As the three of you arrive at the fireworks store, the night is dying down and the sun threatens to begin to break the darkness as dawn soon approaches. Xin Lan quickly picks the store's locks as you and Ming keep an eye out. "I still don't feel too comfortable with this." Ming whispers as you close the door behind you all and lock it again.

"A little late for that." Xin Lan replies as they grab a lantern and light it up. The walls of the store are lined with every kind of celebratory firework you can think of. Noise makers, sparklers, even ones that simply expell colored smoke surround you. "We should head to the back." They say. "Umm...probably should be careful with flames." They admit looking at the lantern. Turning to you, they ask. "You going to be taking anything big guy?"

You nod. "Having options will help. Once you hear the signal, start setting up decoys. We don't have much of the night left and if this is going to work we'll need as much darkness as we can get."

"What's the signal?" They ask.

"This." You reply grabbing one of the traditional fireworks, the kind that flew up into the sky and exploded. "He Ling won't be able to ignore this."

"Right. Alright Miss Ming. Best we get you to your station." Xin Lan says before turning back to remind you. "Remember 25 mintues then you return here for the finale." You nod.

>What else do you want to take? Pick 2.
>More of the traditional stuff. You could use them to grab He Ling's attention should he catch sight of Xin Lan
>Some of the sparklers. If it's still dark enough, sudden brightness might blind He Ling momentarily.
>The smoke makers. The smell is a bit foul but enough of them might give you a decent smoke screen to slip away.
>Write in

>>4420160
>>More of the traditional stuff. You could use them to grab He Ling's attention should he catch sight of Xin Lan
>Some of the sparklers. If it's still dark enough, sudden brightness might blind He Ling momentarily.

We're taking him down for good.

>>4420160
>More of the traditional stuff. You could use them to grab He Ling's attention should he catch sight of Xin Lan
>Stink bombs?

>>4420293
Actually nvm stink bombs just go with the smoke makers

>>4420160
Firecrackers?

>>4420173
>>4420293
>>4420299
>>4420346
Looks like we're going for the traditional stuff. And with some lightmaking ones. Writing.

You grab another one of the traditional firecrackers. It's size makes it rather awkward to stuff in your pack so you can only manage to put in two more into your pack ontop of your signal one. With the limited room you can only put in a few more of the other types. You can easily place 3 sparklers and 2 firecrackers for throwing. "I'm heading out." You say quietly as you wrap your face up again in the thin clothes you stole off a line. "One you hear my signal, get ready to run."

"I hear ya. I hear ya." Xin Lan says pulling their hood and face mask on. You sling your bag back on and slip out the back. Jumping back on the rooves of the city you run off towards the center to give yourself the most amount of room to manuver and hide. You look around the city but you can't seem to make out anything out of the ordinary. He Ling doesn't seem to be flying or is in visible sight but you were going to change that. Your jumps are silent and the roof tiles you land on barely move as you get to your destination.

You quickly set up a firework and strike the flint and steel. The sparks catch on the wick and it burns, slowly at first but with a few breaths it catches on quicker and soon the small flame races up towards the combustables. You step back and slip Ming's mask on. The smell of herbs and her perfume hit your nose and block out all other smells. You can still see through the glass eye peices but your vision is slightly limited. You might have to remove it if you don't plan on using Ming's liquid bombs.

The firework finally catches fire and sings as it soars high into the sky and explodes showering the night in a colorful array of lights. As you watch it you wait and plan your next move.

>What do you plan to do?
>Run off immediately. Go hide and wait for a sign that He Ling has caught on to something. Hopefully Xin Lan's decoys.
>Wait. Let the bat come to you. Buy some time for Xin Lan to get around the city and set up some decoys.
>Engage He Ling. Fight him 1 on 1 and only rely on the decoys if things get too tough. This time, you're not going to play nice.
>Write in.

Forgot inventory.

You got:
2 traditional fireworks
3 of those sparkling sticks
2 firecrackers that explode with flashes
A dull sword of heroes
one smoke bomb
and a thin shirt or peice of clothing that hides your face.

>>4420477
>>Wait. Let the bat come to you. Buy some time for Xin Lan to get around the city and set up some decoys.

>>4420477
>Run off immediately. Go hide and wait for a sign that He Ling has caught on to something. Hopefully Xin Lan's decoys
Let’s do this Viet Cong style. We wait for a sign, then sneak up on He Ling and hit him while he’s confused. We then either trap him right there or run away while he’s still dazed and repeat until he’s ready to be trapped.

>>4420477
>Run off immediately. Go hide and wait for a sign that He Ling has caught on to something. Hopefully Xin Lan's decoys.

>>4420660
dis

>>4420538
>>4420660
>>4420765
Seem like this is popular vote. Sorry for the slow start. I'm getting my wisdom teeth yanked out tomorrow so I won't be able to run. Votes are up until the day after. Right now I've gotten tangled up with something. Liking the hit and run idea. Please bear with me. Thanks.

>>4420816

oof. Feel better man.

>>4420816
Good luck

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Das ninja rabbit.

>>4420660
>>4420538
>>4420765
Face feels like shit. So I'm gonna be a bit slower today. Looks like we're going to be sneaky. Writing.
>>4422956
Nice. Did you draw that?

>>4423440

Wait until the painkillers wear off...

F

>>4423440
Yeah. Sorry it’s not in the KFP rabbit style but it’s hard as fuck to make those things intimidating.

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>>4423447

>>4423451
Nah man. I dig it. Looks awsome. KFP also makes all the non main characters look the same so I definitely appreciate you putting your own spin on it.

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>>4423451

WAT NO THIS IS A FANTASTIC FANART

>>4423453

I don't know what they did to you. I'm presuming mouth shots since you're not typing 'loop zoop' into the keyboard rn, but my experience with wisdom tooth removal is that your mouth's gonna feel like the Kylie Jenner lip challenge for a while.

Then at some point a few hours later, your mouth's going to suddenly feel like it's rapidly deflating. That's when the pain will hit like a freaking wrecking ball.

Have some motrin on hand when that happens. Feel better OP!

As the firework lights the night sky, you duck back into the alleyway to hide in it's shadows. You wait and stay still while you keep an ear out for anything that could indicate He Ling was on his way. After a few minutes you hear it, a loud screech that manges to rattle the windows above you. You hear the sounds of wings flapping followed by something heavy landing on the roof you were on. Footsteps pace around above you and you hear another screech. You push yourself against the wall as much as you can to blend in. Hopefully the building helps block the sound waves and keeps you hidden. As the sound starts to die down you put your plan into action.

You leap as hard as you can, soaring above the roof and seeing He Ling below you. He barely has a chance to react as you come crashing down and drive both your kneeds into the back of his head! The impact and your weight slam the bat into the roof and several tiles shatter under the two of you. You roll off of He Ling and as he gets to his feet you're already throwing other roof tiles at him. The tiles strike He Ling in the face and he roars in anger. You roll into a handstand and flip off the roof back into the alley. As you land, you quickly dash behind a merchant's stall. The smell of old seawater, salt and fish hit your nose but your training helps keep you from gagging. In the distance you can hear He Ling jump down as well. He growls and smashes something near him, presumably another stall and his footsteps draw close.

>What do you do?
>Stay hidden. If he screeches, the stall should proved you with cover. Eventually he'll probably think you ran off in a different direction.
>Wait for him to get closer and jump out for another surprise attack.
>Use one of your items. (Which one.)
>Write in

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>>4423460
Mfw the teeth were so impacted my dentist had to cut into my gums just to be able to break them up for extraction. Well if I stop posting, you know where I went.

>>4423474
>Wait for him to get closer and jump out for another surprise attack.
>Use THE PUTRID BREW as your surprise attack.

>>4423488

+1

>>4423478

also plz do tell wat kind of steroids the bat is on. I wanna know how I can get as buff. LOL.

>>4423493
Stolen chi is one hell of a drug. The strongest villain in the movie trilogy stole chi.

>>4423488
Supporting.
That said, what should we do AFTER we hit him with the brew? Just keep wailing on him until he’s knocked out? Run away right after and keep up the guerrilla warfare approach until Ming is ready with the big bomb? Something else entirely? We don’t want to corner ourselves by not thinking ahead.

>>4423499
Guerilla seems like the best bet. Wearing him down while wasting time for the big bomb, you know?

>>4423496

never saw the last movie. I think if I got caught watching KFP at my age, I'd never live it down.

Just last week, I was drawfagging for my quest and I had one of my brothers blurt out, "ARE YOU MAKING ANIME FANART?! Mind you, I'm not a NEET nor am I that good at drawing, but the look on my parent's face was... something.

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>>4423508
Someday, my brother, you will take the chadpill as I have. You will watch what you wish to watch, without care for what others think. You will enjoy what you enjoy, without worry for how it looks. You will be the most genuine you that can exist, unaffected by the minuscule gaze of the ants around you.
The ones who judge are to be pitied.

>>4423508
Last movie from what I've seen in the wiki, Po had to fight some guy who stole martial arts masters' chi and turned them into jade zombies. He Ling is similar but not only does he mess with chi but he actually steals that specific attribute. Old dude wasn't so old before you got to him and He Ling isn't as young a man as he looks.[/spoilers]

Also don't let your family get to you anon. Drawing is pretty dope. I can't do it for shit but if you put enough effort and get decent, people are willing to pay you. Plus you can always use it to show off. Like >>4423518 said just enjoy it.

>>4423488
>>4423489
>>4423499
Looks like we're going for THE BREW and using our stealth for hit and run tactics. Looks like Xin Lan has taught us something. Hopefully he learned something from us or he'll get more headpats. Writing.

Well that's what happens when I try to be fancy with spoiler tags. I'll stick to italics and bold from now on.

The sounds of He Ling approaching grow louder.

step. step. step.

You quickly unsling you pack and rummage through it to get to one of the concoctions Ming made you. You know that his hearing is second to none and that he'll catch even the slight sounds you make while searching for your items but you're prepared to use that to your advantage. You can picture He Ling's ears twitching as they catch the noise you make and turn in your direction. The footsteps draw even nearer and you can see the faint shadow of the bat loom over the stand. Even at this distance, He Ling's reflexes are fast enough for him to be able to dodge or deflect your concoction so you decide to close the gap.

Your muscles tense up and to punch straight through the stand! You tear right through the wood with your sheer strength and splinters fly everywhere. The mask protects your face and eyes from the wooden shrapnel and you smash the space between your thumb and pointer finger right into He Ling's throat before closing your grip on it! The attack forces the bat to cough as his air flow is interrupted. Just in time for him to get a face full of THE PUTRID BREW!

You can feel the warm splash of it's contents hit your arm and chest. Even with Ming's mask you can smell the stench but the herbs inside help dilute it and make it tolerable. You can only imagine what He Ling smells. He let's out a screech and smashes you aside with a wild swip of his arm. You crash into another stand but smile as you know that his screech cost him another inhelation. He Ling gags and holds his throat and flaps his other arm trying to get away from the smell. He retches and tries to regain his composure but only manages to upset his senses more and ends up expelling the contents of his stomach all over the floor.

You take advantage of the situation and leap into a flying kick and sending him into the smell fish stall putting the poor stand out of it's misery. Like a helpless bird, He Ling flaps his wings sending wood and scales everywhere as you make your escape. You leap back onto the rooftops and run for a few seconds before jumping back down into the alleys.

>What's your next move?
>Find one of the Xin Lan's decoys and wait near it. If He Ling finds it, you'll be in a perfect position to strike agian.
>Wait for a moment and let He Ling loose track of you. Search for items that might help you next time the two of you cross paths. (What do you search for?)
>Try and find He Ling in the skies. He might try and fly to have the advantage. Best to keep him for holding on to that.
>Write in.

Also apologies. I never posted how many of the brews you had. Your current inventory
2 traditional fireworks
3 of those sparkling sticks
2 firecrackers that explode with flashes
A dull sword of heroes
one smoke bomb
and a thin shirt or peice of clothing that hides your face.
2 Putrid Brews

>>4423555
>Find one of the Xin Lan's decoys and wait near it. If He Ling finds it, you'll be in a perfect position to strike again.

>>4423555
>Wait for a moment and let He Ling loose track of you. Search for items that might help you next time the two of you cross paths. (What do you search for?)
Needles, or anything thin and pointy that could be used for acupuncture. My thinking is that if we pierce his chi points like the jade needles did with us, we can try to permanently paralyse his arms and therefore remove his ability to fly. It’ll be much easier then, and the paralysis will be more powerful than what our strikes can do (remember, in the movie Po was immune to Tai Lung’s chi attacks but not to Mantis’ acupuncture).

>>4423584
I like your thinking. Switching to this.

>>4423555

>Find one of the Xin Lan's decoys and wait near it. If He Ling finds it, you'll be in a perfect position to strike agian.

getting some food. Will count votes when I get back.

>>4423584

+1

>>4423518
>>4423520

Based and chadpilled!

Thanks for the encouragement, lads!

Also OP, if you want to get fancy with the spoiler tags, you highlight the text that you want to spoil and then press ctrl+S.

>>4423584
>>4423602
>>4423633
Sorry about that. Food took longer to make. Writing!
>>4423649
Oh shit I can do that? Thanks for the heads up and no problem! Keep it up man. People love drawing.

>>4423694
Whatcha eating, OP?

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>>4423696
I'm ashamed to admit it but most of the time I spent was trying to figure out what to make considering I can't chew properly at the moment. Considered mashed potatoes which I might make tonight after this session but I made tomato soup with the tiny star shaped pasta. Easy to swallow and doesn't require much chewing. I'm afraid I'm not the best of cooks and I'm gonna have to go out tomorrow to buy some easier to eat food.

>>4423713
If I were you i'd go full soup no chewing at all for a few days. For real.

>>4423713
>tiny star shaped pasta
They’re adorable.
When I got my teeth pulled I started on soup and porridge and stuff, then moved onto regular solid food, but rip it into tiny pieces and then use my tongue and the roof of my mouth to “chew” it up. Would that do you any good?

>>4423715
Yeah. The pasta was small but after the first "bite" I ended up just swallowing it whole because chewing was too much. Getting ice cream when I head out but I'm definitely going to get ingredients for soups. I hear yogurt is also good to help recovery so I'm probably gonna swing for that too. Considering just getting canned soups and just drinking the broth.
>>4423725
I never actually thought of that. Might try it next time. I could dip bread into the soup to soften it up and do that. Thanks for the advice anons.

You duck behind another building and lay low watching the skies. As much as you want to continue fighting He Ling, you fight back your instincts and reassert yourself to assess the situation. He Ling must be furious right now. If he's a half comptent fighter as he's shown, he'll try to use his greatest advantage against you. Flight. While your jumping ability is phenomenal, it would be more advantageous if you could ground him. You follow the train of thought of somehow binding him to your incarceration and then to the acupuncture needles that were inserted into your back. You weren't a trained medicine man but you knew enough first aid, joint locks, holds, and chi strikes that you felt reasonably confortable trying to use acupuncture to keep He Ling grounded.

If you could hit him in the shoulders or maybe the elbows, you could prevent them from moving and thus deny him his ability to fly. You search around for something that could function as a needle. You can't find anything that resembles such a thing until you duck behind a cart to avoid what you think is He Ling. As you stay kneeled you find yourself face to face with the nails holding the boards together. With your strength you could easily pull the thing appart and take them but the noise could attract your opponent.

>Do you want to take the nails?
>Yes
>No
>Write in some kind of stragety on how you can get what you want silently.

>>4423756
>Yes
>Use your claws to pry the nails out carefully and quietly.
Bitch can cut into stone with his claws, and the precision required will be child's play for Tai Lung. Just don't break the wood apart like a weirdo.

>>4423756
>>Yes

>>4423731
also feel better

>>4423756
>No
I vote to watch and wait, at least for now. Best case scenario, He Ling moves away for whatever reason. Worst case, he finds us regardless of whether we pull the nails and we use more equipment to bail a second time.

>>4423766
support

>>4423766
>>4423772
>>4423801
Using our claws to try and pull the nails out. Writing.

>>4423772
Thanks anon. Hopefully things go well in healing.

You flick your claws out and dig them into the wood. Compared to stone, the wood is soft and malleable and your claws slices in easily. You hook three claws around the head of the nail and slowly drag it out. You take great pains to make sure the wood doesn't splinter or crack lest you give your position away. The nail slides out with minimum effort and you move on to the next. After four, you have to stop and place the board they were holding down on the ground and you move on. As you continue your work, you hear a screech off in the distance followed by a loud smashing down. Evidentally, Xin Lan's decoys have started doing their job. You push yourself to work faster and pull out more nails. After a few mintues and several boards, the cart is on it's last leg and you have a handful of nails. You quickly pocket them and keep an ear out. Off in the distance, you hear another smash and you make your way towards it.

You dart through alleys and keep to the shadows, as you edge closer to the sounds of smashing. You see in on a nearby rooftop the silloutte of He Ling as he attacks the decoy and continuously smashes it into the building with his legs. It's clear that he's no longer the calm and collected as he once was. He Ling sends the decoy, a set of torn clothes around a now torn sack of rice, down into the alley where you are. The bag sprays out it's contents right next to your hiding place and you see the bat flap it's wings getting ready to fly.

>What do you do?
>Let him take flight and follow him from bellow. Once he attempts to land you ambush him.
>Stop him from flying. If he get's into the air, the advantage is his. Keep him on the ground.
>Throw the nails. Use them as needles to keep He Ling's wings from working.
>Use something from your inventory.
>Write in.

(It's a short day today but I'm gonna stop here and lay down for a bit. Tomorrow we'll continue and hopefully we can stop He Ling before the Five arrive. Thanks for the well wishes and votes.)

>>4423910
>>Stop him from flying. If he get's into the air, the advantage is his. Keep him on the ground.
>>Throw the nails. Use them as needles to keep He Ling's wings from working.

Let's attempt both

>>4423910
>Recall your fight against the dragon warrior - he used the city to his advantage, intentionally or not. Perhaps you could set the area up to do the same.
Hear me out, this is a weird one.
We can take a stall's canopy or some fishing net or whatever, load it up on something bendy/springy (a tree perhaps) aimed at a spot where we know He Ling will come to, and release it at the right moment.
When it wraps around him, he'll temporarily lose aerial mobility and fall to the ground. That's where we'll have positioned a cart, which is strapped with our two Fireworks that we quickly ignite. We get on top of the cart and start wailing on him to keep him down while it rockets towards its destination - sacks of flour. Flour, when dispersed into the air, can ignite into an explosion, which the fireworks can manage easily. That'll definitely do some damage.
And when he bursts out of the explosion, more furious than ever? That's when we nail him in the wings.

TL;DR Set up a net trap, a cart loaded with fireworks to propel it, and find some flour sacks (local bakery maybe? food stalls?) to stack up where the cart will hit.

>>4423965

yeet this is awesome. switching to this.

>>4423910


>>4423965
This is halarious and somthing that fucking panda would do. We should lean our leason and follow suit.

Supporting

>>4423965
+1, learn from our old foes

>>4423965
Support

>>4423965
Cool, supporting.

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>>4423965
>>4423971
>>4423972
>>4424071
>>4424385
>>4424508
This is a ridiculous plan. I love it. Writing.

You watch as He Ling flies off and pull a nail out of your pocket. With your skill, you might just be able to hit him with the nail though you're unsure if they'd hit the exact location you want. Xin Lan might be able to do it but they were busy trying not to get involved. You needed a way to ground him momentarily. Something heavy to pull him down or something to entangle his wings so he couldn't just fly off. You stand up and look around. You need a net, a blanket. Something with a large surface area that can envelope He Ling. Something like the canopy of the cart you were hiding behind.

You slam your forearm against one of the four wooden columns holding it in place, shattering it. You follow up with a kick, then grabbing the broken pieces you pull it off while breaking the last two wooden beams off as well. You fold the cloth hasitly and dash off after the bat before stopping and looking behind you at the cart. You vaugely remember something involving a similar cart and...fireworks. "That'll do." You mutter to yourself as you pull out your two fireworks and quickly tie them to the sides of the cart. Then for good measure you also add the firecrackers to the mix just to annoy him. You grab the cart's handles and pull it behind you on squeeky wheels. The noise would attract He Ling but you were planning on it once again.

Running through the streets, you keep an eye out for He Ling and begin to set up your cunning plan. You line up the cart to face a bakery while trying not to think of the look Ming will give you if she finds out about this. Once you have that ready, you leap onto the rooftops once more. Judging by the time it took to set all this up[, you guess this is your last attempt to deal some damage before you need to return back to the fireworks shop. You look up into the sky and see the bat flying around. No doubt looking for the source of the noise from your cart, you decide to give the man what he wants. Raising two fingers to your mouth, you let out a shrill whistle. Why bother guessing where he would be when you can make him come to the exact location you want.

The figure in the air turns and lets out a shriek as it hurtles towards you! "That's right." You mutter taking a few steps towards the edge. "I remember falling for that one." You say as you backflip off the roof...right onto a tree. You grab onto the four wooden beams attached to the canopy and pull it down with your weight and momentum. "Too bad I'm not going to be as nice about it as The Dragon Warrior." You add as you let go.

The canopy flies through the air as the wooden beams keep it wide open just long enough for He Ling to crash into it. You run right towards the tangled mess of bat and cloth and as the two fall from the sky you give them a bit more motivation to go in the right direction. You leap and as you soar through the air you spin to slam your shin into He Ling's side and slam him right into the cart you set up.

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He Ling crashes and the cart groans at the impact but holds. The canopy tears as he manages to get a grip on it and simply tear it in two only to have the first thing he sees is your foot colliding with his face. "Sorry." You say. "But we're going my way this time." You lower a torch on the various wicks you tangled together. With a hiss they burn out and your cart races off towards the bakery! The firecrackers pop and explode singing your slightly but nothing you couldn't deal with. He Ling's pupils contract as he screams but his shouts are cut short as your drive your fist into his face. He responds by throwing his elbow into your chin but go with the punch and fall to your side right next to him before you drive your knee into his gut.

The two of you continue pummle each other as the cart's wheel gives away and falls off. You use the the sudden lurch when the broken side hits the ground to push away and fall off the speeding vehicle. You slam on to the ground and bounce a few times before crashing into some pottery from a nearby shop. Groaning you get to your feet just in time to see the cart crash right into the bakery! Flour is thrown everywhere and a fine mist of it hangs in the air right as the last of the combustables in the fireworks ignite. The explosion goes off and windows all around you shatter from the impact. You steady yourself and draw out the nails from your pocket as you slip them in between your fingers. "3...2...1..." You slowly count down. Just as predicted, He Ling brusts out the flaming wreck, badly burned and cut, screaming and flying right at you. "Yeah. I fell for that one as well." You say before you scream and run right at He Ling. As the two of you come close you throw yourself forward, plant your hands on the ground, and wrap your legs around He Ling's waist. You tighten your grip and use the push from He Ling's flight to fall backwards and slam him, headfirst, into the ground!

You go with the fall and sit on the bat's chest as you quickly thrust the nails into various joints and pressure points on his arms and shoulders. You can see He Ling's wings and arms tense up and stiffen as the attack paralyzes them. He Ling lets out an incompreshenable screech and head butts yous. You flip off of him and get to your feet in a fighting stance as the flames of the bakery slowly lick at the nearby buildings.

>What do you do?
>Run back towards the shop. You want to give it everything you got to try and take He Ling down.
>Stay and fight. You want to try and finish this here and now.
>Use something from your inventory. You don't have much left.
>Write in.

Inventory:
3 of those sparkling sticks
A dull sword of heroes
one smoke bomb
and a thin shirt or peice of clothing that hides your face.
2 Putrid Brews
Xin Lan's balanced combat throwing knives

>>4424886
>>Stay and fight. You want to try and finish this here and now.

>>4424886
>Fight, but lure him closer to the shop. It doesn’t need to be you who uses ming’s work against the bat.

>>4424886
Ooh, big update. I like.
>Stay and fight. You want to try and finish this here and now.
I would have liked to end this using Ming’s bomb, but we actually seem to be in a good position for a non-lethal takedown right now.
Besides, we need to finish this as fast as possible so we can get started on putting out the fire before the city burns down.

>>4424917
>>4424942
Looks like we're gonna try and finish this here. You guys wanna give a speech? Gonna go make food. Will write when I get back.

>>4424974
"It feels good to push the limits of your power, doesn't it? To soar to new heights and know that you're above everyone else? To take your anger out on those weaker than you, knowing they could never stand a chance? I know the feeling all too well! Tell me, He Ling, why do you fight? Why do you consume? Is it a drug that you crave, or is there a hole you're trying to fill?

>>4424990

+1 badass speech

What is the price of power? Do you truly believe you can make others pay for you and still expect You won’t ever have to pay your dues?

>>4424990
Support. I’m usually good at writing speeches but I can’t think of anything this time.

loving the speeches. Getting on writing. Time for a showdown it seems!

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The two of you circle each other, unflinching, never breaking sight. He Ling growls and bites down on the area where you put a nail through his shoulder while still looking directly in your eyes. With a grunt and tears it out and repeats the process with his other shoulder. Blood oozes from his wounds and mouth as He Ling spits out two nails. Still moving stiffly, he grabs the nails in his elbows and tears them out with the opposite hand. The flames crackle behind you and their light is matched by the dawn slowly breaking. "It feels good doesn't it?" You shout above the flames. "To push the limits of your power. To soar to new heights and know that you're above everyone else? To take your anger out on those weaker than you, knowing they could never stand a chance? I know the feeling all too well! Tell me, He Ling, why do you fight? Why do you consume? Is it a drug that you crave, or is there a hole you're trying to fill? But did you ever stop and think? What is the price of your power? Do you truly believe you can make others pay for you? That you won’t ever have to pay your dues?"

He Ling growls and spits again. "What would you understand of power?" He replies. "To come back from the height of it all. To know that everyone beneath has forgotten your glory and live thinking they have no superior. All this was my people's! You all live to serve us. You will all be reminded of your place. This is all my birth right! Know this warrior, there is no one better than me. None that can soar as high as I can. No one. And I will make sure the world knows of it when I'm done with you." He shouts before running at you once more.

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"Yeah." You mutter. "I made that mistake too." and you roar as you break into a run as well and engage He Ling. You begin with a right hook and your fist collides with He Ling's face. Your opponent counters by falling to the ground and sweeping your legs from under you but you twist in mid air to land in a handstand and backflipping back to your feet. You grab a nearby peice of wood and hurl it at He Ling so he can deflect it while you go into a running jump kick. He Ling grabs your leg with his bloodied arms and smashes his elbow into the side of your knee. Even with his debilitated arms, pain lances up your leg as you're thrown through a window. You land inside what looks to be a kitchen but you don't have time to think as He Ling leaps through another window.

Instinctively you grab the nearest pan and slam it into He Ling's leg as he throws a kick at you. You follow up by stepping into his space and backhanding him with the pan, sending the bat crashing into a shelf of jars full of spices and herbs. He Ling jumps onto a table and uses his height to rain kicks down on you. You block a few and take one to the neck, knocking you to the ground. You let out an angry growl and you place both your feet under the table before kick up. The table and He Ling fly in two directions crashing again into a wall. The table shatters into peices and He Ling plants his feet on the wall to bounce back after his impact. He crashes into your and the two of you roll on the ground punching each other, smashing elbows into what ever open spot you can find. Your breathing grows ragged as your vision grows red and you roar. You punch through He Ling's defenses and grab him by the throat before you slam him against a door and hurl him through it, sending him crashing back out into the alleyway where you started the fight. The bat rolls to his feet and whips up winds with his wings to send the shattered remains of glass, wood, and broken pottery at you. You roll behind a wall just in time to only get grazed by the shrapnel. You take the this time, this split second of breathing room, to decide what to do next.

>What do you do?
>Engage He Ling all out. Hold nothing back. No move disallowed, no technique banned. Unburdened by things such as rules, fairness and morality.
>Use an item in your pack. You still have a few tricks up your sleeve. Better to use them than be sorry you didn't.
>Use something from the building you're in. It's a kitchen so there's bound to be something useful you can use in an unexpected way.
>Write in.

>>4425140
>>Engage He Ling all out. Hold nothing back. No move disallowed, no technique banned. Unburdened by things such as rules, fairness and morality.

Play dirty but don't go completely back to old ways. We're on a redemption arc after all...

>>4425140
>>Engage He Ling all out. Hold nothing back. No move disallowed, no technique banned. Unburdened by things such as rules, fairness and morality.

Tai is the person the grow but still kick ass when the time comes. Like come on, this dude is worse then Tai ever was

>>4425167
>>4425175
Gonna have to write an apology in that anonymous letter we're leaving to Shifu because we're about to go all out. Writing.

>>4425140
>Engage He Ling all out. Hold nothing back. No move disallowed, no technique banned. Unburdened by things such as rules, fairness and morality.
"Look at me! Everything I have now I paid for in my own blood, sweat, and tears! I worked until my bones broke...and I'm still pushing your back against the wall without stealing an ounce of anyone else's effort. You don't need to steal from others to succeed, you never did. You just needed to look within."

>>4425256
I like this. I'll be using that. Thanks!

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>>4423451
Bruh. Usagi Yojimbo is your resource for this.

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>>4425283
I don't have time to read the quest so Imma drop this and run.

I've heard good things about it tho.

>>4425287
Thanks for the images! He's from the Ninja Turtles comics right? Looks badass.

You step out of the kitchen and flick out your claws. Left then Right. You chest heaves as you breathe in deeply and exhale to get as much oxygen running through your body. The two of you lock eye and both let out a scream then a roar as you rush each other. He Ling starts off with a chop to your neck but you block it with one arm. You sink your free claws into the bat's chest and drag it down his chest. He Ling hisses as his fur becomes darker from his bleeding. He snaps his knee straight up and smashes it against your chin. You flip backwards from the impact but you use your momentum to swing your leg upward and return the favor with a backflip kick. You backflip, grab the remains of a pot, and fling them at He Ling as you run to the side to grab the remains of the cart you crashed into the bakery. He Ling raises his arms to deflect the pot shards instinctively and you use that as an opening to run in weilding two peices of wood akimbo. You beat the bat over the head with one and as he thrusts his arm out to chi strike you in the chest you plant your foot in his elbow and force it down.

As He Ling is forced to the ground by your deflection you swing your other arm upward and strike strike him upside the head with it. Your weapon shatters under the impact leaving you with one free hand. He Ling is sent flying backwards, his arms flapping uselessly as he tries to take flight or at least adjust his trajectory in the air. He lands in a heap and as he rises he swings his arms to once more whip the winds up. The flames of the building behind him flare up and the neighboring buildings begin to catch fire as well. He Ling doesn't seem to notice or he does not care as he manipulates the winds to carry the flames and fires them directly at you! You roll out of the and sweep your leg against the ground to send sand into the bat's face while you feel the scorching flames narrowly miss you. The sand meets its mark and He Ling screams in pain as his eyes are clouded by sand. He lets out another shriek and you feel your body grow heavy and slow once more but your adrenaline keeps you in motion, pushing you past pain and agony.

"Look at me!" You shout above the roaring blaze. "Everything I have now I paid for in my own blood, sweat, and tears! I worked until my bones broke...and I'm still pushing your back against the wall without stealing an ounce of anyone else's effort! You don't need to steal from others to succeed, you never did! You just needed to look within! One chance!" You continue. "You have one chance to give yourself up and we can end this. That's all I was given and that's all I'll give you."

He Ling hisses. "You don't get to talk about your skill!" He screems still rubbing his eyes, his ears flicking in your direction. "All you advantages come from tricks and deceit! Your skill is beneathe mine! That's why you resort to hiding! You recognize that should we fight directly, I out match you!"

>What do you do next?
>Continue to beat him down with your martial arts. He's making mistakes, leaving openings. Soon you'll be able to start inflicting actual damage.
>Use something from your inventory.
>He's manipulating flames and so can you. Ignite your hands and engage He Ling. He'll suffer severe burns but you're fairly certain he won't die.
>Try to get him open for your own Chi strikes. If you can paralyze him then the fight is over.
>Continue to try and talk He Ling down? He doesn't seem to be getting it but then again neither did you in the beginning.
>Write in.

>>4425307
>Try to get him open for your own Chi strikes. If you can paralyze him then the fight is over.
We're not alone in this fight. The wind on our face is proof of that.

>>4425343

+1

>>4425343
>We're not alone in this fight. The wind on our face is proof of that.
Nice. I like that alot.

>>4425343
>>4425355
Seems like Chi attack is winning but I'm going to wait til tomorrow to count the votes. Thanks again for voting and pictures. I hope you're still enjoying the story. Have a good night guys.

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>>4425343
+2
>"All you advantages come from tricks and deceit! Your skill is beneathe mine! That's why you resort to hiding! You recognize that should we fight directly, I out match you!"
Yes but it was fun smashing you with kitchenware.

>>4425562
That response is hilarious, we should use it to make him even angrier.
The rage will blind him.

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>>4425563
and to be fair he does us dirty with that screech attack of his.

>>4425570
Oh yeah, that's a good point.
The first fight against him would have been much less of a stomp if we weren't dizzy and nauseated from it.

>>4425343
Can we Just use the knives to Strike his Chi Points?
One under the shoulder Plate locks his arm movment to a maximum of 90 degree
Btw i love this quest

>>4425343
+1, Bravo Luo! Hope your gums heal well :S

>>4425667
That is an interesting question anon. Tai Lung does have the minor ability to manipulate Chi, as he can do Chi strikes, but it's not on the level to be able to channel it through knives or other objects. While in theory it would be possible (and I'm liking the idea of Chi enhanced throwing needles for Xin Lan to do the Chi blocking strikes at a distance) the issue comes up with the intent of the Chi strikes. The techniques Tai Lung knows were taught by Oogway so naturally the intent for them is non lethal takedowns or incapacitation without harming the target (despite how Tai Lung used them in the films to keep The Five in a mangled paralyzed state) and because of that some of the strikes for it are on vital areas. In the films we see both Oogway and Tai Lung strike the areas near the heart to paralyze their foes so using knives to attempt to do the same would more than likely result in the recipient's death.

Such a technique would probably fall on the same level as He Ling's Chi and attribute theft or a previous anon's suggestion of a chi strike that makes the target dumb by messing with their brain. Not impossible but certainly not a technique most martial arts practioners or schools of martial arts would know or teach. However, I can see the arguement for learning how to enhance weapons with Chi to make them more potent or to attempt the strikes against armored foes in the rare cases your bare hands can't penetrate but I'll leave wanting to learn such things up to the you guys. That's my thoughts on the matter and I'm always open to disscussion on the idea. You're still free to use the knives to try and lock his joins however. Chi isn't the only way to hamper a foe, it's just a very hard to block and bloodless one.

>>4425926
Thanks for the well wishes! Jaw is kind of sore but it seems like the swelling is dying down. Got tons of ice creams, yogurt and soups to keep me going. Have an appointment to get the stiches out next week.

>>4425343
>>4425355
>>4425562
>>4425926
Going for Master Oogway's technique to try and end it. Also we can't help but have a bit of banter. We did kind of earn it. Writing.

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Decided to look up a gif of the technique and it seems I might be wrong. Doesn't look like the heart is struck as I origonally thought. Still, I think my thoughts on the intent of technique still hold water. I'll leave a gif for you guys to check out.

>>4425984
Chi enhanced throwing knives aside, would Tai Lung be capable of throwing needs that hit people in their pressure points?
Could...could we steal He Ling's chi?

>>4425998
>Chi enhanced throwing knives aside, would Tai Lung be capable of throwing needs that hit people in their pressure points?
Yes, as a matter of fact, that was a vote that won. Only we couldn't find needles so nails were the replacement. Anons then voted for the cart plan in order damage He Ling and close the gap to use the nails. With a bit of practice, Tai Lung could learn how to accurately use needles for pressure points/acupuncture from a longer distance. Currently, he is trained to use throwing weapons but using small needles in this manner is something he can do but is something he doesn't have much practical application practice with. He's mostly a melee centered fighter. You do know two people who can help teach you the basics in both ends. Anatomy for acupunture and accuracy in throwing. It's all a matter of convincing them to help you train.

>Could...could we steal He Ling's chi?
Unfortuantely no. I don't know if I would veto a vote like that if anons all agreed to do so. (honestly vetoing a vote seems rather harsh but I understand sometimes its necessary to preserve the game and it's intent) But in this particular instance, Tai Lung doesn't know the technique for stealing Chi. I've mentioned in the previous thread that He Ling's Chi strike techniques are forgien and unknown to our protag which both bothered and intruiged him. Also I might be misremembering but Chi stealing was shown as a super rare and never before seen move in the third film wasn't it? Something only Pandas knew how to do because of their innate talent at manipulating Chi.

The flames roar and the two of you remain still. This was the height of the fight, both bodies battered and beaten. Weariness, fatigue and pain all being held back by pure adrenaline. At this point was where it would all start to crash. Here was where the first mistake would lead to it's owner's downfall. And you couldn't help but feel excited. For the second time in your life, you've found an opponent that pushed you to your limits, forced you to think outside the box, made you rise above who you once were. If this tale could be told, it would be legendary.

A beam of wood snaps, and crumbles under the flames and the two of you inctinctively throw yourselves at one another once more. He Ling throws a round house kick at you but you duck under it and throw a jab at the bat's bloodied shoulder. The attack is blocked as He Ling grabs your wrist, pulls you in and thrusts his fingers for a Chi Strike. You step forward to dodge past it and grab his wrist forcing you chest to chest with the bat as the two of you struggle for control. "You might be right." You grunt as He Ling smashes his knee into your ribs. Through the pain your give him your cockiest grin. "But that didn't make smashing your face in with kitchenware any less fun." You reply before you rear your head back and smash it straight into the bat's nose. You hear the crunch of bone breaking and the man screams in pain. He let's go of your wrist but you maintain your grip and grab his arm with both hands. With a growl you lift your opponent and spin him around before letting go and sending him flying to the tree you used as a catapult. The bends backwards and flings He Ling back at you! You rear back and deliver a heavy haymaker down on the bat's head, smashing him into the ground!

You hop back and keep your arms raised. For the first time all night you see the bat struggling to get on his feet. "You...you...YOU INSIGNIFICANT VERMIN!" He screams as blood pours from his broken nose. "I AM THE ONE YOU SHOULD BE FEARING! IT WAS MY PEOPLE THAT RAISED YOUR KIND FROM THE BUMBLING FOOLS THAT YOU WERE! WITH US YOU WOULD STILL BE WALLOWING IN THE MUD LIKE THE USELESS HALF BREED YOU ARE! YOU KNOW NOTHING OF THE POSITION YOUR IN! NOTHING!" He Ling's screams grow more inconprehensible as he flaps his wings to fly straight at you. Flecks blood are flung everywhere but it seems like his anger has pushed him past his pain as He Ling takes flight. He screeches louder than you've ever heard before, and even with all your protection, you're brought to your knees. Before you sense of hearing goes, you faintly hear the sound of things shattering within the buildings, presumably more glass objects.

He Ling flies straight at you at an unbelivable speed but all you can do is say, "I feel like I've been looking at a mirror all night" before you put all your will power to work and rise to your feet. Acting on instinct and memory alone, you thrust out your fingers and strike He Ling four times in the chest, a cold blue glow ementating from each hit and rippling across the bat's body. Your opponent's screams die in his throat and he falls to the ground, stiff and paralyzed but not dead.

You breathe heavily and look behind you at your opponent. Shock is quickly replaced with anger as he glares at you seethingly. You have one small thought before you propmtly throw up and collpase on the ground. Did I look at my father the same way when I was first struck down?

>What do you do?
>Rest. You've earned it. Just for a few mintues.
>Try and get back to your feet. There's still work to be done. A fire to try and put out, a mad bat to deal with...and maybe just maybe...friends to get back to?
>Use one of Ming's Brews? The original intent was to use them to wake people form unconciousness. With her mask on, it might dilute the smell enough to have their original effect and not just knock you out.
>Write in

>If you choose to get back on your feet. How do you deal with the following issues?
>What do you do with He Ling? You can't just leave him here.
>How do you want to put out the flames? (Although you can vote to let someone else deal with it)

>>4426102
>Try and get back to your feet. There's still work to be done. A fire to try and put out, a mad bat to deal with...and maybe just maybe...friends to get back to?

Also we can't risk being found by the guards.

He Ling should be tied up and an explination note stuck to him, about who hes killed, and his abilitys, before we find someplace to tie him to.

As for the fire? Best to leave that. Any smoke inhilation in our states going to knock us out and maybe kill us. Best to ask our rabbit freind to try protect people regarding that one.

>>4426126

+1

>>4426126

Supporting

>>4426102
>Try and get back to your feet. There's still work to be done. A fire to try and put out, a mad bat to deal with...and maybe just maybe...friends to get back to?
Knock him out with pressure point strikes

also this >>4426126

>>4426126
>>4426131
>>4426133
>>4426169
We're giving the guards a present and making sure people stay away form the fires with the help of Xin Lan. Writing.

>>4426102
>Try and get back to your feet. There's still work to be done. A fire to try and put out, a mad bat to deal with...and maybe just maybe...friends to get back to?
We need to alert whatever primitive fire brigade this place has before we get blamed for city-wide arson. Maybe Xin Lan can do that.

And now for a day's work at the docks...

oh well, guess we'll have to make it up to the captain later if we embarrass ourselves now.

You grunt and slowly push yourself off the ground. The world seems to spin as you move and your body threatens to throw up again but you grit your teeth and power through it. "Not yet." You mutter as you stagger forward towards He Ling. The bat continues to glare at you as you approach and you decide to be pragmatic. You strike He Ling in several pressure point and knock him out unceremoneously. No speeches, no preaching. With a grunt you lift He Ling on to your shoulder and make your way to another stall. You tear off the canopy to that and, as you remind yourself to buy rope in the future, you use it to bind the bat. Once he was well tied up, you hastily scrawl a note detailing the events of the night pertaining to He Ling's crimes and abilites. If you could escape The Heaven's Anvil, it was because they underestamated you. Best to not let the local guards to the same. Finally, once all that was done, you tie him to a tree that was right outside the tournament area. The place where you knew was crawling with guards.

You leap onto the rooftops and run across them back to firework's shop. The breaking dawn illuminates the city and casts your form into a dark silloutte. As the wind whips across your face and weary body, it feels reassuring and welcoming. You run for several mintues before hopping back down into the streets and making your way into the store. Ming and Xin Lan poke their heads out from the back room as they hear you enter.

"You're late." The rabbit says now sporting their arm in a sling. "What the hell happened? We heard an explosion." You grunt and move to the back room to collapse on a table.

"It's over." You say exhausted. "He Ling is taken care of."

"What do you mean taken care of?" Xin Lan asks skeptically as they hop onto the table. You huff tiredly and pet the rabbit's head. "Hey quit it!" They say as they bat your hand away.

"Knocked out and tied to a tree infront of the tournament area." You explain. "If they guards can't find him there then the spirits have mercy on the people of China. As for the explosion. I need you to go alert the fire brigade." You tell the rabbit. "There's a fire going on and we can't have it spread." The rabbit grunts and mumbles.

"I'll go grab a dress or something on the way there then." They say as they hop off the table. "Stupid leopard, can't help but making fires gotta go and save his butt again..." Xin Lan grumbles as they leave the building. Ming tentatively walks up to you.

"How are you feeling?" She asks gently.

>How do you feel guys?
>Tell ming your fine. Maybe a few bruised ribs, lots of cuts and burns and bruises but nothing that you can't handle.
>Ask Ming if she can make something like an energy drink. You still got a job to do and you could really use a pick me up.
>Tell her that you took a beating but it wouldn't hurt for a quick check up. Your body is your weapon and you can't neglect it.
>Just say quiet and try to get some rest.
>Write in.

>>4426281
>>Tell her that you took a beating but it wouldn't hurt for a quick check up. Your body is your weapon and you can't neglect it.
our pride will not be our downfall

>>4426281
>Tell her that you took a beating but it wouldn't hurt for a quick check up. Your body is your weapon and you can't neglect it.

>>4426281
>Tell her that you took a beating but it wouldn't hurt for a quick check up. Your body is your weapon and you can't neglect it.
“...Sorry for, uh, making you waste your time building that bomb. I’m certain it would’ve been a terrifying and deadly weapon of legendary proportions. Yes.“

>>4426286
>>4426295
>>4426329
Asking for a check up. Writing.

"To be honest, I did get beat around quite a bit." You admit. "Wouldn't hurt to get looked at. I got a job in a couple of hours. Gotta be sure I can do at least that." You say. Ming frowns and gets to work.

"You really need to slow down a bit." She says. "You've been running around since you got here." She gently runs her hands through your fur, checking your cuts and burns. "Everything looks ok." She says as she runs her fingers down your side. You wince and inhale sharply at the touch. "I think you have a few fractured ribs." Ming says looking at you. "I'd tell you to rest and take a break but you won't listen will you?" She asks.

"I swear, I didn't intend to get hit this much." You say sitting up and feeling your side burn. "But I really do need to get to that job. It's how I'm going to pay for my boat trip." You say. "Kind of want to get out of the city before The Five notice I'm here. For obvious reasons."

"But you saved the city." She points out. "They can't just take in you for that. You and your friend just helped everyone."

"Ming. You know there's more to it than that." You say quietly. "I'm an escaped criminal. The monster of the Valley of Peace."

"That's not what I saw the last few days." Ming mutters as she pushes a bandage against your face. "When are you leaving?" She asks.

"In a few days I assume. Captain is giving her crew a few days off to enjoy the tournament. I'm supposed to work during their down time to show I'm committed." You wince as Ming starts to bandage up your arm. "From there, I guess I'll just be working on the boat."

"Are you taking Xin Lan with you?" She asks.You frown, you hadn't thought of that.

>What do you tell Ming?
>Tell her no. While Xin Lan was a great help, you travel alone. It's your redemption. Not theirs.
>Tell her yes. They're a good fighter and you also want to keep an eye on their progression.
>Shrug and say you don't know. You only really met them last night.
>Say you're not sure. Where you're going isn't typically a traveler's destination. You're not sure anyone would want to join you for that or if they'd trust you enough to do so.
>Write in.

Sorry about taking so long. Something came up and i'm gonna have to cut it short here or risk just giving you even worse updates. But while I'm away, I'd like to ask, Do you want to continue from here and run around avoiding The Five or so a small time skip to you leaving the city? I can do either but knowing what you guys want to play through gives me an idea of what to plan out so to speak. So that'll be a vote as well.

>Do you want to stay and play up to you leaving the city or do you want to time skip to you leaving?
>Stay in the city.
>Leave.

>In either case, could you please outline some goals or ideas you want to do during your time in the city? It'll help me figure out what to write during an epilogue post or introduce during your days here if you choose to play it out. Thanks and sorry for stopping on short notice.

>>4426459
>Tell her yes. They're a good fighter and you also want to keep an eye on their progression.
Though while I would say we'd be okay with them joining us, I am not sure if they want to join us, they were trying to invite us to a group before so maybe they have prior engagements?

I'm undecided on skipping to leaving or not.

>>4426459
>Say you're not sure. Where you're going isn't typically a traveler's destination. You're not sure anyone would want to join you for that or if they'd trust you enough to do so.

Come to think the rabbit might also be interested in the pools. But he has other stuff to deal with in the city, no? I'm guessing he (she) will want to stay. But I also suppose we could try to get the captain to extend her deal to them, although that would only maybe ever work if we leave a significant impression on her... even if the rabbit could stowaway more successfully than we could it sounds like a terrible idea to attempt.

Regarding timeskip, whichever you prefer to write about is fine for me, OP.

>>4426459
>Say you're not sure. Where you're going isn't typically a traveler's destination. You're not sure anyone would want to join you for that or if they'd trust you enough to do so.
At the end of the day it’s Xin Lan’s decision. Besides, they already have business here in the city from how they tried to recruit us, no?
Not to say they wouldn’t be welcome if they still wanted to join after all that.

>>4426459

Also for remainder of our stay in the city...
>maybe hang out with/learn from Ming,
>stock up on non-perishable travelling supplies
>train and meditate on new moves we could use in a pinch - this encounter taught us that there is always room for improvement and adaptation.

>>4426459
>You'd have to ask Xin Lan that. It's not my decision to make.

>Timeskip, but have a small 'clip' of the 5's reaction to entering the city with it being on fire and smashed up from the fight.
I also want to see what happens to He Ling.

>>4426459
>>Tell her yes. They're a good fighter and you also want to keep an eye on their progression.
>Leaving the timeskip to OP
>"Ming, would you like to come with us. I know you have your roots put down here with your apothecary business, but, for all of your help, we'd be honored to have you aboard our crew."

>>4426478
And in regard to time skipping, you should do whatever feels natural. If you’ve got any ideas/plot points that you want to try out then by all means go ahead, but this would also be a nice place to end our time in the city.
As long as we get to say goodbye to Ming I’m fine.

>>4426459
>Tell her yes. They're a good fighter and you also want to keep an eye on their progression.
>Say you're not sure. Where you're going isn't typically a traveler's destination. You're not sure anyone would want to join you for that or if they'd trust you enough to do so.
I honestly think they have nothing better to do.

>Stay in the city.

>In either case, could you please outline some goals or ideas you want to do during your time in the city?
Eat, recover, train, become stronger, find the body of tr hat old man to see if he's still alive or not. Finally find that damn weasel. We did kind of promise the mistress of that Bordello.
And finally, find someone to sharpen our sword.

>>4425291
> He's from the Ninja Turtles comics right?

Technically correct.

>>4426485
>>4426459
I would like to see how Shifu, Po and the five react to some of our deeds so far.

>>4426459
>>Say you're not sure. Where you're going isn't typically a traveler's destination. You're not sure anyone would want to join you for that or if they'd trust you enough to do so.
Finally caught up. I like the rabbit as a character. I hope they stick around.

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Counted the votes. There will be a timeskip as it feels more natural but I'll write up an epilogue detailing what you do in the city. There might be some votes in it just so it's not one massive text dump of railroading but for the most part I'll be speeding along to the trip. I will be including the Jade Palace crew's reactions and the fate of He Ling that sort of thing. Not wanting to leave you guys waiting there was an anon who suggested Tai Lung leave and anonymous letter to Shifu basically apologziing and telling him we do indeed miss him and only want to make him proud. That sort of thing. I'll do the write up Monday so I have some time to think about how to structure it and the next few shenanagins you get up to. With that being said...

>What does Tai Lung write in the letter to his father?
>Write in. (Have fun!)

Pic being what I imagine Tai Lung is thinking when he's writing it.

>>4428045
Phine posting at work, but maybe we can include the things we've done. Freeing those merchants and that goat/ram dude giving us a replica sword including the guy's name, helping out that one village before they get wrecked by an angry forest spirit + losing/helping a friend become a priestess, and everything that's happened in this city. Including He Ling.
I suppose it wouldnt hurt to mention how angry he was about 20 years in prison, you know to vent because venting is healthy. Maybe a little excerpt about regrets like crippling his dade for like and whatever additional crippling damages he received during our bout in the Jade Palace.

I dont know if in universe if furry china has advanced far enough to have cameras, but if cameras are out of the question then he can maybe expect a painting from us soonish.

I guess it wouldnt hurt to admit the fat one is a very skilled fighter, and the furious five arent half bad.

>>4428045
>letter
Maybe he can relay his revelation from fighting the bat, and how although he ultimately triumphed, he learned just how much there is still for him to learn and discover.
How he saw a reflection of his pride in the opponent and how he's resolved to not allow the pride to blind him so again.

>>4428045
Letter? Better make it an entire scroll.
Because we're going to dictate to him the tales of our adventures so far, complete with paintings of the most important moments and the people we've met along the way.
All the best martial artists are masters of the brush, so it shouldn't be too much trouble...I think.

Op's not dead but I over slept. Alright. Mother of all epilogues coming right up. Question for clarification thoug while I write.

>Do you want to invite ming? Saw a few suggestions for that.
>Yes
>no

>>4430567
Invite, sure. She has obligations but it couldn’t hurt for her to get real world experience. Acupuncture Knowledge could only improve her craft.

>>4430567

Let’s make our own furious five— but better!!!

>>4430580

By that I mean of course we’re inviting Ming along for the ride!

>>4430567
>Yes
It's an invitation but she doesnt have to accept.

File: 36EA2CA2-67A3-492A-A57A-E(...).png (619 KB, 817x924)

619 KB PNG

>>4430567
>Mother of all epilogues
Y-you’re not ending the quest here, are you, OP?

>>4430671
Also, supporting >>4430593
I find it highly unlikely that Ming, if remaining in character, would choose to come with us. To uproot your entire life to accompany someone you only met last week on a mystical journey that you’re probably not even interested in would be quite the strange decision. We should ask, but be prepared for a no.

"I don't know." You admit. "It would be up to him if he'd like to join but I wouldn't say no if he wanted to. I'll have to ask him. It's rare to see someone who can keep up with me in a fight especially one that isn't trying to kill me. I'd like to see how his skills develop." Ming finishes up patching up your injuries and you hop off the table, legs still a big sore. "...Thank you." You say awkwardly. The words feel heavy and odd as you say them. You mean them and you're not sure if this is the first time you've said them more out of genuine feeling than social politeness. "We should go before someome catches us here." You quickly add. "If you see Xin Lan, could you let them know I'm looking for him?" You ask. Ming nods.

"I'll try. I don't know if they'll show up at the store." Ming admits. "But I'll pass on the message. Are you sure you have to go to work?" She asks.

"If I want to get to my destination. I do. I'll be fine." You assure her. "I've trained with broken bones before. This shouldn't any more difficult."

"Well if you feel like it gets any worse. Come over to the shop. No excuses." She says hurriedly. "Speaking of the shop. I need to hurry back and help Mr. Wong open up." She runs off a bit before turning back. "Stay safe." She says before turning a corner and leaving.

You watch her leave for a moment before you look out into the streets. Adjusting your face coverings, you dash off into the streets and back towards the cemetary. You were curious to see what became of the old man. If anything, maybe you could help him. By the time you arrive, the sun has broken the horizon and various priests have started doing their morning rounds. You quickly sneak around them and make your way to the battlefield you left. Off to the side, you see the limp body of the old man. You place your fingers on his neck. No pulse. If he had one, which you doubt, when you left him it was long gone.

Morning light, you see that the man is a hyena with two long scars running down his arms. Just like Fen Fang. You think back to He Ling's attacks on him and his mobility increasing after finishing the man off. He Ling was far older than anyone you've ever met and from what you heard of Fen Fang, he wasn't very old. Certainly not at this age. The only thing you can think of is that He Ling somehow siphoned more than his life with his attacks. Maybe his age? You shake your head. Even thinking that sounded ridiculous. You hear movement behind you and quickly duck behind a tomb. Footsteps rush to the body and you hear a scream.

"He's dead! Someone help! Help!"

You decide that was your queue to leave. There wasn't much you could do for the man and it was better that you didn't get blamed for this. As you run off you hear something cut through the air and a kitchen knife embeds itself into a wooden beam in front of you. Attached to the knife, was a small scrap of paper. You snatch it up and open it as you run,

TL,
Gotta lay low for a day or so. If you need me I'll be at the light house. Couldn't say my goodbyes becuase I had to move everything thanks to our little scrap in the cememtary. And I know it's you that got the message because I just saw you pick it up and I'm a very good aim.
Talk to you later,
XL

P.S Tell Ming I left a thank you in her medicine bag before we left for the fireworks shop.

You look around as you run but can't seem to find Xin Lan's silloutte or any trace of him. You shake your head in amusement and shred the note before you race off to the docks. By the time you arrive to the Gale Cutter, you see Captain Daiyu's first mate waiting. Rather impatiently, you notice. As you arrive he narrows his eyes at you. "Well you're certianly not making a good- Good God's man. What happened to you?"

You grunt and shrug though evidentally He's not taking that as an anwser. "I got into a fight last night. Muggers." You explain. "Managed to fight them off but.." You raise a bandaged arm. "I didn't get away cleanly. I'll still be able to work though if that's what you're worried about."

(1/X Dunno how many posts this will take but I'm spliting this. First I'll do Tai Lung then I'll do The Five's view. And I'm doing it in chunks so you don't wait a million hours to get like 5 posts of text.)
>While I write. What part do you want me to write next?
>Writing a letter to Shifu
>Inviting Xin Lan to join you.
>Inviting Ming.
>Looking to sharpen your Sword.

>>4430671
No anon, not ending it here. Maybe once we reach the pools of contemplation but I'll need to see how the story has progressed at that point.

The First mate nods slowly, "Bastards. Think just because everyone is off drinking or celebrating with the event they can get away with anything." He shakes his head. "Did you hear? They set a fire to one of the stores in the city. Guards are busy looking for the culprits." The alligator sighs and holds out his hand. "Name's Bohai. When the captain's not around, I'm in charge. If you're still willing to work, then I can't stop ya but Captain would probably send you away than risk someone getting injured in her name because they wanted to look tough." You take Bohai's hand and shake it. His grip is firm and his hands weathered. "Well let's get started. We'll start you off with something light, move up to the heavier stuff."

The "light work" involves cleaning out the ship. You spend most of the day mopping the decks and cargo hold, making sure every thing is organized and logged. It's probably not what they originally had in mind for your work load but you decide to take advantage of the slower pace. You keep an eye out during your work for The Five or guards. You definitely see an increase in armored soliders patroling the docks. They seem to be looking in alleys and and stopping the odd person to speak with them. By noon most of them have returned to their posts and you hear the sounds of celebration of in the city. "That must be one hell of a reception." Bohai says looking back off into the city. "The Five must be used to it though." You shrug and grunt in reply. Rather than dwell on the fact that the people after you are in the city you pass the time by asking Bohai about sailing. The aligator seems slightly surprised at that but takes to teaching you in earnest. You learn about the basics of sailing a ship, such as cardinal directions, sailing jargon, and the basic operation of sails.

As the days toil away, you move on to moving cargo onto the ship. Large crates and baskets full of foods and wares. With your strength and years of training, you could easily push several at a time but you hold back or else you might give yourself away. In doing so, you also allow your body some modicum of rest. Even so, Bohai and Daiyu are impressed. "Gods man. Are all travelers worth several of my crew?" The captain asks as you push another crate up the ramp onto the ship. You give a polite shrug as you tie down the cargo.

"I've dedicated my life to keeping in shape. It's one of the reasons why I was ran out of my home." You say quietly. The captain nods.

"Well keep this up then Xuebao. We'll make a sailor out of you yet." She says. "Who knows, keep this up and we might invite you aboard." You nod and give a polite thank you as you return to your work.

In your spare time you found yourself keeping an eye on the tournament area, looking for someone. It seems like fate was not on your side as every time you were free, the place was crowded. You didn't risk taking to the rooftops incase one of The Five looked up. Despite being so close to your father, you never felt further away from him.

"Maybe you should speak with him." Ming suggests as the three of you eat at the Jade Palace. Ever since the fight with He Ling, the three of you have been keeping in contanct in case the bat escaped and decided to enact his revenge. The three of you slowly made the Jade Palace a conversation and planning spot. Ming lifts her cup to her face and studies yours. "I'm sure he'd be happy to see you. You don't talk about him much but he seemed like he was close to you." You stay quiet and look at Xin Lan. They, or rather "she" as they had taken a liking to the disguise they used to warn people of the fire, takes a bite of her meal and shrugs at you.

"Don't look at me. I never had parents." She says daintily wiping her mouth. "But Ming is right. If you two were close, he might overlook what you did. This might be your only chance to talk to him again." You shake your head.

"Honor and duty would obligate him to try and take me down. Despite the pain, he would do what he felt is right." You reply quietly as you poke at your meat buns. Ever since Shifu arrived, your appetite for them had increased. "Not to mention the five would never leave his side knowing I'm still at large."

"Well..." Ming says thinking. "Why don't...you write him a letter?" She asks. "You could leave it with a guard...or Xin Lan could sneak it in somehow." Xin Lan looks up from her soup.

"What? Why me?!" She hisses looking around. "That place is crawling with guards!"

"Yeah, think of the challenge." She teases with a grin. A sentiment Xin Lan didn't share.

"Why don't you take it there? You're a doctor on the grounds." She points out. Ming shakes her head sadly.

"Can't. Ever since Boqin's death, there's always a guard following me. They say it's for my own safety but I'm not so sure." She says as she wistfully stirs her soup. "I'm not even sure if they'd allow me to see The Five..."

"But that wasn't your fault." You point out. "We caught the culprit or at least the one who killed the one who did it." Ming shakes her head.

"I manage to wrest some information out of a guard but apperantly, he's under The Five's supervision while they figure out where to detain him. And evidentally he's not talking." She sighs. "Was doing so well too..." The conversation drifts away the subject and onto more lighter talks before the 3 of you split up once more. As you rest in the lighthouse with Xin Lan, you think back to it. A letter. It was simple enough and you could put your real thoughts to paper. Would be easier than having to face Shifu once more.

I'm not ready to see him. Not yet." You think to yourself as you take a brush and begin to write.

This...is going to be much longer than I had anticipated. Should I continue or just go full cliffnotes? I don't mind writing it all out but this is starting to go full fanfic and I feel rather bad you guys have no input. I'm glad you enjoy my writing but I don't think it's that good to allow this level of text dump.

>>4430787
>Writing a letter to Shifu
I think we should keep it brief with few details of our whereabouts. We’re journeying on our own terms and would rather not be interrupted. However, we could still talk about how sorry we are and other stuff the above anons mentioned without giving too much away.

>>4430910
I think it’s okay so far. After all, it’s the end of an arc and therefore a rare occasion. And we did vote for this sort of thing, a lengthier update bringing our time in the city to a close.

>>4430921
That's true, I just feel it's kind of...I dunno...showboating or something? Next topic will cover asking Ming and Xin Lan to join us so I'll make that a player driven thing. Choose how to ask and the like.

On the third day after your fight with He Ling, you once again meet up with the others in the Jade Palace. The place is jam packed with people as the last few days of the tournament are drawing near. In an effort to keep some privacy, the three of you pitch in for a private booth on the second floor. The rumbling sounds of people talking and moving can be heard through the floor but it was far quieter and spaceous then eating in the public area. "So, what's up?" Xin Lan asks as they hop on their chair and orders from the menu. They had taken a liking to a vegetable based noodle broth and decided to eat it again. You and Ming place your orders and when the waiter leaves Ming speaks up.

"Yeah. I know it's crowded downstairs but I didn't think we needed the extra privacy." She points out. You nod and look around.

"It's about my trip." You say. "I'd rather no one know where I'm headed to."

"And so you're going to tell us." Xin Lan points out with an eyebrow raised. Ming bats one of Xin Lan's ears playfully.

"Let him speak." She scolds.

You take a deep breath and decide how to say this.

>How do you approach the topic? (A few of you want to ask Ming. I'll point out that she can be recruited to the team but because of her attachments to the city she'll be much harder to convince than Xin Lan. Good luck!)
>Start by telling them exactly where you are going. It's best they get the whole story of why you're traveling. Why you don't just turn yourself in if you want to attone for your crimes.
>Ask Xin Lan why he travels. Let him know you respect his skills as a martial artist but you want to know why he's a thief instead of a trainer or a tournament fighter.
>Ask Ming what she'll do when you leave. Once the tourney is over there won't be as many people to treat.
>Straight up ask them if they want to join your travels for redemption. You three make a good team. You don't know where your path will lead you but you do know that you've become rather prone to helping those in need whether you intended to or not. Having more poeple aboard would make it easier.
>Write in.

I know you guys will want to choose them all but for this you get to pick up to two.

>>4430910

In my opinion, I think your quest is extremely well-written. Don’t feel bad about word-dumping if you want to.

Point if a quest is that everyone has fun— QM included, so do whatever you want.

>>4430973
>Start by telling them exactly where you are going. It's best they get the whole story of why you're traveling. Why you don't just turn yourself in if you want to attone for your crimes.
Let’s lay our cards out on the proverbial table. I’d be tempted to start by asking a question and leading their answer into an explanation, but that feels more like Oogway’s style than Tai Lung’s.

>>4430973
>Start by telling them exactly where you are going. It's best they get the whole story of why you're traveling. Why you don't just turn yourself in if you want to atone for your crimes.

>>4430979

+1

>>4430979
>>4430994
>>4430997
We'll start with our story. Writing.

"You already know who I am." You say quietly. "But I think it's best if you know my full story." You take a drink. "Where I'm traveling is only the first step to my goals. After I escaped, I sought revenge. None could stop me. Not The Five, not The Dragon Warrior, not even my father. And once the haze of battle faded away, I saw first hand the destruction I wrought. I'm not sure what changed that day but I couldn't face what I had done. So I fled to look for a way to redeem myself. During my travels I saved some merchants. Among them was an old ram named Luo Guanzhong."

"Wait!" Xin Lan shouts. "The Luo Guanzhong?! Guy who wrote Romance of The Three Kingdoms?" Ming glares at the rabbit.

"Let him talk." She says shushing him.

Xin Lan settles down with a small pout. "I like that story." They mutter.

You shrug. "I don't know." You admit. "He was wise and claimed to be a storyteller. When I told him of my plans to seek redemption, he told me of a place that could help. The Pools of Contemplation. A place so serene and at peace that a person could study their own soul in true inner peace. So that's where I'm headed to."

"But...does that place even exist?" She asks. "It sounds like a legend." Xin Lan nods.

"Yeah, no offense but it does kind of sound like a story." They say. You nod in agreement.

"Even Luo said as much but he said that I should head for the Sacred Library. Their archives might have texts that could hint at the location. That's why I'm taking a boat to the Huangshan Mountains. At their peak is the library. If I can't find the location there maybe I might be able to get other awnsers." You explain. Xin Lan doesn't look conviced.

"So that's it? You're just going there and hope that they have your awnsers?" They ask.

You shake your head and reply.

>What do you tell Xin Lan?
>Tell him that the Library isn't the final stop. That you hope as you travel you'll find out about yourself. To look inside you after decades of neglect and figure out who you are.
>Say that you don't just want to go to the library to find the location. You want to travel to redeem yourself. You've been doing good deeds in your travels and maybe that will be more than enough should the library not hold awnsers.
>Explain that the library and traveling are just stepping stones to your redemption. You want to go through every option, every possible solution if it means you can be at peace.
>Ask Xin Lan why he travels. He's an expert assassin and martial artist. If he really wanted to he could settle down to teach or as a body guard. Instead he plays thief.
>Ask Ming about her plans after you and Xin Lan leave. With the tournament over what will she do?
>Invite the two to join you in your travels. You could use companionship and the three of you do make a good team.
>Write in.

>>4431131
>>Tell him that the Library isn't the final stop. That you hope as you travel you'll find out about yourself. To look inside you after decades of neglect and figure out who you are.

>>4431131
>Say that you don't just want to go to the library to find the location. You want to travel to redeem yourself. You've been doing good deeds in your travels and maybe that will be more than enough should the library not hold awnsers.

>>4431131
>Tell him that the Library isn't the final stop. That you hope as you travel you'll find out about yourself. To look inside you after decades of neglect and figure out who you are.

Gonna stop for today. Sorry for the massive text dump. I gotta get my stiches removed tomorrow so I'll be a bit late. Thanks for voting!

>>4431131
>>Tell him that the Library isn't the final stop. That you hope as you travel you'll find out about yourself. To look inside you after decades of neglect and figure out who you are.

>>4431131
>Tell him that the Library isn't the final stop. That you hope as you travel you'll find out about yourself. To look inside you after decades of neglect and figure out who you are.

>>4431131
>It is the most promising lead I have in my quest, so I intend to follow it.
>so far, it seemed to work out well for me. I met you on the way, after all.
>sorry for being so rough with you back then, by the way. I’m not accustomed to holding back when uncertain. Perhaps there is a lesson in this for me, too.

>>4431699
(in case it’s not clear, the “you” in second line refers to both of them, the “you” in third to the bunny)

>>4431189
>>4431377
>>4431604
Library isn't the last stop. The journey is sometimes more important than the destination. Writing.

File: dc62f8a7cd9dc1eb06d653f2e(...).jpg (1.43 MB, 4032x3024)

1.43 MB JPG

"No. The Library isn't the only option." You say. "All my life I thought I knew who I was. Who I was destined to be and it turns out that it was all for nothing. Now I don't know who I am. But Luo once said that even nothing is something. From nothing there is infinite possiblity. So I want use this to choose who I get to be. I want...I want to redeem myself. Maybe when I was younger I wanted to be the Dragon Warrior for selfless reasons but I somehow lost that. I want to travel to figure things out. To learn who I really am again. The Library is just a goal I gave myself to have hope. 'Even in the darkest of nights, all it takes is a single spark of light to banish away the shadows. Never lose hope, do not be afraid to stop and ask for help lest you lose yourself in the shadows as you try to run away from them.'" You say finding yourself quoting the old ram again.

"Not very good at the asking for help bit are you?" Xin Lan teases while grabbing some bread. "W-what I mean is that it's good you're trying to change. Just gotta remember what you learned so far." They stammer as they shirk away from Ming's glare. "So then you're just gonna travel the country and help those in need? Like some kind of folk hero?" They ask. You nod uncertainly.

"If that's what happens then yes. Like I said, it just sort of happened so far. I never did intend to save those merchants. I just needed food and bounty hunting seemed like a good way to do it." You explain. You think to mention the situation in the village but decide not to. "And fighting He Ling also sort of happened too." You say shrugging.

"No it didn't." Ming speaks up. You and Xin Lan look at her confused. "You said you went looking for whoever murdered Boqin that day. You did that on purpose. You did it...to help me. I didn't ask you to do it and you weren't getting anything out of it either. That's something you did on your own." She points out.

You stay quiet and think about it as your food arrives. You did do it without being asked to. There was that strange mixture of curiosity over the method, wounded pride, and discomfort. But the last two weren't for your behalf. It was your pride in Ming's work being wounded. Work she did that was tarnished. And discomfort over the she looked at you as she couldn't find why she had failed. You poke at your food for a bit before speaking up.

>What do you say now?
>Ask the two if they think you're doing the right thing? Would it be better if you simply turned yourself in than looking for a fool's prize? Can you even manage to ask this?
>Ask the two if they think you're a good person. It's probably best to get their opinion before you even consider asking if they want to join you.
>Ask Xin Lan or Ming something about them. You've spoken more about yourself in a non gloating way then you ever had before in your life. It's time you let them talk about something. (Write in)
>Say nothing. You're not really sure how to respond to that revelation.
>Write in.

>>4432227
>What do you think? What World you advice me?

I feel like just asking whether they consider us a good person is pressuring them to validate us. Although we might be looking for that, too... but still. No. Let’s just ask if they have something to say in the mood we’ve set.

>>4432253
>world
Would. Thank you, my megalomaniac autocorrect.

>>4432227

>>4432253

+1

>>4432253
>>4432268
Asking the two if they have any advice. Writing.

You take a bite and swallow before speaking up again. "What do you think?" You asks slowly trying to find the right words."Do you have any advice?" Xin Lan and Ming look at each other and seem to spend sometime thinking. The air is rather thoughtful as the three of you eat but you can't help but feel an uncomfortable awkwardness creeping in. Just as you feel the mood start to get worse Xin Lan speaks up.

"You gotta stop hiding." They say chewing thoughtfully. "I mean, pretty stupid coming from me, but if you keep trying to have your identity hidden, you'll end up pushing away people who could help you in an effort to stay hidden. Or worse, you'll lash out. Paranoia wil set in and then you'll lose sight of your goals. While trying to stay hidden you'll lose sight of who you are and in the end you'll end up back to how you started." They say in uncharacteristic thoughtfullness. "Like, if you want redemption then how will that happen if you can't prove you changed? Sure there's not that many snow lepoards wandering around but even so...it'll be hard for anyone to think that the evil Tai Lung escaped prison and started doing good deeds." They quickly add tugging at their ears. "I dunno...just some food for thought."

Ming sets her cup down and thinks for a bit before adding her piece. "Well I think you're doing good so far. But Xin Lan is kind of right. You have the whole strong and silent type thing going on. It does make you a bit unapproachable." She admits. "But there's nothing wrong with that! Tons of heroes matched that description. I just think you're pushed in to a corner on this. With The Five and the Dragon Warrior still keeping an eye out for you. You're kind of forced to stay low key." She mulls over it for a bit. "Maybe since you'll be traveling to the edges of China, you can be a bit more lenient with keeping your identity a secret? By the time news reaches them and they arrive, you'll be long gone and all they have to hear is of your good deeds? Plus..." She adds a bit uncomfortably. "It's not like anyone could stop you if they tried to take you in to turn over to the five."

"Not gonna lie though." Xin Lan says. "You've got a pretty big mountain to climb. You not only gotta convince The Five but you also need to win the goodwill of China. Shame we can't brag about He Ling. That's be good publicity."

"I think Xuěbào's deeds will speak for himself." Ming counters. "Sure at first the deeds will be attributed to another snow leopard but eventually I think they'll add up and once someone says he did them it'll all click." Xin Lan shrugs.

"I guess. Again, I'm all about not being known. Not the other way around." They say. "Then again I was bred for it so it's pretty much handed to me on a platter."

You take a bite and consider their words. They might have a point.

>What do you tell them?
>Ask them something else. They seem welcome to the idea of offering you advice and advice is rarely ever free.
>Stay quiet. Maybe they want to ask something themselves.
>Tell them that you took their advice and wrote Shifu a letter. You've yet to turn it in but it felt...right to do so.
>Ask either of them if they'd like to join you on your journey.
>Write in

>>4432371
Thank them for the input. And for sticking with you.
Stay quiet for a while. Then mention the letter if neither has anything to add

>>4432378
Support.

>>4432378

+1

>>4432378
>>4432420
>>4432421
We'll stay quiet. Maybe the others have something else to add. Writing.

"I see..." You say quietly and the three of you quiet for a while. The three of you simply sit there in silence, watching the crowds go by as they storm the tournament area. You watch them live their lives, completely unaware of the danger that had passed only a few nights prior. "Thank you." You say suddenly. Ming and Xin Lan look at you. "For the advice...and for sticking with me." You explain.

Ming smiles. "It was nothing." She says. "We didn't really do much."

"I did!" Xin Lan says wiggling their broken arm and looking at her with a withering look. "I still taste blood in my drink too." They grumble.

"Ok. I didn't do anything." She corrects herself. "And you'll stop tasting blood soon. You bit your tongue open that night. Besides, it's more spit than blood anyways. What I mean to say is, we saw you were in trouble and thought you needed to help."

You nod. She was right but...something didn't add up. Why did Xin Lan help you? What did they have to gain? Before you can ask they speak up. "And it all ended well anyways. I mean...as well as a blown up building, a few broken bones, and breaking and entering can be." They say. "No one was hurt by the fire at least and He Ling is in custody. I say this is a win for us all." They look around conspiritorially. "All that's left to do is get out of here." Ming frowns at that.

"And that's it? You two are going to just leave then?" She asks. "Like...like this never happened?" Xin Lan calms down a bit and goes quiet. Ming just looks at you.

>What do you tell her?
>Tell her yes, it's better for everyone that no one knows you were here.
>Say that it would be for the best but that you wish it didn't have to be that way.
>Ask Ming what else can you do? The Five are after you. You're a wanted criminal.
>Tell Ming that this doesn't have to be the end. You can always come back in the future but you want to figure yourself out first.
>Ask Xin Lan why he decided to help you that night.
>Tell Ming that it doesn't need to end like this. She can come with you. They both can.
>Write in.

Gonna grab dinner. Vote's open til then.

>>4432530
>>Tell Ming that this doesn't have to be the end. You can always come back in the future but you want to figure yourself out first.

>>4432530
>>Tell Ming that this doesn't have to be the end. You can always come back in the future but you want to figure yourself out first.

>>4432530
>Tell Ming that this doesn't have to be the end. You can always come back in the future but you want to figure yourself out first.

>>4432535
>>4432557
>>4432574
Tell Ming that leaving isn't the end. Writing.

"No." You say. "No not just like that. It doesn't have have to be like this." You look at Ming. "It's not like we'll forget. It's not like this never happened. We'll all remember." Xin Lan nods.

"Yeah, you still got the memories...erm the good ones at least." They say. "It's not that we want to leave but we both kind of don't want to get caught. And the longer we linger here the higher the chance that will happen. Especially since trouble seems to follow one of us at least."

"I know it's just...it just feels like we all started to get to know each other. No secret identities and stuff." She says. "It sure made life a lot more interesting than it was before. Even without that, I don't know...you two just seem so different than everyone else here. Not every day you meet and befriend a Kung Fu master and a secret assassin."

"Believe me. Your old life sounds way more comfortable than a few nights ago." Xin Lan replies. "Luckily for you, He Ling doesn't know you helped us. So once we're out of here. You're safe."

"We could come back." You offer. "In the future. We can always return for a visit. Just because we're leaving doesn't mean we can't come back."

"You'd do that?" Ming asks. "Really?"

You nod. "Sure. It would help to have some place to return to." You say. "It's starting to become a habit of wearing out my welcome everwhere I go."

"What about you Xin Lan? Would you come back?" Ming asks. The rabbit rubs the back of their head.

"I don't know..." They say. "Having a place I constantly comeback to isn't really my thing." They sigh and roll their eyes. "Oh all right. I'll come back whenever the heat isn't too bad but I make no promises of consistency." They say as Ming gives them a pleading look.

"Great! Maybe you can come back for new years? Oh maybe you can come back this time next year?" She asks excitedly. Xin Lan gives you a look but says nothing. You're content to let her plan. While you can't guarentee any of those dates, you suppose her having something to look forward too isn't such a bad thing.

>Alright to speed this up I'll give you some questions to vote on.
>Who do you invite to travel with you? Ming, Xin Lan or both?
>Do you set an actual date for the reunion?
>Do you have any last questions for either of them?

>>4432699
Extend the travel offer to Ming but we understand if she cant come with.
How long until new years? Let's say we'll see if we can come, but if we cant then next month would be a safe bet.
>pet the bunny
Did we get to tell the Boredello what happened to the dead guy?
Do we have enough muny to commish some more gas bombs from Ming?

>>4432896

+1

>>4432896
>>4432896
Heading to bed but to answer the questions.
>How long until new years? Let's say we'll see if we can come, but if we cant then next month would be a safe bet.
New Years will be in about 5 months.
>Did we get to tell the Boredello what happened to the dead guy?
Almost forgot about that. Thanks for reminding me. I'd assume you guys would tell her that Fen Fang is dead. If you want to tell him how he died then you guys can choose to do so though I doubt you'd want to tell her you saw someone steal the litteral youth out of him.
>Do we have enough muny to commish some more gas bombs from Ming?
Sure, I'll say with the work you put in that Daiyu has given you some allowance to spend considering you basically replace 3 men while holding back. You'll leave the city with 3 gas knockout bombs. Should anything resist the knockout effect, they'll certainly be in bad shape.
>pet the bunny
Always

>>4432924
Would it be possible to, instead of look for Shi Fu, we stay around the very edges of the tournament and look for people who seem like they were able to get real close to the furious five or our adoptive father? If we can confirm the presence of the furious five and Shi Fu through a proxy, then we could probably hire a child fan to go up there and deliver the letter while they wait to have their autograph signed.

>>4432699
>>Who do you invite to travel with you? Ming, Xin Lan or both?
Ask Ming, she could learn alot from the people WE will meet on the way
Xin lan can come too, we can learn a thing or too from him and vis versa
Xin lan

>>4433119
+1 I like it

>>4433119
Sure. The Five probably always receive gifts from fans so someone giving them something to Shifu probably wouldn't be out of the ordinary.
>>4432896
>>4432915
>>4433291
>>4433202
Alright. Asking Ming and guaging her response. Inviting Xin Lan too. Writing.

"I suppose this is the best of time as any to explain exactly why I invited you all here." You say. Xin Lan and Ming turn to look at you curiously.

"I figured it was the food. We've been eating here pretty frequently." Xin Lan says. "Plus it's getting really crowded outside too."

"It has become our hang out spot." Ming admits.

You nod. "I didn't want anyone to listening on us by accident considering it concerned where I was headed to." You explain. "But more to the point. I want to ask if you would join me. You've been a great help and if it weren't for you, we probably wouldn't have defeated He Ling." Xin Lan and Ming look at each other.

"Really?" Xin Lan asks. "You sure your brooding will allow it?" They joke. Ming pokes them in the back of the head. "Well...I guess I can stick around a few more days. I gotta head out soon but leaving on boat is a good a way as any. And...someone's gotta make sure you don't get yourself killed before new years." They say with a grin. "Not to sure about a Library though. They probably don't have anything valuable to take but we'll take it one stop at a time. Maybe your hero gig might make us money." Ming puts her hands on her hips.

"You can't just be traveling to steal things!" She scolds. "That's not right."

"Someone's gotta keep me fed. Now we got two mouths to feed." Xin Lan protests. "I only do it when it's aboslutely neccessary...or when something catches my eye and that only happens with rich folk who don't deserve it anyways."

"You keep an eye on him won't you?" Ming asks you. "Make sure they don't get into any trouble. Both of you?" She says looking at the two of you.

You supress a snort and clear your throat. "Ming...I was asking the two of you." You clarify. Ming coveres her mouth in surprise.

"Me?" She asks. "But why? I'm...I'm not a fighter. I've only ever traveled once to get here. I don't even know what I could do to help you guys."

>What do you tell Ming?
>Tell her that's exactly why. She's not a fighter and sometimes an different perspective is good.
>Say that you and Xin Lan can train her as you travel. She doesn't need to be a master fighter but if she wants to try to learn self defense she has two good teachers.
>Ask if there's anything preventing her from traveling again. She has the store yes, but she also mentioned she wanted to find something that made her stand out as an alchemist. Something that made her more than just Mr. Wong's apprentice. She might find that on your journey.
>Say that her brew did help you in the fight against He Ling. Not to mention before that, her medicine skills helped as well.
>Write in.

>>4433642
>Ask if there's anything preventing her from traveling again. She has the store yes, but she also mentioned she wanted to find something that made her stand out as an alchemist. Something that made her more than just Mr. Wong's apprentice. She might find that on your journey.
It's best to travel in your youth anyways.

>>4433642
>Tell her that's exactly why. She's not a fighter and sometimes an different perspective is good.
It's not as great as getting to work and own your own store, but it's something that's probably out of the norm for you.

>>4433642
Your perspective would be valuable, as would your knowledge. Not that I intended to get hurt, but sometimes I come across people who already are.

Conversely it could be an opportunity for yourself to see and learn.

(debating internally whether to tell her you enjoy her company...)

>>4433669
>>4433674
>>4433690
These three work. Writing.

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269 KB JPG

"That's exactly why." You say. "You're not a fighter so you won't see things as I do. A different perspective is good. Yours would be valuable if that's what you want to hear." You explain. "Your knowledge is better than anyone else I know as well. So having someone who can see what Xin Lan and I can't see or understand would be helpful. Like you said, I can be unapproachable. I'm also only used to dealing with people who are martial artists so sometimes the reasoning behind those who aren't trained like I was might slip by. Ontop of all that, while I don't intend to get hurt-"

"But we will." Xin Lan pipes up. You give them a look and reach over to pet them to settle them down. Xin Lan grumbles and bats your hand away but remains quiet.

"I sometimes meet people who are hurt or worse could get hurt because of me." You continue. "You could help them." Ming looks conflicted.

"I don't know...I mean I can also help here. I'm not sure what my perspective could offer." She argues. You raise your hand to continue.

"You once mentioned that you wanted to find something that made you stand out as an alchemist. That you wanted to be seen more than just Wong's assistant."

"Apprentice." Ming corrects you absentmindedly out of habit as she tries to think.

"Apprentice." You agree. "Traveling might help you with that. The Library might have what you want. If anything else it will give the opportunity to see new thing and learn. If not about alchemy then about yourself. It's not as great or glamourous as owning your own store but it's something that will be out of the norm for you. And I think that's what matters the most." Ming doesn't reply and chews her lower lip. "Ming..." You say gently. "I can't tell you what will happen but I can tell you what happened to me. Growing up, all my life, I was told I would be the Dragon Warrior. That it was who I was meant to be. Everyone who met me saw me as the one how would be chosen. In their eyes I was the one. So that's what I grew to believe. It's what drove me to become who I am today. Who I want to leave behind and redeem myself. I'm not saying that you'll follow my path but what I am saying is that everyone's perception of me changed my opinion of myself. I became what everyone else saw me as and it ruined me. If everyone sees you as just Wong's assistant then what does that mean for you?"

The booth goes quiet and Ming looks at you and at Xin Lan for a while before the rabbit speaks up. "What I think he's trying to say is that you've been looking for a way to prove yourself right? Well here it is. Your chance to go and find that. Because it might not come to you."

"Is there something else that is keeping you from traveling?" You ask. Ming tucks some hair behind her ear and shakes her head.

"Not...not really. I mean Mr. Wong sometimes needs help around the shop but he can just get anyone to do that. It's mostly just stocking shelves and working the front while he mixes medicines. It's just...it's a big change." She looks at you. "What if I fail? What if I travel with you and I don't find anything? Was it all for nothing then? Did I just waste my time?"

>How do you respond?
>Tell her that won't happen. She will find something.
>Say that you can't guarentee she'll find anything but at the very least she'll be able to practice medicine and hone her craft.
>Say that it's just a risk everyone takes when they travel.
>"Even nothing is something. From nothing there is infinite possiblity."
>Write in.

>>4433757
Those are questions I am asking myself. But so far I feel at least that my time searching has not been wasted.

(Probably better not to bring up disaster we’ve been causing when we did think we know what we were doing...)

>>4433773

+1

>>4433773
support

>>4433773
>>4433785
>>4433831
Going with this. Today seems a bit slow but it's wednesday so there's that. Writing.

>>4433773
Support. She would, at the very least, have some new experiences. They might provide just what she needs.

"Those are the questions I am asking myself. But so far I feel that my searching has not been wasted." You say. "At the very least, you'll have some new experiences. That might just be what you need to figure out what you want to do or look for." You say. Xin Lan nods.

"He might be right. A bit of wandering won't do you any harm. It's probably better than becoming complacent. Worst thing that you could do is sit around the shop and wonder what could have been or what might have happened if you joined us." They say. "You'll always be welcome to stop whenever you feel like too. It's not like you're bound to follow us for the rest of your life." Xin Lan gives Ming a smile. "And he's right you know, maybe you do need to break from your comfort zone to push forward. That is what martial arts is all about. Isn't it big guy?" They ask.

You nod. "Xin Lan is right. In Kung Fu, we strive to be better, to do better, to push ourselves past our limits. Often that means we need to do things we're unsure or comfortable about but we do it because the rewards are more than worth it. Perhaps, for you it's the same thing."

Ming goes quiet and thinks once more. The room is quiet save for the faint roaring of a crowd off in the distance. The streets below are empty now that the tournament has started up once more. Xin Lan's bowl clinks as they place their spoon down and you quietly empty yours. Finally she speaks up. "This boat you're taking...when does it leave?"

"In about 2 more days. Once the tournament is over." You reply. Ming nods.

"Then I'll have time to pack up and speak with the captain. See if she'll let me on board." She says standing up. "Can't let the day go by then. I'll have to tell Mr. Wong, I'll be leaving as well. Gonna be busy so I'm afraid I won't be able to catch up for lunch tomorrow."

"We'll just swing by the shop then." Xin Lan says. "See if things go well. Speaking of which, gonna have to speak with the lady herself as well. Can't be making promises of following you if I'm not allowed on the boat...not that it would stop me." They grin as they stand as well. The three of you say your goodbyes and head off to prepare for the journey in the last days you have.

---

Two days later...

"Get that anchor up! I want us out of here before the sun breaks the horizon! We have quite a ways to travel and I don't want your hangovers making me late!" Captain Daiyu shouts as she walks across the ship's deck. The crew shouts back a mirad of responses all of them acknowledging the orders as they scramble around getting things untied and hauling the anchor up. You find yourself double checking the ropes and cargo, making sure that they were all secure. The captain turns and speaks again. "It's good to have a doctor aboard. Even if it is only for a trip. I'm afraid most of us only know basic first aid so having a real medic is a change of pace." She says turning to Ming. Ming nods eagerly and makes a polite bow.

"Thank you for having me aboard on short notice ma'am. I'm Chan Ming." She says. "I'll do my best, though it seems like most of your crew is only suffering from minor alcohol overdose. So...it might not be the best thing to shout at them?" She suggests. The captain raises an eyebrow.

"Noted doctor." She replies. "However my crew knew exactly when we'd be shipping off. So it is their own fault that they're suffering from 'slight alcohol overdose' Isn't that right boys?!" She shouts once more.

The crew groans and replies with a weary but loud, "Yes ma'am!" Captain Daiyu grins.

"Sometimes tough love is all they need." She replies. "But I'll defer to you for anything else. Now...about your assistant..."

"I'm over here!" Xin Lan shouts and makes their way through the crew. They were wearing a small leather outfit, complete with gloves and a small mask akin to Ming's. "Bo Chyou at your service! I think I have just the thing for a hangover..." They mutter searching through their bag.

"No need for that Bo!" Ming says waving her hands. "Captain has it under control!"

"You friend is certainly...eager..." The captain muses. "If you don't mind, I'll have you two below deck. While I don't doubt your talents, I can't have you getting in the way of the deck crew as we leave. Shore's a bit rocky and I don't want us sinking within city limits." With that the captain turns back and begins barking orders. The three of you look at each other for a moment and then back to the city before getting back to work, eager for the journey ahead of you all. Ready to head out to the Sacred Library and whatever answers you find on the road...

(Gonna do a quick write up from the Jade Palace crew and we'll get back to the adventure. Sorry about that. Didn't expect an epilogue to be this long. Or maybe the next part is the epilouge. Again, sorry!)

>>4433996
what about the letter

>>4434040
It was written and turned in. I was going to show it's delivery from the Five's Point of view. Thought it would read better.

5 days ago...

"This is gonna be so aweome!" Po shouts jumping up, a feat unto itself for a panda, and flailing his fists in mock combat. "All the best fighters in China lining up to fight. Just for us!" Shifu sighs.

"Po. It is unbecoming of the Dragon Warrior to jump for joy like a school girl." He repeats for the 10th time. "As I've said, the Anvil of Heaven's recruitment tournment is not for us. We are merely acting as judges of character and talent." Po settles down a bit at that but still keeps his grin.

"I know but still! Think of all the awesome moves we'll see!" He says giddily. "Oh and don't forget the food! Soknan city is wild! Did you guys hear about their noodle bombs? It's-"

"A bowl of noodles tightly wound with another ball of noodles inside them." Monkey and mantis repeat having memorized it by heart at this point of the journey.

"Maybe you should focus on getting there Po." Viper says gently. "After all if you spend all day imaging in it. There won't be a surprise left." Po nods and remains quiet though a squeal of glee escapes his lips now and again.

Tigress, as always, remains focused on her task and instead walks next to Shifu to ask. "Master. Do you think this is wise? Tai Lung is still out there and we have heard of those attacks in the north. Shouldn't we be investigating those?" Shifu nods quietly.

"Yes. I mean I am aware of those facts but the Anvil of Heaven specifically asked for us. After letting Tai Lung escape, they only want the best in their ranks and require our expert opinion. Due to the fact that it is them that help us in patroling China and guarding against it's greatest enemies. It would be in our best interest to help them or else we may be spread to thin. I have sent Zeng to scout the north as well. Once we have his report we will decide how many of you to go there." Tigress seems to have something on her mind but refrains from speaking.

"Come on guys." Po speaks up once more. "Let's just take this time to enjoy ourselves. We might not get another chance. After all the Soknan city is known to be one of the safest...places in all of ...china?" He says slowly as the city slowly appears over the horizon, complete with smoke billowing out of it's center.

---

At full sprint the group cuts their journey from a few hours down to a few minutes. They all arrive at the blaze as the city's fire patrol worked to bring water to the blaze. A rabbit in a dress and bandages, doubt from combating the blaze, shouts over the din of the crowd, "Everyone get outta here! We got a fire! Come on! Nothing to see here!"

Shifu immediately begins to give out orders. "Tigress! Monkey! Po! Go put out that fire! Viper. Mantis. Crane. Circle the perimiter. Make sure no one gets back in. Warn everyone away." The group splits up to preform their duties. Po and his companions run from well to fire, carrying as many buckets to quench the flames often times tossing them between each other and leaping high into the air to reach the higher floors. Mantis and Viper spend their time patroling the streets and urging everyone away, losing track of the rabbit in the dress. All the while not noticing a large snow leopard racing back to the cemetary or a cat in her night clothes, covered in explosive powder, hurrying back to the apocathary district.

By the time the fire is put out, the Five and Dragon Warrior are covered in soot and weary. Shifu managed to bring some of the guards and Anvil members to help combat the blaze but their work wasn't done. "What do mean there are bigger problems?" Shifu asks as an guard leads them towards the tournment area.

"I'm sorry Shifu sir. But this morning we found...well we don't know exactly what it is sir. Just that he was chained up and gagged. There was a note on him saying he was responsible for a murder. Note also said something about Chi and screams that make you sick. Frankly I don't know what to make of it sir. But we figured we'd keep him in custody with the Anvil. They held Tai Lung and frankly we're not equipped if half the things the note said were true."

"How do you know if any of that is true?" Crane asks tucking his wings in as he lands. The guard nods in greeting.

"Well Master Crane...we don't. But judging by the explosion, and the fact we don't even know what he is. I say it's better safe than sorry."

"What do you mean you don't know what he is?" Tigress asks quietly. The guard shrugs as he leads them to the confinement area.

"It's as I said ma'am. But I think you'll understand once you see the guy. The note called him a...bat. Whatever that is. Furthermore it also says it's name is He Ling." The guard explains as he opens the door and steps aside. The 7 look at each other in confusion before each of them step into a brick room. More of a cell devoid of windows, beds, or table. In the center under candle light, sat a large bat chained to the floor on a chair. It looks up as the group approaches, it's mouth gagged, and doesn't try to struggle free. It merely looks at all of them in curiosity. "Anvil says when they tried to speak to it, it knocked out 4 of it's members with it's voice alone. Frankly I'm not sure if it's true or if they're trying to save face but I don't really want to find out."

The 7 approach the creature cautiously. "Master..." Viper speaks quietly, He Ling's ears flick in her direction as she speaks, "What exactly is that?" She asks. Shifu stares blankly at He Ling.

"A legend." He says. "Something even Oogway said he only heard about." He turns to the guard. "How did he get here?!" He snaps. The guard stands at attention.

"I don't know sir! We just found him tied to a tree, uncouncious and beat to hell sir!" The guard shouts. "Note says he can steal people Chi or something to that effect sir! It also claims it uses sound to track his foes and debilitate them sir!"

"Sounds like something out of a children's tale." Tigress says. Po bends down and whispers frantically at Shifu.

"Master. Is this guy for real? I thought only Oogway could fight with Chi!?" He whispers trying not to look at He Ling as if that would prevent him from hearing. "What do we do?"

"Po. He can hear you anyways." Shifu says quietly. "And yes, Oogway could fight using people's chi. However that doesn't mean he was the only one..." Shifu turns to Monkey. "Take his gag off." The guard's eyes widen.

"P-permission to leave sir?!" He asks. Shifu sighs and waves him away prompting the guards to run out of the room. Monkey looks leery at the prospect but does as he's told. The gag falls from the bat's mouth and He Ling opens wide...to take in a deep breath and sigh.

"So uncivilized." He says adjusting his neck. "Take it your friends of the white Tiger?" He asks bored. The crew looks at one another in confusion once more.

"Uhh...sorry dude. Don't know any white Tiger. You mean Tigress? I guess she can be a white blur when she's whooppin' butt but I mean come on-" Po starts but is shushed by Shifu.

"Who's the white tiger?" Tigress asks. He Ling grins, showing a row of pointy teeth.

"Well...this is an interesting development." He says. "I suppose it'd be only fair to show you. But I'm afraid you'll have to wait. He's quite high on my list you see. But I suppose I can push you all up first. After all...you all have so much talent to offer..." He says tearing out all the chains around him!
---

The battle only took a moment. From his position and surrounded by 5 of China's greatest warriors, He Ling didn't stand a chance especially after the beating he took form Tai Lung. Still the ensuing shriek, left all 7 of them winded. Doubling up on the ammount of chains and regagged, He Ling was left on the ground writhing against them. "Master what do we do with him?" Viper asks panting. "I've never seen anything like that." Shifu catches his breath. "For now we keep him locked up. We'll have to adjust his chains to prevent him from getting any leverage. We might have to..." He stays quiet for a brief moment. "We'll have to transport him to Tai Lung's prison. Or what's left of it."

"And that's it?" Po asks wiping the sweat off his brow. "Can't we do anything else?" Shifu shakes his head.

"Until I can get back and scour Ooway's archives, there's nothing more we can do. We must find out more information about him or we risk something like that happening again." Shifu replies. "For now we have to continue with our plan as intended."

"What? But that thing can escape any second now!" Mantis exclaims. Shifu nods.

"Mantis. Tigress. Viper. You three are the fastest. Stand guard here. We'll rotate ourselves around the clock. If the public gets wind of this there will be panic and it might just be enough for him to try an escape again." Shifu sighs. "As much as I hate this. We have to continue with the plan. Hopefully this will all end soon and we can find out what that thing is."

"Yes, master." The 5 reply. Po looks uncertain.

"You sure about this Shifu?" He asks.

"Yes. You most of all. Po...you're the Dragon Warrior now. That name carries weight. I have no doubt that you are a great warrior but you also have to realize that the people look up to you now. They hold expectations of you. And while you defy them in normal conventions, you still have to show them an image that gives them hope. That's why you have to be seen. Not only that but by being in public, you are also the last line of defense for them. Remember that and you won't fail them." Shifu says.

"I...I won't fail them master." Po says.

"I know you won't Po." Shifu replies.

----

----
Last day of the tournament

"Come one! Come all!" A pig shouts. "Come get an autograph and meet the Furious Five! Or be lucky enough to meet the Dragon Warrior! Just speaking to one of China's greatest heroes is a tale to pass down in itself!" A crowd gathers around Po and the Five each person screaming and clamboring to meet their idols.

"Tigress!"
"Viper!"
"Hey I found mantis! Mantis!"
"Hey up above! It's crane!"

Each of the Five dutifully signed the people's autographs and shook their hands. Even accepted any gifts from the crowd, despite how small or inexpensive the object was. "This is so awesome!" Po shouts shaking with glee as he shook hands and signed autographs. "Here you go little guy! Oh thanks!" Po says as he continues to lean forward trying to reach more and more people.

"Po be careful." Crane says as he lands to do some signing. "You're leaning a bit too..." He starts before the ground shakes from Po's impact."...much" Po groans and tries to right himself as a small child hurries over to him.

"Hey there little guy. Whatcha got there?" He asks as the girl holds up a large scroll case.

"It's a present." She says. "A nice man asked me to give it to you. He said you were friends with a man named Shifu but none of the five are called that. Do you know him Mister?" Po takes the scroll case confused.

"Yeah..." He says absentmindedly. "Yeah I know him. Who was this guy again?" He asks. The little girl shrugs.

"I don't know. He just said to give it to you. He gave me some coins for it!" She says happily holding them out. "If I give them to you, can I have an autograph please?" Po looks around but doesn't seem to find anyone of note before looking shocked at the offer of money for his signature.

"Whoa there little guy uhh girl. These autographs are free. Specially for a kung fu master like you." He says patting the girl's head. "Now. How many do you need? Five? 7? Better make it 10 just to be sure..." The group continue to do their duty of mingling with the public, unbeknownst to them that a tall snow leopard watched them from a distance in the alley. A rabbit seems to fade out of the shadows, arm in a sling, and speaks.

"They got your letter then?" They ask. The snow leopard nods.

"Yeah..." He says quietly.

"We better head off then. Captain wants a word with the crew and us. Better not keep her waiting or she just might throw us off board for not listening." The rabbit says melding back into the shadows. The leopard nods. His gaze lingers on the Five for a moment longer before he looks away and he too fades away into the shadows.
---

That night

Shifu paces anxiously in his room. Tomorrow was the day they would be transfering He Ling to his new prison. Tomorrow was the day anything could go wrong. They had aquired or rather comissioned an iron cart to use to transport the man. But the series of events so far had left him anxious and unable to sleep. First was the fire, supposedly caused by an explosion that lead them to a creature he thought was just a myth. Then they found a man, supposedly an contestant, withered away. His youth supposedly stolen and the fact corroborating the note left with He Ling. Finally, just a few hours ago, the prize money to this whole tournament was stolen. Gone. And most in furiatingly, without a trace or clue. It was as if the Gods themselves has conspired against him. Shifu sighs and sits down.

"Inner peace..." He beings to chant but there was one more thing that was nagging him. And it lay on his desk. A large scroll case that Po had given him. Details were scarce, as he expected them to be considering the panda's inablity to focus on the matter at hand when excited but the most he got out of it was that some stranger had asked a child to deliver it to him. "Inner peace..." He continues and sneaks a glance at the case. It was there. Plain and simple. No one had ever gifted him anything. He wasn't one of the five. He didn't show up for public meetings and he liked it that way. Less attention and more time to himself. And yet, there it was. Someone had reached out to him. Was it a trap? Couldn't be. No one would be foolish to try and get something past the Five. If anything they would try and attack them. "Inner peace..." Was it a ransom note? Some kind of threat? If so it would be his duty to read it. "Inner...Inner..." It could be prank. Some child's idea of trying to be clever. "..peace..." Shifu says letting out a frustrated sigh. Well...let's get this over with..." he thinks to himself, standing up and moving to grab the scroll case. With a quick twist of the cap he holds the case to one side and out drops a large scroll. Unfurling it, it reads:

By the time you read this, or so I hope, I will be long gone. My journey has not been the longest nor do I think it is close to its end but I felt that perhaps you deserve to know what has been happening. I’m not the best of writers or artists but I hope that they will make do.

In the beginning, I was still full of rage. Angry at what I had done, angry at what I had become. Then it became shame and perhaps even fear. I ran as far as I could. To get away from you and maybe to try to get away from myself and hide in anonymity.

As Shifu pulls more out of the scroll, he finds the image of a small village followed by what looked like a small camp.

My first task was to keep myself fed and to do that I put the skills that had placed me in this predicament to use. I became a bounty hunter. I hunted after a group of bandits that had taken merchants captive. I am ashamed to admit I fell prey to my anger once more and tried to twist it into some form of justice. While I managed to free everyone. I still felt hollow. It was there I met a man named Luo Guanzhong. He was some kind of storyteller and as we traveled he spoke to me in a way no one else had before.

An image of a small wagon caravan full of wolves follows.

He spoke to me like a person. Not as someone wishing to placate my ego nor someone afraid of me. Perhaps he pitied me. Or maybe he saw something of himself in me. But he encouraged me in my goal for redemption and pointed out a path to me. A path I cannot tell you in fear of you following me but I wish that path will lead me back to you. On that path I came across a village. Seeing their cowardice as they attacked a woman, intervened. Her name was Bao, and I will always regret what I did to her. I had failed her. She had tried to save her father but in doing so incurred the wrath of the villagers. They tried to have their revenge but angered the forest spirits. I attempted to do what I only knew and fought back against the forest. I failed and so Bao and I ran into the forest to try and placate the spirits. The villagers followed and in my attempts to scare them villagers into submission, Bao gave up her freedom to save us all. Now she is trapped as a priestess. Occasionally I think I can feel her in the wind as she promised. I’m not sure if this is my punishment or if it is her way of thanking me.

Images of a woman, shrouded in blue slowly scroll up as Shifu pulls the scroll apart to read on.

Finally, my journey has lead me here. To this very city. The tale is a long one and maybe I can tell it to you in full should I succeed. But I have encountered many things here. I almost succumbed to my anger once more and threatened someone who wronged me. I’m not sure why but they have chosen to forgive me. I met someone who was kind to me. She treated, like Luo, me like a normal person. She offered her help when I didn’t ask for it. I, in turn, helped her when she needed it. These two have now become my companions and will be traveling with me. I’m unsure if they are my friends but I hope that one day I can see them as that. Or maybe what I really hope is that they see me as one.

I’m not sure how to transition to this. What I want to say is. I’m sorry father. I’m sorry for how I turned out. I’m sorry for destroying the only meaningful relationship I had and for destroying what could have been your family. I’m sorry that in no uncertain terms, I let my pride and greed destroy your passion for martial arts. Sorry that I may have crippled you forever or worse killed you. I do not know how I can attone or apologize for this but that is why I’m traveling. I hope to come back to you as a new man. One that you can be proud to call your son.[/i]

Shifu stares at the parchment, his hands trembling. For a moment his vision blurs before it fades and droplets splatter on the scroll. It all seemed to click now. Luo’s mention of a friend who helped him escape, the village near the bamboo forest now celebrating a harvest unlike any other. “Tai Lung…” Shifu quietly whispers as his voice trembles. He drops the scroll and dashes off to throw the window open. Cold wind blasts his face and blows out the candles as he desperately stares off into the city. Hundreds of lights and buildings lay before his gaze and perhaps somewhere...was his son.

>End of the Soknan City Arc

(Phew. That too more than I expected. I'm sorry guys. Tried to get everything you wanted in the epilogue and it kind of ran away from me. I think I'll give you guys a break from text and let you speak. Tomorrow we continue on our journey. So...boat adventures anyone?)

very nice, thanks for running, you really nailed the feeling I have about Bao. It really is our greatest failure on the road to redemption

>>4434231
RIP Bao is stuck in Priestess duty for life.

>>4434211

AAwwwww yeeaaaahhhh!!!

Great arc! Seafaring adventures await!!!

>>4434211
That was good. You go, OP!

>>4434231
>>4434240
I dunno, she seems pretty content with the outcome. I may just be projecting though.

>>4434211
Thanks for writing, i Like your Style

>>4434211
boat adventures yes

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>>4434211
Great update, OP!
>boat adventures anyone?
YO HO HO

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>>4434674
oh fuck you have me in pieces with that pic

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>>4434674

thank you my good memer.

Alright getting to writing. Glad you enjoyed the arc cap.
>>4434674
Pirate Lung is best pirate.

I also forgot about wanting to sharpen the sword. Well shit. I'll put it up as the option for votes as I write. You can find a blacksmith who can sharpen it once more. The problem is the merchant who originally had it made used some pretty bad materials for it weapon wise. As a ornament or display weapon, its absolutely beautiful. For it to be used consistently in combat, the metal is pretty bad and as such will chip and break far easier than a regular sword. He can sharpen it for you easily but it won't retain its edge for very long. He'll offer to buy it off of you and you can use the proceeds to get an actual blade but that's up to you. When asked if he can reforge it, the smith will hesitate and say that he can attempt to but he most likely won't be able to keep the jade dragon inscription in the middle and that it will take much longer to do so. Longer than you have until your boat leaves so you'd have to return for it. There's other smiths far more talented out there that could probably do both, reforge it and keep the design. So the choice is up to you.

>What do you do?
>Ask the blade to just have it's edges sharpened.
>Have the blade reforged completely.
>Sell it and buy yourself a new weapon.
>Keep the blade as is, and look for someone else or and alternative method of sharpening it. I mentioned in the first thread that I was also open to the idea/suggestions of sharpening it mystically because this is a wuxia style game.
>some other suggestion (write in)

>>4435039
>Keep the blade as is, and look for someone else or and alternative method of sharpening it.
Let’s not sell a gift unless we’re desperate.

>>4435039
>keep the blade as is. It was a give.
>commission another blade or outright buy a premade blade.

>>4435039
>>Keep the blade as is, and look for someone else or and alternative method of sharpening it.

>>4435069

+1

>>4435039
>Keep the blade as is, and look for someone else or and alternative method of sharpening it
If it happens, it happens. For now it has sentimental value and we rely on fist and claw anyway.

A soft breeze blows past your face and the sails flap as you help adjust the sails. The wind feels warm and welcoming and you look up to look around, only to find nothing as always. "Pull!" You hear the Bohai shout. "We got a storm coming! If anyone leaves the main sails up, I'll make sure that rough water will be the least of your worries!" The rest of the sailors grunt as they work to pull the giant sails up. You snap back to attention and help with the ropes. To you, the sails were like blankets compared to your time in prison but you adjust your strength to allow the others feel like there was some weight to it while preserving their strength. Up on the masts, you expect to see Xin Lan as they tended to hang around at night though you suspect they did it while no one was looking thanks to their broken arm. Instead you see a snake slithering around and tying the sails down.

Behind you Ming is kneeling next to another sailor, an old boar, as she ties a bandage around his knee. "Thank ye lass. This old thing always acts up during the rain." He grunts. "It's how we know when it's going to rain." He adds with a grin. Ming give him a plesant smile as she finishes tying up the bandages.

"Well weather forecast or not. Keep these bandages on. They'll help keep your knee from locking up. I'll have some more soaking in herb juice below deck incase the pain starts to flare up." She says standing up. "If it does start to rain, I'm going to have to ask you to stay below deck. I don't want you slipping and ruining it further. Doctor's orders." She says looking him straight in the eye.

"I make no promises miss." The boar says standing up. "If the ship needs me. I'm there. Half of these boys can't even do a single workload I can. I'm surprised the ship is even running." The man looks around. "But this is my ship. I've been on her for 20 years and I haven't regretted it a day." The boar dusts his pants. "I'm just bothering you a this point lass. I better get back to my post." Ming nods and cleans up the cut up bandages from the ground before heading back down underdeck.

By the time you had all the sails done, it was noon and the sun was partly obscured by grey clouds. The wind had picked up somewhat and was no longer welcoming but rather chilly and foreboding. Still, you now had some time free. Without sails, there wasn't much to do in terms of chores leaving you with time to yourself.

>What do you do?
>Go see what the rest of the crew are up to. Normally you'd spend your free time training but on a boat full of strangers that might be an issue.
>Ask Bohai for more sailing instruction. Over the last few days, you've spent some of your free time being taught how to sail a ship. Maybe Bohai has some spare time to teach you a bit more.
>Find Ming. Ming has spent most of her days tending to minor injuries and trying to keep track of which food is spoiling. Perhaps she has some spare time to talk.
>Find Xin Lan. Your rabbit friend is mostly see trailing Ming and keeping up apperances as a nurse though you haven't seen much of them today.
>Talk to Captian Daiyu. With the storm coming in she might have something for you to do.
>Write in.

>>4435145
>Talk to Captian Daiyu. With the storm coming in she might have something for you to do.
And if there is no work to be done or we have some free time after,
>Find Xin Lan. Your rabbit friend is mostly see trailing Ming and keeping up apperances as a nurse though you haven't seen much of them today.

>>4435190
support

>>4435190
>>4435203
Going to talk to the captain first. If there's nothing extra look for Xin Lan. Writing.

>>4435190
this

You look up into the grey sky and decide on checking up with the captain first. If a storm was going to hit, you wanted to make sure everything was ready before you decided to lounge around. You find the captain at the back of the ship next to Bohai who is maintaining course. Daiyu lifts a spyglass to her eye and speaks aloud. "Anything I can help you with sailor?"

You decide not to mention that you technically weren't sailor just part of her crew and nod. "I was just wondering if there was anything left to do. Bohai mentioned we were heading for a storm. Want to make sure there's nothing that needs preparing before heading downstairs...ma'am." You say.

"Man after my own heart." Daiyu mutters as she continues to look out into the distance. She lowers the spyglass and colapses it. "No. There's nothing left to be done. All we can do is ride it out. Granted I was hoping we could hit port first and ride it out there but it looks like luck isn't on ourside. We're still about a days away from hitting our first stop and the storm is threatening to hit us before that." She says turning to you. "Best you head below deck and get something to eat. If the rain hits us tonight, then you're in for a long shift." You give the captain a nod and head back down below deck. The inside of the boat is rather packed as most of the crew sat around, mostly on barrels and crates to chat. Tucked away in a corner were a few sleeping cots and hammocks. Mostly used on rotation for the crew when one portion was working and the other wasn't. You, Ming and Xin Lan has decided to keep to a corner farther front. The area was smaller than the back and cooler due to less people being there but it was a worth while trade for slightly more privacy.

You choose to go there to look for your rabbit friend rather than mingle with the rest of the crew. You don't find them there but after a few moments they seemingly fade out of the shadows as they always do. "Hey." They say as a way of greeting. "Done working for the day?"

You nod. "Captain says that all there's left to do is wait for the storm to hit." Xin Lan frowns and offers you a mug of ale and a hunk of jerky.

"Snuck some out of the food stores when no one was looking. Not that I had too. Everything here is so ill guarded I could probably walk out with everything and they'd never notice. If you want something else just give a heads up...and don't tell Ming." They whisper. "But anyways. A storm? Bleh, always prefered to keep my feet on solid ground for this reason. The sea is too ill tempered. No good places to hide out." You take the food from Xin Lan and drink.

"There's not much we can do." You reply. "How's the arm?"

"Better. I can move it alright but Ming says I still have a bit before I can lift like normal. Said I should wait or I'll risk breaking it again." They reply. "Better listen to her. I kind of enjoy having two good arms."

>What do you want to talk to Xin Lan about?
>Ask them what they have been up to recently. You've been busy working to keep up with Ming and Xin Lan.
>Tell Xin that their next stop is about a day away. Maybe they have some idea of what to do when you dock.
>Ask Xin how Ming has been. They've been busy playing nurse.
>Ask Xin what he wants to do on your travels. Now that you have companions it could be good to know what their goals are.
>Write in.

>>4435382
>Ask them what they have been up to recently. You've been busy working to keep up with Ming and Xin Lan.
>Ask Xin what he wants to do on your travels. Now that you have companions it could be good to know what their goals are.

>>4435383
>>4435382

>>Ask them what they have been up to recently. You've been busy working to keep up with Ming and Xin Lan.
>>Ask Xin what he wants to do on your travels. Now that you have companions it could be good to know what their goals are.

>>4435383
Does Xin have any long term goals?
>pet the bunny.

Gonna grab some lunch. Be back to count the votes later. About 30 mintues.

>>4435383
support

>>4435394
>>4435405
>>4435425
>>4435461
Taking these options. Writing.

Sitting down you take a bite of the jerky. The meat is tough as most food is now that you've been out at sea for a while. It was still filling but after spending a week in the city, you can't help but admit that you miss the Jade Palace's food. You finish your stolen meal and ask,"Since we're traveling...is there anything you want to do?" You ask. Xin Lan looks at you curiously.

"You mean besides 'aquiring' expensive things to sell off? Granted money is easier to get..." They start but you shake your head.

"No I mean what are your goals? Long term. Ming wants to discover something to make her stand out." You elaborate. Xin Lan goes quiet and gives you a long look. You can hear the faint sound of rain as it hits the boat. Then they smile and shrug. "Nothing. I just want some nice loot. Traveling with you is just easier you know? Besides, what Ming won't know won't hurt her. It'll keep us fed." They lie. You frown but decide not to persue it for now.

"So then what have you been up to? Haven't seen you following Ming for a while." You ask, deciding to change the subject. Xin Lan shrugs.

"Can't say a whole lot." They admit. "Not that I don't mind playing the role of nurse but sooner or later someone is gonna ask me to do something a bit too advanced for me." They whisper. "Honestly, I'm keeping out of the way. Tried to haggle my way into working as a food dealer of sorts but the captain has a tight grip on her crew. Can't really do much. Although I have heard rumors you know." You raise an eyebrow.

"Rumors?" You ask.

Xin Lan nods. "Nothing too good. Most of it is the crew oogling the captain, Ming, or me." They shrug. "You'd be surprised how open lipped men on a ship are at night when they think no one is around."

"I'm guessing that includes you?" You joke.

"Hey, I don't count as either." Xin Lan replies with a wink. "But seriously, some of the guys are talking about the storm. They say it's the biggest they've ever seen. Also that it's coming too fast. Most of the time they reach port before the rain hits if they can catch it this early." The rabbit sits down and crosses their legs. "Honestly? I think we got a bit of bad luck. We're in the middle of the sea. Of course it seems like it's gonna hit too fast. No one ever wants to be out in the ocean during a storm. Although..." They think.

"Yes?" You say urging them on.

"I dunno. Some of the crew have mentioned seeing something at night. Granted they've been completely sloshed." They say. "Lights off in the distance. Bobbing and moving. Normally I think it's just them being drunk but still..." They ponder a bit more.

"You believe them?" You ask. Xin Lan shakes their head.

"Not just that. I've seen them too." They say. You're about to ask for more information but the doors to the deck are thrown open. "All hands on deck! Storm's hit us earlier than we thought! Get off yer asses we need everyone up here!"

>What do you do?
>Ask Xin Lan to eleborate on what he means.
>Run up to the deck to start helping everyone.
>Look for Ming. Now that you think about it, you haven't seen here down here with everone else.
>Write in.

>>4435593
>Run up to the deck to start helping everyone.

We are now a pirate(technically), as such the ship and crew comes first in ALL scenarios.

>>4435593
>>4435593
>>4435593
could be some kind of serpent fish person.

>>4435787

+1

>>4435593
>Run up to the deck to start helping everyone.
oh fuck where's Ming, but we gotta help everyone first

>>4435787
>>4435800
>>4435840
>>4435843
Gotta go help the rest of the crew. Writing.

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You give Xin Lan a look and they urge you on. "Go. I'll tell you horror stories later. Shout if you need me." They say. You nod and rush up to the deck. Angry winds pull at your clothes and try to push you around as heavy rain strikes you with the force of small rocks. The boat underneath is slick with water and your training kicks in as you run over the thin layer of water itself rather than the boat in an effort to not slip. "We need to open the sails!" A crew member shouts.

"Are you mad?!" Another screams. "The wind will snap the masts in two!"

"Is this your first time on a ship boy?!" The boar shouts. "We're not opening them all the way! We need to open them up partially to help us get steady! So unless you want to practice swimming in a storm, get your ass over to a rope and start pulling!" You move over to help but the boar stops you. "Lad. You're one of the best wet behind the ears greenhorn I've seen. So I'm trusting you with untying the sails from the masts up there. Jiao-Long can't make it up there in the rain." He says refering to the snake. He hands you a knife. "You might need this." You choose not to argue your position and go to help the crew. You put the knife in your teeth and run at the first mast with the crew surrounding it. Lightning and thunder crash through the sky as you run, blinding you momentarily but not deterring you from your goal. You grab on and claw your way up. In a few seconds your find yourself sitting on the mast and crawling along it. The ropes holding on are slick with the rain and slip from your grasp before you become accustomed to the texture and you untie it on one end and then the other. The ship bucks to one side as the sail opens up partially and catches the wind before the crew below manages to pull on the rope and slowing its opening. You resist the urge to simply leap to the other mast or straight down and instead slide down the mast to make your way back down.

You run to help the crew and pull the rope to hold the sail in place and tie the slack directly to the mast before going to the next one. As you climb, lightning flashes and in the light you see Ming struggling to stay on her feet on the slippery deck and strong winds. She clings to the railing on the side of the boat as she tries to make her way to the back of the ship where the Captain is trying to steer. You can barely make out her mouth moving as you think she's trying to shout above the winds and rain.

Another crash of thunder and everything seems to happen at once. The rope holding the sail snaps suddenly, causing it to furl open fully and knocking the crew holding it's rope around as they're caught by surprise. You see one of the younger members of the fly through the air and off the side of the ship! The sudden opening of the sail causes the ship to lurch once more and Ming's feet slip from underneath her. She falls to the ground and slides off the boat but manages to cling to the railings. The sail, now catching the full force of the wind pushes the ship and causes it to slowly turn, right into the waves and it begins to take on some water.

>What do you do?
>Leap off the ship. Jump into the ocean to save the crewman that fell in. Even with his experience, swimming in this raging ocean is nearly impossible for the average man.
>Jump down and rescue Ming. She's the weakest on this entire ship and you're not sure if her grip can hold in this cold rain.
>Leap down from the mast and use your full strength to pull the rope on your own and steady the sails. If the ship sinks, you're all dead. You just need to hope you can do it in time if you want to save the others.
>Write in.

(Cliff hanger time! I gotta call it a night. I also will admit I have no experience sailing in any capacity. So I just wrote what sounded cool? Sorry to any pirate anons.)