Ghost stories, huh.... [ you know, considering.... that's his life nowadays those aren't that scary... or maybe he's just numb to it now. ] I suppose I could tell you about the Ghost City, if you'd like.
Edited (I CANT SPEAK ENGLISH TODAY? ) 2020-05-09 12:37 (UTC)
anyway. hmm. he starts to set the scene for his home, describing it with the utmost detail. it's...a bit like telling stories to the shidi back in his sect....which is nice. ] The Ghost City is a bit more like a market, than anything else. If you've been to one before, I'm sure you can picture it. It's the busiest place you'll have ever been, with stalls that line the streets that go on forever, and ever, and the entire place is lit with bright red lanterns, as far as the eye can see. The residents are as raucous as you can imagine. [ a beat, and then a soft laugh. ] It was part of my job to keep them from getting too rowdy.
As you can imagine, very few beings who enter the ghost realm are living. Demons of all shapes and sizes roam the market, selling wares or participating in the various things the city has to offer. Many of them wear masks to hide their faces - [ he reaches up to touch his own, fingers brushing the shell. ] -- but many others do not, choosing to share their true faces with little fear. I've seen many types, from human heads mounted on spider's legs to piles of slime that ooze along the curbs.
[pretty scary, actually! but it's kind of fun to try to imagine it, too. and who knows? maybe some of them that wear masks are kind underneath them, the same way yin yu is.
flayn smiles.]
Of all the demons you have seen, which was the most striking?
[ that's an interesting question. he taps his chin. ]
I believe it would have to be any of the Four Calamities--my master Hua Chengzhu is certainly what you'd call striking. The legends that precede him strike fear into the hearts of anyone, mortal or heavenly. Many years before I came to him, he was the most well known for destroying the livelihoods of 33 separate gods, in a single night. My master challenged them to combat in various forms, and offered his own ashes--his livelihood--if he lost even once. If the gods were to lose, they were to step down from their heavenly posts and return to mortality. It seemed an easy win, so the gods took him up on the offer, and broadcast it out to their followers in dreams, so they could see the punishing of a ghost. But.... despite going up against martial and literature gods--the very strongest of their kind--my master never lost, in physical and mental combat alike.
However, the gods are fickle, and so they refused to step down. Hua Chengzhu retaliated by burning every single one of their temples, all across the land, in one night. Their believers saw this, combined with their crushing defeats in the dreams and began to lose faith. In the end, all 33 were disgraced, and sent back to the mortal realm.
[ this storytelling is kind of fun, actually. it reminds him of the old days in his cultivation sect, surrounded by his shidi as he gave a lesson. quan yizhen sitting almost in his lap, barely ten years old, his huge eyes shining as he stared at yin yu's face. it's nice. ] Since then, my master has earned the name 'Crimson Rain Sought Flower' amongst the people of all realms. Legend says he wreaked havoc upon the lair of a wrath-level demon, so much so that he caused a rain of blood to fall down from the sky. However, as the massacre ended, Chengzhu spotted a white flower among the carnage, and opened an umbrella over the top of it and protected it from the rain. There are his wraith butterflies, too--
[ ah. he stops himself, with a little laugh and a shake of his head. ] ...Well, you get the idea. Chengzhu is certainly striking.
[frightening, but... definitely interesting. he holds her attention as he speaks, and she leans forward as she listens, her eyes bright and excited to hear more.
tell her the lore, yin yu!!]
So he was powerful, but he... believed in fairness. That is why he punished them, no? Because they did not keep their word.
[...at least, that's what it sounds like to her.]
Please, tell me of his wraith butterflies! What were they like?
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fishingforcompliments) wrote2020-05-07 11:37 am
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[she smiles, gratified to see him settling down and even pushing his mask up so they can see his face.]
Perhaps if we are all a bit... wired up, we may be able to prevent ourselves from falling asleep tonight. Then we can all remain safe, can we not?
no subject
...but the thought of storytelling is sweet, and he gives a little smile in return. ] I suppose so. What kind of stories do you find scary?
no subject
Oh, you know... ghost stories and the like! Though there can be plenty of scary things in stories that do not involve ghosts, too, I suppose...
no subject
Ghost stories, huh.... [ you know, considering.... that's his life nowadays those aren't that scary... or maybe he's just numb to it now. ] I suppose I could tell you about the Ghost City, if you'd like.
no subject
[TELL HER ALL ABOUT IT. she's barely moved from her spot, but she has turned her head toward him to give him her full attention.]
no subject
anyway. hmm. he starts to set the scene for his home, describing it with the utmost detail. it's...a bit like telling stories to the shidi back in his sect....which is nice. ] The Ghost City is a bit more like a market, than anything else. If you've been to one before, I'm sure you can picture it. It's the busiest place you'll have ever been, with stalls that line the streets that go on forever, and ever, and the entire place is lit with bright red lanterns, as far as the eye can see. The residents are as raucous as you can imagine. [ a beat, and then a soft laugh. ] It was part of my job to keep them from getting too rowdy.
As you can imagine, very few beings who enter the ghost realm are living. Demons of all shapes and sizes roam the market, selling wares or participating in the various things the city has to offer. Many of them wear masks to hide their faces - [ he reaches up to touch his own, fingers brushing the shell. ] -- but many others do not, choosing to share their true faces with little fear. I've seen many types, from human heads mounted on spider's legs to piles of slime that ooze along the curbs.
no subject
[pretty scary, actually! but it's kind of fun to try to imagine it, too. and who knows? maybe some of them that wear masks are kind underneath them, the same way yin yu is.
flayn smiles.]
Of all the demons you have seen, which was the most striking?
no subject
I believe it would have to be any of the Four Calamities--my master Hua Chengzhu is certainly what you'd call striking. The legends that precede him strike fear into the hearts of anyone, mortal or heavenly. Many years before I came to him, he was the most well known for destroying the livelihoods of 33 separate gods, in a single night. My master challenged them to combat in various forms, and offered his own ashes--his livelihood--if he lost even once. If the gods were to lose, they were to step down from their heavenly posts and return to mortality. It seemed an easy win, so the gods took him up on the offer, and broadcast it out to their followers in dreams, so they could see the punishing of a ghost. But.... despite going up against martial and literature gods--the very strongest of their kind--my master never lost, in physical and mental combat alike.
However, the gods are fickle, and so they refused to step down. Hua Chengzhu retaliated by burning every single one of their temples, all across the land, in one night. Their believers saw this, combined with their crushing defeats in the dreams and began to lose faith. In the end, all 33 were disgraced, and sent back to the mortal realm.
[ this storytelling is kind of fun, actually. it reminds him of the old days in his cultivation sect, surrounded by his shidi as he gave a lesson. quan yizhen sitting almost in his lap, barely ten years old, his huge eyes shining as he stared at yin yu's face. it's nice. ] Since then, my master has earned the name 'Crimson Rain Sought Flower' amongst the people of all realms. Legend says he wreaked havoc upon the lair of a wrath-level demon, so much so that he caused a rain of blood to fall down from the sky. However, as the massacre ended, Chengzhu spotted a white flower among the carnage, and opened an umbrella over the top of it and protected it from the rain. There are his wraith butterflies, too--
[ ah. he stops himself, with a little laugh and a shake of his head. ] ...Well, you get the idea. Chengzhu is certainly striking.
no subject
tell her the lore, yin yu!!]
So he was powerful, but he... believed in fairness. That is why he punished them, no? Because they did not keep their word.
[...at least, that's what it sounds like to her.]
Please, tell me of his wraith butterflies! What were they like?