Everyone please welcome a promising new Cultivator to the server! Butterfly Dancer of the Su sect is a Battle Queen at only twenty-five years of age, a quite remarkable feat. Black Cross got in contact with her recently and vouches for her.

Welcome, Butterfly Dancer! Did you recently change your Daoist name? 

I like the new one better. It's metal. 

Welcome, Abyssal Bride. What has Black Cross told you about the group?

Uh, seniors? This isn't Butterfly Dancer. I don't know who it is. 

Are you sure?

I'm sure, I have Butterfly Dancer in my friends list right now.

DM me her ID?

There.

It seems I made a typo and invited the wrong person. One moment.

Welcome Butterfly Dancer! This time for sure.

Thank you! It's very good to be here among so many talented seniors. Thank you again for the invitation!

What should we do about the accidental invitation?

One moment, I'm drawing lots.

Ooh, let me try!~ 

Great Disaster.

Oh, we should let the new person stay then.

My lots say "great compatibility" and "grand success." It's unanimous.

But didn't Black Cross say it would be a disaster?

Black Cross' lots are always backwards.

Hmph.

Anyway. Until Eight Tails contradicts me the newcomer can stay. They'll probably leave soon anyways. 

Yes, Senior Starlight.

Heh. Nice. It seems like pretty different RP from what she's used to, but...

Hello. I am honored to witness those of obvious power. In all of heaven and earth and the abyss there are ever more mysteries, so I am happy to listen. Perhaps some day the time will come where I may contribute what petty dark knowledge I glean.

A good attitude to start with, I think.

Abyssal Bride, are you a Daoist? The name seems indicative of a demonic cultivator but I hesitate to jump to conclusions.

I am only a bare initiate into the mysteries. Perhaps the name is presumptuous, but I have always loved the ocean.

Looks like we have a guinea pig for you, Winter Rose.

I already have Black Cross to test my current pills on. 

Oh, that reminds me. I've collected that list of ingredients you wanted, Winter Rose. 

Including the Spring Mountain Grass?

Yes! I even have some extra left over.

You can keep it, what I ordered should be a sufficient quantity.

Thank you Senior!

Don't mention it, you're the one who put in the effort.

(She is looking at something else now, but occasionally looking back to the new chat.)

You'll be sending me another batch of pills, then.

Body tempering liquid and qi and blood pills. 

How will you be sending it?

By sword, of course.

I'll watch for it.

Here's my current best recipe if anyone else would like to take a shot at improving it:

There's an attachment listing many herbs used in chinese traditional medicine, as well as a number of more fantastical ingredients such as Spring Mountain Grass.

You know I'm not a pill person.

I'll take a shot at it and report my results.

She does some googling. A very Chinese theme going on here. Flying swords, qi, ginseng and stuff... Her own interests don't really fit in. Interesting that they're going for this much verisimilitude, though.

If anyone needs unusual fish, pearls, or so on for their recipes, I suspect I am in a good position to acquire them. I live by the ocean and have contacts in this area.

Thank you for the offer, Abyssal Bride. I'll keep it in mind.

Out of curiosity, she looks up all the ingredients in the recipe and tries to figure out how much it would cost to make.

Most of it would cost about £10, but there's a particular herb that's apparently £200 an ounce. And there are four ingredients she can't find with google. 

Huh. She looks for alternate names for those four ingredients. They're probably from some fiction or something, right? That leads her into spending the rest of the evening reading a Chinese manga, and forgetting about the chatroom until a couple of days later after work when she checks again.

Hey Abyssal Bride, you wouldn't happen to be by the Irish Sea would you? I've heard you can catch Dragonfish there.

Pegasidae, also called Sea Moths? Or 'black dragonfish', which are sort of eel-like? Or something else?

Black dragonfish. Their eyes are useful in a few things, as well as the chemicals that make them bioluminescent. We'd be catching females of course, the males don't generally get close enough to the surface to fish for. 

The serene depths of night offer no protection if you willingly leave them.

I've never seen someone deliberately go for those before but I suppose it'd be possible. And yes, I'm in Wales. Boat rent is expensive though, I don't have my own.

Oh, no need to worry about that. Winter Rose always covers the costs of these ingredient hunts.

If she's willing to spend a lot of money on this I suppose that's one obstacle down. Fishing at night is legitimately dangerous business though. The sea is not forgiving. Is it worth it?

Yes, definitely. But I'd need your help, I'm hopeless at fishing. 

...Really, really dedicated hobby group. If Black Cross actually goes through with it, anyway. Well, people spend their money on weird stuff all the time.

I can help if you hire me. Two people to handle a ship big enough for ocean fishing, at night, is slightly iffy so I may want a third I know as well.

That's fine. Where will we meet?

She DMs an address- The local marina, and adds to the DM-

When? I'll need a couple days to arrange things. Weekend would be ideal. And you'll need to prepay when you get here, fyi.

This Saturday works for me. I'll need some time to recover from the trip anyways. 

Sounds like a plan. 7 PM should give us enough time to get out to sea and start trying to catch some.

Okay! It looks like she's doing this. She can charge a good amount, too, if expenses are covered... Who would be a good fit, who wouldn't balk at the prospect of night fishing... Argie isn't usually doing anything on the weekends, and wouldn't turn them down, she doesn't think. Not if he can charge a bit more than usual for boat rental and skipper services.

Ah. Fishing equipment. She looks up what might be needed to catch this specific variety of fish. There's not much information online, though. Asks around town, tells them it's for some rich hobbyist wanting a live specimen. She writes down what the old sea dogs have to say and goes around buying or borrowing what they suggest, too.

She's going to be charging a nice finder's fee too. An opportunity for spending money~ And a bit of an adventure too!

She's standing by the Marina entrance with a little sign that says 'Black Cross' at 7 PM Saturday.

It's pretty easy to guess who Black Cross is. Black lipstick, black eyeliner, black hair, black nail polish, black dress, black purse. She smiles and waves when she sees the sign. 

"Abyssal Bride?" 

She has a light Canadian accent, all rounded and lilting. 

"That's me. Good to meet you. I've got things planned out. Argie Burke is one of the finest captains in town," because that's the kind of thing you say no matter what the truth is, though it does happen to be true in this case, "His ship Saint David is a 70-foot diesel trawler - plenty big enough to be stable and safe as long as the weather holds, and the forecast looks good."

"You'll want to sort out payment, right? Let me see here -" 

She fishes in her purse and pulls out a glossy black credit card. "Credit would be best, but I have cash on me too, I just don't want to flash it around." 

"Captain Burke would probably prefer cash - he wants you to sign a waiver too, so let's go see him." She indicates the ship in question. "Also, I asked around for the best way to try and catch a black dragonfish, so let's compare notes on that front as we're heading out?"

"Alright." She puts the credit card back in her purse. "Let's go then. You can call me Nix in public, by the way."

"I go by Bettrys."

Captain Burke is a cheerful man of fifty-five with only faint hints of Fischer-ness. If she wants go looking for a rare fish, that's her prerogative and he'll do his best to enable it as long as the money flows! His rate is not exorbitant for the hiring of such a big ship, but, well... Boats are expensive. He says Betty's pay is coming out of the boat hire fee, so there's no separate line item for it.

(She prefers to be called 'Trys' than 'Betty', as nicknames go, but this is not worth arguing with the Captain about.)

He'll add on 20% to the price if she wants to use a credit card, "On account of maybe you'll issue a chargeback later. First time customer thing, it's only business."

"Oh, in that case I'll just pay cash." 

She fishes in her purse, pulls out a black wallet, and from the wallet extracts a thick wad of fifty pound notes. "This ought to cover it." 

(How rich is she? Well. She'll just do her best to be professional and impressive.)

The Captain diligently counts out enough for 8 hours, then lays out an injury risk waiver for Nix to sign. "Now, we're going to be trawling with the nets at the right depth for your black dragonfish. At night and at that depth, there's not a lot of other fish in the sea, hence the hefty fee. You'll get some of this money back, depending on how full my nets are and how much you pick out of them. I'll be on the bridge the whole time, you and miss Bettrys will have to work the nets. You'll both be wearing lines and safety equipment. She knows how, one hand and a greenhorn will be able to handle a quarter the usual haul-in."

"Alright." She signs the waiver as Nix Rowan. "I'll make sure to stay alert and listen to all your instructions."

They go on board. Bettrys very diligently and seriously goes over maritime safety rules and net operation with Nix. The ship sets out, deck lights on. It's cold, but she doesn't seem very bothered in that short-sleeve collared shirt. Once they're sailing out to sea, silence falls for a time.

Would it be weird to talk about the RP server? Would Nix want her to? Engaging with it might lead to repeat business, after all. It's not real and it feels a little - cringey, to be honest. But she's curious, though. The conversations in the server have a sense of weight and reality to them, and that's neat. Will it be the same in real life?

"Do you know where one would get, uh, morning dew grass? I couldn't actually find any to buy under that name."

"Spring Mountain Grass, you mean? It mostly grows in the Chinese mountains. The sects there cultivate it and trade it for other ingredients. You should ask Butterfly Dancer to send you some, she has extra and it's mostly useless to her, she's past the need for such low-level stuff."

"A-huh. Makes sense."

And then they have work to do getting the nets ready and hauling things up and down, and there's not much time for talking.

They catch some fish. Lots of fish, hundreds, even if the nets could easily hold thousands. Hardly any of them are black dragonfish. Bettrys and Nix both have their hands full digging through the piles of fish- pushing any that aren't the one she wants into a hole that leads to a holding tank.

Eventually, they catch two female black dragonfish in the same net, carefully separated out from the rest of the catch and put in a plastic cooler.

"Do you want to keep trawling for more?"

"No, these should be sufficient. I don't want to spend more time out here than necessary."

"-If you say so. We'll just get the nets in and then head back to shore, then."

She uses her walkie-talkie to talk to the skipper and finishes clearing the nets.

Well then, while the skipper's distracted - 

Black Cross pulls an aquarium out of her purse, and fills it with dragonfish and seawater. Then she pulls out a sword, spucks the aquarium down on top of it, taps a star at the base of the sword, and lets go. 

The sword shoots off into the night at considerable velocity.

What.

She stares momentarily, then goes back to tidying the nets. Maybe shaking slightly.

Nix doesn't seem to have noticed, or maybe she's just being polite. She occupies herself with her work and stays quiet all the way back.

They end up standing quietly with no more work on the way back.

No guts no glory.

"...So, it's all real? Really real, not some kind of elaborate RP? I didn't just hallucinate a bag of holding and a flying sword?"

Nix wordlessly extends her purse so Trys can see inside it. 

Her wallet is about the size of a thumbnail. There's a collection of paper seals next to it, equally tiny, along with a centimetre-long bottle of black nail polish, and a similarly sized nail file and compact makeup kit. There's also a compressed hand mirror, an itty-bitty smartphone, and a scattering of tiny red beads.

"I would humbly ask for your wisdom, far greater than mine in the hidden powers. I admit... I don't actually know anything. Nothing besides what I've read in that chatroom."

" - fuck, I thought you were at least Beyond Mortal, what was Senior Starlight thinking -" 

She rubs her forehead. "Later. We can get breakfast somewhere private." 

"I know I'm weird- Fischers are weird as hell and there's only, what, a couple hundred of us? Never really - thought anything more of it... Yeah, breakfast."

"Monster bloodline. Later." She pulls her phone out of her purse and starts tapping at it.

Abyssal Bride is mortal, saw me send Winter's sword home. Advise?

Standard protocol.

Tell her about me!

Read her in and let her make her own decision. Remember my lots.

Yes, Silver Starlight.

"Careful with that, no way you're getting it back if it goes over," she says. Then sighs and looks out over the dark sea.

Nix nods and puts her phone back in her purse. 

"Senior Starlight says I can tell you more. Glad I can do it without risking the wrath of the group."

"So it's a secret society, masquerade type thing?"

"Sometimes there are incidents but it's kept quiet usually."

"Mm."

She's silent until they're pulling in under the marina's lights. It's still the dead of night - 1:35 AM. She helps tie the ship down. The skipper gives Nix about half her cash back. Bettrys carries the cooler from earlier off the boat, to disguise the fact that the fish are already gone.

"There's a 24 hour diner down the street. I'm extremely curious but maybe it would be better for us both to sleep first?"

She fishes a red pill out of her purse. "Take thi- Wait, you're not a cultivator. Fuck. Okay, I'll get a hotel room and we'll reconvene in the morning. Nine o'clock? And I'll pay for your breakfast."

"RIght. Sorry for the delay, and thank you. I could push through, but sleepiness makes people stupid. Scientific fact."

"It's no problem. I'll DM you when I wake up in the morning. See you!" 

She waves and heads off down the street, pulling out her phone to get directions to the nearest hotel.

She sets her alarm for 8. And checks her phone at 8. And then gets dressed and paces in her room a lot.

At 8:45:

Hey, you up? Do they have Smittys in the UK? This feels like a giant waffle occasion.

Not a lot of chain stores in this little village but Aberystwyth has a good waffle place. Half hour by bus. Or the local cafe, but it's really more a fish and chips place.

I can't believe I'm seriously considering delaying this another half hour just for waffles. 

You know what, you decide. I'll pay for whatever you decide to get and I can manage fish and chips for breakfast if need be.

Nah they've got breakfast stuff. Just not giant waffles, regular ones maybe. And pancakes and french toast?

Address

French toast is better than a half hour drive by a long shot. Deal. See you there!

She takes a lightning-quick shower and is there in ten minutes.

"Hey again. I'm starving. For food and information both."

Nix waves from her place at the table. "I've already ordered french toast for both of us, hope you don't mind. So - ask away."

"Nah, don't mind."

"...Bearing in mind I expect it to be difficult and painful, any reason I should not try to cultivate?"

"Your potential is probably going to be capped by the fact that you didn't start cultivating when you were very young. If you join a sect you will be expected to cut all ties with the outside world until you become a master - quite possibly for your family's entire natural lifespan - and if you're a loose cultivator you'll be begging for table scraps. Also you could well be killed by a rival cultivator who wants what you have. That's... pretty much it. You have a monster bloodline though, so the first thing applies less to you."

"The rich get richer." Sigh. "So monsters are a real thing? That's some high fantasy stuff."

"Yeah, they exist. Some of them are smart and can take human shapes. Hence Fischers. You're probably a little bit related to those fish we caught yesterday."

"Huh. Not sure I like that. But at least it's useful. We - I, at least, can hold my breath for a long time and handle cold better, and I'm stronger than I should be. Body tempering liquid is the start?"

"The start is being fit enough to drink body tempering liquid and not die. It, uh... It helps if you're a virgin. Or gay. No intermingling of Yin and Yang essences. I would guess you're fit enough either way from your monster bloodline and from serving on fishing boats, you've got a good build going. It'd help if I sent a photo of you to Snow Rose, they'd be better able to judge it."

"...Unless just kissing counts I should be good on that front." She blushes deep blue, apparently. "A photo is fine at this point, though. Just please don't share it too wide."

Nix holds up her phone. "Say cheese." 

Snap. And into DMs with Winter Rose.

Can a mortal woman with this physique who's never mingled their Yin essence successfully take Body Tempering Fluid?

Looks A-OK. Found a volunteer, have we?

Still talking. We'll see.

"Winter Rose says you should be okay."

"Good, good... Hm. You said I could get robbed, as a loner. Does the government not know about cultivators? Nobody who'd enforce laws?"

"The proportion of criminal cultivators is a lot higher than among normal people. It's easy to become powerful in the mortal world with divinations and magical services, and the power goes to a lot of people's heads. There's an informal détente - you're supposed to fight on the Grievance Settling Platform if you have a clash between sects, for example - but a lot of cultivators flaunt the rules. It's good to know and stay on the good side of stronger people. Which is why I let Snow Rose use me as her gopher."

"It's probably too idealistic of me to think... Doing what's right should be mandatory. But who says what's right? Agh, cut myself off that train of thought or I'll be philosophizing about the nature of power and why state violence is considered legitimate. Um." She nibbles on waffles. "I'm glad to have indirectly helped Snow Rose, then."

"If you decide to try her new Body Tempering Liquid recipe and come over to our side she'll probably repay you for that and this with a few blood and qi pills - the red things you saw in my purse, they let you cultivate faster and do a better Hundred Days' Foundation Building."

"Hrm. Obvious enough name for the first step. Come over to your side meaning, what, being on tap for errands? Joining a sect?"

"Deciding to become a cultivator. It doesn't really matter whether you cultivate loosely or not, a sect wouldn't prioritize you because you won't have newborn qi for your foundation building... You'll be bottom of the totem pole either way. You wouldn't have to do errands, but if you wanted to advance..."

"Oh. I'm not going to get anything for nothing, I know that." She takes a deep breath. "I think I will. It's a direction in life, and - a wakeup call, I guess. I could just keep fishing forever, but I'm only treading water. So. She wants an amateur to try the new recipe? See if it's really as easy as all that, and any good at all?"

"Yeah. It would help a lot with potency testing."

"...Yeah, 'experimental medicine'. Hah. Well, that's how it goes. Glad to be of assistance. Are there books I can read on the world of cultivation? I wouldn't want to be a pest to the group asking stupid basic questions all the time."

"Not really, no. Knowledge's pretty closely guarded, since it often makes the difference between life and death. You should ask Silver Starlight, she's the admin and would know what's safe to share. That said, I can sketch the broad picture for you. 

First things first - China is the heartland of cultivation and cultivators from there rule basically everything they have a care to, because it takes hundreds of years to develop high rank and the Chinese have always guarded their knowledge jealously. On the other hand, the world is very large and there is no translation charm. So the chinese cultivators who have their hooks in other countries are mostly quite young - Battle Kings, mostly - and as a result a lot of the planet is really still up for grabs. The chat group is mostly made up of international genius practitioners who've made fifth rank in under two hundred years. So in short: Don't piss off China. Silver Starlight and Eight Tails are sixth-rank True Monarchs and can wipe out whole sects on their own, but even together they're no match for a seventh-stage Venerable."

She pauses to accept the food from the waitress, and takes a slug of her milk. "Looks tasty. Where was I? Oh yes, cultivation ranks. There are nine major ranks - Beyond Mortal, True Master, Battle King, Inborn, Spirit Sovereign, True Monarch, Spirit Venerable, Profound or Ancient Saint or Demon, Tribulation Immortal. Spirit Sovereign is genuinely impressive, True Monarch and above are terrifying. Battle King is the strongest rank you can expect someone to reach in eighty years - I've been in Beyond Mortal for three years now, trying and failing to leap the Dragon Gate." 

She frowns. "I'm telling this all out of order. I should start from the beginning of the cultivation process." She pours syrup on her french toast and starts cutting it up. "To complete the first rank, you do the Hundred Days' Foundation Building, open your Heart Aperture - that makes you Beyond Mortal - then open your five senses and finally complete fish leaping the dragon gate, and that gives you True Qi and makes you a True Master. The five apertures are fairly easy, you can get them in under a year, but leaping the dragon gate can take forty years if you don't have the resources to force your way through. About one in every seventeen cultivators never makes it past. I've tried three times now over three years and never succeeded."

She has a notebook, into which she is all but scribbling.

"And even the first rank makes you stronger? What is - actually 'cultivating' like?"

Nix puts some french toast in her mouth, chews, swallows. Washes it down with milk. "The body tempering liquid will put you in the prime of physical health, and then completing the Hundred Days' Foundation Building and opening your heart aperture will give you another forty years of healthy life or thereabouts. Opening your five sense apertures will sharpen the senses significantly and might give you unique abilities - I have a scent ability, I can track like a bloodhound and determine things' makeup just from how they smell, very useful for testing ingredients. Once you break through to True Master your lifespan doubles to around 240 years, and it keeps increasing after that. Senior Red is around 500 years old."

"The last stage had 'immortal' in the name..."

"Not technically ageless, but a lifespan measured in millions of years. Practical immortality."

"Wow. But not without a lot of hard work and luck."

"Fifth rank - Spirit Sovereign - is a reasonable lifetime achievement to shoot for, and has a lifespan of about a thousand years."

"I'm eager to get started. And glad I took you seriously. If you need help with errands like this in future, I'm almost certainly willing."

Nix halfsmiles. "Eat your french toast. Things will take a little while even at the fastest speed. Remember, cultivation can take centuries. Going at it impetuously is a good way to die."

"Sooner started sooner finished, though."

She takes a deep breath and eats her breakfast.

"True. Some geniuses cultivate astonishingly fast." She shoves more french toast into her mouth. "You can't bet on being a genius though. I bet there'll be people in the group with jobs for you if you look."

Bettrys eats more slowly.

"...If I'm gonna be anything, it's determined, I think. I'm no genius by any measure."

"Good attitude. Keep your head down and you might still be around in a century."

"Anything else I should know now instead of asking later?"

"No sharing techniques without permission unless you want nobody to ever share techniques with you again. Don't go talking to randoms about this. Oh, and - do you have a private place to practice?"

"No. Just a small apartment. I'll make sure to find one."

"Silver Starlight owns a house in Cardiff if you'd be willing to move. Free rent."

"...I'll have to think about it. It's probably less valuable than those pills to her, but still it's a sort of debt. And I am used to here."

"Whatever you decide." 

She keeps eating.

French toast and coffee and contemplation.

"...That's a cool look, by the way. I've thought about buying more gothy stuff but, uh, I guess I'm not actually sure why I haven't."

"I was like that once. But, like, your time is short. Live your best life."

"...Mmh. I reject death. It is the ultimate enemy, the destruction of all that makes a person be. There is nothing good, in isolation, about death. Even evil people - it'd be better to put them where they couldn't hurt anyone, if you could do that for free. The greatest possible loss of anything in this world, each person unique- You know, they say scientists are making progress on mundane therapies to delay aging? It's incredibly complicated biochemistry of course, but..." She shakes her head. "I guess that's predicated on, sort of, absorbed nihilism and atheism. I don't know if the cultivation world has any better insight into divinity or afterlife than the mundane one."

"Oh, me too. I'm just pretty fatalistic. One of the group died a year ago, it was pretty messy. Left an impact on me. And there's the tribulations between ranks - those kill cultivators too. So overall your chances of making high rank are slim."

"Oh. Sorry." She blushes again. She's getting emotional whiplash, a bit. "I think I will just - buy things I want, later. And I'll ask Winter Rose about that recipe later today. Good luck with whatever else you have to scavenger hunt for, by the way."

"It happens. And thank you. You finished with your french toast?"

"Close enough, anyway."

She proceeds to quickly down what remains.

Nix sets a red pill next to Trys' plate. 

"For being cool. Don't use this unless you've already taken body tempering liquid, and you'll want to just hold it in your mouth and suck on it to start with. It'll refill your blood and qi. Any last questions before I go?"

She carefully puts the little pill into her wallet, which goes in a pocket. (Handbag? Her? No, thank you.)

"-Use sparingly, especially at first, got it. Not a question, but I'm not that cool. Have a nice day."

"See you online. Later." 

Black Cross leaves a fifty pound note on the table, gets up, and leaves. 

Trys chats with the waitress some, explains Nix as 'a friend who wanted to see real fishing boats'. After a bit, goes home, reads the backlog, and posts to the cultivator chat room-

Black Dragonfish hunting w/Black Cross = success. And I see I've already been discussed. I was really surprised! Once again honored to be included. @Winter Rose, Black Cross told me you were looking for someone willing to try an experimental formula?

Mhm. Are you willing to take a trip out for it? I have pill furnaces going right now, so I can't just abandon them. 

Definitely, especially if you're in the EU.

Berlin. I'll pay your travel expenses, don't worry. Here's my address.

I'll be able to come by this week, I think. Any particular time or day?

I'll be minding my furnaces so any day is fine.

She looks at the differences between a series of bus and train tickets, and a flight. She calls out of work. Obviously worth it for this.

...Flight wins hard on convenience, even if she has to explain her 'medical condition' twice coming and twice going. And it's not even that much more expensive. She looks up hotels before she books.

Expect me Wednesday afternoon.

Glad to hear it.

Good luck!

🤩 :starry_eyes:

lol

lol

I'm sure everyone was as excited to start as I am right?

Also kind of regretting my cringey name a bit,

You'll grow into it. I did.

I think it's pretty!

blushes

I'm going to have to spend a while getting to know people. Ravenous Blade is nice and recognizable and I know Black Cross and Winter Rose sort of now but yeah.

And I am very aware I'm the newbie, so yeah

aww yeah still got it

We can hang whenever, I've got places most places. I'll let you get your business with Snow Rose done first.

Just remember Eight Tails and Silver Starlight are True Monarchs and that makes them admins atop your seniors.

Someone mention me, ehe?

Eight Tails! I was starting to get worried.

Don't worry, I'm fine. Just took me slightly longer to wipe the floor with those Wen guys than I expected - they had a couple loaner Spirit Sovereigns from China. What's up?

Abyssal Bride here is new, mortal, about to come over thanks to Snow Rose's experiments. I met her in person, she's cool.

Hello, Eight Tails. I'm nothing special (yet?), so I'm going to be working hard.

Hello new junior. I'm looking forwards to your efforts.

Abyssal Bride has a monstrous bloodline, Senior Eight Tails. 

She does, does she? Interesting. I'll definitely be watching closely.

Black Cross opens a DM with Trys. 

Eight Tails is an ascendant fox and not originally a human at all.

!!

Makes sense, if one of my ancestors was a fish. Magic sure changes things.

It does!

Nobody else posts in the chat group.

Super early on Wednesday morning, she takes two buses down to Cardiff Aiport, yawns through check-in, and pays close attention during security screening. If cultivation is a good way to make money, it would follow that some people are at least aware of it, just - not able to do anything about it. Is anyone acting differently about her?

Huh. The low-level grunts were giving her a lot of trouble about 'makeup', but once she got in sight of a manager he basically just waved her through. Did he just recognize something - not worth the trouble? Don't inconvenience the maybe-cultivator and everyone's day will be better? Maybe.

Regardless, she is then on a plane, and then in Berlin, and then checking into a hotel, and then getting lunch, and soon enough ringing the doorbell at the address Winter Rose gave.

A blue-haired woman wearing a long, clearly custom-tailored labcoat over black slacks and a t-shirt that reads "science is magic that works" answers the door. 

"You're not Black Cross - oh wait, yes, Abyssal Bride. Good to see you." She offers her hand to shake. "Winter Rose. You can call me Senior."

Handshake. "Yes, ma'a- Senior. I also go by Bettrys. Or junior, I suppose." It sounds weird, but this is a new world and new culture. "Thanks for having me over, and I'm glad I was able to help with the black dragonfish."

"Thank you for helping out Black Cross. And for volunteering to help with my experiments. Come in, we shouldn't have this discussion in the middle of the street."

She nods and follows Winter Rose in, looking around curiously. Tries to subtly figure out if she's supposed to take off her shoes and backpack, or what.

Winter Rose is in stockinged feet, and there's a shoe mat by the door. The floor is hardwood; a simple chandelier hangs above in the high entranceway. 

Winter Rose is already moving into another room, from which low beeping can be heard.

Shoes go off, backpack goes by the shoe mat. She follows Winter Rose.

She makes sure she's not interrupting then asks, "What do I need to know about your experimental protocol? I don't know if you're going to try for blind tests or... Or what."

"I've already isolated the formula I think will work best - the potency should be high based on tests in rats and taste tests - you just need to take it and let me examine you beforehand and after." 

She gestures to machine that fills most of the room. It looks like an MRI, with a low long table that goes inside a coil, but there are long spidery lines drawn all over the outside, thrumming with soft white energy. "Lie down on the bed and I'll slide you in and scan you."

"Magic MRI? Interesting. Is this formula based on the one you posted to the group?"

She gets on the table and lies calmly.

"Similar, but I've improved a bit since my last post."

She slides in the bed. "Hold still." The machine thrums with light and energy. 

After a few minutes, the bed slides back out. "All done. The monster bloodline will confuse things a little but if anything should only produce better results... Anyway, on to the pill room." She stalks out another door.

Follow, follow.

"I'd be interested if you know anything about my bloodline, or where I could find out more. All I know is that my whole family is like this, we're like - a twentieth of these two villages and that's it."

One wall of the room is full of what look like electric ovens with runic formations on them. It's swelteringly hot and smells pungently bitter. The wall across from the ovens is covered by glass-fronted cupboards filled with gems, herbs and fruits, many of which are obviously unnatural. There's a small kitchen space with bowls and utensils and a sink on the remaining wall.

"From my tests it looks like a Deep Dragon bloodline - you'll probably have an affinity for sealmaking, they're known for it." 

She opens one of the ovens and takes a deep breath of the stench that rolls out. "This is done. One moment." 

She reaches into the oven with her bare hands and pulls out a metal tray. Moving unhurriedly, she turns and sets it on the counter. It's brimming with a black, noxious fluid. 

"Body Tempering Liquid, version one hundred thirty seven." Winter Rose looks at Trys. "Ready? After this there's no going back."

She coughs, once.

Nods.

"How much will I take, and what happens after?"

Winter Rose takes out a measuring spoon and carefully measures five millilitres. "This much. It will taste sweet, then intensely spicy once you swallow it. You must keep it down. You will sweat and it will feel like you've run a marathon when the changes are done, but you should be fine so long as you don't retch."

"Okay."

She takes the spoon and gobbles it - ugk, what a smell - swallows as quickly as she can.

Oof. "-Weren't kidding."

Deep breaths. It's burning. Feels like she's sick, like she's drowning she should be panicking and doing something, anything, she should be running-

Hold the breath, eyes watering. Then out. Then hold again. In, 2 3 4 5, hold, 2 3 4, out, 2 3 4 5, hold 2 3 4...

It's not getting better right away. But not worse either. It'll pass soon enough. Right?

Winter Rose steadies her. "It will pass. Just breathe."

No acknowledgement.

She can deal with pain. She can hold steady to something she knows she must endure. Stubbornness is maybe her one good quality, right, so this is no big deal.

More deep breaths.

"Good. The changes should be starting now, toning and reshaping your body. You've got a decent build but it'll be better in a moment."

She quirks into a small smile, then winces. Deep breaths.

"Will I - need more of this to - Foundation Building?"

"Once and you're done. Which isn't to say the rest will be easy."

"Of course not. I'd - appreciate some hints on that next part, by the way."

"The chat group will probably send you some introduction presents. Feeling alright?"

"Still burning but it's not getting worse."

"Good." She checks her watch. "You should be going into the resculpting stage in a few seconds. It'll hurt, but you're tough, aren't you? And it'll be quick."

"I probably should have sat down for this, huh?" Forcing amusement into her voice.

And then she lets out a grunt of pain and twitches all over, swaying on her feet.

"No dying." Winter Rose's voice is surprisingly forceful. 

"Fuck no. I got shit to do."

Breathe, girl, breathe. It really does feel like she just ran a marathon. Or climbed a mountain. Or got beat up.

"-Think it's passing. Woah."

Winter Rose offers her a hand. 

"Welcome to the club. Need a towel?" She breaks out in a grin. "Or a mirror? You look great. And now you may call me December. Now that I know you're not gonna just die on me."

"-How often does that happen? Should I have spent a month working out first?" Headshake. "I could use a shower, honestly. And a mirror. Feel more exhausted than - basically ever - and at the same time like I could go swim across the Irish Sea."

"There's about a one percent failure rate even among fit, healthy aspirants. Nothing you could do to improve your chances. You didn't roll a 1." She waves vaguely at the exit. "I can lend you my bathroom and a change of clothes, I've got some robes that are fairly one size fits all."

"And every step is like that. Enough chances to roll a 1, and..." Sigh. "I will take you up on that offer, thank you. Don't you need to scan me again, though?"

"It can wait until you're clean. No need to get my nice scanner bed sticky with sweat."

"Okay. Hoooo. I have spare outfits in my backpack actually, so I'll just use one of those. Be back soon, then."

She grabs her pack from the entranceway and looks for the bathroom.

-And is stopped short when she looks in the mirror. Holy shit, she was alright before, but now she's some kind of supermodel-athlete hybrid!

Eventually she actually does shower and change into her clean clothes and head back into the scanner room.

"Hey there! Get used to your new body yet? It can be a bit of a shock. Come on, lay down, I want my data."

"It's gonna be weeks before I stop double-taking. I want to go to the gym after this."

Trys-->Scanner.

"Interesting. You might develop gills after enough of this. Hard to tell for sure, depends on the exact potency of your line... and this batch looks strong. About a ten percent increase from last time. Congratulations, you're a cultivator."

"That would be... Strange. Great fun especially if I can learn a spell to see clearly underwater, of course. Hmm. I understand that Senior Eight Tails is, what was the phrase, an ascended fox?"

"Kumiho, originally - korean murderous fox spirit. She's chilled out over a few hundred years and is pretty nice. She's one of the founders of the chat group along with Senior Red."

"Huh. If she managed to grow human, I might be able to do - fishy things if I try. Long way off though, right?"

"Most likely to show up in the third rank when you form your Battle Queen Body, yes. It'll be years. Don't worry too much about it."

"Hard not to get excited. Thank you for having me over - I think I'm about ready to get out of your hair but please keep me in mind if you need errands more than what Black Cross can do."

"That's fine. Make sure to ask in the chat about starting your Hundred Days' Foundation Building - and I have a stock of a hundred qi and blood pills for you to take home with you."

"-Thank you! I'll definitely do that, and pay you back some day. Not that I'm rushing to leave, either, I just figured you have work to do and I'm underfoot."

"Don't mention it, it's standard for seniors to give new juniors gifts to help with their initial cultivation. This is small potatoes for me."

She's polite all the way out the door and carefully puts the bottle of qi and blood pills away.

Then, she posts:

Took Winter Rose's body tempering elixir and didn't die!

Congratulations on not dying! @Starlight, think this is an occasion for Canadian Fist?

Sounds like it. Abyssal Bride, check your DMs.

There's a file. Looks like a Powerpoint presentation?

Phone can't read that, I'll check it out when I get my laptop open. Canadian fist?

It's a radical new foundation-building technique put together by the seniors of the group. Primarily me. It's based on a variety of international sources to supplement the original Chinese path, ranging from Hermeticism to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. It's a thoroughly modern cultivation path, and while that means it's untested it also means it could be a lot better than traditional methods. Black Cross was our first test case.

I could give you Precise Fist if you wanted a less radical alternative. That wouldn't come free though.

:thinking:

This sounds like a very important decision. What exactly is a foundation building technique?

Actually how does foundation building even work? I know I have to open my sense apertures...

You're getting a little ahead of yourself.

Foundation building techniques are the cornerstone of your style going forwards. So yes, this is important. They are ways you refine Qi and Blood through physical and mental training - martial arts and focus meditation, most commonly. 

First you must make about three hundred strands of qi and blood and fuse them into your Heart Aperture in order to open it. That's the Hundred Days' Foundation Building. After that you proceed to your remaining sense apertures - Eyes, Nose, Ears, and Mouth, Heart does touch - and then you perform Fish Leaping Through The Dragon Gate to complete the rank. Is that fairly clear?

I think so. Thank you for clarifying.

I'm going to think on it but my gut is leaning towards using Canadian Fist since I'm already in everyone's trust, and I am not exactly a traditional cultivator.

It does have the advantage of being cheaper.

Oh hush, Heiress. You know I've put a century into this. Let me have my trials.

It just hasn't worked out for Black Cross so far.

Hard to judge since she doesn't have amniotic qi. Given that her progress is strong.

As you say, Senior.

It's worked out alright for me, I'd say.

It's your choice, Abyssal Bride. Do what feels right and fits your Way.

:thinking: :thinking: I don't have an understanding of these things like you all do. What are the differences between the two techniques on a descriptive level like - more/less controlled/adaptable/fast?

What sort of payment would you ask for, Senior Twice Heiress?

I would call this a medium-sized favor. Something moderately dangerous and time-consuming. Go and harvest a rare, poisonous plant, say. 

Canadian Fist is a diverse foundation building art pulling from many sources. It's composed of a punching technique, a kicking technique, an agility technique, and an insight meditation. The kicking technique is derived from Capoeira and is quite difficult but has a very high skill ceiling, and should remain effective even into the third rank; the fist technique is derived from boxing, a counter-punching technique based on keeping distance from the opponent and punishing mistakes; the agility technique is also from boxing, it's called "Ring Dancer" and produces short bursts of high agility. Finally we have the insight meditation, which is a modern Wiccan form - it emphasizes qi direction and control, what witches refer to as "energy work." These work together to produce a flashy style that wears down its opponents with superior speed and then counter-punches or lands a heavy kick for the win.

Precise Fist is a pure Chinese martial art based on karate and buddhism. It is composed of a fist technique, a sensing technique, an agility technique, a body-strengthening technique, and an insight meditation. It is focused on striking once at a vital area with superior speed and force and thereby deciding the battle; the sensing technique allows you to trace your opponents' qi and strike where their body is weakest, with the rest of the techniques aiming to make the strike a final one. It is tried, tested, and strong enough to form my own foundation as a fifth-rank Spirit Sovereign, whereas Canadian Fist is relatively untested and required much adaptation of the material to qi-powered fighters. 

Hmm.

She thinks about it for a while. Canadian Fist appeals on one level - flashy, stylish, wearing down the opponent, spacing and control. The modern cultivator. She can almost hear music thinking about it, a heavy rhythmic beating. Precise Fist is appealing on an entirely different level - the decisive strike, standing still at the center of a storm until just the right moment, landing one blow to end entire battles.

After getting back to her hotel, she ponders some more. Fighting sounds like an important part of being a cultivator. Who is she, as a fighter? Maybe she should look around for more options... But that would be considerably harder, and these two seem pretty different already. It'd just lead to choice paralysis.

Pacing, or kicking out the foundations. Flowing motion, or perfect stillness.

After nearly an hour,

Thank you for the clear explanations, seniors. After due consideration while both sound appealing, I have decided to use the Canadian Fist technique.

Yes!

Drat.

Need I remind you two that this is a serious matter and should not be bet on?

Yes, Senior Starlight.

Yes, Senior Starlight.

In that case, you just need to view the files I sent you on your laptop. They set out the basics with a simple hypnotic technique to improve retention.

o_o hypnosis that actually works? Cultivation is scary.

You only just realized that now?

Black Claw...

Someone had to say it.

Not really just now. I've been told I'll probably die of it several times now.

I'm not really clear on how casual this place is. On the one hand, so many powerful seniors. On the other hand, it's a *chatroom*. I'll tone it down?

We try to keep it informal. We're tired of old stuffy sects, mostly. Just keep in mind the consequences of mouthing off to your seniors. Black Claw has a history.

Understood. That was meant to be 'impressed' anyway.

I took it that way. It was a little naïve perhaps but well-intentioned. Don't worry. 

Both True Monarchs on at the same time, huh?

Don't say that where Senior Red can hear you. She's coming out of seclusion soon.

:sweatdrop:

(She opens the PowerPoint Silver Starlight sent and reads it)

It's a simple explanation of how the techniques work, but as she reads it she plunges into the feeling of being taught by a faceless master who corrects her form and forces her to put her full might into each of the strikes and blocks. Every technique has a different challenge embedded within it, and they leave her mentally taxed after reading just three of the four.

It is really weird how it does that. Is the file magic, or is it just the arrangement of the words and such? Well, she has no way to tell.

When she notices how intense it is, she actually sticks to the first two, the punching and kicking techniques, and sits thinking about them for a while. That kicking method is a doozy, she can see why Silver Starlight called it 'quite difficult'.

Her flight home isn't for another two days, so she should probably practice these later. But for now, she has a drink of water and checks the chat group again before starting in on reading the other two techniques.

Hey, what's been going on?

Abyssal Bride took up Canadian Fist.

Good for her! It'll be really something to have another test case.

This could be the start of a whole new school.

Fingers crossed!

Any new tasks up for offer?

Someone needs to reintroduce Senior Red to the modern world in a month.

Not it.

I'll contribute an enchanted dagger to the reward for doing it. 

I'll put up some sword and armor talismans.

I'll add in five hundred qi and blood pills.

:sweatdrop:

How long has Senior Red has been in seclusion?

Just shy of a century.

And it seems she has a certain reputation as well?

Nobody posts.

...Well, that answers that.

She reads the other two exercises. She considers actually doing them, but a hotel room is not a great place for that. Nor is a local gym.

She DMs Silver Starlight,

Senior Starlight, I heard from Black Cross that you have a currently-unused house in Cardiff that may be available to me. I am going to have to hold off on practicing your Canadian Fist arts until I have a good place for it and making use of such an opportunity would be faster than finding a practice area of my own, so I am interested, though of course I would be happy to help you out with occasional errands in exchange.

You're welcome to use the house so long as you don't mind potentially sharing - the intent of these houses is in part to act as safe places to retreat to for cultivators in distress. No favours necessary, they're a "community resource."

Very well, thank you. I'll take good care of it. What's the address? Also, I assume you would like updates on how I am taking to the Canadian Fist style?

Here is the address, and here is the one-time passcode to register you with the security formations. 

I would like to come instruct you in a week once I've finished my business overseas. 

The basic training method for you to get started with is to practice a martial technique until you exhaust yourself and then immediately meditate to form a strand of blood and qi. It will take on average three hundred such strands to open your heart aperture, though some have been able to do it with one hundred seventy strands or so. As you develop more strands your body will toughen and you will be able to get in more training in a day. Use Snow Rose's blood and qi pills to refresh your energy between training rounds; they are also able to substitute for sleep to a limited extent, though I don't recommend going for longer than three days straight without at your level. It's most efficient for you to hold a pill in your mouth, suck on it until you're refilled, and then take it out for reuse until you drain it dry right now - swallowing is a waste, it'll refill your qi and blood faster than you can spend it. 

If you work hard and use the qi pills judiciously, you should be able to complete the Hundred Days' Foundation Building in about two months. Black Cross had similar results.

I would reccommend beginning with the punching technique, then mixing in the agility technique, and only once you have a basic grasp of both proceeding to try the more strenuous kicking technique. It should help you form thicker strands of blood and qi once you start practicing it seriously and reduce your total strand count - for Black Cross it took two hundred fifty three strands, a good fifty less than standard, and she took 51 days - about five strands a day. This is noticeably better than average though not record-breaking. You should be able to do better.

Good luck!

I will certainly try my best. Looking forward to it.

Of course Silver Starlight knows that Winter Rose gave her some pills. Standard thing to support the newbies, right? Well, she'll have to try her hardest. After that she calls Kevin and tells him she's off for at least a couple months. He gripes, but she's unapolagetic. 'Something better came along'. She has enough in savings and thinks money is low-value enough to the group that she doesn't need to have a job, during this. Practicing the techniques, getting stronger- That's her job, now. 

She wants to go for a run. She wants to practice these right now. She wants to do a hundred sit-ups in a row because it feels like she could-

But what she does right at this moment is talk to the airline agent and change to a sooner flight for a slightly eye-watering fee. She goes to the airport at 11 PM that day, and is at the house in Cardiff at 6 AM, somewhat tired. Hopefully the magical security system is straightforward to figure out.

The large house - more of a mansion, really - is out at the edge of Cardiff by the sea, and surrounded by a tall wrought-iron fence. It seems normal, but something about it makes the hair on the back of Bys' neck stand up. There's a security keypad at the front gate; presumably this is where she enters the passcode.

Kind of imposing. And it rather screams 'money'. She feels out of place.

Beep beep beep beep.

A wave of static electricity washes over her, and the front gate pops open. 

The way up to the front door is lined with gravel and flanked with bushes. There's another keypad by the door. 

Beep beep again.

She explores the place briefly, picks a bedroom - smallest one, if there are multiple - puts her backpack away.

She's excited. She does stretches idly while she thinks. Her new body, taut with energy and vigor, feels ready to go - a bit more ready to go than she'd expect, since aside from a nap yesterday afternoon and on the plane, she hasn't gotten her full eight hours of sleep. Should she take another nap before actually trying out the exercises?

Maybe she should go get her stuff from her apartment, try to deal with the lease... But that sounds like a massive pain right now. She wants to do.

Alright. She reviews the Canadian Fist PowerPoint again just to make sure it's really nailed down in her memory. She changes into workout clothes. Then she finds a clear area or exercise room, or maybe the back garden if it seems secluded enough, and settles into the first stance for the fist technique, and- Starts the exercises, starts punching, flowing from one stance to another just so. Visualizing, trying to exactly mimic the flow as presented. Footwork and balance are just as important as the arms... Should she be trying to analyze her movements and the vague sense she's feeling that must be qi, or leaning into the instinct and feeling whether it's right? She's not sure. Hmm.

There's three bedrooms, one large and with an ensuite bathroom, two small and about the same size with a bathroom down the hall. The main floor has a large kitchen with a well-stocked pantry and a magic fridge and a living room with a large plasma TV and a couch and a small gymnasium with punching bags and a warm indoor pool. There is also a two-car garage, which is presently empty. 

When she finally gets the form right there's a sudden snap into focus and a burst of what-feels-like-adrenaline. Her jab whips forwards almost faster than the eye can see and then her footwork dances away like a butterfly. If she moves just so - 

She's suddenly halfway across the gym. 

"Oh my god!"

Is this the power of cultivation? She turns and does it again!

It takes a little practice to not overbalance during the sudden bursts of speed, but they're reliable and can be done once each breath for about a quarter-second. 

She could probably do some real damage to a punching bag, too. A sense of natural left-right-left right-right-left jab combinations is falling into place.

There's also a sense that she could follow up with a kick right there - 

She doesn't kick. The kicking technique is supposed to be really hard.

Instead, she surges forward and backward, jabbing at invisible foes, grinning, for a while- and then takes a break and a drink of water and falls into the form for the kicking technique.

Her first kick snaps out like a striking viper, with force that even Trys can tell is enough to kill. She keeps her balance, but when she puts her weight back on her leg a lance of pain goes through her. She's also breathing far harder than she should be from a single kick, and her adrenaline has dropped significantly.

Ow, fuck. Also, yikes.

Okay. One more try, with the other leg, and then presumably it's time for meditation?

The pain is slightly less, this time - but clearly her body isn't quite up to this yet. Her adrenaline drops out completely and leaves her feeling more wrung out than even the body tempering liquid left her. 

It's a good thing she's sitting down anyway. 

As she turns her focus inward, following the instructions Silver Starlight left, she becomes aware of a thrumming fizz in her blood, a kind of energy she's never had before. And then, all at once, an image of herself snaps into the center of her mind. It looks just like her, except that it has dark circles under her eyes.

Now... drag the blood out into a thread, and press it into her heart...

It's mentally exhausting to go with the physical punishment, but she finishes the strand and it fuses with her heart. 

That's one.

Woof. 

She lies on the floor for a bit, exhausted, before checking her phone. She won't be ready for more for a while without the pills, but how long did the actual exercises take?

It's been about two hours.

Okay.

She pops one of the blood and qi pills in her mouth, removes it as soon as she feels mostly recovered and carefully dries it off. Takes a quick dip in the pool (not bothering to change into her swimsuit, just removing the workout clothes), and then drying off, clothes back on, and...

Again.

The blood and qi pill recovers her stamina, but her legs still hurt and her mind is still fuzzy. That slows her down during the agility training, and when she goes to do the kicking portion again the pain only redoubles. She's able to drag out another strand through the pain and fatigue, but it's been another three hours.

It's just after noon, now. She feels... Kind of exhausted. The way you feel after a long workout when you've crossed into 'too far' and started actually hurting yourself. Two in one day? Black Cross managed five a day!

She decides to break for lunch and investigates fridge contents, though. Meanwhile she asks the cultivator chatroom,

How can I tell if I'm pushing myself in training or actually HURTING myself/doing damage? Also, is it normal to look really tired in the true self meditation?

The fridge has half a beef dip, luncheon meat and cheese slices, margarine, peanut butter, blackberry jelly (same taste as her qi pills), apricot jelly, a bunch of grapes, a bag of like 20 mandarin oranges, milk, cola, and a few other stables like green onion and eggs. There's a loaf of bread on the counter. 

Dull aching is normal and says the exercise is working. Sharp pain usually correlates with damage, either to the body or to your qi system. You couldn't resist trying the kicks, huh? Be careful with those, they're not usually introduced until at least day five. They'll accelerate your growth significantly, but it's dangerous. If you've made a strand today you are officially doing well enough. Speed comes with practice. 

It's common for the true self meditation to show up anything that could be considered a mark on your soul. Few people are reflected clearly by it. You'll see more changes as you learn more techniques. Hopefully that will include recovery for whatever source of chronic stress that tiredness reflects.

I made two strands. And did the kicks both times. Might even try for a third (without the kicks this time, because, ow). I thought I needed all three techniques to form a strand...

Cooking sounds really annoying right now. And she wants to sit down. Or lie down. Low effort food only. Meat and cheese on bread = sandwich. Mustard, if there is any. Milk and oranges and grapes.

There is mustard! There's also a table and chairs, with placemats. It's a bit dusty though.

All the food is quite fresh and delicious. It must be the formation in the fridge. And on the breadbag. 

You'll want that later but for now focus on the punching and agility techniques. Two strands is great!  ^_^

OK :thumbsup: Tired now tho.

Oh actually, are enchantments like I've seen around a True Master+ thing or what? What about talismans, what's needed to make those? I know I'm just barely starting out so I'm not asking how to do them, just like what power level are they?

Formations are a Spirit Sovereign thing, and talismans and artifacts are just formations bound to objects. Alchemy can be done at a lower rank but takes actually-expensive ingredients. There are different specializations - I make weapons, for instance.

Impressive!

Gonna go flop somewhere now~

And she does, after finishing lunch and putting everything away again, taking a half hour nap to rest her aching legs and fuzzy mind, that turns into a two hour nap which she wakes up from groggy and confused and with kind of a migraine and aching legs.

What...? Oh, right. Well, it's 3 in the afternoon, she can make her way home, pack up enough stuff to stay here for a month or two, then maybe go preemptively grocery shopping too. Get back around six... And then try for a third strand with a bit more of that partially used pill, but without the kicking technique. (Urgh. That sounds pretty unpleasant, but well, no pain no gain.) Yeah, that sounds like a plan.

She puts it into practice.

After another three hours of work, she tries the meditation again - but her fuzzy brain can't focus enough to perform the final drawing-out-and-fusion. The half-formed strand slips away from her completely, and by the time she's recovered enough to make a second attempt, the blood and qi have drained away. She's left exhausted and with nothing to show for her evening.

Okay. That was a thing. She doesn't use a blood-and-qi pill to alleviate the exhaustion. It'll go away on its own, probably. And it goes to show her what doing too much all at once will do: Waste effort for no good reason.

Two is still good for her first day, apparently. So.

Her life is about cultivation now. Tomorrow she's going to do this ridiculously intense magic workout again and she can not fuck it up. Though relaxing her mind enough to actually focus on it is probably a good plan.

Shower. Flop into bed. Try to watch youtube videos, fall dead asleep soon after instead.

In the morning, she texts her friends some and just randomly browses the internet, not quite wanting to get back to training just yet. Anything in the chatroom?

So, newbie made it through her first day without dying?

Dying inside maybe but I bet she's physically fine. Two strands, did you hear?

Better than my first day. 

I did better, but people keep calling me a genius.

lol humblebrag much

Just giving points for comparison.

Yeah, I am not very happy rn. but I am not gonna stop. Tried for a third and couldn't yesterday. I think I'm going to pretty muchj stop having a life while I do the hundred days foundation building, so... idk where I was going with that.

No wonder you look tired to the true self meditation. Take some time for yourself, hey? Enjoy your backing. Buy some shiny things, get it out of your system. If you overtrain it'll hamper you as much as undertraining.

Honestly I want to see how far you can push it.

Is my record in danger?~

Not likely.

I think Ravenous Blade has a point. The idea of training more right now fills me with dread. Nice restaurant and new laptop and etc sounds pretty nice. I don't really have a ton of friends to enjoy time with tho.

I could come drop by, I'm in the area. 

Eep. Well, slight eep.

No rudeness. And Black Claw isn't actually going to hurt her, right?

If you'd like to, Senior. It'd be interesting to meet someone higher level in person! Or I could take the day for myself, I could kind of use that as much as social time I feel like.

Don't call me Senior, I'm twenty-five. Save that kind of talk for the real seniors. 

Two P.M. work for you?

Two PM works fine. See you then.

Between now and then, though, she... Goes out to a nice breakfast place and orders two entrees and eats it all. Wanders into a department store and wanders out with clothes worth a week's wage. And buys a console and several Nintendo games.

She fusses with the console and the really nice TV for a bit before going back to the gym (at 10:30 AM, plenty of time) and working out with the fist and mobility and meditation techniques, trying for a new strand.

She gets it in two hours, same as her first one. That's three.

She's not going to push herself as hard today. Instead she swims, showers, lunches, cleans her three sets of dishes and puts them to dry, and then plays Super Mario Odyssey. 

...This is fun!

Eventually there's a loud buzz from the front door, followed by a clipped British voice:

"Abyssal Bride?"

Jump. Pause. "That's me!"

She goes over and opens the door. She's dressed in new black jeans she really liked and a black T-shirt with the NASA logo sprawled all across the front. "Hello! Black Claw?"