Yrsillar Wrote:"It's just so difficult to pull myself away from my work when there is so much that needs doing,” Li Suyin continued. Frowning at her empty teacup, she rang the little bell on the table, and the silent skeletal automat(on) clicked and swished its way back to pour her a new cup. "And it's not that I didn't like him, but… isn't it much more interesting to work together on a project than it is to go out for food or some other frippery neither of us need?"

Ling Qi smiled. "I understand where you're coming from. I can't scold you, not when I think the same."

Li Suyin sighed glumly. "I don't think I can be a good wife anymore, but it doesn't bother me like that should."

"That's just going too far." Ling Qi leaned forward and poked her friend in the forehead. "You're still thinking like a mortal, Li Suyin."

The shorter girl batted her hand away. "I know! I have many more duties, and I won't set my projects aside… I just… Who would even try to sweep a girl like me off my feet anymore?"

Ling Qi considered her friend: the white scars around her faintly glowing eye, the jeweled, clawed gauntlet of white jade that covered her left arm, the high-necked, web patterned mantle, and the glinting, sharp metal threads. She felt the way Li Suyin's aura branched out, connecting to countless automata and weapons caches stashed in the construction of the manor.

"A suitor with a brave heart and clear eyes who can see my soft hearted, squishy friend Li Suyin under the trappings."

"I—I am not squishy!"

"No, even if you exercise regularly, Li Suyin will never not be squishy."

Casualfarmer Wrote:That was not just a sword. That was Summer’s Sky, the blade of the arch-traitor. She knew its look by heart, and seeing it in person let her feel its nature all the more. How often had Shenhe dreamed of retrieving this sword and returning it to its rightful place in the Sect? Of cleaning some of the stain off her branch of the family?

And here it was in the hands of another. He might look unfortunately fox-like, but it was good that the blade was in the hands of a righteous cultivator.

There would be time to have the full story later. For now… this was fate. She would use the traitor’s blade to protect a member of the Cloudy Sword Sect, and raise their own sect higher in the process. Her heart swelled.

“Zang Shenhe swears she shall do all in her power to rescue your uncle,” Shenhe intoned, her Qi burning under her skin. She swore on her deeds, not her honour, because her deeds were all she had.

She grasped the hilt of Summer’s Sky, and her Qi touched the spirit within.

‘Demand. Return Summer’s Sky to Eighth Wielder upon completion of duty.’ The words were sudden, the Sword Spirit speaking to her directly. Shenhe’s own blade had a Spirit, but it was a quiet thing. This was powerful. She could feel the sword’s Qi, its will pressing against her own.

“I swear to.”

‘Temporary Wielder acknowledged. Training locks disengaged. Summer’s Sky will do all in its power to aid Temporary Wielder.’

Kenainath Wrote:"Nephew," Uncle Jianjun is there a moment later, stepping out of a shimmer in the air, and his eyes are very much not amused. "Would you care to explain why exactly you deliberately exposed yourself to tribulation lightning of that level of power?" Right beside him is mother…and the three guests Uncle Jianjun invited from the Shrouded Mountain to attend my presentation, all three of them looking curious. "More importantly, would you care to explain how you attracted that level of tribulation lightning? I am very interested to know what exactly you did to anger the Heavens to that extent."

(...)

"There is a rocky valley at the other end of that passage, perhaps fifty li in length and ten in width," Lady Xingjuan says calmly. "Rou can express himself without any issues there, and I will keep an eye on him just in case. If he starts losing control of the condensation of his Qi, I will subdue him and see to maintaining condensation of his core's layers."

"I will go and explain the situation to Dongmei. She will be curious as to why exactly four Sky Realm cultivators asserted their Domains today, and why Rou is on a rampage. I would expect that valley to be destroyed by the time he is done," Dong Jianjun sighs.

"I could use an excuse to redecorate the valley. Really, all of those scattered boulders are ugly things," Lady Xingjuan shrugs. "A few geysers will vastly improve the appearance of the area in my opinion. Maybe I'll see about some landscaping and turn them into hot springs. The volcanic rock will make for interesting terrain features as well."

(...)

"Young Mistress," one of the guard sergeants opens the flaps of her tent, bowing sheepishly as Xiulan rises to her feet, the air of levity gone. "The delegation from the Grand Ravine and Misty Lake Sects approaches." Xiulan nods. While the vast bulk of the Grand Ravine's forces have been sent to guard the Misty Lake and the border with Yellow Rock Plateau, and the Misty Lake's strength is…heavily reduced, both Sects have still sent small delegations. The Young Master of the Grand Ravine is leading nine other cultivators of the Ravine, and Liu Xianghua is leading four other cultivators from the Misty Lake, all of them equipped with new devices called 'Steam Furnaces.'

(...)

And, for dessert...

"Wa Shi found a Hidden Realm in the Azure Hills while he was preparing for the Waterfall Gate, and was sent from there with a storage ring full of the peaches that grew there, along with seeds from some other plants," Rou explains. "I had enough to do some testing, and I've prepared enough peach pie for everyone onboard the ship, spiced with Lowly Spiritual Herbs."

"Seven-Fragrance Jewel Herbs," Xiaobao's mother corrects. "The peaches…are Divine Peaches. While not the fabled Peaches of Immortality, they are extremely rare, and known to impart Vital Qi to those who consume them. There are only a few places on the continent that they are known to grow. They also have other uses for cultivation."

"I'll have to experiment with growing them later then," Rou laughs. "I kept the pits from the peaches, and Wa Shi brought more, so I'll do some experimenting with them. It should be interesting to figure it out, and maybe I'll manage to grow them after all."

"If you manage to grow them, should you claim to be second in the art of growing Spiritual Herbs, no one else would dare claim to be first," Xiaobao's mother replies. "Few manage to get them to even grow into saplings. Getting them to mature and produce fruit is something that no one has managed to do deliberately. All of the places where they are known to grow are either ancient Hidden Realms or wild places that are extremely difficult to access. In my life, I have tasted them four times. This will be the fifth."

tealruby Wrote:Spidey writes in for advice when dealing with reporters, and a certain J Jonah Jameson.

(09-28-2024, 10:30 AM)Norgarth Wrote: Beware of chicken
https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/beware-of-chicken-xianxia.910799/page-2060#post-105261503
looking at the aftermath

Avrjoe Wrote:Eathens mind spun. It was Ravager. Bonesaw had worked on the former New York villain. Her fingers now ended in claws. The metal talons dripped some putrid-looking fluid. Her mouth had been altered and sharp steel teeth added. The jaw was distended, with a prehensile tongue lashing around somehow she could still speak. The voice emanated from deeper in her throat unconcerned for how the jaw was moving.

(...)

Upon the Siberian riding piggyback was Bonesaw who started clapping. In excitement. Before they could wonder what she was so excited about the twisted remains of the truck shrieked. The tortured metal gave way, ripping apart in several places to reveal the bulky mutant known as Crawler.

(...)

Two vans slid into the parking lot. They end up pulling to a halt to disgorge patchwork capes built of mix-and-match pieces of Edict, Licit, Chuckles, Carnel, and Prophet.

(...)

It was the collaborative effort of the world's greatest Tinkers. Mannequin had studied them all. This place was an offense to his sense of ego. It was a spherical shell made to completely isolate the inside. He knew he would have been at the head of this project before he changed its direction. It definitely used his old work as inspiration and that was unforgivable.

He would allow no resurrection of Sphere. Even the reminder of what he once had been had to be removed from existence. That this affront was luring people into the false comfort of hope only rubbed salt in the wound that its existence was to Mannequin.