Story Note

## Wu Xia

Literally meaning "Martial Heroes", Wu Xia is a term referring to the fictional Chinese epics set in Ancient China. Stories that are set in a Wu Xia world typically have characters who practice martial arts, possess supernatural strength and abilities obtained through cultivation, supernatural weapons, and/or acupuncture.

## Terminology

### Brother & Sister

In the world of Wu Xia, it is a tradition to call your fellow sect-mates in terms of siblings. If they joined the sect before you did, you have to refer to them as older brother/older sister and vise versa if you joined before they did. Depending on whether how many members are in the sect, if you are the oldest to join, you're known as First Brother/First Sister etc.

### Training Partner

A training partner, in the Wu Xia world, is basically a person's spouse. Since the world of Wu Xia does not discriminate against sex relationships, people who are training partners are presumed to be couples regardless of their gender.

#### Man of Long Yang

During the Warring State Period of China around the 200 BCs, there was a King called Anxi who was the ruler of the warring State of Wei. It is said that he had a male lover by the name of Long Yang. Thus, any reference of Long Yang became an anecdote for being homosexual or gay.

## Cultivation & Black Arts

Coined as the terms *Neili* or *Neigong*, cultivation is the process of increasing one's "*qi*" a.k.a "c*hakra*." Or rather, one's spiritual or internal energy through meditation, consumption of energy pills, or intense training. This is the process of purifying one's self of one's demon. Running counter to cultivation is the practice of the Black Arts. Rather than meditating, one can increase their "qi" by committing evil deeds and killing others. This is the process of feeding one's demon rather than purifying it.

### Cultivation Stages:

1. Qi Training Stage 1-9
2. Basic Stage
3. Golden Stage
4. Purification Stage
5. Power Boosting Stage
6. Immortalisation Stage
7. Ascension

### Black Arts Practitioner Stages:

1. Unlocking Energy Level 1-9
2. Basic Stage
3. Golden Stage
4. Purification Stage
5. Power Boosting Stage
6. Demonisation Stage
7. Descension

### The Cloud of Labor

When a cultivator or a black art practitioner reach the end of a stage, a storm will appear above them which is coin by the phrase, the Cloud of Labor. This storm appears as a test to judge the abilities of the person. If the person truly has the ability to complete the stage, the person will be able to weather the storm and survive. If the person reach the stage through faulty means, the person will not be able to withstand the storm and be killed by it. The higher the stage, the more difficult the Cloud of Labor becomes. Once the person overcome the storm, they completed the stage.

### Inner Evil Ordeal

This happens during the completion of the Basic Stage and breaking through to the Golden Stage. It is the arc that determines whether a person becomes a Cultivator or a Black Art Practitioner. The Inner Evil Ordeal is the event of a person's desire trying to consume them. Righteous Faction who wants to breakthrough to the Basic Stage will have to overpower the Inner Evil Ordeal in order to become full blown cultivators. If their inner evil is able to consume them, their qi will start to flow in reverse and they become a Black Art Practitioner. If before the events of breaking through a person practice Black Arts, they will find it harder to resist the Inner Evil Ordeal. Meanwhile, Black Art Practitioners will openly let their inner evil consume them. And since they practice Black Arts, it will make it easier on the inner evil. There is a risk, however. If a person gets consume by the inner evil, they run the risk of dying altogether and lose all of their skills.

## Chakra Alignment

In the story, Chakra elements exist within all human beings. The purer they are, the faster the refinement of their nature will progress. The purity of the cultivator is determined by how many elemental chakra they possess. The less they have, the purer their chakra is.

### Quadruplet & Quintuplet Chakra

Normal humans have 4 or 5 elemental alignments, which are referred to as Quadruplet & Quintuplet chakra respectively. Those Chakra alignments are consider as worthless because they're too unrefined to cultivate.

### Twin Chakra & Tri-Chakra

As for people who have 2 or 3 elemental alignments, they are referred to as Twin Chakra & Tri-Chakra respectively. Although they are able to cultivate, their potentials are average at best. Thus, in order to speed up the cultivation progress, they would require refiners and cleansing.

* **Chakra** **Refiner:** *Chakra Refiners refer to people who's chakra are drained to refine the chakra of another person. Those who get's their own chakra drained loses their potential and become normal human beings. The process of losing one's chakra to refining can also cause death. Thus, those who become Chakra Refiners are usually considered as cannon fodder.*

* **Chakra** **Cleansing:** *In addition to refinery, Twin Chakra & Tri-Chakra can purified their elements by cleansing it. This causes them to lose their other one or two elemental alignments and allows them to have a single elemental alignment.* *But most of the time, Refiners are usually the person to get cleansed so that they can use their Chakra to refine another person's Chakra. Thus, those who has Twin & Tri Chakra who wishes to continue to cultivate wouldn't go through the cleansing process and would rather use a Refiner to increase their Chakra instead.*

### Heavenly Chakra

There are those who naturally possess only one elemental alignment. Their chakra is referred to as the Heavenly Chakra which holds the most potential in cultivation because they are the purest. But despite having Heavenly Chakra, the element in which they come with have strengths and weaknesses. Thus, they need to be careful when facing certain enemies.

* **Fire:** Strong Against Metal & Wood | Weak Against Earth & Water
* **Earth:** Strong Against Water & Fire | Weak Against Metal & Wood
* **Metal:** Strong Against Wood & Earth | Weak Against Water & Fire
* **Water:** Strong Against Fire & Metal | Weak Against Wood & Earth
* **Wood:** Strong Against Earth & Water | Weak Against Metal & Fire

### Evolved Heavenly Chakra

These are the heavenly Chakra that does not lie within the usual alignment. Namely because they are deviant, or rather, evolved which makes their alignment rarer among cultivators. The known evolved Chakra as of the moment is Lightning, and Wind.

## Weapons & Tools

With addition to *qi*, Wu Xia also has mystical pills, tools, and weapons that are powerful enough to increase power, heal injuries, and teleport great distances. In addition to the weapon itself, if you are a refiner, you yourself can produce priceless treasure to use.

### Treasures

* **Fire Purification Robe**
	+ Allows one to have Heavenly Fire Chakra when implanted into them.
* **Storing Ring**
	+ A treasure that allows one to store items with unlimited storing space.
* **Thousand Silk Robe: Fire Variation**
	+ Fire resistant.
	+ Undetectable by the Heavenly Eye
	+ Horn-shaped hair tie that passively stabs Righteous Faction members when touched.
* **Thousand Silk Robe: Water Variation**
	+ Cold Resistance.
	+ Undetectable by the Heavenly Eye
	+ Horn-shaped hair tie that passively stabs Righteous Faction members when touched.
* **Wind Storm Pearl**
	+ An ancient artifact that us with for the Ancestor Wind Array.

### Talisman and Arrays

* **27 Dread Wind Array**
	+ Utilizes the 27 Jinx Formation
	+ Immobilize and kill anyone within its range at the command of its creator.
* **27 Jinx Formation**
	+ Created by the 9 Demonic Faction clan.
	+ Detect any Righteous Faction and kill them.
* **Ancestor** **Wind Array**
	+ An array that prevents people from getting out from the Demonic Cliff.
	+ The stronger you are, the harder the fall will become.
* **Conveyor Formation**
	+ Allows anyone who has the key to teleport themselves from anywhere around the world to the array
* **Illusion Array**
	+ An array use along side the Ancestor Wind Array that cause people to see their worst nightmare as they fall down the Demonic Cliff.
* **Talisman of A Thousand Li A Day**
	+ Teleports a person a thousand Li (Li=1/3 mile) in a day.
* **Talisman of Heavenly Travel**
* **Thousand Li Broadcast**
	+ Allows one to announce everything they say within a radius of a thousand Li (Li = 1/3 mile)

### Consumables

* **Advance Healing Pill** (Medium Grade)
	+ Heals injuries
* **Audiovisual Messenger Bird** (High Grade)
	+ Extremely rare and is one use only
	+ Allows one to communicated with another through visuals and words.
* **Deity Channeling Token** (Extremely Rare)
	+ Left behind by those who has reached Ascension Stage and became a deity.
	+ The person who has it can summon the deity to aid them in battle.
	+ The token has limited usage and will disappear once it runs out.

* **Divine Fruits** (High Grade)
	+ Replenish energy upon consumption.
* **Eavesdropping Shell** (High Grade)
	+ Allows you to hear inside a Soundproof Tent from the outside.
* **Floating Night Light Gem** (Medium Grade)
	+ A glowing Gem that lights the way at night.
* **Mass-Transport Airship** (High Grade)
	+ A ship that can carry lots of people and cargo.
	+ It flies in the air rather than sails in the ocean.

* **Ninth Circulation Soul Recovery Pill** (Extremely High Grade)
	+ Heals all damage and injuries.
	+ Can save a person's life when he or she is on the brink of death.

* **Normal Healing Pill** (Low Grade)
	+ Heals small injuries.
* **Soundproof Tent** (Low Grade)
	+ A tent used to sleep outdoors.
	+ Whatever is said in the tent cannot be heard from the outside.
* **Special Healing Pill** (High Grade)
	+ Heals heavy injuries.

## Acupuncture & Techniques

Coined as the term *Dianxue, a*cupuncture techniques are also prevalent in Wu Xia. It's the martial art ability to target weak points and vitals that can either stun, kill, or paralyze people. Vise versa, it can also heal or relax people. This is a martial art skill that exists in reality but is overly exaggerated in its effect in Wu Xia. Also in Wu Xia is supernatural techniques that extend beyond science.

### Techniques

* **Heavenly Eye**
	+ Allows one to see the flow of qi in others
	+ Allows the blind to "see" their surroundings by detecting their qi.
	+ LvL 3: Allows one to see through fake chakra in disguise
* **Pill Refiner**
	+ Allows one to refine pill and upgrade it for better effect.
* **Treasure Refiner**
	+ Allows one to refine items into treasure for more effective use.