Hyang takes Perlmut on a route that leads to the village that he previously saved. And so they come by. As soon as they enter, villagers surround them and stare.
Villager1: "Oh, who do we have here? A cultivator bodyguarding a young miss.
What brings the two of you here."
'katong'
With a decisive move, the village chief flogged the head of the villager with a piece of wood.
Chief: "Moron, can't you see? Do you not remember the face of our great savior?
The one that danced all night?"
Villager1: "Wha- wa wha wat wah what?
He is the one? I was so young back then.
But I still remember that he was a mighty fine dancer."
Villager2: "Yeah, I remember back then my dance moves were only second to his."
Chief: "Yes indeed."
'tong'
Villager1: "Ah- a A ao Auu? Wh- w Why?"
Chief: "There is no excuse for not recognizing our savior."
Hyang: "By the way, where is the old village chief?"
Chief: "Let me guide you."
Hyang: "I should need no guide for that, right?"
The chief just silently starts guiding him towards a place outside the village, not too far away.
Chief: "This is where our old village chief lies, he died in an accident. Most of your dance partners also rest here."
Hyang: ".I see..."
Villager2: "None of them were as impeccable as me! However, they did well, showing me your One Dance. Your devine moves were just unimaginable."
'katong'
Chief: "You seem to not work on your behavior enough. Howe-"
Perlmut: "Peasants that think that they can dance, ~ohohohohoho~
Under the blind, the one with the biggest ears is king, I suppose.
~ohohohohoho~"
Villager2: "..."
In the short time that the villager 2 holds back his anger because of the village chief the villagers start a turmoil.
"WE CAN DANCE""WE ARE GOOD AT DANCING""WE CAN SING AS WELL"
"NOBODY CAN TELL US WE CAN'T DANCE"
With anger on his face
Village chief: "After that embarrassing performance, our people decided to train ourselves in the arts of singing and dancing. As a reminder of our Savior. He who mastered dancing beyond where the mortal's palm can reach, finding rhythm where there was no rhythm to be found. The one that was actually able to dance well to something you could have barely called singing. HOWEVER, those singers have trained and trained. They trained blood, sweat and tears like the rest of us. Never forgetting that the freedom of our children from that unhold is thanks to that very person."
Villagers:"THROW A PARTY!!""THROW A PARTY!!""THROW A PARTY!!""THROW A PARTY!!"
"THROW A PARTY!!""THROW A PARTY!!""THROW A PARTY!!""THROW A PARTY!!"
Chief: "Yes! That will also be an excellent opportunity to celebrate our saviors' appearance."
As the villagers revolt and start preparing for the party, Perlmut maliciously grins at Hyang.
Hyang: "What?"
She doesn't answer him. Instead, she simply continues smiling. Although it's now hidden behind a fan that is made by her crown of illusion.
The villagers guide the two of them to a place where they can sit down and watch them swiftly whip out festival decorations. They also serve them both. Although they do so with goosebumps on their skin because of the chills they feel in the vicinity of Rex Unustuse. Furthermore, sometimes some villagers throw a very ominous phrase at Perlmut.
Villager: "You'll see."
During the preparations.
Hyang: "Did you really have to say that?"
Perlmut: "Fufufu"
With that out of the way the festival can start after an hour of preparations, the stage is set, and the villagers can show off.
The singer opens the stage for the musicians.
Singer: "There once was a man named Hyang, who was King of the dancing stage.
He had glory, cultivation, and dance moves beyond your wildest dreams"
Hyang: "Oh noo." "As he left the stage"
Perlmut: "Pfft~ 'kekkel'" "swinging his robe behind his back"
Singer: "these were the final words he said: "My moves are yours to learn, but you'll have to
comprehend them first.
I showed everything in One Dance."
Ever since, dancers from all over the world set their feet on the stage,
comprehending One Dance.
The moves that would make their dreams come true."
And the musicians start playing on their
Bianzhong, Guzhengs, Qin, Luo Dagu, Horse-head fiddle, Erhu, Dizi, Bangzi
and not
to forget
-their Pipa.
Opening the start of the song for the singer.
Singer: "🕶🎵🎶🕶YO!
Ya-YO, Ya-YO!🕶🎵🎶🕶..."
While the musicians play the music, the villagers start dancing wildly, one wouldn't believe they aren't breaking anything while dancing like that. For normal commoners, it would be a bone breaking dance where you could only hear the shattering of their bones. Or at least that's what it looks like.
A while later, the village chief comes over to the two of them.
Perlmut: "Everything according to plan, Ohhoho~"
'khehem'
Chief: "Brrr, why is it only so cold in this shadow, and not the others? I'm getting goosebumps."
Perlmut *Fortunately enough, the crown of illusion hides the snow that resides only on my head.*
Chief: "Either way, as you can see, we can dance, quite well in fact. And since you said that, we demand you dance! Show us what you've got."
Perlmut: "Hmpf-
I suppose one could call these beastly movements a dance. However, peasants like you don't deserve to see me dance. And as such, I'll bestow my guard with the honor to take my place."
She makes a gesture towards Hyang, her 'guard'.
Hyang: "All of this-
for that-
?-"
Perlmut covers herself with her fan and winks him to go with the village chief and dance.
Hyang: "Could you play 幽蘭 (Yōu lán) for me?"
Prompting a seemingly random man to react to what he said.
Fat Man: "Oh, it's Guqin Time!?"
The fat man goes up to the musicians and gets his Guqin handed to him. He stands in front and center of the stage. Now in center stage, the other musicians form a semicircle around him. The singer takes on the role of a second voice to enhance the fat man's performance, who sings while playing Guqin. And so, all other musicians play a background role for the fat man, creating a visual and auditory center stage for him.
While they play music, Hyang dances, using illusive cherry blossoms to enhance his performance. His slow dance is filled with elegance only noblehood could have, and so he dances shining brilliantly like no one else. Of course, the speed of the moves can't always be slow. And as such, he uses faster movements during the refrain of the song, leaving the villagers in awe.
With the exception of a single senior villager dancing along in his own way to the music and Hyang.
Senior Villager 'hu hm ha'
Senior Villager: "My old bones don't move as smoothly as back then anymore."
The festival continues until night, at which point it slowly comes to an end. And the villagers suddenly start flogging themselves while cleaning up the festival's mess instead of sleeping off their currently acumulated exhaustion. They tidy up the decorations and flogg themselves for dozing off during the task or simply slowing down. Some also flogg themselves while cleaning up without dozing off or getting slower. Which causes Hyang to go to the village chief out of concern for the people.
Hyang: "Why is everyone doing these- things?"
As the village chief answers, he smiles happily.
Village Chief: "A fire cultivator once came by during winter. He helped us out a lot back then, using firetechnics to give us warmth. Not only that, he even goes as far as to frequently visit us now. During which, he once decided to help us more, even if he didn't come by anymore. And so he taught us self-flagellation and flogging as a way to motivate ourselves to work enough to gain more wood for the winter and prosper through the submission to the god Ōkui. And it helped! Everyone got more active."
'ERROR'
"He was worried about our generations to come. What a nice guy, right?"
Perlmut stands gracefully as she points at the peasant and puts her hand in front of her mouth, staring to laugh in a high pitched tone while slightly tilting her head back, making sure to look down on them in proper fashion.
Perlmut: "Ahahahahaha, stupid peasants think hurting themselves brings health and helps."
Hyang perplexed by it, leaves it be, not thinking much about it.
Hyang: "Could Spangurtos already be making a move?"
Village Chief: "That's quite the conspiracy. We know him well. He's no genius. He is as evil as he is dumb. However, our last village chief considered it to be a possibility too, and he was normally arguing against flogging techniques just like some others. Unbelievable, right? Come, follow me to my residents, and allow me to explain the joy of flogging that we have."
Perlmut: "Hmpf"
The village chief smiles at him while he thinks about his doubts about Spangurtos already having made a move after barely 20 years. Especially because it seems unlike something he'd be capable of coming up with. And so the two follow him just like that.
Perlmut *Why is he just following him? This obviously isn't normal!*
After arriving at his residence, they sit down in his living room, with only the three of them around.
Well, and Bing.
Village Chief: "It's awfully cold for a summer night. But I guess that's nothing for cultivators.
Either way, to be honest with you. It sometimes feels like our resources are used up faster than they should. Some even say that they have been stolen or vanished. Weird as it may sound, it causes everyone to be on edge, needing to work harder. Only thanks to the flogging we manage to do so."
Perlmut *Seems like he was only making a front before. I wonder how wary of each other the normal townsfolk is if the chief is already like this. They are most certainly afraid of being blamed for bad things that might happen. But to which extent? Who knows.*
'shrug'
Hyang: "Then what about the people that were against flogging?
About the dead ones?"
Village Chief: "The dead were all old, and the village chief was just unlucky. It's not too rare for us mortals to die by accident. As for the younger ones, they don't have an alternative as they need to provide, and flogging seems to be the only hope."
Perlmut *Why didn't they just stop their dance training all together instead?*
Hyang: "What about that god Ōkui?"
Village Chief: "The fire cultivator didn't force anything on us with that. Instead, he said that god Ōkui likes dancing. Also, rumors in the village say he doesn't."
Perlmut: "Pathetic! Thinking that flogging helps like that."
Hyang uses Perlmuts action as a pretext to make them feel ashamed of themselves, as even this seemingly spoiled brat knows better than them.
Hyang: "...I think she is right. You should be aware that it festers wounds, which inevitable reduces productivity through sickness and such. And I suspect people at this point are scared to get communal flagellation or whatever if they don't hit themselves. They seem like they are expected to do self-flagellation and as such. I feel like the village shifts towards potentially ostracizing for not doing it. Besides, you should just start hiding some extra resources if you feel like they vanish suspiciously fast. That way you could test it."
Perlmut *The chief seemed to be the first one to hand out communal flagellation.*
Village Chief: "Well, some people once said that Dance God Hyang would be sad to see this.
And I guess they were right."
Perlmut *Hoho~ Just why are they so crazy over Hyang and dancing? I mean, he's good, yes, in fact, he is an extraordinary specials equal dancer. Hohoho~ But this? This is a lot.*
Hyang: "I'm not a god."
Village Chief: "Hahahahaha, you jest. After that dance, no one would say otherwise. And so I guess I'll have everyone try to do what you recommended under your name."
Hyang: "As long as you don't build what destroys."
Hoping that the villagers really do turn around a new leaf, Hyang and Perlmut leave the village at precisely 9:59 o'clock from "Ye Old Inn".
After having walked for a while, they left the proximity of the village. And something unusual happens. A bit away from the little village, at the moment the two talk about how they hope for the best of the villagers. Around a hundred meters away, there is a person falling out of the sky straight towards the ground. As they notice it, Hyang rushes over as fast as possible in an attempt to help, while Perlmut isn't trying to go as fast as possible, but just fast enough. Hyang, however, is too late as the person splashes onto the ground,
'overkill'
His disfigured, smashed head leaves his last words from his intact lips as its consciousness drifts off.
Cultivator: "Why was I suddenly in the skyy?.. and why was I stuck.."
*splattering blood sounds*
A disgusting sound comes from his mouth, a dying attempt to continue rambling on as his mouth fills too much. Perhaps a bit of brain leaking in, perhaps just more ordinary bone, blood and flesh.
Perlmut: "Hooooo? The head certainly acted unusual."
Hyang: "His dissipating QI and aura seem to be that of a fire cultivator. I also sense something ominous about it with my spiritual sense. As this way leads to the village, he must have been the person they mentioned. Just why?"
Perlmut sneakily takes the spacialring off of the finger that very, very totally randomly flew before her feet, cleaning it with a small piece of cloth that she tears off of her disguised cloth as it is more suitable for the task at hand than Rex's cloth.
Hyang: "Let's bury this man's unworthy remains. He is still human after all."
Perlmut: "Right."
He is swiftly buried on the side of the rode, and a stone is placed on top. Its looks' are similar to that of a sitting stone one, but the sitting comfort and quality of the surface just isn't quite there yet.
Hyang: "He didn't have a spacial ring, quite odd for a cultivator."
Perlmut: "Is that soo~?"
She gleams happily at him as he looks at the grave.
Hyang: "He only had some sect like uniform and a small coin bag that I buried with him."
Perlmut: "Nghehehehe."
She proudly shows the ring she found to Hyang. Grabbing his surprised attention. And a sigh.
*sigh*
Perlmut: "Yes, he did have more.
There is a HUUGEE amount of wood inside this ring and other common resources, and now it's all mine!"
Hyang: "...Fine..
But either way, according to the villagers, he didn't have anything to do with common work.
Perhaps by chance this guy could have made a huge set up like this just for himself!?
Otherwise, why would those resources not be stored at some kind of base."
Perlmut: "Or he is just some sort of collector that has a hard time separating himself from 'acquired' things."
Slow speaking and disagreeing Hyang: "Right..."
Perlmut: "Uuh, my spiritual sense senses some fish bones inside. What an ominous aura~"
Hyang: "..."
They depart and go back on track on the way that leads towards the legendary Penglai-
'ahem'
Pingpong