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>>5427077

In-game map.

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>>5427077

Picking up where we left off last time, we rolled a 20, so some heads are gonna roll.

As we speak, you’re at the Sanzhi Mountains, surrounded on all sides by sweaty gamers from the Ebonwill Sect and Steelport Society, the two largest guilds in the whole of JSQ, along with their equally sweaty but more plebeian allies. Why are so many tryhards gathering here? Of course it’s because of The Celestial Plumtree, an extremely rare resource that spawns only a handful of times a month. Now again, naturally, you may be asking, “what does this have to do with me?” Well, your good friend Skyfrost decided it would be a great idea to come rat in the chaos, seeing if there’s some way to snag the plumtree right under the noses of both guilds.

The digital sky is fast approaching night as you and Skyfrost make a break for it towards the Steelport zerg. Those pesky Ebonwill bastards actually sent an execution squad for you in a ZvZ (zerg vs zerg). The small barrier of ice that Skyfrost set up earlier won’t hold for much longer, so you spare no expense refreshing movement buffs the moment they expire.

“If they have half a brain, they’ll see through what we’re doing.” Skyfrost comments.

You glance behind. They’re still chasing.

“Doesn’t look like they have a choice but to come for us.” You say.

Compared to your pursuers, you are but a small squad of two. Naturally, it is much easier for you and Skyfrost to weave past the chaotic hordes of players, some of which are clearly not listening to their shot callers and targeting two innocent, wandering players. Most of them are of much lower levels so tanking some of the attacks is a trivial matter. Up ahead, a sea of white and blue, the colours of the Steelport Society, enters your field of view.

Fearsome cultivators, emblazoned with the white crest of Steelport, battle madly with their Ebonwill counterparts. Unlike those from the smaller guilds, they are highly disciplined and follow callouts to a T, paying you and Skyfrost no mind. Now, it would be good if you could find…

“Distant Cloud?” A familiar voice booms from the auditory storm of in-game voice chat.

Well speak of the devil, “Stormgale!” you respond.

This is the leader of the Steelport group you worked with this morning in the Ancient Apothecary dungeon. It looks like his squad was just repositioning.

Skyfrost catches up. “I’ll cut to the chase, we’re here to help but those Ebonwill guys from this morning are on our tail. Can we join your group for the time being?”

“Of course!”

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>>5427081

Even though you’re the one who suggested heading towards the Steelport group, Skyfrost ended up being the one doing the talking. In a flash, you’re sent an invite link to the Steelport Alliance comms on Harmony This is just in-quest Discord if you guys don’t remember.. Clicking on it opens up the program and instantly connects you to their channel. The entire call is highly organised, each individual squad being split into their respective channels while still being connected to the main shotcaller. This was one of Harmony’s most useful features, the ability to listen in on select channels without joining them, allowing for highly efficient lines of communications.

“Right, looks like they’re here.” Stormgale readies his weapon. “Boys! Get yourself ready for battle!”

You wonder if it's really okay for them to act on their own and assist you and Skyfrost, but no matter. The enemy was upon you, and leading the charge was Pighammer - that damned gauntlet user. He was one hell of an opponent this morning, and now that you're in cheaper gear, you're not sure how long you'll hold out if you duel him again.

This time, Stormgale took charge of the group.

"Skyfrost, split their team in two!"

"Eastern Fog, assist Skyfrost!"

"Distant Cloud, Veiled Leaf, to the left with me!"

“The rest of you…”

His calls are simpler than Skyfrost, whose every command is succinctly given with almost surgical precision. Yet, the Steelport players are no less efficient in their execution. You’re able to see it once more - the synergy of a well-organised group that’s been playing together for ages. It’s mesmerising, but this is not the time to be distracted.

You weave through the battlefield with your cheap and replaceable dagger-axe, freshly bought from the Ximen auction house. Stormgale’s strategy isn’t too convoluted. It’s the standard divide and conquer approach to group battles. First thing’s first; isolate the healers. Skyfrost has that covered, and in no time, the mages in your group manage to AOE down a decent chunk of those Ebonwill dogs.

On your end, you’re part of the team responsible for putting pressure on the frontlines, keeping the enemy tanks and melee DPS busy. Stormgale immediately uses [Shield Charges] on the nearest squishy - a standard light armoured sword user. However, the enemy tank, Deepspring Thorns, promptly intercepts, keeping the Steelport wave at bay.

“Stormgale, you little shit, piss off! This doesn’t concern you!” Deepspring Thorns’ bellows, his voice full of distortion.

“Of course it concerns me!” Stormgale replies. “You’re attacking one of our allies!”

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>>5427082

In chaos many of the other groups allied with the Steelport Society take note of the Ebonwill presence among their ranks, some of which wanting to join in on the action. A string of kill messages floods your chat box in no time, the enemy whittled down to only a handful of players. Among them, Pighammer still remains, and of all the people he decides to battle with, the bastard charges straight at you!

You refresh your offensive buffs and ready your dagger-axe.

[Raging Phoenix Talon] activated, for the next 3 seconds, all attacks will send out a wave of fire qi.

As you’re about to send a flaming wave of pain towards Pighammer, a wall of ice suddenly sprouts from the ground, separating the two of you. This is followed by a wall of fire erecting on the right, and a wall of wind materialising on the left, forming an elemental triangle encircling the remaining Ebonwill Players. Immediately after, the ground below them begins to darken, appearing to melt away into a dark green slag before completely losing all solidity.

Spirit Brush skill: [Great Swamp Array]

“Send them to the Yellow Springs!” You hear Stormgale cry.

You don’t hold back in the slightest, unleashing a devastating, infernal assault upon your enemies. A storm of raging qi envelops the triangular prison, total annihilation the fate of all trapped within. Before anyone can celebrate though, a harmonious hum fills the entire mountain range.

“It's coming…” Someone in the voice channel says.

From one of the nearby mountain peaks comes a shower of bright, pink petals, glowing with a sacred white light, accented by faint traces of red.

The Celestial Plumtree has fully matured, and along with it, the birth of a Penghou spirit.

In the midst of all this, Skyfrost sends you a few DMs.

[Skyfrost]: Wanna go for it?
[You]: ?
[Skyfrost]: The Penghou spirit.
[You]: …
[You]: You’re kidding, right? That’s a raid boss. It’s nothing like the Ancient Apothecary.
[You]: Besides, I don’t think the two Immortal Ascension players in the sky will take kindly to our presence up there.

You look to the skies, observing the godlike battle between the Ebonwill and Steelport commanders.

[Skyfrost]: I’m up for anything, but we’re not gonna get a better chance to snag that Celestial Plumtree Wood.
[Skyfrost]: The battle here is nowhere near over.

“Everything alright? Why’re you two just standing there?” Stormgale asks.

[You]: Let me think about it…

Skyfrost responds quickly, “Nothing much, we’re just taking stock of our items.”

>>5427083

What do you do?
>Take up Skyfrost’s suggestion and fight the Penghou spirit by yourselves. He should have a plan, and if push comes to shove, you can always escape.

>Going for the Penghou spirit is probably the right play, but not to slay it. Rather, you think it better to pull it down the mountain and ravage the battlefield below.

>Push together with the Steelport Group. You’ll help them take care of the remaining enemies then engage the Penghou spirit together.

>Write in.

biden

>>5427085
Is there a way to unleash the spirit without having it target our Steelport buddies? If so,
>Going for the Penghou spirit is probably the right play, but not to slay it. Rather, you think it better to pull it down the mountain and ravage the battlefield below.

If not,
>Push together with the Steelport Group. You’ll help them take care of the remaining enemies then engage the Penghou spirit together.

>>5427085
>Going for the Penghou spirit is probably the right play, but not to slay it. Rather, you think it better to pull it down the mountain and ravage the battlefield below.
Aiming for maximum chaos, don't matter whether Steelport or Ebonwill

>>5427085
>Take up Skyfrost’s suggestion and fight the Penghou spirit by yourselves. He should have a plan, and if push comes to shove, you can always escape.

>>5427083
>>5427085
>Write-in
>Propose to skyfrost to sell our help for the Penghou spirit boss to steelport against the Celestial Plumtree Wood

Mercenary road alied to Steelport but still independant

>>5427097
>>5427112
>>5427153
>>5427157

>Going for the Penghou spirit is probably the right play, but not to slay it. Rather, you think it better to pull it down the mountain and ravage the battlefield below.

Writing.

Glad this is back. I've been waiting for it

>>5427077
been looking around for you, glad to see you back

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>>5427894

[You]: I have an idea. Let’s pull the Penghou spirit down towards the Ebonwill side.
[Skyfrost]: That’s not a bad plan at all.

“Stormgale, we’ll be back shortly.” Skyfrost informs, excitement audible in his tone.

“Where’re you going?”

Before Stormhale even finishes his sentence though, the audio blip indicating someone disconnecting resounds in the voice channel. This leaves you somewhat stupefied, but not wanting to deal with whatever’s coming next, you quickly follow suit and return to a private call with Skyfrost. As the two of you run off, Stormgale’s avatar stares at you unmoving as if confused.

“We’ll need to act fast to avoid those two Immortal Ascension players above. Once they see what we’re doing, we’re dead meat.”

“Got it.” You acknowledge.

The terrain along the mountain is extremely rough, littered with multiple hidden pitfalls. One small mistake could send you down a few kilometres. Even for cultivators, fall damage of that scale was not something trivial. They’d have to be quick on their fingers to either cast a spell to break the fall or take out a flying mount. However, Skyfrost doesn’t even seem concerned with this, gracefully hopping upwards from one ledge to the next. His movements are elegant and refined, efficient to an almost frightening degree. Just how have you never heard of such a skilled JSQ player before? Multiple thoughts spring up in your head.

You yourself are not too shabby at movement. After all, playing solo requires a high degree of manoeuvrability. There’s no one to cover your blind spots, no one to cover your weaknesses. Swift, constant, and robust movement is a necessity for such a playstyle.

In a few minutes, you reach the vast peak, a large space overlooking the entire land of Shiya (世涯). The rain of plum blossoms is most beautiful up here, melting splendidly in the backdrop of the setting sun. Illustrious pink upon divine gold, surrounded by a magnificent purple. You can tell the developers of JSQ put a lot of soul into designing the various scenes in the game.

>>5428887

At the base of the Celestial Plumtree is its guardian spirit, a canine-like creature possessing certain human facial features. Its fur is pitch black, like the ink of calligraphy and it stands at least four times taller than a regular player character. No doubt about it, this is a Penghou spirit.

Being a raid boss, it has a ludicrous amount of health. It’s meant for groups of twenty or more players, after all. Did Skyfrost really think this thing could be soloed? The idea both excites and mystifies you.

“Ready?” Skyfrost asks. “You’ve been looking at that thing for a while.”

“Yeah.”

Skyfrost takes his first steps towards the magnificent beast. You can feel your heart rate increase with each passing second and when he reaches the very boundary of the boss’ aggro range, you swear your heart could jump out of your chest at any moment. But as he’s about to cross it, Skyfrost’s form suddenly vanishes, reappearing behind a decently sized rock behind you.

“Hide.” He quickly orders.


3 people please roll a 1d20!

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>>5428889

Forgot to attach this image.

Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>5428889
Nice to see you around again.

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>5428889

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>5428889

>>5428899
>>5428903
>>5428905

>20

What the actual fuck, anons.

>>5428907
based

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>>5428907

Hide.

The word, spoken with a certain resolved gravitas, echoes clearly through the well worn earphones of Old Deng’s Internet Cafe. Even in your hasty and anxious state, you steel yourself, managing to wholly suppress the tension that has so deeply embedded itself into your twin hands at this very moment. Distant Cloud leaps behind following a series of your well executed keystrokes, leaving only dust of pixelated constitution in his wake. If you were physically there within the game, how deep the ivory white your knuckles would - from tightly clutching your dagger-axe - take on.

What had made Skyfrost retreat so swiftly? In the shadow of the boulder of which you now take concealment in, that’s all you can ponder. Then, you can scarcely believe it. Piercing through from the constant din of battle below, and the divine omnipresent hum of the heavens above, comes the lithe serenade of picked strings, punctuated by occasional spurts of bell-like harmonics. Their tone is light and silvery yet possessed of a bright and warm resonance. They come in varied syncopations, sometimes slow and melancholic in the way they bend and weave through vibrato, and other times in fierce roars of relentless tremolo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4Ye7AisnFM&ab_channel=MusicalMoments-East

This is, unmistakably, the sound of a pipa (琵琶).

And clearly, it is not the standard, run-of-the-mill pipa that you can get from the auction house. It has clearly been handmade using JSQ’s complex custom crafting system, made possible from the miracles of machine learning, able to even emulate the effect of different types of wood on the tone of instruments and some more - that is - to also infuse the fantastical elements of the game into this process. An entire scene of JSQ-made music has even been birthed from this, not unlike the craze of a certain musical item in a blockgame back in the day.

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>>5429068

So, then, just where is the source of this beautiful hymn?

Your questions are soon answered as a male character appears from the other side of the mountain. He floats freely in the air, unrestrained from the need to use a flying mount. You now understand Skyfrost’s hasty decision. Only Immortal Ascension players - those who stood at the peak of the game - could break the shackles of the earth and move oh so defiantly through the skies unaided. More frightening, however, was that, though all this took a while to describe, these moments passed in a matter of seconds. If you hesitated even an instant longer before your retreat, you might - no - would have been spotted.

Luckily, he doesn’t seem to have noticed you or Skyfrost’s presence, or perhaps he just decided you two were too trivial to be of any concern. Sticking your head out a bit, you manage to take a glance at his name, Autumn Moon (秋月白). It sounds oddly familiar to you for some reason.

He’s dressed in a garb of aureate cloth, clearly of high value from their appearance. Yet, this pales in comparison to his ornate pipa, made almost entirely from some sort of white wood. The Penghou spirit, unable to appreciate any of this beauty, doesn’t take too kindly his arrival and promptly pounces at him with a deafening growl.

“Phew, that was close.” Skyfrost sighs with relief, taking a look at the fierce battle between man and beast. “He’s pretty good.”

You wipe your palms, now rife with sweat, with some tissues. “What do we do?”

“Heh, I didn’t expect this, if you have any suggestions, do tell.”


What do you suggest?

>”Why don't we assist him?” Perhaps cooperation will be the most optimal strategy. It’ll be much safer for both parties if you can down the Penghou boss faster.

>”Let’s stay and watch.” There’s no way the two other Immortal Ascension players present will ignore the arrival of a third.

>”Let’s retreat.” You don’t want to risk a needless death, especially with all the spoils of battle you’ve looted so far.

>Write in.

>>5429070
>>”Why don't we assist him?” Perhaps cooperation will be the most optimal strategy. It’ll be much safer for both parties if you can down the Penghou boss faster.

>>5429070
>”Let’s stay and watch.” There’s no way the two other Immortal Ascension players present will ignore the arrival of a third.

>>5429075
+1

>>5429070
>>”Why don't we assist him?” Perhaps cooperation will be the most optimal strategy. It’ll be much safer for both parties if you can down the Penghou boss faster.

>>5429070
>>”Why don't we assist him?” Perhaps cooperation will be the most optimal strategy. It’ll be much safer for both parties if you can down the Penghou boss faster.

>>5429070
>Autumn Moon (秋月白)
No mention of an Autumn Moon last thread, but Moonpiercer is the guy who quit JSQ.

>”Why don't we assist him?” Perhaps cooperation will be the most optimal strategy. It’ll be much safer for both parties if you can down the Penghou boss faster.
Teamwork makes the dream work.

>>5429070
>”Why don't we assist him?” Perhaps cooperation will be the most optimal strategy. It’ll be much safer for both parties if you can down the Penghou boss faster.

>>5429070
>”Why don't we assist him?” Perhaps cooperation will be the most optimal strategy. It’ll be much safer for both parties if you can down the Penghou boss faster.

new friend! Maybe! I hope!

>>5429075
>>5429080
>>5429082
>>5429083
>>5429118
>>5429133
>>5429232
>>5429617

>”Why don't we assist him?” Perhaps cooperation will be the most optimal strategy. It’ll be much safer for both parties if you can down the Penghou boss faster.


Woke up at 1500 and did not expect to see so many votes! Gonna try and whack this update out by tonight.

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>>5429642

Gonna be changing up how I write some usernames to make it a bit more readable, and to emphasise that the words are supposed to be “linked” together like in their original Chinese writing. So, for example, Distant Cloud will be Distant-Cloud from now on.

A crazy idea sprouts in your mind. What if you were to cooperate with this Autumn-Moon? You convey this idea to Skyfrost.

“I was thinking along those lines as well.” He responds. “Still, he’s an Immortal Ascension player. For all we know, he might not be willing to work with us lower level plebs, heh.”

You survey your surroundings briefly. “Might as well give it a shot.”

“You got that right.”

After discussing a little more on battle plans, you and Skyfrost emerge from behind the boulder, in full view of Autumn-Moon. His character briefly turns to look at the two of you with a stoic expression. Who knows what his reaction was from behind the computer monitor.

“Brother!” Skyfrost takes the lead. “Shall we work together to down the boss?”

“Huh? You wanna freeload off me or something?”

Autumn-Moon’s voice is crystal clear, capturing the fullness of his mid-ranged, male voice with stellar detail. He’s probably using quite an expensive mic, you reckon. Again, you can’t help but feel he sounds oddly familiar.

“Not at all! You can have the first pick of the loot, we’ll take whatever remains.” You add.

While avoiding the Penghou spirit’s speedy attacks, Autumn-Moon refrains from saying anything more, suspicious of your true motives. It looks like he needs a little bit more of a nudge in the right direction.

“The Ebonwill and Steelport commanders won’t stand idly for much longer. Don’t you think it’ll be safer if we can take down the boss faster?”

The silence from Autumn-Moon persists for a while longer -that is, until he makes a slight mistake that almost costs him half of his health bar.

“Alright, I’ll take up your offer. But you’ll let me take as much of the Celestial Plumtree Wood as I need. Got it?”

“Of course!” Skyfrost affirms.

[Autumn-Moon has joined your party.]

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>>5430634

First things first, you buff the whole group with a series of support spells.

[Blessing of the Wind] activated, movement speed increased for 60 seconds.
[Blessing of the Elements] activated, cast times reduced for the next 7 seconds.
[Warrior Soul] activated, physical attack and attack speed increased for 60 seconds.
[Berserker Soul] activated, physical attack, attack speed, and damage taken increased for 10 seconds.
[Ordained Harmony] activated, magical attack increased for 10 seconds.

Skyfrost is first to charge into the fray, engaging the boss from the left flank. His sword glimmers with that cold, white glow that you’ve become used to seeing in your short time with him. You, on the other hand, approach from directly behind the Penghou spirit, your dagger-axe bathed in searing crimson.

“Autumn-Moon, cast [Song Of Clashing Steel]!”

“Who made you the shot caller? Your new party member voices his annoyance, but complies either way, the clicking of his tongue suppressed by a flood of blazingly fast pipa lines. Around the boss, ethereal images of swords and various other bladed weaponry begin to materialise, flying towards the Penghou with reckless abandon. In the top corner of your screen, you notice the appearance of the [Bleed] status effect. Immediately after, you and Skyfrost land your strikes, consequently applying [Burning] and [Frostbite].

“Next, [Enfeebling Hymn]! Distant-Cloud, [Iron Descent].”

Like a raging stream, Skyfrost gives out command after command, able to even ascertain what spells this Autumn-Moon might have. Most of the skills that he has ordered you to use have applied some form of status effect. The intention of this, you already know from your earlier planning. However…

“Hey, what’re you doing! We’re getting dangerously close to enraging the boss!” Autumn-Moon points out.

Skyfrost pays this no mind, sending his flying swords screeching straight towards the Penghou’s fearsome maw. As it parts the air, streams of blue starlight trail closely behind.

Sword Skill: [Azure Star Sword Dance]

With that, the final status effect is placed.

“You idiot!”

The black fur on the Penghou’s body begins to lengthen, its form appears to enlarge, and a faint aura can be seen enveloping its entire form. The ensuing roar is loud enough to cause your entire screen to shake. For a moment, the brutal battle happening below ceases, even that between the two Immortal Ascension commanders stops.

Skyfrost simply laughs “Trust me, bro. We got this.”

It’s time for the next phase of the plan to begin, but there’s no need to be hasty. You and Skyfrost thought up a few options once you got to this part.


What do you do?
>Time to execute your original plan and pull the boss below.

>Continue holding out until the other two Immortal Ascension players, after that you’ll use the Penghou spirit’s assistance to deal with them.

>Write in.

>>5430636
>Time to execute your original plan and pull the boss below.

>>5430636
>Pull the boss below

If we wreak havoc on the ebonwill sect's lines, even their immortal ascension commander won't be able to hold it AND us back. It will be the perfect time to steal the resources.

>>5430636
>>Time to execute your original plan and pull the boss below.

>>5430636
>Time to execute your original plan and pull the boss below.

>>5430636
>Time to execute your original plan and pull the boss below.
We are agents of chaos

>>5430636
>Time to execute your original plan and pull the boss below.

>>5430696

We do a little trolling here.

>>5430638
>>5430650
>>5430651
>>5430664
>>5430753

>Time to execute your original plan and pull the boss below.

Will work on this some time after I wake up. Meanwhile... 3 people please roll a 1d20! DC: 13, Crit: 17

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5430828

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>5430828

Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>5430828

>>5430869
phew

>>5430869
>>5430873
>>5430891

>13

Really cutting it close.

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>>5431627

You take a look at your remaining qi - a little bit below half. You’ll be running low after this, but as long as you play your cards right, it shouldn’t be too big of an issue. Distant-Cloud raises his dagger-axe up high. The beige-yellow of painted clouds gathers within it before it shortly wraps around you and your two party members, surrounding all of you in a golden-white aura.

[On Immortal Winds] activated, for the 5 nearest party members, movement speed greatly increased for 15 seconds. Additionally, falling speed decreased, and players gain the ability to jump in midair every 5 seconds.

“Down the mountain!” You direct.

Without the slightest bit of hesitation, you and Skyfrost jump off the cliff, leaving Autumn-Moon standing there staring in shock.

Skyfrost laughs even harder. “Jump if you don’t wanna die!”

“You fuckers are bloody insane!” Autumn-Moon howls as he reluctantly follows along.

Usually, a raid boss has a limited aggro range, outside of which it will not attack players. However, once enraged, this restriction is lifted and a boss resets their aggro if and only if; one, players leave the zone it occupies, or two, the players that enrage the boss die. You and Skyfrost intended to exploit this unique quirk of the game from the start.

With the reduced falling speed from [On Immortal Winds], the perilous drop from this kilometres high mountain peak is but a nice little descent. The Penghou spirit follows closely behind, hopping from platform to platform down the cliff face.

“Do us a favour and keep the boss off us before we reach the ground!” Skyfrost requests cheerily.

“Fuck you!” Autumn-Moon, currently keeping the Penghou spirit in check, responds.

This whole debacle is funnier than you imagined. Yet, your laughter is short lived as you notice two figures flying in from the east. Decked in regal white and blue is a player named JianJian (尖尖), carrying a ferocious looking spear. Behind him is a female player, clothed in black and purple, named Redsoul (赤魂), with spectral bandages bound to her fists. They initially seem adamant on stopping you. Upon seeing your usernames, though, both react in vastly different ways. JianJian suddenly stops midair, observing, while Redsoul’s thirst for blood grows even stronger.

Skyfrost moves to intercept this mad woman’s charge. She doesn’t look fazed at all, probably feeling confident in the discrepancy in cultivation realms. But the moment their blades clash, Redsoul immediately backs away.

“Who are you…” She was not expecting her attack to be so easily deflected.

“Can’t you read my username?” Skyfrost teases.

“Why you!”

Redsoul continues her assault, ghastly spectres shooting from her fiery fists. Despite the lack of flight, Skyfrost holds up pretty well, but you can tell that he’s being forced into a defensive position. That’s when JianJian finally steps in.

“Skyfrost! I’ll assist you.”

“Haha! Much appreciated, friend!”

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>>5432077

On you and Autumn-Moon’s end, the boss is almost at the foot of the mountain. Even though it’s heading in the general direction of the Ebonwill forces, great care must still be taken to direct it properly to enemy lines. Using [Raging Phoenix Talon], you send a few waves of fire along the Penghou’s way, drawing its aggro as you land softly on the ground. There’s only a few seconds of [On Immortal Winds] left. You’ll make sure not to waste them. The Penghou spirit causes the ground to tremble as it chases after you into the giant blob of players. And with the last of your qi, you use [Wave of Force] to push a cluster of Ebonwill dogs into the boss.

Fortunately, Autumn-Moon comes in just in the nick of time to fend off the rabid neckbeards from shredding you to pieces.

“So this was your plan.” He says, his annoyance from earlier dissipated.


What’s next?
>Head up the mountain to get the Celestial Plumtree wood with Autumn-Moon. This is the prime time to snag it under the noses of both Ebonwill and Steelport, though this might somewhat sour your relationship with the latter and definitely net you a greater bounty from the former.

>Assist Skyfrost with taking down Redsoul. She’ll find it difficult to fend off four players at once. An Immortal Ascension player’s bag of holding should contain no lack of valuable treasures and items, and of course, gear!

>Ravage enemy lines. Don’t forget that one of your main goals for coming here was to gather as much loot from fallen players as possible.

>Write in.

>>5432078
>Ravage enemy lines. Don’t forget that one of your main goals for coming here was to gather as much loot from fallen players as possible.
The longer Redsoul stays in the fight, the longer Autumn Moon has to snag the Plumtree (which he has to share with us later)

>>5432078
>>Assist Skyfrost with taking down Redsoul. She’ll find it difficult to fend off four players at once. An Immortal Ascension player’s bag of holding should contain no lack of valuable treasures and items, and of course, gear!

>>5432078
>>Assist Skyfrost with taking down Redsoul. She’ll find it difficult to fend off four players at once. An Immortal Ascension player’s bag of holding should contain no lack of valuable treasures and items, and of course, gear!

>>5432078
>Ravage enemy lines. Don’t forget that one of your main goals for coming here was to gather as much loot from fallen players as possible.

>>5432078
>Ravage enemy lines. Don’t forget that one of your main goals for coming here was to gather as much loot from fallen players as possible.

>>5432078
>Ravage enemy lines. Don’t forget that one of your main goals for coming here was to gather as much loot from fallen players as possible.

>>5432078
>Ravage enemy lines. Don’t forget that one of your main goals for coming here was to gather as much loot from fallen players as possible.

>>5432078
>Ravage enemy lines. Don’t forget that one of your main goals for coming here was to gather as much loot from fallen players as possible.

>>5432103
>>5432111
>>5432118
>>5432154
>>5432180
>>5432199
>>5432332
>>5432414

>Ravage enemy lines. Don’t forget that one of your main goals for coming here was to gather as much loot from fallen players as possible.

Had a long day at school today, so the post will be up tomorrow.

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>>5432848

“Autumn-Moon, go get the wood while they’re all distracted.” You say.

He’s slightly taken aback “How are you so sure I won’t just run away with everything?”

“Well, it’s not like you can carry all of it off anyway. Unless you had some transport mount at hand or something.”

This was incredibly unlikely. Travelling on a transport mount made one extremely vulnerable on the road. Even though they had a lot of health and took a bit of effort to dismount someone off of, they were slow and clumsy. Moving through the Outlands on one was suicidal, like telling the entire world “Hey! I’m alone and full of loot!”

“You got me there. Well, just meet me back up in a few minutes, this thing takes forever to chop down.”

You watch as Autumn-Moon flies towards the mountain peak at top speed, taking this chance to also glance at Skyfrost’s battle with Redsoul. You’re a little worried about how he’s faring without the divine abilities of flight - oh wait. What the actual fuck? He’s using his sword as a platform to jump on! Not his flying sword mount, but the sword he uses for combat. The amount of control and finesse needed to fight like this, all while positioning the small hitbox of his sword to be able to use it as a tool for movement, could not be overstated. It’s just surprise after surprise with Skyfrost…

The enemies ahead are all struggling with the unexpected arrival of the Penghou boss, and with their commander occupied elsewhere, they’re in complete disarray. You pop a few restorative pills to replenish your supply of qi. As soon as your metres are full, you cast your usual series of buffs, take a deep breath, then leap straight into the action. Your plan will be to catch their backline offguard while their tanks and melee DPS are busy trying to fend off the wild raid boss.

[ChimiChanga (其米长嘎) has been slain by Distant-Cloud!]
[Dogeater (食狗者) has been slain by Distant-Cloud!]
[I’mYourFather (我是你爹) has been slain by Distant-Cloud!]

.
.
.

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>>5434268

One by one, clusters of enemies fall by your hand. Low level players are instantly obliterated by some of your attacks while those around your cultivation are outplayed. You blitz through the battlefield like a scavenging angel of death, claiming the lives and possessions of players alike. It’s barely been a day since you’ve met Skyfrost, but you feel like your playstyle has changed drastically. When were you ever this bold in PVP? However, there is still the ever present need to be cautious. You are separated from your party members, and that means there is virtually no room for slip ups.

Eventually, you receive a message from Autumn-Moon in party chat.

[Autumn-Moon]: My inventory is full, you can come up now.
[You]: On my way.

“Tell him I’m almost done here.” Skyfrost informs in Harmony. “We’ll dip shortly.”

At the top of the mountain, the Celestial Plumtree appears eaten and pilfered, pocked with axe marks and large chunks of missing bark. By the side, Autumn-Moon has put the gathered wood into two storage containers for you and Skyfrost to collect. These are special items needed to prevent their decay and preserve the mystical properties of the wood. You drop most of the cheaper items in your inventory to make space for your freshly harvested materials. Just thinking about the value of this amount of Celestial Plumtree wood makes you a bit giddy.

A moment later, Skyfrost arrives, but no kill notification for Redsoul has shown up yet.

“She retreated. The entire Ebonwill zerg is pulling back and-” Skyfrost gasps in shock. “Holy shit, did you actually manage to get this much?!?!?”

Autumn-Moon answers smugly, “Of course.”

“Let’s get out of here then.” Skyfrost continues, taking out his flying sword. “Before the Steelport people arrive. We left some of the tree for them so I’m sure they won’t mind.”

You’re not so sure about that.

“We’re headed back to Ximen, what about you, Autumn-Moon?” You say.

“I’m going to Wenduan.”

“Well, guess we’ll see you around!” Skyfrost responds rather cheerily.

Autumn-Moon clicks his tongue as he flies south.

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>>5434269

With that the two of you return to Ximen city. You first bank all of your collected loot then change back into your usual gear. The crafter that Skyfrost was supposed to meet should be here by now. He invites you along to which you accept. You don’t have much to do anyway, might as well go and see what he’s up to. Following Skyfrost into the crafting district, he leads you to a decently large workshop. Inside, there is a single player at the counter named Spiritwalker (神欲行), inspecting some schematics.

“Yo.” Skyfrost uses the /wave emote at him.

“You’re late. I thought we were supposed to meet an hour ago?”

“Ah well, I was caught up with something.” Skyfrost retrieves some of the Celestial Plumwood tree and places it on the counter. “This will surely make up for it, no?”

“You… So this is how far you’ve fallen? Stooping to snatching rare materials from scrubs?” Spiritwalker sighs, turning to look at you. “Who’s he?”

“My new dagger-axe friend.”

You give a brief introduction. From this Spiritwalker’s voice, he’s probably a few years older than you so you’re a bit more polite with your speech. It seems like the two of them are very well acquainted. Perhaps they are old friends.

“Anyway, how are the schematics for the blade coming along?” Skyfrost asks. “I got that [Ancient Trapped Soul] you asked for.”

“I’ll be done with it soon. But are you sure you want me to make this? Seems pretty unimpressive for how expensive it’ll be to make.”

“Heh, well, we’ll see when the blade is complete.”

They chat for a little while longer while you inspect the interior of the workshop. On the walls are countless displays of finely crafted weaponry, swords, daggers, polearms - virtually every type of weapon you could find in the game was here.

“Right, my friend here happens to have a custom weapon. Wanna take a look?” Skyfrost suddenly brings up.

“I don’t do work for free.”

“Come on! I assure you you’ll find something interesting. Distant-Cloud, show him your dagger-axe!”


What do you say?
>”It’s fine, there’s really no need to.”

>”It’s alright, I can pay.”

>Don’t say a word, just let Spiritwalker inspect your dagger-axe [Tyrant’s Will] first.

>Write in.

>>5434271
>>Don’t say a word, just let Spiritwalker inspect your dagger-axe [Tyrant’s Will] first.

>>5434271
>Don’t say a word, just let Spiritwalker inspect your dagger-axe [Tyrant’s Will] first.

>>5434271
>Don’t say a word, just let Spiritwalker inspect your dagger-axe [Tyrant’s Will] first.

>>5434272
>>5434275
>>5434280

>Don’t say a word, just let Spiritwalker inspect your dagger-axe [Tyrant’s Will] first.

Writing.

Bit late for the vote, but would had joined the consensus.
I love your writing, Kismet

>>5434313

Feels like a trap if you say anything here, so you simply allow Spiritwalker to inspect your [Tyrant’s Will], a weapon that you have constantly been working on since the days you first started playing Jade-Sword Quest. Spiritwalker’s avatar remains motionless, as still as a statue, deeply focused on analysing the various intricacies of the dagger-axe.

“This… I’ve never seen anything like it.” After a long silence, Spiritwalker finally says something. “Did you make this yourself?”

“Y-yes.” You try your best to hide the miniscule nervousness in your voice.

“Some parts of the blade are a bit clunky, but overall, you have a solid weapon over here.”

He continues to point out some other flaws in your design and you make sure to write down each and everyone of them on a small text document.

“Still, I can’t imagine anyone would want to use this. It’s much too heavy. The cast times for the more complex buffs essential to the standard dagger-axe kit will be too long. Unless…”

Skyfrost chimes in. “That’s right.”

“...You’re a DPS dagger-axe!” Spiritwalker exclaims. “Skyfrost, I can see why you’ve taken an interest in the lad.”

You admit that DPS dagger-axe players were a rarity. But was it something so unique to get this excited about? You feel like there’s some sort of higher significance you’re not seeing. What did the two of them perceive that you couldn’t? Tons of questions race through your mind.

“I told you you’d be interested.” Skyfrost teases.

“Shut it.”

>>5435527

Spiritwalker and Skyfrost talk a bit more, discussing a multitude of things you have not a clue about, though sometimes you can hear your name being mentioned. To be honest, it feels kind of lonely. This wasn’t unlike lunch breaks back at your old workplace. People tend to form cliques, and within them, entire microcosms of history and culture would form. Anyone outside the clique can only listen in from afar, and decipher the meanings of their code-like speech. It was like listening to a (not entirely) foreign language. You sort of wish you had friends like this, the types who you can talk to for ages and not feel bored in the slightest.

In your invisible rumination, Spiritwalker once more turns to you. “So, Distant-Cloud was it? If you give me some time, I’ll turn this Tyrant’s Will into an invincible weapon.”

What? You can scarcely believe the words you’re hearing. In your uncomposed state, you fumble out, “No, no, that won’t be necessary.”

“Nonsense. I’ve taken a liking to you.”

Skyfrost smirks. “You sure you don’t just like his dagger-axe?”

“Fuck off. He’s a good kid. I’ll even do it for free!”

“I thought you said you didn’t do work for free?”

“I’ll just add his tab to yours.”

“Whoa whoa whoa, now let’s talk this over…” Skyfrost’s tone suddenly becomes more serious.

What a sight. The mighty Skyfrost, who you so far consider unbeatable, is now at his wit’s end haggling with an old friend. It really helps to remind you that he’s human as well. Not that you didn’t already know that.

Anyway, you spend the rest of the afternoon at the workshop, explaining various design choices to Spiritwalker, and listing out the various needs you have for Tyrant’s Will. It’s quite the enjoyable process talking to a professional crafter. Even with intuitive explanations, he’s able to instantly understand your intentions. At the end of everything, he gives you a list of materials to gather:

128x [Black Tortoise Shell Fragment]
70x [Abyssic Yin Steel]
1x [Volcanic Phoenix Pendant]
1x [Esoteric Essence]
3x [Cosmic Parchment]

>>5435529

It’s about time for dinner now. Both you and Skyfrost log out to grab something to eat. As the game soundtrack abruptly cuts off, you’re pulled back to reality, back to being Wei Rudan. Heading downstairs, you’re a bit surprised to see Old Deng manning the counter. It was usually Jiang Yurong’s shift at this hour.

“She has exams coming up, so starting today, she’ll be heading home earlier.” Old Deng says awkwardly, an unlit cigarette in his mouth. He hands you your food and goes out the front door for a smoke.


After wolfing down your noodles, you…
>Ask Skyfrost some questions. For a player of such skill to have remained unknown for so long, it just doesn’t make sense.

>Dig up some info on Autumn-Moon, you just can’t put your finger on where you’ve heard that name before. Even his voice sounded familiar just now.

>Browse the JSQ forums to see the aftermath of today’s battle.

>Write in.

>>5434315

Thank you! Glad you're enjoying the quest so far!

>>5435532
>Dig up some info on Autumn-Moon, you just can’t put your finger on where you’ve heard that name before. Even his voice sounded familiar just now.

>>5435532
>Browse the JSQ forums for new mentions of our name

>>5435532
>Ask Skyfrost some questions. For a player of such skill to have remained unknown for so long, it just doesn’t make sense.

>>5435532
>Dig up some info on autum moon

>>5435532

>Dig up some info on Autumn-Moon, you just can’t put your finger on where you’ve heard that name before. Even his voice sounded familiar just now.

>>5435532
>Browse the JSQ forums to see the aftermath of today’s battle.
Mmmm, delicious Ebonwill salt...

>>5435532
>>Dig up some info on Autumn-Moon, you just can’t put your finger on where you’ve heard that name before. Even his voice sounded familiar just now.
We can ask Skyfrost stuff whenever. This might be important.

>>5435532
>Dig up some info on Autumn-Moon, you just can’t put your finger on where you’ve heard that name before. Even his voice sounded familiar just now.

>>5435532
>>Dig up some info on Autumn-Moon, you just can’t put your finger on where you’ve heard that name before. Even his voice sounded familiar just now.

>>5435532
>>Dig up some info on Autumn-Moon, you just can’t put your finger on where you’ve heard that name before. Even his voice sounded familiar just now.

>>5435532
>Ask Skyfrost some questions. For a player of such skill to have remained unknown for so long, it just doesn’t make sense.

>>5435538
>>5435556
>>5435568
>>5435601
>>5435614
>>5435644
>>5435645
>>5435651
>>5435673
>>5435880
>>5436124

>Dig up some info on Autumn-Moon, you just can’t put your finger on where you’ve heard that name before. Even his voice sounded familiar just now.

Writing. Gonna try and get this out before tonight.

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>>5436201

After wolfing down your noodles, you return to your room and fire up your web browser. Before you even finish entering the name Autumn-Moon, the search engine already auto-completes it for you. The first few results are some videos. The uploader is, of course, named Autumn-Moon. This is surely not a coincidence. As for their contents, it was music composed and arranged entirely using instruments found in JSQ. This guy was truly a professional, and his subscriber count reflected this. A whopping eight-hundred-thousand! Not only that, a bunch of his videos also showcased his own gameplay. He was a truly outstanding solo player.

Furthermore, you can now roughly discern his purpose for wanting to snag that Celestial Plumwood tree. That is, to craft more instruments for use in his music and in-game endeavours. This is an incredible find, and you can hardly contain your excitement when you message Skyfrost about it.

[You]: Look at what I found.
[Skyfrost]: Wot?

You attach the link to Autumn-Moon’s channel.

[Skyfrost]: No bloody way.
[You]: Did you know about this beforehand?
[Skyfrost]: Not at all. This makes things more interesting…
[You]: What do you mean?
[Skyfrost]: You’ll know soon enough.

It didn’t seem like he wanted to tell you now, so you don’t feel any need to press further. You spend the rest of the night thinking of your next course of action.


What do you decide on?
>Focus on your breakthrough. Now that you have a [Soul Severing Pill], you want to break through to the Immortal Ascension realm as soon as possible. That should make future tasks much easier.

>Gather the materials Spiritwalker requested. A good weapon will go a long way in JSQ, especially if it makes your build even more effective than it already is.

>Write in

>>5436340
>>Gather the materials Spiritwalker requested. A good weapon will go a long way in JSQ, especially if it makes your build even more effective than it already is.

>>5436340
>Focus on the breakthrough

It makes gathering the materials easier, and then we can have the weapon perfectly suited to our new status.

>>5436340
>Focus on your breakthrough. Now that you have a [Soul Severing Pill], you want to break through to the Immortal Ascension realm as soon as possible. That should make future tasks much easier.

>>5436345
>>5436346
>>5436360

>Focus on your breakthrough. Now that you have a [Soul Severing Pill], you want to break through to the Immortal Ascension realm as soon as possible. That should make future tasks much easier.

Writing.

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>>5436397

After a while, you decide to focus on breaking through the Immortal Ascension realm. The battles you witnessed today left a big impression on you. Moreover, it will be much easier to collect the resources for upgrading Tyrant’s Will with the ability of flight unlocked. The more you think about it lying down on your makeshift bed, the more you’re liking the idea. Well, you guess that’s about it for the night.

===

The crackly audio from your headphones is barely enough to muffle the sound outside your dingy room. What should be joy-inducing in-game notifications feel empty, intertwined with the heated argument taking place beyond the door behind you.

[pPpPp has been slain by Distant-Cloud!]

“It’s your fucking fault we’re stuck in this shithole!” A weeping woman shrieks

“Skyfrost has picked up 3x [Flood Dragon Bone Marrow]”

Another man, deeply enraged, bellows “Just how fucking hard do you think I work? If only-”

[Fluffy (松松) has been slain by Distant-Cloud!]

“If only what?!?!?”

It’s… How long has this gone on for? You don’t remember. You don’t want to remember. What tears, what anger, what care you have left had been wrung dry a long time ago. Your hands simply move on autopilot. Your consciousness feels outside of this world. Wei Rudan. Distant-Cloud. Who you are doesn’t matter right now. You just want to lose yourself until everything passes.

“If only you weren’t so fucking useless. You lying bitch! I-” The man’s breathing became heavier, his rage palpable. “I guess that’s who he takes after. Useless brood from a useless broodmother!”

“How… How could you say that? He’s yours as much as he is mine!”

The arguing progressively becomes more intense, until it reaches a breaking point. Like glass shattering from an steeply increasing pitch of sound, words eventually break into actions. You hear it. The loud impact of a slap, followed by violent banging on the four walls of the living room. No matter. It didn’t matter. You wish with all your being that it didn’t matter. Your subconscious struggles to focus what little awareness still remaining onto the cold light from your laptop monitor.

“That’s it.”

Loud footsteps, practically stomping, can be heard.

“What’re you doing?” The woman asks, her voice now trembling with fear.

Screams.

You-

…

“Distant-Cloud has picked up 20x [Greater Fire Qi Essence]”

At some point, you had turned your system volume to max. Every wisp of sound in JSQ was now akin to thunder roaring in your ears. Suddenly, your door bursts open. You don’t hear it. You feel it. You don’t want to turn back. Your attention fights to fix itself to the game, even as your anxiety reaches its zenith. Your hairs stand on end. Your fingers shake uncontrollably. Then, everything abruptly ends with a loud…

BANG!

===

>>5436538

Your body springs up from its supine position, covered from head to toe in sweat. You’re panting heavily, and it feels like copious amounts of adrenaline have been pumped straight into your veins. You’re practically in full survival mode at the moment.

“Just a dream…” You mutter to yourself. “It’s already been three years…”

Almost instinctively, you begin spacing out. It takes some amount of time for you to break from your dazed state and get on with your morning routine. Once you calm down, you login to JSQ. Incidentally, Skyfrost just happens to be online.

[You]: I think I’m gonna work towards breaking through to Immortal Ascension, so I might not be able to party up today.
[Skyfrost]: ?
[You]: ?
[Skyfrost]: What you talkin about?
[You]: …

Did you upset Skyfrost? The thought terrifies you.

[Skyfrost]: Obviously I’ll help you! It’s quite dangerous to attempt an Immortal Ascension breakthrough alone. You need to do it in the Outlands after all.

[Player Skyfrost has invited you to join their party. Do you accept: Y/N?]

You hesitate a little, but quickly click “Y.”

[Skyfrost]: So where do you plan to break through?
[You]: Well, I had a few ideas…

Put simply, characteristics of the Heavenly Tribulation brought about by attempting a breakthrough depended on a variety of factors, mainly qi density and elemental affinities. The former affected a tribulation’s intensity while the latter determined a tribulation’s elemental properties. Generally speaking, more intense tribulations, though much tougher to overcome, could be completed significantly faster. After discussing with Skyfrost, you narrow down your options to just three.


Which do you pick?
>The Silver Isles. Located off the northern coast of the continent. Cold and unrelenting, the qi density and yin qi affinity of the land are both high due to the presence of a spiritual mountain. The forest located at the centre of the isles houses the entrance to one of JSQ’s endgame dungeons: Crystalline Realm.

>The Frayed Coast. To the east of the continent, north of Dongmen lies the Frayed Coast. The land here is flat and has high water qi affinity but low qi density. This area of the map doesn’t see too much activity, but that’s no reason to be careless.

>The tallest peak of the Sanzhi Mountains. This was the location of the ZvZ yesterday which took place on the mountain range’s periphery. Its tallest peak is famous for having the highest qi density in the entire continent. As a result, it’s also known as the Birthplace of Immortals. One can also expect extremely high earth qi affinity.

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>>5436538
>MFW reading through this post

>>5436539
Oooo tough picks...
>The Silver Isles. Located off the northern coast of the continent. Cold and unrelenting, the qi density and yin qi affinity of the land are both high due to the presence of a spiritual mountain. The forest located at the centre of the isles houses the entrance to one of JSQ’s endgame dungeons: Crystalline Realm.
Risky because of the dungeon but I'm curious about the yin qi

>>5436539
>The Silver Isles. Located off the northern coast of the continent. Cold and unrelenting, the qi density and yin qi affinity of the land are both high due to the presence of a spiritual mountain. The forest located at the centre of the isles houses the entrance to one of JSQ’s endgame dungeons: Crystalline Realm.

Well if this dungeon is well frequented, there will be obvious signs of groups preparing to invade the place, so we can use this to our advantage by choosing a time that has less chance of one of these teams passing close to us.

>>5436539
>The tallest peak of the Sanzhi Mountains. This was the location of the ZvZ yesterday which took place on the mountain range’s periphery. Its tallest peak is famous for having the highest qi density in the entire continent. As a result, it’s also known as the Birthplace of Immortals. One can also expect extremely high earth qi affinity.

>>5436539
By the way goddamn QM, shit got heavy out of nowhere. I'm not saying this is bad, I'm saying I wasn't prepared for something like this.

>>5436539
>The Silver Isles. Located off the northern coast of the continent. Cold and unrelenting, the qi density and yin qi affinity of the land are both high due to the presence of a spiritual mountain. The forest located at the centre of the isles houses the entrance to one of JSQ’s endgame dungeons: Crystalline Realm.

>>5436539
>>The Silver Isles. Located off the northern coast of the continent. Cold and unrelenting, the qi density and yin qi affinity of the land are both high due to the presence of a spiritual mountain. The forest located at the centre of the isles houses the entrance to one of JSQ’s endgame dungeons: Crystalline Realm.

>>5436539
sheesh I feel bad for us
>The Silver Isles. Located off the northern coast of the continent. Cold and unrelenting, the qi density and yin qi affinity of the land are both high due to the presence of a spiritual mountain. The forest located at the centre of the isles houses the entrance to one of JSQ’s endgame dungeons: Crystalline Realm.

>>5436539
>The Frayed Coast. To the east of the continent, north of Dongmen lies the Frayed Coast. The land here is flat and has high water qi affinity but low qi density. This area of the map doesn’t see too much activity, but that’s no reason to be careless.
Yin qi is for pussies

>>5436539
>The Silver Isles. Located off the northern coast of the continent. Cold and unrelenting, the qi density and yin qi affinity of the land are both high due to the presence of a spiritual mountain. The forest located at the centre of the isles houses the entrance to one of JSQ’s endgame dungeons: Crystalline Realm.

>Guzzle yin qi
>Transform into twink cultivator

>The tallest peak of the Sanzhi Mountains. This was the location of the ZvZ yesterday which took place on the mountain range’s periphery. Its tallest peak is famous for having the highest qi density in the entire continent. As a result, it’s also known as the Birthplace of Immortals. One can also expect extremely high earth qi affinity.

Anons, gonna be taking a break today. Will work on the post tomorrow.

>>5436619

In hindsight, I think it might have been a tad bit too early to include it.

>>5436876
>>5436886

Kek

>>5436886
>not wanting jade-like skin

>>5437158
The Silver Isles won. It's too late for our protagonist here, after his cultivation it's going to turn into jade beauty quest, in which (s)he catfishes other MMO players for items.

>>5437208
>The Celestial-Cunning-Peacock.

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>>5436539

[You]: Right, so I guess we’ll do this at The Silver Isles.
[Skyfrost]: Sounds good. Not to mention that most players are probably at work or school at this time. There shouldn’t be too many people around.
[You]: You got that right.
[Skyfrost]: Just in case though…
[You]: ?

The conversation stops for a brief moment, and rather than a message showing up as the next line of text of your chat box, a system notification pops up instead.

[Autumn-Moon has joined your party.]

You weren’t expecting this at all.

[Skyfrost]: Good morning.
[Autumn-Moon]: What do you want?
[Skyfrost]: Distant-Cloud will explain.

Well, you quickly fumble out a brief summary of your plans, trying not to be rude, but also not overly polite.

[Autumn-Moon]: I see, and if I refuse?
[You]: You owe us one for the Celestial Plumtree wood though.
[Skyfrost]: Or does the famous Autumn-Moon not repay his debts?

Vicious. For someone with a massive online following like Autumn-Moon, reputation is everything. Skyfrost knew just what buttons to hit.

[Autumn-Moon]: Fine. I have nothing much to do right now, anyway. Let’s get this over with.
[Skyfrost]: With pleasure.

From Ximen, after taking out all the materials required for your breakthrough, you and Skyfrost make your way northwards to the Silver Isles. The Outlands are quite peaceful right now. At most, you run into a few solo players doing some content alone, all of which you ignore. There’s usually an unspoken rule of “you don’t bother me, I don’t bother you,” when it comes to interactions between small groups in the open world. The journey, which takes no more than twenty minutes, is quite pleasant with the calming eastern soundtrack of JSQ playing in the background. On the northern banks of the continent, you spot a lone figure waiting on the shore. That must be Autumn-Moon.

“Before we continue,” Skyfrost pastes a link in party chat, “join our Harmony server!”

“Alright. That would be for the best.” Autumn-Moon replies, following with a question after joining your voice channel. “Were you guys followed?”

“No. I made sure.” Skyfrost reassures.

“I didn’t notice anything either.” You add.

With that, all of you cross the bank and arrive at a land of pure white. The soil is blanketed by thick sheets of snow, together with pale trees that stretch across the isles as far as your render distance allows you to see. The background music turns cold and sombre to reflect this. Usually, qi density fluctuates quite a bit depending on the time of day. The pockets of qi density high enough to initiate breakthroughs tend to swap locations every few hours or so. Each of you split up to scout. Your efforts reveal just one such possible location along the smaller isle inbetween the forests and spiritual mountain to the west. The only downside here is that it is completely visible from one of the dungeon entrances just across the water.

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>>5438862

“There doesn’t seem to be anywhere else suitable.” You mention.

Autumn-Moon grunts in agreement. “It’s now or nothing. I’m not gonna follow along if you guys swap locations. That wasn’t part of the deal.”

“That’s fine.” You ready your breakthrough materials. “Moving too much will attract attention anyway, especially since we’re on the Ebonwill K.O.S list.”

The land here is pretty flat, making it quite ideal for facing a Heavenly Tribulation. Wasting no time, you arrange five items in the shape of a wide pentagon, positioning them at the corners. Each corresponds to one of the five elements, and once all of them are in place, the surrounding qi density quickly surges, causing even the clouds above to roil violently. Still, this won’t be enough to incite heaven’s full wrath. Your mouse hovers over the last item in your inventory - a [Soul Severing Pill]. As you take a deep breath, swearing to yourself that you won’t let these years of preparation and hard work go to waste, you double click the item, triggering the command to consume it.

Without any warning, the heavens roar with a profound fury, as if offended by your attempts to resist its will. Of course, this could never be avoided. The path of cultivation is to defy heaven’s will itself! From the now inky black clouds, a gargantuan bolt of lightning descends, instantly striking Distant-Cloud. In less than a second, about 40% of your health and qi are gone. The fact that you have any health left at all means that you are qualified to face this godly trial.

Finally, a dark form starts to coalesce from above, warping into the figure of a female surrounded by a frostbitten aura of dark blue, consisting entirely of the purest yin qi. And from the looks of it, this will be one of those Heavenly Tribulations with only a single, challenging boss. Whether that’s a good or bad thing, you don’t really care. What matters is that you send it to the grave.

You recognise the enemy before you as being similar to one of the bosses in the Crystalline Realm. If that was the case, you’ll have to be extra cautious of her melee attacks. You recall that this specific boss has the ability to lengthen her nails into claws that deal a significant amount of damage by themselves, and can fire waves of yin qi.


How will you approach this fight?
>Up close and personal. If you want to minimise the risk of being spotted by a wandering group, you’ll have to bring the boss down fast, and that means commencing a nonstop onslaught of melee attacks.

>From a distance. Though it’ll be slower to take the boss down this way, it’s certainly much safer since you’ll be able to more easily avoid the boss’ attacks.

>Write in.

>>5438863
>>Up close and personal. If you want to minimise the risk of being spotted by a wandering group, you’ll have to bring the boss down fast, and that means commencing a nonstop onslaught of melee attacks.
No point playing timid when challenging the Heavens.

>>5438863
>Up close and personal. If you want to minimise the risk of being spotted by a wandering group, you’ll have to bring the boss down fast, and that means commencing a nonstop onslaught of melee attacks.

A Dps run for our character seems to be the least wrong way to go.

>>5438863
>>Up close and personal. If you want to minimise the risk of being spotted by a wandering group, you’ll have to bring the boss down fast, and that means commencing a nonstop onslaught of melee attacks.
We've always been daring high-risk high-reward without being stupid.

>>5438863
>From a distance. Though it’ll be slower to take the boss down this way, it’s certainly much safer since you’ll be able to more easily avoid the boss’ attacks.
Finishing the journey of a thousand li, do not trip on the last step.

>>5438863
>>From a distance. Though it’ll be slower to take the boss down this way, it’s certainly much safer since you’ll be able to more easily avoid the boss’ attacks.
It says she's strong in melee, so...

>>5438863
>Up close and personal. If you want to minimise the risk of being spotted by a wandering group, you’ll have to bring the boss down fast, and that means commencing a nonstop onslaught of melee attacks.
we have two skilled players with us
secretly hoping for a fail

Also surprised Autumn-Moon is wrapped around our fingers like this instead of using us as source of drama and content as all streamers do. He could've brought a zerg on us.

>>5438878
>>5438884
>>5438906
>>5438918
>>5438979
>>5439003

>Up close and personal. If you want to minimise the risk of being spotted by a wandering group, you’ll have to bring the boss down fast, and that means commencing a nonstop onslaught of melee attacks.

Three people please roll a 1d20. We are rolling for speed. DC: 15

Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>5439334
pls no garbage

Rolled 3 (1d20)

>>5439334
>DC 15
jfc

Rolled 16 (1d20)

>>5439334

>>5439364
pog

>>5439344
>>5439363
>>5439364

>16

Felt my balls shrink when I saw the 3 roll.

My mastery of the dice qi is strong.

File: ezgif.com-gif-maker.gif (3.08 MB, 540x303)

3.08 MB GIF

>>5439371

A translucent, five coloured barrier surrounds you and the boss, separating you from everything outside. Though formidable, it is not unbreakable, merely acting as a shield to prevent outsiders from interfering. After all, a Heavenly Tribulation is an affair between heaven and the offending cultivator. Would a hunter allow someone else to snatch their prey? Skyfrost and Autumn-Moon stand just along its perimeter, on the lookout for any stray groups that may emerge.

You pop a few restorative pills to bring your health and qi up, then empower yourself with a series of spells, charging towards the left flank of the boss. You plan on handling this up close and personal to maximise your DPS. Distant-Cloud weaves through attack after attack, skillfully kiting around with enhanced swiftness. If you keep up this rhythm, the boss will surely fall without much trouble. However, even after a few minutes, barely 10% of its health has been chipped away. More aggressive plays will be needed to end this faster. Perhaps it might even be wise to tank some of the non-lethal attacks to raise your damage potential.

[Berserker Soul] activated, physical attack, attack speed, and damage taken increased for 10 seconds.
[Final Advance] activated, drain your entire qi pool. In exchange, all damage is significantly increased for 8 seconds. Landing a 10 strike combo within this duration will replenish your qi back to its original amount before casting this skill.

Tyrant’s Will flutters through the air, appearing as light as a feather. In the span of a few milliseconds, three attacks land on the boss’s right thigh. Two more strike its right arm, and the remaining five strikes reach its abdomen.

Remaining boss health: 78%

Repeating this will be risky, if you fail to even land one hit of the 10 strike combo, your chances of overcoming the boss will look bleaker than your current job situation. Despite this, you press on, completely absorbed in the fight.

While waiting for [Final Advance]’s cooldown to reset, you continuously refresh your buffs and hold nothing back slinging ability after ability at the foe before you.

Remaining boss health: 40%

The boss, after unleashing a pained roar, suddenly begins to metamorphosize. The yin qi surrounding it thickens into a boiling black mist, so palpable in its viciousness that you swear you can feel it from behind the monitor. The boss’s claws grow to twice their length. Its silvery hair lengthens, becoming dishevelled, giving it a most feral appearance. The fight will only get harder from here on out. To make things worse, you hear some not so welcome news during this animation.

“Did you see that?” Autumn-Moon asks, the entrance to the Crystalline Realm just beyond the waters. “It’s them.”

“Yeah.” Skyfrost answers. “Uh, Distant-Cloud, might wanna hurry. A group is definitely coming, now.”

“I’ll make this quick.” You say calmly.

File: ezgif.com-gif-maker (1).gif (481 KB, 500x282)

481 KB GIF

>>5440323

As expected, the boss’s movements are much quicker than before, requiring your full attention to even follow along. If it was you a few months ago tackling it right now, you’re sure you would’ve instantly been overwhelmed.

It takes a few moments for you to get used to this increased tempo before you’re confident in resuming your strategy. By the time you do so, you spot a few groups exiting from the dungeon entrance in the corner of your eye. They, dressed in black and purple, instantly lock their sights on you. Still, you have faith that Skyfrost and Autumn-Moon will have no trouble holding them off for the time being.

Remaining boss health: 16%

Your hands are starting to feel the strain from this prolonged battle. Keeping up your APM for this long is taking its toll.

“Skyfrost, from the east!” Autumn-Moon calls.

“You handle that, the group here is almost taken care of.” Skyfrost replies.

Why is the Ebonwill Sect so obsessed with taking you down? You can’t help but wonder. All you did was destroy a few of their groups. It’s likely that you didn’t even put a dent in their wallets from the losses inflicted. The more you think about it, the more it frustrates you.

Remaining boss health: 1%

At the very last moment, you direct your built-up anger into one final strike, felling the boss in glorious one on one combat. From the skies, a pillar of bright golden light shines down on you, rejuvenating your health and qi as the level counter on your screen rises from 70 to 71.

[You have levelled up!]
[You have new attribute points available! Do you wish to spend them now? Y/N]
[You have unlocked the ability to learn Immortal Ascension skills!]

“Player Distant-Cloud has ascended to the Immortal Ascension realm!” A server-wide announcement sounds out.

Global chat immediately begins sperging out.

[Pissdrinker]: Who the fuck is Distant-Cloud?
[SwordEnjoyer]: Isn’t that the guy on the Ebonwill KOS list?
[JohnSmith]: Never heard of him.
[Aewtgda]: Fuck, I thought I’d be able to claim that bounty.
[Chuuni-Warrior]: Oh! The realm sees yet another who would challenge heaven’s authority!
[Pissdrinker]: Shut the fuck up you nerd.
.
.
.

>>5440324

Yet, it is too soon to celebrate. As the five coloured barrier fades away, you see Skyfrost engaged with a single opponent - another Immortal Ascension player. And for the first time, it looks like he’s struggling. Scurrying to get his name, your eyes go wide. It’s the Bloodsea Tyrant himself, Whitesteed - one of the elders of the Ebonwill Sect! He’s the one responsible for putting you and Skyfrost on their KOS list. You can’t believe what you’re seeing.

“Oi! Come help now that you’re done!” Autumn-Moon chides. “Why are there so many people?!?!”

Skyfrost remains completely silent, single-mindedly battling with all he’s got.

“It appears your friend is done with his breakthrough.” Whitesteed comments. “Congratulations are in order. So how about it? My offer.”

Just what is happening?

“We’ll think about it.”

“Very well, then. I shall give you some time to think.” Whitesteed suddenly ceases his onslaught, floating in the air like some revered deity. “Men! Stop the battle!”

Instantly all fifteen Ebonwill players on the ground fall back, surrounding the three of you. All of them are at least level 67, every one of them in the Initial Ascension realm.

“Distant-Cloud, congratulations on your breakthrough. It is not very often that we see solo players manage to reach Immortal Ascension.” Whitesteed’s tone is dignified and confident. “I will repeat what I have said to Skyfrost. In short, I want you both to join the Ebonwill Sect.”

This… Something doesn’t feel right.

“Of course, you won’t be joining as ordinary disciples. That would be beneath both of you. I am willing to offer you two prestigious officer positions upon your recruitment. You will receive no shortage of cultivation resources and spirit stones and will be conferred command of a significantly large force of loyal and obedient players. Furthermore, I, Whitesteed, am a generous person. If you accept, we will also forgive all past transgressions. Since you two have also decided to involve yourselves with this Autumn-Moon, I will naturally extend this offer to him as well.”

“I don’t like the sound of this.” You say.

Autumn-Moon agrees. “Me neither.”

“Skyfrost, can we beat him?” You ask.

“He’s on par with some professional players, I don’t think it’ll be easy to deal with him by myself with my current level and equipment, but together, you and Autumn-Moon might stand a chance.”

“Can we escape?”

“No guarantees.”


What do you do?
>Stand your ground and fight. You will not allow yourself to be humiliated like this. Death before dishonour.

>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.

>Accept Whitesteed’s offer.

>Write in.

>>5440327
>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.

>>5440327
>Stand your ground and fight. You will not allow yourself to be humiliated like this. Death before dishonour.

No way we accept.
Also, we can't afford to lose and drop our unique weapon.

>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.

Then,

>Create a guild together with Autumn-Moon and Skyfrost
>Set up stream for our daring actions
>Acquire a fanbase while scraping all the salt of Ebonwill's tears

>>5440327
>"Something doesn't sound right about this."
>Try and pry from him why exactly he wants us to join the ebonwill sect. [Maybe something along the lines of 'The Ebonwill is indeed magnanimous, but it's an incredible leap from a kill order to offers of officership. Nobody thinks us three are worth the reputation damage.']

If we can't get anything, Flee.

I think it might do with trying to get our gear, or perhaps trying to isolate us from our allies.

>>5440327
>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.
Imagine being an Ebonfag, pfft.
I hope there's a world boss we kite the Ebonwill group into, slow them down.

>>5440327
>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.
>>5440359 don't want to make new guild

>>5440327
>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.

>>5440390
+1
It's not "fleeing," it's a "tactical retreat." Hope we're giving Autumn Moon some juicy clickbait Youtube titles.

>>5440327
>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.

>Accept Whitesteed’s offer.

>>5440327
>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.

>>5440339
>>5440344
>>5440359
>>5440390
>>5440418
>>5440614
>>5440655
>>5441254
>>5441301
>>5441314

>Flee. You may be an Immortal Ascension player now, but you have not learnt any Immortal Ascension tier skills. It will be best to retreat and avoid pointless losses.

Three people please roll a 1d20! DC:16

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>5442129

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>5442129
Let's a-go

>>5442133
>>5442134

>20

What the... Well, I guess that settles is.

>>5442135
Even the heavens are saying fuck Ebonwill

File: yuno-black-clover.gif (2.65 MB, 498x280)

2.65 MB GIF

>>5442135

“Either way, I don’t think it's wise to take this fight.” You say. “I don’t have any Immortal Ascension skills.”

“I think so, too.” Autumn-Moon agrees. “But how’re we gonna get out of this mess?”

“I have an idea.” Skyfrost chimes in.

You and Autumn-Moon listen intently, taking careful note of the roles you’ll be playing in this great escape. The first part of the plan, already in motion, will require some talking on the part of Skyfrost.

“Whitesteed!” Skyfrost calls boldly.

“Have you made your decision?”

“It’s not like we have a choice, do we? If we refuse now, we’ll be hunted wherever we go. That’s no way to play this game.”

“A wise decision, but…” Whitesteed pauses, descending towards the ground. “I have one more condition.”

“Speak.”

“Trade your items to me and commit suicide as a show of loyalty.” This is well within what you expected. There is no way Whitesteed will simply just invite the three of you into the Ebonwill Sect, then allow you to go free. That kind of thinking is just too naive. “Of course, you’ll receive them back after we handle some administrative matters.” He continues

“Very well.” Skyfrost steps forth, initiating a trade request with Whitesteed. “No objections from us.”

The moment the trade window is open, Skyfrost gives his signal. “Now!”

As your adrenaline filled hands flick your mouse, strong currents of wind gather at the edge of your dagger-axe before ultimately rushing towards Whitesteed with a fearsome howl. He’s pushed away a decent distance. The knockback is way more than you’ve ever seen before.

Dagger-axe skill: [Wave of Force]

“You!” Whitesteed growls uncharacteristically. “Kill them!”

Upon receiving the order, the surrounding Ebonwill players immediately rush into battle, however, their advances are abruptly interrupted as a powerful force sends them flying backwards in the wake of a resonant pipa chord.

Pipa skill: [Radial Push]

This creates large gaps in their formation from which you and Autumn-Moon dash through. Skyfrost follows shortly, erecting a large wall of ice while dodging Whitesteed’s attacks. This gives you more than enough time to leap onto your flying sword and jet towards the southern skies, in the direction of Wenduan city.

“Good job, boys!” Skyfrost cheers excitedly.

“We’ve made sworn enemies with the Ebonwill.” Autumn-Moon looks behind, Whitesteed frantically giving chase. He must be livid right now. “There’s no turning back from this anymore.”

“We were never on very good terms anyway.” You respond.

“Forget about that!” Skyfrost laughs, his avatar’s hair fluttering in the wind. “We’ll just crush whoever gets in our way!”

“You’re pretty happy today.” You comment.

“Of course! It’s been so long since I’ve had some fun like this.”

File: c91750622fdb0914e08c8336f(...).jpg (69 KB, 736x539)

69 KB JPG

>>5442330

The distance between you and your pursuers only grows as you reach the halfway point of the journey. Did they give up? You aren’t very sure. In fact, you feel that this whole escape is going a bit too smoothly. Knowing the Ebonwill, they probably have multiple parties out in the world right now that, with a single command, can hunt you to the ends of the earth, but there were none in sight. You voice out your concerns to Skyfrost and Autumn-Moon.

“Aren’t you overthinking?” Autumn-Moon asks. “Why would they expend so many resources for three measly players?”

“That’s the thing.” You sigh. “I don’t know, but we’ve certainly attracted quite a bit of attention to warrant the Bloodsea Tyrant of all people to personally come and deal with us.”

Skyfrost takes a minute to ponder before saying, “If it were up to me, I’d start gathering forces at our destination rather than pursue a foe that has already escaped.”

He was right on the mark.

With the northern gates of Wenduan in sight, what greets you is not the clear grassland outside the city, but rather, an entire contingent of Ebonwill forces forming a blockade. They allow no one to enter the city and no one to exit. Any unsatisfied players who attempt to defy them are instantly cut down, causing quite an angry mob to have formed on both sides of the blockade. Attempts to blend in with the crowd would probably be futile, you think.

“Let us in!”

“Eat shit. Is this what the Ebonwill does in their spare time?”

The collective rage of salty gamers is… immense. One person gave a particularly scathing remark…

“Fuck you, shitty Ebonfags, this is why no one likes your retarded clan. You fuckers parade on the forums all high and mighty, but in reality you’re just a bunch of cowards who bully us casual players. Why don’t you go face someone your own size! I hope you get raped by Steelport in your next ZvZs”

At a glance, there are about 20 to 30 players in the blockade, all at least in the Nascent Soul realm (level 51+). They’ve surely spotted you by now, but have not attacked. Are they waiting for Whitesteed’s return? It’s not like he can’t order them remotely via voice chat. There is no way other guild aren’t making a move with the Ebonwill drawing this much attention.


What do you do?
>Bide your time and join the crowd anyway. There is no reason to rush. Waiting for the right opportunity to strike should be the most optimal way to get out of this mess.

>Rally the dissatisfied players and attempt to overwhelm the blockade before Whitesteed arrives. You’re not the most charismatic person, but perhaps the three of you together can cook up a storm.

>Attempt to circle around the blockade. Wenduan is not the only way to get to the safe zones. Still, there’s no telling where else the Ebonwill have taken up station.

>Write in.

>>5442331
>Rally the dissatisfied players and attempt to overwhelm the blockade before Whitesteed arrives. You’re not the most charismatic person, but perhaps the three of you together can cook up a storm.
I spy with my Ascended eye free meathsields!

>>5442331
>Rally the dissatisfied players and attempt to overwhelm the blockade before Whitesteed arrives. You’re not the most charismatic person, but perhaps the three of you together can cook up a storm.
Create an off-game forum for coordination. Name it Operation Ebonstomp. Recruit players through DMs.

>>5442331
>Bide your time and join the crowd anyway. There is no reason to rush. Waiting for the right opportunity to strike should be the most optimal way to get out of this mess.
Trying to lead pubbies and casuals into battle against organized opponent would only lead to ruin.

>>5442331

>Bide your time and join the crowd anyway. There is no reason to rush. Waiting for the right opportunity to strike should be the most optimal way to get out of this mess.
Our abilities are not those of charisma, forcing the dice can lead to our downfall.

>>5442331
>Attempt to circle around the blockade. Wenduan is not the only way to get to the safe zones. Still, there’s no telling where else the Ebonwill have taken up station.

>>5442331
>>Rally the dissatisfied players and attempt to overwhelm the blockade before Whitesteed arrives. You’re not the most charismatic person, but perhaps the three of you together can cook up a storm.
GET AUTUMN STORM to do most of the talking. He's a literal streamer/youtuber, he's got to be way more charismatic than we are and the pubbies might recognize him. Tell him it's excellent #content. Meanwhile we infiltrate the crowd and Skyfrost does whatever genius Skyfrost plan he has.

>>5442453
+1

>>5442331
>>Rally the dissatisfied players and attempt to overwhelm the blockade before Whitesteed arrives. You’re not the most charismatic person, but perhaps the three of you together can cook up a storm.

I want to capitalize on my twenty.

Also, pretty sure the Ebonwill wanted to take our stuff, suicide, then will "get reck loser gg no re"

>>5442453
Can we craft the legendary item "French Yellow Jacket" to improve our strike success rate?

Busy with assignments this week so post frequency may be slower for a short while.

>>5442847
There will be opportunities to upgrade our gear since we've levelled up now.

File: 731.jpg (976 KB, 1744x4496)

976 KB JPG

>>5443057
it was a joke based on french social movement from a few years ago

>>5442335
>>5442357
>>5442392
>>5442422
>>5442434
>>5442453
>>5442514
>>5442845

>Rally the dissatisfied players and attempt to overwhelm the blockade before Whitesteed arrives. You’re not the most charismatic person, but perhaps the three of you together can cook up a storm.

Writing.

>>5443868

“Autumn-Moon, don’t you have a huge channel?” You ask

“Yes…” He answers. “What are you getting at?”

“Wouldn’t that mean you hold some sway over the players here? I’m quite sure some of them are your fans. If you just nudge them a bit, I think we might be able to get through this.”

“Uh…”

“It’s worth a shot. We have no idea when Whitesteed will get here so we need to do something fast.” Skyfrost points out.

“Fine.” Autumn-Moon sighs. “I’ll see what I can do. But don’t expect too much.”

You and Skyfrost discreetly enter the crowd of players, though not for the purpose of hiding from the Ebonwill players, they’ve long since marked your presence. After taking a short amount of time to think, Autumn-Moon flies in front of the unhappy masses, drawing their attention. He refrains from speaking immediately, assessing the reactions of everyone present.

“Hold on, isn’t that Autumn-Moon? That Autumn-Moon?”

“Wait… Why would he be here?”

The people shift from hurling slurs at the Ebonwill to muttering amongst themselves. It seems they recognise Autumn-Moon. In that case, the plan will most likely work.

“What is the meaning of this, Ebonwill Sect?” Autumn-Moon asks boldly, none of his prior timidity present. “Is this fun for you people? To needlessly block a city gate for no reason?”

“Yeah!” One player shouts furiously, followed by an endless stream of salty gamer rage. Such is the result of having voice chat in any game.

Autumn-Moon continues his rallying cry. “Who is to say we, together, cannot make them fuck off?”

>>5445662

The cheering grows more fervent, yet no one seems willing to make a move. It’s time for you and Skyfrost to step in.

“He’s right!” Skyfrost roars, drawing his sword, now glowing a frosty blue.

You ready your dagger-axe as well. The next instant a furious wave of fire and ice slams into the Ebonwill blockade, throwing them into a brief state of confusion. Following this, some players finally seem adamant enough to fire off some spells of their own - mostly those around level 40. Their attacks gradually become fiercer and fiercer, until it incites a response from the Ebonwill players. Of course, Autumn-Moon also joins in on the assault, if not, these scrubs would no doubt be quickly annihilated by their better geared, and highly skilled oppressors. A scene of blood quickly consumes the outskirts of Wenduan city as people of all different and power levels fall like flies in the chaotic conflict. And it’s at this moment that Whitesteed catches up to you.

Well, that throws your stealthy escape plan right out the window.

Whitesteed calls all of you names menacingly. “I’ll give you all one last chance. Commit suicide, and we’ll forget everything that happened today.”

Skyfrost laughs. “What kind of idiot kills themselves because they’re told to?!?!”

“I’d expect no less from you!” A familiar voice suddenly rises from the east.

Looking in its direction, you spot a sizable force of players dressed in white and blue. At its head is Stormgale, bravely charging forward, sabre and shield in hand. The Steelport Society has arrived!


What do you do?
>Stay and support the Steelport Society in their battle against the Ebonwill.

>Take this opportunity to sneak into the city.

>Write in.

>>5445663
>Stay and support the Steelport Society in their battle against the Ebonwill.

>>5445663
>Stay and support the Steelport Society in their battle against the Ebonwill.

Let's Dance!

>>5445663
>Stay and support the Steelport Society in their battle against the Ebonwill.

>>5445663
>>Stay and support the Steelport Society in their battle against the Ebonwill.

>>5445663
>Stay and support the Steelport Society in their battle against the Ebonwill.

>>5445663
>Stay and support the Steelport Society in their battle against the Ebonwill.
On one hand I want to just leave now that we have an opening. On the other grabbing the wood from under the Steelport's noses was a bit of a dick move, so we maybe kinda sorta owe them?
Either way we don't need Steelport annoyed at us too.

>>5445663
>Take this opportunity to sneak into the city.
Don't want to take any fights and potentially dying as Ascended while we are untrained. We have a reputation to uphold now.

>>5445663
>stay and support

>>5446551
>>5446103
>>5446067
>>5446033
>>5445940
>>5445841
>>5445706
>>5445687

>Stay and support the Steelport Society in their battle against the Ebonwill.

Three people please roll a 1d20! DC: 15

Rolled 14 (1d20)

>>5447502

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>5447502

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>5447502

>>5447646
HA HA HA, The first critical failure?

With d20, you can't really afford to do crit-fail-on-1-1 or crit-success-on-single-20 on Bo3 because 1 and 20 are too common and swingy. If the appearance of a 1 or 20 is enough by itself to fail a roll, then 'roll 3 and at least a single 1 or 20' would occur on something like 20% of the rolls iirc

That being said, this was a roll where a 1 was rolled and also no success, so that feels a bit different and more justified.

We gonna die right

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>5447646
Ah fuck, Whitesteed ignores everyone else and hyperfocuses us doesn't he.
Well, if we do die then I hope Skyfrost or Autumn Moon can manage to nab our gear before any Ebonwill jackass does.

>>5447543
>>5447562
>>5447646

>14

>>5447691
>>5447719

All will be revealed shortly.

>>5447685
In fact, rolling at least a single 1 on 3d20 has a probability of 14.25% IIRC. It's amazing we didn't roll it sooner.

You OK QM?

>>5452060
ded quest

>>5452060

Well, just got through a week of hell. Things should get better this week cause I've finished the bulk of my assignments but still got a bit left.

>>5454668
Good to know you're still alive bro.

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>>5447828

“How very unfortunate.” Whitesteed clicks his tongue. “So you have thoroughly allied yourselves with the Steelport Society. There is no more room for discussion.”

In a matter of milliseconds, his spear locks with that of Skyfrost’s sword, but with the sheer difference in cultivation levels, the latter is unable to avoid being pushed back. Autumn-Moon immediately flies in to support, his pipa belching an aggressive tune. From the ether, wispy blades of silvery light materialise and fly straight towards the Ebonwill elder. Along his right flank, waves of starlight stream through the air like shooting stars, majestic in their cosmic ferocity.

You would love to join in on this joint assault, but unfortunately, a sizable amount of the other Ebonwill players have already surrounded you and your companions. As they move in on Skyfrost and Autumn-Moon’s blindspots, you intercept, keeping them at bay with a combination of displacement and offensive skills. Right now, your main priorities are to break the encirclement and join up with Stormgale, and it's likely your trick from earlier won’t work again.

What a tough spot we’re in… You think to yourself, your dagger-axe sinking into the shoulder of a player.

[Frontier (边界) has been slain by Distant-Cloud!]

“Autumn-Moon. Distant-Cloud.” Skyfrost calls while continuing to struggle against Whitesteed. “Fly out and join with Stormgale.”

The command, coupled with Skyfrost’s oddly serious tone, throws you off your tempo slightly.

Autumn-Moon dashes to the side, narrowly avoiding a blast of intense metal qi. “You’re bloody nuts, what’re you gonna do against an Immortal Ascension player and a dozen of his lackeys?”

No response.

However, you observe Skyfrost’s APM rise gradually. Are we holding him back? Another thought surfaces.

“Come on, Autumn-Moon. He probably has a plan.”

“Tch, well, don’t blame me if he gets killed.”

“You’re not getting away!” Whitesteed declares boldly, heading straight in your direction, only to be stopped by Skyfrost.

This allows you some reprieve to fly away with Autumn-Moon and group up with that of Stormgale’s entire warband of sixteen players. With only a brief explanation of the situation at hand, he rushes to form a battle plan on the spot. Though it’s said that player skill will forever trump gear and levels, this is only in theory. One cannot overlook the human limits of stamina. None of you know how long Skyfrost will be able to hold out, and you sure as hell don’t want to find out. Time is of the essence.

In wedge formation, you and Stormgale’s forces mount a fierce charge straight into the heart of battle. At the front are tanks and bruisers, followed by melee DPS, ranged DPS, then healers and support. Drunk on a cocktail of buffs, the group cuts through the outer ring of random players like a hot knife splitting butter, all while kill notification after kill notification appears. Among them, you can occasionally see Skyfrost’s name pop up.

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>>5455877

The Ebonwill encirclement buckles rather easily to your delight, but the moment you lay your eyes on the scene within, the colour from your face fades a bit, sweat pouring from your palms

[Whitefrost]
Health: 128098 / 264973
Stamina: -Add to party to view-
Qi: -Add to party to view-

[Skyfrost]
Health: 6675/11866
Stamina: 1560/3879
Qi: 597/6114

“Get the scrubs off Skyfrost!” Stormgale commands.

The Steelport force breaks to meet the Ebonwill forces in pairs. You and Autumn-Moon, on the other hand, return to support Skyfrost. Against all odds, he’s managed to keep up with Whitesteed, both hovering around 50% health.

“Heal up!” Autumn-Moon strums a harrowing chord, summoning three vicious spectres, violet in their constitution. They home in on Whitesteed like guided missiles.

Pipa skill: [Spectral Ballad]

Caught off guard, Whitesteed manages to dodge two of them, extinguishing them with a single swing of his spear. The last spectre phases through his form, afflicting him with a mild [Slowness] status effect. You take advantage of this and cast [Wave of Force], further delaying Whitesteed. This barely gives Skyfrost enough time to recover about 15% of his meters with a restorative pill.

“We gotta dip.” Skyfrost says. “Distant-Cloud, get ready [On Immortal Winds], we’ll try and make an opening.”

Whitesteed returns with even greater bloodlust, this time swooping towards you with blazing speed. His spear glows a ghastly green, and at its tip, you can see a spectral image of the spear’s head extending from its physical counterpart. The moment it strikes your dagger-axe, you feel a sense of weight that can only be described as incredibly heavy, yet masseless at the same time. Pulling back, you exchange a few more blows with him, but seeing your health slowly being chipped away, it's clear the one on the losing end is yourself. His brutal assault is taking a toll on you, and the moment you think you can claim the upper hand, you carelessly fall for a feint, receiving the full brunt of one of Whitesteed’s slashes. This sends you to the ground, where you lay unable to move. Whatever he did, it leaves you stunned for a few seconds - seconds that feel like minutes…

In the short period you are immobilised, Whitesteed sets his sights on Autumn-Moon. It’s game over the moment he closes the distance - a ranged DPS’s worst nightmare.

[Autumn-Moon has been slain by Whitesteed!]

“Fuck!” Autumn-Moon shouts into his mic, accompanied by the sound of a loud wooden bang.

Skyfrost continues holding out valiantly. Even in his battered state, he is no easy match for Whitesteed, fighting till the very last drop of his qi is expended and then some. With physical attacks alone, Skyfrost manages to persist for a while longer until his stamina fully runs out. If anything, this is a fight that he definitely should have won. If only he had been the one to ascend first into Immortal Ascension…

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>>5455878

“Whitesteed.” Skyfrost’s tone is calm and analytical. “The way you fight is quite familiar.”

“I could say the same about you, as well, Skyfrost.” Whitesteed returns the comment. “Or should I refer to you by honorific?”

“Save it.”

“Very well, then.”

[Skyfrost has been slain by Whitesteed!]

This is a notification you never thought you’d see in your lifetime.

Finally he walks over to your incapacitated body.

“This is what happens when you make an enemy of the Ebonwill. For Skyfrost, I understand. After all, I have a sneaking suspicion we know each other… Autumn-Moon looks like he was just repaying debts for your assistance back at the Sanzhi Mountains so we won’t judge him too harshly. As for you… What do you say? If you beg for mercy, I’ll give your items back after your death. Heck, I’ll even take you off the KOS list.” Whitesteed taunts insultingly.

“Eat shit!”


What do you do?

>Delete your dagger-axe, Tyrant’s Will. That’s the last thing you want falling into their hands.

>Launch one final desperate attack against Whitesteed. The gates are just behind you. This might give you enough time to flee.

>>5455880
>Launch one final desperate attack against Whitesteed. The gates are just behind you. This might give you enough time to flee.

>>5455880
>Launch one final desperate attack against Whitesteed. The gates are just behind you. This might give you enough time to flee.
BITCH

>>5455880
>Launch one final desperate attack against Whitesteed. The gates are just behind you. This might give you enough time to flee.

>>5455880
>Delete your dagger-axe, Tyrant’s Will. That’s the last thing you want falling into their hands.
I don't have a lot of confidence in our attack.

>>5455880
>Launch one final desperate attack against Whitesteed. The gates are just behind you. This might give you enough time to flee.

>>5455884
>>5455887
>>5455902
>>5455976
>>5456038

>Launch one final desperate attack against Whitesteed. The gates are just behind you. This might give you enough time to flee.

Three people please roll a 1d20. DC: 18

Rolled 14 (1d20)

>>5456191

Rolled 18 (1d20)

>>5456191

>>5456199
The Heavens are with us it seems

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5456191

>>5456196
>>5456199
>>5456242

>18

Will work on this tomorrow.

>>5456203

Indeed they are.

>>5456199
holy BASED anon

Glad to see the thread still alive.
Excellent writing, as always QM. Well rolled >>5456199 , have a (You)

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>>5456314

“Insolence!” Whitesteed cries as his spear descends upon you like a falcon diving towards the grand earth to snatch its prey.

Your eyes carefully follow the trajectory of this supposed coup de grace, the defiance in them not one bit faded. They dart from the spear’s tip to your health bar, above which the durations of status effects afflicting Distant-Cloud are indicated.

[Stunned]: 0.4 seconds remaining.

Of course, none of this registers in your mind as concrete quantities. You don’t even know if there's enough time to react to Whitesteed’s attack, but your instincts - sharpened on the grindstone that is years of experience - scream to you that it is so. Your hands begin to move faster than you’ve ever consciously willed them to, almost like you’ve been possessed by some spirit of survival. Tyrant’s Will arcs from the ground up, narrowly making contact with the incoming spear. The clash causes vicious bursts of air to radiate from the point of impact, blowing back surrounding players by a few steps. Catching Whitesteed off guard for a brief moment, you crouch down and thrust with your dagger-axe, striking him squarely in the abdomen, and with all the stamina you have remaining, throw him off to the side.

Without much thought, you proceed to make a break for it, but not without snatching away Skyfrost and Autumn-Moon’s weapons from their corpses. Luckily, they didn’t get converted into trash items when they died. Only when you fly through the city gates do you notice your rapid heartbeat.

“I got your weapons, boys.”

“Really?” Autumn-Moon asks, his excitement only growing more intense when you send him a quick screenshot of his pipa in your inventory. “Holy shit, thanks a lot, man.”

You quickly meet up with Skyfrost at Autumn-Moon at the city bank to pass them their items, still struck with incredulity that you managed to get out of that situation alive. There are so many things on your mind right now that you don’t even know how to begin organising your thoughts. First, you can’t ignore the fact that you just abandoned the Steelport Society to their deaths back there, but with how events unfolded, they can’t exactly blame you for retreating. Secondly, who is Whitesteed, what is his relationship with Skyfrost? And just who exactly is Skyfrost? Unable to contain yourself, you finally ask those very questions.

“Let’s head over to Spiritwalker’s workshop first.” Skyfrost suggests instead of answering.

“Uh, sure.” You don’t have any objections. “What about Autumn-Moon? Are you coming?”

“Might as well. I am a tad bit curious about that Whitesteed fucker now. It's been a while since I've had a proper death.”

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>>5458609

===

“Welcome back.” Spiritwalker greets. “I saw the announcement. Congrats, kiddo.”

“It wouldn’t have been possible without those two.”

Autumn-Moon takes this time to introduce himself.

“Anyway, I didn’t expect you two to return so soon. Don’t tell me you’ve already gotten the materials I asked for.”

“Nothing of the sort.” Skyfrost interjects, explaining everything that went down this morning.

Spiritwalker remains silent for a while before speaking. “Well, first I think you should tell these two young lads who you are.”

“Is that so?” Skyfrost sighs. “Well, it was gonna happen sooner or later. Join our Harmony channel, I’m definitely not gonna say it on in-game voice chat.”

As the sound blip indicating someone joining a voice channel plays, you keep fidgeting with your hands - restless from the curiosity.

“So, uh… Skyfrost isn’t actually my original account. It's an alt I made a long time ago. My original account is…”

You swallow down a mouthful of spit in anticipation.

“Moonpiercer.”

Well. You certainly weren’t expecting that. By Moonpiercer, did he mean that Moonpiercer? The Sword Saint himself? The recently departed ace of Team Abyssal?


How do you respond?

>Remain silent. The shock is too much to process at the moment.

>”If that’s true. Why did you leave Team Abyssal? I just can’t fathom why a top player would simply depart from the best team around.”

>”Hold on. Then why would you associate with ordinary players like us?”

>Write in.

>>5458612
>>”If that’s true. Why did you leave Team Abyssal? I just can’t fathom why a top player would simply depart from the best team around.”

>>5458612
>Not actually that surprised, in retrospect.

OOC I CALLED IT

>If that's true, why leave team Abyssal.

>>5458612
>>”Had my suspicion on that. Why did you leave Team Abyssal? I just can’t fathom why a top player would simply depart from the best team around.”
>”Also, I'm honored you associate with scrub player like me”

>>5458640
+1

>>5458632
you totally did I remember that, based anon

>>5458646
I don't remember posting my suspicions, or maybe I did.

Either way, there are either two anons who got it right or I'm getting memory loss. The important part is that rightness was had.

I think we where all suspicious of that.

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>>5458632
>>5458646
>>5458659
>>5458662

I remember at least two anons guessing correctly back in the first thread.

>>5458667

Ooops, turned out to be the same anon.

>”If that’s true. Why did you leave Team Abyssal? I just can’t fathom why a top player would simply depart from the best team around.”

>>5458612
>”If that’s true. Why did you leave Team Abyssal? I just can’t fathom why a top player would simply depart from the best team around.”
>>5458662
I absolutely was.

>>5458659
Oh, sorry, must've been thinking of whoever >>5458667 was. But clearly we all kinda knew. it'd be really funny if distant-cloud also kinda knew and was just being polite

>>5458792

>But clearly we all kinda knew.

Yeah, I figured pretty early on.

>>5458792
I didn't know. I trusted Skyfrost, that deceitful swine. Having been lied to I will never again extend the courtesy of taking people at face value. Now everyone is Moonpooper and I will not be fooled again.

>>5458612
>”Hold on. Then why would you associate with ordinary players like us?”rxrrhx

>>5458612
>”If that’s true. Why did you leave Team Abyssal? I just can’t fathom why a top player would simply depart from the best team around.”

>>5458612
>In retrospect, not that surprising. The hints were there.

>If that's true, why leave team Abyssal.

>>5458620
>>5458632
>>5458640
>>5458689
>>5458714
>>5458994
>>5459385
>>5460084

>”If that’s true. Why did you leave Team Abyssal? I just can’t fathom why a top player would simply depart from the best team around.”

Writing.

>>5460551

“You’re joking right?” Autumn-Moon asks, suspicion oozing from his tone.

“Nope.”

“...”

What follows is an awkward silence, broken only by boisterous laughter from Spiritwalker. “They don’t believe ya! Well, can’t really blame them.”

In your shock, you recall the emptiness you felt upon hearing of Moonpiercer- No, Li Jiangle’s retirement. “If that’s true. Why did you leave Team Abyssal? I just can’t fathom why a top player would depart from the best team around.” You question.

“Conflicts with management, I suppose?” Skyfrost responds nonchalantly, as if his leave didn’t sadden him one bit. “The peak I desire to see… Would not be possible under them.”

“You really are obsessed with that, aren’t you?” Spiritwalker sighs. “For the record, I still think what you did was stupid! Imagine throwing away your career for some abstract ideal!”

“That’s just who I am.”

For some reason, you imagine Skyfrost shrugging behind his monitor.

“Wait. You guys are being serious?” Autumn-Moon follows up.

“What is this peak you’re referring to, Skyfrost?” You ignore Autumn-Moon in the background.

“I’m not quite sure myself. It’s one of those things that you’ll only know when you see it. But what I do know is that state - that boundary - is unreachable by the current Team Abyss. They are too rigid in their thinking, too scared to venture forth from the safe confines of the meta. I want to break from it, I want to bring to reality something that no JSQ player has ever seen! And to do that, I must find others who embody the spirit I seek.” Skyfrost expresses passionately. “So, Distant-Cloud, Autumn-Moon, will you two join me on this journey of mine?”

You’re somewhat moved by his words. “By that you mean you want to form a new team?”

“That is correct.”

“But I’m nowhere near good enough for professional play. Heck I’ve only just reached Immortal Ascension.”

“I see no issue with that.”


Do you accept Skyfrost’s offer?
>Yes

>No.

>>5460743

A shorter one this time, more to come in the next update which I'll try and get out by tomorrow

>>5460743
>>Yes

>>5460743
>Yes.

This is going to be fun!

>>5460743
>No
Still don't trust Skyfrost and not that big on teaming up with a streamer.

>>5460743
>Yes
>On condition that there's no more of this sudden revelation bullshit.

Gotta set boundries.

>>5460743
>Yes

>>5460801
+1
If we're gonna be true-blue bros he can't keep secrets. But he's been nothing but helpful and motivational to us, and this is frankly a huge W.

>>5460743
>Yes

>>5460747
>>5460764
>>5460787
>>5460801
>>5460834
>>5461077
>>5461848

>Yes
>On condition that there's no more of this sudden revelation bullshit.

Writing.

>>5461880

It could be said that going pro is the dream of every serious JSQ player. The fame and glory itself would make most people drool. That being said, anyone in it solely for the money will find themselves sorely disappointed with the amount of effort needed to really make it as a pro gamer, especially in a game as popular as JSQ. However, for those that long for the top, to rise above for the sake of rising itself, there is no other alternative.

While you take some time to ponder your decision, Autumn-Moon speaks up. “I’m not very interested. Not that I have a problem with your vision or anything. It’s just that I’m quite content with where I am right now, and I don’t really want to commit to a pro team’s training schedule. Sorry, mate.”

“That’s fine. Though I hope you’ll still be willing to play with us.”

“Certainly.”

The call goes quiet, like everyone present is waiting for your answer. If it were three years ago, you’d accept it in a heartbeat, but those three years have not been kind to you. You’ve experienced some of the worst in shitty people, some of whom you thought you could trust. For all you know, this could all just be some elaborate setup to exploit you. But that part of you that longs for something greater than this… It can’t help but be fired up.

“I accept.” You say, your voice resonating resolve. “But on the condition that there’s no more of this sudden revelation bullshit. If we’re gonna be teammates, we ought to be open with each other.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way!” Skyfrost laughs, seeming genuinely ecstatic. “In that case, I, Li Jiangle, look forward to working with you.”

“Likewise.” Some part of you feels like you made the right decision. “Right, my name is Wei Rudan.”

“Rudan - like the calm… That’s a good name.” Spiritwalker comments. The characters in Rudan are “ru (如)” meaning “to be like,” and “dan (憺)” meaning “peaceful, steady, at ease, etc.”

A bit of light hearted chatter lifts the mood.

“Right, there remains the issue of Whitesteed.” Skyfrost mentions. “It’s not completely certain, but I’m 95% sure that he’s Hu Guan (胡冠).”

Both you and Autumn-Moon have no idea who that is.

“That’s not surprising. He applied to join Team Abyssal when it first formed. Back then, the team was almost formed, we were just missing one DPS. He was the best out of all the applicants we screened, only that we all found, a brilliant player by all accounts, with a unique fighting style to boot. Only, there were some serious problems with his attitude that we couldn’t overlook, so we took in Udon (乌冬) instead.” Skyfrost pauses. “There’s just one thing that doesn’t fit. Hu Guan was a swordsman while Whitesteed is a spearman. But, that feeling I got when I fought him was exactly the same as when I fought Hu Guan a few years ago.”

Spiritwalker speaks up. “That is… strange, indeed.”

You have a feeling that there’ll be more to see of Whitesteed.

>>5462191

===

For the next few days, you and Skyfrost keep a lower profile, moving more discreetly to avoid the Ebonwill. Right now, there are two things you have to take care of. First, the resources Spiritwalker asked for. Second, obtaining some proper Immortal Ascension level skills. Of the latter, that will include collecting [Pageless Manuals] to upgrade your existing skills and finding Immortal Ascension skill manuals. Then, there is the matter of getting Skyfrost himself to Immortal Ascension and finding the remaining three players for the team. It’ll take a while before you get everything sorted.

Right now, you’ve already collected a few [Pageless Manuals].


How do you spend them?
>On your offensive abilities.

>On your offensive buffs.

>On your defensive abilities.

>On your defensive buffs.

>On your movement abilities.

>Write in.

>>5462192
This prompt is about which set of skills will we prioritize leveling up to Immortal Ascension level?

Also, how can we be pro without sponsors or sizeable online audience? How do we get paid for playing?

>>5462213

>This prompt is about which set of skills will we prioritize leveling up to Immortal Ascension level?

Yes, you can think of it like that. It's just choosing which skills to prioritise leveling up right now.

>Also, how can we be pro without sponsors or sizeable online audience? How do we get paid for playing?

There won't be money for a while. This part will be relevant after we find the three remaining players.

>>5462192
>On your movement abilities.

>>5462192
>On your offensive abilities.
We're a DPS Dagger-Axe player after all.

>>5462192
>On your movement abilities.
Always important to GTFO.

>>5462192
>On your offensive abilities.
Time to start unlocking our true potential.

>>5462192
>>On your offensive buffs.
Our DPS spans from self-buffing if my memory servers right.
As a team member, we'll be something like a soapy slippery damage dealer/offense support so I'll prioritize offensive buff first.

>>5462192
>On your offensive abilities.

>>5462192
>Offensive Buffs

This seems to be our bread and butter.
A master of one will smash a jack of all trades.