Hou sat in the teahouse looking at the room he was given. As he washed ushered in he heard that this room was called the Obsidian room.
The room was a cosy wooden room, adorned with plants and art. However the ceiling was completely black made of material akin to obsidian.
Hou was especially drawn to a tapestry on one of the walls, a tall painted piece of paper. It seemed like it was an ordinary piece of calligraphic art but again it was written in that strange writing.
But it also felt different than usual, he could sense the meaning of the words but he could feel something. As Hou looked at the paper he felt his understanding of mental energy and qi improved.
Suddenly Hou realised something, mental energy is wills.
'Thats it! Mental energy is just wills! Different words and interpretations but it is the same premise!'
Hou had his epiphany and looked back at the painting and he realised it morphed. The writing that once was there was changed, it said something different.
Hou looked at it and focused on taking it in. He saw the words start to morph even more, the ink moving around the paper.
Then all of a sudden, the ink formed the image of a dragon which then flew out of the paper!
The dragon snaked through the air and flew into Hou, the ink transferring into his body. This all happened in a split second and Hou could not react in time.
Hou then noticed he was given some words from the ink, he quickly read it. The note said this:
If you are reading this, you must be a direct disciple of the Nine Clouds Sovereign Sect. You also must be capable to inherit my last treasure.
My name is QI Moyun, the great True Sage of Celestial Ink. Throughout my life I have pursued the Dao of the ink and brush.
On this fated day, I hope that you will inherit my Dao as your own. If you do not, I only have one plea. Don't let the Dao of Ink and Brush die, pass it on to a trustworthy inheritor.
The treasure I leave to you is my final masterpiece, I don't know how far in the future you are so it may be weakened. What I leave you is Flowing Divine Script and the corresponding Celestial Ink. I will not explain what it is, that is something only you can find out.
Thank you.
Hou stopped reading the words engraved onto his very being and let out a deep breathe. He then controlled the cosmic ink all over his body and pulled it out, floating above his palm.
"Celestial Ink, what are you?"
Hou could feel the ink and without being told could feel it was not something normal, it felt...'heavy'.
'I have to forget about this, I need to talk Yue and Araxis. Maybe if I have time, I'll ask them about it.'
Hou was beginning to generate wills before he stopped himself and instead imagined it as mental energy seeping out, it was a matter of perspective but he wanted to shift it to what is used in the sect.
He saturated his body in mental energy then summoned up Yue and Araxis who he had sealed previously to focus on cultivation.
As Yue's semi-separate consciousness woke up, the Celestial Ink moved. Without Hou's will it had jumped into Hou's body and went to attack Yue.
The ink was too fast and by the time Hou tried to regain control over it, it was too late. The semi-alive ink had destroyed Yue's consciousness leaving Hou distraught.
However just as Hou was going to react, the ink moved again. It was morphing and changing form, it shout out of Hou's body. The ink then splattered itself back on the paper scroll it came from and continued morphing.
The scroll then finally chose its final form, the face of a young looking man with long hair and rough features. then the picture moved and words were transmitted directly to Hou.
"Hou, do not panic it is me Yue. Well it's as much Yue as I was before. When the Celestial Ink absorbed me, it noticed my friendliness and choose me to strengthen it. The ink had been weakened from lying dormant and the weak consciousness I maintained could allow it to regain use. I decided to relinquish some of my self to it."
"Master!" Hou, instead of responding to Yue, had reacted to what had happened in a split second. In only a moment much had changed.
At the same time, Araxis spoke up,
"Some sort of alive ink?"
Yue heard Araxis' confusion and after calming Hou down explained everything,
"The ink was not alive, but it wasn't not alive either. The Celestial ink was the very essence of the True Sage of Celestial Ink, it was his pure consciousness without memory. It was consciousness mixed with the Dao. The Dao is all the laws in the world, the everything, the flow of the world. And Celestial Ink is a back door to influence the Dao through Flowing Divine Script."
"I don't understand, so what is it? What can it do?" Hou did not fear being reprimanded and asked his questions.
"First I'll explain Flowing Divine Script, which is a cultivation technique that causes effects like magic. It can cause resonance in laws, therefore spreading a law temporarily to others. That is how I am talking, resonating the laws to transmit sound laws, speech."
"So what about Celestial Ink?"
"Normally it is a conduit for other laws, letting them be used without being integrated by the world but when used with Flowing Divine Script it can be used 3 times to permanently change a huge amount of laws, even the Dao itself. But there is a downside..."
"What's the downside?"
"After those 3 times...I will die, I am connected with the Celestial Ink and each time it is used I will weaken my influence over it. Once it is done, it will still be a great treasure but I will no longer be here."
"Then I will never use them! Never, I wont. Even if there's no other choice, I don't care!"
Yue, in the celestial ink, then shot out from the scroll and once again spread himself throughout Hou's body. If Hou was attacked he could use his space laws and activate them in the ink to defend him.
"I'm sure you will need to one day Hou, just if I tell you to, do it. Enough of this, why did you summon us?" Yue put up a façade of nonchalant attitude.
Hou sighed but ultimately showed Yue and Araxis all of his recent memories on his path of cultivation.
"So what should I do? Do I form the Spirit Stone Soul, or is there some way to form the Nascent Soul beforehand?"