We emerged from the tunnel just shy of the dawn on the outside. Not before we took just about half an hour for all of us--including Lao Shun and Han Yimu--to do some fancy face-altering.
In reality, no one really changed their appearance that much. Slightly higher cheekbones, rounder or more slanted eyes, different hairstyle and color, and some jaw-sculpting. They did look different, though, but just similar enough that those who've met them before are likely to have that 'itch' in the back of their heads screaming at them, 'You know those kids!'
The two who changed the most were Lao Shun and Han Yimu as it was their first time using the art; though they retained some general roughness to their appearance, especially Lao Shun who still had scruffy beard and somewhat bushy brows, but beneath them also had a face that was about a decade younger. It honestly kind of looked like bad prop work in a TV show, like an infamous putting on wigs and hoods to de-age a character into high school.
Once we emerged, we stealthily dipped away from the city; though I had some plans to resupply initially, I'm not sure sticking around the scene of a crime would be the smartest thing to do.
All the same, we will resupply once we're in Jade Blossom City.
We all hopped into the chariot once we were about ten or so miles away from the city, finally relaxing somewhat. As the kids dispersed to their corners to meditate, I once again pulled up the creator's window; there were still arts to make, and I wanted to make them and share them all before we arrive.
Still kicking back Lan'er's, I focused on the easier of the remaining two: Light's. She wanted to be able to stay underwater for a long time to look at the fishes. Just like her last requested one where she asked me to make a flight art, this one was weird, too.
I don't know whether she's being considerate or just plain ol' weird, but regardless, creating the art was... well, easy.
In fact, I kind of went overboard and created something that went just a touch beyond being able to 'stay underwater'.
[Congratulations, Host, on creating the 'Undying Breath' Special Art][...][Undying Breath][Type: Special Art][Rank: low-Myth tier][Host Comprehension: Minor][...][Breathing is by many considered to be the most fundamental aspect of everything: life, death, and cultivation itself. Some old schools of thought even supposed that the only way to achieve true immortality was to learn to hold one's breath forever--as they believed that each exhale would rip parts of one's soul, slowly exhausting it and leading to inevitable death. Though breathing is considered the essence of life, and absence of it is by many considered death, it hardly rings to the truth of the matter; there are many who were bereft of their breaths, punished for their sins, who've lived eons since then. One truth remains, however: perfecting one's ability to breathe is a necessity to acquiring many keys which lead to the doors of perfection. Mastering this art means creating the foundational block for the future. It allows the martial artist to hold their breath nigh-indefinitely, and control their breath to perfection. Once '???' mastery is reached, it allows for the body to effectively enter a state of decay, but so long as that singular breath is retained, the body can recover. Note: Undying Breath is close in concept to Path of the Unbroken Thought and their central art, Buddhist Sutra of Eternity. The central claim is that, so long a singular spark or thought or breath remains, true extinction cannot occur. While their pursuits are inverse, they touch on the same principalities of existence; revealing Undying Breath's existence may be a boon or a curse][...][Creation Points Value: 880/1,000][Comprehension Difficulty: Transcendent][...][--Creator of Myths has been triggered. New special effect is added to the art][Special Effect: basic physical attributes of a martial artist increase while not breathing. The extent of empowerment scales with the duration of being breathless. Minimum to trigger the special effect is 6 hours, effects scaling with each subsequent hour][...][Creation Bonus: Minor Trait Unlocked, Breathless Touch Talisman (x1)][...][Minor Trait Unlocked: Purified Breathing (Epic)][...][Purified Breathing (Epic) -- allows for clear and conscious breathing in nearly all environment, regardless of how toxic the air is. The body naturally purifies the air from toxins and poisons][Breathless Touch Talisman (???) -- ripping the talisman pulls all breathable air within a 30 miles radius around you into a pocket dimension. All sounds cease, all flames perish. Breath escapes the lungs and never returns]
Yeah, just a touch.
When I set out to create the art, I sure did not intend to create something that apparently near-mimics an existing Buddhist path. But now I'm here, wondering whether I should actually just give this to everyone. It doesn't sound bad, and it's kind of clear that its purpose isn't like it's for the Buddhist path; it's intended as a defensive, self-preservation tool, rather than means of finality.
Purified Breathing is a nice boon to have as it's literally always on, but the true mind-bender (besides the art, of course) was the talisman.
Though I may be way off, I'm pretty sure that it's saying if I rip this thing, it will create a literal vacuum of space within a 30 miles radius. Which, well, is legitimately insane.
I'm not quite sure whether it would be lethal to some high-end Emperor, but if it truly creates a vacuum, it goes beyond breathing, if my recollection of physics classes holds up. It does pair up nicely with Undying Breath, but I'm fairly certain I ain't gonna be ripping that bad boy any time soon.
"Yimu," I said, procuring the talisman and tossing it over to the surprised young man who caught it quite effortlessly. "What do you think it does?" though he'd just started reading the massive codex recently, short of asking Long Tao, he was my best bet.
"Hmm," he inspected the talisman for a few moments before quickly throwing it back to me, seeming a bit fearful. "Master! What if I accidentally ripped it? We would have all died!"
"What? What?"
"How would we have died?" as they all looked at me curiously, I sighed and let them pass it around until it came back to me. While the kids gawked at how it was amazing that I had it with me, Long Tao and even Lao Shun were a bit more... apprehensive.
"Well, to make sure we don't die if any one of us rips it by accident," I said, procuring tomes of the Undying Breath for all of them. "Here. It should be helpful."
Long Tao was the fastest, as his hand turned into a literal blur while he grabbed the booklet and started reading. For the next few minutes, the entire chariot turned so silent a shuffle of my smooth robes against the wooden bench was akin to rip of a goddamn thunder.
As I expected, Long Tao woke up from it first, glancing over at me with a... dull expression. Maybe the art wasn't actually as impressive as I thought?
"What?" I asked.
"... nothing," he said. "Just wondering whether your family has any connection to a certain Buddhist Path."
"Funnily, a cousin on my grandfather's side, thrice-removed, had a friend whose fourth child met a young boy on her travels who taught her the principles of that Buddhist Path."
"... haah," he sighed rather audibly as I caught most of their eyebrows twitch. Long Tao turned his focus back on the book while I pulled up the window, wondering how to make Yimu's movement art.