>>5544110

In spite of feeling an almost religious sense of awe just from holding the object of your distant inheritance, you had no time to study it or even open it past the cover. Since you had only managed to clean it enough to read its name when the moth spirit came up to your side

"Anjing isn't patient today, she wishes to see you immediately. It seems we had the ill fortune of interrupting her sleep and she is in a somewhat sour mood" The girl meekly explained, not wishing to demand you to move out of fear of offending you "So if you would deign to her request and follow me to her studio, so the two of you may discuss business? She will not leave the comfort and safety of her home, you see. Otherwise I would have asked her to meet you at the gate, and thank you for your generous purchase and continued patronage, as one should do when a new, wealthy customer falls into their lap like a meat bun falling from the sky!"

"Oh, well I didn't even think I'd get to meet this reclusive artist directly, at all, and would just have to hand you a list of my desires!" You shout cheerfully, patting the fretting moth on her fuzzy head "I'm overjoyed the artist herself is granting me an audience in her own abode. Spiders are territorial, so this shows her gratitude well enough on its own. Well, enough at least for me not to feel insulted and take offense, Heh-Heh-Heh"

The spirit nodded, but said nothing more as they guided you through the maze of webs and bones that formed the garden in front of the manor, and then through the labyrinth of hallways and rooms, with peeling green wall paper and defaced portraits and web and dust ruined landscape paintings drooping from the rot and water logged walls. The air was damp and very unpleasant, and the rugs squelched under your feet. And judging from the feeling of that wetness, you knew they weren't soaked in water and burdened mildew alone. The place stunk of decaying flesh, rotten wood and wet dust, and every where you looked, hordes of spiders of all sizes and types scurried about, so thickly they seemed almost like a single organism surging through the cracks and crevices of the walls and floors.

The corpses and bloody bones hanging from the ceiling by webs, grew fresher the deeper you went into the manor just as the manor itself became more well maintained and cared for. Until you reached a lit room, fire light pouring through the paper screen separating it from the rest of the bone strewn maze of winding halls and oddly sectioned rooms. Two demons, still living and squirming, were bound to the wall on either side, lanterns held in their hands and deep bite marks in sides, oozing pale greenish white ichor and coagulated blood.
Cont

>>5544112

And behind the paper screen, a gargantuan shadow moved, clicking chitinous limbs stretched out, and mandibles snapped as Lady Spider Demon revealed herself...as much as she was comfortable doing. She remained behind the screen, her shadow facing side ways as she straightened her eight limbs and lifted up her head.

The moth bowed and scurried away, leaving you alone before the lady of the house. Sighing, you decided not to press her boundaries and take on the quiet humiliation of sitting on the cushion set just in front of her room.

"M..my. My friend tells me you wished to place a custom o..order?' She squeaked shyly, sounding on the verge of suffering a panic attack. Immediately your mind leapt to Yuyi and you hand to bite the back of your knuckle to keep from laughing from the mental image of a giant spider with her face in place of its own

"That is why I've come here and disturbed your solitude" You say kindly bowing your head "I warn you though, its going to be a rather large order...Uh, well that's actually putting it as lightly as I can. I love your work, and the fabric you use, so I wish to empty your stores of silk, cloth, fur and leather"

"O..oh! She said you were a w..well to..to do" She stammered "That's wonderful! I've been meaning to fix thi..this palace up...it fell into a bit of disarray before I moved here, you see. This is truly...w..wonderful. Please! State you d..demands"

"I might be a beast by nature, but I know artists such as yourself don't like be leashed to another's vision. While some of what I'm looking to buy will need to be made precisely to my order, the rest you have my permission to indulge your creativity and alter the designs whims" You say, and briefly think the girl is dying or choking on a previous meal before you realize she is crying with joy

"C..continue!" She shouted, or more spat, like if she only just remembered the two of your were talking business "St..starting with what needs to made exactly as you specify"

"Well, I am the head of a sect of cultivators. But we have no banners, even though I've already thought of and designed a fitting heraldry for it. And that's because, I refuse to have the symbol of my sects power be made of subpar materials and woven by novice craftsmen!"

"Do you..have a r..reference for this symbol? Or could you describe it to me?" She asked haltingly, like you'll yell at her for asking a necessary question

"Of course. I had a few robes adjusted to see how it'd look when worn" You say, tossing one of the robes you had borrowed from Lanfen over to the Anjing-Yinshi "And speaking of robes, I'd also like to order many Daoist robes, Red like my fur, and Pink as well, since it'd be boring other wise, and my hide has some spots of pink as well! And Sashes of the same color! Oh and Cloaks as well! And those will be the last of the ones you'll have to design to match my desires exactly!"
Cont

>>5544117

"Oh..a.are those for you and your students?" She asked curiously, making small talk as she pulled examined the robe by holding it up with her two front legs

"Some of them will be, some will be for me, and I expect those ones to be of finer materials. However, I don't intend to set in place a dress code, always thought it was kind of cultish how the other sects make all of their disciples dress nearly exactly the same" You explain "Never liked conformity, you see. So, I'll tell you about my lovely students, their looks, personalities, their three beliefs, as much as you can stomach to hear so you can make the rest of their wardrobe as you think would suit them, as individuals"

"And t..their measurements and yours?" She asked giddily as her bulk shuddered from just how delighted she was to be paid to express her own ideas in her art for once, which did bring a smile to your face

"Of course, Of course!" you laugh, clapping your hands and sharing in her happiness "But, I'll do that after I tell you what else I want! I need dress! Two kinds. One extravagant, imperial fashion mixed with the fur of beasts to make a proper wardrobe for a princess of the wild like myself, complete with jewelry and accessories like any imperial princess would wear. Not a concubine! I intend to rule by my own authority after all! And a second of humbler but still fancy dress, made with a cheap but still good batch of silk. For a friend of mine. She is much less confident than I am, and would be scared to wear anything too daring or expensive, and make those in the usual fashion of girls, not from the yellow springs or heavens, just ordinary women, if you would"

"I...I see. Well that gives me quite a bit of freedom in how to design both of those sets of dresses, ther..there are quite a few different styles of imperial fashion and dress etiquette as you w..well know" She said happily as she audibly gulped "Uh..co..could you undress and come in, I ...I need to measure you to figure out how much silk I'll need to make your clothes"

"Of course, of course!" You say, slipping your new white, robes off of your shoulders "I'll have a pig spirit who owes me a favor deliver the measurements of my students, you might know him, he served the Crow King until...recent advents"

"Oh r..right, humans can't..li..live down here, I forgot!" She chattered back nervously "I..also didn't expect you to undress that willingly"

"What do I have to be ashamed of?" You asked boastfully, smiling smugly as you proudly sauntered forward "There's no part of me that isn't more beautiful than any of the stars in the sky, but before you look upon the work of art that is my body, I have one last item I wish to commission"

"Y..yes?" The now very flustered spider demon asked

"Make me armor from your silk. That can transform to fit my natural feline form and the one standing before you now, if its possible. If not, make it for my cat body" You say

The air in the room becomes heavy with tension

>>5544125

"I will only give my silk if you give me a fortune enough to rebuild my home and pay off my parasites of brothers and sisters to leave me alone!" She snapped angrily

"Alright" You sneer, meeting her threat as a challenge "here! Twenty souls, undirtied by mortal sins and transgressions"

She then rolled over onto her back, her legs stiffening in the air as she fainted at the sight of all of the caged ghost lights you poured out of your Dimensonal gourd.

"I take it there'll be no problem then?" You tease, skipping up to her and tapping a finger on your chin, eyes aglow with mischief.

"Not at all!" She shouted happily, rolling back over to her side, looking up at you with eight pink eyes "I'd be happy to make it for you! Not like I'm using my silk for anything anyways! As soon as I get all the measurements, I'll have your clothes order done within a week at most! The banners, sashes, and cloaks will be done within three days time! And I'll personally buy the jewelry and accessories for your formal dresses! I wouldn't want to give my best customer anything but the best, after all! N..now please stand still, so I can get your measurements"

You grin ear to ear as she uses a piece of sticky silk to measure and record your limbs and sizes.

What do you do, now that your order is placed and you've found the answer to Yujijiao's plight, Huanliuxue?

>Go back to the mortal realm and hear the report of Siwang's and Fu's mission into the dusk marshes

>look for some trouble, to test out the basic martial strikes, stances and techniques in the Beast Saint Doctrine, to see if you can incorporate them in your own feline/ ghostly martial art (Martial Training. DC 60)

>Stay around, still nude, to chat with Anjing and try to get to know the skittish spider better, since her Yuyi like personality has made you rather fond of her, already.

>Steal some of Lady Spider Demon's silk and venom, to give to Feiqing to use to make deadly weapons and artifacts (Stealth Trial. DC 20) [Bad Karma]

>Write in

>>5544127
>Stay around, still nude, to chat with Anjing and try to get to know the skittish spider better, since her Yuyi like personality has made you rather fond of her, already.

>Ask her for more info on her more vile brothers and sisters. You are looking to test some new skills against someone, and you may as well benefit your new friend in doing so. If not against her brothers and sisters, then perhaps some of their ill-tempered lackeys. (Martial Training. DC 60)

>Ask if you may sample some of her venom and bring back some of her unspun silk. Your own master is an alchemist of great skill, and you have learned much from her. Such materials will assist in our own ascent. Perhaps some of your cur may be used in trade? Perhaps she will be grateful enough to simply give it to you for asking so graciously.

General way I see it is we talk with her, ask about the silk and venom, and if she refuses then we roll on for a bit before cycling back to ask about beating up some demons that are troubling her. If she agreed to the silk/venom, it’s a favor for her being generous. If she refused, it’s a guilt trip. Either way, we earn favor and test our claws. Win-win.

>>5544127
. . . how could you even suggest stealing from such an adorable creature Grandfather?

>Stay around, get to know her better
>Test out strikes, stances and techniques in the Beast saint Doctrine [dc 60]

I feel like we should do this swiftest. I also want to do it so that I can get a black BOLDED text outlining what the saint doctrine does so I can update the pastebin.
Then, once we've IMPROVED
>Return to the mortal realm to get our report.

Nothing else is really needed from hell. And Yuji can get to work cultivating.

>>5544163
Martial brother is cunning. I'd not be opposed to testing our claws upon bastards.

>>5544168
To clarify, I don't care about the venom or silk for our own uses. It's probably better to wait for her to warm to us naturally.

But her family, if she wants some of them roughed up, will be fantastic targets and further indebt her to us.

>>5544163
Seems like a good plan to me, indeed why steal what you can buy, either with souls or for a favor of fraticide?

>>5544166
We will eventually need to find an auction for the soul of the emperor while the memory is fresh, but that can be delegated to piggy when he returns to deliver the measurements to spider-yuyi.

I advise caution however if mama spider were to object to a bit of killing
She might end up being stronger than the crow was.

>>5544194
Caution is always great to have.

>>5544193
Agreed actually. I’m not too invested in gathering materials, so I don’t care about stealing it. But I have no shame in asking! She may say no, but I think we’re at the point where she won’t throw us out.

>>5544194
And why buy what you can possibly get for free?

If I end up starting a fight with another demonic lord, I apologize for nothing. It’s just another notch in our legacy.

>>5544242
Nothing against it actually, Demon lord tusslin' is a time honored tradition after all..
Just be prepared
Nosing around after her family may be a bit touchy but she probably needs to vent about it, besides speaking of families, was it ever told what happened to huan's?
Usually cats come in litters so were there any other around from hers? I don't remember.

And another question
What do the demons do with souls?
Eat them for power?
Torture for fun?
Just look at the pretty lights?

I'm asking because it seems to me like soul trafficking should logically have repercussions on karma but apparently not even pure souls are protected.

Kicking an orphan is bad karma but selling their souls to demons is not?

>>5544127
>Chat with Anjing
>Test the Beast Saint Doctrine
It’s been far too long since we’ve gotten some training of our own.

>>5544127
>look for some trouble, to test out the basic martial strikes, stances and techniques in the Beast Saint Doctrine, to see if you can incorporate them in your own feline/ ghostly martial art (Martial Training. DC 60)

>>5544163
>>5544127
Ahh trips in hell always end up interesting. +1

The last thread isn't archived
>>5544127
>Steal some of Lady Spider Demon's silk and venom, to give to Feiqing to use to make deadly weapons and artifacts (Stealth Trial. DC 20) [Bad Karma]

>>5544127

>Go back to the mortal realm and hear the report of Siwang's and Fu's mission into the dusk marshes

Go back for now, check on our students and study ancient tomes. I'm also a bit nervous about Yuji dallying through hell by herself so we should get back to her quickly.

>>5544488
https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/2022/5501769/
It got archived a while ago because it was a victim of someone mislabeling threads on suptg and the owner/mods had to manually relabel it

>>5544568
That explains it

Right, updated our wealth tally.

Though I do have to ask >>5544488 why bother stealing from Lady Anjing when we plan to bust up her siblings. We can steal their venom from their still bleeding mouths.

Y’know, I kinda wish we could find a way of making spider lady and Yuyi into pen pals. We’d need to teach Yuyi how to read and write, but it’d could be the start of a good relationship as they vent to each other about the assholes (family for Anjing, Huan for Yuyi) in their life, offer advice, and share bits of their professions.

All so we could inevitably introduce them somehow and see Yuyi scream at the giant spider that no doubt will wrap her up and eat her.

We are a benevolent princess. But we are still a cat, and thus find joy in the suffering of others.

>>5544163
>>5544127

Support. Let's test our claws and maybe grab some useful materials in the process.

>>5544127
>>Stay around, still nude, to chat with Anjing and try to get to know the skittish spider better, since her Yuyi like personality has made you rather fond of her, already.
>Go back to the mortal realm and hear the report of Siwang's and Fu's mission into the dusk marshes

>>5544127
>>look for some trouble, to test out the basic martial strikes, stances and techniques in the Beast Saint Doctrine, to see if you can incorporate them in your own feline/ ghostly martial art (Martial Training. DC 60)
>>Stay around, still nude, to chat with Anjing and try to get to know the skittish spider better, since her Yuyi like personality has made you rather fond of her, already.

>>5544127
Vote roundup. Not as needed as last time, but why not?

Votes - 11
aLZIAV+F
WONtuIio
dxhQ6mr0
7UgGYwfH
u7AhlJrf
lIgsNHcJ
nBVtJOwA
DLhMx1Xi
ZT4Lal/5
yPgfHj+G
oKzyjg0/

Stick around - 8
aLZIAV+F
WONtuIio
dxhQ6mr0
7UgGYwfH
lIgsNHcJ
ZT4Lal/5
yPgfHj+G
oKzyjg0/

>Look for trouble to test the manual - 8
aLZIAV+F
WONtuIio
dxhQ6mr0
7UgGYwfH
u7AhlJrf
lIgsNHcJ
ZT4Lal/5
oKzyjg0/

>>Ask Lady Anjing for a target, even if it’s her family - 5 (All these votes are implicitly a vote to look for trouble as well)
aLZIAV+F
WONtuIio
dxhQ6mr0
lIgsNHcJ
ZT4Lal/5

>Ask for her venom and silk as alchemic materials - 4
aLZIAV+F
dxhQ6mr0
lIgsNHcJ
ZT4Lal/5

>Go home - 3?
- WONtuIio (After we train and chat)
DLhMx1Xi (Immediately)
yPgfHj+G (After we chat)

>Steal venom, thread - 1
nBVtJOwA

All three votes for heading home mean it at different times. I’d guess only 1 vote truly counts as “head home right now”. The other 2 votes are after doing something else, which I feel is implicit after we do the other options anyway.

>>5545153
Posting again to know which one is me.
And even if it's not as needed, it still helps to keep track. And makes so I don't need t do it later

>>5544127 >>5545153
Count me in for the write in to
> Stick around Anjing
> Ask her for some of her silk and venom
> Offer to solve some of her troubles in exchange if she refuses, offer it anyway if she accepts. Look for trouble if she doesn't have any.

Ending the vote now, tallying the result.

Stay around, still nude, to chat with Anjing and try to get to know the skittish spider better, since her Yuyi like personality has made you rather fond of her, already.:10

Look for trouble:9
-Ask her for more info on her more vile brothers and sisters. You are looking to test some new skills against someone, and you may as well benefit your new friend in doing so. If not against her brothers and sisters, then perhaps some of their ill-tempered lackeys.:6

Ask if you may sample some of her venom and bring back some of her unspun silk. Your own master is an alchemist of great skill, and you have learned much from her. Such materials will assist in our own ascent. Perhaps some of your cur may be used in trade? Perhaps she will be grateful enough to simply give it to you for asking so graciously.:6

Go back to the mortal realm and hear the report of Siwang's and Fu's mission into the dusk marshes:3

Steal some of Lady Spider Demon's silk and venom, to give to Feiqing to use to make deadly weapons and artifacts:1

So You'll try to get to know Heizhizhu Anjing-Yinshi better, since you've grown fond of the skittish spider swiftly, and ask about her parasitic siblings and offer to test your new techniques on them or their henchmen and ask if you may sample some of her silk and venom, perhaps in exchange for some of your fur or for dealing with her familial issues directly and with finality!

Update will arrive shortly

>>5545153
Many thanks, Junior!

>>5544256
Various reasons, usually to use them as servants or trade them on, though some do torture/ eat them [Though they can and do reform afterwards, like how the ones Huan stole Qi from did]/ Display them as prizes.

And it isn't bad Karma cause the souls were already dead, and being traded is part of their punishment in hell before reincarnation. Its why sinner souls, which will stay longer and suffer more before reincarnating, are worth less than those who weren't bastards in life. Since they stick around longer, and tend to sell themselves into servitude to try and "Lighten" their punishment before reincarnation. A common commodity.

This is why the less evil/ wicked souls are worth more, cause its rarer to convince them to offer themselves to their service, and they aren't around long enough to be easily captured/ tricked into confinement. And usually they are put in birdcages/ jars cause they acquired debt or couldn't take life in Diyu

And that's why the Pious soul is much more valued than even those souls, since it is an extreme rarity. Same as the emperor's soul, though that one is worth big moolah cause, well, bragging rights for possessing the Son of Heaven and the status that will come from having him as a indentured servant for...well, a very long time

Anyways, figured I should answer this before I got to work on the intermediary update that leads to the martial training roll.

>>5545657
Dog-pig Tianlong is going to be in the yellow springs until at least the next dynasty falls.

There is no way this bastard isn't the single most sinful individual of the past 4 generations, both directly and indirectly through his abuse of the power which led to the rebellions, and ALL the shit that came from that.

"So, it would seem to me, Lady Spider, that you are something of a shut in. Judging by your nervous manner and your...shall we say apt choice of an art name? Your friend, the moth spirit, told me your rarely leave your house" You chatter, trying to strike up a casual conversation with Anjing-Yinshi, as the overside arachnid is surprisingly cute and her skittish manner reminds you of your Friend, Yuyi. Both of them kindle your maternal, protective instincts something fierce, since they just seem so helpless and in need of coddling and a guardian to protect them from all the ills of the way

"I..I don't like being in public. Spider demons are often squashed underfoot, its why we have broods larger than most other breeds of devils" She mutters ruefully, a darkness falling over her eight eyes that had been glittering like gemstones before "We're dangerous when we're grown, so the other demons make an effort to stomp us before we mature. This makes many of us cruel, sadistic even. Monstrous even amongst the natives of the netherworld. Feral, I..I'd say. Us devils are rarely personable, and the empathy mortals feel is al..alien to most, kindness is a weakness, selfishness and ambition a virtue, and ge..generosity a sin"

"Oh, so you're traumatized by your childhood, and an outcast because you're more...human than the rest of your peers. A cheerful child, despite her bruises and meekness" You say cheerfully, lifting up your arms for her to measure the width

"More like a spirit. Never met a human, so I cannot...cannot say I am like one" She says quietly "But its..its nice that someone thinks good things of me...besides my..my friend, I mean. Usually I..I'm called a freak be..because I'm not like everyone else, heartless and ..apathetic to anything besides myself or my b..buisness"

"Those bloodsucking, money grubbing siblings of yours, they have bullied you, haven't they?" You ask quietly, anger lurking in your gentle voice as sweet as the morning sun

"H..how could you t..tell, that's kind of creepy" Anjing mutters nervously

"It is my most austere and noble duty to protect the innocent children of the world, no matter what shape they take" You answer sweetly, though the smile you wear doesn't reach your eyes, which are filled with a cold malice "And to punish those who'd harm or torment them. I hate bullies and children killers, and think those who'd trample the young are the lowest amongst scum"

"Well, yo..you're right, my siblings...all my family are scum. Wild animals..m..more or less" She hissed, venom seeping from her fangs as she corded a thread of web tightly around your leg, to gauge its precise measurements from hip to toe "When they aren't trying to d..devour me, they're mooching or in..insulting me. The..they're the reason my home is such a horrid messsss"

"Malice doesn't suit you, weaver" You say sharply "You'd lower yourself to their level if you indulged in it. Its like wine. Addictive if one guzzles it habitually"
Cont

>>5545683

"You s..speak from experience?" She asked quietly, respectfully bowing her head before she skittered away to fetch her silks

"I am made of grudges, my darling spider" You say proudly "I understand enmity, for it fills my every breath. My heart beats with resentment, pushing as much animosity as blood through my veins. Rancor is my Dao, in many ways. My three views, my very soul, are dyed in scarlet bitterness. I know how controlling a grudge can be, how all consuming they can become. How easily they can come to rule their hosts"

She stood, listening a she stretched out rolls of dyed silk, running her bristly legs over them to judge their quality

"I devour grudges, relieving those suffering from them of their poisonous fury, freeing them from the shackles of their own spite. A Grudge can ruin she who holds it as easily as the subject of their vendetta" You explain quietly

"Why ar..are you telling me this?" She asked suspiciously, as she presented to you four different rolls of red, scarlet, crimson, and carmine silk

"I need to practice some new moves I learned, see if they work for my martial arts. You have siblings you wish to see dead and gone, but are too kindly to seek them harm" You cackle, eyes aglow with killing intent as the meek spider clicks her mandibles nervously, just from standing close to you as you imagine battling her kin "I'm fond of you, you remind me of a beloved friend of mine. I'd hate to leave here, knowing you'll suffer in my absence, when I can go and crush some chitin under my heel and make your life a loooot easier. Surely, even a nice demon wouldn't be opposed to a little kinslaying, riiiight~?"

"They..they're strong" She whispered, trying to dissuade you "Y..you would..wouldn't want to fight them. F..for your own good. I.w..wouldn't want to lose a customer to their gl..gluttony"

"Then I'll slaughter their lackies and thugs if I decide they're too dangerous" You say, pausing to yawn and fluttering your eyelashes cutely "I killed Baoli-Wuyawang, and he...well, it doesn't shame me to admit, he was a superior opponent, even if I won in the end. What a monster he was! I almost thought I'd die rather than kill him a few times while fighting him"

"THAT WAS YOU!" She shouts out

"Yeah, that birdy was a real creep. I still feel dirty thinking about those lecherous looks he shot towards me, grrr. I'm glad he's a bunch of bones and feathers now" You say gleefully, grinning ear to ear "Does that prove to you, that I, the great Huanliuxue, am the hunter rather than the hunted, in this contest between Cats and Spiders? If you don't want me to solve your problem, I'll leave well enough alone and keep my nose out of your personal, familial affairs but.."
Cont

>>5545684

"P..please get rid of them, I can't tolerate their existence or stand being around them. Please..please release me from the curse of my family" She said, sounding on the verge of tears, sounding almost guilty that she was so overjoyed to be offered a chance to see her brothers and sisters murdered.

"You don't need to beg" You drolly reply, rolling your eyes

"B..but I can't let you do it without compensating you! They are..r..really dangerous" She said, skittering away in a panic "I..I must have something I can offer in exchange"

"How about a sample of your venom and some of your unspun silk? I was going to ask for it anyways" You say before she can get carried away "My Mother is a peerless alchemist and I have learned much from her, such rare and high quality material will assist me in my continued cultivation, surely. I was thinking offering my own fur in exchange to convince you, since it'd be wrong to get such a valuable resource for nothing"

"I..I'd like to use your fur, but...it's too fire for..for me to work with. Ge..get rid of the worst of my sibl..siblings and it'll be a fair price for my silk and venom" She said after a moment though "I..I am amazed you'd offer so fine a material to me, for just a bit of web and venom"

"I know treasure when I see it" You declare "Its why I sought you out to begin with! You're an amazing weaver! The best I've ever seen"

"I..I..thank you" She squeaked, as she began to stitch the first of your robes over your bare body, to serve as a basis for the rest of the clothing she'd make for you to wear.
-
Roll 1d100. Best out of 4. DC 82*DC increased because of the opponents you have chosen*

Bonus can be used. Total: +132

Rolled 19 (1d100)

>>5545685

Rolled 62 (1d100)

>>5545685
Anjing is a cute

Rolled 20 (1d100)

>>5545685
nope

>>5545697
We still have one more roll to go Gramps

>>5545698
Sorry I am tired and reverted to old habits.

>>5545699
It's ok.
I would vote to use the bare minimum this time around, if the fourth roll still doesn't succeed.
Unless some anon can think of another chinese number magic that would be related to our cultivation and combat

>>5545700
We'll see how the last roll goes

Rolled 40 (1d100)

>>5545685
Guess I’ll try.

>>5545700
I’d also back using 20 to meet the DC.

40 is nice because of death, but I feel it’s not death enough. And 6 + 2 is 8, which is considered lucky.

File: zhbi7r96so861.jpg (201 KB, 1505x1443)

201 KB JPG

>>5545694
Alright, so. Bonus vote

>Spend 20 of the bonus. Result: 82. 112 total bonus left
>spend 40. Result. 102. 92 total bonus left
>spend 60. Result. 122. 72 bonus left
>Spend 80. result. 142. 62 bonus left
>Custom ammount
>Take the failure, spend no bonus.

Anyways, I'm really tired, and feel it'd be a bad idea to try and write in this state.

So I'm going to sleep, and will end this Bonus vote when I wake up or a few hours afterwards.

>>5545731
Ah. Know what, I’ll bump it a little.
>Custom amount - 26
>Final result - 88
Haven’t gotten an 88 for training, right?

>>5545731
Also, good night Grandfather! You’ll probably be up after I finish up work, which is great for me at least!

>>5545734
I'll support this, even if it doesn't work we would only be wasting 4 points.
We really need to meditate/train some time to stock up on more points and then try to become stronger soon

>>5545734
I'll support this, it leaves us at 108.

I don't want to go any lower, when we get back to the surface, do another training session with the kids, get the shit we need for our cultivation in order and then start CULTIVATING like fuck.

This next session, we just need the dice to give us a minimum of 36 for me to be happy. Since 108+36 = 144. And even if we get 46, I still only recommend going to 144, let's have our magic number or a mimum of two degrees higher [164+]

>>5545768
Time to start our training montages, put Eye of the Housecat on repeat

>>5545768
Wait, we’ll have a roll of 88 with 108 points left over? I didn’t realize that. It’s more auspicious than I thought!

>>5545769
Rising up, back on the street
Did my time, took my chances
Went the distance, now I'm back on my feet
Just a Dao and her will to survive

So many times it happens too fast
You change your Honour for glory
Don't lose your grip on the dreams of the past
You must fight just to keep them alive

It's the eye of the Cat
It's the thrill of the fight
Rising up to the challenge of our rival
And the last known Fox
Stalks their prey in the night
And she's watching us all with the eye of the Cat

Face to face, out in the heat
Hanging tough, staying hungry
They stack the odds 'til we take to the street
For the kill with the skill to survive

It's the eye of the Cat
It's the thrill of the fight
Rising up to the challenge of our rival
And the last known Fox
Stalks his prey in the night
And she's watching us all with the eye of the tiger

Rising up straight to the top
Have the guts, got the dao
Went the distance, now I'm not going to stop
Just a Cat and her will to survive

It's the eye of the Cat
It's the thrill of the fight
Rising up to the challenge of our rival
And the last known Sister
Stalks her prey in the night
And her watching us all with the eye of the tiger
The eye of the cat
The eye of the cat
The eye of the cat
The eye of the Cat

>>5545731
I don't know if it isn't better to just eat the small initial loss and just roll with it afterwards.
Rarely a battle is decided in the first bout and to use cultivation resources for this feels somewhat wasteful.

>>5545734
With that said if using our points wins i guess this auspicious alignment works well enough

>>5545657
Thanks for the explanation grampa!

>>5545788
Rising up, back on the street
Lost the kids, took my vengeance
Killed that fucker, now I’m back on my feet
Just a cat and her dao to survive

>Later on
It's the eye of the tiger
It's the thrill of the hunt
Stalking prey who would challenge our existence
And the last known Princess
Stalks her prey in the night
And she's watching us all with the eye of the tiger

Fits the meter a bit better. I’d want to say “eye of the housecat” to keep the rhythm with two syllables, but that doesn’t sound terrifying at all. So tiger it is.

>>5545795
It’s also a training roll and not a combat roll, hence why we can access the bank of points. I’d prefer if we didn’t need to use it, but passing training rolls are also important since we’ll be teaching this to our juniors.

>>5545814
I want to find out where these magic numbers are from, get a list of them and their meanings and then start crossing off what we've found

>>5545734
supporting.
>>5545768
At the very least I want to go deeper in the tomb so we can have more ghosts to drain/whatever treasures we find

>>5545831
That would be a good idea

>>5545831
4 and 8 have connotations in Eastern numerology, so that extends to 44, 88, 444, 888 etc. 108 is sacred in Hinduism and Buddhism. It’s also central in an important foundational Wuxia text if I remember right, Water Margin. In there, there are 36 heavenly spirits and 72 earthly fiends so those numbers could be significant.

5 is important as we’ve seen (Five-colored Emperor, Five Element Springs etc.) since that’s the number of basic elements that spark all of creation. 25 (5 of 5) and 125 (trinity of 5 and 5) could hold meaning as a result as well, but I don’t see anything specific to them.

3 is always an important number because triangles are the first real “shape” you can draw. Trinities hold a lot of appeal.

12 holds significance in a lot of places. Number of months, number of zodiac animals etc. It’s easily divided by 2, 3, 4, and 6, so it’s convenient to break apart into small numbers for various purposes. Probably the big reason for the popularity.

I’m not an expert in numerology and some of this is from 10 minutes of searching + old knowledge, so take it with a grain of salt. I’m also definitely not a cultivation/wuxia/xianxia expert and only dabble in it, so I may be missing some more specific numbers to the genre.

>>5545734
+1

>>5545915
4 is considered unlucky, sounding like the word for death, while 8 is considered lucky, sounding like the word for wealth/fortune.
Also 8 is important in budhism, with 4 being important on tibetan budhism and/or bon.

>>5545956
I thought 4 was unlucky for the japanese for the pronunciation but is it so even for the chinese?
Also i heard something about especially mistycal individuals having 40 teeth but maybe that's in india..

>>5546026
4 sounds similar to death in chinese, so any nations that had a chinese-influenced alphabet like the japan, korea and vietnam, share the same superstition.

>>5546035
The "the" is there because I was going to mention how Kanji is just the chinese han alphabet imported. Korea had something similar with the Hanja, and Vietnam had Chu Han

Sorry if I took longer than expect. Managed to lock myself out of my room.

Landslide victory for spending 26 points, making the final result 88, a most auspicious number, and also how many legs and eyes spiders have! Leaving you with a total of 108

Update will arrive shortly

>>5545788
>>5545814
Beautiful.

>>5546383
>88 legs and eyes on spiders
Er, Grandfather, most spiders shouldn’t have that many of either. Have you been spending too much time traveling the realms again?

>>5546535
Maybe it's eleven spiders together.

>>5546535
The spiders of high realms are truly monstrous creatures

>>5546541
>Demonic Compendium Page 512 (Illustrations 513-520)
>Pinwheel Spiders
>These creatures, nightmarish to many first-timers in hell, is at first glance an accidental mishmash of several spiders in one. Many are drawn to notice the faces in the thorax, or the fangs at the joins of the legs, or the eyes that have hair trowing through them. The truth is that these “creatures” are truly one singular organism. Dissections of the creature (seen in the fourth and fifth illustrations) reveal a complex organ and nervous system underneath the skin, one that is consistently orderly and comprehensive in contrast to each spider’s uniquely grotesque outward appearance. This allows the pinwheel spiders unparalleled coordination for what seems like a mass of appendages wielded by several different spiders.
>One of their favored feats to terrify newcomers is to spin like a wheel while staring down the poor sap, hence their name. What anyone seeking to fight them should be more worried about are the extra spinnerets in various places around the body. While they lack the “reach” of the main spinneret, they can still generate enough web to ensare anything that attempts to strike them. Ranged weaponry or weapons coated in acids are recommended. For more information on acids, please turn to the “Taking On Hell” section for the full list of…

>>5546564
This is now canon

"Are you sure you don't need my help?" Yujijiao asks seriously, eyes glinting with the same light as the sharpened edge of a blade or blood clinging to a claw, her resolve to stand by her teacher tested and enduring despite of the danger you now face and walk willingly towards

"Of course, you haven't even started your training yet. Besides, I haven't gotten any good practice in since I humbled that brute of an ogress!" You cackle manically, rolling of your shoulders and flexing your arm "And I have many new strikes and moves I need to test out, a horde of techniques to evaluate and the best way to do that is in a fight! You'll learn more by watching, Dear Disciple, just keep your distance, and leave the nasty vermin to master. I'll squash them with utmost ease, you'll see!"

"You're confident in everything you do, I have every right to fear for your safety when you choose to use monsters as your practice dummies" She sighed, hissing as she curled and coiled in on herself, turning into a venomous green and black ghost light, the flame flickering and dancing as if it were caught in a gale "Which, I, as your royal peer will once again state my thoughts on the matter. Its stupid, brash and foolhardy"

"Heh-heh-heh" You titter, flicking the sleeve of your new robe, watching its hues shift and dance in the fire light of the burning bone torches and corpses piles around you "One cannot learn to be a killer, if they do not risk being killed themselves. Its one of the laws of the wild. Eat or be eaten"

"I know that, all too well" She growled angrily "But, you can turn human, you don't need to..."

"I do. They're my laws, my virtues, my beliefs. I will always be a beast no matter the hide I will. I can see clear as day you're worried for my well being. But trust teacher. I'll be alright" You say sweetly, patting your scaled student atop her head, between her beautiful horns "I'll be done with this pest control quicker than an incense stick burns up, and I can't be swayed to change my mind, we've already found our prey!

"What do you meaAAAH!" Yujijiao shrieks as the ground erupts and two chitinous limbs erupt, trying to grab hold of you. With the arm you waved early to dramatically flick your sleeve, you raise an open palm and smirk, eyes narrowed. The fool fell right into the trap set for them, how amusing!

"Seems Miss Anjing was right, her family is nothing but a bunch of brutes" You sigh, as the spider's fangs bounce of the barrier spell your erected the moment it leapt out of the ground "Can you even understand words? If you can, know that I have come to kill you!"

"Frrrressssh meat" It growls impudently, spitting and shrieking in a display meant to intimidate. Still smirking rather smugly, you adopt the stance of your ethereal martial style, but instead of separating your fingers to mimic your claws, you ball them one into a tight fist, clenching it as hard as you can, muscles tensing all the way down your arm and the other your leave open.
Cont

>>5546570
Feel free to toss some other prompts my way. I got a couple more hours before bed and I’m feeling energetic. I can BS some more entries in the Compendium.

>>5546572

This is what was drawn for the first technique of the first style on the first page of the Beast Saint Doctrine, the form for a simple strike that can be used in one's natural or human forms.

The closed fist, can be exchanged for a headbutt, horn gouge, hoof strike or hard slam of the paw, tail or body. The open hand , can become an open mouth, extended claws, long tail or ensnaring spines. It is a move meant to teach beasts how to adapt their forms and attacks between their bodies. Something you've already figured out, but figured your could improve upon.

"Deaaaad meat" You mock, mimicking the gurgling voice of your opponent, welcoming them to attack with a quick beckoning gesture. And they do, pulling on two strings hung up iron barked trees and pulling themselves back to catapult themselves forward as they curl into a ball.

You blink, thinking of the other, basic techniques you studied and master in all but practice from that manual gifted to you across ten generations. Numerous drawn images dance in your imagination, moving in stilted motion, switching from the animal whose movements they were styled and intended for, before turning into a human figure mimicking them to the best of their abilities. One stands out in your mind

Iron Ox style. Niu Bingwen's personal martial art and the first made by any beast. Able to be used with axes or open hands, it followed the metal principle of martial arts, so the earth nature of its first practitioner could empower its strikes with his purely earth aligned Qi. A master of it could split steel with a chop of their hand, as easily as they could fell trees with even a dull axe. Or, they could use the same hand as a spear, and impale their opponents with it like they were a bull's horn. Breaking hooves, stabbing horns. That was the principle behind the Tieniu style (铁 牛, Iron Ox). You didn't have a great quantity of earth Qi in your cultivation base, but you did have a fair amount of Metal. Pale blue lightning crackled at your finger tips, as you pressed the fingers of your open palm more closely together and took in a deep breath.

The shadow of the spinning spider ball fell over you, judging from the brute's size and weight, it'd be enough to crush most of the bones in your body.

"Moonlight Ascent (月华上升, Yuèhuáshàngshēng) You uttered, thinking outload. An technique created by Yuehuajian (Moonlight Orchid, 月华蕳), the first insect known to ascend to become a magical beast. It was a tweaking of the common lightness skill, utilizing channeled Qi to create false wings upon ones back, and the thrust would provide lift akin to flight, which is an advance technique. Your Specter Lightness skill [幽灵-轻工, Yōulíng-Qīnggōng], already allows you to levitate and float like a leaf in the wind.

The spider fell.
Cont

>>5546577

You combined your variation of the lightness skill, with Orchids' Moonlight Ascent and Niu Bingwen's Stone Shattering Horn (石震裂犄角, Shízhènlièjījiǎo), and caught the descending spider in the sphere of your Specter Lightness skill's illusionary time. For a second, then, using the Phantom Cat step [幽灵猫步, Yōulíngmāobù] alongside the Moonlight ascent, using Blood Qi for it, wings of bloody mist burst out of your back, and you rocketed upwards, the lift intermingling with the "Blinking" motion of The phantom Cat steps activation. Appearing directly under the spider, timing your ascent perfectly so its rotation would expose its soft under belly, you drove your open hand forward like a spear point, as you released the lighting gathering at your finger tips with a crack like thunder.

Its own fall drove your arm deep into its belly, cracking the weak chitin protecting its innards as a bolt of blood red lighting shot out its back, an extra surprise you made by the addition of blood Qi and destructive Yin Qi channeled through your palm the moment the lighting in it arced from your hand into the flesh of the spider.

It was split in two, and showered steaming gore across the ground

And would've splatted you as well, if you didn't use the specter lightness skill to retreat to keep yourself and your new robes clean.

"See?" You boast, flicking your tongue over your teeth "I told you it'd be easy!"

"We still have seven more to kill" Yujijiao reminds you grouchily "And...what a stench they left behind! Disgusting!"

"At least it didn't get in my hair! I think I'll fight the next one in my natural form. To make sure this new combination I made works for cats as well!" You merrily exclaim, clapping your hands together

"Can you even call that a fight?" Yujijiao asked, complimenting you, clearly "It seemed rather one sided. That was a remarkable technique you used, have you thought of a name for it"

"Hmmm" You tapped your chin, eyes sparkling as you thought for just a moment "Cat catches star (猫捕获星, Māobǔhuòxīng), I like the sound of it and it is fitting"

"A worthy name of such a marvelous strike!" Yujijiao praises "I can't wait to learn it"

Now that's a thought! Flying snakes! Whose thought of that before, huh?

The seven remaining assassinations are finished with just as much ease as the first though each one takes longer than the last to complete, since the siblings get smarter and more cunning as you move down the list Anjing gave you. But, as she said, they're basically mindless animals, even if they're fairly cunning as far as feral beasts go. You learn that Cat Catches Star can be used in your native form, with both your claws and fangs, and you get enough practice to feel confident in including most of the basic techniques from the Beast Saint Doctrine into your fighting style. Which greatly expands your Ghostly Feline Martial arts.
Cont

>>5546578

Though, you add your personal touch to each stance, move, strike, feint or counter, so it'll fit more seamlessly with the rest of your self taught style. And with the abilities you've already trained, this creates two new moves you think, like Cat Catches Star, deserve titles and names!

Four Step Execution (四步行刑, Sìbùxíngxíng) is actually two techniques in one. One inspired by Qiang, who had learned to use the phantom Cat step to perfect her method of swift execution via decapitation, and the other learned from your time in Yuyi's body. The first, one uses four "Blinks" to get behind their target, and then bites their neck, killing them or severs their head entirely. The second, strikes acupoints and uses poison if its on hand, to kill ones opponent in four strikes, weakening them with the first three, before the fourth stops their heart. And one can be changed to the other mid-execution, if the target proves capable of countering one of its two forms. You created the second half by building off of the Fang Flurry (尖牙疾风,Jiānyájífēng) a barrage of thumb and two finger jabs to strike vital organs beneath skin and deliver poison smeared on hands or nails, to function in the place of a snake's fangs. Of course Fang Flurry was made by a viper who preferred their human form greatly to the one they hatched with.

And, you'd be lying if you claimed to not take inspiration from a few of your past battles, where you actually exploded the hearts of your opponents through various means and types of Qi.

And the Second technique you've dubbed the Shooting Star Stampede (流星挤踏, Liúxīngjǐtà). Inspired by the kick, stomp and knee heavy styles favored by former herd and prey animals, and wanting to find a use for your human legs and Hind Legs in battle besides movement, clawing or grappling, you set out to make a move that only uses them and squashed four of the eight spiders to make a worthwhile technique for both your forms out of your clumsy first kicks and stomps. It makes liberal use of both The Blood Red Lightning Cat Step (血紅色列缺猫步, Xuè hóngsèlièquēmāobù) and its components, the The Blood Torrent Rush (衁急流奔,Huāngjíliúbēn) and Phantom cat step, as well as your basic use of Youling Qinggong to rapidly stomp and kick your opponent, usually from above, to trample them into the ground. It has several levels of speed and difficulty, starting with just using the area of the specter lightness kill to outpace and overwhelm your opponent, then the phantom cat step to hit them rapidly if they learn the trick behind your lightness skill, then relying on the blood torrent rush for additional speed, before ending with the blood red lightning cat step to strike from several angles seemingly at once, when the previous levels proof inefficient in beating the crap out of whoever got on your bad side that day.
Cont

>>5546579

And its that last form that gives the technique its name. Because when it is used, at least according to Yujijiao, your feet and legs look similar to Meteor shower of falling stars, glowing with the blood Qi wrapped tightly around the muscles of your legs as you kick their heads viciously, several times, in rapid succession.

And to your surprise, after squashing the last of her most treacherous and wicked siblings under your hindpaws, Anjing herself greets you at the gate to her home, Kowtowing and bowing deeply as she and the moth spirit present you four bundles of her steel like silk and a clay pot filled with her venom!

Four spindles of Spider demon silk, 1 pot of Spider Demon Venom

"I..I am i..in your de..debt, Lady Huanliuxue! Y..you'll never need an appointment to s..see me a.again or to seek my s..services my friend!" She declares tearfully "And..and I'll inv...invite you to my house when I've f..finished renovations"

"Thank you" Is all you can manage say, overwhelmed by her show of gratitude and thanks. It makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. You did a good deed killing those eight demons, surely.

And so you are in high spirits as you leave with the spoils of those killings and the first few robes Anjing managed to finish of your commission when, you're stopped in the middle of the street.

Fateful Encounter! Eighter Armed Assassin. Roll 88 against a spider demon, or kill several of them in one day. Both conditions met \

By a demon wearing a straw hat, with eight swords strapped to his back and armor seemingly fashion from a black widow spider's chitin.

"Crow Killer. You can't seem to keep yourself out of trouble here in the springs' They said, lifting their hat to reveal eight red eyes on their otherwise human and heavily tattooed face, which was framed by a well groomed beard parted at the tip into two, fang like points. Black lines of ink made webs from their brow down to their neck, and looked to continue all over their body. His hair was long, black and messy

"You looking for a fight?" You asked churlishly from behind your stack of spider silk

"Just here on business" He replied drolly "Unlike the Crows. Our clan doesn't take kindly to interfering outsiders. Nor do we forgive slights easily"

"Ah" You say, realizing why they were talking to you now "You're here cause I trimmed the branches of your tangled family tree"

"Clever kitten" He said with a nod "We can't let a string of open murders go unopposed. We're already abhorred and reviled by all other demons. Can't let the killing of named clan members go unanswered. No hard feelings, just a matter of our families survival"

"What a twisted sense of loyalty, consider how they were acting towards family" You say, rolling your eyes "So what, you expect me to smack my head on the ground and beg forgiveness? Surely you don't think you can just cut me down"
Cont

>>5546581

"Nor do I want to. It'd be a waste to kill a girl as beautiful as you but...orders are orders, so I have to at least try and do enough harm to send a message. Mama is angry with you. Not at Anjing, before you ask. She's actually rather proud of her growing something resembling a spine" He said, bowing "So please, prepare yourself"

What do you do, Huanliuxue?

>Just step back into the Mortal Realm with Yujijiao, making a rude gesture towards the would be assassin as you leave him looking like an idiot.

>"I did your clan a favor. Beasts that can barely think or act outside of their base instinct are worthless" (Fight him)

>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

>"Eh, I don't really feeling like shedding blood right now, despite my name. Surely I can compensate the death of some trash with a few souls or spirit stones"

>Write in

>>5546575
Memory eating demons and their technique copying cartel is a must
>>5546583
>Just step back into the Mortal Realm with Yujijiao, making a rude gesture towards the would be assassin as you leave him looking like an idiot.

>>5546584
Although I wouldn't mind this one
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

>>5546583
>No moves at the moment.
>”If you’re truly so reviled then you should be seeking shelter under me, not fighting me. The Wild Princess stands reviled to all the orthodox sects and heavens solely by her birth. To extend a paw in aid of demons under the same burdens in hell is just common courtesy.”
>”The fact is that I saw nothing in those spiders worth my mercy. I find striking at children an unforgivable sin, and Anjing is soft enough to seem as one. Perhaps with more leaders like her, you’d find yourselves more welcomed amongst the parlors of hell. You’d at least be welcomed in mine.”
If he still wants to fight after being berated,
>Ready your claws.
>”

>>5546583
>"Eh, I don't really feeling like shedding blood right now, despite my name. Surely I can compensate the death of some trash with a few souls or spirit stones"
>"And if a material compensation is not enough, then I hope a more diplomatic approach and a apology is enough. I understand the problem your Clan have with others, and the unforgiving world your youngers live, or at least to a basic level"
>"I just wanted to help sweet Anjing with her problem and that's it, I didn't came here to go after your Clan."
>"But if my words aren't enough for you, nor will be to your honorable Mother..."
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

We know we fight for Anjing for our own moral code, they don't and surely they won't grasp the idea (even less than other Demons with how their lives are)

>>5546584
I can try. Keep in mind I know little about actual Chinese mythology so I might miss the opportunity for some easy references with the prompts. I also forget if we already know anything about them.
>Demonic Compendium Page 342 (Illustrations 343-346)
These demons are difficult to find references to, for perhaps self-evident reasons. These demons anchor themselves onto human hosts, and consume their memories. In time, their hosts not only become forgetful but are show less of their previous personality, struck with listlessness and apathy. They often seem to recover fully after a long period of decline, only to pass away as though they’ve simply forgotten how to live.
>More accurately, “memory-eating” demons only eat memories as a side-effect of their feeding mechanism. They seem to feed off a person’s soul, using their mind as a “straw” into it. It’s unknown exactly what they’re deriving from it, but souls that have been consumed by the memory demons do not possess any great weight of virtue or sin. It is as though they have lived simple, unfulfilling lives with no opportunity for any actions that could shape their moral compass. As such, it appears they are truly dining on both the sin and virtue of their hosts.
>Make no mistake, a memory demon can be a fearsome foe if threatened. As a consequence of their memory stealing, they have at the fingertips a vast arsenal of techniques and tricks used by their former hosts. Due to the weight of these memories, they are also able to “overpower” their hosts simply by letting them interface more closely with their mind. A memory demon in a capable body is a terrifying force. Conversely, one in a weakened or ill-suited body is merely a dangerous foe, as they will be limited to whatever spiritual energies they may be able to force through their host before it destroys itself. Do not underestimate their political and social acumen however. Their ability to ingratiate their own thoughts into their host to protect their interests is greater than any spell or martial art they could use.
>Curiously, it seems memory demons can’t last without a host, appearing as a faint purple mist before being destroyed or returned to hell. They can survive for some time in non-living bodies, though it seems they lose parts of their own memories and powers as they stay in them.
>With all that said, I have yet to meet anyone who has seen a memory demon in hell itself. I have found no instances of them feeding off of hell’s inhabitants, yet no one can speak of where they live. Is their true form far different from what is seen by exorcists? Have they managed to carve out their own small home in a section of hell no one else dares tread? Are their powers actually greater in hell, and they can eat our memories without injecting into us? Sadly, I fear I will move on before I have discovered these answers.

>>5546583 >>5546605
>”If you’re truly so abhored then you should be seeking shelter under me, not fighting me. The Wild Princess stands reviled to all the orthodox sects and heavens solely by her birth. To extend a paw in aid of spirits under the same burdens in hell is just common courtesy.”
>”The fact is that I saw nothing in those spiders worth my mercy. They were mindless brutes guided only by their lust for blood and flesh, scum truly worthy of being condemned as demons. Anjing is nothing like them, soft spoken and well mannered as she is. Perhaps with more leaders like her, you’d find yourselves more welcomed by others. You’d at least be welcomed by me.”
If refused:
>"Oh well... I guess I could use another scrap. Although, since you've been so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

Might be too much but I felt like write fagging.

>>5546605
>, if the target proves capable of countering one of its two forms. You created the second half by building off of the Fang Flurry (尖牙疾风,Jiānyájífēng) a barrage of thumb and two finger jabs to strike vital organs beneath skin and deliver poison smeared on hands or nails, to function in the place of a snake's fangs. Of course Fang Flurry was made by a viper who preferred their human form greatly to the one they hatched with.

>>5546640
I can back this tweak to mine.

And don’t worry about writefagging. They’ll break down my door first, I’m sure.

>>5546583
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

An assassin that aproaches from the front and explains themselves. What a bizzare difference to what we've learned to be the common standard of spider demons. Either he's strong or perilously lovestruck.

>>5546654
Im not worried about the write fagging per se, more the fact that, the more you writefag on a prompt the less likely it is to be supported. That's been my experience at least.

>>5546688
It’s been a mix for me. I’ve gotten people to switch for mine fairly often. I probably whiffed on even more, but I do write-ins often enough that I don’t notice the failures so much.

The biggest danger is that you take a while with the write-in, a bunch of people vote, then some more vote shortly after you post, and yours gets lost in the shuffle. Depends on the quest though. We bounce around enough things here that I feel most people are reading each other’s votes. Enough to swing a write-in.

>>5546583
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)
He has Eight arms. Eight hands. Just imagine the petting.

>>5546583
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

While the rude gestures would be funny he did have the good sense of being reasonable and introducing himself first, and we did kill spider mama offspring so making this fight public on the streets would be good for both reputations.

If he carries himself well or, hell forbid, wins we can still try to negotiate a monetary compensation.

I sense a parallel between this fight and the one the two idiots had in the middle of the city that we stopped but this time it's a demonic city so who cares for their inconvenience really?
Just hope there are no hidden masters in the crowd who can take offense.

>>5546583
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

>>5546746
>Support
>Let's add spider killer to my titles.

Dude was kind enough to give us a heads up.

>>5546583
Spiders valuing a spine, lol and lol.

>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

>>5546626
Nice job
Obliviously the ones in hell are hiding while controlling the manual and book market from the shadows

>>5546581
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

>>5546583
>>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)
>Let's move this somewhere less crowded. No need to make a mess.
If it's just business, then we can resolve it professionally and without complications.

>>5547397
Nobody can actually die here.

Nobody is being threatened, so there's not really a reason to do it in private. Especially when this is a public declaration by the spiders.

>>5546583
Vote roundup: I'm actually on a computer this time instead of my phone edition!

>Votes - 11
yPgfHj+G
aLZIAV+F
pYIy8ll8
HhUpbQCY
lIgsNHcJ
oKzyjg0/
dxhQ6mr0
ZT4Lal/5
WONtuIio
Ix0GcDa+
mejpffXw

>Just leave - 1
yPgfHj+G (also backs polite assassin as a lesser choice, but that vote is strong enough on its own)

>I did you a favor (fight) - 0

>Aren't you a polite assassin? (fight) - 7
lIgsNHcJ
oKzyjg0/
dxhQ6mr0
ZT4Lal/5
WONtuIio
Ix0GcDa+
mejpffXw

>Payment - 1
pYIy8ll8 (implicit vote based on their write-in)

> Write-in: They weren't worth mercy, if you were kinder you'd find more allies (berate) (fight if pressed) - 2
aLZIAV+F
HhUpbQCY (using this anon's version for both votes)

>Write-in: Compensation plus apology, if it fails then (fight) - 1
pYIy8ll8

>Write-in: Move fight someplace less crowded - 2
mejpffXw
aLZIAV+F (Adding my vote here)

>>5547406
Death isn't a concern here, but property damage still needs to get fixed. We wouldn't want to be like those churls who hurled things through shops and disrupt someone's meal. So I can support wanting to move it away from buildings.

If a crowd wants to watch, so be it.

>>5547425
I'll support telling him to go to place less crowded

>>5547425
We can just not cause property damage. We're skilled enough, I think.

>>5547440
You say that, but it’ll need a roll. Luck can always turn sour.

>>5547433

I'm alright with taking consideration of our surroundings.

>>5546583
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

>>5546583
>"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" (fight him)

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

1.06 MB JPG

Ending the vote now, Tallying the result

Just step back into the Mortal Realm with Yujijiao, making a rude gesture towards the would be assassin as you leave him looking like an idiot.:1

"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with":13
-Let's move this somewhere less crowded. No need to make a mess.:2

”If you’re truly so reviled then you should be seeking shelter under me, not fighting me. The Wild Princess stands reviled to all the orthodox sects and heavens solely by her birth. To extend a paw in aid of demons under the same burdens in hell is just common courtesy....etc":2

>"Eh, I don't really feeling like shedding blood right now, despite my name. Surely I can compensate the death of some trash with a few souls or spirit stones":1
-And if a material compensation is not enough, then I hope a more diplomatic approach and a apology is enough. I understand the problem your Clan have with others, and the unforgiving world your youngers live, or at least to a basic level...etc: 1

They weren't worthy of mercy: 2

So you'll tell them ""Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either. Draw your blades and lets get this done with" and fight the spider demon

>>5547425
Many thanks, junior.

>>5546626
A wonderful entry!

"Well, since you're so polite, I won't kill you either!" You declare, loud enough for everyone in the street to hear, wagging a finger as you disrobe with the other hand. No reason to ruin one of your new robes by tearing it up and soaking it in blood, besides, it'll be ill fitting when you adopt your natural form. You don't have any weapons, and while you are confident in your martial arts, you'll feel much more at ease facing steel with claws and fangs instead of soft hands and dull teeth.

The spider demon merely cocked his head, eight eyes glowing as he watched you transform into the ox sized house cat that is your true self, as your now discarded robes floated through the air, before Yujijiao caught them and held onto them for safe keeping.

"Draw your blades and lets get done with this" You commanded, snapping your jaws as the locale peasantry of ghosts and lesser devils ran for cover, while the stronger spirits, hungry ghosts and demons formed a crowd and began placing bets and cheering like this was a cock fight.

"What a beautiful monster you are! My hand trembles in your presence. What an oppressive aura. You're a death dealer, that's for sure. Why else would standing before you feel akin to walking through a field of rotting corpses! Magnificent!" he applauds, extra hands beyond his two emerging from under his cloak to clap, as his upper most arms reach to unsheathe his eight blades, tossing and almost juggling them between his eight hands, which you see aren't so much armored as they are covered in sleek, elegant chitin formed into the shape of human hands. Plus claws.

"You...truly deserve your self given epithet of empress of beasts, Huanliuxue" He said in a cool, measured tone, not losing his guts or composure despite his trembling hands "I can't tell if it is excitement or instinctive fear shaking in my arms"

Ah, that'd explain it

"Enough talking, enough stalling, lets get to tearing eachother apart already! I'm a busy woman and you can only hold my interest for so long!" You laughed, throwing your head back and lifting up a paw to extend your claws as your eyes glowed with excited glee "I've never fought a demon with multiple arms before, this should be fun!"

"I've never fought a cat. I concur, this will be a lesson that's as much fun as dice!" He cackled, throwing off his straw hat and whipping his hair around as he adopted a very odd stance, drawing his lower four lower blades into a shape like two X's stacked atop one another, while he placed the upper four for through the gaps, drawing them along the edges of the other four. A very bizzare and uncomfortable looking sight, since a human frame was not supposed to have eight arms, and indeed, his appearance shifts more towards arachnid as he prepares himself, Becoming some horrid and disgusting to look at combination of both rather than his previous, human favoring looks.
Cont

>>5549412

"Gross!" You chime playful, as you begin to circle around him "You were more handsome before'

"My fighting style doesn't work with only two hands" He said politely "Forgive me for offending your eyes with this abominable form, I to, dislike to rely on it. It is, as you said, rather gross"

You just smirked in reply, telling him the fight had started with a quick flick of your tail. He went on the defensive, moving his blades around in a distracting way, that made it hard to figure out and keep track of where each sword actually was.

What is your first move, Huanliuxue?

>Using the whispering death claw, challenge his eight swords with your claws (Martial Trial. DC 80)

>Use the ranged version of the Vein draining fang against him, keeping your distance from his blades (Magic Trial. DC 70)

>Use the Moonlight ascent to get high into the air, using your specter lightness skill to remain floating, and then unleash a barrage of destructive yin Spheres! (Magic trial DC 66)

>Test out the shooting star stampede on a living target (Martial Trial. DC 50)

>Write in

>>5549413
>Use the Moonlight ascent to get high into the air, using your specter lightness skill to remain floating, and then unleash a barrage of destructive yin Spheres! (Magic trial DC 66)

>>5549413
>>Use the ranged version of the Vein draining fang against him, keeping your distance from his blades (Magic Trial. DC 70)

>>5549413
>>Use the ranged version of the Vein draining fang against him, keeping your distance from his blades (Magic Trial. DC 70)
Put him on the time trial. It's easier to know how long the blades are and his overall reach and watch his hands than to try and track the individual swords. After all, swords move faster than fists.

>>5549413
>>Use the ranged version of the Vein draining fang against him, keeping your distance from his blades (Magic Trial. DC 70)
I would keep in mind that he may be able to spit poison at us.

Banter as distraction:
>Tell me, are there other interesting spiders like you and Anjing? Her brothers and sisters weren’t much better than mindless brutes. She’s sweet, and you’re very respectful and a flatterer! I can enjoy my time spent with spiders like you two.
After we see him fight a bit, I’d like to try and weaponize flirting since we have the Yin Physique upgrade.

>>5549526
I'll support.

Also yeah, this dude is either a flirt, entranced or really damn smart. He's made sure that even if he loses he's not gonna be hurt by playing on our ego. Supreme spider smarts.

>>5549413
>Use the Moonlight ascent to get high into the air, using your specter lightness skill to remain floating, and then unleash a barrage of destructive yin Spheres! (Magic trial DC 66)

>>5549526
+1 this guy is cool.

>>5549526
Support

>>5549413
>Test out the shooting star stampede on a living target (Martial Trial. DC 50)

>>5549526
+1

>>5549526
+1

>>5549413
>Use the Moonlight ascent to get high into the air, using your specter lightness skill to remain floating, and then unleash a barrage of destructive yin Spheres! (Magic trial DC 66)
Vein Draining Fang's DC is a bit high for my taste, but I will +1 for the banter in >>5549526

Ending the vote, Tallying the result now.

Use the Moonlight ascent to get high into the air, using your specter lightness skill to remain floating, and then unleash a barrage of destructive yin Spheres! :3

Use the ranged version of the Vein draining fang against him, keeping your distance from his blades:8

Tell me, are there other interesting spiders like you and Anjing? Her brothers and sisters weren’t much better than mindless brutes. She’s sweet, and you’re very respectful and a flatterer! I can enjoy my time spent with spiders like you two.:7

Test out the shooting star stampede on a living target:1

So you'll use banter as a distraction and the ranged variation of the vein draining fang , to keep away from the edge of his blades.

update will arrive shortly.

And you had absolutely no desire to find out which was were by feeling them slice through you. Keeping away from them would be the wisest course of action, it always is when dealing with something sharp, but particularly now when those razor edged blades were a blur of motion and speed. There was absolutely no need for you test your claws against steel, at least presently. Even your ego wasn't bloated enough to make such foolishness seem intelligent.

You'd keep away from his eight flashing swords, at least until you've figured out their rhythm and the trick behind their confusing movements and rotations. However, that meant you'd have to attack from a distance, at least as long as you wanted to keep your hide flawless and unmarred by bleeding cuts and wounds. Which was fine, after all, you knew plenty of ranged spells and techniques. The issue was getting the spider to lower his guard to sneak a spell through beneath his overly aggressive form of defense, as certainly those swords could parry as easily as they sliced.

'A distraction' You thought as the two of your circled one another, tracing your heels over the street, each movement ponderous and gradual, anticipating the first blow to come at any moment or anywhere 'he likes to talk, if I get him talking again, I might be able to slip a Vein Draining Fang through his whirring wall of blades, and exsanguinate him enough to fatigue and slow him down. Then my victory will be as easily grasped as a cattail!'

Flicking your tail up and turning your smirk into an inviting smile, you set your devious plan into motion! You'd flatter him with casual banter and sweet praises! Then he'd lower his guard, and you'd strike before he could raise it again and realize your trick! A clever ploy if there ever was one!

"Tell me" You say with a breathless sigh, haughtily raising up your chin as you prowled around the ogre spider, his fangs drooling venom as they hung from his monsterous face, poison clinging to the bristles of his chin and rising as putrid green vapor "are there other interesting spiders like you and Anjing?"

"Didn't you just request me to hold my own wagging tongue?" He asked with a gurgling chuckle "A battle is no place for idle gossip"

"Oh" You say raising a paw to your chin "its just that her brothers and sisters weren't much better than mindless brutes"

"Brutes with names" He warned, clicking his mandibles and cocking his head to the side "but brutes nonetheless. Were are you getting at, Princess of beasts?"

"I just can't understand how they shared blood with her, and you" You pout "She's sweet, and you're very respectful! And quite the flatterer! I can enjoy time spent with spiders, if they're like the two of you"

His eight eyes blinked and his swinging fell out of rhythm, but just for a moment. A momentary distraction, an idle thought or shock, but that alone was enough. Enough to give you an advantage over him, and give you the glory of shedding first blood!

>>5551589
Roll 1d100. best out 4, DC 68. DC lowered slightly by Distraction

Rolled 11 (1d100)

>>5551590
bequeath us luck o seven fingered spirits of fortune

>>5551591
no not that kind of luck..

Rolled 7 (1d100)

>>5551590
big money big money

Rolled 27 (1d100)

>>5551590

File: 365831120.jpg (6 KB, 284x232)

6 KB JPG

>>5551591
>>5551602
>>5551606
darn, we need a miracle fellas.

File: mistakes.jpg (38 KB, 606x667)

38 KB JPG

>11, 7, 27
SPIRITS PLEASE

Rolled 40 (1d100)

>>5551590

>>5551614
Failure. 20 under DC, nearly thirty. Ouch. Update will arrive shortly

>>5551617
Even if we lose, I’m still fairly confident I can do write-ins to keep our rep up and at least swing him to look after Lady Anjing. We’ll see what happens.

Gathering Qi into your tail, you swiftly move it through the air, casting your spell swiftly between your steps as you turn your casual prowl into a gallop. A dart of dripping carmine light forms just above the tip of your tail, forming itself into the shape of the vague outline of blood coating a knife. Flicking your tail, you throw the vein draining fang at the slouching spider ogre's neck, as you move to get behind him and nearly trample the spectators who aren't quick enough in getting out of your way. And just to make sure you open up his veins to spill out the ichor flowing through them, you conjure another Vein Draining Fang and prepare to throw it at him the moment the first buries itself in his chitinous hide!

It never does, he moves, with such haste his image seems to flicker like smoke in wind. Adopting a two handed grip with one of the uppermost of his eight blades, while still holding its twin at and angle, he twists around on his heel and slams it against the shrieking spell, blood red sparks flying from when they meet as his expression shifts suddenly from enamored and dazed to fierce and determined. The spell, some how, deflects, ricocheting off of seemingly ordinary steel and high into the air where it explodes like a firework. Either he has an amazing technique, or those swords are special in someway. Swallowing hard, you throw another spell, and another, one after the other. He steps forward to meet them, keeping his legs crouched as he pivots his swing to swing his blade upwards, utilizing the momentum of his first strike to drive it straight through the second dart, before pulling returning to a one handed grip to deflect the third Qi blade with the twin of the sword he had parried the first two with. The halved Vein draining fang flies past him, as he smacks the third into the sky. You stare, dumbfounded by his display of swordsmanship as he whistles as well as a spider abomination can, as two of the specters behind him, one a one eyed devil and the other a boar head brute, grasp at their necks, that are erupting with geysers of blood.

He stops rotating and twisting his blades, and holds them out from him like the legs of an ordinary spider.

"A similar technique felled the crow king's pet sinner bone centipede" He remarks, as you continue running, hopping to get behind him still and looking for a chance to throw more spells at him "I was in the audience that day, you know. Remarkable form and execution!"

Something catches on your tail, and your hind legs. Binding them and holding them in place, digging into them like a garrot of steel wire. Looking back, as you stop running to keep from bowling over and falling, you see a faint glint in the air and recognize it.
Its spider demon silk! You realize this, as it begins to pull and tug, as the polite assassin wrenches with all his might. Is he trying to pull you through the air? Or rip your legs and tail off!? You can't tell! You can't read a spider's expression!

>>5551633
Strength Trial. Roll 1d100. best out of four. DC 75

Rolled 42 (1d100)

>>5551634
Uhhh... break a leg?

Rolled 3 (1d100)

>>5551634
okay this time I'm calling on dragon spirits instead

BUDDHA

Rolled 94 (1d100)

>>5551634
shamful

>>5551668
young ones these days,always tying to make more complex then it need to be

Rolled 34 (1d100)

>>5551634

>>5551668
He's good, but should remember a cat is no mere fly to be ensnared in a web

>>5551668
Nice success! 10 over DC and a hair's breadth away from 20! Update will arrive shortly

>>5551668
>>5551699
Phew I don't think Huanliuxue's pride could tolerate another failure

But you certainly aren't going to stand still and dumbfounded until you find out! Spider Demon Silk may be able to cut through flesh, bone and even mundane metals as if they were soft jelly, but to the great huanliuxue they are naught by ordinary cob webs! Glaring, making sure to make eye contact with the spider who dared to imagine he could catch you in his web like a common fly, you sheathe the muscles in your hind legs and tail in blood Qi, strengthening them and using a simple skin hardening technique to keep from searing through your flesh through the explosive demonstration of strength to come. The ground cracks as your muscles and veins bulge, steam rising from your fur as tense your legs, and leap from the street, pulling the strings of silk wrapped tightly around you, digging into your fur and threatening to slice through your flesh.
Kicking off a nearby roof, you pull the strings as taught as they'll go and see your opponent struggle to hold his ground, his eight arms pulling forward by their wrists. A grimace of pain can be understood now matter what sort of face makes them. His eight eyes widen with panic, as he realize just how much strength lies within the body of an ox sized cat. He snarls, digging his heels and claws into the stones of the street, clenching his fangs together as his eyes squint from the sheer exertion required to try and keep you still.

And its from his stance you see how he got you caught in his web to begin with. His wrists The strange movements of his swords was a distraction, so he could use slight of hand to shoot out invisibly thin, yet iron tough strings of silk across the street, for a dome of web and barrier of silk above and around the arena he chose. He might've even put some strings before he alerted to you of his presence by approaching you so boldly. He must've been telling the truth of seeing you fight before, cause now that you're looking for them, you see the air is filled with miniscule, steel hard wires. But, that means nothing. The ones that have caught you are on the verge of snapping. All you need is one more stretch and they'll either break, or the arms holding onto them will!

Twitching your ears, a dying grudge shield appears under your front legs and you see a dread look of realization flash in eight ruby red eyes. Unable to contain it, you flash a wickedly amused grin as you push off of them with your paws and leap higher into the air. There's a snapping sound, and you look down, to see that he's severed the strings wrapped around his own wrists, which are now dripping with pale ichor, that pours from a gouge cut through his arm and into his chitinous skin. Behind you, silk strings hang limply

Cackling like a witch, you drift through the air and gently touch down on a rooftop across the streets, hanging on with your claws as you crouch on it, haunches coiled and ready to launch into a pounce.
Cont

>>5551724
"Impressive" He praises in pain, rubbing his wrists as he turns to you, gesturing to you with one of his many blades "I see my usual tricks won't work against you"

He throws a sword, controlling it with more silk strings, you deflect it back with another dying grudge shield, he catches it before it can be impaled in him or the ground, having jumped into the air to close in on you. Exactly as you hoped!

What is your plan of attack, Huanliuxue?

>Launch your self at him, and try to get your fangs on his throat, or else rake his armor away with claws drenched in Destructive Yin Qi (Martial Trial. 65)

>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)

>Turn human, hoping a second distraction will work better, and try to land Cat Catches Star on him (Martial Trial. DC 75)

>He's too quick and strong to attack directly. Take a deep breath, and smother him with grudges! Infused with Sorrow through blood Qi! Weakening and draining him of energy! (Magic Trial. DC 55)

>Using Blood Control, turn a portion of your blood acidic, and purposefully allow him to land a blow, hopefully before it causes any internal damage (Trickery/ Magic/ Fortitude Trial. DC 70)

>Write in

>>5551726
>>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)

>>5551726
>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)

>>5551726
>>He's too quick and strong to attack directly. Take a deep breath, and smother him with grudges! Infused with Sorrow through blood Qi! Weakening and draining him of energy! (Magic Trial. DC 55)
It's a classic.

>>5551726
>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)
We shouldn't use the techniques we used against the crow king, and those we used against the other spiders may also be compromised.

>>5551726

>>Turn human, hoping a second distraction will work better, and try to land Cat Catches Star on him (Martial Trial. DC 75)

>>5551726
Can't we do the spell that opens old wounds (I forgot the name)? He's a veteran demon assassin, I'm sure he has his fair share of scars...

>>5551763
Yeah, good idea. But isn't that a touch spell?

>>5551774
Ok, maybe something for next round then after we wear him down with some grudge fuckery

>>He's too quick and strong to attack directly. Take a deep breath, and smother him with grudges! Infused with Sorrow through blood Qi! Weakening and draining him of energy! (Magic Trial. DC 55)

>>5551726
>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)
Finally time to see what we can do with this grudge

>>5551726
>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)

>>5551763
Didn't we get another ability instead of that one?

>>5551819
They might be getting it mixed up with Cat Court’s effect of giving the rage buried in blood a physical form temporarily.

>>5551763
We don't have it.

>>5551726
>smother with grudges

Set us up for long term victory without revealing trap cards.

>>5551819
>>5551865
Well shit we should get that ASAP

>>5551819
There’s the one we used to kill the Crow King. I believe they’re thinking of that.

>>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)

More banter!
>”Ah, you’ve never seen my mother have you? She’s even more beautiful than I am. Even this proud cat must freely admit to that! Allow me to show her to you.”

>>5551884
Yes, it's on my wish list for when we get back home and have our training montage.
The spider hunting and duel interrupted that

>>5551726
>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)
Man, i'm loving this Spider Assasin, he's cool.

>>5551884
It is as the other anon says, on the wishlist.

Probably something we get from a breakthrough or other significant personal refinement, as all our other landmark techniques have been. Just think of what we can get with +108 to our modifier training.

>>5551898
We used the Vein draining fang with our claws, made them burst open with blood.

>>5551930
Took a look, it was Cat’s Court that we learned and used against Baoli. The physical form of it is probably where the confusion is like >>5551832 said.

I just had a thought.
If a culvivator remade his entire body, would the old wounds ability become useless, since the scars don't exist anymore, or more effective, since the entire body is a healed wound?

>>5551956
Hmm.

I'd say it's useless. Because what we're doing with the technique is prying open all the injuries that the body healed and remembered, then damaging by exasperbating them.

If you remake a body, at least as far as I'm concerned, you've taken new materials and constructed something new and flawless. We just need to avoid getting injured again, for that creates a flaw.

>>5551956
I had this thought while thinking about how useful it could be against old sis students, and then expandaed on other situations.
For example, patchwork old body would be devastating, since he just stapled new parts. But would it work on his new one, since he had a rebirth? It's still different parts, but they are no longer just stiched together.
Then I remembered that during Huan tribulation to get a new body, she turned into pool of blood and shaped into her new form. Would wounds previous to that new form still count, since it's a new body, and made only of her own parts? Would it be stronger, since you could count melting and being remade into a entire body wound? Or is it something more esoteric, with the blood remembering the wounds of combat/mutilation no matter, but not tribulations, breakthrougs or techniques?
Say that a cultivator remakes his body to be steel, would the old would still work, even though there is no more blood? If something like that is even possible
I think it's important to ask that because body reforging is a staple on these stories.
Also thought experiments can be fun.

>>5551968
The simple answer is it'll work according to the needs of the plot.

>>5551755
I don't see a need to show off techniques he may not know in a battle that isn't to the death. That'll just give him more info for next time if he does come for our head.

But I'm pretty sure we did use enmity incarnation against Baoli. Or at least against someone in his little tournament. He's totally not dead by the way, I'm not paranoid.

>>5552149
Pretty sure we did use our Rooster General form against him. Monu is def new though.

>>5551968
Effectiveness probably also depends from the roll of the dice on special cases.

You have to count some innate spiritual defenses that counteract this or perhaps it doesn't open all wounds ever, but it only reopens those acquired from a specific battle or span of time.

Being a never used before technique grampa has a lot of say in how op it is.

But never the less it would be hella distracting for huan to bristle her whiskers and the enemy starts bleeding randomly.

Do we have a character sheet with our cultivation, techniques, spells, ect. on it yet? If not I might try to put one together at some point.

>>5552316
We do my friend.

I'll need to try and get grandfather to post it in the OP.

https://pastebin.com/x5rCdZpq

>>5552324
Nice. If you do, maybe get him to post the link to the lost thread as well?

>>5552149
>>5552158
Did a quick check, we didn’t use Enmity Incarnation against Baoli. In fact I think we only used it against the child eating Toad and off screen while we were trying to get the attention of Owl Son.

>>5552375
Lost thread was linked the thread after it. So it's fine.

>>5552379
We didn't use it against one of the other fights?

>>5551726
>He's too quick and strong to attack directly. Take a deep breath, and smother him with grudges! Infused with Sorrow through blood Qi! Weakening and draining him of energy! (Magic Trial. DC 55)
Anons are too spooked by a single failure! Immediately jumping to fighting as someone else, bah. That opening was great, both of us testing the other, and both of us finding our opponent simply too canny to catch.

>>5552539
Honestly, since he finds us attractive now I’m wondering how he’ll respond to Monu. I want to mess with him more.

We’ve also never used her before so it’ll be nice to see what embodying her will mean in a “real” fight.

>>5551726
>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)

I absolutely want to do this just to see it in action.

>>5552428

We accidentally summoned the Rooster while fighting a demon cannibal, maybe you're thinking of that? But that was outright summoning, not Emnity.

>>5552428
The toad is the only one I recall using it in. We kept our cards pretty close to our hand in the Baoli fight, other than when we used our newly acquired Cat's Court: Spiteful Blood Legacy, after the 108.

>>5552419
Its just good form to link archive, lost threads, pastebins with character info or side info in the intro post... back when quests were on /tg/ we had standards dammit.

>>5552584
Now now, that era is long in the past. And in some ways I’m glad. I can NOT keep up with the update pace of /tg/-style quests anymore. There’s a QM who is running a couple I got into and I burned out hard as a result.

Of course, I’m also the mad lad with 16 quests open so I’m kinda stretched thin anyway.

>>5552583
Must have mixed that then
>>5552597
I'm following 31, but some of them are probably dead

>>5551726
>Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him (Magic Trial. DC 45)
Also voting to not mention our momma to the bug demon hitman. We don't want to give him any cute ideas.

>>5552753

That would be fucking hilarious if a spider assassin tried to poison Monu. She'd critique the work, demonstrate how to produce a better poison, then kill him with it.

Ending the vote now, tallying the result.

Use Enmity incarnation and become the devil of Monu's grudges, then, using her ice magic, unleash a gale of freezing wind upon him:9

He's too quick and strong to attack directly. Take a deep breath, and smother him with grudges! Infused with Sorrow through blood Qi! Weakening and draining him of energy!:4

Turn human, hoping a second distraction will work better, and try to land Cat Catches Star on him:1

”Ah, you’ve never seen my mother have you? She’s even more beautiful than I am. Even this proud cat must freely admit to that! Allow me to show her to you.”:1

So you'll take on Monu's grudge and use her talents/ abilities against the spider assassin, starting by unleashing a bone chilling gale.

Update will arrive shortly

Your mother Monu, has held a potent grudge saturated with anger and hatred as cold as the ice atop mountains. A spite pure and refine as she herself is in beauty, as venomous as the vermin she cultivates to make gu poison and as harsh and unrelenting as a deadly blizzard. And, while playing the role of the rooster general is as restrictive as benefits granted by his directionless enmity are power, Monu should be a much more forgiving of part to play. If only because you're her beloved daughter and protégé and know her almost as well as you know yourself or the whiskers on your face! She is perhaps the only thing beneath the heavens yet living worthy of being idolized by the beneficent and mighty Huanliuxue! And that reverence and filial respect you pay to her, will make it all the easy to act as her, or rather an ideal version of her.

Allowing your eyes to droop, looking bored despite the crooked, toothy grin you flash as if your opponents attacks did little more than amuse you, you transfixed the spider kin and imagined him dressed in the white and blues of the winter blossoming wisdom sect, thinking back to your murdered elder sister xuebai whom you have never known and the children you did know and loved as deeply as Monu adored her little snow fox. A chill runs down the length of your spine, from your neck to the end of your tail as tears fall and immediately freeze to your fur, forming a ring of frost beneath your eyes as your breath becomes white mist. Her grudge rises up your throat, like a snap freeze gripping your throat. It is bitter, but possessing deeper and complex notes of flavor beyond most other grudges. Love scorned and betrayed, confusion turning to wrath. Black curls of smoke intermingle with your frosty breath, sizzling and popping as their heat melts the ice within it. You call forth your mother's spirit and the spite she has carried within her for decades if not centuries, her murderous grudge against the man she once loved and those she called her brothers and sisters, undying and pure as clear ice.

Your fur smooths, becoming fox like and flowing as you tilt your head head, and turn your gross, frog like smile into a teasing, playful smirk. A pale white mist flows around you, circling your paws and infusing your fur to cling to your skin, to fall as powdery snow as you adopt Monu's casual and carefree posture and lift your ears high to look like a foxes. Thinking like you imagine Monu does, visions of pretty girls and boys, flowing dark violet wine and crawling centipedes, spiders and beetles fill your mind, proud memories of both you and the murdered Xuebai. Mummers of regrets, whispers of curses, flirty giggles fill the rest of the space within your head until it feels like it is ready to burst, before dryly read recipes for the most dreadful of poisons known to god or man rise up like morning fog.
cont

>>5552949

A piercing, sober clarity overtakes the clouds of mirth and self indulgence. A bitter cold infects you, as whispers of guilt and declarations of revenge speak themselves with your lips as the mist around your paws turns to hard shackles of ice. Over the face of Huanliuxue, the mask of the toad which falls, as the dark miasma of grudges sinks from your lips, dripping like venom.

Then, as the spider ogre steps onto the rooftop, you yet out a wail of sorrow, throwing back your head as you channel Monu's cold magic and unleash the coldness lurking within her heart in the form of a freezing wind that could snuff out life as easily as it does fire!

"Oh that's unexpected" Is all the spider demon has to say as he faces down the blizzard born of a mother's lament

"Come here boy! The night is young and the air is sweet and chilled, don't you want to be put to bed gently by a beauty such as I?" You mock, rocking your head side to side as you move through the icy wind with ease "Just let the cold take you, intoxicate and muddle your thoughts, relish in this mind numbing chill, the first of my presents to you. Lets go crazy together, Dar~Ling!"

And with that said, you flick your tail, casting a spell to take advantage of the chill around you, causing the already low temperatures to plummet fiercely, and form fist sized icicles to pelt your opponent as he tries not to freeze solid where he stands!"

roll 1d100. Best out of four. DC 45

Rolled 75 (1d100)

>>5552951

Rolled 43 (1d100)

>>5552951

Rolled 25 (1d100)

>>5552951

Rolled 19 (1d100)

>>5552951

>>5552957
Great success! Exactly thirty over DC

update will arrive shortly

>>5552985
I'm glad this was done in hell, could you all imagine if we lose sight of things while drunk on a grudge this deep and depopulated an entire city?
Especially as monu deals with indiscriminate powers like cold and poisons.

>>5552988
Xiongji's bottomless rage would also be a issue in a populated area

Cackling you bound around him, jumping on plates of ice that form beneath your paws, taunting him your coy laughter as he struggles to endure a barrage of ice coming at him from all sides. Ice that after impacting against his armor, even going so far as to dent or pierce through it, begins to spread and lock the plates and joints of his elegant black armor in place, reducing his mobility and creating a horrible cycle of using his strength to break himself free only to be struck by more icicles he could dodge, deflect or cut in half as you assault his ears with haughty mocking giggling, using the snow thrown up by your fur to hide as he quickly begins to lose his cool despite how cold he must be!

"Oh don't tell me you're all tuckered out all ready boy! Where's all your confidence and bravado gone!" You say with a squeal of girlish laughter sure to break the pride of any man "you looked like you knew how to handle a sword, was that all just bluster! Come on! Keep up! You're starting to bore me"

"Nrrr" He snarls, his fangs and mandibles locked shut by his now frozen venom, two of his eight eyes twitching in anger "Yrr wrnt"

"Sorry? What was that? Cat got your tongue? Or is it starting to get a little frost bitten? Surely one as talented as you can over come a challenge as simple as this!" You shout encouragingly, hopping back down to the roofs on the other side of the street, where you lift up your paw and cover your mother as you titter and sneer "Come get me! I'm right over here, waiting"

"Wrrrn" He hisses, shaking his head as the winds continue to buffet and batter him, and more and more icicles crow from him into dazzling pillars of ice. He closes his eyes and slams the pommel of one of his many swords into his face "This is no time to flirt! At least wait till I'm off the clock!"

"Oh you think I'm interested in you? I see you've got an ego bigger than your head' You say coldly "You have a long way to climb before you catch my eye, boy"

He squinted his eyes, clearly baffled as to your sudden change in personality. Maybe he's trying to figure out if its just banter meant to distract him or something more.

"Then I shall sweep you off your feet, watch me dance, girl!" He blusters, trying to match your kittenish provocations with bold words of his own. And rears his ugly spider head back, and spits out a green glob of sizzling goo, before swinging across the street on a single line of web. To the amazement and awe of the now cheering crowd below, who've huddled together for warmth. You hear just as many teeth chattering as you do voices cheering, actually.

"Poison! Against me! Are you an iiiiidiot~?" You declare, laughing brazenly "or is that meant to be a gift? Aww, so thoughtful!"
cont

>>5553001

"What?" He said, as you casually avoided his plunging strike, but let the ball of venom to hit you in the face, feeling it boil and froth under your fur and cackling manically as you saw a look of dread wash over his face as it harmless drips from your whiskers and the chin of your fur, not even scalding your or making you feel sick at all!

"Tastes acidic, but a little sweet" You cackle as he takes a fearful step back, raising his guard "Oh? Did you think I had only one trick up my sleeves? Boy! A proper lady is only worth as much as the number of secret she keeps"

"Oh, this fight is going to be much more interesting than I first anticipated" He said, fear replaced with blood lust that pulses out from him to the beating of his heart in great torrents "How lovely! Join me in my dance and, as you said, lets get crazy!"

He becomes a blur of steel and motion, spinning, hopping and Pirouetting towards you with blinding speed, laughing manically as he tears up the roof with his swords. Which he gathers the tiles he rips out on top of, and throws at you with his very next sequence of wild swings.

How do you try and defend yourself, Huanliuxue?

>Just put a wall of ice between him and you. (magic trial. DC62)

>Drool a mess of poisoned bile, soaking your tongues and fangs in it, and grab a hold of one of his arms mid-swing, before the blade it holds can cut you (Martial trial, DC 73)

>Just keep leaping backwards, taunting and teasing him and trying to muddle and pollute his thoughts (agility trial. DC 55)

>Infuse your claws with poison and ice, and sneak a single claw through the gaps in his armor, sliding past him on a slick of ice (Martial Trial. DC 80)

>Write in

>>5553003
>Just keep leaping backwards, taunting and teasing him and trying to muddle and pollute his thoughts (agility trial. DC 55)
Fluster the spider

>>5552996
I imagine Monu is worse since Xiongji is a more “up close and personal” attacker. He doesn’t have the AOE Monu does to chew through low-level mobs quickly.
He’d probably be quicker to tear through high-level ones. Monu would need a bit of time to let her poisons work, but Xiongji would just rip them apart and move on.

Either way, it turns out grudges worth embodying are destructive! We have the self-writing book, so I hope it’s already got a “Protip: Grudges kill people!” as a warning somewhere.

Y’know, I do wonder something about this form. Can our opponents soothe our grudges to weaken them? Something like an opponent agreeing that the Winter sect is vile for refusing to let a woman mother the cub who saved her.

>>5553003
>Just keep leaping backwards, taunting and teasing him and trying to muddle and pollute his thoughts (agility trial. DC 55)
And just because I’m curious and don’t actually mind if we lose as long as we learn things.
>Mention offhand about how men are useless at courting mothers. Become more enraged when discussing what men do when they learn your daughter is a fox. See if he says something to appease the grudge you embody, and if you must fight to keep it from weakening your form.

>>5553003
>Momentarily hide behind a snow cloud and use this time to create copies of ourselves out of ice, painting them with colored venoms and hiding acidic eating poisons inside of them to be splashed onto the enemy by his own blows.

>>5553003
>Drool a mess of poisoned bile, soaking your tongues and fangs in it, and grab a hold of one of his arms mid-swing, before the blade it holds can cut you (Martial trial, DC 73)

Defeating a spider demon with a poisonous bite is too funny to pass on

>>5553003
>>5553019
Ohh, I like this one. We can keep taunting while hiding amongst the clones.

I’ll refine my write-in as well with some flavor. Not gonna try connecting all of it though.
>”Men like you are useful playthings, at least while you think me solely a jade-like beauty.”
>”Even my beauty isn’t enough to keep them fully enraptured when they learn I’m a mother as well. You’re all easily roped back in, but men don’t know how to behave once they hear of children.”
>”Especially when such children look different from the rest. When they have fur instead of hair. When they have claws instead of hands. When they have many tails when there should BE NONE!”
>”WHEN THE CHILD ISN’T WHAT YOU WANT, YOU KILL HER! WHEN THE MOTHER ISN’T WHAT YOU WANT, YOU BREAK HER! WHAT LITTLE WARMTH I HAD IS NOW GONE! FREEZE IN WINTER THAT REMAINS!
Maybe if he doesn’t interrupt this, we’ll get a power boost for embracing the core of the grudge so tightly. If he does interrupt it, at least we’ll learn that our grudges can be weakened!

I wouldn’t want to test this in our sect. I kinda don’t want them to die. Normal opponents probably couldn’t say the right things to weaken us either. So this makes a good opportunity for research against demons for whom that isn’t a concern and who may be sympathetic to Monu’s plight.

>>5553019
I'll Support that.

It's Cool. literally.

>>5553019
This sounds fun, and i imagine his surprise at being hit by a cat's poison.

Do we actually know any of monu techniques thought?
I imagine she has some really crazy stuff in her sleeves but we haven't been offered the chances to mimic them in this fight.

Anyway these grudge embodiments are incredibly op since it seems like we can copy their dao.
I don't know how much the copycat(heh) power scales off but even if the poison immunity of monu turns "only" into high resistance for us it's astounding.

Yet this is a particular case, an incredible combination of a grudge that powerful and from someone huan knows intimately.

>>5553019
Supporting

>>5553003
>>5553019
and a this +1

>>5553032
Also my vote includes this because yea.

>>5553072
imagine if we'd cultivated the grudges of a birdcaged broken baoli, head kept on a pike style
I voted to kill him but maaan that would've been strong
that idea to cultivate a grudge against ourselves in someone was pretty wild; imagine incarnating the power of something (very strong) constructed to defeat us, the switch-up would be heaven crushing.

>>5553003
>Just put a wall of ice between him and you. (magic trial. DC62)

>>5553180
But setting aside questions of karma, we would need to embody their resentment towards us and i'm not sure that would be healthy.
For those cases we would need to develop a technique to get stronger from their resentment not embody it.

>>5553233
indeed! self hatred isn't our forte.
in others words, we'd have to be doing the grudge manipulation kin of metaphorically wearing the fabric of enmity, in place of embodying it as a mask.
perhaps taking its own technique. although souls with grudges can hate themselves well enough, our embodiment requires a sympathy to their resentments that we can't necessarily conjure from within from the perspective of a true enemy.

>>5553233
>>5553240
Learning to keep ourself as the “master” of the grudge we embody was something we learned the first time we used it if I remember right. I believe it tried to overwhelm us since truly embodying the grudge robs us of the ability to turn it “off”. The grudge doesn’t care if we go back to being Huan, after all.

Embodying a grudge cultivated against us may be harder or impossible, but we have a solid foundation for the attempt at least.

>>5553003
Voting roundup.

>Votes - 8
yPgfHj+G
aLZIAV+F
a/v0TfFU
WONtuIio
dxhQ6mr0
7UgGYwfH
lIgsNHcJ
nBVtJOwA

>Tease him while leaping backwards - 1
yPgfHj+G

>Wall of ice - 1
nBVtJOwA

>Write-in: Hide in snow cloud and create poison-painted ice clones with acid inside them that can dissolve him and his blades as he slashes to find you. - 6
a/v0TfFU
aLZIAV+F
WONtuIio
dxhQ6mr0
7UgGYwfH
lIgsNHcJ

>Write-in: Embrace the grudge of Monu more tightly while vocalizing it, to see if it can be further empowered or if he can weaken it by being sympathetic to the root of Monu’s grudge - 2
> Flavor writing >>5553032
aLZIAV+F
lIgsNHcJ

Looks like the write-in tactic is winning. The science experiment and regular options, not so much.

>>5553420
Hmm. I'll add to my vote here >>5553064 with the science option. It is a reasonable idea.

One more and we do SCIENCE.

>>5553003
>>5553032
Support just for the pretty good write in. Monu is cool af, but holy shit she is probably way more bitter that Huan realizes.

>>5553019
I'll change my vote to support this.
But only if we continue teasing him

>>5553454
If science experiment doesn’t win, I fully expect we’d continue teasing. Monu is good at it.
>”How violent! I would have felt something if you knew where to put that.”
>”Your sword is softening. A shame it weren’t made of sterner stuff.
>”Ah, maybe some supplements would help? I’m quite the alchemist too.”
>”Perhaps you are too inexperienced for a beauty of my caliber.”

>>5553484
I'm hoping he is a viable contact in the underworld.

>>5553525
I’d want to have him as part of a “sect”/court on the hell side. So far it’d be Yùjījiǎo as leader, Lady Anjing as backup leader, this guy as enforcer, and pig as the unreliable broker. Maybe moth merchant as a better one.

We already have a court among the dead and wild. Why not hell too? I wouldn’t want to be a major player since we’re still living and have stuff going on there, but it makes sense for someone challenging the heavens to have at least a small permanent presence in hell.

>>5554348
Seems hell once was part of the world, and was separated either during or a bit before the Ling marital dispute.
So that means that our birthright as the empress of the wild extends to hell as well!

>>5554348
A presence in hell is definitely needed. But I doubt it needs to be a sect, probably just retail focused.

>>5554348
I feel like his loyalty for spiderkind wouldn't be so easily bought.
He is one of their enforcers they deemed competent enough to match with huan and that is not very common.

Even to have his services as a mercenary we would have to patch up relations with the spider matriarch which doesn't seem viable at the moment without a big investment.

>>5554574
I mean, it's not a massive thing. Our being willing to ally with them is itself a big bargaining chip as personal power is always a big consideration in the world of cultivation.
This assassination is just a formality.

Ending the vote now, tallying the results. Meant to do so yesterday, but RL stuff got in the way.

Just keep leaping backwards, taunting and teasing him and trying to muddle and pollute his thoughts:1

”Men like you are useful playthings, at least while you think me solely a jade-like beauty.”...etc/ science experiment:4

Just put a wall of ice between him and you. :1

Momentarily hide behind a snow cloud and use this time to create copies of ourselves out of ice, painting them with colored venoms and hiding acidic eating poisons inside of them to be splashed onto the enemy by his own blows.:7

Drool a mess of poisoned bile, soaking your tongues and fangs in it, and grab a hold of one of his arms mid-swing, before the blade it holds can cut you:1

So the write in of ice puppets coated in venoms and acidic poisons wins! DC will be revealed in the intermediary update

>>5553420
Thank you for the help, Junior

>>5555774
Dang. There’s an extra vote in the roundup, but that’s not enough to get the other write-in inserted so it’s a moot point.

At least we can keep applying ice burns through our teasing.

Shaking yourself, like a dog would to get dry, you fill the air with a cloud of powder, white snow, that hangs on the wailing winds and in some places even hardens into ice. Flicking your tail and shaking your paws, you keep the cloud nice and dense, forming an impenetrable screen around yourself, only able to be see as a vague shadowy outline.

"Tch tch" You click your tongue, as you manipulate your shadow into wavering and becoming even more distorted with a little bit of Yin Qi manipulation, pulling, tugging and stretching it to make your exact location beneath the cloud of snow and ice untraceable "No peeking! You're not some sort of beast in heat are you? Hiding behind a gentleman's mask? How Scaaary~"

Swaying side to side, you dodge the flying roof tiles as you work a somewhat complicated bit of magic, it isn't quite a spell, but you know Monu has experience in creating and controlling puppets. She used them to help build your sect's temple and still uses a few to keep it clean so the outer disciples can do more important and strenuous work. Even if they can't cultivate, she told you one day, its good to make sure they're nice and strong even if they lack potential. SO, it stands to reason, even if you've never really had an interest in the art of making and controlling puppets, and actually still have a chip on your shoulder concerning them and might be the reason some of your mother's wooden puppets were found mauled and clawed into splinters and sawdust, after you ran into them while half awake and mistook them for a certain handful of troublesome and loathsome stone goliaths with triangular heads, that while acting as her and borrowing her multitude of skills, that you can create and puppet magical puppets yourself! Even if you feel a certain shame in doing so!

Opening your mouth, you spit up five balls of flesh and bone eating poison, and using your specter lightness skill, hold them in the air long enough for a thin surface of ice to form, to keep them from spilling out and melting through the roof.

"Don't think blinding me will slow me down" Your opponent boasts as he continues his skipping and bounding charge towards you, becoming a twister of steel and spraying venom "I can sense even the slightest and most subtle of vibrations, every move you make I can track"

"Any worthwhile admirer can, dar~ling" You tease as you create five large blocks of ice around the five balls of flesh corroding poison and with a few swipes of your claws cut them into the shape of a truly beautiful cat "I didn't know you were such a fan, or should I call you a stalker? The line between the two is rather thin and muddled, I suppose the only thing really separating them is how they present themselves"
Cont

>>5555793

"Well, is wanting to stab their idol the action of a fan or stalker?" He laughs back as you paint the ice statues with colorful and exotic venoms, from all sorts of different types of frogs, lizards, serpents, spiders and centipedes, many of which Monu has told you of before in the same way she would reminisce about her past conquests. Of both the martial and romantic kind.

He lunges, stabbing five of his eight blades where he thinks you are. But you leapt in the air and began to float their, curling and bumbling around as his swords pierce through nothing, besides clay roof tiles.

Landing back down behind him, you yawn and with a swipe of your paw banish the snow cloud, revealing the five ice puppets and yourself.

"What a fierce thrust, and what brutish strength! I might've felt something if only you knew where to put them" You sneer, as you and your poison filled doppelgangers circle around him "Maybe you'll have more of a chance now? Or perhaps you'll be overwhelmed! Inexperienced as you are with a beauty of my caliber! Surely six fairy cats will make you weak in the knees, young boy!"

"Okay, okay, after this is done, you'll have to tell me how you're doing this" He laughs, standing slack and calm in the middle of six circling Huanliuxue's "Its so rare to find an opponent as full of surprises as you are, every time I think I have you figured out, you reveal a new, unexpected technique"

"Exciting isn't it? Wondering which layer will be the last to be removed until all is laid bare?" You giggle girlishly, making sure your copies move their mouths in sync with your own

"And there's that as well. I've never even met a demon who could flirt while partaking in a deadly battle" He said, rolling his eight eyes "You're a strange one, bloodshed"

You smirk, thinking, 'well if you find that fun, you'll love the surprise I have waiting for you'

Roll 1d100. Best out of four. DC 66. Trickery/ Luck trial

Rolled 77 (1d100)

>>5555798

Rolled 73 (1d100)

>>5555798
DAO

Rolled 95 (1d100)

>>5555798

Rolled 79 (1d100)

>>5555798

>>5554348
Anjing isn't a leader in any way or form so her being there is almost purely to aid with the construction and facilitation of fashion.

If we induct her into our group, it'll probably be best for using her as a grounding element in hell. Especially when she gets stronger to act as deterrent.

Yujijao makes sense as our eyes down here, though her pride may cause issues. Issues that unlike us, she may not be able to solve.

I'd say wait till people get to golden core before we are able to leave them to their buissness.

>>5555809
Good success. 20 over DC, A hair's breadth from being 30 over!

Update will arrive shortly

"Strange? How mean! How am I strange?" You pout and mewl, with an exaggerated whimper in your voice and a painfully fake pitiful look in your eyes "Such a harsh tongue! I see I'll need to teach it how to wag in a pleasant way! That's now way to talk to a lady you know!"

"Hrrn" He snarls, not giving your relentless teasing any response besides that and and confused look in his eyes, the waves of his killing intent wavering as he tries to figure out the trick behind how you suddenly multiplied, which must be truly difficult when he has to also contend with constant pestering and playful mockery. His reactions are almost adorable, when you look at them from what you think would be Monu's view of them. Nervous, hesitant and hiding it all beneath a gruff exterior. You can see why she likes to play with other's hearts so much. Its actually quite fun, in a weird way.

"Oh, has this cat taken your tongue?" You titter, prancing about him as you can easily imagine is ruby eyes swirling with bafflement as he tries to comprehend the true form of this strange technique or your intentions. Why, if you squint your eyes, you think you can see smoke billowing out of his ears. Wait, do spiders even have ears? A question for later!

"Or do you just not want to embarrass yourself. There's nothing to be ashamed of, all cats know how to steal one's breath away" You tease as you saunter and slink around him, glaring at him with twelve eyes as he tries to keep track of each of the Huanliuxue's stalking around him, his eight sword arms flicking this way and turning that way as he tries to keep up. If he really can sense vibrations, he's probably figured out something is off about your doppelgangers, but because of how vibrations travel in ripples, your own real footsteps prevent him from sussing out which of the Huanliuxue's are the real one and which are the puppets. Maybe its their weight, but the ripples from your steps bungle his sense and confuse him as much as your toying with him does!

"King Yama dammit!" He cries out, squinting his eyes like he's just been struck by one hell of a headache "Could you be quiet! Your constant chattering and vapid remarks is...Oh, that's your plan, isn't it?"

"Most men like to hear girl's talk, though I think you'd prefer me screaming" You giggle, hopping and skipping around him with your ice clones

"The flirting, the teasing, the lurid remarks. Like the cold. It's meant to confuse me, to mess with my head! What a dirty trick!" He shouts out loud as if he wants all the people huddled together in the street below to hear.

"Are you so sure?" You ask with drooping eyes and a bowed head "B~o~y~?"

His eye twitches

"Grrnth" He chokes, and to keep from dwelling on your words or the emotions they must be enticing within his little spider heart, he throws himself at the near Huanliuxue, swords raised and eyes burning with as much anger as they are confusion

Unfortunately for him, the real you was two puppets behind that one.
Cont

>>5555839

And he's swinging so blindly and so furiously, he moves from the first fake to another, before he realizes something has sprayed out of the one he's just cut in half and decapitated, and by time he notices the sizzling sounds, its too late.

All eight of his eyes widen as he sees one of his arms melting, the armor he wore already oozing down his bristly haired limb, and then, as he move to take advantage of this pause in movement, his eyes flick to his other arm intime to see the poison eating away the sword it held and already dripping onto his flesh! So quick is the poison to burn and melt through flesh, that it can't be felt until it touches the marrow of its victims bones. And spiders don't have marrow or bones, in fact, you aren't sure they even have nerves! You really need to study spiders, once you're done fighting this one.

He sprints away, before your claws, also coated in acidic poison, can rake his back. You frown, seeing he's cut away the two arms that were coated in the special surprise you snuck inside of your puppets.

"Okay...Okay" He pants, deliriously "What the hell. I can't...you're..I didn't think you had...so many and so varied techniques! I thought I had you figured out as an opponent, as a martial artist, as a sorcerer, as a cultivator! Death ya know, grudges and...and all that, blood. It was a unique fighting style, befitting a heretic of cultivation, but, I could...could figure it out, solve it once I...I fought you but, poison! Ice?! I mapped out your meridians when we fought! and your spirit roots They had ghostly Yin Qi, Pure and refined, and Raw, untampered blood QI! Where is this ice magic coming from, this cold water Qi? And the poison! I couldn't detect even a drop of toxin in your blood! So what's up with that! What's up with that!"

"Seems I'm a little too much for you too handle, after all. Good thing you and I decided this was just a dalliance, rather than anything serious" You snicker as you stalk towards him, allowing your spiritual aura wash over him as he stares at the guy, entirely unbothered by the lack of his arms "But I thought you were harder than you're proving to be, ya know, made of sterner stuff. But now you're panicking, freaking out. It's kind of cute, I like my prey helpless, ya know"

The Spider is completely confused. +20 to every roll against him

"Ain't helpless, just...need time to study you..." He mutters, rubbing his head "Come get me"

"Are you sure I'm the girl here?" You mock, rocking your head side to side with a jubilant smile "You should be more aggressive! Aren't you a man?! I shouldn't have to make the first move, didn't your papa teach you anything?"

"Mama ate papa" He said cheerfully as if it is the most natural thing in the world. Maybe it is for spiders. You wouldn't know, you aren't a scholar of spiders.

"Huh, gross" you say back, already planning your next attack "Guess that explains why your family is so messed up"

Cont

>>5555840

How do you take advantage of his confusion, Huanliuxue?

>Drop Monu's mask and instead Wear Xiongjis! The sudden shift in personality, mannerism and speech will certainly mess with him! Then beat him to a pulp! (Martial Trial. DC 70. +20)

>Use your specter lightness skill, catching him inside of it, and make him think you've slowed his perceptions with the poison that melted his arms, before knocking him over (Trickery Trial. DC 40. DC lowered by previous actions. +20)

>Use the Vein Hunting Eye to find find his weak points by tracing his life energy, then strike them with open palms, one infused with Metal Qi and the Other carrying an ice spell! (Martial trial. DC 90. +20)

>Monu likes curses. So curse him! (Magic trial. DC 80. +20,Curse effect randomly determined, since Huanliuxue isn't experienced is using them)

>Offer to call it a draw.

>Write in

>>5555843
>Use your specter lightness skill, catching him inside of it, and make him think you've slowed his perceptions with the poison that melted his arms, before knocking him over (Trickery Trial. DC 40. DC lowered by previous actions. +20)
Seems the most funny to me

>>5555843
>We've got to make this last bit look good! Then we can stop, or maybe you'd like for me to go even harder~

>Use the spectre lightness skill to knock him over.

But yeah, lets just make this the last move look good for the spectators, prove that we can kill spiders because we're that fuckin' good.

>>5555843
>Offer to call it a draw
>… if he promises to look after Lady Anjing while you’re gone and tell you of other worthwhile spiders and other demons he believes we’d enjoy the company of.
>As an aside, ask if he’d be willing to be a sparring partner in the future. You could benefit from a partner with more presence than a ghost yet also can’t die.
If he refuses, or doesn’t give enough info for us to be satisfied then
>Use your specter lightness skill, catching him inside of it, and make him think you've slowed his perceptions with the poison that melted his arms, before knocking him over (Trickery Trial. DC 40. DC lowered by previous actions. +20)
Cursing would be nice to try, but I don’t want to hurt him with something we don’t understand. Experimenting nearly killed an entire village long ago.

Interesting to note that he could see our unpolluted blood qi. He hasn’t been close enough to read our roots directly, so he (and others in hell) must simply recognize the purity of what we’re using from a distance. Which means others can learn of our heretical nature through demons.

>>5555843
>Use the Vein Hunting Eye to find find his weak points by tracing his life energy, then strike them with open palms, one infused with Metal Qi and the Other carrying an ice spell! (Martial trial. DC 90. +20)

>>5555843
>>5555860
Mhm, Baoli pointed it out too, guess it's not that unique of a talent. Come to think of it, we never did quite figure out the /why/ of why someone like Baoli had a chip on his shoulder about corrupting Blood Qi, outside of generalized demon corrupts pure things context etc.

Also +1. The more we can get out of this the better, competent allies in hell are hard to come by. I expect he'll have a point of pride in exacting what he was sent here to do, making the offer first will force his consideration to options fewer. IE draw or be mauled to death.

>>5555860
this is a better advancement scheme. I'll switch to support it.

I feel like the statement has been made here.

>>5555860
+1

>>5555860
+1

File: Cat lady dismembers local(...).gif (3.35 MB, 400x224)

3.35 MB GIF

>>5555843
>Use your specter lightness skill, catching him inside of it, and make him think you've slowed his perceptions with the poison that melted his arms, before knocking him over and removing his remaining limbs(Trickery Trial. DC 40. DC lowered by previous actions. +20)
>If successful, call for a draw

This is much better imo

>>5556032
Now this I can get behind

>>5556032
You just added in the original vote that we take his other arms, my guy. How's that better?

>>5556230
Oh shit, I didn't even see he added removing his other arms.
I just saw the part of declaring a draw after we use the lightness, which is what I would support.

>>5556230
You answered your own question. We've just started drawing blood and are already calling a draw? Chop off some other limbs at least before doing so.

>>5555843
>Use your specter lightness skill, catching him inside of it, and make him think you've slowed his perceptions with the poison that melted his arms, before knocking him over and removing a couple more of his remaining limbs(Trickery Trial. DC 40. DC lowered by previous actions. +20)
>If successful, call for a draw

Just remove another pair so he's down to 4 like all other decent animals.

>>5556252
He was acting a bit unhinged so i'm not sure he wouldn't have cut off our limbs if given the option,
Besides given the masochistic nature of spider mating he probably even expects a few limbs to be a good trade for a dance with a dangerous female.
So i'm voting for the sadistic side of cats to surface.

>>5556318
Let's not tell him that "cats eat spiders" or he might cream himself.

>>5555843
>Offer to call it a draw.

Too good of a roll might kill or cripple him at this point, and this guy is too great to kill.

>>5556841
higher rolls is the better outcome. We won't kill or cripple him unless we want to.

Count

>Votes - 10
yPgfHj+G
WONtuIio
aLZIAV+F
a/v0TfFU
HWtqfN5G
wb6qQp9Y
pYIy8ll8
HhUpbQCY
dxhQ6mr0
fELAs3vc

>Knock over + Drawn - 1
yPgfHj+G

>Tease - 0 (1)
WONtuIio (?)

>Conditional Draw + conditional Knock over - 5
aLZIAV+F
HWtqfN5G
WONtuIio
wb6qQp9Y
pYIy8ll8

>Weak point - 1
a/v0TfFU

>Arm removal + Drawn - 2
HhUpbQCY
dxhQ6mr0

>Drawn - 1
fELAs3vc

Tease has a ? because WONtuIio changed his voted, but I think it still could be used in case Spider-Man here refuses the draw
Also I put a draw after knocking over because I like the idea of beating him up ad then saying it's a draw, but don't want to rip off his other arms

>>5557129
There is a distinctly catlike essence to either option, honestly. They're both kinda perfect and I'd be fine with either but don't want to complicate things too much more.

>>5555860
Supporting. Also funny how the puppet incident is still a source of trauma for Huan.