Least. Give. Me. A list. of. Targets?" They ask meekly, like a flustered maiden asking their elder sister to help them by underclothes for the first time

Entirely self interested and purely motivated by self preservation. They're a little like you were before you saw the world and found out how pleasant it felt to be do good and act beneficently without any catches.

What do you do, Huanliuxue?

>Force them to take your blood

>"Do you think I have a list of pretty faces, besides my own? Just kill the bitches of the Ling clan!"

>Agree to help them, later. And get one of Ao's generals to keep an eye on them and act as a leash, cause you don't trust this freak

>Risking Drawing Ling Attention, sit down with and gossip with the Gu Mistress, and try to figure them out. Since you find the fact they're possessing a whole hive of bugs to be incredibly interesting

>Write in.

>>6310335
>>Agree to help them, later. And get one of Ao's generals to keep an eye on them and act as a leash, cause you don't trust this freak
We could always ask and gossip around our fellows about the beauties of today and listen for Ling names to drop. Should probably warn the buggoid that there is one Ling lady out there who would probably squash her. If she comes across the ogress somehow, best to pretend to just be a bunch of bugs and skitter.

Also very funny. Cultivators of this age are all about muh purity and honor and the cultivators from yesteryear have all been "yeah we chill, still gonna run that fade later though".

….Something Something Glass Houses, Bug Pile Lady.

>>6310335
>Agree to help them, later
We've got plenty on our plate already, they can afford to wait since we gave them another option that they declined. Helping them anyway is downright generous.
Also, I'm not too concerned about them breaking their word, since we can bully them at will.

Ohohoho, I had an idea.
We have a date with the Disi-Ling to assault the Ling, right? Why not fold Gu Girl into the plans? I'm sure she'd like having lots of options, and the Disi-Ling wouldn't complain too hard since we're doing them a major favor.

Captcha: RYH0T

>>6310335
>Agree to help them, later. And get one of Ao's generals to keep an eye on them and act as a leash, cause you don't trust this freak

>>6310335
>Write-in
>Well this is a good time to use the crow demons for what you paid them. Information. Hook the two up and then be on your way. Your cut of souls will be used to buy the treasures you need to create the ritual.

>>6310335
You remind me unpleasantly of Jingu.

>Agree to help them, later
We don't know other beautiful cultivators in the Ling provinces, So we're gonna have to do some research. Just keep on at the minute

>>6310335
What an unique creature, I am half a mind to invite them over to our sect as a provisional elder.
(Besides she kind of counts as a beast cultivator)

I imagine that with a creative enough use of blood sorcery we can recreate, change and fleshcraft the bodyparts she would need rather than have her be a loose asset... but it can be considered at a later date too.

I'll support >>6310368
This feels like a good combo to disrupt the Ling's preparations for the war to come that will also raise this bug-lady's chances to not be squashed too soon.

>>6310335
>Agree to help them, later. And get one of Ao's generals to keep an eye on them and act as a leash, cause you don't trust this freak
I think she's alright desu.
we are into ghosts, she's into bugs. We can hardly complain.

>>6310335
>>6310368
I'll go ahead and support this, don't quite like overly distrusting her. Feels kinda disrespectful.

>>6310418
I can throw myself behind >>6310368

>BasedDR8
What do you mean, Baseddrate?

>>6310368
Clever play, supporting.

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Ending the vote, tallying its result now. Forgive me juniors, I've been toiling in the horse clan's stables (playing/grinding Umamusume)

Agree to help them, later. And get one of Ao's generals to keep an eye on them and act as a leash, cause you don't trust this freak: 4

Well this is a good time to use the crow demons for what you paid them. Information. Hook the two up and then be on your way. Your cut of souls will be used to buy the treasures you need to create the ritual.:5

Alright, so you'll use the Crow Demon connection to help the Gu Master find the fodder for her Gu insects, so she can evolve them into a new body for herself, and use your cut of souls to buy treasure for Xuebai's red dust revival ritual, at a later day.

Update will arrive shortly

>>6310348
heh

"Well, I cannot help you presently or personally" You start, as a sudden flash of genius strikes you like flash of lightning from the heavens. The Gu Master simply rolls their skull under the skittering limbs of countless thousands of insects as they "Stare" at your direction. They must be seeing mostly through spiritual sense, unless those tiny beady red lights in the sockets of their skull function as their eyes.

"However" You continue, swaying close and putting your hands where their cheeks would be, being very accustomed to carnivorous and carrion eating vermin from all the long hours you spent meditating in the crypts under your temple, and find these Gu insects almost cute with the sheen of their shells and the array of colors present in their carapaces "I can provide you assistance, a contact down by the yellow springs"

"Curious. That. One. So. righteously. minded. deals. with. devils" They remark, leaning back, watching the still dripping tear in your skin from where you'd made your veins crawl out of "But. I. am. Listening"

"I shall send a flight of crow demons your way. They've been scrapping and kowtowing at my feet since I slew their king, and they're indebted to me. If they want to flaunt and peacock around saying they're under Lady Crow Killer's protection, well, they might as well work for me, yeah?" You snicker, and wince as the Gu master does as well

"Amusing. You've. Taken. over. a demon. tribe. like. a. gangster. running. a. protection. racket" She clacks and clicks, the pair of mandibles under her jaw snapping together "Hilarious. And they. will. Help. me?"

"Crow devils are opportunists . I chased them out from my neighbors' lands, but they'll be content to prey upon the war dead and victims of your search, and be more than happy to help you find the right pieces to feed your pets, so long as you let them get their pound of flesh and draught of soul" You explain "and, I'm sure, even weakened, you could put any of them into their place and if they get rowdy, I'll just have crow for dinner. Simple"

"hmm" They hum, tapping two boney fingers together "this. is. acceptable"

"And be a dear and remind them that I'll be taking a scouting fee and operational cut from any souls they whisk and spirit away during your search for jade like beauties and unlucky fairies" You snicker, wagging a finger back and forth "And tell the old Crone to keep her flock on this side of the border"

"And. Away. from. The. Disi. Ling" The Gu Master says what you're thinking and about to tell her.

"Clever girl" You praise, patting the bare pate of their skull

"Odd. Girl" They reply with a chitter "So. We've. an. accord"

"Unless you intend to bloody the nose of any kids or leave any orphans out to the starving dogs and wolves, we do" You tell her

"Do. you. an. orphanage?" They ask and you answer with a toothy grin as you trot away through the field of the dead, and use the phantom cats waltz to appear back before Ao and your mother
Cont

>>6311402

"Did you kill them?"

"No, simply set some ground rules and got them some bird brained help" You tell Ao as Monu sweats and toils over the Gu "I think you and her would've gotten along, Mother"

Ao frowns, rubs his chin and then snaps his fingers

"Ah! I knew those hip bones looked remarkably feminine. That Gu Master must've been a rather stocky lady in her life! Or perhaps I simply imagined them thicker boned with all the vermin crawling and slipping over their bones" He laughs, clapping his hands together

"Lecher" You tease, smacking them on the back of their head as you step around them to help Monu finish preparing the Gu insects to be turned into Qiang's brand new eye.

"Oh, as if you don't oggle bones and become transfixed by the blooms of decay splattered across a bloated corpse" Ao teases you back as Monu rolls her eyes "I'm sure your enemies will be distracted by both a monster like the Gu Master and a flock of Crow Demons in their land, too distracted to notice your preparations to make war upon them"

"That is part of the plan' You say with a nod

"What a crafty woman you are, my daughter" Monu proudly tells you, smiling as the two of you roll up your sleeves and get back to work on the Gu, with Ao providing insights and pointers as you toil to create Qiang's new eye.

Double vote!

How do you present Qiang her new eye?

>Privately and with only the other members of the palace of natural laws present

>With all members of the Tomb, the Mountain, the Sea and the Garden alliance witnessing it

>Just drop in front of her in the middle of the temple/ festival grounds and shove the Gu Organ into her skull

>Use the handing over as an event to restart the Core Formation Bracket!

>Write in

And do you do anything as the Core Formation Tournament restarts, Huanliuxue?

>Show all your adoptive rabbit kids the fights, to show them the heights they'll one day reach

>Tell the other Alliances heads to keep their disciples away from the Border, and tell them enough about the Gu Master to make sure they don't go poking them with any sticks.

>See what Five colors and the former gods are up to

>Check in on that crazed reborn demon. Sure his journey to do and spread good in the world has only just begun, but you want to make sure he's behaving

>Write in

>>6311403
>Use the handing over as an event to restart the Core Formation Bracket!
>Tell the other Alliances heads to keep their disciples away from the Border, and tell them enough about the Gu Master to make sure they don't go poking them with any sticks.

Part of me wants to show the fights to the rabbits but I'm worried about scaring the newer ones

>>6311403
>Use the handing over as an event to restart the Core Formation Bracket!
The practical option, though randomly shoving it into her skull out of nowhere is also quite appealing.

>Tell the other Alliances heads to keep their disciples away from the Border, and tell them enough about the Gu Master to make sure they don't go poking them with any sticks.
Gah, so many irons in the fire. I think this is the most immediately necessary one though, we want to make sure our allies (particularly the Disi-Ling) don't mistake them for marauding killers and unnecessarily fight them.
The reborn demon can probably hold for the moment, and as much as I want to see how Five Colors and the gods are doing I doubt they need our attention in any sense.

>>6311403
>>Privately and with only the other members of the palace of natural laws present
What's the point of a secret organ if you show it off, right?

>Tell the other Alliances heads to keep their disciples away from the Border, and tell them enough about the Gu Master to make sure they don't go poking them with any sticks.
Heads up, there's a pile of ants and shit out there stealing bones. It's friendly. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgUUyzXeY68

>>6311403
>Use the handing over as an event to restart the Core Formation Bracket!

>See what Five colors and the former gods are up to

>>6311403
>Privately.

>Tell the other masters about the Gu master.

>>6311403
>>Use the handing over as an event to restart the Core Formation Bracket!
we really need to start finish the tournament
>Tell the other Alliances heads to keep their disciples away from the Border, and tell them enough about the Gu Master to make sure they don't go poking them with any sticks.

>>6311403
>>Privately and with only the other members of the palace of natural laws present
a secret organ should indeed be secret.
>Tell the other Alliances heads to keep their disciples away from the Border, and tell them enough about the Gu Master to make sure they don't go poking them with any sticks.

>>6311403
>Privately and with only the other members of the palace of natural laws present
>Tell the other Alliances heads to keep their disciples away from the Border, and tell them enough about the Gu Master to make sure they don't go poking them with any sticks.

>>6311403
Does Ao like em on the thicker side or just his usual unfiltered thoughts?
>Use the handing over as an event to restart the Core Formation Bracket!
Tournament arc has been running for a while, and we still have another bracket before we get to our turn. Curse our flights of fancy!
>See what Five colors and the former gods are up to

>>6312245
Can you imagine if Monu ever hit on Ao and he hit her with the "too skinny"? The outrage.

>>6312253
Would kill

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Ending the vote, tallying the result. Didn't mean to take so long, but I was in a bit of a writing rut

Use the handing over as an event to restart the Core Formation Bracket!:5

Privately and with only the other members of the palace of natural laws present:4
__

Tell the other Alliances heads to keep their disciples away from the Border, and tell them enough about the Gu Master to make sure they don't go poking them with any sticks.:7

See what Five colors and the former gods are up to:2

Alright, so you'll warn the other heads of the alliance about the gu master, and then use Qiang receiving her new eye as a show/ event to kickstart the core formation 1 v 1 martial contest

update will arrive shortly.


>>6312245
Ao's types are enigmas and woman who could potentially kill him

Su Zhe'xínglǚ's eyes were narrowed in the gloom of the throne room of the palace in the center of your garden, the strange trees swaying by their own will, as if an unfelt phantom breeze whispered through their vein patterned leaves.

"It is uncharacteristic for one so carefree and one so mighty to send so urgent a missive" The old man states, the shades of red cast by the painted glass window behind your throne dancing across his liver spotted head as he steps forward. Xia Jīnsè-shāyú grins audaciously and twirls his spear

"Is it? Huanliuxue is a creature of caution, despite her strength, she rarely approaches any threat unprepared, and never underestimating the danger they may pose" The play boy sect head rather acutely points out as he joins the older cultivator in the light "She's a planner. Its how she's come to sit so far above the rest of the cultivators of Chuan Kingdom, after all"

"We could simply ask her" Lian Tianhua points out as you stretch out your claws and step down from the throne, flicking your tail "Huanliuxue, did you call this meeting of us four alliance heads to address some looming threat or did the whim strike you to summon us together to ramble on about your bunny eared wards?"

"The gentlemen were correct, Lady Lian" You tell them and she retains her poise and grace though you can tell that she was secretly hoping it had been her second guess "An ancient evil has awakened"

Xia just grins and Su furrows his brow

"Disciple Canlan had, while searching through some ruins between territories" You say, so no other sect can claim what he found their as their rightful property and inheritance, at least not without having to storm up to your castle to argue their claim to you directly "Had stumbled upon a sealed chamber, and through no fault of his own"

Cause it was Aodasheng who tore off the seals and released the Gu Master

"A member of a long dead sect was reawakened, a true master of Gu insects and Gu Poisons" You continue and Uncle Su lifts his head, eyes squinted and you can almost see the thoughts in his head. He's drawing a connection between the Gu Master and his lifelong friend, the witch who calls herself Monu. But he doesn't voice his suspicions. Wonder how often he held his tongue when he caught on that Monu had been the root of mischief and strife back in their youth

"Fortunately, they've been greatly weakened and are nowhere near the height of their power. If it came down to a fight, I'd certainly win" You tell them "But they have me beat in terms of experience, and I've know idea how profound their techniques are, as Yuanquan was only able to retrieve partial scriptures from their own monastery"

"But you don't want to confront them, even though they're weak?" Xia, acting like a Xia of song or story questions
Cont

>>6312949

"They aren't in our neck of the woods. They flew right over the Border to the Ling Lands" You answer with devilish grin, flashing your fangs "They aren't our problem, for the time being, but they could very easily become one if we pester them or go looking for a fight"

"Have you warned the Disi Ling?" Tianhua asks worriedly

"From what I've observed, they're far beyond Disi Ling Territory. They're a catastrophe waiting to happen, and while it may sound a bit heartless" You start, but Su holds up a hand

"Presently, they're an ancient plague in the lands of our foes" He interrupts and you nod sagely

"And one we can cure easily, if they spill over" You explain

"And" Xia cuts you off, and you growl at him, but he continues, unintimidated "Who can say how evil this ancient evil is. Before you stepped onto the stage, it was common knowledge that magical beasts were evil hearted brutes. That is not true, is it?"

"Poisoners are looked at with unwarranted suspicion and considered villain's by nature of their practice, no matter how pure hearted they may be" Su says and you tilt your head as he winces, knowing that Monu is only pure hearted in her adoration for Awakened Animals and the love of her daughters

"It'd be difficult to tell, if they're an old fashioned cultivator, their immediate reaction to meeting an stranger would be to bare their fangs and claws" Tianhua claims, and not incorrectly. Aodasheng, upon your entering of his prisoner, all but demanded a fight. The Gu Master however, happened to be more concerned with vanity than the thrill and rush of a friendly spar that could've turned deadly at any moment.

"Hard to meet them, considering they're in the borders of our enemy's turf" You outright lie, since you like to only show off as much of your techniques and prowess to get people to draw wrong conclusions and invent in their own mind powers that you do not wield or take their own misunderstanding of your techniques as solid fact "But we should still be wary and avoid the area they're haunting"

"It would be best and wise, lest they pick a fight before the war against the Ling aligned sects" She agrees

"Hmm, I'll travel to the ruins myself, see if I may find anything that Canlan overlooked" Su states "See what can be uncovered about this ancient master's sect and their character"

"Putting off your match with the toad witch?" Xia snickers

"Tch, I didn't say I'd do so immediately" Su blusters, cheeks flushing as he stamps his walking stick like a rabbit thumping their foot...Uncle Su would look remarkably cute for an old man, if he suddenly sprouted rabbit ears

"If they become an enemy, they'll be surrounded by the enemies we've already made, best to leave them to fight amongst themselves so the survivor is weakened. Might be, they're a threat enough to make us not have to fight a hard war" Xia suggests
Cont

>>6312951

"So all four of us are in agreement to avoid the Gu Master for the time being, Su will investigate the ruins" You speak as imperiously as you can as you put in place the standing orders of the alliance, not bringing up that a habitual grave robber like Ao has probably left little behind for Zhe'xinglu to uncover, even if the ghost king didn't think to mention any of what he'd stolen from the ruins "And until their existence is revealed or they move into Chuan and become a threat to the mortals here, we shall take no actions against them"

"Agreed" The three other heads concur and cup their fists as they bow as you strut through the orchard in your throne room

"Meet me in the private, privilege seats for arena. I need to decide on the outfit I'm going to wear for the next leg of the tournament" You tell them "Unless you don't want to watch the fights or prefer the company of your students and sect mates. Either way, I've a plan to make the opening for the one on one matches exciting"

Or you had a plan, but Qiang's generally dour and gloomy demeanor and her horrible acting skills killed it like she'd slashed its throat. Try as you might, you simply can't make your martial daughter as flashy as the role you'd intended for her required and you can't replace her. Possessing her might work, but then she might get mad at and not forgive you, so you decide not to wear her like a robe simply to appease your sense of theatrics. So, after a few failed coaching attempts and being the sole audience for Qiang trying her best to pretend to be surprised and driven to tears of gratitude. Which, meant, miming poorly that she was crying while remain blank faced and stoic, you do something that is almost anathema to you and give up.

"Qiang, the sole inheritor of my Ruler of the Great Wheel's law and one of my earliest disciples, heroic swordswoman and ghostly cultivator" You address her regally as she kneels with her sheathed blade across her lap "You'd asked for a new eye as your reward for honoring the sect of the palace of natural laws with your victory in this tournament. And"

You flick the fresh Gu organ eye out from your sleeve, the color of it bright red with a golden pupil wringed with ghostly grey light

"I've fashioned a true treasure to act as replacement for the eye you lost while guarding my body from hungry ghosts, while I was in deep meditation!' You declare, and Qiang, elegantly but wordlessly, holds out her hand, her one eye blazing with desire. You carefully plop the eye in her hand, and she immediately jolts as she feels the skittering of insect legs on her palm. She looks up at you, you nod, and she rips of the ornate eyepatch and unceremoniously shoves the eye into the empty socket.
Cont

>>6312952

Her back goes rod straight, and her veins bulge and turn black and she grits her teeth, enduring the agony as her blood is immediately alchemically transformed into virulent Gu poison. The Blood Qi in her body helping it embrace the sudden transmutation and keeping her conscious and alive throughout the process. Silvery tears drip from her eye as it swivels and adjusts its position, Qiang twitching as you see the Organ move around by its own power with wing flaps and tugging on her eyelids.

Then, there is a almost musical sound as the nerves and mandibles of the eye bite into her skull and connect to her brain, and then the eye shimmers red, like the starlight coat in your fur coat and hair, and then flares golden like a passing comet, before it settles to a dreary and ethereal grey, lit from the ring around her eye

"I accept this treasure, master" Qiang slurs, rising unsteadily to her feet, and you smile and help her up patting her own the back and presenting her to the audience, and then she, without urging or coaching declares "Let it never be said that Lady Huanliuxue does not reward loyal service!"

Her voice cracked and wavered, and you knew she was greatly touched by the recognition she'd just been shown. And so are you, that she'd so openly show and voice her devotion to you, her master.

"The first match with be Monu, grand elder of the palace of natural laws, fighting against Su Zhe'xingly, sect head and grandmaster of the Five colors and Five Purities sect!"

And the crowd goes wild, almost feral! with excitement, the very foundations of the arena shaking with their cheers!

And with that done, what do you do, Huanliuxue?

>Watch the first match, cheer your mother on, and send Qiang to tell the crow demons you'll allow them into the world of the living, to help the Gu Master and pester the ling

>Travel quickly to hell to bully the crow demons into helping the Gu master, expending one of the trips of protection you'd bargained with the spider demon clan with.

>Send Fu to strong arm the crow demons instead, and place a few, huge, bets on Monu winning the 1v1 bracket

>Hear a few other cultivators offers to buy new organs/ limbs from you, after they had seen you get Disi Ling his arm back and gifted Qiang a new eye

>Write in

>>6312954
>Hear a few other cultivators offers to buy new organs/ limbs from you, after they had seen you get Disi Ling his arm back and gifted Qiang a new eye

>>6312954
>Place some bets on Monu winning
>Hear the offers for new limbs.
>Send Qiang to bully the crow devils

These options are just as they say. Qiang has done her part up here, she can retire to the background to deal with the demons.
And while the fight would be cool, lets make some fat stacks.

>>6313008
I support this, but send Fu to bully the crows instead. The demons should learn to fear all of our disciples

>>6313014
He's already gone to the moon, he may want to sleep.

>>6312954
>>Watch the first match, cheer your mother on, and send Qiang to tell the crow demons you'll allow them into the world of the living, to help the Gu Master and pester the ling
>Hear a few other cultivators offers to buy new organs/ limbs from you, after they had seen you get Disi Ling his arm back and gifted Qiang a new eye

>>6313008
I'll support this, Qiang may go and try out her new eye on demons.

>>6312954
>>6313065
Ack! Forgot to link the posts!

>>6312954
>Watch the first match, cheer your mother on, and send Qiang to tell the crow demons you'll allow them into the world of the living, to help the Gu Master and pester the ling
>Hear a few other cultivators offers to buy new organs/ limbs from you, after they had seen you get Disi Ling his arm back and gifted Qiang a new eye
Let's make sure we're not offering upgrades though. It's fine if they want to replace something that's lost, but if they just want an easy ticket to power we should laugh and toss them out.

>>6312954
I remember when Qiang mentioned that everyone we train end up becoming weird at some point (Ping's arm,Feiqing's bloodline awakening, Fu's... everything), and now with a toxic blood and a living detachable eyeball she is too.
>Watch the first match, cheer your mother on, and send Qiang to tell the crow demons you'll allow them into the world of the living, to help the Gu Master and pester the ling
>Place some bets

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Ending the vote and tallying the result before I get distracted with Horses or other digital devils/ video games

Hear a few other cultivators offers to buy new organs/ limbs from you, after they had seen you get Disi Ling his arm back and gifted Qiang a new eye:6

Place some bets on Monu: 4

Send Fu to Hell:1

Send Qiang to Hell: 5

So You'll deign to hear the pleas of other cultivators wanting to get new limbs/ organs, and send Qiang to Hell while you wheel and deal and cheer on your mother

update will arrive shortly

>>6313779
Qiang is a perceptive and clever girl, and Huanliuxue does prefer heretical and new practices to the old and tried.

Also speaking of horses, this fan song feels kind of fitting for Huan to https://youtu.be/QkRbYDeGZk8

Monu saunters into the ring, dressed remarkably tame and traditionally in the pink red robes of an elder of the palace of natural laws with only some adjustments to show of the figure she is so proud of, shortened sleeves and hem and a plunging neckline but it is much more conservative and chaste compared to her favored style of wrappings of near butterfly wing thin silk hoisted and tied around her. Every movement she moves oozes confidence and sensuality, but those with sharp and battle trained eyes who have stared death in the eyes and lived to see tomorrow can also sense the danger. Her entrance into the ring silences the crowd and for more than one reason.

She stands, with all the pomp and pride of a princess, be that of a palace or bordello, but weaving the malevolent expression of a man eating witch, her fat, toad like tongue stuck out as her opponent and life long friend, enters opposite of her. Uncle Su, is dressed in his usual robes, and walks with the air of a king as he approaches the ring. Despite using a gnarled walking stick and having more liver spots than hair on his head, not counting his beard, he stands as the eye of an elemental storm, with every step sending surging waves of the basic five elements of Qi and variations and hybrid forms as he cycles his meridians between all five colors of the Wuxing. While each step he takes is like the herald of a natural disaster, your mother's idle swaying is like the breeze carrying miasma and plague up from a fetid swamp or scorching tropical jungle. Both of their eyes are steely, and you can practically bite down on the sword intent issuing forth from them.

"Both semi finalists in the monster slaying contests, bad luck we're meeting in the first round, old geezer" Monu titters, covering her mouth with a fan she pulled from her cleavage

"We're the worst match up, because both of us have in depth knowledge and understanding of the others techniques and style, and helped the other forge their own unique cultivation method" Su agrees with a nod as he thumbs the storage ring containing his arsenal of magical tools and enchanted weapons, each one with its own elemental affinities and martial arts and magic spell compatibilities, while Monu holds just the scythe she took from Xue Laohue's corpse and her menagerie of Gu insects and poisons, both of which she's increased in number and variety

"You say that as if we haven't kept a few secrets up both our sleeves, in case we ever had need to cross blades, Zhe'Xinglu~" She giggles, shaking her head "This could still be an interesting match, even if we know most of the other's tricks"

"I expect you to have broadened your Gu stores, recently' He says with a smile

"And you're a horrible hoarder" Monu says with a gentle smile "I expect you to have more tools in that ring than you showed against the mantis"

"If you push me, we'll find out" Su answers politely
Cont

>>6314164

"Then lets find out just how far we've come!" Monu declares, and without waiting for a signal, the two of them throw themselves at eachother, and have exchanged a dozen blows by time the outer disciple is able to ring the Gong

"Qiang has agreed to travel to hell in your place" Siwang tells you, in his human form and standing behind your throne in the arena, adjusting his cosmetic glasses as he watches the clash of two cultivators who'd be called Old Monsters if they lived in any era besides the one you're making your own

"Always a diligent and loyal girl" You hum as Lian Tianhua looks away from the fight "And before you ask, Tianhua, Qiang is just running some errands by the yellow springs for me"

"No so surprising" Lord Xia huffs "She is a ghostly cultivator, the materials and resources she needs must be rather scarce in the world of light and life"

"I was just unused to how casually she brought up sending her own disciple to hell" Tianhua explained, turning back to watch the fight as the ground shaking clashes stopped and Zhe'xinglu and Monu appear on their own sides of the arena, just a sheen of sweat on their brow

"Enough playing around Hao! Lets get serious!" Su boomed, throwing out his arm as a segmented, centipede like sword whip appeared in a shimmering silver light

"Want to turn up the heat, geezer!" Monu taunted, sticking out her tongue as a fat, white backed spider swung on a thread from her finger while two green carapaced centipede crawled up her neck from somewhere in her robes "Fine! Lets get serious! My daughter put up a barrier!"

Su drew his bladed whip taught and Monu went limp and leaned back like a puppet that had a few of its strings cut, her arms hanging loosely as she demonstrated her incredible flexibility.

The first serious clash of the match began as Monu expelled a lilac hued cloud of poisonous vapor from her lungs, and threw out the spider hanging from her hands, that flew through the miasma she vomited out and grew ten times its size, becoming large enough to catch Ox in its webs and distorting monstrously as she activated the Gu poison inside of it. Zhe'Xinglu, utterly calm, channeled in sequence three elements of Qi, creating a cascade effect.

Extracting metal from earth and containing water within metal. Lightning peeled from his hands and the segments of the whip he held, and activated a hidden enchantment engraved into the weapon, causing its blades to rapidly churn and spin down the metal wire they were attached to, before turning massive as blocks of razor ice spread from their centers.

The Gu Spider was blended to pieces, chopped apart with one flick of the grandmaster of the five colors and five purities wrist, but it was simply the first in a legion of vermin turned to monsters and giants as Monu poured a swarm of insects out of her sleeves and blew more Gu empowering Miasma over them, riding one of the centipedes as it towered over the rest of her army.
Cont

>>6314165

Both of them were grinning audaciously as the old master became a whirling cyclone of cutting ice and destruction while Monu directed her empowered insects from the rear, spitting venom and tossing vials of corrosive poison from her vantage point atop the titanic centipede as Zhe'xinglu scythed through her insect thralls like a sickle through stalks of rice.

"Neither of them are fighting seriously yet" You grumbled, a little let down and disapointed after all their grandstanding

"I couldn't tell, they seemed to be fighting as hard as they did against the Space time cutter mantis and other alien monsters you'd set them against" Tianhua, naively and innocently, admits

"Its obvious. Monu can poison an entire valley with her toxins and venoms and old man Su can cause the weather to change. They're both magnificent core formation experts, despite not yet reaching the peak" Lord Xia astutely points out, surprising you that he was distracted by your mother's bouncing "Monus" "You just don't have a warrior's eye, Lady Lian. They're playing like kids"

"I should find a way to de-age uncle Su. Sure, he'll probably form a golden core soon, but he also might drop dead from extreme old age before he can revitalize his body" You muse out loud, pouting as you watch Monu disarm Su by crushing a bloated toad and creating a bloody, acidic mist from its viscera. Not that it mattered as Su then switched to a spear and performed a different array of elemental interactions.

Water to nourish wood, wood to stoke and kindle a fire, and now whirlwinds of super heated air and flames were piercing through the clouds of flesh and steel melting fog and the fattened toads that bloated and inflated throughout them, while he moved switched between the Night Lantern Sutra and Lightning Messenger Technique with every step, sending swarms of ember born moths towards Monu and setting her initial swarm of Gu Monsters on fire with the them, before switching to redirection, sending peals of lightning through the stronger insects that managed to reach Zhe'xinglu and try to strike and inject him with their Gu directly

"Such medicines are considered something of a lost art" Tianhua said with a sly smile "Though clearly, you've found such a treasure before"

"I've gone many places and seen many things, flower" You titter, not letting your friend in Lian or your subordinate in Xia learn that you've traveled to the distant past on more than one occasion and know where the alchemist who gifted you the pill that made Monu young again lives down in the wilds of the underworld.
Cont

>>6314166

And while you intended to watch the match from start to finish, it is quickly becoming clear than Monu and Zhe'xinglu are going to draw out their fight as long as they can and are content to simply clash and throw themselves against eachother without being serious. So, without leaving your seat, you decide to allow a few cultivators with fat, heavy pockets to seek an audience with you while you wait for your mother and Master Su to stop playing with eachother and to get serious and summon all their power and killing intent against each-other.

And you make sure to have your students guarding the door get a list of each of the prospective buyers and what organ, bowel, viscera or limb they want you to heal or regrow for them before they are let through the door to present their case and make their offer of how many spirit stones they're willing to offer for the right to get their body mended by the one and only Huanliuxue! And quickly you realize most of them just want a hidden organ crafted by one of the few blood alchemists alive beneath the heavens rather than needing treatment to be uncrippled. Which you suspected would be the case. No one knows what Qiang's eye can do, but they must've noticed the work you'd done with the militia of Suiqi and the hordes of alchemical monsters you unleashed on the rank and file of the Former Winter Blossoming Wisdom sect, and how strong you'd turned ordinary men and mere rats with just a bit of cunning blood alchemy and forced evolutions!

How do you handle the deluge of offers, Huanliuxue?

>Be charitable, and give those with actual crippling injuries and damaged organs a steep discount and earlier treatment (2500 Spirit stones after discounts)

>Be extremely charitable and heal the crippled for free and out of good will (Good karma, 1500 Spirit stones)

>Just treat those who can pay and don't worry about the details (3500 Spirits stones!)

>Be a bit of a miser and squeeze as much as you can from them! (Bad Karma, 7000 Spirit stones, less work!)

>Write in

>>6314167
>Heal the crippled for free
Yes, this is just for the good karma. I don't really care about which option wins here.

>>6314167
>Be charitable, and give those with actual crippling injuries and damaged organs a steep discount and earlier treatment (2500 Spirit stones after discounts)
If we treat the crippled for free, we won't see the end of petitioners. Also, they're cultivators; it weren't unfortunate accidents that crippled them.

>>6314167
>Be charitable, and give those with actual crippling injuries and damaged organs a steep discount and earlier treatment (2500 Spirit stones after discounts)
I like the idea of Huan "adopting" people she likes and finding ways to give them immortality, such as with Uncle Su.

>>6314279
Making people immortal isn't difficult, we are the great huanliuxue.

The trick is not making them useless.

>>6314167
>Be charitable, and give those with actual crippling injuries and damaged organs a steep discount and earlier treatment (2500 Spirit stones after discounts)

>>6314167
>Be charitable, and give those with actual crippling injuries and damaged organs a steep discount and earlier treatment (2500 Spirit stones after discounts)

>>6314167
>Be charitable, and give those with actual crippling injuries and damaged organs a steep discount and earlier treatment (2500 Spirit stones after discounts)

>>6314167
>Be charitable, and give those with actual crippling injuries and damaged organs a steep discount and earlier treatment (2500 Spirit stones after discounts)

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Ending the vote, tallying the result now.

Be extremely charitable and heal the crippled for free and out of good will:1

Be charitable, and give those with actual crippling injuries and damaged organs a steep discount and earlier treatment: 6


Landslide win for being charitable but not too charitable!

Update will arrive shortly

>>6314279
Huan does tend to just decide random people are hers, like Yuyi.

They come from all corners of Chuan, and some even further afield. Not just from nomadic or border sects that crept over to see what the hell was happening around the time you took center stage or bold rogues with heavier enough wallets or heretics offering stolen or inherited treasures, but even mortals otherwise ignorant of the world beyond their tiny piece of it, nobles who'd found sponsors or generous relatives who entered the world of cultivation a couple generations back and one or two peasants who'd had the good fortune to find some flawed and poor quality spirit stones while flooding their rice paddies. It really is a menagerie of humanity in all its forms. There are a few beasts who come dragging winnings from games of chance or non- authorized brawls against cocky long masters who take some explaining to understand this healing doesn't go so far as including private lessons to "Become human"

And you'd given your underlings orders to let those who actually needed help, and you quickly grow exhausted with how they scrape, kowtow, beg, plead and cling to your legs crying to be made whole, desperate to no longer be invalids or crippled. And yet, despite how droll and tiresome hearing the same sort of pleas, being promised more than the heavens could bargain with and having your better nature called upon, it somehow remains just as satisfying watching the light return to their eyes and hope swell in their chest as you explain you'll give them a steep discount for their treatment. Some of which are just unclogging and realign damaged meridians, fixing blood flow and massaging organs, but some have more serious ailments, that require time and continuous treatment. Those cases, you ask for more, but they're willing to pay and stay in the strange temple built out of stones with heart beats and leech vines for the duration of their care and you may have indulged a bit in your sadistic side by teasing them and telling them in vague details what you'd do, so as to scare them and watch them weigh living their lives as a cripple or risk the horrors that a feline witch god could subject them to. And you know that your disciples, or at least the Geges will explain what you said actually mean, so it wasn't like any harm was done.

And despite there being far fewer, the time it takes you to hash out contracts with those bold and wealthy patrons who want secret organs or improved physiques, working through their orders takes longer than it did healing or promising to heal the supplicants who actually needed healing and mending, desperately. Some of the prices you ask prove to great for them and they skulk and shuffle away with stormy expressions, but again, most are willing to wait, in some cases years if not a decade, to receive a Huanliuxue hidden organ, after you tell them you'll need to source materials or have the right reagents brought to you to be able to create flesh that could be shaped and transmuted into an enchanted organ.
Cont

>>6315820

After what feels like hours, the tribulation of hearing the beggars and needy passes, with your chest feeling much lighter, your head aching, yet your pocketbooks hanging heavier and glittering more magnificently than they did before

Total spirit stones:6894

And beside enriching yourself and the Palace of Natural Laws, you've gotten a bit of face from how highly those you've healed are singing your praises and talking about how saintly and beneficent the great Huanliuxue is. Which is more than enough to offset the annoyance you're already feeling knowing you've got more than a dozen, high quality hidden organs to make. That you've only had Siwang put a deadline for you to do, since you were promised additional payment once you'd handed off the meaty treasures to their commissioners.

Having left the stands to hear all the offers and not bother Xia and Lian, you swagger back to the top and find them both on the edge of their seats. And you're amazed to see that Su and Monu are still going after it!

"They've both revealed movement techniques" Lord Xia explains giddily "Your mother, became miasma, then turned her body gelatinous and gooey once Five colors figured out the trick of her first trick"

"And Su's transformed partially into each of the five elements, he truly is a master of the Wuxing, even if he lacks the raw strength of other sect heads" Tianhua, showing more interest and enthusiasm for a fight than you've ever heard from her exclaims "I might need him to teach some of our newer disciples the true profoundness of the Wuxing Cycles"

"Whose winning?" You ask, as you push a Lush Lord Xia back to stop him from spilling pungent smelling wine on your fresh robes

"I've placed my bet on Zhe'Xinglu. Your mother has had an impressive showing, but her stamina, despite her youthful body, is lacking compared to his own reserves of energy, and while he lacks her singular focus, the sheer amount of techniques and styles he's absorbed and stolen have given him an answer to all of her own abnormal powers" he explains, as you push him harder and further away as he animatedly swings his bowl of wine around, risking staining you with its nose wrinkling stench

"I don't think a winner has been decided. Su has impressive stamina and vitality. But his body is older. Monu's might be out of breath and sweating, but her body is more durable and she can stay standing, exhausted, longer than Su can. He may collapse at any moment, or damage an internal organ from the exertion he's putting his body through. As a healer, I can tell he's damaged his ankles and arms and torn several muscles, just from the force of his own attacks and evasion techniques" Tianhua points out "a healer of my caliber couldn't miss that Su's pushing his body to its limits"
Cont

>>6315821

"Sure sure, but it comes down to if he pushes his body too far to resist Monu's poison first, or if her exceedingly narrow specialty and restrictive Dao loses her the match first" Xia snorts as he finally gets the hit and stops leaning over you to try and suffocate you with his wine vapor heavy breath

"So she's only used the poisoner's law she invented for herself, and none of the techniques she inherited from the winter blossoming wisdom sect?"

"I haven't recognized them if she has" Lian shamelessly admits as Xia's eyes narrow

"Is that her game? Poisoning isn't as physically demanding of an art as swordsmanship or Sorcery" Xia contemplates as Monu and Su clash once more and you wonder if any of the other matches of this leg of the tournament will match up and get a feeling that whoever wins this match will go on to be the champion of the golden core martial bracket.

"So, Either Su wins because of versatile his skill pool is, or Monu does because wears down his deep wells of stamina until his body all but collapses in on itself" You say out loud "or Su forgets she has more than one type of trick up her sleeves, which is unlikely"

Double vote

What do you do as Monu and Su's match reaches its conclusion, Huanliuxue?

>Cheer for Monu

>Cheer for Zhe'xinglu

>See who of the few core formation tier cultivators are fighting next and try to get excited for their matches

>Brag that even if Monu uses, she'll beat everyone in the Alchemy trial

>Write in

And once the 1 v 1 matches are done, what do you do?

>Move onto the next round quickly

>Wait until Qiang comes back from hell

>Decide to release some of the excitement/ tension of the crowds, by throwing a survivor "Junior" bracket between this and the next round of core formation contests

>take a second to see how your ghostly evolutions have changed your spiritual form

>Write in

>>6315822
>Brag that even if Monu loses, she'll beat everyone in the Alchemy trial

>Decide to release some of the excitement/ tension of the crowds, by throwing a survivor "Junior" bracket between this and the next round of core formation contests

>>6315822
>Brag

>Move onto the next round quickly.
We need to keep a pace now.

>>6315822
>Brag that even if Monu uses, she'll beat everyone in the Alchemy trial
>Decide to release some of the excitement/ tension of the crowds, by throwing a survivor "Junior" bracket between this and the next round of core formation contests

>>6315822
>See who of the few core formation tier cultivators are fighting next and try to get excited for their matches

>take a second to see how your ghostly evolutions have changed your spiritual form

we need perspective

>>6315822
>Cheer for Monu
>Move onto the next round quickly
Kek, this battle lasted long enough for us to heal people from all across the land.

>>6315822
>See who of the few core formation tier cultivators are fighting next and try to get excited for their matches
>Move onto the next round quickly

>>6316185
I imagine their fight is basically a very long catchup session, as I don't think the two of them have had a moment to fully interact with each other since the Xuebai incident. But the fact they're only NOW busting out movement techniques tells me they're still making "small talk"

>>6316185
DRAGON
BALL
ZZZZZZZZ

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Ending the vote and tallying its result now! Been having a real hard time getting my creative juices flowing lately for whatever reason.
Brag that even if Monu loses, she'll beat everyone in the Alchemy trial:3

Cheer for Monu:1

See who of the few core formation tier cultivators are fighting next and try to get excited for their matches:2
___

Decide to release some of the excitement/ tension of the crowds, by throwing a survivor "Junior" bracket between this and the next round of core formation contests:2

Move onto the next round quickly:3

take a second to see how your ghostly evolutions have changed your spiritual form:1

So you'll brag that Monu, even if she loses the martial tournament, will dominate the alchemy test.

And then move onto the next round quickly once the fights are done

update will arrive shortly


>>6316249
Correct!

"Well, if she wins, she surpasses her limits and soars through azure skies! And if she loses, there's no shame to it. Combat has never been my mother's strongest point, well direct combat at least. Her poisons do most of the work. Su might be old, but he's much more martially inclined than Monu is, who is more often than not content to soak in her toxic brews" You laugh, clapping your hands together before leaning back and resting your chin on the back of your hand, smiling contentedly and smugly as Xia and Lian both look at you oddly, surprised by your sudden outburst but Tianhua giggles as you lead into a boast :"Besides, the real match is in the alchemical trials, which she is sure to win. Not because of any bias on my part, but because she is simply one of the best alchemists, especially when it comes to the art of poison making"

"And the sorcery trials? Think the Innocent Witch court will secure another win and prize from your scroll repository?" Xia asks gayly as Monu and Su continue to clash below, only now starting to really get serious and make use of all their techniques and powers as the atmosphere contained within the barrier spells you've erected turn utterly chaotic as localized storms, ranging from literally burning winds to sleets of lightning and hail and great swells of poisonous and acidic miasma fill the sealed space, making their battleground lethal in its own right as they both stop fighting so basically and brutishly, with weapons and plain martial arts, and truly show the audience what elder cultivators are capable of in terms of channeling Qi and spell craft. Arrays and sorcerous formations fill the air, as both combatants stop restricting themselves to the earth or the backs of giant insects and begin to soar and fly. Su like a plunging falcon and Monu like a dart hornet, which might be on account of the wasp clinging to her back that is allowing her to fly without expending any spiritual energy or stamina.

"Considering that tournament's winner is based on the profoundness of their magic and not just its destructive power. It could be any sects prize" You answer noncommittally, shrugging your shoulders "The Eight Heavenly Gates, Innocent Witch Court, even the storm mountain shrine. Any temple could come out victorious. Even the Thousand Lotus Hall, meek as they are, have capable magic users in its ranks. They just focus on the healing arts rather than, say, creating a mobile riptide in the shape of a shark, or creating a puppet out of mud"

"No need to say which sect either of those spells belong to" Tianhua chuckles "And I think my disciples will give Monu a challenge"

"They may. The Lotus hall is renowned for it spirit medicines and drugs" You say with a nod as you watch the fight below grow increasingly hard to watch, simply because of how much poison and unnatural weather is filling the air.

Cont

>>6316976

"I'd ask you to remove the barrier, but at this point I think the residual power of those two techniques would wipe out most of the crowd if you created even a fist sized whole in your protection spells" Lord Xia grouses and complain, furrowing his brow and leaning closer, squinting his eyes

"I haven't been able to see since Grand Elder Monu slung that black ooze from her sleeve" Tianhua admits

"Black slime mold. Pretty sure she scrapped it off a bonegnawing savage under our first temple. No idea when she started cultivating it. It eats living flesh rapidly" You explain

"Are they trying to kill eachother?" She asks, voice shaky with concern. Both you and your underling Jinse-Shayu exchange glance and start laughing

"No. That level of aggression is the bare minimum for cultivators of their level. It's understandable that you didn't know, considering the utter lack of martial traditions in your hall" Lord Xia explains

"It is really remarkable how much effort one has to put in to kill a core formation cultivator, well, unless your me" You snicker, grinning ear to ear predatorily "And the two of them are so familiar with eachother's abilities and prowess, they can't risk hesitating or holding back. So they're fighting with everything they have and..."

Your grin falls and you expression sours in a teary eyed pout

"Monu's ran out of the Gu insects she's snuck into the arena' You mutter, now only seeing two beating hearts in the ring "She still has her poisons, but she's lasted this long because the insects she's mutated were keeping Master Su occupied"

"Is that a usual tactic of hers?" Tianhua asks

"She prefers to rely mostly on her ice magic and poisons, only using Gu insects as fodder when she thinks she's in danger. She used them against that false beast stampede, and against the Ling and Xue armies when I was in deep grave side meditiation" You tell them "She'd filled her robes and even her body with them, smuggling them under her skin and in her hair. She must've had thousands, made in advance just to increase her odds in the martial stages of the tournament"

"Think that spells the end for her run in the martial contests?" Lord Xia asks respectfully

"Yeah, its a death blow for her. Monu just isn't a fighter. She relies on poisons, misdirection and even seduction and curses to break her opponents defenses and weaken them" You sigh, shaking your head, heart aching as you admit the painful truth to the other two sect heads on yourself, Monu has no way of winning this fight now. Su hadn't gotten weakened enough by her Gu waves or poisons for her to outlast him, and she simply doesn't have the strength or martial skill to beat him in a drag out fight. Which Su must also know

"So she'll forfeit?"Tianhua asks

"Hell no. I inherited a lot of my stubbornness from her" You laugh, shaking her head "And Monu is a real witch. Spiteful and vengeful. Her grudges are delectable but. That's bad news for Su"
Cont

>>6316977

"If she won't win, neither of them will" Tianhua gasps, under standing now

"Yeah, I'd thought whoever won this match would be the finalist, but well. With Monu backed into a corner, she must realize she's lost her chance at glory, and is all to willing to make sure her old friend doesn't take it by weakening him as much as she possibly can" You say "And Su, for as profound his five elements cultivation is, has the body of a frail old man. The perfect vector for my mother's greatest art"

"Maybe she could grasp victory from the jaws of..."Lord Xia snivels and you snarl, teeth morphing to fangs as claws sprouted from your nails

"No. She can't. Su knows she'll put everything she has into kneecapping his chance, so he'll rush to knock her out. Which he is easily capable of. But Monu's strongest poisons are hidden in her...." You begin to explain and lower your head "And that's the end of the match"

"What happened?!" You two fellow grandmaster demand shaking you by your shoulders.

"Zhe'xinglu fell for her trap. They'd been fighting for several hours, and he simply didn't have the energy left to be cautious" You explain "And Monu, without her Gu insects and rapidly running dry on her poisons, used the one poison Su didn't know she had"

"And internal Gu" Your eyes flash "Sinner Bone Centipede Venom"

"Are you sure they were not trying to kill eachother?" Xia asks, flabbergasted as Tianhua covers her mouth

"Pretty sure. But, as far as I can tell, as flashy as their long as Uncle Su's beard fight had been and all the advanced and esoteric techniques and moves they'd used and all the heaven shattering spells they threw, the last move was...well, basic. Su punched Monu hard, but she bit down on his knuckle. She was knocked out, but not before she gave Su an Injury that has all but dashed his chance at winning the contest"

And as the poison vapors thin enough for it to be safe to open the barrier spell around the arena, You see Su Zhe'xinglu kneeling, clutching an arm that has veins of pure black running up it to his neck, the flesh of his hand scraped from its knuckles to its risks, with a glowing purple bite mark in its center. And your mother, sprawled out rather humiliatingly, completely unconscious and looking pretty drained with sunken cheeks and having thinned enough that her robes hang loosely on her, impurity and poisons oozing from her eye sockets, nose and several scrapes, with only a dribble of blood crawling out the side of her mouth and a massive angry looking bruise on her cheek as signs that she'd been in any fight at all

"Su Zhe'Xinglu" You declare "You've won the first match and bested your opponent. Can you leave the ring by your own power"

"I'm lucky to be alive. She still fights as fiercely as a viper. like a fly, I fell victim to that toad's bite" He pants, sweating heavily "I...will fight for as long as I can, Huanliuxue"

Monu twitches and sits up and sticks her tongue out at her friend childishly, like a brat.

>>6316978

"Should've just let me win, Zhe'xinglu" She mocks, sounding like she has a mouthful of cotton, her pretty face bloated on the bruised side and tears rolling down her cheeks before she doubles over and starts hacking up and spitting out balls of congealed blood, bile and substances that are more unpleasant than the juices that spill out of a well aged corpse.

Both of them need assistance to leave the arena.

And in the end, Su lasts one more round before he simply collapses as most of his bones had been partially liquified on his third match

Which, is a boon for his opponent that round, Shidi Chao. Not having the expend Qi, stamina or effort for an entire round, lets him trounce his hated rival, Xia. Monu cried when her old friend lost, even though he lost solely because she was a sore loser and gave him a parting gift in the form of demonic venom.

Lord Xia also doesn't take his son's defeat well, especially since Monu was all to happy to point out that he might've won if Su hadn't been poisoned. Your mother might actually be happier with this outcome than she would've been if she'd won against all odds and ended up as the victor.

Jinse-Shayu asks to excuses, and you hear his tantrum from miles away as he lashes out at his surroundings in a fit of pique and expels so much water Qi that a storm like the sort that only occurs at the sea washes over your temple and makes the walls weep red, which is a nice aesthetic touch, and the plants become a little more...active and crawling as they seek out water beyond the veined walls they grow inside and between. Which is a uniquely eye catching sight. and gives you an idea!

Double Vote!

Do you change the Sorcery/ Magic contest to be a challenge of who can cause the biggest shift in the environment/ weather?

>Yes

>No

>Partially, promise a reward for any individual spell or array that manages to change the landscape of your garden

And, during the sorcery and crafting trial, what do you do, Huanliuxue?

>Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.

>Ask Zhe'xinglu and Monu why they both decided to throw away their chances of victory just to fight eachother at their full potential for like...half the day

>See what the Shidi clan wants for their victory, besides the chance to hold it over their Rival's head

>Watch the contests and give the crafters a challenge to use ONLY underworld materials, that Qiang has been so kind as to bring back

>Write in

>>6316979
>Yes, Biggest change in enviroment.

>Choose a new judge
>Watch the contests

>>6316979
>Partially, promise a reward for any individual spell or array that manages to change the landscape of your garden
Be reasonable about it, not everyone's going to be specialized in that sort of thing, but making it an option for a separate prize will probably get somebody interested without requiring it.

>Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.
>See what the Shidi clan wants for their victory, besides the chance to hold it over their Rival's head
This is only fair, even if by luck they're still the rightful winners.

>>6316979
>Partially, promise a reward for any individual spell or array that manages to change the landscape of your garden
>Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.

>>6316979
>No

i wanna see THEIR magic, not terraforming dao
>Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.

>>6316979
>Partially, promise a reward for any individual spell or array that manages to change the landscape of your garden

>Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.
>See what the Shidi clan wants for their victory, besides the chance to hold it over their Rival's head

Good fight Monu, even if you gave Old Man Su the squishy bones (We'll probably have to fix him up somehow)
>>6316979
>No
>Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.

>>6316979
>Partially, promise a reward for any individual spell or array that manages to change the landscape of your garden

>Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.

>>6316979
No, keep the trial as is. No need to stifle their inspiration.

>Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.
I kind of want to go back to hell and pick up a group of famous alchemists from the dead to pass judgement impartially.

>See what the Shidi clan wants for their victory, besides the chance to hold it over their Rival's head

Grandfather here. Been having PC issues the last couple of days. Will update when they're solved. Mobile posting to get the message out

>>6318929
aiiiieeeee

>>6318929
EVERYONE PANIC AAAAAAAA

>>6318929
AY AYAYAYAYAYAAAAAAAH!!!

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>>6318929

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>>6318929

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>>6318929

>>6319559
Ahahahahahahahaha. HHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

>>6318932
>>6318946
>>6319081
>>6319086
>>6319417
>>6319559

Grandfather here.
So good news. Think I've figured out what the problem is. And luckily, its Monitor based rather than some part of my PC burning out/ spontaneously combusting/ falling victim to its heart demons. Unfortunately, after trying a few replacement cables and testing the monitor on a friend's PC, I've determined it is deader than a certain half frozen prick and will need replacing.

Which won't be an issue, at most it'll tack on an additional day or two if nothing else goes wrong in the mean time, so this tribulation is almost conquered. Ya know, unless I get hit by a car while walking out of Best Buy.

>>6319559
That is both hilarious and oddly heart wrenching. Thanks

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>>6319963
Much rejoicing!
(I had a similar scare a week ago that resolved easily but nevertheless still made me almost shit my pants)

>>6319963
Wonderful news everyone, our impending doom is postponed!

>>6320219
Yay!

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Finally ending the vote and tallying its result. Sorry about the delay juniors, but it was out of my hands. Just baffled as to what caused my monitor to die like that. Anyways

Yes:1

NO: 3

Partially: 4
____

Secretly choose a different judge for the alchemy trial, so no one can accuse you of favoritism.:8

Watch the contests and give the crafters a challenge to use ONLY underworld materials, that Qiang has been so kind as to bring back:1

See what the Shidi clan wants for their victory, besides the chance to hold it over their Rival's head: 3

Alright, so you'll give an extra prize for any spell that manages to change the landscape of the garden, (which would be a hell of a feat, considering that Huan made it with her own Cultivation base/ Qi reserves) and secretly choose a new judge to curtail any accusations of favoritism or bias

Update will arrive shortly.

>>6320050
Ey! Cool!

Yes, while the masses and even most of your fellow daoists are very much disturbed by the castle town of your garden coming alive so vividly and actively, you make an announcement, sending your worshipers/ cultists through the crowds to spread the word to the mob and mere, ordinary mortals while sending your disciples as messenger to inform the other sects, mighty and influential to the small and meager and trust the gossip to spread to the sectless rogues and nomads who'd joined the tournament more out of curiosity than anything else.

And you also have your worshippers and out disciples tell the increasingly frightened festival goers and panicky nobles that they are in no danger of being parasitized or gobbled up by the more, floral parts of the stone walls you'd shaped through primordial beast essence and blood Qi and that touching the red sap that is probably mostly blood won't get them cursed or mutated into a monsterous new form. Probably.

Standing high upon a stage, swaggering and dressed in your most regal and imperial looking dress, glittering with frozen pieces of cosmic energies and stardust and crystalized pearls of highly condensed blood so rich it is almost black, with your favorite style of red eyeliner, blush and lip stick, with all the pomp and circumstance you can muster, you address the crowd as a beacon of otherworldly beauty and elegance. While also showing off some of the prettier and more eye catching jewels of the vast cosmos beyond the stagnant nine heavens. Which the Shidi Clan had expressed interest in possessing after you sent Fu to their guest house and had him ask in your place what Shidi Chao's special prize as the victor of the Core formation martial contests were, and he and your most judicially and lawfully minded disciples were currently, as far as you were aware, trying to talk down their demands from getting a trip to the sea of stars. Which you appreciated, since taking the White Jade Devil Opposing army on a field trip to hell already seemed like trouble enough.

Though one of the trophies they'd suggested, being the capture of cosmic beasts they wanted to cross breed with their Dusk Marsh Wolf pets, which would probably also need your assistance or that of Renshu or Ruolan via Blood Alchemy to actually work, probably would result in a bigger headache.

"Greetings my adoring public" You titter, covering your mouth with frilly sleeves, bouncing on your heels "The next contest is the Core Formation Sorcery tournament. The regular rules of the prior brackets slash cultivation tiers are in place, but a whim struck me as I saw how the brickwork of my garden came alive in the rain"

The crowd shifted uncomfortably as several walls did indeed shift, flowers swaying as if in a dance as they sprouted out of the bleeding mortar they'd climbed out of, absorbing Qi and water into the strange roots networked throughout the stonework and foundations of your garden.
Cont

>>6320444

"It is a side effect of the great, spiritual forces I wielded to grow this wonder unmatched beneath the heavens, my very own mystical garden as the Wild Empress" You continue on giddily as their are murmurs amongst the more religious and noble of the crowd, while the cultivators already know about how you made your temple, considering three different sects stuck their nose in your business the very second you'd finished crafting and shaping the landscape with your peerless force of will and Qi control "Wrought into reality by way of my grave will and shaped out of empty forest to become the magnificent and regal seat of power you've all been enjoying and admiring, seeing sights you'd never otherwise see if it wasn't for my sense of generosity"

You heard a few bitter murmurs from the cultivator side of the crowd, about how you'd not allowed them to see the most amazing of sights, like the hotsprings, depths of the orchard of spirit fruit and the grove of queer spirit wood trees, nor your palace bar a few exceptions. You silenced them with a threatening smile, the sort you've worn while drenched in the blood of heavenly beasts and cultivators thought to be real old monsters and peerless beneath the heavens before they ran head first in the pinnacle that was Huanliuxue!

"It is a transformation of the mundane, caused by the unrivaled and heavenly power I wield, a reflection of my divinity and domain across Chuan" You continue, relishing in that reactions of those who are well aware you're no goddess, practically teasing them as you draw the awe and adoration of the mortals they had supposed to have been safe guarding for generations "And recognizing how difficult it'd be to return this soil and air to its natural, original state, or to alter the designs I had for this once mundane stretch of woodlands, I decided that my fellow, lesser immortals deserve a special reward if they managed to change the landscape themselves, while working their sorceries and rituals"

And that immediately makes even the most annoyed and irritated of cultivators perk up, their natural sense of greed and ambition, so freshly stoked by seeing what a real fucking cultivator looks like firing up as the promise of one of the treasures you've been handing out every step of the tournament catches their interest immediately

"But there would be no sport or excitement in revealing what they'd win and earn for managing to circumvent my own divine mandate!' You declare, pausing and watching the skies for a bolt or a few thousand of divine retribution to come crashing down on you to smite your blasphemous tongue, all but asking the actual gods to smack you down for embracing the worship of and divinity that the common folk believed you to possess "Which is why the divine treasure the great sage who manages to rewrite the earthly mandate I writ with blood and primordial air will remain a mystery, isn't that much entertaining?"
Cont

>>6320445

And then the crowd is loud with excited whispers and guessing, by mortal and cultivator alike as you take your leave with a theatric bow and vanish in a puddle of blood cut from your wrist. At least that's what it looks like, really, you just cover yourself with a bubble of blood before teleporting and letting the blood sphere pop and settle into a puddle.

Snickering to yourself, you find yourself sitting next to a certain secret heretic, who is once again eating noodles. You steal his chopsticks and help yourself to the fatty pork in his bowl while he stares, frozen in mortal terror at seeing your sudden appearance right beside him. Poor man needs to learn to be less nervous around the apex predator of the whole kingdom, mundanely or supernaturally!

Unfortunately, you're probably not going to be able to watch the elders of the sects of Chuan struggle to match and surpass your awesome show of Qi control and density, since you've also recognized that if you judge the alchemical trials like you've done the previous rounds, you doubt there will be a sect that won't accuse your of Filial favoritism when Monu, inevitably, wins by a wide margin.

Which is why you're going to get ahead of their criticism and elect a replacement judge in secret! Secretly!

But the question was who'd exactly you'd pick....since most of the obvious choices would need a crash course on grading spirit medicines, cultivation pills, and spiritual drugs and poisons. Especially Gu poison.

And who do you pick, Huanliuxue?

>Siwang, of course. The boy has a reputation for his strict and lawful behavior and vast understanding of just behavior and rules.

>Five Colors, but in disguise as an old, dusty hermit you drug out of an alley somewhere.

>One of Aodasheng's flunkies. Sure, you want to keep him a secret, but everyone already "Knows" you command an army of hungry ghosts...

>Lian Tianhua and the Weiwupo, in exchange for favors on the latter's behalf

>Your rabbit kids.

>A "Sealed and tamed" Spider Demon, cause Anjing -Yinshi needs to get out and socialize more!

>Write in

>>6320446
>>Five Colors, but in disguise as an old, dusty hermit you drug out of an alley somewhere.
Behold! A hermit! As everyone knows, hermits are famed for their obscure knowledge and random expertise. I would vote for Anjing but I feel having this many people might be a bit mean for her. We can instead drag her to a party with way less people later. Baby steps.

>>6320446
>Five colours

Behold, the secret weapon of Huanliuxue.
Wide pleading eyes and judicious application of pestering "grandfather"

>>6320446
>A "Sealed and tamed" Spider Demon, cause Anjing -Yinshi needs to get out and socialize more!

>>6320446
>>6320457
I'll support this vote!
Surely the hermit gardener wouldn't mind overmuch to oversee the competition or offer pointers to these hopeful youths?

>>6320446
>Siwang, of course. The boy has a reputation for his strict and lawful behavior and vast understanding of just behavior and rules.
>A "Sealed and tamed" Spider Demon, cause Anjing -Yinshi needs to get out and socialize more!
>Five Colors, but in disguise as an old, dusty hermit you drug out of an alley somewhere.
The Honest Owl, our favorite spider demon, and some random old guy. This is too funny not to vote for.

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Had to look up (best boy) Siwang's description in the archive because it's not in the pastebin
I'm not sure I got his likelyhood right, especially the eyes but this is what I got from the AI

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>>6320781
Or maybe this is better?
(I gave him a monocle because I could.)

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Huili

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Turtles are hard! This is the best I could do and it didn't even give her a violet shell...

>>6320826
That is one kawaii turtle

>>6320446
>>Siwang, of course. The boy has a reputation for his strict and lawful behavior and vast understanding of just behavior and rules.
>Your rabbit kids.

The Just and the Innocent.

>>6320826
Why is this turtle giving me "fuck me" eyes?

>>6321103
(It's an AI model trained on anime and furry.)

>>6321239
Damn furries.

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>>6321265

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>>6321368

>>6320446
>Five Colors, but in disguise as an old, dusty hermit you drug out of an alley somewhere.
Would probably require the least amount of teaching, even if I do want our Spider Friend to get some socializing in (guess we can do that on the hell fieldtrip)

>>6321624
I would rather not drag spider-neet around when we're touring hell with the devil killing fanatics... though it would be quite the flex and such a shock might make even the most unwavering question themselves. Briefly. Maybe.

Ending the vote, tallying the result now.

Five colors:5

Anjing-Yinshi:2

Siwang: 2

The moon rabbits:1

Alright, so you'll secretly elect Ling Wucai/ The five colors emperor; the deity that should be ruling the heavens and that the five wise immortal sages falsely claim to serve, as the secret replacement judge for the alchemy and crafting trials

update will arrive shortly

>>6320781
>>6320782
>>6320817
>>6320826
>>6321369
>>6321368
Awesome. I especially like the second Siwang one. Really captures his character/ personality I feel

Well. Actually. There is an easy solution so you don't have to lecture your replacement on the finer details of Gu poisons. Which, though you'd never admit it, you are only considered an expert because it is an art that's nearly been completely tossed to the wayside and were raised by the foremost expert of the Chuan Kingdom and have a little experience refining them. Which, does admittedly also make you one of the foremost living experts, since Poisoners are a rare breed in this era, at least amongst orthodox sects.

But there is someone who was alive when Gu and poison clans were as numerous as weeds in a garden. Ling Wucai, the Five Colors emperor. The kindly old grandfather the world of cultivation had been lead to believe issued a divine mandate, well, several mandates that all but crippled cultivation compared to the heights it reached in ancient history. And luckily you for once know exactly where this almighty being is and don't need to rely on him suddenly appearing or hearing from one of the Geges he stopped by for midday tea and brought snacks. Which happens nearly as often as you just randomly running into the highest of divinities.

And as you muse on all those happenstance encounters and snacks lost, you're struck dumb to find that Five Colors is drinking the wine the five former war gods had been gifted, at your expense with a deeply bitter and irritated look on his otherwise gentle and sagely face.

"Am I interrupting something?" You ask, cautiously inching closer to him under the massive spirit fruit tree he'd been meditating on, all five of the once gods you left in his care to be whipped into shape huddling and clumped together like newborn kits frightened by thunder

Immortal Fury (Xiānnù, 仙怒), the bratty teenaged looking former deity who is the only woman amongst the five, who stuffed her face with very expensive fish, at your expense holds up a hand to draw your attention

"We just told him about the day to day in the nine heavens" She says, sounding much less boisterous and bratty than she did when you first met her possessing Xiaoli

"And there in lies the problem. Idleness, hedonism, poverty, cowardice and so many other mortal corruptions stain the heavenly realm" Five colors snaps as the red bearded Lang wince and Xiaoli crouches down, a spark of divine fury rippling through the air, but unlike Wucai's furious rage when you explained to him the abuses magical beasts suffered and how they were treated as practically cattle, he reins in his fury and stays composed

"And it is not as if these five children know far the nine heavens have fallen, believing such an indolent state to be the natural form of divinity" He continues to bemoan shaking his head and glaring at his reflection in his cup of wine "like winter cat fish or well fed hogs, these five miscreants did not know of the toil and labor they should be performing"
Cont

>>6321800

Xing Shenshou, the prick who winged you with an divinely empowered arrow moves to speak in his defense

"And had the audacity to blame the laziness of the martial deities on their head, and that he was once a mortal man" Five colors continues, gnashing his teeth "As if that isn't how most gods were made back in the righteous era, before the heavens were usurped and all the world grew feebler for it. I am not busy, Huanliuxue, nor are you interrupting a cerebral discussion on philosophy and the nature of gods, I, Ling Wucai, am simply overwhelmed by just how low the heavens have degenerated and how far the standards of godhood and divinity have fallen! And how pathetic most of the modern day deities have become. I suppose my wastrel son wanted to ensure his gang had a perfect stranglehold on a submissive celestial realm, where the lesser deities were either forced to scrounge for faith like beggars while the noble class were fattened and defanged with excess and luxury"

"Should I warn the mortals of an impending cataclysm?" You ask, trying to remember who was your second pick

"No matter. And yes, I will accept, I'd prefer a distraction to languishing in bitterness" Five Colors states, tossing away the wine bowl with a flick of his wrist "And I need to be away from these youngster, before my temper flares and I strike one for the low character of their superiors and seniors"

"And you will disguise yourself of course, as while I'd delight in seeing the orthodox sects realize the last ten generations of cultivation and belief were teetering on a foundations of lies, I'd also prefer such chaos to happen far away from my turf when it will inevitably happen" You ask sweetly, playing up the part of the spoiled granddaughter

"Of course, I look enough like a hermit already. I suppose you will claim a flight of whimsy and declare a hobo you found in some ditch to be the new judge of whatever contest I'll be attending?" He asks

"You speak my own thoughts, as expected of five colors" You cackle from behind your paw "After all, hermit sages are famed for their wisdom, in a wide and seemingly random variety of fields and expertise, being masters of the obscure and unknown"

"At least a few things have remained the same across the millennia" He laughs, patting you on the head between the ear as you try to not purr on reflex, which becomes much easier when you see a cunning flash in his eyes "Although, since you will not be busy judging the contest yourself..."

He's going to ask you a favor, you can feel it in the static in the air and along your whiskers from tip to roots!
Cont

>>6321802

"And as I've tasked you with obtaining divinity", a coy smirk plays across his lips as he sense the drop of sanguine divinity you're keeping in stasis, unweakened, inside of your own body "And the people of Chuan have whole heartedly embraced you as the divine spirit beast protector, and that these delinquents don't know the first thing about the etiquette and proper behavior of upstanding and worthwhile deities"

You flatten your ears and grimace

"Perhaps you could show them why the mortals of these lands have replaced their former peers to instead heap worship upon a vengeful house cat?" He finishes, smiling pleasantly

"What am I supposed to do, tell them that I just got used as propaganda by the now royal Chuan family and had my disciples do some charity and do good, heroic deeds across the kingdom during its darkest hour?" You ask

"Exactly! That is an example of how a righteous god would act. Even if you might not realize or care to admit you are growing more benevolent by the day, despite being made of grudges, spite, enmity and a sea of resentment!" He declares quite jubilantly, patting you on the head

How do you respond, Huanliuxue?

>"Are you trying to pass of their training to me, old geezer?!?!"

>"Should come instinctively to them, shouldn't it? If they were ever worthy to be born as gods, they should be able to figure out how they should act if given even a slight nudge, riiiiiiiiiight~"

>"I'll get around to it. I'm just pretending to be a goddess cause my worshipers would be disappointed if I didn't act godly and play to the crowed, Heh-Heh-Heh-Heh"

>"Eh, they acted more like gods used to when they attacked me as part of that divine tribulation. At least they actually got off their asses and did their duties unlike certain other gods I ran into during my jaunt through the Celestial realm"

>Write in

>>6321803
>"Should come instinctively to them, shouldn't it? If they were ever worthy to be born as gods, they should be able to figure out how they should act if given even a slight nudge, riiiiiiiiiight~"

>>6321803
>They acted more like gods when they attacked me.

>"Go and ask the priests and the layity why they follow me. It will enlighten you or you will prove unworthy of your positions"

>>6321803
>>"Should come instinctively to them, shouldn't it? If they were ever worthy to be born as gods, they should be able to figure out how they should act if given even a slight nudge, riiiiiiiiiight~"

>>6321803
>"Eh, they acted more like gods used to when they attacked me as part of that divine tribulation. At least they actually got off their asses and did their duties unlike certain other gods I ran into during my jaunt through the Celestial realm"

>>6321803
>Help them disguise themselves as monks and lead them through the streets to ask anyone you can find about what the people of Chuan expect the Gods to behave like.

>>6321817
Supporting.

>>6321803
supporting >>6321817. I would throw in "Are you trying to pass of their training to me, old geezer?!?!" as a joke, but honestly dealing with the 5 Frauds is enough

>>6323210
>Are you trying to pass of their training to me, old geezer?!
"Yes, because I believe I will unleash another natural disaster if I have to listen to them any longer."

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Ending the vote, tallying its result now.

"Should come instinctively to them, shouldn't it? If they were ever worthy to be born as gods, they should be able to figure out how they should act if given even a slight nudge, riiiiiiiiiight~":2

"Eh, they acted more like gods used to when they attacked me as part of that divine tribulation. At least they actually got off their asses and did their duties unlike certain other gods I ran into during my jaunt through the Celestial realm": 4
- "Go and ask the priests and the layity why they follow me. It will enlighten you or you will prove unworthy of your positions": 3

Help them disguise themselves as monks and lead them through the streets to ask anyone you can find about what the people of Chuan expect the Gods to behave like.:1

so your response will be "Eh, they acted more like gods used to when they attacked me as part of that divine tribulation. At least they actually got off their asses and did their duties unlike certain other gods I ran into during my jaunt through the Celestial realm" AND "Go and ask the priests and the layity why they follow me. It will enlighten you or you will prove unworthy of your positions"

update will arrive shortly

"Eh" You grunt, shrugging your shoulders dramatically as you can while being a cat, tail flicking once before curling as you speak "They acted more like gods used to when they attacked me as part of that divine tribulation"

There is a shock through the air, as the five former gods and the strongest and oldest deity both react with surprise, the five former deities expression turning from scowls, grimaces or winces into slack jawed looks of surprise while Five Colors straightens his back and narrows his eyes, stroking his beard and scrutinizing you as you saunter and pad closer to him and the divine brats he's baby sitting. Well, once divine brats.

"At least they actually got off their asses and did their duties unlike certain other gods I ran into during my jaunt through the Celestial realm" You titter, plodding up the spirit fruit tree's trunk and whipping around, shifting to a hybrid form between feline and human, looking like a cat demon, using your own fur and hair to hide away your bare form as you cackle and tap a clawed finger on your chin, flashing fangs meant for tearing out jugulars and spilling blood

Star Shooter (Xīng Shèshǒu , 星射手), the prick who struck you twice has a vein pop on his head, cheeks flushing nearly as red as you hide and hair as he tries to argue but finds that he can't defend the behavior of his one time peers. At least, not without making both his friends and himself look absolutely terrible and just as spoiled and lazy as the rest of the current celestial bureaucracy. You grin and flick a hand through your hair, teetering and swaying back and forth on the branch you've taken as your seat. The Earth Breaker (Dìqiú Làng, 地球浪 ) just stares slack jawed until the little Immortal Fury (Xiānnù, 仙怒), kicks him hard in the shins. The black haired Martial King (Jié Wáng, 偈王 ) and God Lance (Shén Máo, 神矛) cover their eyes. Ah right, human men find it more exciting when a girl only covers a little of her naked body, than if they saw her completely undressed. Guess the same is true for gods. You'd completely forgotten. Well, its amusing seeing the three of the five get so flustered about that, and the white gold haired girl get so upset that they are.

"How unusually forgiving for an existence born of resentment and vengeance, Huanliuxue" Five colors muses and ponders

"Oh I still hold a grudge, but I'm not so blinded by my own enmity to not notice they at least did the bare minimum to uphold the natural order and their places in it" You shrug off, crossing your arms under your generous breasts and sneering as Xiannu shoots a wave of murderous intent your way, eyes flashing briefly with divine light as you smugly sit astride a tree branch, relishing in her anger and the humiliation of her companions

"We don't need your idle praises, mangy stray!" She rages, stomping her foot and grinding and gnashing her teeth as Xing Sheshou sighs heavily
Cont

>>6324047

"Calm yourself, fury, despite her unbearably smug demeanor, she isn't lying" He mutters ruefully "And you three, remember, she is an animal even if she's learned how to appear like a jade beauty"

"Funny, more gods than those three fell for me and became smitten during my brief visit to the heavens" You cackle, sticking out your tongue and laying back on the branch "There's no shame to be struck by and admire beauty as peerless and flawless as mine. Its not my fault if their instinct is stronger than their pride. Also, I'm a red jade beauty, raw, unrefined!"

"Clearly, your hair looks like it hasn't seen a brush in years!" He shouts back and you pout

"I brush it regularly and keep it well groomed, it just grows like this you little..." You say, before clicking your tongue as you catch Five Colors patient but needling look out of the corner of your eye, he's only waiting so long to hear your answer and while you could refuse, you do owe that old geezer a fairly large debt and don't want to test his tolerance more than you've already have by teasing and pestering the five.

You groan, rolling your neck, sighing as you go limp on the branch, slouching as much as you mixed body's extreme flexibility will allow, practically dripping off of your perch as you consider a way to get an out so you don't have to deal with these pampered idiots anymore than you have to before you get a chance to literally beat some sense into them and...well you don't think it'll work, but you kind of just want to beat their asses to say that you did and humble them a little, is that so wrong.

Wait. Humble them...that's it! That's the loophole to get out of teaching them the manners in five colors' stead. Sure it'd only last a few hours, but knowing yourself intimately as you do and having heard these five when they were well into their wine cups, even if they know you're not a demon after the legendary scolding Five Colors gave them, you're still certain it'll end up in a fight eventually for one reason or another.

Like the fact Star Shooter hasn't apologized for shooting you with an arrow or...well there's a lot of reasons, including that they're still rather bitter about the whole losing their divine authority and immortality thing, as if that was your fault. Also they're a bunch of spoiled, pampered, noble blooded morons and you historically don't get along well with those sorts. Even if and especially because you're the most noble and regal at all. Oh right! The way to get out of having to show them how to act like proper dieities deserving of worship, since Five colors had already torn down their whole world view with the ass whipping he gave them Heh-Heh-Heh. As if you know what it means to be a god! Shit! This is another of his tricks to try and push you further and get you close to reaching divine status yourself! That's low five colors! Low!
cont

>>6324048

Sighing out you rocket up straight, back stiff as a corpse in rigor mortis, moving so much like a corpse on string that the desire in the hearts of Earth breaker, Martial King and God Lance wilts into disquiet as you look down at the five former gods with big, wide eyes, now purposefully moving like a stiff corpse would just because the way they shive and try to look away is kind of funny to see.

"Go and ask the priests and the layity why they follow me" You tell them, speaking with all the authority and natural poise of an empress, lifting up a clawed finger, before grinning more like a witch or devil "It will enlighten you or you will prove unworthy of your positions. Well, prior positions"

"Hah?" Xiannu scoffs, arms crossed over her honestly rather pitiful chest "What good would that do! Your cultists are a bunch of temple burners! They're lunatics"

"I've heard they've stopped using holy idols as kindling" Jie Wang says steadily "But you do have a point, Fury, they did choose to worship a man eater over..."

You lean closer, as the martial king's expression sours, and he looks away to avoid looking down your cleavage as he realize he can't say proper gods

"Worthless deities growing fat on offerings and unearned faith" You cackle "Surely, this means they are just as right minded as myself, my followers"

"You still ate people! Diqui Lang shouts, and you have to clench your jaw to stop from shouting back that tax collectors aren't people, since that probably wouldn't help your case

"I'm not human. Cats eat human corpse when times are lean and when they're not" You scoff "Still not an argument against the quality of my believers"

"Their cat masks are creepy!" Xiannu shouts, shaking her fist and you tic your jaw since those masks are styled after your own handsome face! But you remain composed and don't give into the urge to claw the little bitch's face even just a little bit.

"And their dress won't effect their ability to teach you five louts" You sneer "or, well, I guess it'd be more of a demonstration"

"It sounds like you just want to torture us with tales of your adventure" Shen Mao says

"I'm not" You say innocently "You, Star Shooter, you want to add to the complaints"

"No. Because maybe we can make them see some sense" He says with a nod "You might not be a true monster or devil, but it is blasphemy to mock divinity"

"Not a sin to be worshiped" You snicker "Shi Tangmushi will be happy to talk your ears off about why he and so many others chose me to be their idol! And how he found his faith when the Ling went rampaging through innocent villages"

Xiannu and Xing Sheshou try to find an argument against that, and earth breaker, martial king and god lance don't even try, but they, after some more complaining and belly aching, agree to meet your worshippers to be "Enlightened", probably just as much to have an excuse to stop arguing with you since clearly they can't beat you in a debate.

Cont

>>6324049

And just in time, if they'd argued any longer, the alchemist tournament might've been delayed.

None of the contestants of the sorcery contest were able to, even with complex and ancient spell arrays or teaming up with their sect mates, to change or transform the landscape of your garden. And it seems the formation you drew it up from reacts rather negatively to any attempt, as a few of the elders of Innocent Witch Court, Eight Heavenly Gates, and Thousand Lotus Hall Sects learn as they're hit by backlash of Primordial Beast Essence and Blood Qi that causes one of the haughty Witch's, who thought they'd have a repeat of that win their sect got over the palace of natural laws in the foundation establishment round, sprouted bunny ears, whisker and tails and despite being a grown woman, was on her hands and knees begging and tugging on the hem of your robe to remove them since she was terrified of the alternative of taking a knife to them that Monu had suggested to her fellow witches, and that they were seriously considering.

The others tried to use methods to undo blood based corruption of the land against pure, untainted blood Qi, and just become, well, hyper active like little kids on a sugar rush despite being old hags and geezers, which is funny to see. And even funnier to you when they start sweating, crying and throwing up blood from the over abundance of Blood Qi they took into themselves.

And that means you have to congratulate an anemic elder from the Eight Heavenly Gates Sect, who'd spent the last few minutes spewing up a fountain of blood while excitedly talking to the awakened house cats who'd surrounded him, wondering if he was going to die. Most of them being part of the royal guard ever loyal Yixing had created for you, who were, for whatever reason, worried the old master was about to erupt into a monster made out of blood.

And that, you realize, might be because they'd seen you practicing the art of blood control and refining your body into blood as you've done a couple of times when you were really pressed in a fight to the death.

Once the core formation expert stopped vomiting up torrents of blood, all they and their sect asked for were the method to awaken magical beasts. Seems their first few beast disciples had really struck a cord with the remaining elders of the sect who were ousted or exiled after your trial and all the heavens overturning revelations that spread because of it.
Cont

>>6324050

Double vote \

Do you give the Eight Heavenly Gates the secret of Magical Beast Creation/ awakening?

>Yes

>No

>Only if they can successfully find and save "Wild" magical beasts outside of Chuan

>If the beasts they awaken are given a choice of their sect

>Write in

And what do you do as the Alchemy and crafting trial begins, Huanliuxue?

>Attend and try not to laugh as the orthodox cultivators disrespect the rightful ruler of the nine heavens

>Watch and gossip with a few witches as you "Fix" their bunny eared friend.

>Listen to few cultivators who want to pay for you to awaken a "Beastly bloodline" in them as well.

>Eavesdrop and spy on the five gods as they hear from your worshipers why you've become the preferred idol of Chuan

>Write in

>>6324052
>Only if they can successfully find and save "Wild" magical beasts outside of Chuan
Adopt don't shop

>Attend and try not to laugh as the orthodox cultivators disrespect the rightful ruler of the nine heavens

>>6324049
>tax collectors aren't people
Where's the lie, though?

>>6324052
>>Only if they can successfully find and save "Wild" magical beasts outside of Chuan
You can't just MAKE disciples and awakened beasts. You have to help them grow naturally as well. It's also not quite fair to just take happy animals and force them to awaken when they may not want to.

>Attend and try not to laugh as the orthodox cultivators disrespect the rightful ruler of the nine heavens
I kinda wanna see how the jolly old man will judge things. Who knows, maybe we'll see some sparks of insight from his massive wisdom.

>>6324052
>Write-in ask the one witch who turned into a hybrid bunny... Why remove it? I mean show her the little one's look how cute they are. Also check out your leg muscles. I bet she'll get hit on alot. Kekeke.

>Only if they can successfully find and save "Wild" magical beasts outside of Chuan
Adopt don't shop

>Attend and try not to laugh as the orthodox cultivators disrespect the rightful ruler of the nine heavens

>>6324052
>Only if they can save wild magical beasts outside of Chuan

>Attend and try to not laugh

>>6324052
>Only if they can successfully find and save "Wild" magical beasts outside of Chuan

>Attend and try not to laugh as the orthodox cultivators disrespect the rightful ruler of the nine heavens
Not missing this shit for the world.

>>6324052
>If the beasts they awaken are given a choice of their sect
>Eavesdrop and spy on the five gods as they hear from your worshipers why you've become the preferred idol of Chuan