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>>36522792
You stand in the admittedly somewhat lavish inn room you paid for, hand on the hilt of your yanmaodao on your back and your newly Sworn Brother Duan Lei's hand on his nandao, a wide-bladed broad saber common in the southern regions from which he hails.
Pic related, in case anyone wondered.

The Venoms are arrayed in the room around you: to your left and slightly behind you LIZARD waits with his arms cross, leaning against the wall where the door you came in through sits, his outfit as white as snow, eating some kind of fruit in a leisurely manner. To your right, CENTIPEDE stands leaning against the far right wall, scroking his beard, which slightly protrudes throgh his black and crimson mask. To the left opposite to Centipede stands VIPER, his arms crossed and seeming to you to carry an air of impatience about him; he'd rather be elsewhere you think. In the center next to the bed, are three figures; Zhu'er is held by her neck (but not seemingly tight enough to choke her, just to restrain her) against the bedpost by SCORPION, who's limbs seem highly powerful and developed. Just next Zhu'er and standing on the bed lies SPIDER, who's hair is as white as snow and his outfit as black as coal.

In seemingly every space between anyone in the room, silvery strands of some kind of wire or something like it, trapping you and Duan Lei completely in place; if you move you'll be sliced to ribbons!

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>>36522934
"More visitors? You're an awful popular young lady, Princess," Spider says to Zhu'er, his voice snide with contempt and disdain.

She says nothing glaring daggers from her weirdly green eyes at the masked man.

"So who the hell are you clowns supposed to be? This is a private matter between this lady's fiancee and her. Outsiders have no business being here," Spider says, speaking to you now, his fingers twitching and causing his "web" to vibrate just enough so you can see how extensive it is before it becomes nearly invisible again.

"Hey," Viper says, interrupting suddenly. "Why are we wasting time with this shit? We're not paid to bandy words with random xia passing through. Let's just grab the brat and go."

Lizard nods in approval behind you, but says nothing else.

"Shut up. It's embarrassing for outsiders to get involved in clan affairs like this, and saving face might be in order," Spider says harshly.

Centipede grunts at that. "Besides, we haven't had any PROPER work in months. I'm getting bored being up in the fortress all the goddamn time."

"So....who are you two supposed to be?" Spider asks again

>WDYD?
>Answer honestly; it's not like your name matters much.
>Threaten them back; these guys look like they need a lesson or five.
>Stay close-mouthed; they don't need your names any more then you need to see their faces before you kick their teeth in.

>>36523058
"I AM SKY TIANKONG, GREATEST WARLORD OF THE EAST. THIS IS MY SECOND, DUAN LEI. WE HAVE COME TO SQUISH BUGS AND DRINK SAKE. AND THE INNKEEPER TELLS ME HE IS OUT OF SAKE."

But seriously, answer honestly.

>>36523058
>Answer honestly; it's not like your name matters much.

It begins!

Though I have to wonder if there wouldn't be some kind of hidden path through the threads, just like how spiders don't get caught on their own webs and also they have to have gotten to their positions somehow, barring their being sufficiently ridiculous to stand in the same spot and same position for ages while Spider sets up his fucking wires.
And what about Zhu'er? Presumably she must know the way through, since they either dragged her to that spot through it, or, god forbid, held her there aloft and made her watch while the wires went up.

>>36523086
God damnit, it's China, isn't it? Not sake, huangjiu.

>>36523126
Or baiju.

>>36523058
>Answer honestly; it's not like your name matters much.
>Tell them that she has been, however briefly, your travelling companion, which, you think, would hardly make you an outsider.
>Ask if there is any less threatening and violent way this can be resolved, because you really aren't in the mood for this right now.

>>36523139
Spirits are nasty.

Wine is love.

>>36523058
>Answer honestly; it's not like your name matters much.
Awwwww yeah!

>>36523086, >>36523087, >>36523145, >>36523224

"I'm Tiankong, style name Sky. No School, Clan or Sect," you say fiercely.

"Duan Lei, style name 'Winter Saber', the Swifest Saber of Hunan. Likewise," Lei says right after you.

Centipede gives a "Hooh?" in interest at Lei's name. "Looks like we've a celebrity in here boys!"

They all laugh derisively at the same time. You get the feeling they practice it; it sounds way too forced to be normal.

"So," Spider says after they stop laughing. "Instead of TWO no-name hicks against the Five Deadly Venoms, it's one no-name hick and a hick with a name for himself. Clearly Princess here runs in esteemed social circles."

"She's my traveling companion and owes me a debt. You can't have her," you say firmly.

"What a coincidence. She owes our boss a debt too, and he's been pretty adamant about getting her back," Centipede claims, stroking his beard again.

"What debt?"

"One wife," Spider says simply.

"In that case her debt with me is greater, so you guys cango right on back the way you came!" you say, nodding at the door without moving.

"Is that right? What, she promise to marry you too?"

"Three fish and one sweet potato," you say, your face totally unmoving.

There's a brief pause at that, and Duan Lei snickers slightly. Zhu'er looks flabbergasted. From the slightly faltered stances of the Venoms, you're guessing they are too.

"What."

"You heard me. So since we've established my claim is greater you both can shove off and find your own fish-thief. This one's taken."

>>36523139
Or meijiu

>>36523357
>you say, your face totally unmoving
Goddammit I now have a mental image of Tiankong deliberately speaking without moving his lips.

>>36523357

There's still another pause.

"How in the hell does THAT give you greater claim!?" Lizard says with a tone of indignation.

"I'm sorry of all five of you are somehow so completely uneducated that you don't see the gravity of the debt," you say, still totally serious-faced. "I can't be bothered to educate every uncultured swine who walks in the door, especially when they have four friends who SHOULD be canny enough to know what takes a priority in debt."

"You LITTLE SHI-" Centipede says, getting up from his perch on the wall, clenching his fists.

"We'll pay you three taels to cover it if you step off and go back the way you came. We're on a timetable here," Spider says.

Centipede balks at that. "You can't be serious!"

"Shut. UP. We don't have time to indulge ourselves here," he says simply.

>WDYD?

>Ask for a better price [Taunt]
>Say they should save it for hospital bills.[Threaten]
>Simply refuse.

>>36523540
>>Simply refuse.
It's not the money, it's the whole principle behind it.

Also was watching the latest remake of "Demi Gods and Semi Devils", was it always so frigging dense harem antics?

>>36523540
>Ask for a better price [Serious]
If they're throwing around money here I could sell this girl for like, 5 taels.

>>36523566
>Also was watching the latest remake of "Demi Gods and Semi Devils", was it always so frigging dense harem antics?

That's like, seventy percent of Jin Yong's novels usually.

>>36523540
>Simply refuse.
What?
They dare dishonor our debt like this? It is something that transcends the simple material aspect!

>>36523540
>Simply refuse.
Gentlemen, please.

>>36523540
>Simply refuse.
It is the principle of the matter. Besides if I let you pay for her when she clearly doesn't want you too what sort of man would I be?

>>36523566, >>36523606, >>36523625, >>36523705

"Three taels? Hah!" you laugh, as derisively as they did earlier. "Why not six? Or twelve? Or twenty-four? If you Sifu taught you all debts among Xia are settled by paying people off then he must have been as poorly concieved as your fashion sense is! No WONDER you're all such uncultured swine; clearly your master was of an equally low caliber!"

Lizard, Centipede, and Scorpion are clearly angered by your words, their demanours and body language shifting from dismissive to irritated.

"Come ON, let's just kill these guys!" Centipede says.

"I agree. This is a waste of time," Viper agrees.

"Well. If you're so willing to fight over this, I suppose I can't put too much effort into saving your miserable lives," Spider says, his fingers twitching and the web moving closer.

>WDYD?

>"How about a bet?"
>Get ready to fight!

>>36523783
>Get ready to fight!
Yin yang rotation that web.

>>36523783
>Get ready to fight!
Just chuck our sword across the room, through all the wires, right past his hand where they all connect. Then beat the shit out of them with our fists.

>>36523783
>Get ready to fight!
yin yang rotation >>36523822

>>36523783
>Get ready to fight!
Oh yeah, fighting the Five Deadly Venoms, this is going to be fun.

>>36523822, >>36523857, >>36524062, >>36524300

You clench your left fist and raise your hand to the grip of your blade in response, Duan Lei taking a similar stance.

"Let me do it," Centipede says. "This kid is pissing me off. He could use a lesson in manners!"

"Fine. But no screwing around like last time, I don't care how mad at him you are," Spider says, and Centipede doesn't acknowledge that, but you can almost sense him flinch at the white-haired fighter's words.

Scorpion lets go of Zhu'er and the rest take up positions too, reading for the fight.

"So....are you gonna...?" he says, nodding at his hand, and Spider seems to realize at the last moment that his web is still up, and with a single twitch of his fingers you see darting silver lines of light blur around the room and retract with incredible speed, seeming to vanish somewhere around his wrist up his sleeve!

You grit your teeth...you might not have been able to touch the web without slicing yourself to pieces, but if your sword touched it you could've seen how conductive it was at least! You though that Spider had somehow placed a hugely complicated razor wire trap around the room before you got up here, but from what you just saw the webhe uses is somehow a singular weapon!

Lei gives a low whistle. "Nice trick," he mutters to you.

"I honestly can't see what he did there," you admit just as quietly.

"No, I meant taunting them like that so they all wanted to personally fight you. Now they're all mad and off-balance."

"Oh. That. Hey, are these guys famous? Can you tell me anything about them?" you say as you both slowly shuffle to the side of each other, giving you both more room.

"They're assassins, famous through the Wulin. They've killed more people then I can think of right now. Each one is a highly skilled expert in the Five Venoms Style, each one a full master of one of the forms they take their nickname after."

>>36523540
i laughed so hard

>>36524601
"Are you SURE? Each one knows just one form?"

"Yeah, they're famous for it. If they know any other forms they must not use them much. But I don't know anything about any of the forms Bro, they kill everyone they fight," he explains. He sounds concerned, but doesn't sound even remotely afraid to die, and the way he says it makes you think dying is a high probability here.

"That isn't where I was going with that. Five forms, one style. Each of them is famous for just the one. See?" you say as Centipede approaches slowly, cracking his fingers in anticipation.

Lei frowns, then he blinks. "Wow. Okay that's risky," he whispers. "But it might even work. Man, you're even crazier then I am. We're gonna need-" he begins and you interrupt.

"Room for that, I know. I hope you're as fast as your nickname says you are."

"And I hope you're as fast with your hands as with your smartass attitude."

>WDYD?

>Charge Centipede! YIN-YANG ROTATION!

>Catch the Initiative! TRAVERSING THE INSTANT PATH!

>>36524786
>Charge Centipede! YIN-YANG ROTATION!

>>36524786
>Charge Centipede! YIN-YANG ROTATION!
We're not going to beat Centipede at speed. Even if there are changes from the classic depictions of their styles, Centipede style is still probably about hitting fast. A hundred limbs and all that business. So let's instead make sure that if he tries to parry or redirect the blow he'll suffer for it.

>>36524786
>Catch the Initiative

We need to set Lei up.

>>36524786
>Catch the Initiative! TRAVERSING THE INSTANT PATH!

We need room

>>36524786
>>Charge Centipede! YIN-YANG ROTATION!

>>3652483, >>36524874, >>36524902, >>36525004, >>36525323

You slowly inhale; you've never tried this before. There's a LOT of things you're about to try you aren't sure of actually.

Then you shift to move and everything seems to happen at once.

Behind you Lizard draws out a straight jian sword, holding the scabbard in his off-hand and lunges for your exposed back almost immediately as Lei draws his nandao from his scabbard with speed so furious that he leaves brief blurry after images behind him as he turns and begins an offense on Lizard, forcing the swordsman to defend!

Viper draws from behind his back a pair of hook-swords and springs at you with alarming speed, much like Scorpion who hefts his powerful bulk at you without even taking out a weapon, and Centipede's arms suddenly move with such speed that it seems like there's a HUNDRED of them!

Then you exhale.

At first it's a sound, like distant thunder.

Then a flickering after-image so bright it burns the eye to look at it as you
>TRAVERSE THE INSTANT PATH!
and erase the distance between you and Centipede even before he can reach behind his back for whatever weapon he carries!

At point-blank range he blinks the light out of his eyes and sees you pulling back a blow, crackling with lightning! Reflexively he moves to block, but your palm strike even as his crossed arms intercept it impacts with the force of a thunderbolt, sending electric fury through his body and shocking his meridians badly!

You're still not finished, and before the others close with you, you tackle him low and lock your arms around his waist even as he spasms and grunts in agony, hauling him up off-balance over your shoulder and heaving with all of the muscle and internal energy you can muster, rushing to the window past the bed and CRASHING through it with your combined weight as Lei follows you out after disengaging with Lizard!

>>36525430
Speed and electrical discharge at the same time. Nice. Tiankong's getting strong. Still not as awesome and our father, though. And he still got beat by whoever took him. We need more kung fu.

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>>36525430
In mid-air as you fall you push off Centipede into a flip, landing unsteadily 2 floors below on the building across the street, with your unfortunate passenger just barely managing to catch himself on the edge of it!

You draw your yanmaodao from it's scabbard on your back and leap aside just as Scorpion's falling kick lands right where you were, cracking apart masonry and tiles on the roof from the impact jus as you turn and begin slashing at him with your saber!

He swiftly brings up his arms to parry, blocking with heavy metal arm-bands like you've heard unarmed-only fighters do to fight xia with weapons! You keep him back and then dart to the left just as Viper moves in, slashing viciously with his hook blades at your right side and forcing Scorpion to awkwardly disengage from you, but Viper has to pull back too as Lei moves in with his flashing saber, his blurring offense putting Viper on defensive as Lizard follows him out, landing nearby in a defensive stance before lunging at you in a blow you dodge by darting between Scorpion and Viper as Lei keeps Viper occupied!

>>36525686
Centipede gets to his feet and hauls out a pair of daggers and his arms blur with incredible speed once again as he moves to attack you, only to be intercepted by Lei's saber as he darts away from Viper, who tries to go for Lei'z back before you strike at him yourself, using the greater reach of your saber to push him back!

"What's wrong? There's only two of us and the Five Deadly Venoms can't land a single hit!" you shout out!

>WDYD?

>Keep fighting defensively; this crazy idea is actually WORKING!
>Try and go offensive, switching with Lei and push them back with another Yin-Yang Rotation!

>>36525869
>Try and go offensive, switching with Lei and push them back with another Yin-Yang Rotation!

>>36525869
>Keep fighting defensively; this crazy idea is actually WORKING!

>>36525869
>Talking shit after dumb luck saves us

Tiankong.

Tiankong pls.

I doubt they'd fall for the same trick twice, besides.

>Keep fighting defensively.

>>36525869
>Keep fighting defensively; this crazy idea is actually WORKING!
I like sticking to plans

>>36525869
>>Try and go offensive, switching with Lei and push them back with another Yin-Yang Rotation!

>>36525869
>Keep fighting defensively; this crazy idea is actually WORKING!
I'm worried they'll adapt to our tactics, but we can't risk getting in too close with them by going on the offensive.

>>36525932, >>36525937, >>36526017, >>36526034

>Interlude

"Wow," Spider said in a voice of genuine surprise, dull though it may have been as he pulled Zhu'er from where Scorpion held her next to the hole in the wall where the six fighters had gone through.

"I gotta admit, your boyfriend surprised me. I've never seen any style like that before. It really caught Yiaotian off-guard, see how badly it rattled him? I might actually have to get in there instead of babysitting you," he said with a chuckle, motioning at the fight on the rooftops as four of the quintet attempted to hit the mouthy kid and Hunan's Swiftest Saber, who DID seem to have earned his band at least.

"Neither have I," Zhu'er admitted, her voice quiet with surprise and thought. "And he isn't my boyfriend."

"Oh, sure," Spider said. "Doesn't matter. In a few more seconds he'll be a corpse.

The girl's reaction surprised him, a loud laugh that betrayed her haughty origins; the laugh of someone of a higher station denigrating that of someone LOWER than themselves. It infuriated him.

"You don't even see what he's DOING do you? You're such a fool, Gao Ji. ALL of you are. You're skilled fighters yes, but the reason you'vs never been anything more then hired muscle despite your talent is that none of you know how to THINK," she said, a poison in her words bitterer then she had ever used on Sky.

"Watch your mouth, brat," Spider threatened quietly, his tone icy. "You're wanted alive and unarmed but I can find ways to not leave a mark."

"You're not brave enough to try," she insulted again. "You KNOW what he'd do to you if you hurt me."

"It doesn't matter," Spider firmly said, turning back to the fight. "In another second he'll...wait. WAIT!" he said, realization dawning on him.

"Oh, you just NOW figured it out?" she said, laughing cruelly at him.

"We're not fighting him and Duan Lei! We're fighting EACH OTHER!" he said in fury at having been deceived so easily.

You know, had we freed their captive with our first strike, we would now be 3v5 instead of 2v4

>>36526465
Eh.

The interlude was nice.

>>36526477
I posted it before seeing the interlude
I am... quite a bit confused as to what is actually going on here.

>>36526514
Something to do with the Yin-Yang thing, probably.

Our two heroes are directing their attacks away from them and towards each other.

This makes me want to play Legends of the Wulin again.

>>36526610
never heard of it...
this makes we want to replay jade empire

>>36526447
You dodge Viper's hooks long enough to put you within reach of Scorpion's brutal strikes, forcing him back just enough to keep him from swinging too much!
Lei fends off Lizard before switching opponents with you and Centipede gets caught between Scorpion and Lizard trying to reach you, and you take the opportunity to deal a heavy kick to his diaphram, knocking him back into Scorpion and freeing Lei from Viper, and you switch foes again.

This is working almost too well; each Venom knows just ONE of the Five Venoms Forms; it's not like you where you have a strong basic foundation, they're hyper-specialized in their area of expertise, with little to no practical understanding of the other's capabilities beyond the basics.

They're famous for killing AS INDIVIDUALS, not as a complete team, and none of them have enough training in each other's forms to figure out how they would naturally fit together as a single style, leaving them with with huge vulnerabilities in their defenses to exploit!

Using the open area and you and Duan Lei's superior mobility, you can freely out-maneuver them while they spend the fight getting in each other's way, which works even better since Duan is FAMOUS for having fought three experts at the same time as you recalled!

If your newly Sworn Brother hadn't picked up on it you'd be shit out of luck, but thankfully your minds work in similar ways!

>>36525869
>>Keep fighting defensively; this crazy idea is actually WORKING!

>>36526636
It's a pretty cool wuxia RPG. Has a lot of weird mechanics that take a while to adapt to, but once you do it's really fun.

>>36526660
this is brilliant and glorious

captcha: railroad eassorou

>>36526636
Legends of the Wulin is fucking fantastic. I highly recommend it. Emulates the genre perfectly.

>>36526660
>Interlude
"The funniest part of this Spider? I know for a FACT your Sifu must have told you that without complete understanding of all five forms you'd have defensive holes, but knowing you all you ignored him anyway and focused on what seemed like the more immediate path to fame rather then really mastering your style!" Zhu'er laughed.

"Shut UP! Once I use my web I'll tear him apart!" Spider said in cold fury, preparing to unleash his signiture weapon.

"Actually, I think he had an idea of how to counter that too. Though it was even riskier then his first plan," she admitted.

"What the hell are you TALKING ABOUT you stupid cun-" he began, then suddenly she lashed out with her hand, fingers like talons as the image of cruel, spider-leg like black talons trailing dark green smoke trailed after them!

Spider was suddenly on the defensive, desperately parrying her attacks, unable to properly deploy his web!

"Spiders are MOST VULNERABLE not in their web, but in their body! With Scorpion no longer holding onto me and you distracted by the fight all I needed to do was WAIT until you were too close to deploy your web!"

Spider's defense finally failed as a talon-like finger strike sank into his ribs, and he cried out in agony as burning Fire seemed to pour through his veins through the wound!

"GAAAAGH! Bitch! I've...been WEANED on poisons! This much won't hinder me hardly at all!" he cried, his eyes bulging behind the mask in fury.

"I WASN'T trying to poison you, Spider. I WAS trying to strike your 27th Meridian Passage. Unless you forgot that I've been medically trained too?" she mocked.

Spider found himself unable to breathe properly and circulate Qi; the poison and the dianxue strike had done their job.

"Your Slaying Web is simultaneously the perfect offense and defense Gao Ji. But once you get INSIDE the reach of the web you have almost no defensive skills whatsoever. I lost last time because we started fighting on the opposite side of the room."

>>36526948
"You'll live," she explained, turning away as he began to collapse from low oxygen as his qi flows became blocked and poison ran it's course through his veins. "Mostly thanks to your resistance to my Thousand Sacred Venoms Style toxins, but you'll live once you get medical attention. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go help rescue my bo---" she began, pausing.

"NOT my boyfriend!" she muttered furiously, reaching into her sleeves for her chosen weapons.

>>36526948
Damn Zhu'er Go girl.

>>36526948
Well done, Zhu'er. I think you've shown him who the true spider is.

>>36526948
Taking the time to explain the enemy's failings while kicking their ass, girl was probably head of her class at Kung Fu U.

>>36526948
Way to go Zhu'er you're freakin kickass

>>36527018
>Kawaii spider princess

This will do nicely.

>>36527070
She's a tsundere on top of that.

>>36527079
Well Sky is a proper jerk so the tsun is at least understandable in this case.

>>36527018
>rescue my bo---
Well she sure isn't lacking in confidence.

>>36527116
Yeah true.

>>36527021
>>36527028
>>36527033
>>36527052
>>36527070

Yeah, remember how she displayed all that extensive knowledge of martial theory early on, including plenty of stuff Sky didn't know?
Turns out being easy to mess with and not having any knowledge of how to take care of yourself outside of your clan doesn't actually much impact how good you are at kungfu.
>>36527079
Honestly, MOST Wuxia heroines are pretty tsundere. It's a default character type.

>>36527079
And green as are both the carpet and the drapes if understand correctly.

>>36527131
Just ask "Jing gugu".

>>36527155
Justified anime hair, Justified Tsundere, justified Kickass martial artist with no real world survival skills. Also likely a princess or close to it. Girls got it going on.

>>36527155
All the keratin in her body is green. Including the keratin in her skin, but since there are multiple factors that go into skin color it only shows as a slight tinge.

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>>36527155
You do understand correctly.
>>36527157
Zhu'er might be described as a combination of Huang Rong and Zhao Min as raised by actual ninjas.

>>36527018
You manage to stay out of the way of the Venoms, landing glancing hits and switching up with Lei every few minutes, but you're starting to get tired, and you can't find a moment of rest long enough for you to properly use Heaven's Blessings First Form!

You end up back-to-back with Lei, both panting from exertion, weapons out at the ready.

"You still good?" Lei says through breaths.

"Worry about yourself, I'm fresh as a cherry blossom over here," you brag.

"Maybe they'll give up, they're looking pretty wiped too."

"Yeah, right. We should BE so lucky. Look, I'm gonna try to break their formation with that first technique I've used. You can use that as a setup to-"

"I'm not leaving without you Bro," he says calmly, ready to leap into action again.

"What? No you asshole, I wanted you to injure one of them, then maybe we can bring down at least one of we gang up on him and the others will back off!"

"Oh. That sounds kinda like a suicide plan to me Bro."

"Good at fast plans, not so much at really effictive ones," you admit.

"DUCK!" you hear from above you, and both you and Lei reflexively duck low as Zhu'er leaps into the air, a cluster of throwing blades in her hands.

"CURTAIN OF DEATH! FLIGHT OF THE BLACK WASPS!" she cries, sending a hail of shockingly accurate dagger-throws, all trailing black smoke-like qi and humming as they move through air like a swarm of hornets!

>>36527536
> FLIGHT OF THE BLACK WASPS
That sounds familiar... except for the color.

>>36527536
>"What? No you asshole

Hah. Sky doesn't buy into your genre conventions of blind self sacrifice brah.

>>36527702
Exactly, he's a guy who gets what he wants by being genre savvy while others are blind to it.

>>36527622
It should be, it's a purposeful reference.
>>36527702
He's someone unconventional for a Wuxia hero, it's true, heh.
>>36527752
Nothing so deliberate; it's just that everyone else in the Wulin was kinda raised and trained into the genre's conventions, while he just does whatevsr seems like a good idea at the time because he was raised by a Lightning Hobo Mountain Man for a father.
>>36527536
The black darts shoot down and stab into the bodies of the four, who take non-lethal injuries but are somehow affilicted with crippling pains!

You and Duan Lei take your opening, striking at your foes in their weakened and off-guard state, scoring vicious injuries on Lizard, Viper, and Scorpion as you force them back with your blades!

All four are forced to retreat, leaping up and grabbing their unconscious school-brother before fleeing entirely, unwilling to engage when the odds have suddenly turned against them so dramatically!

You fall to one knee, leaning on your sword and Zhu'er leaps down to join you.

"What TOOK you so damn long?!" you say with a hint of irritation on your voice.

"I just saved your life and the first thing you do is how long it took to do it?" she says, sounding annoyed and crossing her arms.

"Yes! The whole point of this was to create a distraction long enough that you could escape, obviously! Then we could get away too and meet up later! You can hide your presences and they wouldn't have a reason to chase after is!"

"What!? What about me taking advantage of Spider's close proximity while his guard was down?" she says, confused.

"That doesn't even make sense! I had no idea how good your kungfu was, for all I knew you just read a lot of books on it!"

"Spider's style has a weakness close up though!"

"Well how in the hell was I suppose to know that?!" you say, equally as annoyed now. "I've never seen these guys fight!"

Hell yeah. Wulin hero quest. Been waiting for this for the whole week.

>>36528053
I now want to refer to our home as "Lightning Hobo Mountain"

>>36528053
"So you...you were just MAKING IT UP as you went!?" she says, somehow angry with you for that.

"Give me a damn break, I was doing the best I could with what I had! Let's see you do any better in a pinch!"

"But you knew they'd get in each other's way!"

"Oh that's just basic logic, how the hell was I supposed to know how their styles worked when I've never seen them fight, that doesn't make any sense!"

"I thought you had...a whole PLAN!!"

"What the hell are you mad at me for, it worked didn't it!? Tell her Lei!" you say, urging the saberman in red as he pants, grabbing his knees I exhaustion.

"What? Oh hell, I was just following your lead Bro," he explains, shrugging.

"Unbelivable!" Zhu'er says, throwing up her hands and hopping off the rooftop.

>>36528175
See, Sky, she obviously likes you.

>>36528053
i just want sky to say that "i am the lighting" when he get strong enough to have a storm roll in like his Lightning Hobo Mountain Man of a father.

>>36528143
It's the name of our sect. The Lightning Hobo Mountain Sect. Let's just make sure no one from Emei Mountain or Wudang Mountain hears us call ourselves that, or else we're in trouble. Those guys get huffy when they think you're insulting their schools.

>>36528175
Later you're all back inside in a DIFFERENT inn (one that won't be mad about loosing the wall), eating food and drinking tea.

Well, you and Zhu'er and drinking tea, Lei is downing alcohol.

You've been silent since you and her were arguing non-stop on your way to the next inn.

"....thanks," she says.

"What?"

"Thanks for saving me. I probably couldn't have gotten away if you hadn't helped."

>WDYD?

>"You're welcome."
>Thank her. You guess she DID kinda pull your ass out of the fire back there.

>>36528265
>>Thank her. You guess she DID kinda pull your ass out of the fire back there.
Well, she did force them to retreat before any serious injuries were received.

>After saying what we just did what's right, thank her. You guess she DID kinda pull your ass out of the fire back there.

>>36528265
>Thank her. You guess she DID kinda pull your ass out of the fire back there.

>>36528265
>>Thank her. You guess she DID kinda pull your ass out of the fire back there.

>>36528265
>Thank her.

She really did save us.

>>36528265
>Thank her. You guess she DID kinda pull your ass out of the fire back there.

>>36528265
>Thank her. You guess she DID kinda pull your ass out of the fire back there.
Credit where credit is due.

>36528265
>Thank her. You guess she DID kinda pull your ass out of the fire back there.
Princess or not, she should let us know of the weaknesses of the styles of the people coming for her.

>>36528300, >>36528311, >>36528315. >>36528316, >>36528319, >>36528330, >>36528333, >>36528352

"Yeah well....thanks to you too. Wasn't sure we were going to make it there for a bit."

"Then why keep fighting anyway?"

"Figured if they kept their eyes on us and if we took at least one of them down before we died you'd have more then enough time to escape," you admit.

Lei nods in agreement; you were both on the same page there.

"You were..willing to throw away your life for me? Unbelievable...," she says again, but this time she says it much more quietly and with her face red and lowered.

>WDYS?

>"So, are you going to explain what the hell that was all about?"
>"Look, don't let it go to your head. It just seemed like a good idea at the time."
>"Are you gonna tell us your whole story now?"

Only ONE choice this time, so make sure you know which one you want!

>>36528513
>"So, are you going to explain what the hell that was all about?"
Small bites guys, she ain't gonna open up all at once.

>>36528513
>"So, are you going to explain what the hell that was all about?"

>>36528513
>"So, are you going to explain what the hell that was all about?"

>>36528513

>"So, are you going to explain what the hell that was all about?"

>>36528513
>>"Are you gonna tell us your whole story now?"
i want to know every thing

>>36528513
>>"Are you gonna tell us your whole story now?"

>>36528513
>>"Are you gonna tell us your whole story now?"

>>36528513
>>"So, are you going to explain what the hell that was all about?"

>>36528513
>"So, are you going to explain what the hell that was all about?"

>>36528513
>"Look, don't let it go to your head. It just seemed like a good idea at the time."

>>36528539, >>36528543, >>36528562, >>36528562, >>36528580, >>36528591, >>36528606

"So, what was that all about anyway?" you ask, unable to contain you curiosity.

"Yeah, I'm kind of curious too. I mean, what did you DO to get the Five Deadly Venoms after you? They talked like you knew them already."

"Because I DO knew them," she admits.
"I told you already that I was running away from a marriage?"

"Yeah, you mentioned as much."

"Well my family is very influential and wealthy. They sent the Venoms after me to bring me back I guess."

Lei raises his finger. "Yeah, that doesn't exactly click either. They're hired killers, not bounty huntres. I've never even heard of them fighting someone they didn't have a contract out for," he notes.

"The Venoms....owe my family. We've been hiding them and giving them shelter for the last few years in between their hits, sort of."

Lei widens his eyes. "That's awfully risky. The Five Deadly Venoms are notorious villains in the Wulin. Isn't your family worried about covering for infamous assassins?"

"Not really," she admits. "They figured the benefits to harboring the Venoms outweighed the risks. My father, the head of the clan's son, died over a decade ago, leaving us without a male heir, and grandfather's kungfu has kept him healthy but he's too old for children still. He decided the Venoms could lend their strength to my clan covertly and also promised to reveal the secrets of their Five Scared Venoms Style as individuals to the clan, which would further our knowledge of kungfu greatly. The man who brokered this bargin was my husband-to-be," she explains, her voice devoid of serious emotion.

>>36529292
so wait her dad died and they have an assassin group living with them and they dont suspect some bull shit

>>36522792
>5DV
Good choice Sage

>>36529292
"That sounds a little draconian, isn't it? It's selling you off to a shady weirdo so your family can hang out with his hitman friends basically, right?" you say, unsure.

Her eyes are still weirdly vacant as she looks at you and responds.

"Tiankong, I already explained to you what life is like in the Wulin. Does it surprise you that to increase their influence and power some groups would take moral shortcuts like trading a daughter for the martial secrets of five infamous killers? Comparatively that's a relatively light sin."

"That doesn't make it RIGHT though. If anything excusing it as a method in pursuit of more power makes it worse. What's the value in the philosiphy of the Wulin of you do that?" you say, having difficult my wrapping your head around it.

Sifu may have been a hard man sometimes, and he expected much from you, but he was never so completely uncaring of your happiness and welfare like that.

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>>36529348
People tend to find reasons overlooking why something is a bad idea if they have enough to gain or are desperate enough to take the risks.
>>36529351
Yes, yes it is.
>>36529462
"Stuff like that is why I not to too heavily associate with clans and sects much Bro," Lei says, nodding. "Stories like that are more common then you'd think, even with groups famous for their virtue."

"It still bullshit," you say firmly. Nothing about it being common or a political reality will change your mind there.

"Thank you," Zhu'er says quietly.

"For what?" you said, not understanding.

She smiles at you, an expression you aren't at used to from her. It makes her look....a lot different.

"Never mind. But that's why I'm on the run, why I can't go home."

"So stay with us," you say, shrugging.

"W-what?"

"Me and my dad. When I rescue him I'm sure I could convince him to let you come back with us. If you wanted you could even stay in the village. It's out of the way and no one will come looking for you there."

>>36529678
did we unknowingly just ask her to marry us?
is sky harem protag tier dense

>>36529678
"I...I...well that's...," she stammers unsure of what to say obviously.

"What's the problem? Seems like a workable solution to me. Better then running around all the time stealing food."

"Well....what about you!!" she says suddenly, blushing furiously and pointing at you. "What was that kungfu you used in the fight, I've never seen that before!"

"Yeah Bro, that was pretty impressive stuff!" Duan Lei compliments. "What style was that, I haven't seen it either."

>WDYS?

>Truth
>Avoid Question

>>36529740
No he's pretty smart..... for his frame of reference. Women are however far outside it. 16 int caveman in a nuclear reactor more like.

>>36529740
You'd be surprised how often you could find people living with relatives and friends of relatives in China so long as they contributed to the household somehow, especially of the family was wealthy.

>>36529773
>>Truth
no point in hiding it from our comrades

>>36529773
>>Avoid Question
i dont want them to be targeted for knowing some one who use the style we do

>>36529773
>Truth
My father taught me. He said this was the barebones basics.

>>36529773
>>Truth
They're better off knowing it, and we should be able to trust them at this point.

>>36529773
>Avoid Question --ish
>It's just what my Pa thought me.

>>36529773
>Truth + snark
I am a disciple of the Lightning Hobo Fist. Very secretive. Quite prestigious. You've probably never heard of it before.

>>36529773
>Whisper Truth

>>36529773
>truth

>>36529979
i soo want this to be what we say

>>36529979
Yeah, let's do this

>>36529979
All snark, all the time.

>>36529810, >>36529835, >>36529849, >>36529979, >>36530002, >>36530004

"My family martial art, like I said. I am a diligent disciple of the LIGHTNING HOBO FIST!" you say clenching your fist at the honored name of your mighty school!

"...what?" they both say at once.

"I was kidding. It's called the Heaven's Blessings Style. I've been learning it almost since I can remember," you say truthfully finally.

"Heaven's Blessings!? Did you say Heaven's Blessings?!" Lei says, looking surprised.

You blink. "Well, yeah. Why, have you heard of it?"

There's a tense pause.

"Nope," he admits, taking another sip of wine, and you sigh, slapping your hand onto your face.

"Then what was with the exclamation points?! I thought you'd maybe have heard something about my father!"

"It's just I've never heard of it!" he says, shrugging. "It seems pretty effective but it's not a famous name or from a famous clan or anything, so it caught ms off-guard and I wanted to see if I'd heard it right!" he explains.
"Also, I'm halfway through this jug and it's pretty strong." he admits.

Zhu'er sighs. "From now on try not to speak unless you have questions or can add things to the conversation."

>>36530202
Ha, our bro can be just as snarky as us, even though unintentionally.

>>36530202
hey every one look a based wulinsage

>>36530202
Best Quest of November & December 2014 Award goooes toooo....
Wulin Hero Quest, a wonderful piece by WulinSage!

"Can I see your wrist?" Zhu'er asks.

"What? Why?"

"I want to check your pulse and qi flows."

"....."

"Relax, I'm trained in medicine."

"Why were you stealing food again?"

She makes a deliberately rettarded face and says in an exagerratedly stupid tone; "Oh look, a mysterious young green-haired girl with knowledge of sophisticated medical techniques! I am in need of assisstant and will neither question her training references nor her origins!"

Her face goes back to normal; "Said NO DOCTOR EVER. Now give me your wrist and shut your mouth for a few seconds."

You obediently hand it over to her and she takes it, feeling your pulse and concentrating.

"I....don't recognize the energy of the style," she admits after a second, looking disturbed somehow. "HOW long did you say you've been practicing your style?"

"Since I was a little kid. Maybe when I was five or sonething like that."

"Sky....it's hard to tell, but I'm guessing wrong you have almost half a sexegenary's worth qi circulating inside of you!"

"A what?"

"A sexegenary. Sixty years with of qi cultivation. You have almost half of that."

"I'm only twenty though?" you say, confused.

"And not only that, the qi is...really STRONG too, in a way I can't easily explain. Like you're hooked up to something that's constantly improving the quality of your internal energy, like...like a...." she says, words failing her as she struggles with an analogy.

"Like a lightning storm from Heaven."

Your answer is reflexive, your voice firmer, stronger. It makes her start on hearing it. She's never heard you like that before.

>"The Heaven's Blessings Style is power almost uncontrollable, Tiankong. I train you to control power that most men see as the purview of gods, not mortals. With this style your blows not simply become strong; your blows will become UNSTOPPABLE. Your speed won't just bs great; it will be instantaneous. You won't just be a man of just principals; you will BECOME Justice. Like Lightning from Heaven"

>>36530751
You distantly remember your father's teachings when Zhu'er explains your condition to you, frowning a little.

You knew you were training to become a more powerful xia, but until you saw the raw elemental fury your father unleashed the night be vanished you really had almost no grasp on HOW powerful you were training to become.

You distantly wonder in some distant corner of your mind; can anything that powerful even be considered HUMAN anymore?

The silence is a pregnant one, and it's Lei who breaks it.

"Well, I'm off to my room. Bro, get up early tomorrow; I'm going to show you the Wulin dignitaries as they come in to help you get a grasp of who they are. I promised I would, and I always keep my word." he says, heading up and leaving you alone with Zhu'er.

He winks at you for some reason.

>>36530751
We JUSTICE now

>>36531046
"So....do you want a reward or something for saving me?" Zhu'er says quietly, looking down and away from you

"Why would I want a reward? Saving you was the Chivalrous thing to do. I'd have done it no matter what."

"....okay," she says, even more shyly then before.

"No, wait. I HAVE thought of something I want!" you say, snapping your fingers.

"You...you HAVE?" she says, suddenly sounding somewhere between anxious and terrified.

"Yes," you say firmly with a nod of your head. "I want you to teach me how to hide your presence like you do, that seems really handy!"

There's a look of mild disbelief on her face, then she sighs and rolls her eyes.

"Yeah, I can teach you that. I'm going to head to bed now. You should get some sleep too after your fight."

>WDYD?

>Stay up. Maybe explore town a bit at night.
>Go to sleep. It's late anyway.

>>36531303
>Go to sleep. It's late anyway.

>>36531303
>Stay up. Maybe explore town a bit at night.
I smell shenanigans

>>36531303
>>Go to sleep. It's late anyway.
lets not start anymore fights

>>36531303
>>Stay up. Maybe explore town a bit at night.
Let's go, we've never seen a village so big before. And it seems curious how there seems to be still ot of people up and about. Don't they need to wake up early to tend their fields?

>>36531303
>Stay up, Maybe explore town a bit at night

a moment of silence for our girl Zhu'er who is in love with a fool

>>36522792
The dudes in that image look like Luchadors.

>>36531476
Proves what they say; love is blind.

>>36531494
Too bad a lucha encounter in wuxia would be too out of place.

>>36531476
We are not a fool. We are uneducated in the ways of wulin and high society, yes. But we aren't a fool. See last thread, where Sky brought out his inner Sherlock Holmes without input from anonymous.

>>36531612
a fool in the ways of love

>>36531626
That is true.

>>36531303
... is this the Martial arts style of the main character from The Breaker?

>>36531476
She's really setting herself for a lot of trouble down the line.

>>36531689
Maybe it is. The Breaker's disciple had a punch technique and a set of foot techniques to make him go really fast. we do the same, only with lightning.

>>36531699
Yeah, she makes such bad decisions she could be a heroine in a wuxia...
wait.

>>36531832
Speaking of manhwa, the MC of Veritas used lightning-based style.

>>36531832
it was also a case of a formless fighting technique, the only training was in qi refinement, the fighting was all his own.

>>36531689
>>36531832
>>36531884
>>36531919
Actually, now that I think of it, it was Veritas that I meant, similar plots in both of them at the beginning.

>>36531919
Which Sky also seems to have, what with a 30 year old's qi cultivation in a 20 year old body.

>>36531884
>Veritas
I'm still mad that there will never be a sequel.

>>36531689
The Black Heaven and Earth Style? Naw.
>>36531943
Identical plots at the beginning, honestly. The execution is what's completely different.
>>36531977
You're on the right track, but probably not in the way you're thinking.

>>36531977
aye, we have all that refinement and it was stated that our 'form' was really light on actual techniques.

>>36532039
The Enlightenment of Thunder and Lightning?

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>>36532197
Not that one either, and actually the metaphysical description of it's functions causes it to operate in almost the exact opposite manner even if the resulting effect is the same.

>>36531342, >>36531378, >>36531407
You decide to stay up (you're weirdly not tired after all that's happened today), and maybe explore the city a bit.

Just as a reminder, it hasn't even been one day since Sky arrived at Chengdu, even though it's been three threads now. Busy day.

It seems to not quiet down even when it's late, which is unusual to you, but lets you keep seeing interesting people, which is always cool so far, even if statistically speaking based on recent past experiences the large majority of people you meet that are interesting will also be trying to kill you shortly afterword.

You keep an eye on everything, looking for danger but mostly finding distracting things to look into, especially new foods you haven't tried, like Sichuan sausages, which are awfully spicy, but it makes them pretty tasty too. You are advised to try mapo tofu and guangpo chicken sometime as well.

You see some ladies dressed up quite fancy and coquetting various men passing by (including yourself), but you ignore them; you may be a country hick but they had hookers in Shuzheng too. These ones are just more expensively dressed.

Eventually, food and sights aside, what you decide you want is silence and quiet, and you make your way to the top of the highest place you can find that doesn't have guards posted around it, the roof of the inn you're staying.

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>>36532345
You stare up at the moon, which is only a silver away from being full, dried meat in your right hand and you speak to yourself while staring at it.

"I have no idea what I'm doing. It's like the fight; I'm just making it up as I go and hoping I get where I'm trying to go."

"Sounds like an extended metaphor for the human condition, I suppose," comes a voice that makes you start in surprise and almost fall off the roof.

He's a young man, not much older then you you'd guess in simple orange robes with a shaved head and prayer beads around his neck; a monk.

>WDYS?

>"Do you USUALLY sneak up on people wanting to be alone?"

>"What's a metaphor?"

>"Sorry. I didn't see anyone up here."

>>36532531
>"Sorry. I didn't see anyone up here."
>"What's a metaphor?"

>>36532531
>>"Do you USUALLY sneak up on people wanting to be alone?"
this dude probably saw the fight

>>36532531
>>"Sorry. I didn't see anyone up here."

>>36532531
>"What's a metaphor?"
>"Sorry. I didn't see anyone up here."

>>36532531
>"Sorry. I didn't see anyone up here."
Tiankong's snarky, but you show respect to monks.That's basic politeness

>>36532531
>>"What's a metaphor?"
>>"Sorry. I didn't see anyone up here."

A question for the Wulin Sage: Are Sky's techniques a reference to the Heaven's Lightning internal style in Legends of the Wulin, or are both you and it referencing something else that I'm not familiar with?

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>>36532550, >>36532566, >>36532569, >>36532578, >>36532589

"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude or anything," you say, bowing your head. "I didn't see anyone."

Or feel them either; this man didn't set off any of your senses, and you can't feel his qi.
At first you think it might be him hiding his presence like Zhu'er does, but then you realize that it's there still, just....sort of in the backround you suppose.

No part of your mind, even the subconscious parts registers this man as dangerous, or even a potential threat. He's merely...present.

"I apologize. I was up here taking tea and probably should've made myself known when you came up. You were clearly in thought."

"I was? Yeah, I guess I was," you admit.

There's a pause as you are both silent, and the city below's sounds seem to waft up into the night air around you.

"What's a metaphor?" you inquire, unable to help yourself.

"A figure of speech that identifies one thing as being the same as an unrelated other thing, strongly implying similarities between the two," he says, sipping his tea.

Huh. So he's a FUNNY monk. You didn't know they had those.

>>36532727
They are a deliberate reference yes, though you'll find some of their functioning is different, not to mention A LOT more effective. Being hit by a lightning bolt in game mechanics is often balanced with being hit by fire or ice for gameplay purposes. Being hit by a bolt of lightning in real life falls under the purview of "things most people never live to experience twice". Heaven's Blessings is firmly under the latter category.
I'll be making several other references to the LotW setting, but you shouldn't take it to mean that this is the SAME setting, as there will be a significant number of differences, as well as taking place close to 1000 years apart from the vaguely-suggested timeframe of LotW's setting.

>>36532822
Funny Monks are the best

>>36532822
"What sort of monk are you? I haven't run into one before."

Assuming we haven't or at least haven't talked to one before, considering we don't know the difference between the two major faiths of the region.

>>36532822
"Cute," you say dryly at the monk's humor.

"I liked it," he admits with a smile. "But in genuine answer to your query, being in a fight and making things up as you go and hoping for a positive result could very much be used as a metaphor for the human condition."

"A monk defines the human condition as 'being in a fight'?" you wonder, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm a pacifist, but this doesn't mean I'm no naive as to ignore the perils of the world," he explains. "And I meant more in the sense of conflict in general. With others, with the environment, even with ourselves, as the case seems to be with you at this particular moment."

"How do you know I'm in conflict with myself?"

"My Monk Sense was tingling."

"What?"

"Because you were on a roof talking to the moon about not knowing what you're doing with yourself at the moment. Sounds fairly conflicted to me. Besides, xia tend to be locked in internal conflicts as often as they are external ones."

"Wait, how do you know I'm a xia?"

"We're five stories from street level and I just observed you jumping up from below. It seemed like a reasonable assumption to make. Tea?"

"Uh...sure," you say, taking the steaming cup.

"Wait, how did YOU get up here?" you say after taking a sip from it and realizing it.

"Manually, with somewhat less flair involved. Monks are terrible at flair in general I'm afraid."

"What?" you say, once again lost.

He smiles slightly again and reaches down over to his side of the roof top and pulls up something wooden.

A ladder.

"Oh. Manually."

You wonder if this is what it's like for Zhu'er when she talks to you, because you feel confused and off-balance after pretty much every other thing he says.

>>36533373
god this monk is pretty funny

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>>36533373
gah, Monks are the best

>>36533373
I'm startin to like this guy

>>36533373
This is absolutely hilarious.

We need him in our brotherhood. We could do with a little wisdom.

>>36533373
"So?" he says, sipping his tea.

"Huh?"

"What seems to be the source of conflict?"

"You're....really nosy. What happened being above worldly concerns or whatever Daoists are all about?"

"Firstly, I'm a Buddhist not a Daoist, and secondly if I lighten the spiritual burden of five more people I get a merit badge and a commendation from the Head Abbot."

You just stop yourself from saying "what" for the third time in a row, instead giving him a blank look.

"Because it helps to talk to people, Young Xia, and as I monk I can be pretty much trusted forget everything we say tonight by next morning while I'm busy denying my worldly desires and troubles."

"Does that line REALLY work?" you ask, your voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Folks keep giving us tofu, so we must be doing something right."

There's a pause as you attempt and fail to stop yourself.

"I'm looking for somewhat important to me and I don't know where to start," you admit, looking back up at the moon. "He could be anywhere in the world at all, and I don't even have a real clue, just a hunch that leads to anywhere at all in Chengdu, or even Sichuan in general."

"I'm not seeing the conflict. Or rather, I am seeing a source of conflict, but not the reason for your internal one."

"My problem is, how do I know what I'm doing is right? I don't know nearly as much about the person I'm looking for as I thought I did, and the obvious path to me almost seems to be in the opposite of what his teachings to me are."

"But it IS the only path you can take."

"Right now? I guess so...yeah," you admit.

"So then your course is clear."

"You lost me," you admit, a feeling that is a recurring one tonight.

"When the world and fate gives yo but two choices, one of them being the thing you have to do to meet your goals, and the other is what you will do if you do not choose to meet them, then the only real choice involved is 'will I do what I need to do?' You simply have to come to terms with the choice itself."

>>36533892
Come on Sky the guy is pretty funny.

Once he's using his abilities on someone else you'll see it and laugh
pls be our monk friend

>>36533892
so what sky is going to assemble a group of warriors by the time he is done

>>36533957
I agree I seriously want a monk bro

>>36534007
it is the wulin way
Also, half or more of them need to die, at least 2 need to hatefuck and another 3 are required by wushu law to have a sordid love triangle ending in a murder-suicide.

>>36533892
"So...what? I'm supposed to just feel okay about it?" you say unsure of what he means.

"You're asking yourself that question right now, hence the internal conflict. If you're capable of feeling okay with this decision that faces you, then that's the choice you'll make. If you aren't, you won't make the choice and back away from it entirely. It's fairly simple."

"You sound like you have personal experience with this kind of decision?" he you inquire.

"I guess you could say that, though it's been a long time since I made it."

"How'd yours work out?"

"I shaved my head and became a monk."

There's another pause.

"Is....that a good thing, or...?"

"You don't miss meat that much after the first year and I was never very good with girls anyway."

"....that's not actually the answer to the question I asked though."

"You'll find every time you ask questions like that the answer is yes AND no. While the choice you have to make now is at it's core a fairly binary one, the result itself will not be so clear-cut with either choice you make."

"That is...spectacularly unhelpful."

"Ask a monk a philosophical question on a roof on a moonlit night and you get a philosophical moonlit monk kinda answer."

"....the vague and unhelpful kind?"

"And yet Grasshopper, I no longer sense conflict in your mind."

"Because I know what I need to do now!" you protest.

"Right, which you figured out after I gave you my advice," he says, getting up and taking the ladder, placing on his side of the roof.

"I figured it out in SPITE of your lousy advice!"

"Funny thing about advice; since it's basically just words you give to people for free designed to help them solve a problem, how they actually go about solving it because of the words is kind of irrelevant," he explains, and you hear the bottom of the ladder clunk in the alleyway below.

>>36534300
its official i like this monk he is pretty awesome

>>36534363
That he is. It is the duty of monks to dispense philosophy along with dry humor, and this guy is nailing it. Monk of the year, definitely.

>>36534300
Yeah, it's official I totally wanna bro it up with him

>>36534300
"Where are you going now?"

"My job is done here. There are other wayward souls in the night that cry out in inner turmoil that I must aid," he says as he descends the ladder.

"My soul is NOT wayward!"

"Of course not. I just got finished helping it."

"No! You didn't!"

"Amitābha, almsgiver. Buddah be praised!" he says as his bald head disappears over the side of the building, one rung at a time.

You stare at the place where he vanished, then promptly decide staying up was bad idea anyway, because crazy people come out at night.

You head back to your room and get some much-needed sleep, trying to purge the thoughts of weird rooftop ladder monks from your brain forever.

>To Be Continued

>>36534537
And with any luck I'll continue tomorrow.

>>36534537
thanks for running it was great

>>36534577
Thanks for running Wulin sage.

>>36534577
Nice. Thanks for running, Wulin Sage. As always, this was a good thread. See you next time.

>>36534577
dont forget to archive

>>36534577
Thanks for running Wulin this was awesome

>>36534577
[mantra chanting intensifies]

>>36534537
[horse stance intensifies]

>>36534591, >>36534603, >>36534604, >>36534649

Glad you enjoyed, tell all your friends to come by and visit next thread!

By the way, you just had the pleasure of meeting one of the other four main characters for when this quest was a novel concept. Sky was the fifth such character, and ultimately the one most suited for the quest itself.

>>36534726
cool

>>36534726
Will we meet the other three?

As always I'll try to answer questions anyone has as long as it's up. Seems only polite.

>>36534855
By necessity, yes.

>>36534960
Aww yiss

Have you explained what time period is this in?

Any chances of meeting Foreign Devils?

>>36535734
I haven't, because it's not particularly relevant to the plot.
But to put an era to it, I'd say the game takes place in the Ming Dynasty some time in the 15th century.
As for meeting foreigners, from a Chinese standpoint you technically already have; Han Chinese are massively the largest ethnic group in China in modern day, but it took a VERY long time for this to be true, and many parts of modern China were still heavily populated by non-Han peoples, such as the Miao.
Lobsang and his fiancee Dawa were not Han; Lobsang was ethnically Tibetan, and his wife was Qiang.

>>36535964
any chance of meeting a foreigner who sounds like John Cleese?

>>36536022
Unlikely, though your reference is humorous.

While China engaged quite a bit in international trade during the period in question, it was primarily with it's neighbors who then brought that trade over to Europe themselves.

Interestingly, certain wuxia books suggest that foreign lands have their own jianghu and Wulin; a plot point in Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber is the Ming Cult's mysterious origins, which turns out to be originally from Persia and is heavily suggested to practice Manichaeism as a religion rather then Daoism or Buddhism.

Later a group of highly skilled martial artists from the "Persian Sect" of the Ming Cult shows up.

>>36536226
I like to believe behind the World Wars there were World Kung Fu Wars between the Axis & Allies kung fu sects

>>36536523
The clashes between Imperial Japanese and Chinese xia must have been brutal...

>>36536604
Just need to watch Ip Man

>>36536604
Fuck the Japanese vs the Chinese

The Germa's Occult Lightning Fist taught by the SS vs The Russia's Paw of the Laborous Bear taught originaly in secret between the Proletariat

And who can forget the Americans' 50 Claws of the Flying Eagle the incredible Her Majety's Gentlemanly Boxing by the British

truly the golden age of Kung Fu

>>36536523
What would the west use?

>>36536523, >>36536604, >>36536604, >>36540471

Likely most of the martial arts used by foreign fighters would be pretty much devoid of any real historical accuracy; in most countries martial arts consisted of the stuff you learned by being a professional soldier, like a knight, and usually mostly involved things like wrestling (EVERY nation haas had a formalized wrestling style it seems), swordplay, and horsemanship and whatnot.

Almost everything to do with formalized "styles" of martial arts originates from China and traveled elsewhere through cultural exchange and evolved into their own styles over time.

Most of Japan's very old kobudo (Ancient Martial Arts) consisted of various weapon practices and stuff that looks a bit like Jiujitsu; things like Karate and Kempo both traveled to mainland Japan from Okinawa, and the Okinawans learned it from Shaolin Monks who were there when they were ruled by China for awhile.

>>36537226
I must inform you that your ideas have been appropriated for a future diesel/steampunk game that I may run.

It's just pulpy enough to work, especially if the players visit China!

>>36542212

Some of those wrestling systems do have more to it than wrestling, while other fighting styles involved anything - but - wrestling.
Thing is the development of martial arts in the west was completely different than in the east, and most of it was basically just thrown away as technology advanced.
Still, they existed. Even in greece home of wrestling there was a "kickboxing" style of fighting that allowed no grappling.

Anyway, would be nice to see a ki using spanish/italian fencer who spent quite some time around China

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>>36542212
>Almost everything to do with formalized "styles" of martial arts originates from China

But that's objectively wrong.

>>36543610
I think he didn't mean the weapon handling styles (if he did then yeah, very wrong) but rather hand to hand combat. Which still...