-Don’t think you’re going to get what you’re looking for,- I tell the ghost trying to be reborn. -I don’t have ovaries and I’m not hunan,- I point out.
I grab the arm, easily pulling it free, and now there’s a faceless girl hanging limply from the arm I’m holding. Like, not masked, just a smooth featureless dome for a face. When I look up and see the people running at us with limbs missing entire chunks, just floating in place and moving on a delay that doesn’t seem to inconvenience them at all or faces that are fractured and filled in with void...? I may be too busy observing to scream like a bitch, but in my heart I know I’m doing the cootie dance.
“What do you see?” Monk Mountain bellows, fists ringed in light while the more scholarly fellow starts chanting.
-You can’t see them even with all the incense?- I ask, turning to him in confusion.
[Death Knell]
[+1 Con. Qi]
[-30 -Resentment]
[+30 Resentment]
[+10 Karma]
[Last Rites II Enhanced]
[+1 Con. Qi]
[+1000 +Resentment]
[+1000 Karma]
[Ghost Pot +1000/-0]
[Resentment: +1719730/-365210]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1837303/27400196]
[Current Qi: 66890/957945100]
[Max Will: 9,579,451]
[HP: 9,579,451]
[Current Karma: 109600787/234520515]
[Resentment Wallet: 200C.St.,113R.Sl.,228R.Sh.,2C.M.R.P.,0D.M.R.N.,10I.D.P.,1A.D.P]
[Mortal Wallet: 12E,692K,180P,697R,179Da,258De,2605k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1325Di,126Co,10679St]
I watch as the sound of my broken bell seems to feed the incense fog, ‘roiding it up. It’s thicker, taller, spreading wide and proud, streaming out the door and up the walls, slowly filling the room and replacing the Resentment as it goes.
I tone because I don’t want to be swarmed by hungry dead. The fact that they don’t have bodies but they were capable of harming mine? I’ve been swarmed before without feeling it. Pretty sure if I let them get close enough this is going to be so much worse.
-Can you see them now?- I ask.
I turn to the monks and see that the Lawyer has shielded himself. Literally, there’s a light similar to the one coming off of the fighter, but it’s very close and just shaped to his form. I simmer, ready to call him out, but then he pulls out a gong from gods only know where, striking it while shouting as the brawler rears back and crouches low, double pounding the ground.
Their tones cause the incense cloud to pulse before the entire area fills with light. The ghosts that don’t disintegrate or get snatched up fall to the ground or are sent flying. Some flip head over heels while others look like they’re being hauled back on a harness track, and I wonder what causes the spirits to disappear or remain.
-What more do formless dead need than to hunger for life?- Little Corpse asks, and it sounds like he’s truly curious.
What do they want? Why does it matter? They’re dead. Now we need to know are they moving on or are they willing to work? Fair enough.
-Whoop their ass, General Farmer!- I crow, pointing at the few spirits still intact enough to climb to their feet.
Some of them are just standing and twitching in place like tangled puppets while others are attempting to hide in the fog. Those are the ones that scare me the most. I don’t know what’s fueling them if blessed incense and prayers aren’t enough to stop them, but Little Corpse doesn’t bother with chants, just moves in with his sickle. When heads start flying and he makes a point not to leave any intact bodies I realize that these might be the cultivators, “cultists” that the bitter scholar might have been talking about.
-Oh, so there were people in here. I thought they were all people, and then you scared me into thinking they were all ghosts,- I turn to Little Lawyer and he glares at me. When I go to make a face at him, planning on putting my thumb to my nose and wiggling the rest of my fingers, I end up smacking myself in the face with the broken spirit of the girl who wanted to be reborn even if it killed me. -Oh, ew!-
Gross! Was I holding onto her the entire time? Ack! I recoil and shudder even as Little Corpse comes over to present his harvest of skulls to the girls. They take turns lifting up the heads, inhaling the souls, then breathing them out into their Ghost Pots. While they’re working on that Little Corpse gently takes the spirit of the girl from me, disappearing for a moment before reappearing without her.
-I put her directly into your Ghost Pot,- he tells me as he does a quick scan of the room. -It’ll take time for her spirit to incubate, to either stabilize or fade away. Right now she was just a desire, a condensing of Resentment, but she hasn’t crystallised yet.-
[Ghost Pot +1000/-0]
[Resentment: +2219790/-379938]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1837371/27400287]
[Current Qi: 68410/957945100]
[Max Will: 9,579,451]
[HP: 9,579,451]
[Current Karma: 109601149/234520515]
-She’s not in there. Yet,- Little Corpse reminds me. Guess I have to wait ‘til the fries are done.
[Death Knell]
[+1 Con. Qi]
[-30 -Resentment]
[+30 Resentment]
[+10 Karma]
[Last Rites II Enhanced]
[+1 Con. Qi]
[+1000 +Resentment]
[+1000 Karma]
[Ghost Pot +1000/-0]
[Resentment: +2470850/-380785]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1837374/27400541]
[Current Qi: 68400/957945100]
[Max Will: 9,579,451]
[HP: 9,579,451]
[Current Karma: 109602164/234520515]
[Resentment Wallet: 200C.St.,113R.Sl.,228R.Sh.,2C.M.R.P.,0D.M.R.N.,10I.D.P.,1A.D.P]
[Mortal Wallet: 12E,692K,180P,697R,179Da,258De,2605k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1325Di,126Co,10679St]
Little Corpse stares at me blankly and I shrug back. We just helped some monks do a smack down on a bunch of desperate ghosts and helpless strangers defending themselves and he thinks me purifying the area is the issue?
-We’ve gathered up the stragglers and some Resentment,- one girl says before turning away, her golden accessories drifting up and away like glitter on the wind.
There’s a thought. I’m a living glitter bomb. Uhg.
-We’ll go back to tending the Hedge,- the other says, dipping a curtsy before they both disappear.
“Whoo! That was a surprise!” Monk Mountain crows, his companion flinching before hissing admonishments at him. “Could go for a snack. Hey, Catastrophe! You have any snacks?”
-You laugh,- I turn my head away to put him out of my sight and wave for Little Corpse and his posse to scour the landscape. I think there was a whole ass lake of greens and some decorative and functional fruit bearing trees.
-I think they have some mango trees,- Little Corpse tells me while quietly excusing himself. I wait for him to call on his Harvester army but he just waves me off. Guess they’re busy.
I turn from him to look for a spot to sit, wondering if we got any ghosts I can turn into Servants. I’m running low on personal help. Normally I’d feel bad about imposing so heavily, but I’m not even supposed to be awake, so...
-While he’s out tell me why you two are risking corruption and dismemberment. I’ve learned that there are a lot of hidden Sect members, and monks are uniquely trained to deal with the gathering and dispensing of Resentment,- I say, attempting to get us back into productive dialogue while hopping my ass back on the pile of rubble in the center of the room. Who else wants to knock me off my garbage throne?
“This place has to be purified regularly. Once during the day and once at night. Once a day isn’t enough,” Little Law grouses, still waving around only the one hand. I know he has two, so is the other one holding onto the gong and ringer?
“You’d think it’d be safer during the day, but that’s when the cut throats come out looking for hidden treasures,” Monk Mountain booms, and, judging by the fact that he’s holding a hand up beside his mouth, I think he thinks he’s whispering.
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-So treasure hunters during the day, the desperate and ghosts at night,- I murmur. It looks clear so I pan my vision up and out to see what Little Corpse is up to. -And grieving families trapped in between.-
The road outside is lined along the water’s edge with fruiting trees, a very short trek out, but the Resentment is so thick I wouldn’t be surprised if we were in a spatial realm.
“Very true,” Monk Mountain says, and then there’s a loud sigh.
“It is rather unfortunate, but it is the state of things,” Little Law says, followed by a softer sigh.
-And nothing about it was caused by Essence or Spirit Beast,- I chime in. Zing! -Hunans have been creating disasters for themselves without any help.-
I listen to Little Law sputtering for a bit before I refocus on what’s going on outside.
It’s weird to see him cutting fruit and using the harvesting bag, but I guess all harvests go in. When a small group of people stop on the road a short distance away from him I tense, ready to transfer over if there’s any indication that he’s about to be attacked.
“It’s part of the nature of cultivators, isn’t it? To push. But hunans can be greedy and destructive as well. Why work hard when you can relax?” Monk Mountain says, and I wonder if it’s pointedly, because I’m not just relaxing, I’m still cultivating, bish.
Tch! Monks...
I wonder if he’s going to split the stuff he’s cut down already? Instead Little Corpse cuts down a fruit and underhands it very gently. A small child catches it and I get to see Little Corpse light up as he talks to the family.
-Ack!- I pull up my Logs quickly so I can eavesdrop while I spy. I know what I’m doing.
Yes, he’s a Ghost Soldier, but he was a farmer and he gets to continue farming. He won’t cut the fruit for them, it’d be too dangerous. No, he doesn’t mind sharing. He’s already stealing the fruit so why not share his good fortune. Yes, his master is near, but wants nothing from them. I think it’s adorable until the girls show up.
They stare blankly as the family greets them, happy to see such powerful beautiful cultivators when they’re dealing with a Corpse Soldier, although
They want to kill the family, to give them to me as a gift. They think I’ll be happy to have a whole family.
Ow.
Little Corpse tells them that’s not what I want and I’d be upset if they killed the family. He right. Then he turns to ask them how they’d prepare the mango. One, why? Two, wow.
Grill it? Season it? But it’s tasty fruit? Just cut it and eat it. Chill it if you like. Tch! Now I want to try it...
The girls point out that the family had told him what he needed, so now they can collect their souls for me. Um. No. Little Corpse solves this by saying he’d prove I want the family to live by asking me directly, directing the family into Eager Heart.
It’s heartbreaking to see that the family had thought this would happen, they didn’t want to die, and they’ve resigned themselves to being killed to add to the Resentment. I was worried that they weren’t simple because they’re traveling at night, but things have gotten so bad that it’s safer to risk “cultists” and ghosts than it is to pass through this area during the day? Waow.
“Master, we have more guests,” Little Corpse says loudly, one of the girls glaring at him while the other stands quietly.
-Come come,- I wave them in, the monks turning to the noise Little Corpse makes before staying on guard when they see the family. -To think it’s truly more dangerous to travel through the day than to brave the night. Stay here. We’ll protect you until the sun is up then help you on your way.-
“We can’t stay here all night,” Little Law whispers loudly to Monk Mountain, both of them looking very uneasy as they shuffle around.
-No one asked you to,- I point out as Little Corpse’s helpers finally appear, shuffling in and out of a portal he requested to set up a grill and tables with a variety of fruits. -You ask for snacks and then leave when they’re ready? Tch!-
“Are you going to eat us?” the elder male in the family group asks, either a father or grandfather and I recoil away.
-What? No! The monks wanted snacks and there’s a variety of plants here. Lotus and mango, and I’m sure there’s more. Why would I eat you?- I ask the non-cultivators who don’t look like they’re starving, but there’s nothing at all appealing about them.
“Master, they’ve given me a few new things for you to try. Patience as I work on providing an adequate attempt,” Little Corpse says, gesturing for the family to eat at the table while he moves to the grill. “Apparently you can grill fruit. Sometimes the sugar caramelizes, and seasoning it gives you a sweet and savory treat.” Little Corpse comes over to me, which surprises me, until he starts handing me mangoes. -Eat these until you can produce them.-
-Tch! Shoulda known...- I grumble, not bothering to cut or peel them as I dive right in.
The peels are leathery, the seeds splinter, but the meat of the fruit really is juicy and ripe. I get through eight before I remember that I’m not just supposed to be eating, and soon there’s a little pyramid of perfectly ripe but still firm mangoes to cook through.
A second grill is brought out, the monks grilling on one with pointers from the family, Little Corpse grilling for me on the other. Back to the whole Ghosts cooking for the living thing, although I don’t know if any Resentment has tainted anything he’s made, and he’s not a juicy corpse.
[Death Knell]
[+1 Con. Qi]
[-30 -Resentment]
[+30 Resentment]
[+10 Karma]
[Last Rites II Enhanced]
[+1 Con. Qi]
[+1000 +Resentment]
[+1000 Karma]
[Ghost Pot +1000/-0]
[Resentment: +3220940/-404215]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1837482/27400684]
[Current Qi: 70820/957945100]
[Max Will: 9,579,451]
[HP: 9,579,451]
[Current Karma: 109602739/234520515]
[Resentment Wallet: 200C.St.,113R.Sl.,228R.Sh.,2C.M.R.P.,0D.M.R.N.,10I.D.P.,1A.D.P]
[Mortal Wallet: 12E,692K,180P,697R,179Da,258De,2605k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1325Di,126Co,10679St]
-I dare you to tell me to apologize!- I snap, sitting up straight and punking everyone as they stare at me. -We’re here to purify, not just sit around,- I say while slowly turning to stare at Little Law.
“Tch!” he turns to put me out of his sight, gathering his robes around himself as he does.
“Shouldn’t you reward this family for their help? They’ve given us very good information,” Little Corpse says, the family tensing again.
-I never would have thought to grill fruit like that,- I admit. -It was sweet, melty, all around delicious!-
[-1 King]
[Mortal Wallet: 12E,692 – 1 K,180P,697R,179Da,258De,2605k]
[Resentment Wallet: 200C.St.,113R.Sl.,228R.Sh.,2C.M.R.P.,0D.M.R.N.,10I.D.P.,1A.D.P]
[Mortal Wallet: 12E,691K,180P,697R,179Da,258De,2605k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1325Di,126Co,10679St]
“Oh, no, we couldn’t!” the elder male begs off before what appears to be a teen girl strides forward and accepts the chunk of gold with both hands and a respectful bow.
-Was that too much?- I ask Little Corpse. As far as I know gold and such things are nearly worthless to cultivators.
-They’re not cultivators. That’s nearly a death sentence,- he sighs, rubbing his head and waving the girls down. “We’ll guide them to town and a bank so no one tries anything. Try to ask before being so generous...”
“What a dangerous pet,” Little Law looks at me, looks away and shudders, then looks away while squirming to get further away from our little group.
“Hmm? You misunderstand. Eclipsed Rainbow isn’t my pet. They’re my Master. I’m their Ghost Servant,” Little Corpse says, he and his servants and the girls standing to the side before bowing to everyone. “Apologies for the confusion. She’s a very powerful banking spirit beast. She needs to have servants to interact with the hunans she comes across.”
-The Resentment cultivating Sect was one of the best things to happen to me,- I say, waving around a bite of baked apple I’ve got in my chopsticks before eating it. -The world is filled with Resentment and it spends very well.-
“You--!” Little Law points at me, frozen in place before Monk Mountain quickly high steps over and lowers his hand.
-I just sit and cultivate. I eat and cultivate. I sleep and cultivate!- I crow.
[Death Knell]
[+1 Con. Qi]
[-30 -Resentment]
[+30 Resentment]
[+10 Karma]
[Last Rites II Enhanced]
[+1 Con. Qi]
[+1000 +Resentment]
[+1000 Karma]
[Ghost Pot +1000/-0]
[Resentment: +3220940/-404215]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1837482/27400684]
[Current Qi: 70820/957945100]
[Max Will: 9,579,451]
[HP: 9,579,451]
[Current Karma: 109602739/234520515]
[Resentment Wallet: 200C.St.,113R.Sl.,228R.Sh.,2C.M.R.P.,0D.M.R.N.,10I.D.P.,1A.D.P]
[Mortal Wallet: 12E,691K,180P,697R,179Da,258De,2605k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1325Di,126Co,10679St]
-Doing this? This hurts hunans but is necessary. I do it and earn Karma! The drumming? The drumming cost Qi but pays in Resentment. You say I’m too lazy to work hard? How hard do you work in comparison?-
[-1 HP]
I point out, still poking at Little Law before Little Corpse gets so over my shit he spikes me in the head with a rock.
-Tch! Rude!- I dust myself off while the Servants disperse to go back to their duties tending the tables and guests. -You love monks so much. Who lets you train with them? Getting mad when I tone and then defending the people calling me lazy? Who used my laziness? Huh?!-
“With such good karma, how could being a monk be the wrong path?” one monk crows, grinning at me, and I recognize him from Sorrow’s Roost.
-You’re the cheeky shit who kept ringing gongs!- I gasp, pointing my chopsticks at him as he quickly sidles up to the tables.
“You use your tone and drum to gather Resentment? Who taught you to? And you still dare to pick on monks?” Little Corpse says, throwing my argument back at me.
-Tch! Shush!- I turn away, putting him out of my sight and angrily eating from the small personal table they’ve set up before me.
