Renryu
The Renryu have been fables, myths for ages with very little knowledge of who they are and what they do. I have recently discovered a Renryu and befriended him and he allowed me to study him! He shared his tales, or rather I asked questions and he nodded or shook his head, but nevertheless I was able to get some valuable data!
In their base forms, the Renryu are a specialist group of bounty hunters that seek out "Evil Souls" and entrap them within their own bodies. Yes! The Renryu are actually human prisons, in a sense! Now not many people know HOW these Renryu entrap their victims, but many speculate it is because of the tattoos that cover their bodies.
From the information gathered, every Renryu is COVERED with these extravagant tattoos. Ancient writings as well as grim but also beautiful artwork are the staples of these human jails. From what I've can observe, these pictures depict their journeys through life as they live with this responsibility of harboring restless and purely evil souls. After taking a few notes as best I could, I tried to seek out various other scholars that are well versed in ancient codes and writings but I have yet to come across anyone who can even remotely translate these tattoos, many of which just believe me to be making this whole story up.
There was also another interesting thing about these tattoos that I have come to discover! These tattoos can be converted into weapons! They come out of the body like black and red tendrils that look like corrupted aether in a sense and form into the user's hands. I've seen everything form from a greatsword to a spellbook and it seems to be limited to the amount of tattoos they have. Once these weapons manifest, the tattoos disappear. When I pressed my source about this, I discovered that once these weapons have been used, they form a sort of crystal that is ground down and converted to an ink that is reapplied to the skin. There are only a few scholars out there that are able to recreate these tattoos but the names of those scholars have not been revealed, nor do I think they ever will be. These Renryu seem to have a deep found trust and respect for these particular scholars, and for good reason it seems. If they lose these scholars, they lose their weapons. The only other ones that seem to know how to do these tattoos other than those scholars are the other Renryu themselves. When they require help and no one else is available, they seem to meet in secret and reapply these massive tattoos that require a large portion of time.
When I pressed into how these evil beings were trapped, no information was given. It seems like if my friend were to tell me, it would lead to how to release these beings. I did not drag on the topic for much longer after that.
It seems like in order to become a Renryu, you must either be born from a Renryu or be taken under a Renryu's wing in order to obtain the knowledge of the art. From what I have gathered, Renryu generally do not take disciples for fear of corrupted people trying to obtain information. It is a secret organization after all!
As an ending note, I will only be publishing three of these journals as I obtain more information out of request from my companion. The Renryu are truly amazing and interesting people and learning about them is absolutely fascinating. If you happen to cross one, please proceed with caution. They are not very trusting folk when their cover is blown. Be safe out there my friends.
