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Assist the old man, he sounds like fun. Edit: Update on last page.
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Feb 13, 2023 18:05
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AGAB, so help the old guy
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Feb 14, 2023 04:01
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...did you get a throwing sutra from a monkey? You literally throw those bombs the way a monkey flings poo poo.
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Feb 14, 2023 04:06
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Help the old guy. Decided to pick this up again and am enjoying much more this go around - consequently wanted to ask what your stance on mentioning of things missed/alternate paths etc is? Between the poor documentation for the game and you not having DMs, it's hard to tell what's unknown vs. known but not being included in the post (personally I completely missed both the hunters and the chicken callback and had to go back after you showed them), so thought it best to clarify.
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Feb 14, 2023 05:50
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Sure, go ahead and post about alternate paths and things missed if you want. I would appreciate it if you didn't post in plaintext about locations we haven't really been to, like Dayan Town or the Jade Stone Gang, but the area around Gongshi Village is fine. If you do have questions about other areas you can just use spoiler text. Some quests I have left out because they are kind of boring, like the "cook a bun" one the innkeeper gives. Some are just being left for later because Siwang has no wine. No doubt there are more that I have missed. But if you want to ask about the jade coin, or the beast taming sutra and the house of cats, or how Qi Xiaoer is a hilarious parody of a female wuxia protagonist, be my guest.
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Feb 14, 2023 06:17
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Update 9: Gongshi Village: Sidequesting 3 Siwang tries to misdirect the guards away from the old man.   The old barker ran east along this road. What? Damned old man, this way boys!  Brother, are you sure this will work?Of course it will, look at how easily those guards fell for it! Let's go back and talk to the old man, I'm sure he will reward us.   Kid, are you trying to help me or hurt me? Didn't you see me just get rid of those guards? Haha, as expected! The kid looks like a thief, I thought he must be the old man's accomplice! Thanks to this fool, we managed to find the old man.Awww crap.  I was found out? How stupid do you think I am? Who would fall for a lie like that? Aiyaa, where did this little baby come from, such a disaster... Cut the crap! Everyone, let's teach these two a lesson!Combat starts, but the old man is nowhere to found.  Dumbass, what is that old man to you? He left you here in the chaos and you're still fighting for him with your life? What is wrong with you? Ugh, never mind, the old man is gone, let's go. Well, that didn't go well. Let's load a save and try again.  If Siwang had gone a bit further south during the day, the guards would have been sitting around complaining about rockfalls along this path. And conveniently, there's a boulder up here which Siwang can interact with.  This boulder seems to be a little loose, should I push it off the cliff? !!! I'm not risking my life for that old bag!Several boulders rain down on the path and the guards run back south. Siwang raises a middle finger in their general direction and jumps down to collect his reward.  Hahaha! I'm so lucky, those rocks fell at exactly the right moment. Actually, it was me who pushed those rocks off the cliff. Oh? And why did you do that, little doll? To help you out, look at you, you're so old, if those men catch you, they'll break every bone in your body. Hahaha, what a clever little doll. Since you and I seem to share a destiny, I wonder if little doll can do this old man a small favour? With what? I'm ashamed to say, I've had a run of bad luck. I lost ten out of ten bets, and on the last bet I lost my grandson's best defence, the Gold Vest. Little doll, why don't you help this old man get back my grandson's Gold Vest? This old dog may have some tricks to teach you.   It's only common sense to accept defeat if you gamble and lose. Brother Gui, let's move on. Alas, an old man like me, with one foot in the coffin, and I am still subjected to the taunts of young people. It is the fate of people to be subjected to the unpredictable whims of the universe. Alright, I'll go and collect it for you, but I can't guarantee you I can get it back.A quest chain this involved has to result in something good, right?  Brother Gui, let's do this. It's not a bad thing to try and help people. Brother Luo, you seem especially motivated today. You don't understand, Brother Gui, this senior citizen isn't afraid to face off with those common guards, but rather, he is too embarrassed to do so. It is no bad thing for him to owe us a favour. Siwang can actually just walk up to the head guard and ask him to sell us the Gold Vest. Hmmph. Are these gold threads real or not? Did that old man cheat me? The Gold Vest, being made of gold, sells for a pretty sum. 15,000 money is approximately ten times of what Siwang has in his wallet (repairing the Thunderbolt is pretty expensive). For reference, 26-29 mitigation is triple the 8-9 mitigation that Kongjin's free leather jacket gives. Of course, there are always less ethical alternatives...  Deciding to come back to this situation later, Siwang enters a nearby cave and work off his frustation on the bandits and crocodiles hiding inside. Huh, a little crocodile. Looks like it's stuck under a rock. Awww, look at those small teeth and big round eyes.  Siwang could free it, or he could make it into this sweet little undervest. Baby Crocodile Soft Armor: "In the Undercurrent Cave you found a small whining crocodile stuck in a crack, and you chose to force it out to make this armor. The finest quality cephalad skin is selected to provide protection from the friction and excess calluses that may occur on your delicate skin. Keratin." It's no Gold Vest, but it's still double the protection of anything you can find at this stage in the game.  Exiting the cave, Siwang heads north. This is some sort of inn or wayside rest stop, note the "Tea" sign on the stall to the right. A helpful nametag identifies these two travellers as being from the Hundred Beast Village Gang.   Gee, I'm no good with cats...Dude, you are not helping the reputation of the Hundred Beast Village Gang here.  Inside, cats. Hi, Mina.  Even more cats, doing that thing where they stare intently at nothing at all.   Haha, this house is full of cats, that's great! I am the third scion of the Hundred Beasts Villa, Ji Mei Xiang, what can I do for you, handsome boy? Third Miss, you can't just suddenly call someone a handsome boy, that's rude! Oh, is that so? No, it's OK. I am in fact quite handsome. Hahaha! I like your personality, handsome boy! Third Miss, please don't say such things to random men you meet on the road... There are many powerful birds and beasts in the land of Shu, if you're lucky enough to meet them, don't let them go! She gives Siwang "The Book of Beasts", before pointing him at Widowmaker and striding off in the general direction of the Festive Feast Hall. This sutra lets Siwang tame beast companions and power them up as well. Only certain animals, or "Beast Kings", can be tamed.  Siwang, eager to catch his first Generally speaking mountains in this game are well worth climbing, there's often a little something on top, even if only an ore vein.  His search for XP takes him further east, where he finds this prayer cushion in just the right spot to meditate and watch the sunrise.  The sunrise is indeed touching... but my bones feel like they're falling apart. After fifteen ardous nights of repeated prayer and contemplation Siwang obtains a new sutra! Aha! I've got it! The person who created this martial art is a genius for incorporating martial arts into Buddhist teachings! Or, he could simply tear up the prayer cushion and find the same sutra without all that fuss and bother.  "Buddhist Lion Roar" is probably very powerful, but since it has a whopping Qi prerequisite of 150, Siwang is quite a ways away from learning it. For now, he can only shelve his dreams of becoming the Dovahkiin.  The sun has risen, so still chasing XP, Siwang returns to Gongshi Village to turn in some sidequests. On the way back, he runs into these two drunkards. Giving them some wine yields half a jade coin. The other half of the jade coin is in a wrecked cart to the east. RIP, random merchant.  Having progressed the blacksmith's sidequest, this guy is now free to make a dodgy request. See that man Mefuzi over there? Anyway, he has a little bag on him, go steal it for me and I'll give you two thousand money, how's that sound? Huh? Why are you asking me to steal, can't you do it yourself? I have too much presence, this is the kind of thing an evil and non-existent character like you was made for, alright? Just do it. This man! Brother Gui, do not listen to him! Also, Siwang turns in the boar bait quest and gets to dump even more rocks on some unsuspecting boars.  Gravity, bitches!  The hunter gives us some leather armor for our help. Crappy stuff, 9-10 mitigation, but better than the nothing we had on everyone except Siwang. I think it's time we killed some snakes, but before that, some votes! Gold Vest: -Buy from the guard -Steal from the guard -Taunt and fight the guards for it -Keep the Gold Vest for now -Return the Gold Vest to the old man immediately Soft Crocodile Armor: -Skin the young crocodile -Free the young crocodile Mefuzi's Bag: - Ignore the request - Steal the bag and open it - Steal the bag and turn it in. sandorius fucked around with this message at 05:29 on Feb 16, 2023 |
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Feb 15, 2023 11:26
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Gold Vest: Steal, Keep Crocodile: Free Mifuzi: Steal it and Open it
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Feb 15, 2023 21:54
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Steal and return the vest, free the little croc buddy, and open the bag.
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Feb 15, 2023 22:21
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BraveLittleToaster posted:Steal and return the vest, free the little croc buddy, and open the bag.  Siwang is friend to all
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Feb 16, 2023 01:15
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Sum Gai posted:Gold Vest: Steal, Keep
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Feb 16, 2023 05:31
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I wanted a tame bear  BraveLittleToaster posted:Steal and return the vest, free the little croc buddy, and open the bag.
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Feb 16, 2023 08:06
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Gold Vest: Steal, Keep Crocodile: Free UNLESS you returned the vest, in which case skin it. Mifuzi: Steal it and Open it
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Feb 16, 2023 10:09
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Update 10: Gongshi Village: The Snake Pit It's a tie! Three votes for returning the Gold Vest and three votes for keeping it. Siwang will be hanging on to the Gold Vest until he finally grows a conscience, which won't be anytime soon judging by the amount of stealing this thread is encouraging. Maybe in a few years when the old man's grandson is grown up, or something. Well, first he has to steal it, which is sort of difficult right now as the guards are all facing each other. It will have to wait until later.  In the cave, Siwang breaks the rock with a powerful punch and sets the young crocodile free. All right, don't be afraid, I won't hurt you. Be careful from now on, don't get stuck again, if you meet someone else you'll really end up as a defensive gear...The young crocodile scuttles away and Siwang is left with a slight righteousness boost warming his heart. Which he needs because he's given his leather jacket to Luo Yuanyu, who has shown a distressing tendency to get beaten up on.  Up on the hills above the cave, there's a lone statue of a land god with a suspicously jade-coin sized indentation in its left palm.  Naturally, Siwang puts his jade coin in.  A scroll! Thank you, land god.  The "Mianpaw" fist art appears to focus on dealing internal injuries, which damage the attacker when they use a technique. Sadly, it is also a Yin art, so Siwang might not find good use for it. Could be good on Cheng Yanhua. I have been reliably informed that this "Mian" means cotton and not warding, so Cottonpaw Art might be appropriate  The real reward for this sidequest is hidden here, in the Achievements menu. Completing this sidequest grants one talent point for Siwang. This is one of the more annoying quests in the game because there are no pointers to the location of this statue or the two halves of the jade coin. I spent a lot of time fruitlessly looking for those two drunkards.  Fortified with the blessing of the Land God Siwang decides it's finally time to tackle the Snake Cave. Just outside, this old granny laments the death of her son, and warns us not to go in.  Some poor guy didn't listen to Granny May and is now surrounded by snakes.  Oh no! Brother Gui, let us save that man! The snakes are balanced for a beginner duo with Duan Siping, and pose very little threat to Siwang's party now. It doesn't help that poison isn't a particularly debilitating ailment in this game, all it does is drain internal energy / MP.  Leave me for later... my friend... he was bitten by a snake in the cave, please get him out, quickly! With sufficient Medical skill in the party, Siwang can render the man a bit of emergency first aid to gain some righteousness.  The cave is filled with ores and snakes, neither of which are particularly dangerous, and Siwang soon makes his way to the top chamber, where he finds this poor soul. Is this poor guy the friend of the man outside? He seems to have stopped breathing a long time ago... I'd better go out and tell him the unfortunate news. There's a leather pouch here... and some blood? Brother Gui, this blood is still wet. The blood is fresh, it can't have been more than an hour since it was shed. In the first place, why would there be so much blood from a snakebite? There's some kind of resin inside the pouch. I don't know what it is, but it smells fragrant.  Siwang could return to the man at the entrance now, but instead he goes back to the corpse and turns it over. This man has a deep cut on his chest! Brother Gui, I'm afraid this must be the real cause of death for this person. Hmm... let's go ask the person outside for clarification. Unfortunately, your friend has died in the snake pit. What! Is he... was there anything around him, like a piece of black resin, or... or anything else? Well, yes, but... But what? But your friend was lying in a fresh pool of blood, and clearly he died from the stab wound to his chest, and not a snakebite. ... Little brother, I advise you leave this matter alone. Give me the resin and I'll trade you a secret of kung fu. How's that? Siwang takes the deal. "Bashing Mountain Fist" is an Yang-aligned Inner Working sutra that boosts Qi and increases damage when equipped.  If Siwang had chosen to keep the resin, the man would have attacked him, and Siwang would have interrogated him after winning. This resin... it's made from an exotic tree from Hmong province, and mixed with various rare herbs, it has to be prepared with nine steams and nine drips for 81 days. It's an amazing tonic that can prolong your life and strengthen your body! I am here on the orders of the Leopard King to take this treasure. Please forgive me, I had no choice... The Leopard King? The Leopard King is the most famous bandit around here, he has a fort up in the mountains to the south and likes to collect treasures from all over the world.Lies, Siwang has already been to the fort and all he managed to steal was two captives and a bandit costume. I'm just a humble servant, if you let me live, I'll lead a life free of crime from now on! In any case, the Wu Zhi Xian Dew simply grants a bit of Max HP and is clearly inferior to a new sutra.  In the depths of the cave below lurks the Serpent King. It's got a different colour, so clearly it must be more powerful than the other snakes.  Brother Duan, this snake seems different from those poisonous snakes we encountered just now. Indeed, it must be the king of the snakes in this snake pit! Brother Gui, let's get rid of it, so that it doesn't trouble the villagers again! The fight is not too difficult. Seen here, a rare instance of a line-shaped sword technique managing to hit two enemies at once. Alas, despite being called a King, the beast taming sutra does not work on it.  This Snake King is such a nuisance! Ah, but it is so cute, couldn't sir please let it off? And who might you be, miss? Shouldn't a gentleman be first to introduce himself? How might I address sir? Please forgive me, I do not freely give my name to anyone suspicious. Oh my, for a grown man to cover up his name like that, is there some secret shame to it? Well, if you don't want to tell me, I won't force it out of you. How about this gentleman over here? Are you as shy as your companion? (Brother Duan, why are you wincing? Have you never talked to a Hmong woman before? Let me show you how it's done!) I am not ashamed of either name or surname! Gui is my surname and Siwang is my name, now and forever! Are we clear? Oh, Master Gui is much less stuffy than the warrior next to him. Let's talk then, you and me. Could you let me have that snake? Well... Brother Gui, we don't know where this woman is from, who she's with, or what she intends with the snake. The Snake King is a disaster, let's kill it and cut off the trouble at the source. Oh, I'm not so evil-minded, Master Gui, just let me have this good boy and I'll definitely repay you well.He Baishao here uses a weird pronoun "nu" that auto-translate has decided means slave, which is not incorrect but in context is more of a "your humble servant" vibe. She's also dressed as a tribal minority, the "Miao" or Hmong, which pop up all the time in wuxia stories as exotic poison users.  - I'm sorry, Miss, but we must kill the Snake King. - Since you asked so nicely, I'll let you have the Snake King!  If Siwang chooses to kill the Snake King he'll end up in a fight. He Baishao is quite strong for this stage of the game but is also badly outnumbered. Given the general attitude towards animals in this thread, I'm fairly sure I can tell which way this vote will go, but just to make sure: Please vote: - Kill the Snake King, fight He Baishao. - Give the Snake King to He Baishao. sandorius fucked around with this message at 12:27 on Feb 17, 2023 |
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Feb 16, 2023 15:07
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Impress this lady by giving her our snek
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Feb 16, 2023 16:27
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Save snek help sneklady
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Feb 16, 2023 18:47
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Give her the snek.
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Feb 16, 2023 19:02
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Poison is harmless. No problem in giving her our king snake
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Feb 16, 2023 20:00
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Giving the exotic poisoner a cool snake will in no way cause trouble later, I'm sure. Give her the snek.
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Feb 16, 2023 20:03
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Show her our snake, obviously.
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Feb 16, 2023 20:09
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giev snek, but only in exchange for like a surfboard or a moose or some cotton candy
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Feb 16, 2023 20:53
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It got my hopes up and then dashed them by not being tameable, so imma have to vote to murder it.
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Feb 17, 2023 03:52
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Update 11: The Bucket Trick This is a short non-canon interlude, and the Wuxia Adventurer's Association does not condone the abuse of object physics to rob innocent travelers, even if they insist on carrying valuable martial arts sutras whilst in the Jianghu.  In another universe, Siwang wakes up screaming and runs madly to Dayan Town. This lady is being robbed, but Siwang don't care.  His sole objective is this unassuming box in the He family stables.  See, when Siwang met Qi Xiaoer and her martial brother, he tried to rob him. It didn't work because Qi Xiaoer is facing Dong Guoqiang and will easily detect any attempts at thievery (and vice versa Dong Guoqiang will shut down any attempts to steal from Qi Xiaoer).  But with this box, Siwang can - no wait - ugh, wrong location.  Perfect.  Siwang succeeds on a 14% chance to steal this item, on the third try. He's definitely been blessed by the god of thieves.  The Everlasting Winter Sword Manual is a rare Double Sword technique that applies damage bonuses from both primary and secondary weapon slots, which must both contain swords. Seasoned RPG veterans will no doubt remember you could do the same thing with a bucket in Skyrim. Unfortunately Qi Xiaoer and Dong Guoqiang move on after completing the snake cave, and I am already a few hours past that point, but I felt that I had to load a save to show this off. I had no idea this could be done, it's pure luck that I stumbled across this while looking for another cave.
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Feb 17, 2023 12:38
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Update 12: Gongshi Village: Making New Friends Indeed, the snake is so adorable, how can Siwang kill it? Since you asked so nicely, I'll let you have the Snake King! Brother Gui! Brother Duan, this girl is so beauti - I mean, she is so compassionate, caring for this snake, we should let her take it. Beside, the Hmong people have always been good at poisonous things, so it's appropriate for them to take care of the Snake King. Since Brother Gui has spoken, I will say no more. Indeed, the Duan family has no conflict with the Hmong tribe.  Master Gui, how kind of you to convince the warrior here for me. As promised, please take this in payment. Huh? This is... the Five Poison Sutra? Do you like it? If I'm in trouble next time, please come and help me, kind sir! Good boy, come to your elder sister. Such a good boy, come, let's go home together. This Hmong girl can even tame snakes! If I could be certain which tribe she is from... I could get her to help me. Brother Duan, why are you muttering to yourself? Brother Gui, to be honest with you, I have major plans for the future. I see that Brother Gui is a skilled and courageous man, if you have no objections, I would like your help. (Major plans? This smells like trouble...) Let us speak about this later. The doctor is waiting for our report. The Five Poison Sutra allows Siwang to pick up poisonous animals without accidentally poisoning himself. If he collects 2 snakes, 2 toads, 2 scorpions, 2 spiders and 2 centipedes, he can then refine them into a single dose of Five Poison Powder, which will allow him do approximately 100 extra damage on a single strike, and is then consumed. Yeah, it's terrible. But the damage does scale with evil, so I guess it might be useful for people who really want to roleplay as a nefarious venom master.  Yo, doctor, we're back! The two brave warriors! Are you alright? Thank Heavens, you survived the snake cave... Do not worry, doctor, we have removed the snakes from the snake cave, so the villagers need not fear anymore. There was a king of snakes in the snake cave, but we were unable to capture it. Doctor, please do your best to come up with an antidote. Very well, I shall do my best! Here are some medicinal pills, please take them as a token of my appreciation. I won't stand on courtesy then! Thank you, Doctor! Brother Duan, the plans you mentioned... If you don't mind, Brother Gui, I will explain everything from the beginning at my humble abode. It is located in Dayan Town, to the west. Please allow me to accompany you there, and enjoy the scenery on the way. If Siwang had killed the Snake King, he would have gotten this medicinal sutra from the doctor, as well as the Snake King Gall Bladder, which boosts Max HP. Good thing Siwang can steal it off him.  Siwang also takes the opportunity to lift Mefuzi's bag off him.  Hmm... I wonder what's in this bag, should I open it and see? - My hands are so itchy, I can't bear not to open it! - I am suddenly afflicted with a strange sense of morality!  Nice rock! ...This mani stone increases unload rate, which is fairly useless, but hey, nice rock.  Did you steal it? Yes, it's just a tattered old bag, I don't know why you wanted it. Well... yes, it is this bag, but... how? Cut the crap, where's my payment? You shameless man! This is just a rotten sack, you dare ask me for a reward? Get out of here!Some A++ rules lawyering by Siwang there, but the questgiver is having none of it.  Siwang returns to the village elder to report the clearing of the snake cave. The villagers gather and there is general rejoicing.  Mei Hongqi orders her underlings to begin searching for both her daughter Xiaoqing as well as the slacking scholar Xu Xuke, the "Nan Xian" old man Kongjin asked Siwang to find.  (Ugh, only one team to find Xu Xuke? I might as well help find Xiaoqing and solve all the village's problems while I'm at it.) Village Chief, this girl Xiaoqing, she was abducted by someone? Sir has already helped us with the snake cave, how can we presume to trouble young master with this matter? The villagers have raised a small sum of silver, and in addition, please take this blue jade here. Young master can rest at our village inn, should there be any news, I will send someone to inform you.The proverb used here "Escorting the Buddha even to the uttermost west" is sort of a "In for a penny, in for a pound" or "Might as well be hanged for a sheep as a lamb" meaning.  Siwang and company are actually in tip-top health, thanks to Cheng Yanhua. Having no need to rest, Siwang takes off into the night hunting mobs for XP, and comes across this man with a fishing pole. That's not a river below, that's flat earth. (This weirdo is fishing a hundred feet away from the water!) Who are you, little brother?- This humble one is Gui Siwang, greeting senior! - My name is Gui Siwang, and you, brother? Choosing the reserved option will net Siwang some ores, and the wild option some leather. In any case, the man explains that he is simply waiting for someone.  As Siwang leaves, there is a short cutscene.  I've finally found you, Lupin! Oh? I wasn't running from you, though. Enough nonsense! I will avenge my family's death today! Come, then. Make an end of it. (Isn't that voice the mountain fisherman?) The dying fisherman gives Siwang a letter to take to the Tianlong Temple, also variously translated as the Cloud Dragon Temple or Tenryuuji Temple.  Siwang's real objective is here, in the northwestern fields. The Widowmaker! Wow, there are so many wild boars here. But I see no black pigs... Huh? There's a little black dot there! No way, it's so small! For reference the Widowmaker is the little black pig at the top right with glowing red eyes.  Wild boars are no threat at this point.  The Widowmaker is another story. Fear the Wild Boar Superstrike!  Repeated applications of the Beast Taming Sutra eventually bear fruit, and Siwang befriends the Widowmaker! This gives Siwang a title which, if equipped, will let Widowmaker join the battle as an ally.  The Widowmaker is indeed very fierce, but I didn't expect it to be so small. Eager to test out Widowmaker's prowess in battle, Siwang goes south in search of the man-eating bear the unfortunate bear hunters were looking for.  Amidst the remains of some unfortunate soul, Siwang finds a bamboo sutra, and turns around only to find...   Ho! So you're the legendary man-eating bear, and all the bones in this cave are leftover from your feeding, huh? Brother Bear, you have eaten countless people, today your judgement has come, and you deserve it. Widowmaker wasn't much use here because of the cramped quarters and also it was a five-on-one beatdown. "Flying Sand in the Sky" is a great find for Siwang, but he lacks the Hidden Weapon skill to make use of it for now.  Further to the east, Siwang meets some bandits and Widowmaker finally gets to show off his skills. Rushing into battle, he singlehandly solos the top half of the battlefield. The battle started off against six bandits and Widowmaker is shown here mulching his way through his second bandit.  A bit to the north, there are two suspicious men lurking about, helpfully labeled as "Grave Robbers".   Ugh, seems like poor pickings from this tomb. Ahem! Who... who are you! Why did you pop up without a sound? (Let me have some fun with this guy.) How can you say that? Aren't you the one in front of my house? Your house? You mean... oh my God! Ahhhh! (He fainted...) You don't have to play that game with me, I'm not as dumb as he is. You are perfectly healthy with good hands and feet, why are you even graverobbing? Let's not call it that, OK? It's just a bit of borrowing. Since the owner has no use for it anymore, why not let us brothers have it for a while? (This guy is really full of sophistry...) You just thought to yourself, this guy is really full of sophistry, didn't you? (No way, can this guy read my mind?) No, I can't read minds. It's just that I've been hearing voices ever since I started this business. Sometimes the voices are so loud, I can't even sleep at night... (Bro, this Yin-aligned stuff is making you fey.) Maybe I should get some help? (Maybe you should stop robbing graves!) I couldn't quite hear that, little brother, what did you say? Ugh, just go away! This is too weird for me. Poor tomb-owner, they must be really suffering. Listen, I helped you out this time, but next time I might not be around, OK? Anyway, rest in peace, goodbye. Thank you for your help, young master. Did I hear something? Let's just get out of here.  Atop a nearby mountain lurks another Beast King. Naturally Siwang is going to beat this one up and conscript it into his growing army, but he can only have one in combat. There will be others, but for now, which one is going to be his favourite? Please vote - The wild boar Widowmaker! - The monkey Hustle and Bustle! - The crocodile Swamp King Siwang ran away from several updates ago! sandorius fucked around with this message at 04:55 on Feb 18, 2023 |
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Feb 18, 2023 04:51
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Settle for none other than the Swamp King themself. Siwang needs his own big croc buddy!
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Feb 18, 2023 05:10
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Swamp King. Hey you did ask.
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Feb 18, 2023 05:11
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We must befriend the crocodile for flat gently caress Friday
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Feb 18, 2023 05:11
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The small angry pig is by far the best one 
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Feb 18, 2023 06:03
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We roll with the KING!
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Feb 18, 2023 06:33
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Monkeys are excellent, and one named Hustle and Bustle even moreso, but nonetheless there's only one choice. Swamp King.
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Feb 18, 2023 07:39
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Update 13: Gongshi Village: Cat Girl Quiz The people have spoken, Siwang shall return to the swamp and harass the king of the crocodiles until it gives up and joins the party. But first, some more mountain climbing.  Look, a wacky altar. Praise Sheogorath!  For some unfathomable reason it contains a Fruit of Wisdom, which Siwang immediately consumes. It boosts intelligence, which affects XP gain as well as some dialogue choices.  For the record, this is what happens if Siwang tries to leave the mapped area.  A strange box, containing one dragonball.  Some bandits being harassed by Hustle and Bustle, who is very fast and very dodgy but cannot inflict internal injuries like Widowmaker can.  An ominous shack, complete with deer skull over the entrance! Surely nothing bad can happen if Siwang goes in.  It's full of ore and bandit miners, which is sort of a contradiction in terms if you think about it. Are they still bandits if they have a steady job like mining? Alas, it seems Siwang has come here too early.  More strange boxes on mountain peaks!  The "Flaming Blade" sutra is our first modded sutra: "Tantric flaming sword, flaming waves, searing the heart."  600 damage potential for 6 AP, yeah, it's overpowered. Siwang won't be using this unless he gets really bored, and in any case, none of our party members are blade-users.  Nice, a burning effect that blocks healing and enhances trauma.  Just look at that passive node giving 10 Blade and 5 Yang! Wow.  Having had enough of killing bandits, Siwang follows the road towards the swamp. Here, he stops to chat with a woodcutter and buys some jujube wood off him.  Remember the house of cats? Since it's daytime now, the owner has come out of hiding and is available for conversation. There's a cave by the river with a Bodhisattva statue, and she spends her nights there.   I wonder how many more pots of tea I need to sell before I can go home? What? So you have to sell out before you go home? By the way, have you seen my cats? There are some very cute kids right here in my hut. Yes, I've seen them, they're very cute. If you go look at them and come back and answer my questions correctly, I'll give you something good! Got it! This is the view facing left from the door.  This is the view facing right from the door.  Question: how many cats do I have?- Seven! - Eight! - Two hundred!  Question: how many of my cats are lazybones who lie down all the time?- Four! - Six! - What cat is not a lazybone?  Question: Which cats are lying down on the round mat?- Bone and Em! - Rain and Mina! - Ah Hu and Ah Short! I promise Siwang is on his way to the swamp, but for now, let's try to answer Blu's cat quiz! - Seven! - Eight! - Two hundred! - Four! - Six! - What cat is not a lazybone? - Bone and Em! - Rain and Mina! - Ah Hu and Ah Short!
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Feb 18, 2023 08:43
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Eight Four Rain and Mina. All very good cats.
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Feb 18, 2023 08:55
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- Eight! - What cat is not a lazybone? - Ah Hu and Ah Short!
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Feb 18, 2023 10:30
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Update 14: Gongshi Village: Final Confrontation Congratulations to BraveLittleToaster for remembering Mina from Update 9!  Here's a gift for you, come back and visit the teahouse again.This nets Siwang a bunch of stat boosters - a Thousand-year Lingzhi, a Tianshan Snow Lotus and a Fruit of Wisdom. If Siwang had chosen the joke option "All cats are lazybones" or gotten one answer wrong he would only have received a Fruit of Wisdom. Pretty good for answering a few questions! Thank you cat lady.  Off to the east there's a monkey who will accept an apple for some Monkey Wine, which is apparently Grade A naturally fermented fruit wine or something.  Continuing the alcohol theme, there's a drunkard sleeping it off further east.  Are you drunk, old man? Who... who said I was drunk? I can drink ten times more before getting drunk!Suitably impressed by this old man's tolerance, Siwang gives him some more grain wine, freshly looted from a pack of bandits. In return, the old man offers him a choice of Thousand-year Lingzhi, some armour, and a shiny knife. Siwang takes the Thousand-year Lingzhi, you can never have enough Max HP.  Huh? This... it can't be! The black pig's tusks!Siwang then heads south to inform Patroller Wang Fu that Widowmaker has been... dealt with. Wang Fu immediately runs north to verify.  Oh, it's you, boy. Thanks to you, we can come back here and farm now. I'm just a coarse man, and have nothing else to give you, please take this white tiger skin passed down by my family.  Siwang finally gets around to revisiting the swamp. Crocodiles are pretty tanky and have a really annoying counterattack. Luo Yuanyu gets bitten multiple times and does not survive the battle (thankfully there is no perma-death on Hard difficulty).  The Lord of the Swamp feels somewhat slower than Widowmaker but has a pretty traumatic bite. Split ribs isn't a particularly useful debuff on a melee attack since it only reduces movement. I'm pretty sure it has the "Waiting for a rabbit" and "Yellow sparrow" talents too, which let it counterattack on enemy movement and attack on allies respectively.  Siwang goes back to Gongshi Village and forges some bearskin soft armour as well as a backup fist weapon. He could have used the white tiger skin he just got, but I think waiting for a higher tier of armour blueprints to become available is probably the right call. Crafting ingredients basically become better weapons/armour the more Hardness they have. Weight doesn't effect quality, but equipping too much Weight slows you down in combat.  There are various NPCs you can talk to about rumours every day. There will mostly be useless ones like "It seems like Blacksmith of Gongshi Village found an Apple!". However, sutras are on the item spawn list, and it seems that Siwang has hit the jackpot here! Is it true that 'Village Old Lady of Zhangren Village' accidentally found the secret to the Hidden Weapon Training and Bow Technique? Is it true that 'Soldier of Dayan Town' accidentally found the secret to 'Bone piercing and acupuncture points'? Siwang is able to fast travel to Zhangren Village because he came across it on his journey north to recruit Cheng Yanhua. Luckily, there is only one old lady in the village, unlike 'Soldier of Dayan Town', and Siwang immediately challenges grandma to a fight with the 'G' key. I suddenly want to beat you up.  We are all civilized people here, why be so rough?Alas, it seems that the developers forgot to give this old villager any combat techniques. Or perhaps they had a conscience and disapproved of having the protagonist profit from beating old people up. Who knows?  In any case we are still able to steal from granny here. Unfortunately this is the same sutra Siwang found in the man-eating bear cave, but it's still good to have a copy.  Flush with loot, Siwang returns to Gongshi Village and finds a villager waiting for him outside the inn, who invites him to join the hunt for Xu Xuke, the debtor scholar.  He follows the man outside the village. Look at all this people here to thank Siwang for dealing with the snake infestation! No, wait, they're here to kill Siwang. Good luck with that, idiots.  Oooh... ugh... great warrior, spare my life! Unbelievable, how can there be scum like you in this village? Who put you up to this? Speak up! We're from the Leopard King's Stronghold, Master Mei approached our chief one day and said he could take over Gongshi Village with his help... Master Mei? You mean... that aggressive brother of the village chief? Yes, exactly! He used the snake infestation and got some villagers to help kidnap that little Xiaoqing girl to use as blackmail! She is being held in a cave in the mountains behind the village. Using a litle girl as a hostage, how despicable! We don't know how many bandits are in the village, if we go and tell the village chief, we may alert that snake. Let's go to the cave and ensure Xiaoqing's safety first. Brother Gui is right! A helpful quest marker indicates Xiaoqing's location, where several bandits are trying to deal with her crying.  Stop, wicked thieves! Release the girl!Siwang is here to save the day! The bandits resist, but are no match for the combined power of Siwang and the Lord of the Swamp.  Little sister, are you OK? Oooh... thank you, big brother. Let's go back to Gongshi Village, your mother needs your help.  Back at the village chief's home, there's some kind of confrontation going on. Some poor fools try to stop Siwang from entering and get Thunderbolted for their trouble. That voice... I remember you! It was you, you're the one who kidnapped me! Why did you do it? Bad uncle! Bad guy!  Sister, though you found someone to get rid of the snake infestation, you have yet to address the matter of my neice, who has been missing for many days. Could you not come up with a solution? Xiaoqing is my daughter, of course I will find a way to deal with it. It's not for an outsider like you to worry about it anyway. That's right, our village chief went to great lengths to get rid of the snake problem, what did you do besides complain? If you're really capable, why don't you go find Xiaoqing yourself? Shut up! We support the village chief! Ungrateful peasants! Shut the gently caress up! I'll punch the next person who yells at me! Calm down, everyone. I've already found Xiaoqing and saved her from the kidnappers. What? You found Xiaoqing? After all, I am much more capable than you, my dear sister. Isn't it time for you to admit your incompetence and step down as village chief? Mom! Mom! What? How did that girl...? Boss, boss, now what? Your plan is ruined! Xiaoqing, tell everyone who captured you! It was him! Bad uncle, you took Xiaoqing away, big brother here defeated the bad guys and saved me! Mei Xinghe... you! Tch. Little brat, you have disrupted my plan. Now for the consequences. Leopard King's Fort, do your work. Kill one and the others will fall in line! These ungrateful fools will learn to be obedient! Arrg! Sister, do you really think you can defeat me? You have no idea how long I've been preparing for this day. You! Do you really think the people will allow you to get away with this? Even with your violence, when I report this to the government... The government! Hahaha! Even if they cared about a remote village like this, don't you know they can't even control their own troops? Their general is missing! ! A missing commander? Missing... or something else? How can you ignorant peasants compare your knowledge to this great lord, who has wandered the world for years? Sister, you spend too much time looking after farmers and pay too little attention to the outside world. The Mu Family of the Naxi people, the Great Righteousness Kingdom to the south, the Wolf Barbarians to the northwest, and the Ming religion lurking amongst the people... How can this village stand against threats like these, without the strong aid of the Leopard King? Has he gone mad? I just want to farm normally... (I see, so that was his agenda. The world is even more chaotic than I thought...) Your plan may have its merits, Mei Xinghe. But it's a pity you missed out one thing in your calculations. Young warrior! Big brother is great! As long as I'm here, your schemes and tricks will never succeed!Wow, what a strong heroic aura. Combat naturally ensues.  Mei Hongqi is rather fragile but hits hard with a debuffing fist technique from the Dark Fragance Lingering Cold sutra.  Her brother has twice the HP but is not as advanced in the Mei family technique.  How is this possible... this kid...Defeated, Mei Xinghe cuts his losses and runs. Young Master! I don't know how to thank you for finding Xiaoqing and beating my unworthy brother away! Haha, Village Chief Mei is too kind. I couldn't stand by and do nothing after finding out that guy's plot. We will surely do our best to help you find that man Xu Xuke! Big brother, are you looking for Uncle Xu? Oh? Little sister Xiaoqing, do you know him? I love listening to Uncle Xu's stories! But the other day, he said he had urgent business in Shu Yuji, and bought me some gourd candies before leaving. Young Master, you have done so much for our village, please take this key. Above our village, there is a pile of stones, which guards our village. Inside, hidden in an iron box, is the secret book of martial arts of the Mei family. Village Chief... but this is your family legacy! Young Master, you have saved us and we have no other way to repay you. I have no talent with martial arts, and it would be a shame if no one carried on the hard work of our ancestors. Please, I hope it can contribute to the future path of Young Master. I see... Thank you, Village Chief! Dark Fragrance Lingering Cold boosts Fists and Qinggong. The capstone technique appears to be a teleport, but it costs 4AP? With a name like that, it was probably created by someone who really wanted to suddenly appear behind someone and whisper "You are already dead" into their ear.  Obtaining Dark Fragrance Lingering Cold will finally allow Siwang to decode the little men in the Mei family genealogy, which will boost his Qinggong. Hmm... with this secret manual... these little men seem to be hinting at some method of improving Qinggong? Let me try it out. Ah! A stream of True Qi is flowing between my three foot acupuncture points! My Qinggong has improved! An unworthy son who neglects his ancestors would never have stumbled upon this method. Hence the Mei family hid their secrets here, for their filial and virtuous descendants.  But first Siwang has to climb a mountain and find a big pile of stones conveniently situated to rain down on intruders. The ancestral secret box should be hidden here. There's a mechanism... Aha! Congratulations, Siwang, you've cleared the main quest for Gongshi Village.  Gongshi Village... beneath this seemingly peaceful facade there lay intrigues worthy of the Imperial court. Kongjin, you laid down your life to save me. I swear, I will find the Holy Books for you!Where does Siwang go next? - East to Cloud Dragon Temple, to follow up on the sidequest of the mountain fisherman and his death. - West to Shu Yuji, the stone panning village, to look for Xu Xuke. - Even further west to Dayan Town, to - North to Relics of our Ancestors, to attempt to make friends and explore. - Southwest to the Leopard King's Stronghold, to complain about Mei Xinghe. edit: actually I think I can run into Dayan Town without triggering any cutscenes so Siwang will be visiting the clothing store while I wait for the results. sandorius fucked around with this message at 13:14 on Feb 21, 2023 |
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Feb 19, 2023 10:39
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Punch the Leopard King
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Feb 19, 2023 18:33
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Further west, get all the sidequests!
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Feb 19, 2023 19:01
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Show the leopard King our swamp king
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Feb 19, 2023 19:20
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Go North, we've got the extra party slot from playing on hard, might as well try to fill it.sandorius posted:
For as cool as a teleport is, honestly never got why it was locked behind three separate talent trees to learn (the village head is apparently cheating). There don't seem to be many situations where it wouldn't just be faster to just walk that distance, so the main uses seem to be all glitch based - either as protection against bad spawn points (I've had people have to sit out battles because they spawned inside a cave wall or similar and couldn't actually move anywhere) or to cheat battles by teleporting onto a roof where enemies can't reach (attacks also have a vertical tolerance for some reason - similarly once had to reload a save because the bandits in an inescapable ambush all spawned 20 feet in midair and couldn't be hit even standing directly under them). Catching up, shame to see the double sword tech missed - I think you still might be capable of getting it through duels against him? Not 100% sure, things sometimes just don't drop from duels for whatever reason. Also as a fun note Li Tan is also on map at that point, hanging out on his roof at the White Horse Residence waiting for them to catch up. Not that useful, but a good example of just how many pieces are sometimes moving in the background of these events.
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Feb 19, 2023 19:56
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Yeah, it would make sense if the teleport was also an attack, but as it is I think Dark Fragrance Lingering Blossom is only useful as a stat booster for Qinggong. For 4 AP you can pretty much run across half the battlefield, and this game is mostly melee so sitting still and waiting for the enemy to come to you is a better option most of the time. I do intend to duel Dong Guoqiang later when Siwang reaches Shu Yuji, so no need to worry about that. And it's amazing to hear that That Guy is around even before you officially meet him, it shows a level of care and attention to detail on the part of the devs that you don't often see nowadays.
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Feb 20, 2023 01:21
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Update 15: Visiting the Clothing Store It seems that general opinion is to visit the Leopard King. In the meantime, Siwang is going to visit Dayan Town to buy a new outfit and avoid as many cutscenes as he can.  Crossing through Shu Yuji on the way to Dayan Town, Siwang talks to this merchant. He will only sell to evil people, so I want to grab his stuff in case Siwang accidentally becomes righteous. Siwang also had to fight the head guard for the Gold Armour, as there was someone facing the head guard all day and night, making it nearly impossible to steal. He will return it to the old man eventually. When he remembers.  This merchant has two sutras for sale, both evil-aligned. To afford them, Siwang has to sell off a significant fraction of his metal and hide inventory, as well as some jade buddhas he picked up from somewhere.  The Yin Feng Knife is a fairly standard Blade art that scales with evil.  Yama's Post is a Short Weapon art that has a chance to assassinate the target instantly if they are lower level or being flanked. There is actually another way to obtain this sutra, but I believe Siwang is no longer eligible for that event. Looking at the sutra image, I believe the "Post" in the name should be "Poster" or "Notice", the kind that you slap on the wall, rather than a letter. I can't believe the translator didn't take the chance to call it "Death Note" instead.  Shu Yuji is a stone panning village and has these chunks of stone just laying about on the shore. If Siwang pays 500 money to some polishers, they will grind the stone down for a chance to receive a gemstone.  Alas, Siwang fails to dodge this particular cutscene, in which Luo Yuanyu is extremely chummy with some scammer selling fake frostbite ointment.  If I want to make friends, I will naturally follow what people say. Basically, he is not a good person.But at least he is honest with Siwang that he's just being polite to a fellow businessman.  In fact, Luo Yuanyu strikes again when Siwang reaches Dayan Town and starts chatting with this drunkard loafing around outside the local wine store. That's the character for "wine" on the wall behind him. Siwang is beginning to suspect that Luo Yuanyu has some kind of affinity with beggars and conmen, what with the stick and all.  The clothing store is just to the south of the wine shop in Dayan Town. Again, the character for "cloth" is hung on the banner outside. Most shops are like that, it's sort of difficult to remember what shops are where if you can't recognize the character on their banners.  The shop attendant is wondering why the lady in the dressing room is taking so long.  Wait... that's not a lady. And he's wearing some snazzy leopardprint briefs, where can Siwang get those?  Nevermind. Let's leave those two alone.  The clothing store has thirteen different outfits, and Siwang simply buys the first one, which is some sort of Naxi Tribe fur clothing. Mission accomplished!  Before he leaves Dayan Town, Siwang buys some candied hawthorns from a nearby vendor. They boost intelligence by a tiny bit, and make him wonder if waltzing straight into a bandit stronghold is a terribly good idea.  Maybe he should try to level up a bit? Siwang turns in the quest given to him by the dying imperial spy and his comrade. The imperial spy handler thanks him and asks him to fish for some information regarding the killer from a well-informed children's game peddler at the local pagoda.  A selfie taken at the Tibetan Monastery north of Dayan Town. Don't worry, as soon as the hawthorn candy wears off and Siwang has got a few more levels under his belt, he will head to the Leopard King's Stronghold and demand angrily to see the manager.  Look! He even found a souvenir! Wind and Horse Banner, "A tantric Dharma artifact with five colours of red, yellow, blue, green and white, and a sutra carrying the three treasures of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. Increases virtual moves by 6 per round."
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Feb 20, 2023 13:19
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Update 16: The Leopard King's Stronghold Upon returning to the Leopard King's bandit stronghold, Siwang catches these two bandits burying something behind a hut.  There's someone there! Kill him! Straight to killing? Why can't we just get along and split the loot three ways? I told you to split the loot three ways, but you just couldn't listen to me, could you? Hmmm... what treasure were they trying to hide?This nets Siwang a Valuble Antique which he can sell.  Siwang then proceeds to accidentally aggro the entire bandit camp. But since he has Cheng Yanhua healing the party, this is more of an exercise in tedium than terror. The bandit NPCs remain standing around but just complain bitterly instead of initiating combat now. Kid, looking for death? How dare you provoke our Leopard King Stronghold, the boss will deal with you! Don't be so arrogant, kid, the boss will cut you up! Trying to enter the bandit king's house starts a cutscene. I almost succeeded, just give me a few more men and I guarantee I can take back the position of Gongshi Village Chief! I'm not wasting any more of my time on a fool like you. Lord Feng's orders were to obtain food from the village, they were never about helping you become the village chief. Mei Hongqi will never be willing to provide you with food! If gentle methods won't work... harsh ones will have to do. If you kill the villagers and turn the rice fields into a wasteland, where will your food come from? Instead of slaughtering the chicken to get its eggs, you should help me again. If it hadn't been for that brat who ruined my plans, the village would have already... Brat? You don't mean me, do you? You! I say, old man, at your age, aren't you ashamed to be talking badly about others behind their backs? Hmmph. I was wondering why it was so noisy outside, it seems a rat has wandered in. A rat? Hey hey, ask your conscience, have you ever seen such a handsome rat in your life? Cut the crap and die! The Leopard King comes packaged with Mei Xinghe and four other friends. He hits reasonably hard for this stage in the game, "Kill the leopard and leave the skin" will do 700-800 damage per strike and take off about a quarter or so of anyone's health bar. Luckily he goes for the Swamp King, who has been buffed by the Book of Beasts sutra to ridiculous levels of tankiness.  Mei Xinghe gets bitten in the crotch by an angry crocodile, and the Leopard King follows soon after. edit: this guy isn't actually the Leopard King, just a midboss lackey sent here to gather food.  Hey hey hey, the others have run away without you. Don't kill me, don't kill me! I can tell you a secret! You promise not to kill me? Yes, yes, tell me the secret! Did you know that this place used to be a small village of hunters and miners? So what? About a year ago, Feng Guanyu, the most notorious bandit in this country, suddenly led his men here and occupied the place. But why did he do it? Maybe he liked the view here? There was a rumour that someone found basalt in a nearby mine! An iron from beyond the sky, no weapon can damage it, even an ordinary sword can become a divine weapon if forged from basalt. So that's what those bandits guarding the "Forbidden Zone" on the next hill are doing... I have told you everythig I know about the heavenly metal, basalt, and also the Leopard King Feng Guanju. Now let me go! If Siwang kills Mei Xinghe, he can loot this Short Weapon sutra from his corpse. There are three ways this conversation can go. Please vote: - Siwang kills Mei Xinghe immediately without learning the secret of the nearby mine. - Siwang kills Mei Xinghe after learning the secret of the nearby mine. - Siwnag lets Mei Xinghe go free after learning the secret of the nearby mine. sandorius fucked around with this message at 15:27 on Oct 20, 2023 |
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Feb 21, 2023 08:21
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