Unparalleled Artist: Unlikely Hero
Following his father's murder, Wu Ling's mother returned to the life of a courtesan, disguising her young son as a girl to take refuge in the Bamboo Silk House, a women's only sect dedicated to the arts. Now, as his powers awaken, he'll find himself torn between protecting his family and the goals of powerful cultivators who see him as a means to an end. "Wu Ling, I've accepted a marriage proposal on your behalf," the bewitching Hall Master of the Bamboo Silk House declared. "When you enter the Inner Sect, you'll enter under the name 'Hua Qianhu', fiancee of a young lord of the Liang family." "Hall Master, that's impossible!" Wu Ling protested. "Even if you ignore my relationship with Meifeng, I might have dressed well enough to hide as a mortal woman but I could never..." "So you truly didn't realize what you were doing," the Hall Master said, a dark smile on her lips. "Little Ling, you're a natural-born Shapeshifter. I'll teach you what you need to know," she said, her features shifting until she looked like a mirror image of the stunned Wu Ling. "As long as you follow my arrangements and learn my techniques, it isn't impossible for you to reunite with Meifeng..." "But you should consider Young Lord Liang carefully," the Hall Master added. "His affection for you is genuine. Perhaps, one day, you'll even feel the same for him..."
Five Types of Poison
Yu Jinqi was grateful for the green fox mask that hid most of his expression as he took the scroll. Working mechanically, he removed the heavy leather cover and examined the rolled-up pieces of parchment within. He already had an idea what he would find when Master Duzhen said 'five simple recipes' but when he read over them, Yu Jinqi felt no elation at having guessed correctly.
His uncle had taught him that there were five fundamental ways to administer poison. Injection, ingestion, inhalation, absorption, and contagion. The first three were the most common. The venoms of many beasts were injected into their prey and poisons that refined those venoms shared that delivery method. Likewise, many plants produced toxins that were deadly only when something tried to eat them, and refining them produced poisons that needed to be ingested.