With the Braid of a Hundred Masters now in your possession you head to the next room. This fifteen-foot-by-thirty-foot room seems to have escaped the destruction found throughout the rest of the monastery. A statue, leaning against the northern wall, appears out of place among the rest of the room’s contents—clay pots, ruined sacks, and aged tools. The statue, made of finely carved stone with jade inlays, depicts a man with a serene face, standing in a meditative stance.
"Greetings, visitor."
There's no response from the statue, until you touch it again.
"I am Jiang Dan, a simple servant of the Master of Masters," the statue tells you. "I am, indeed, the statue."
S'arkee uses detect magic and senses the aura of a human inside the statue, and that the human's using telepathy. He also picks up a strong transmutation aura from the Braid of a Hundred Masters, but the item feels dormant.
"I am, or rather was, a monk in this monastery," Jiang Dan responds.
"I foolishly asked for wisdom. In response, I was given time to find that wisdom for myself."
When Negi enters the room a soft laugh can be heard in the minds of those who touch the statue of Jiang Dan. "An understandable reaction, I daresay."
"It's true, I have learned that I must acquire my own wisdom. And it is for this very reason that you cannot help me achieve freedom. My freedom is my own to achieve."
Jiang's quiet for a moment, as he ponders how to describe what happened to the monastery and its monks.
"A petulant student believed he knew better than his master," he says after a while. "The student proclaimed that the master unfairly gained power from the Braid of a Hundred Masters, cheapening the path to self-perfection. He challenged the master to remove the braid and compete against him without its power. The master did so and, in the process, defeated the student. Once the master had proven himself to the student, the master left the braid at the student’s feet, then turned away, leaving the monastery, never to return."
"The master took one student with him that day, the young disciple, Ying Pei, while the remaining students squabbled and fought over the braid. None could call upon the power of the braid and so they left the monastery, one by one, once again seeking their true paths to perfection. Eventually, only the petulant student and the braid remained. Here he stayed, until the day he died, contemplating the significance behind his master’s actions. Perhaps, through searching for the master and his last disciple, you may uncover the answer to the Braid of a Hundred Masters."
"The last master, Li Yao, left the monastery many, many years ago. I do not remember how many exactly."
There's another soft laugh as Bulgo drapes the Braid of a Hundred Masters over Jiang. "You cannot help me, young man, but I thank you for trying. My freedom is my own to achieve."
"In its current state the Braid doesn't have any power anyway. Only the master of the monastery would know how the Braid of a Hundred Masters functions. If you wish to learn how to activate the Braid's powers, you should go find him."
Traveling back down the mountain is a simple matter, as the slope works in your favor and all threats along the way were cleared on the ascent. Venture-Captain Amara Li personally thanks you for the recovery of the Braid of a Thousand Masters. You also tell her Jiang Dan told you about activating the Braid, and the Lantern Lodge venture-captain immediately begins organizing a search for the last master and the young student that followed him.
It’s been three days since parting ways with Venture-Captain Amara Li, and the journey along the Tuunma River has been unusually quiet so far, with the two-masted junk called the Laughing Crow holding up surprisingly well, especially considering its simple design and relatively minute size. The journey has been peaceful so far, the endless processions of sand dunes and clear skies proving remarkably contrary to many of the warnings Amara Li provided during the meeting with her nearly half a week ago.
"No time to rest, Pathfinders!" she exclaimed late one night, barging into the bedroom of the ramshackle tavern in Goka. "I’ve looked into the situation surrounding the relic you found, the Braid of a Hundred Masters. As you may have noticed, the artifact appears to have been dormant for many years now, and in this state it’s essentially worthless to us. Fortunately, it can be reactivated, but only by the descendant of the braid’s last master, who, as you may know, was the master of the Clouded Path Monastery many years ago, a man by the name of Li Yao. I’ve discovered the whereabouts of his final living descendant—a woman by the name of Je Tsuin—but she now resides in the nation of Shokuro to the east, far from where her ancestor taught in his monastery in the Wall of Heaven. In order to reactivate the sacred relic, you’ll need to travel to the village of Nesting Swallow in Shokuro and find Je Tsuin to perform the necessary ritual."
"Unfortunately," she continued, "we’re not the only group interested in Iroran artifacts. Our operatives claim that Lingshen, the Successor State to the southeast, is after the relic as well. Since Lingshen’s armies have a stranglehold on the overland routes from here to Shokuro, you’ll have to travel by river. Riding the Tuunma is faster anyway, though you might run into some hostile Mutabi-qi or goblinoids along the way. The river empties into the Sea of Eels—cross it and you’re in Shokuro, and from there you can follow the map I’ve provided to reach Nesting Swallow."
"Ah, before I forget, you’ll also need you to make a quick stop along the way. The ritual requires a large amount of rare incense—more than I could easily procure from any of my local suppliers—so I’ve contacted a nomadic tribe in Shaguang, the Jhemulit, and they have agreed to provide you with the prepared herbs. I’ve already paid their shaman, a man named Ogokai, and I’ve marked their approximate location on your map, so it’s simply a matter of picking up the incense on your way to Shokuro."
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S'arkee gives his lipless smile as he listens to the conversation.
"AS far as I know, they shouldn't be a danger, unless we step into the water..." he states as he remains sat with his bad leg. "I think it best if we try to remain quiet and avoid their forces. I can count on my comrades here if we get into a tight situation, I'm sure."
"The Lingshen have got the largest and mightiest army in all of Tian Xia," the Venture-Captain told S'arkee, "their soldiers fight with fanatical devotion, and they’ll only offer you one chance to surrender—after that, they show no mercy. I’d avoid them if at all possible, but if confronted, your only option might be to fight."
She had turned to Bulgo after. "I doubt you'll run into any giant eels. It's more likely you'll run into hostile Mutabi-qi. That's what the nomad tribes of Shaguang call themselves. Most are pretty aggressive toward outsiders, but if you can make friendly contact, you’ll find them very hospitable. They travel from oasis to oasis across Shaguang, and frequently make stops along the Tuunma River to water their horses."
"The second half of your trip will take you along the border of Kaoling, which was seized by hobgoblins shortly after the fall of Imperial Lung Wa. The hobgoblins probably won’t bother you provided you don’t venture inland, but even less civilized monsters are said to lurk around the border. I fear I can't give you any information on these."
It’s been three days since parting ways with Venture-Captain Amara Li, and the journey along the Tuunma River has been unusually quiet so far, with the two-masted junk called the Laughing Crow holding up surprisingly well, especially considering its simple design and relatively minute size. The journey has been peaceful so far.
You've had some time to explore the Laughing Crow. It has the following areas :
and worn from weeks of exposure to the harsh mountain winds. The rigging and sails look to be in much better condition, having recently been replaced. A large hatch above the bow leads to the fore cargo hold, while a smaller hatch midship leads to the midship cargo hold.
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S'arkee sits down in the midship Cargo Hold and decided to meditate on his holy symbol in hopes to gain inspiration from his deity upon this journey.
He also finds the rocking of the ship a difficult and alien thing to handle so he hopes that down here it doesn't shake as much and his Goddess can give him strength.
After several days of making your way down the river, you reach a stretch of river known as the Kogendu Basin. From what you heard before setting sail, this area remains a popular hiding spot for raiders from Shaguang who hope to prey on passing trading ships.
The river slows as it leaves the sandy highlands and winds its way between the rolling hills of this dry, grassy basin. The breeze that blows from the north is dusty and warm, and a thicket of short gnarled trees lines the shore.
The horseman that Rolan and Bulgo spot takes his bow and nocks an arrow. He obviously has no friendly intentions, and is soon joined by four men on horseback.
Surprise round:
Rolan
Bulgo
Round 1:
Negi
Mutabi-qi Raider (Blue)
Rolan
Mutabi-qi Raider (Green)
Theron
Mutabi-qi Raider (Yellow)
Bulgo
S'arkee
Khoqarit
Mutabi-qi Raider (Red)
Rolan immediately has trouble steering the ship, but likely nothing bad happens.
Negi fires an arrow at the middle rider, but shoots the arrow into the sand.
Bulgo lets fly with his sling at the nearest horseman and gives the man a bruise.
The horseman that Bulgo just hit tries to hit Bulgo as well, but the arrow from the man's bow lands in the water. "Mwen pral fè ou jwenn! Jis ou rete tann!" the warrior shouts loudly in his native tongue.
Round 1:
Negi
Mutabi-qi Raider (Blue) -1HP
Rolan
Mutabi-qi Raider (Green)
Theron
Mutabi-qi Raider (Yellow)
Bulgo
S'arkee
Khoqarit
Mutabi-qi Raider (Red)
Rolan keeps the ship on course, then plants a bolt in the shoulder of the same warrior Bulgo hit.
One of the other warriors fires an arrow at Rolan and hits him. He immediately lets out a loud battle cry. "AYAYAYAYAAAA!!!!"
Round 1:
Negi
Mutabi-qi Raider (Blue) -5HP
Rolan
Mutabi-qi Raider (Green)
Theron
Mutabi-qi Raider (Yellow)
Bulgo
S'arkee
Khoqarit
Mutabi-qi Raider (Red)