#hes pouring his inner qi into me

[n1ght0f-nyx]

giving him a fast and rough handjob that lasts what feels like several hours, he lays on the bed, his thighs squirming and clenching as you bully his sticky cock, he has cum a bazillion times, cum pooling at his thighs and stomach "oh god.. please mommy..i need more...d-d-dont stop!!" he begs and pleads, and you cant help but grin "don't worry babyboy...i wasn't planning on it~"

[greenflamedwriter]

Transmigrated too late.

Another AU of Scumbag Villain [I probs need a cheat sheet of names of characters/locations to help me write these]

Luo Binghe sat on his throne, the Huan Hua Palace hailed as the most largest prominent sect that housed all six thousand of the Demon Lords wives.

All of them stood at attention as guards, serving Luo Binghe's food, fanning him, sitting or standing by his throne. Scouting the entire palace and dragging in the prisoner in chains and dumping him at his feet.

His elusive Shizun was finally captured.

Shizun glared the chains holding him tightly and cutting of his Qi, unable to escape. He glared at his demonic disiple in revulsion and anger. He wasn't afraid yet. "Ah Shizun, it's time to make you pay for what you've done to me all of those years ago..."

Luo Binghe stood slowly, walking down the steps. Shen Qingqiu's only wore his inner robes gone were all his jeweraly, outfits and stripped of his title as a Peak Master.

No one will save him now.

But suddenly in one blink, his Shizun was gazing at him with cold green eyes filled with resentment then the next, wide soft eyes gazing at him uncomprehending.

In that moment Lord Luo Binghe knew something had changed, but never faltered in his steps as he slowly approached.

Shen Yaun loved proud Immortal demon way, it had a strong cencept but such a shit execution when he was halfway through the story he should've stopped reading...but he was too invested. Maybe he was wrong what if it picked up? but no he should've listened to his insincts all that time and energy wasted with no payout. He was so enraged at the cheap ending that he died.

And woke up here bound in chains with Luo Binghe prowling towards him.

What was going on?

he couldn't even ask where he was and how did he get here before a box appeared before his face.

[Error- Transmigration to Shen Qingqiu loaded unsuccesfully, User please stand by for System to reload to relevant time period. Actions for current user to stand by until this issue has been fixed.]

"What-what do you mean!?" Shen Yaun cried in his head and the system cheerfully added.

[User has been transmigrated too late, execution for Shen Qingqiu in twelve minutes.]

He saw Luo Binghe approach and realised he was going to die, he was going to experience the excrutaiting death of the Scumbag Villain Shen Qingqiu and he was powerless to stop it!

[Please survive until we fix this issue, You can you up! You can do it! :D]

Why was the Systems voice so energetic! It was the systems fault! You piece of trash!

"Shizun..." A cool timbre spoke and a thumb pressed over Shen Qingqiu's cheek smothly stroking the skin under his eye. It snapped Shen Qingqiu out of his thoughts to see the protagonist looking down on him. He was dead, he was so so dead.

His body trembled as Luo Binghe's lips raised into a grin. "Time to make you pay for what you did to me all those years ago, all those beatings, abuse and pain, for each whip I'll rip out an arm, For each strike I'll rip out a leg, an eye for an eye, everything paid back tenfold."

Think-Think idiot!

Shen Qingiue smirked or maybe grimaced tilting his head to the side away from Luo Binghe's hand.

"Isn't that unfair? Sure you can take a hand and a leg, my eyes but then what are you left with? A husk of a man in a dungeon. It'll be more effort to keep me around and the punishment would end underwhelming and unfullfilling."

And what could Shen Qingqiu say? Stop I'm not your shizun don't kill me? As if the protagonist would believe that!

Shen Qingiu was still wavering, he needed time- time to plan- to escape.

"Why not make this Master really pay for his disiples abuse. Pour hot tea on me, whip me, beat me, worse than what you went through make me fight a demon with deadly poisen, make me face each challenge of the endless abyss. For each Trial you've endured I will pay tenfold."

For a moment he thought that Luo Binghe wasn't going to go through with it- either way he was screwed. Sure the human stick route would actually be pretty quick. But without any legs, theres less chance for escape. He might be a masochist for choosing the worse punishing route... but what choice did he really have?

Luo Binghe smirked, fine. He'll indulge his old Teacher and would love to see him squirm and see his chances of escape dwindling and lose the hope once his Shizun becomes a husk of a man- maybe when his Shizun loses it and starts to self harm would Luo Binghe rip of his limbs to keep him still then begin to drive him insane with his nightmares. lets see how this would play out.

"Very well. That does seem like an adequete punishment, you will pay for all of your crimes against me and against any other victims of yours." Luo Binghe accepted and Shen Qingqiu couldn't relax as the demon Lord kept talking.

"Not just this lowly disciple others as well, the Qie massacre for Peak Lord Liu death in the caves and for Ning Yinying." Luo Binghe said his first wives name with meaning and Shen Qingqiu paled in dread.

Shen Qingqiu shivered, fuck he was going to be castrated.

The next morning Shen Qingiu saw the Peaks disiple uniform on his bed. Was he supposed to wear this? Was it supposed to be mocking? System? How was Shen Qingiu supposed to act?

[System...Pending, Transmigration to right time slot at 1%] Seriously!? Why so slow? God Dammit!

As he got dressed he gazed around the room, it was made just like the shed Luo Binghe was supposed to sleep in. It was freezing and with the binding cables on his wrist Shen Qinqiu couldn't circulate qi to keep him warm. He had no bed just a mat on the floor, and the dust and dirt was making him cough with a dry throat. He might get sick before long.

The door opened with no warning as a couple of Luo Binghe's wives hurried in, he was unprepared for the slap across his face then the sudden shove at his back as he fell- all of them hit him and Shen Qingiu fell to the ground covering his head from any of the blows, his stomach kicked into, his back punched and he couldn't move, other than take it.

He could tell the wives were taking pleasure in it as the assualts got worse, one of them grabbed him by the hair then slammed him face down onto the hard floor. He felt pain blossoming on his head and his vision darkened.

What a great first start to his torment, he might be beaten stupid and won't be able to think of a way out if it goes on like this...

--

Shen Qingqiu was forced to wear Cangs disiple clothes, Shen yaun didn't care and just wore them for his punishments not knowing that Shen Qingiu would've found this degrading. Strike One. Luo Binghe took a teapot and poured the tea over Shen Qingqius face, the man grunted in pain shutting his eye as Luo Binghe almost poured over it but kept still. He didn't care that his face was burned and scarred. Strike 2. Luo Binghe whipped Shen Qingiu himself, purposfully holding himself back and going soft wanting to see what his Shizun would say as the man can go through worse pain than this. The man said nothing but only grunted in pain. Strike 3.

When Ning Yingying walked past him in the corridor on his way for more punishment, Shen Qinqiu flinched and ran away. Ning Yingying stared...was he scared of her? After she tells Luo Binghe that night both were complexed. The Story of Shizuns infatuation on his disiple was a lie only used to ruin his reputation further and have the Huan hua palace a reason to detain him. How else would Luo Binghe have cause to have interest in this prisoner other than bringing justice for his first wife? Strike 4.

He made Shen qingqiu face against Elder hammer, with his meridians blocked. Shen Qingqiu is almost equel to Luo Binghe as a teenager who had to face off against this monster.

Shen Qinqiu fighting style was drastically different from his Shizuns, his shizun was dishonourable and fought dirty, this one didn't. He waited for the right moment to strike with his flimsy sword. Elder hamer fell surprised but almost attacked Shen Qingqiu who was too tired to defend himself.

"That's enough." Luo Binghe spoke, it was obvious enough that this was an imposter.

But it was Shen Qingiu's body, why else would Yue QingYuan try so hard to save this man? Luo Binghe considered that maybe Shen Qingqiu knew he was going to die by his disicples hand and put a contingency in place. He fled his body and had a servant take his place.

No it couldn't be a servant, the man would've taken his masters punishment with no complaint he would have no self-preservation. He could also hear 'Shen Qingqiu' Cursing himself and calling himself a scumbag, maybe he ripped someones soul and swapped bodys against their will?

He had to find out, in wasting his time on this 'shizun' he was also an enahbler to waste time for the real Shen Qingqiu to escape.

Shen Qinqiu was freaking out, he had already been through most of Luo Binghe's trials although he was being beaten and whipped almost as much as the protagonist, but now it was the Endless abyss he had no idea what he was going to do to survive...

He was requested to go to Lord Luo Binghe's chambers. Shen Qingqiu was confused but had to obey, as he entered the room he realised the bed was huge it was the first thing you saw! None of his wives were here and it was empty. Luo Binghe closed the door behind him and Shen Qingqiu flinched he had no idea what was coming, he couldn't mentally prepare for this.

Luo Binghe had to determine what type of servent this is. how much he knew and what he believed. With no warning, Luo Binghe flicked his wrist and red bands swarmed Shen Qingiue and suddenly snapped binding his body, Shen Qingqiu flinched.

"Lord Lou Binghe- What?" He asked, his cold demeanour changed a hint of fear before being pushed down to cold indifference. He was adaptable, Luo Binghe figured he'd give him that much.

Lou Binghe tied the rope and shoved 'Shen Qingqiu' onto the bed and straddled him his hand slowly rising and clasped against his old Shizuns neck.

He could feel his pulse in his neck pounding. Luo Binghe's face was devoid of a smirk or humour. This was the last test. He squeezed Shen Qingqiu's neck for a moment then let go. "You said to repay all punishments tenfold, you will pay for what you've done to Ning Yingying."

Shen Qingqiu face was pale, sweat beading down his brow as he looked horrified, almost trying to shrink away into the bed away from Luo Binghe, before swallowing and shutting his eyes in defeat. Accepting anything Luo Binghe would do to him.

This man honestly believed in the lie of what his Shizun had done to his first wife. Luo Binghe raised his hand and cut into his palm and pressed it against Shen Qingqius mouth, going along with the scene to feed him his blood, he could ask any question and pull them from him.

Shen Qingqiu eyes snapped open and tried even further to turn his face away, Luo Binghe grabbed his jaw prying it open and saw this Shen Qingqiu glared at him breathing through his nose and trying to buck the demon lord off him, he struggled and Luo Binghe realised he knew what his blood could do. Not many people have that knowledge.

He managed to get the mans mouth open to swallow his blood and saw the fight drain from his body as his eyes widened, feeling the cool metalic taste slide down his throat then pool in his stomach and could feel the weight as the blood parasites began to hatch and spread.

Luo Binghe pulled his hand away from Shen Qingqius bloody face his hand pressed against his chest feeling his heartbeat pumping against his palm. He could kill him right now and decided to send a pulse through his blood and heard Shen Qingqiu groan trying to move or bend as his stomach pulsed in pain. Luo Binghe pinned him down keeping him still. Shen Qingqiu almost snapped for him to get it over with already!

But Luo Binghe's face was hard and cold, no longer the triumphant look of a protagonist who had won. His next words made Shen Qingqiu freeze.

"Where is the real Shen Qingqiu?"

His response would tell Luo Binghe anything, Shen Qingqiu stared before his eyes flooded with tears as he seemed to unclench. "Thank god!"

...what?

Once the ropes were removed, with Shen qingqiu sitting on the bed along with Luo Binghe who sat crosslegged glaring at this imposter. Shen Qingqiu scowled "What did you expect me to say? I'm sorry Lord Luo Binghe you have me mistaken for someone else? You would've beheaded me on the spot!" Luo Binghe opened his mouth to protest then closed it, actually he probably would have. "You were finding an oportunity to tell me you weren't my Shizun?"

Luo Binghe watched, using his blood parasites to minter Shen Qingqiu who wasn't aware that if he lied he would face excrutiating pain. If he told the truth nothing should happen to him.

Shen Qingqiu rolled his eyes "No. I was trying to escape, once you have your mind set on something its impossible to back out. You wanted to punish Shen Qingqiu so my best bet would be to run away."

Truth.

"You seem to know a lot about me," Other than a few miscoceptions about Ning yingying "Are you Shen Qingqiu's spy?" Shen Qingiu scowled.

"No."

"Do you work for Shen Qingqiu in anyway? His lover perhaps?" His old masters face darkened considerably.

"I despise Shen Qingqiu, why would I work for him?"

Truth...

"Who are you then?" Luo Binghe asked placing a hand on his cheek, his old Shizun straightened up "I was called Shen Yuan, but I've gotten so used to Shen Qingiu now I doubt I'll respond to it." He looked put out but it had been a few years since he appeared here.

Truth...hmm- What if this Shen Yaun had an ability to lie? A test something obvious that Luo Binghe knew.

"Are you sure you're not Shen Qingqius lover, scorned? Or maybe instead of running away you stayed here for the promise of paying Ning Yingying debt? You seemed fine with being tied up..." Luo Binghe mused a teasing lilt to face. As if anyone would want to be punished by Luo Binghe.

Shen Qingqiu scowled "I'm not gay-" He grunted in pain almost doubling over. Luo Binghe blinked and even his old Shizun seemed stunned by this revolation. "No you don't like the company of men?" He teased and Shen Qingiu glared at him. "No?" He didn't sound too sure and grunted clutching his chest and Luo Binghe would love to play more- but he had more pressing matters to discuss.

"Is the real Shen Qingqiu alive and can you find him?"

Shen QIngiu continued to scowl at his with red eyes then huffed "I don't know- you could probably use this body to find him lure his soul to its original point? although I don't know what that'll do to me." He bit his lip worriedly.

Another truth, well...

"Until we know for sure, you will remain here." Shen Qingiu nodded "Since I'm in Shen Qingqiu's body it's for the best, with my reputation...if I walk out those palace doors I'll be dead." And it was the truth no one cared about Shen Qingqiu.

"You'll help me find the real Shen Qingiu, since I wasted so much time on you anyway-" Luo Binghe moved to alert Sha Hualing she would be moving their...guest, into more suitable chambers from now on.

There was something more to this Shen Yaun character, for once he wasn't sure if this man on his bed was possibly more dangerous than his old Shizun.

[quazartranslates]

Welcome to the Nightmare Game II - CH54

**This is an edited machine translation. For more information, please [click here]**

[<<< Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter >>>]

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Chapter 54: Purgatory Reunion (VI)

At this moment, the world was silent.

Qi Leren stood on a black rock in the middle of the lake of fire, staring at Ning Zhou, who had become a dragon. The dragon also stared at him. The slender and horrible vertical pupils of cold-blooded animals showed the gentleness of recognition.

The fire and rain falling from the sky stopped, and the magma erupting angrily because of the force of destruction also stopped. This dark underground world was immersed in the warm sunshine pouring in from the gap and the holy light from the Prophet's Heart.

For a moment, Qi Leren couldn't say anything, because there were too many words choked in his throat. When he opened his mouth, the words that could be said and could not be said were about to slip away before his eyes.

He held out his hand and wanted to touch the dragon that he was so close to. Even in purgatory, its head was head high rather, not low. But the dragon in front of him gently lowered its head and stopped in front of his eyes.

Qi Leren stroked the dragon’s cold scales, and then hugged him. He didn't even dare to put pressure into it. He just put his face on the cold dragon scales and choked:

"Ning Zhou, I’m back."

This sentence was like a spell. Qi Leren’s tears that had been building finally flowed down. These tears were full of love and joy. He was thankful that he wasn’t too late, and that the tragedy in his nightmares hadn’t taken place. He finally came to Ning Zhou before everything was irreversible.

As long as Ning Zhou was still alive, there was still hope for everything.

It was also with this sentence that the dragon standing in the lake of fire slowly changed back to its human form—a thin, gaunt, but still alive Ning Zhou. When he stared at him with his blue eyes that held too much emotion, Qi Leren suddenly felt that Ning Zhou knew everything, and he understood everything.

Whether it was misunderstanding, deep guilt, or love, when they met again in this hot lake, a pair of loving souls embraced everything.

　　&&&

"Is this who you were talking about, His Majesty's dead lover?" The Witch of Nothingness turned her head. Although she never opened her eyes, she "stared" at the Devil of Evil, waiting for his answer.

All the demons sitting around the long table looked at him. This oppressive gaze made the Devil of Evil feel pressured. He spread his hands: "According to intelligence, he is indeed dead, but the truth of the matter doesn’t seem so simple. I’m afraid even our Majesty thinks he’s dead."

"Whose side is he from?" The Witch of Desperation only cared about this problem.

"The Holy See?" the Witch of Resentment murmured, staring at Qi Leren who was shrouded by the power of a holy angel.

"No, the intelligence said that he’s a foreigner. He came here from another world, and he had no faith. However, his strength is biased towards the Holy See. Which master in their camp gave him an item to borrow strength?" the Devil of Evil mused.

The Witch of Desperation waved her hand, and the magic mirror’s perspective pulled away, overlooking the lake of fire from a distance. The paradise reflected in the holy light covering the sky had the divine beauty of dusk, just as it had been repeatedly described in the Canon, the home of God.

"It’s the Village of Dusk’s Prophet!" The Witch of Nothingness recognized the characteristics of this miracle and revealed it in the same breath.

"It seems that His Majesty's little lover is a man favored by the Prophet. If he doesn't know what his original strength is, he’ll never become a 'guardian' like Maria, right?" The Devil of Evil touched his chin and showed innocent cruelty in his eyes. "Oh, I don't want to see the tragedy of that year repeat itself."

The Witch of Desperation looked at the magic mirror silently and said after a long time, "It's a pity... It’s almost too similar."

The Witch of Nothingness comforted: "There’s no rush for a while."

"Haha, aren't you going to rush out and stop them now? Even if you say yes, I won't go, I still want to keep this life for a long time." The Devil of Evil put his hands behind his head and leaned lazily against the back of the chair.

"Wait and see. It's not time for us to show up yet," said the Witch of Desperation, drawing a pause symbol on the attempted operation.

　　&&&

The two people didn't go far. Ning Zhou was tired when Qi Leren found him, as if he hadn't slept for several days, and he forced him to have a rest. They settled down in a secret cave not too far from the lake of fire, and Ning Zhou set up a barrier to prevent harassment from lower demons.

There were fluorescent fungi and luminous moths like butterflies in this cave, and Qi Leren took out a lantern to make the dim light illuminate their surroundings.

Qi Leren leaned against the cave wall, and Ning Zhou rested on his leg, his body covered with a blanket.

The warm light of the lantern allowed the two exhausted people to briefly escape from this Nightmare World and take a nap in a pure peaceful land. The scarred soul wrapped in its scarred body finally found rest here.

Ning Zhou quietly looked at Qi Leren, but he couldn't close his eyes for even a moment until Qi Leren secretly hooked his hand under the blanket, and their two hands clasped each other. Then, his nervous look eased slightly.

"Can't sleep?" Qi Leren asked softly.

Ning Zhou shook his head gently, holding Qi Leren's hand tightly, as if when he let go, the warmth in his hand would slip away quietly.

"Then let's talk for a while?" Their old estrangement had long since disappeared. At this time, Qi Leren simply had endless questions and endless words. He was curious about everything about Ning Zhou, his childhood, his past, his mood, and he also had a lot of things to tell him, such as how worried he was... He can talk about forever on his own.

Qi Leren couldn't help but talk about it. From the beginning when he had found love at first sight, he talked about his inner struggle and suffering.

"...I'm not afraid to love someone of the same sex, but I'm afraid my feelings will hurt you. At that time, I even thought… if I choose to be patient to let you live better, I would rather… be patient my whole life. But... but, in the end, my love has become your burden. I'm sorry, Ning Zhou... I'm sorry..."

Just as tears fell from his eyes, Ning Zhou wiped them away with his fingers.

"At that time, I wrote a 7 to tell you that I would be resurrected in seven days, but the moment I wrote it, I regretted it. Because... I shouldn't have said this... I never knew it would be so painful to tell the truth. If I hadn't said it, maybe you wouldn't be here now, you'd still be living in Neverland, and you wouldn't suffer so much..."

When Qi Leren had learned of Ning Zhou’s end in that game, besides his great fear, his heart had been filled with endless guilt and remorse.

He instinctively blamed himself for everything, and decided that his existence had made Ning Zhou embark on a road full of thorns, which was indeed the case. Without his existence, Ning Zhou's identity would still be an exorcist in Neverland, instead of... a descendant of the Destroyer.

"Then you would spend your whole life deceiving yourself?" Ning Zhou asked gently.

Qi Leren was silent.

"Calm pain is better than hypocrisy. I should pay for it all my life, but I shouldn't cheat it all my life... I’ve never regretted my choice." Even at the moment when he was determined to end himself, his heart was filled with endless sadness and despair, but there was no resentment or regret.

Even when he sank into the abyss of despair at that moment, he was illuminated by a beam of light, and he had been redeemed.

God gave him a miracle to embrace the light at the end of Hell.

He had courage and determination again. He wanted to give it a try and see if he could control the raging destruction, not sink into the power and become a slave to it. He was willing to try for the person he loved, even if it was an almost impossible challenge.

He was willing to die for this world, but he was willing to live for his lover.

Sometimes it was harder to live than to die.

"Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Those who can endure and overcome temptation will be rewarded." Ning Zhou gently recited the words in the Canon and looked at Qi Leren. "God has rewarded me and he sent you back to me."

Qi Leren could no longer speak. He felt another person's heat on his skin, so warm and pleasant.

He read another person's soul from his eyes, so pure and calm.

He was glad again that he had not missed Ning Zhou.

Qi Leren took out the Canon and said with a smile: "Chen Baiqi gave it to me. I’ll read it to you. If you’re tired, just sleep."

So in the dim light, he read from the first page: "After the destruction of the ancient world, everything was chaotic and asleep. There was no past, no future, no center, no margin, only endless darkness. The gods came from outside, each sowing a seed. Some seeds died before they germinated, while others were swallowed up as soon as they sprouted. Only the seeds of Father God were born within light and darkness, sky and earth, sun, moon, and stars. Father God was happy, for he wanted to bring life into the seed and make it become its own world..."

Ning Zhou closed his eyes and seemed to be asleep.

Qi Leren closed his book carefully and gently stared at Ning Zhou. At this moment, his heart was full of both sourness and sweetness. He was glad that he had arrived here in time, and pulled him out when Ning Zhou was at his most helpless and vulnerable, so that he didn't fall into the abyss of death.

At first, he thought that Ning Zhou's death would be at the hands of others, but when he came to the lake of fire and watched the black dragon roar in despair, he suddenly understood.

What would kill Ning Zhou was not the devils hidden in this underground world, but the devil inside Ning Zhou.

At that time, Ning Zhou's heart was so desperate that he would rather die of guilt than live in the world... This thought made Qi Leren feel sourness in his eyes.

A fluorescent moth, which had stopped on the cave wall, came down lightly and stopped on the blanket that covered Ning Zhou, emitting blue-green light. Qi Leren moved his fingers and drove it away.

"I believe that power has nothing to do with good and evil. You have never fallen," Qi Leren whispered, tracing Ning Zhou's sleeping face with his eyes.

Ning Zhou didn't open his eyes, but he held his hand tightly.

A teardrop trickled down from the corner of his eye and sank into the shadows.

In this dark world where only a lantern shone faintly, they devoutly delivered trust and love, and then received redemption from each other.

The long night road that they had once thought they would never be able to see the end of, all of a sudden, had already revealed the tiny lights between the distant mountains.

Qi Leren suddenly felt deeply touched. When he was trained hellishly by Chen Baiqi, he had rationally understood that all this was for his own good, so deep down, he had no hesitation or complaints. But when he held Ning Zhou's hand at this moment, he suddenly understood everything, and everything he had endured, whether it was hard training or life and death tests, had taught him to grow with every step. He had to keep growing.

What he shouldered was no longer his own life.

To the world, he was only a trivial person, but to the one who loved him, he was his whole world.

——I am willing to create a paradise on earth for you, and I am willing to hold your wandering and painful soul here.

——At this moment, I only wish that you have a good dream.

-----

Editor’s Notes: After nearly two hundred chapters, we finally get to see some sweetness between them :’)

[Here] is some fanart of their reuinion.

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[heavymetalchemist]

MingCheng Week 2022 - Regret

Stolen Away (ao3)

Jiang Cheng looked at his favorite pavilion, the one on the private side of Lotus Pier, built over the water with an artfully indirect wooden walkway snaking out to it. It floated in a sea of lotus flowers, a light breeze making the fabric hangings flap slowly, as though it could be straight out of a painting. He sighed.

Nie Mingjue sat there, looking out over the water, away from Lotus Pier. The light breeze tugged at his hair. Baxia was leaned up against the table next to him, and the light from the setting sun glinted off of the saber.

He looked peaceful. Every day since his arrival he’d been more peaceful, more relaxed, less quick to anger. It was a gradual change, but Jiang Cheng was paying very close attention.

And now, regretfully, Jiang Cheng had to shatter that peace.

He let himself watch Nie Mingjue a bit longer. It might be the last time he’d be able to, after all. Even with the last month of time together they didn’t have an official courtship — how could they, with both of them sect leaders? — so despite their growing closeness there was nothing formally tying them together. There was nothing to make them work through any problems.

Jiang Cheng knew that he was difficult, all on his own. He had never been easygoing, had never made friends easily. Politically he had little to offer. If trouble arose, it would be far easier to step away.

As if finally sensing him, Nie Mingjue turned. He smiled, and oh, wasn’t that something to see, how easily Nie Mingjue could smile now.

Jiang Cheng smiled back, even as his heart hurt. Holding his head high, he approached the pavilion.

“Cheng-er,” Nie Mingjue greeted, pouring him a cup of tea.

Accepting with a nod, Jiang Cheng settled next to him. “Mingjue-ge. How was your day?”

“Good. The kids have a new game — if they catch up to me on our runs they try to tackle me. I let them get away with it a couple of times and now they’re running faster than ever,” Nie Mingjue said smugly. His somewhat unofficial presence meant that he kept mostly to the inner parts of Lotus Pier — it wasn’t exactly a secret that Nie Mingjue was here, but they were trying to keep his presence somewhat vague. More that he, perhaps, was visiting often, rather than basically moving in. It wouldn’t be good for news of him leaving the Unclean Realm entirely in Nie Huaisang’s hands to become widespread.

“Ah, be careful no one gets overheated in the afternoon,” Jiang Cheng said with a smile.

“I keep an eye on them,” Nie Mingjue said. “I think they’re more resistant to the heat than I am, anyway,” he added with a sidelong glance.

Scoffing lightly, Jiang Cheng shook his head. “I already told you, I’m not going to tell Chiifeng-zun to keep his shirt on,” he grumbled, hiding his blush by taking a sip of tea.

Nie Mingjue hummed, eyes crinkling in another smile. It made Jiang Cheng’s heart ache. He just wanted to sit here in the setting sun, bantering with Nie Mingjue until it was time for dinner, then spending the evening meditating before retiring to his rooms to calm Nie Mingjue’s qi. After almost a month of undisturbed practice they were getting quite good at it, and despite Jiang Cheng’s worries that Nie Mingjue would tire of him, the opposite seemed to be happening. Once they got into Jiang Cheng’s rooms they couldn’t keep their hands off each other.

Which was why it was more important than ever to deliver the news now.

Jiang Cheng set down his now-empty cup, but stopped Nie Mingjue from pouring him another. “We need to discuss something.”

“Oh?”

Staring fixedly out at the lotus flowers floating along the water, their delicate pale pink standing out among the dark leaves and river water, Jiang Cheng let out a slow breath. “The agreement I have with the Jin sect is that A-Ling spends half of his time here, in Lotus Pier. I have contacted them to arrange his travel, and…” he swallowed hard. “I have learned that, apparently, Chang Ping has recanted his testimony.”

There was a moment’s pause, and then Nie Mingjue leapt to his feet in fury. “What?!”

Doggedly Jiang Cheng continued. “I dare not pry too much, but it seems that Jin Guangshan put pressure on him to say it wasn’t Xue Yang, after all. So that he can be released from the dungeons.” He winced as Baxia flew into Nie Mingjue’s hand.

With a roar, Nie Mingjue turned and slashed wildly at the river, cutting a swath through the lotuses.

“Hey!” Jiang Cheng jumped to his feet and grabbed Nie Mingjue’s arm. “Don’t do that!”

Nie Mingjue growled, but he slowly lowered the hand holding Baxia. “That rat. That lying snake. He tried to appease me, saying Xue Yang would be imprisoned for life, and wouldn’t that be enough? But here we are!”

Jiang Cheng huffed and looked away, focusing on Nie Mingjue’s overturned teacup. “Huaisang tells me that Jin Guangyao has been asking after you. Lan Xichen as well, but only by letter. Jin Guangyao has visited the Unclean Realm in person several times. Perhaps he wished to explain before the news became widespread.”

“As if there could be an explanation,” Nie Mingjue snarled. “The Jins want to use that delinquent for their own power and you know it!”

The only comfort was that despite Nie Mingjue’s anger, Jiang Cheng didn’t feel that discordant note in his qi. There was still a hint of it, but it had faded so much. Jiang Cheng had helped. He’d definitely helped. Nie Mingjue was righteously angry, but he wasn’t about to qi deviate.

“Yes,” Jiang Cheng agreed. “They do. And the other sects… they don’t want to go against the Jin sect. Not openly.”

Nie Mingjue snorted. “Cowards.”

“The Sunshot Campaign was hard on everyone,” Jiang Cheng said quietly. He didn’t need to mention that the Jiang sect had nearly disappeared. Nie Mingjue knew, just as Jiang Cheng knew how the Nie sect had suffered its own losses. And the Jins… there was a reason that the Jin sect was hosting discussion conferences more than any other sect, lately.

“And what does it say, that a mass murderer can escape justice because of powerful friends?” Nie Mingjue asked. “No one is safe. Even—“ he stopped, then pressed on. “Even you did the right thing, in the end. You led the siege against the Yiling Laozu, even though he was your former shixiong.”

Jiang Cheng immediately let go of Nie Mingjue and stepped away, crossing his arms. “I don’t want to talk about that.” After the massacre at Nightless City, Jiang Cheng hadn’t had much choice left. The Jiang sect had to stand on the orthodox path. He had promised his disciples that he would protect them, that he would never let another massacre befall them — disciples that had gathered under his banner because the Wen sect had destroyed their homes or families, just as the Wens had destroyed his own. Wei Wuxian had lost control and killed Jiang Cheng’s sister and he wasn’t the man that had promised to be Jiang Cheng’s right hand, not any more.

Jiang Cheng kept telling himself that, but the look in Wei Wuxian’s eyes as he was torn apart by the backlash of resentful energy still haunted him.

“I know. I’m sorry,” Nie Mingjue said. “But we can’t—“

“There’s no ‘we’ here, Mingjue,” Jiang Cheng snapped. “I told you. I’m arranging for Jin Ling’s travel to Lotus Pier.”

Silence stretched out between them. Jiang Cheng didn’t look at Nie Mingjue. He couldn’t stand to see Nie Mingjue’s disappointment. The righteous Chifeng-zun, the upright Nie-zongzhu, the hero of Hejian, sworn brother to Zewu-jun and Lianfang-zun, all of them war heroes. Of course they weren’t the same. Jiang Cheng had almost nothing. The alliance that his sister’s marriage had granted him was basically nothing now. He was lucky that the Jins allowed him to be involved with Jin Ling’s upbringing at all. Of course Jin Guangshan used it to control him. He hated it, but Jin Ling was more important. Jin Ling was the only piece of his sister he had left, the last bit of the Jiang bloodline aside from himself.

Not that Jiang Cheng really cared about bloodlines, not any more. He wasn’t exactly keen on fathering his own children. Maybe in a couple of decades, but right now he was all Jin Ling really had. He didn’t trust anyone in Carp Tower to make Jin Ling a priority, not even Jin-furen — she was too distraught from the death of her son to be a doting grandmother.

“What exactly are you saying?” Nie Mingjue finally said, when it was clear that Jiang Cheng wasn’t going to elaborate.

Of course Nie Mingjue wouldn’t leave him a shred of plausible deniability. “I’m saying I can’t stand with you and demand Xue Yang’s head. I can’t try to hunt down evidence that the Jins coerced Chang Ping into recanting his testimony. They’ll take Jin Ling away from me if I do.”

“I see,” Nie Mingjue bit out. And then he stormed off, leaving Jiang Cheng with an overturned teacup and a horrible, hollow feeling in his chest.

He should have known better than to let himself fall in love with someone. Of course he’d end up being a disappointment.

-

Jiang Cheng expected Nie Mingjue to leave Lotus Pier after their argument. He took dinner alone in his room, ignoring the looks his disciples gave him. So what if he was sulking? He could nurse his broken heart if he wanted to. Whatever thing had been growing between him and Nie Mingjue, it obviously wasn’t meant to be. Jiang Cheng would always come up short, that’s just how he was. Maybe he was being a little dramatic, but this felt like a fundamental disagreement, like a crack in a load-bearing pillar. You could ignore the crack, you could try to patch it up, but once it was there the pillar would always be weak and was doomed to collapse. Nie Mingjue had always stood for justice and had always been willing to put himself on the line. He didn’t appreciate cowards and he didn’t buy excuses. Surely Nie Mingjue wouldn’t forgive Jiang Cheng for this.

He had to think of his sect. He had to think of Jin Ling. There had been rumors of another sect disappearing for somehow displeasing the Jin sect, and Jiang Cheng didn’t have solid alliances, even if he’d somehow managed to cling to the title of Great Sect. He had no sworn brotherhood and his precious nephew carried the Jin name. Was it any wonder that he would rather not look too closely at the Jin sect’s business?

There was a knock at his door. “I said not to bother me,” he snapped.

“It’s me,” Nie Mingjue said. “Can I come in?”

Jiang Cheng scrambled to his feet and hurried over to the door, sliding it open with a bang. Nie Mingjue was not wearing travel robes, nor did he look angry.

“You’re still here,” Jiang Cheng blurted.

“Of course?” Nie Mingjue said, cocking his head to the side. “Did you really think I was going to just leave without saying anything?”

“Well, you’d probably leave a note,” Jiang Cheng allowed.

Shaking his head, Nie Mingjue stepped into Jiang Cheng’s rooms. “I’m not the sort of man to just run away from things. You know that.”

Jiang Cheng swallowed hard. “Yeah.”

“I’ve been thinking. About what you said earlier, and about your situation,” Nie Mingjue said. “May I sit?”

Jiang Cheng nodded, also taking a seat at the small table. His heart seemed to be beating very quickly.

“My Nie sect does not suffer evil,” Nie Mingjue began. “Our history, our cultivation, it is to eliminate evil. Our sect leaders die young because to us, that is more important than immortality. Wen Ruohan was evil. The Wens were a threat to the entire cultivation world, that was obvious after what happened to your Jiang sect. It was worth putting my life on the line to stop them, to stop him.” He heaved a sigh and reached out for Jiang Cheng’s cup, filling it with wine and tossing it back. “I am convinced that Xue Yang is evil. There is something rotten at the heart of LanlingJin. But… I was able to tolerate Wen Ruohan for years, because I knew I was powerless against him. Without unifying the cultivation world against him we never would have succeeded. I have accepted that the price of my cultivation is a shorter life, but I don’t want to die for nothing. I don’t want to leave Huaisang, or you, if that death doesn’t accomplish something.”

“So what are you saying?” Jiang Cheng asked when Nie Mingjue didn’t continue.

“I’m saying… I understand that you can’t put your life on the line for this when your nephew needs you. I understand that they have him held over your head, and he is important to you. Xue Yang is not a threat to the Jiang sect, I don’t think, but asking you to pressure Jin Guangshan on this might put the Jiang sect in danger.” Nie Mingjue toyed with the cup in his hand, lamp light glinting off of the ceramic glaze. “If my sworn brother will not listen to me, if Jin Guangshan will not listen to me, it would be foolish to think they would listen to you.”

“So then, what next?” Jiang Cheng whispered.

“This time here, with you…” A half-smile quirked the corner of Nie Mingjue’s mouth. “Is it strange to say that I don’t think I’ve known real happiness before? Not since my father died, anyway. I have never cared for the so-called finer things in life. I’m pretty much tone-deaf, I didn’t see the point of art or calligraphy when I could be strengthening my cultivation, tea is tea, as long as wine can get you drunk it’s good enough, if you even have time to be drunk… and now I drink Yunmeng tea and watch the lotuses and I think, what do I want to do with my life? Eliminate evil, yes. Preserve my family’s legacy, yes. Protect my disciples and the people of Qinghe, yes. But must I push myself to a qi deviation to do all that?”

Jiang Cheng didn’t know what to say. It was more words than Nie Mingjue normally used, as though he were baring himself completely, laying all his cards out on the table.

“I have decided one thing,” Nie Mingjue continued, reaching into his sleeve. He looked at what he’d pulled out for a moment, then laid it on the table. It was a jade hairpin, a lustrous green carved into an intricate, twisting floral shape. “I want to spend my life with you.”

Jiang Cheng stared at the pin, heart beating very loudly in his ears. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, I want to court you. Officially. My Nie sect is still strong, I have ties to both the Jin and Lan sect, so it would give you political connections you don’t currently have. You’ve done enough rebuilding that I don’t think it would be seen as me trying to take over your sect. And you make me happy. It might be best not to court openly, since I’m sure Jin Guangshan will see it as a threat, but with you… I feel like maybe I could attempt the impossible, too. Figure out how to adapt the Nie cultivation style so we don’t die young, I mean. Isn’t there supposed to be time for that now, now that the war is over?”

Everything was blurry for some reason. “Yeah,” Jiang Cheng choked out. He picked up the hairpin, running his fingers over it. It was beautiful. He blinked furiously to clear his vision and held it out to Nie Mingjue. “Put it in for me?”

Nie Mingjue’s smile was even more beautiful. “Of course, Cheng-er.”

[translations-by-aiimee]

Mistakenly Saving the Villain - Chapter 7

Original Title: 论救错反派的下场

TW for this chapter: Suicide Attempt

Genres: Drama, Romance, Xianxia, Yaoi

This translation is based on multiple MTLs and my own limited knowledge of Chinese characters. If I have made any egregious mistakes, please let me know.

Chapter Index

Chapter 7 - Panic in the Medicated Bath

Song Qingshi searched the warehouse all night and finally found old robes made of red ice silk. He dismantled the decorative formation above, handed it over to the valley servants, and asked them to modify them to look like inner robes overnight. Then, he quietly put them on the bedside of Yue Wuhuan along with the new cotton gown.

The next day, Yue Wuhuan was shocked when he saw this ice silk robe.

Song Qingshi has urged him up from outside the door: "Hurry up, let's go for a new treatment."

"Yes, Master." Yue Wuhuan knew that he had changed masters, so he didn't dare to think too much. He put on his clothes and went out in a hurry, feeling much more comfortable in this outfit.

Song Qingshi took him through the corridor and went to the alchemy room next door. This was originally a forbidden place in the Medicine King Valley. A place where the original body used animals and humans to experiment with various medicines. It was also the place where the valley servants were most afraid of entering. Song Qingshi complied with the "Declaration of Helsinki" and rejected any human experiment that violated ethics. Fortunately, when he took over being the Medicine Master, there were not many test items left by the original body. He immediately released what he could release and helped those that needed help, and then changed it to a treatment room. The remaining specimens and general teachers are placed in other rooms - these were the big treasures of medicine, and he would study slowly when he had some free time.

Yue Wuhuan was walking towards the alchemy room and found that more than one valley servants cast sympathetic glances his way, and he became a little nervous. After entering the alchemy room, when he saw Song Qing take out a medicine vat big enough to fit a person in, he became more paranoid.

Song Qingshi didn't notice his anxiety. He threw the various medicinal materials that had been counted ahead of time into the tank, then poured water and used the alchemical fire in his body to control the temperature. After the water in the tank turned red, he turned back and said: "Take off your clothes and get in."

Yue Wuhuan stood still, his eyes stiffened when he looked at him.

"Don't be afraid," Song Qingshi finally remembered that he had forgotten to explain. "The Prince’s Plume Expelling Decoction is a medicinal bath. It won't cause discomfort."

Yue Wuhuan hesitated for a moment before stretching his hand to the belt and untying it.

Song Qingshi turned around, sat down with his back to him, not peeking at him entering the bath.

Yue Wuhuan breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly removed his clothes, and stepped into the bloody medicinal water. The hot liquid medicine penetrated into the skin, causing a slight tingling sensation, but there was indescribable comfort. He took a deep breath, relaxed completely, and suddenly sank his whole person into the water. He didn't expect that the water would overflow because it was too full. It splashed on Song Qingshi’s neck, ears and hair. A pale red flower blossomed on his white robe.

For most Daoists, the robe was a very important thing and any damage would cause heartache.

Yue Wuhuan realized his mistake and sneaked out of the water quietly. He hid in the tank and peeked out, worried that he would offend Xianzun.

Song Qingshi didn't care what happened. He stared at the bluestone on the ground in a daze. After a while, he discreetly shook the water droplets on his hair.

Yue Wuhuan picked his words carefully and asked cautiously: "Master, will you turn around so that this slave can clean you?"

Song Qingshi lowered his head and looked at the bluestone more attentively: "You are bathing, you can't peek." In his world view, it was reasonable for doctors to check the patient's physical condition during treatment, but if the doctor peeks at the patient trying to take a bath, it was morally corrupt and shameless.

Yue Wuhuan pondered these words for a long time, and guessed: "Does Master dislike that this slave's body is too dirty?"

Song Qingshi shook his head and whispered: "You don't like being watched."

"Master jokes." Yue Wuhuan's eyes hardened, and he was silent for a moment, peeking out of the water. His long hair wet sat on his shoulders, just like a mermaid who just came out of the sea. His body was otherworldly, and his muscles were perfectly proportioned with no hint of fat. His waist was slender enough to be held with one arm, but there was hidden power inside. He leaned against the edge of the bath, approached Song Qingshi’s ear, blowing lightly. His phoenix eyes were extremely charming, the red tear-shaped mole was so gorgeous that it could charm people’s hearts, and his voice was as tempting as the devil. "What is there not to see on this slave's body? The people who have seen it. . . there were too many to count. They all say that the slave's body is very beautiful and defined, and it can stop a man in his tracks. It was made to be adored. . ."

Song Qingshi quickly interrupted him, repeating: "You don't like being watched."

After Yue Wuhuan watched him for a long time, he said hoarsely: "This slave doesn't care anymore."

Song Qingshi didn't know how to explain, but insisted: "You don't like it."

Can he refuse just because he doesn't like it?

Yue Wuhuan thought this was ridiculous. In the years when he was just sent to accompany guests, he was coaxed to say that he didn't like it and didn't want it. The result was only meant to find his weaknesses for their amusement.

He didn't like to be seen, so that meant he was forced to show the most unbearable postures to everyone in the square and at banquets time and time again.

He doesn't like saying those lewd things, so he was tortured by various drugs and instruments of torture until he learned to use his voice to add to the excitement. . .

Until he abandoned his sense of shame, gave up his dignity, and pretended to enjoy these things.

He had known for a long time that in the eyes of these stupid cultivators, he was just a beautiful toy, without emotions, existing just to be moulded into whatever his master wanted. He often wished that he could go mad and be stupid, like most slaves, and lose his ability to think. He could mindlessly live a dog-like life and using his body to please his master.

It's a pity that there was always a trace of clarity in his heart, coldly examining his embarrassing self, and then cutting him to pieces. . .

Maybe he had already gone crazy. . .

He couldn’t tell when the fire rose slowly. The temperature of the potion was getting hotter and hotter. Yue Wuhuan’s face also became hotter and hotter, but he couldn’t feel the scorching heat and dipped his head into the bloody-red potion until water flooded up his nose and he couldn't breathe. He didn't want to get up, hoping to just stay submerged forever so that the hot water could clean the filth off his body, preferably right down to his bones.

Song Qingshi noticed something was wrong from the quietness behind him. He turned his head and found that he had been distracted when they were speaking and did not control the Red Lotus fire well. The water temperature rose several degrees and it was so hot that Yue Wuhuan had disappeared beneath the surface of the water. Song Qingshi didn't move cautiously, got up and rushed over, reaching into the tank to get the person out.

The wet beauty was dragged into his arms. His eyes were closed and his limbs drooped feebly. His long curling hair clung to his fair skin, dripping onto the ground, making the Acacia Seal on his back shimmer. Song Qingshi's mind was clear. He quickly laid the person on the ground, confirmed he still had a pulse and started CPR.

Yue Wuhuan spit up water and opened his eyes. He was surprised to find that Song Qingshi’s face was so close to his. He could even see his own reflection in his clear, black eyes. Because of the heat from the tank, Song Qingshi's eyes were heated and red, with water droplets clinging to his long eyelashes. He looked like a naive and innocent boy, nothing like an ancestor of the Nascent Soul sect who had practiced for nearly a thousand years, deceiving and cheating death itself.

He hadn't recognized the other party's true identity by the river at the time. He had wanted to sympathize with a man who would never experience an unjust death.

Yue Wuhuan's thoughts became more and more chaotic. He curled up subconsciously, and all kinds of messy memories flashed in front of him. The tenderness in his chest and the remaining warmth on his lips made him a little confused between reality and his memories as if he had returned to when he was punished by his masters.

Scholar-Tyrant Song almost failed his class, so scared that his soul almost flew away. His movements were as fierce as a tiger, relying entirely on instinct. After Yue Wuhuan woke up, he breathed a sigh of relief. However, he realized that there were many ways to treat drowning in the world of cultivating immortals, and there was no need to use modern first aid at all.

He wouldn't be able to clearly explain this. . .

It was standard for medical students to perform CPR on a drowning victim. Regardless of whether it was someone beautiful or ugly, a child or an old man, he would do it without hesitation. Song Qingshi was a little embarrassed that he hadn't figured out the best first aid technique for the immortal world ahead of time, but he can worry about that later. He just had to figure out how to explain it.

Yue Wuhuan had lost the focus in his eyes. He slowly unfolded his body, no longer covering it up, like a fish that was forcibly dragged ashore to die, preparing to be slaughtered.

Song Qingshi quickly turned his face away, closed his eyes, and apologized honestly: "I'm sorry, I made a mistake with the temperature of the water."

"It's not Master's fault," Yue Wuhuan's eyes were open, but he couldn't make out anything around him. He was listening, but he couldn't understand what was being said. He repeated his standard answer, "It's my fault, it's my fault. . ."

This is the truth that he had paid a heavy price to learn and had been instilled in him over and over again, always reminding him how to live.

"Wuhuan, you are so beautiful, you were born to be played with."

"Wuhuan, it's your body that seduces men, so it must be abused."

"Wuhuan, it's because you are so aloof that it makes me not want to stop."

"Wuhuan, you are a monster born for sex."

"Yue Wuhuan, it's all your fault."

"Yue Wuhuan, it's all your fault."

. . .

"My fault, my fault, my fault. . ." Yue Wuhuan kept repeating numbly, "It's all my fault."

Because he was the wrong that existed in the world.

Song Qingshi took off his robe and put it on Yue Wuhuan, and suddenly realized that the mental state of the person in front of him was very fragile, as though he were caught in a terrifying trap. He thought for a while and gritted his teeth. He stretched out his hand to slap him but hesitated, so he got up and brought a bucket of cold water next to him. He used the freezing technique and poured it down suddenly over his head. Yue Wuhuan was shocked by the cold, and his mind cleared somewhat. Song Qingshi took the opportunity to give him the Tranquil Mind Spirit Calming Pill to take.

"Master?" Yue Wuhuan came to his senses, a little confused.

"It's okay." Song Qingshi took the towels and clothes he had prepared earlier, wrapped him up layer and layer like a dumpling, and then gave a rational explanation, "You were hallucinating because you almost drowned."

Yue Wuhuan nodded blankly.

Song Qingshi determined that he had wrapped the dumpling tight enough. He stopped, satisfied, and ordered: "Wear more in the future."

Yue Wuhuan looked at him and asked anxiously: "This slave can wear more?"

Song Qingshi eagerly educated him: "Autumn is coming soon. It's going to be cold. You must wear more to avoid catching a cold."

"Thank you Master for your pity." Yue Wuhuan responded softly as soon as he was sure that he was not toying with him. He clutched his clothes tightly. For some reason, he suddenly remembered that when he first entered Golden Phoenix Manor, he was forced to take off all his clothes and was reduced to being a plaything.

Now, this seemingly deceptive man had personally helped him put on his clothes piece by piece, as though he were trying to convince him of something. . .

Because the medicated bath had been interrupted, the effect had not been fully achieved.

Song Qingshi busied himself adding water to the medicine tank and re-adjusting the temperature.

Yue Wuhuan sat quietly on the ground watching him work for his sake, lost in thought. Suddenly, he later realized that the never-ending burning sensation in his body had died down. He moved his body slightly and was surprised to find that the sensitivity caused by drugs had also greatly decreased, and the friction of the cloth was no longer causing him discomfort.

He tried to find an answer, but couldn't understand it. He finally plucked up the courage to ask, "Master, what is the purpose of the Prince's Plume Expelling Decoction. . .?"

"Huh?" Song Qingshi stopped and froze for a while. He found that he had again fallen into the scholar-tyrant's bad habit. His mind was moving too fast. He always felt that others would understand as long as he gave a name or an answer, regardless of whether others were following his thoughts or not.

Song Qingshi was a good academic who knew how to accept his mistakes and correct them. He reorganized his words several times in his mind and chose the simplest explanation, "Your body has been corroded by many drugs, so it causes great discomfort. The Prince's Plume Expelling Decoction can be used to remove the drug residues in your body. This medicinal bath needs to be taken five times, and the last two times will be taken with Muscle Generating Flower and Snow Toad Cake added to help repair the old wounds. When that happens, it might be itchy and uncomfortable but we can't use anesthetics. Don’t worry, you just need to endure that stage, and the body will return to its original state. . ."

Song Qingshi couldn’t bear to say it: Those people didn’t care about whether Yue Wuhuan lived or died. All kinds of aphrodisiacs were used uncontrollably on him, causing conflicts of various drug properties in his body and residual excess. If the drugs had continued to be used, he wouldn't have made it another few years.

"I was overdosed on drugs. . . Yes, they thought I was boring," Yue Wuhuan wrapped his clothes tightly around his frame, reluctant to let go. He hesitated for a long time but decided to control the unwillingness in his heart and explain clearly what Song Qingshi would figure out sooner or later. He was so confused that he once again forgot how he was supposed to address himself, "Master, without the medicine, my body will not respond to men. You won't be able to find pleasure in me. I-I'm not used to those things, only with the help of drugs. . ."

Song Qingshi interrupted his incoherent speech: "Don't do things that make you uncomfortable."

"You don't need to be nice to me." The more Yue Wuhuan opened his heart, the more fear he felt. He was like a bewildered child, desperately saying, "I have nothing, the only thing I can give you is this body. . ."

Song Qingshi realized that he wasn't in a good emotional state right now and turned away. He knew he should do psychological intervention now, but the words in his heart that he had practiced thousands of times all disappeared the minute he opened his mouth. He couldn't say anything sweet and comforting. He was clearly extremely upset, but in the end, his thoughts could only be condensed into two words: "You have."

The Yue Wuhuan in his heart was the kid who had practiced his swordsmanship under the peach blossom tree, the boy who dreamt of becoming a cultivator with a mortal body.

The Yue Wuhuan he saw in his eyes was a soaring phoenix in the heavens, the brightest star in the night, but with its wings broken and covered in dust.

Song Qingshi walked step by step, firm in every step.

Yue Wuhuan tried to force himself to calm down, but he couldn't stop his body from trembling, and he wanted to retreat.

Song Qingshi squatted down on his knees and looked meaningfully into his eyes.

Yue Wuhuan felt that he couldn't retreat.

Song Qingshi promised word by word: "I will and return to you whatever you had before, and I will give you everything you want."

Yue Wuhuan's breathing became short. He still couldn't understand what this promise meant, but he understood the seriousness and determination in Song Qingshi's eyes. He asked carefully: "What do you need me to do?"

Song Qingshi asked: "Don't try to commit suicide again, okay?"

Yue Wuhuan thought for a long time and finally nodded.

[skullsandwineglasses]

The Legends (2019) Full Review

My review of the first 30 episodes of the drama can be found here. 

This is more of a rant than a review. The drama should have wrapped up at episode 35. I was able to tolerate it up to episode 42 when the wedding was, but by episode 48 it’s a total mess. 

If only this scene was as epic as the picture makes it look. But alas, this was just a dream sequence, and by this point in the finale, I was already bored and scrolling through instagram on my phone. If only they really did have a love-hate relationship. But this is an angst-free drama. 

Inconsistent character arcs

The FL and ML have become incredibly weak, both in terms of abilities and personality. The changes just don’t make sense for their characters. 

Zhao yao is no longer the badass she once was, and I’m actually fine with that. Moving away from her demoness persona is part of her growth. BUT, she no longer has a goal in the drama (except when she finds out that Mo Qing has an inner demon. Then, her goal becomes finding a way to expel the demon). But in the last quarter of the drama, she doesn’t really do anything of importance. She lost her sword, but she doesn’t actively go and find it. Instead, Mo Qing and Jiang Wu are the ones who took initiative to hunt it down for her. And when Lin Zi Yu got away with it, she doesn’t bother thinking about finding her sword again?? I mean girl, you lost your sword. Your only weapon. Why is that not at the top of your list of priorities? Is this the same FL who had risked it all for the Wan Jun sword? 

(I miss the demoness)

Her tolerance level for things that annoy her is just so out of character. Zhao yao used to be someone who always fought back against anything she didn’t like. But when it comes to Jiang Wu, she seems to have unlimited tolerance for him. Yes, he saved her, but owing him does not mean letting him be a menace. Like when Jiang Wu sucked the life energy out of Ah Dai. All she did was try to restrain Mo Qing from attacking Jiang Wu, but she didn’t spring forward to prevent Jiang Wu from killing Ah Dai. I mean, the cause of Mo Qing’s rage was Ah Dai dying. Shouldn’t you go address the root of the problem? Instead, she just sits and stares and lets Jiang Wu kill Ah Dai instead of doing something. And then there’s the scene in the library when she’s asleep, but Mo Qing is wrestling with his inner demon, and then the Wan Jun sword kills the 2 guards on duty. She just sleeps through the entire thing. Wasn’t she once the most feared conqueror/demoness? Isn’t she a warrior? How can your senses not be alert when there’s so much ruckus around you? Someone on MDL said that she became a glorified baby sitter for the ML, and while I don’t agree that it’s as extreme as that, I can see their point. All that Zhao yao does after the wedding is try to reign in Mo Qing to prevent him from going into full-on demon mode. She holds him back, tries to calm him and soothe him, rinse and repeat.

Speaking of Mo Qing, his current personality is just rage and jealousy. At first, it was kinda endearing seeing him jealous, but soon his entire arc was just about him being consumed by jealousy. The writers try to justify it by saying that he’s always had low self-esteem and been unconfident about himself because of his upbringing, and the growing demon energy inside him is exacerbating these thoughts, making him more unlike himself, but you’re telling me that everything that he and Zhao yao had gone through together was all for naught? This would have made sense 5 years ago, but we’ve seen that he has greatly matured since becoming sect leader. During the earlier episodes, he was able to see right through Zhao yao’s mask. He teased her, flirted with her, scolded her, and basically proved he’s her equal in every way, and he did it all with easy confidence. And now suddenly, all of that growth reverses, and he’s insecure and sensitive again. This character progression just doesn’t make sense in the context of everything that’s happened. I would have loved to have seen more of the introverted and unconfident Mo Qing at the beginning of the drama. But instead, we only got a handful of scenes before that part of his character arc was cut short and we skip ahead 5 years later and then another 5 years later to when he’s the sect leader. There was honestly no purpose for Mo Qing’s suffering. He just suffered for the sake of suffering. In other xianxia dramas, characters suffered for a purpose. It was a price they had to pay in order to protect someone they love. But this suffering is just pointless. It does nothing for this character arc. And they kept replaying the same montage of him sleeping on the dragon. As if it’s not already clear from the last 20 episodes that he’s being haunted by his father’s demon. 

Villains and supporting characters

I didn’t really care for the villains? Luo Mingxuan is still alive, but doesn’t do anything until the last 5 episodes. I eyeroll whenever Lin Zi Yu is onscreen. Jiang Wu is the only one who’s interesting and he serves as comedic relief.  

And then there are all the unnecessary deaths. It’s like they’re killing off all the good characters one by one. What was the point of killing off the doctor? He was the only character who could scold both Zhao yao and Mo Qing. The drama felt so empty without him. 

But on a good note, I really liked most of the supporting characters, from Zhiyan to Shi Qi to Ah Rong to Gu Hanguang. They were also the most consistent characters in the drama. 

On a bad note, the drama spent too much time on the backstories of supporting characters. I did not care to watch Suruo mourn Luo Mingxuan and remembering how they fell in love, and this happens for pretty much all the couples in the drama. It’s because Zhao yao and Mo Qing have a very simple romantic arc that’s resolved very early on, so the writers had to throw in fillers to drag out the drama. And the consequence is that our leads end up getting not enough screen time. 

The final 2 episodes

Oh boy. The last 2 episodes were a hot mess. In the final battle, everyone kept attacking and stabbing Luo Mingxuan, but he just won’t die?? He’s like Wolverine. He just comes back stronger. It just kept dragging on and on, and I completely lost interest. And I felt bad for Xu Kai. He was standing on the sidelines for most of the battle, just watching and shooting worried faces at Zhao yao. I hate to say he was useless, but it just felt like the writers did him dirty. Even Jiany Wu, who had already died by that point, was given a brief re-appearance. While Mo Qing, the ML, was forced to sit out on the action. 

I’m also so over the will-he-won’t-he be evil plot. I keep saying this but I’ll say it again. It. Just. Keeps. Dragging. I’ve watching longer dramas, but this one felt to go on forever. We get it. You’re being tortured by your inner demon, but love will conquer all. 

The editing is also weird? Some of the scenes aren’t in chronological order, and there’s no separation between dream sequences and reality. I also never liked the preview at the beginning of each episode. I also hate how they cut some crucial scenes from the TV version that’s on youtube, forcing me to hop onto doboku, which buffers. 

Honestly, the last episode felt like a hallucinated dream sequence. In one scene, they’re all sitting around the table saying that the need to seal the Wan Jun sword before Mo Qing gets out of the control, and then it suddenly cuts to black with a title card that says 5 years later (don’t get me started on how often they overuse the “5 years later” plot device. Why is it always exactly 5 years?) We then see that Zhiyan is now the sect leader, and we’re told that Mo Qing has sealed himself away, and Zhao yao has been waiting for him to return. We don’t see them say goodbye to Mo Qing before he seals himself away. No scene showing a handover to Zhiyan. We’re just forced to go with it and imagine these scenes ourselves. 

Zhao yao, with a new hairstyle and new clothes to signify the time skip, watches Zhi yan and the sect from the distance. She then goes to visit other people, like Sima Rong and Liu Cangling. Liu Cangling and Zhiyan are the only couple who were able to move on from each other, and honestly, good for them. We then see Zhao yao sitting in the cave, pouring wine onto the cave floor, and then it cuts to black again and a sword flies through the air and wedges itself on the bedrock and we hear Mo Qing say Zhao yao’s name in a voiceover. And then it cuts to a scene where they’re both in the cave wearing their clothes from 5 years and Zhao yao has her old hairstyle. You assume this is a flashback to when they sealed the sword. And then we see Mo Qing in another realm where he lowers the sword in to the water, presumably sealing it. And then it cuts to both of them on the street buying food, wearing their old clothes and hairstyles. 

Does this mean he got out of the seal? When in the timeline is this street scene? How did he get out of the seal? Did he just walk out? Was Zhao yao there waiting for him, or did he go and find her? It’s typical for there to be a long period of uncertain separation in xianxia and wuxia dramas, and these dramas usually end either ambiguously where you don’t know if the couple will reunite, or they end with an emotional reunion, like in Ashes of Love, Eternal Love, Love and Destiny, and Love and Redemption, and famously in Return of the Condor Heroes. But what in the world was this ending?? The hell happened? That was so anticlimactic. If the scene on the street really was their “reunion” after he got out of the seal, does that mean Zhao yao changed her hair back to 5 years ago? Why is the costuming so confusing then?

And the last scene where they have the same actors play their kids? Um, no. That’s just plain weird. You built up the chemistry between the 2 actors, and then in the end you make them play siblings and re-enact the scene of when their parents met? For what? To make the audience reminisce about the budding romance between the leads at the beginning so that things come full circle? But, these characters are siblings?? You’re trying to make us emotional over a scene of two siblings pretending to be lovers?

There was just no point in doing that. It doesn’t tell us anything about the characters’ married life now. I don’t care about their kids. I care about the characters and what they’re doing now. What a strange and uncomfortable way to end the drama. Not satisfying at all. 

It would have been better if they had left it ambiguous. The amount of times that Zhao yao came back from the dead showed that they can defy the impossible, so even if it was an ambiguous ending, you’d still be able to believe that they’ll be together again. But this mess just ruined the chemistry. Ugh. I really miss the first half of the drama. 

Overall Impression

I’m mad about how chaotic the last few episodes were. While the beginning of the drama wasn’t without its flaws either, it was still very promising and intriguing. The beginning of the drama felt like they knew where they were going with the story, even if you didn’t completely like the direction that it went. So yes, I echo the other critiques saying that this drama had a strong beginning and a weak end. 

When I got to episode 35, I thought, how bad can this get? When I got to episode 42, I was still holding out hope that maybe other people were just harsh and maybe I’ll actually enjoy it. But no, the final 10 episodes are really as bad as everyone says it is. 

The romance, which was the only reason I stuck to the drama, also felt a little underdeveloped. I wish we got to see more scenes of them pre-episode 30.They were so cute then. Everything post-episode 30 was just them being constantly worried about each other. 

At least there was no angst. And the comedy was great. So there’s that. 

I give this drama a 7/10 for the characters and the premise. The plot is not worth watching due to terrible editing, pacing, and consistency, but it’s also a drama that won’t take you long to watch since you could skip most of it anyway and just go to the scenes with the leads. It’s my first drama watching Bai Lu and Xu Kai, but I’m def now interested in more of their work, like Arsenal Military Academy. 

[corvusravenette]

FanFiction: Qi Ye

Title: I Thought of You and Yet You Came Based on Original Work: Qi Ye || Lord Seventh Author: Priest Genre: BL Warning: Gore and Violence Rate: Teen / Young adults Pairing: M/M (Wu Xi + Beiyuan) Chapter: 3 of 5

*This has been sitting in my drafts along with the rest of the chapters for a good month! Have you ever written fics - and then start new fics - and completely forgot you have drafts you should’ve uploaded? Yeah. Me.

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          Wu Xi swore to himself, if… if his beloved lived on through this night… he would force-feed him all the foundation building pills he could find. That grim almost humorless thought sank deep in his heart, taking root as he scolded the dying man in front of him in his head. This is what you get for not taking care of yourself! Now look what you’ve gotten yourself into! If you weren’t such a lazy bout, you wouldn’t have been this… badly injured… Wu Xi’s hands stilled as the voice reprimanding Beiyuan in his head immediately quietened.           “Bei..yuan?” he whispered, gingerly holding two fingers to the pulse on his neck. “Nuahar! Ashinlae! Quickly get in here!”  

         The two men standing guard outside rushed in at the frantic command. They quickly lifted the Prince’s body into a sitting lotus position as the Great Shaman sat behind him, his hands deftly moving in a circular pattern. A very pale light blue force could be seen visibly distorting the air underneath the Great Shaman’s palm as he placed them on Beiyuan’s shoulder blades, channeling his qi into him, forcing it to protect his failing heart. Sweat dotted his forehead, and his vision swayed but Wu Xi kept this momentum up until yèbàn broke into the jī míng hours of the morning, holding stubbornly onto Beiyuan’s dimming life force.          He collapsed into Nuahar’s frightened arms as the latter watched the Shaman’s ghastly pale complexion from energy lost, unable to keep going. The Prince spat out a mouthful of stagnant blood following the sudden energy surge and Ashinlae who was staying the Prince in his lotus position quickly tapped on his meridians to allow the Prince to breathe better. He exchanged a look with Nuahar, his eyes red-rimmed from fear and exhaustion.

         Carefully, the two men position both their exhausted leader and his beloved flat on the bed, lifting the blanket to cover them both. The smell of blood pungent in the air. Their hearts dared not hope that the worse of the Prince’s injury was elevated for now. There was no sense in false beliefs. They knew he was not out of the woods yet. The deep cut on his chest was bound to be infected and the massive blood loss he experienced would set off a fiery fever. It would be a matter of time and it would be another long fight to keep him bound on this earth.          Nuahar left to brew energy boosting tonic for his leader to take when he awakened, and called upon Ping An to look after them as they slept. The young man who had followed the Prince Nanning since he was six years old nodded in solemn understanding and stood by the bed in wait, his heart breaking as it had never before.

         “Prince, if you died, what would have become of your household and your servants? Who would look after us? Who… Who would argue with me over small things? Please… please stay alive my lord,” Ping An whispered, rubbing the tears in his eyes with the back of his sleeve.

         Ashinlae, who had resumed his post as guard by the bedroom entrance, overheard this lament and understood the overwhelming grief in the servant’s voice. To them, if the Prince left their leader, the heartbreak would be unbearable. The latter would be a shell of his own self, incomplete and forever punished to live a life in solitude – waiting for the day he died to be reunited again with his beloved on the Yellow Spring Road. The Prince, after all, was the receiver of the Great Shaman’s heirloom, the inconspicuous jade ring that was hanging around his neck even now. In this lifetime, it could only be given to one person – they all knew the significance and level of devotion attached to the ring.          He couldn’t bear the thought, curling his hand into a fist, Ashinlae stepped away from his post to get a grip on himself. They were not completely safe yet. If Nanjiang lost their Great Shaman, it would be akin to losing the very foundation of their beliefs. He was the chosen messenger of God, the one who would lead their people into glory and prosperity. Ashinlae knew deep down in his heart, if the Prince left this world… their leader will follow suit soon after…

+-+-+-+-+-          Wu Xi…

         A voice so soft, so fleeting was whispering his name, urging him to wake. Jerking from his sleeping position, Wu Xi sat up quickly, his head spinning from the sudden vertigo and his hand quickly came up to support the side of his head to numb the discomfort. Realising something, he snapped his head to the side, almost wanting to heave in relieve to see the man lying next to him was in the flesh and not an illusion… but that sensation didn’t last very long.          As though in tandem, the door opened to let Nuahar in, bringing a bowl that smells like a very pungent tonic. Recognising it for what it was, Wu Xi grabbed it quickly and downed the contents almost without blinking. He was used to this; he would experiment medicines on himself without hesitation. It would take a while before the familiar tonic kicks in and he would be able to function better. Nearly cursing his body for its slow recovery, Wu Xi handed the bowl back to Nuahar and turned his body over to better check on the man who was lying in the inside of the bed.          Looking out the open window, he surmised that it was probably the second half of jī míng. He must have collapsed after channeling his qi into Beiyuan earlier, but he could not afford sleep at this critical juncture. Pressing sure fingers into the man’s wrist, Wu Xi counted the pulse to a hundred. It was there, but it was feeble and irregular. He then methodically untied the man’s chemise to expose the bandages covering his chest.          “Nuahar: two buckets of hot water, fresh bandages, linens, towels, the red bottles with the purple ribbons, and ask Ashinlae to wake the servants and purchase this list of herbs from the apothecaries. Wake the owners up, bring my token,” Wu Xi recited very clinically, almost coldly, as he scribbled down the list of herbs he needed as if the person lying next to him was not his beloved but a regular comatose patient in need of urgent treatment, “Ping An, new robes, none of the frilly multi-layered ones, but thick enough so your Master doesn’t catch his death in this cold. I also need woolen blankets,”

         Ping An wanted to protest the inauspicious way the Great Shaman was calling for death but the look Nuahar gave him shut him up very quickly. Nodding, and swallowing his grief, Ping An quickly left to fetch the clothes and blankets he was requested of. Nuahar gave the list to Ashinlae who took off hurriedly without a word with a few servants to run the errand whilst Nuahar went off to boil hot water and grab the items the Great Shaman had tasked him with.          Less than half a shichen later, Nuahar came back to the Great Shaman’s quarters carrying the items in question. He was met with silent acknowledgment as the latter looked up, his obsidian eyes unblinking. It was unnerving to be the subject of that impossibly deep stare and Nuahar found his movements to have gone rigid before Wu Xi turned his attention to the bucket of hot water by his feet.

         Taking off his outer robe, the same one he had worn for days now, Wu Xi rolled the inner chemise sleeves up to his elbow, tucking in the ends securely before submerging both arms in one of the buckets of hot water Nuahar brought in. The warrior was now acting as his medical assistant, handing over what smelled like medicinal soap and watched as the Great Shaman began scrubbing his fingers and hands meticulously with the soap, making sure that his hands were absolutely clean before redressing Beiyuan’s wounds lest he risked another bout of infection.           Taking a clean towel from the rack near the bed, Wu Xi wiped his hands dry, took a deep breath and swallowed hard as his hands made quick practiced movements to completely strip Beiyuan of his upper chemise. Gently uncoiling the multi layered bandages now soaked with overnight blood, Wu Xi bit his lower lip from trembling, forcing himself to focus before pulling the last of the bandages away from his Prince’s chest. The deepest wound on his chest had begun to fester; yellow pus stuck to the bandage as it was taken off, dripping slowly out of the hastily sutured wound. 

         Wu Xi was afraid of this, no matter how quickly he had stitched and disinfected the wound on that damnable day, the rain had made his worst prediction come true. He looked up to Nuahar who, as though had read his mind before he even opened his mouth, handed him a very thin knife that had been held in the candle by the medicine table.           Holding his hand steady, Wu Xi began the arduous task of reopening the wound, unstitching his handiwork thread by thread. In the corner of his eyes, he noticed Nuahar had begun scrubbing his hands, pouring hot water over them – mimicking his earlier movements. In his hearts of hearts, he would remember the sacrifices of this warrior who became his everything in his time of need. Him and Ashinlae would be rewarded with the highest of orders when they returned to Nanjiang.          Focusing on the task in front of him, Wu Xi instructed his makeshift medical assistant to use fresh linens to press down on the blood bubbling up front the now reopened wound - his voice cold, bordering on apathy, almost mechanical without any emotional fluctuations. Without saying a word, Wu Xi sliced off the festering dead flesh in clean neat ribbons, deep red blood dripping on to the bedsheet and into a waiting basin where he deftly tossed the rotten flesh and blood-soaked linens in. He then carefully cut small nicks into the fresh wound to stimulate regrowth.          Reaching over to the table again, Wu Xi picked up his little hook needle and held it under the candle to sterilise it before sewing Beiyuan’s flesh closed once again: neatly, carefully this time, making sure he did not leave any room for new infections to grow. Once he was satisfied with the new sutures, Wu Xi washed his hands and grabbed another linen, soaked it in hot water and squeezed whatever excess water it had before wiping the blood on Beiyuan’s chest clean. Making sure that the wound was sewn tightly, he uncorked three of the small bottles and deftly poured the purple liquid generously over the fresh stitches, ensuring that it was now freshly disinfected and sealed.

         Wiping his sweaty forehead across his sleeve, Wu Xi reached last for the bandages on his side, and carefully began the slow process of wrapping Beiyuan’s chest and abdomen tightly, tying the edges into secure knots by the Prince’s shoulders. Standing up after what seemed like a long time, Wu Xi stumbled a little, realizing belatedly that he had not eaten since returning from the battlefield.          Beiyuan was still not out of harm’s way and he refused to leave his side lest the Emperor decided to hasten his way here. That would not be ideal at all, in fact that would turn into a bloodbath on its own indeed. He would never let Beiyuan out of his view ever again. Turning around, his eyes caught sight of the large basin filled with the blood-soaked linens and the decaying flesh he had shorn off Beiyuan’s chest.          An idea had begun forming in his head. Swiftly looking for the outer chemise Beiyuan wore on the battlefield, and finding the torn garment haphazardly tossed to the side, he rummaged through the inner pockets and pulled out a blood-stained cloth, almost unrecognizable if not for the embroidered initials in one of its corners. The initials of the Prince, a small Osmanthus flower with the emblem unique to the Prince’s household was delicately stitched in light golden threads.

         Grimly, Wu Xi carried the bloodied cloth to the basin filled with Beiyuan’s blood and pushed it in, soaking in every last bit of fresh blood, staining the already browning cloth with deeper darker red. Not waiting to wash his hands off again this time, Wu Xi pulled on his outer robes, his appearance not any better than when he had reached Beiyuan by the waterfall.          He hadn’t the time to bother with appearances. It had all been occupied by his beloved. His braided hair was pulled into a high ponytail secured with a leather cord, his outer robe unfastened, exposing the inner chemise freshly stained with Beiyuan’s blood; his very being holding the stench of overwhelming death about him. Nuahar didn’t stop him, he eyed the handkerchief in his Shaman’s grip and knew where he was headed… the Imperial Palace.

         “GET ME MY HORSE NOW!” Wu Xi barked the order as he stepped over the threshold of his quarters. One of the guarding warriors quickly untied the black stallion waiting outside of the gates and brought it into the Great Shaman’s compound. No one wanted to be on their leader’s bad side at this moment.

         “Nuahar, when Ashinlae gets back with the medicines, divide the packages into seven equal parts, boil the first set on low heat – don’t burn it – and add three drops of the contents of this bottle, no more than three drops! His body might not withstand the effects. Then get him to find Master Zhou. Tell him, it’s time,” Wu Xi instructed rapidly as Nuahar followed him out into the compound.

         “But… Great Shaman… this is… this is the venom of the Manchurian scorpion?” Nuahar implored uneasily, recognizing the small yellow jade bottle in his hand. He had seen the potency of this venom first-hand.His uneasy tone was met with a sharp cutting gaze from the Great Shaman.            “You dare question me?” Wu Xi growled in a low tone, his patience clearly running on fumes and the warrior before him immediately took a step back and knelt very quickly on one knee to the ground, a hand clenched above his heart.          “I don’t dare, Great Shaman! Forgive my insolence!” Nuahar replied, realizing belatedly that he had misspoken out of turn. Who was he to question the Chosen Messenger of God? How dare he indeed, “I will follow your instructions to the letter!”          Wu Xi gave him a sidelong look and turned on his heels, quickly making his way to his waiting ride. Lifting a foot into the leather stirrup, he hoisted himself up into the saddle and immediately pulled the reins towards the gates, the bloodied handkerchief warm and wet in his hand – as though he was carrying a pulsing heart – before tucking it safely in the lapels of his inner robe. Pressing the heel of his boot into the horse’s girth, his black stallion neighed and reared on its hind legs, before thumping down and galloping away onto the still empty streets.          As though aware of its master’s urgency, the stallion charged forward, straining the strong muscles of its legs as much as it could. The cold dawn wind whipped bitingly against Wu Xi’s face, it wasn’t sunrise yet, but the horizon had lightened a little as he made the mad rush to the Imperial Palace – partially because he wanted to get this deed done and over with, and partially because Beiyuan still had one foot firmly secured in the netherworld and he didn’t want to be too far apart from him lest the grim reapers beckoned his beloved away while he wasn’t there.          Reaching the outer gates of the Imperial Palace, and immediately recognizable by the unique silver adornments on the stallion’s armored forehead and the thick black robes of the Great Shaman who drove the fear of God into the hearts of the Vakurah warriors and the Great Qing soldiers alike, the guards stepped aside swiftly to let the now famed Great Shaman enter freely into the imperial grounds.          Pulling in the reins, his stallion slowed down and trotted a few circles before it neighed lightly to a stop in the vast outer courtyard of the Imperial Palace. He wasn’t surprised the least when the palace guards immediately descended upon him. He knew from Zhou Zishu’s visit the night before that the palace guards likely had orders to wait for him. They quickly approached him: one helped steady his ride, and another quickly leading him forward – climbing the many steps of the Imperial Palace towards the Emperor’s inner courtyard.          The Emperor’s own personal attendant, Yu Kui, received him anxiously, relief evident on his face when he saw the Great Shaman’s powerful long strides making his way towards him, but quickly the uplifted mood turned somber when he realised the state of the Great Shaman’s bloodied clothes. It was clear that the latter had not changed from the battlefield at all. His heart sunk in trepidation, already predicting the outcome of this visit. Swallowing the thought down in his throat, he gestured hurriedly to Wu Xi to follow him. “Your Majesty, the Great Shaman returned!” “Invite him over, quick!”

         Wu Xi had followed Yu Kui in and could clearly hear the bellow from the inner chambers. His eyes took note of the line of imperial doctors and other eunuchs-in-waiting outside of the Emperor’s chambers: the anxiety and nervousness in their body languages, and how they averted their gazes when he bore his own challenging ones down on them.          Entering the vast chamber, Wu Xi kept his eyes aimed straight at the monarch, and the words he wanted to say died in his throat at the sight of the disheveled Emperor. This was the claimed Son of Heavens, the chosen one of their Gods. Yet, at this moment, he looked no better than a man drowning in water, his features pale and ghastly, his complexion waning. He was thinner than Wu Xi remembered – majestic still – but somewhat less of the impression he had of him before.          He saw the Emperor; no, he saw a man struggling to admit his forbidden love, the bitter desperation in his eyes evident, yet he made no claims on his beloved; that for a split second, Wu Xi knew his decision to take away Beiyuan had been right. There was never going to be anything between them yet this man in front of him was showing possessiveness over another he had not had the courage to fight for openly.          If you loved him, you should’ve fought me for him. You should’ve shown him. You should’ve chased him, stopped him, shielded him, protected him, made him yours openly. Yet, you did none of those but you have the audacity to want to claim his life. Your own need for power and control overcame any love you have for him. You do not love him as much I do. Wu Xi disgustedly thought ro himself. He no longer had no patience left to deal with this half-assed man in front of him. He wanted to leave as quickly as he had come.

         Without saying a word, he took out the small bloodied handkerchief out of his lapels and watched as the Emperor’s eyes widened, his entire body frozen, his breathing hitching as the latter’s gaze fell on his hand. Wu Xi had not washed the blood off his hands, and he knew the Emperor had seen his bloodied state when he entered, smelled the stench of blood on him as he drew closer. He watched unblinkingly as Helian Yi continued to stare at the handkerchief in a daze, only after a long while later did he moved stiffly to reach out and take the handkerchief out of his hand and into his own palms.

         “Where is he?” Wu Xi heard him demand in a hoarse voice as the Emperor lifted large maddening eyes towards him. Of this, Wu Xi shook his head mutedly, neither confirming nor denying anything.          “We… want to see him if he’s alive, his corpse if he’s dead! Someone! Come here!” the Emperor bellowed hysterically, almost dementedly.          Wu Xi stared at him fixedly, unblinkingly, apathetically. His decision had been right. There was no way this man could be allowed to know the Beiyuan was still with him. He would not allow it in this lifetime or any other lifetimes. As the imperial doctors and attendants hurried into the room, Wu Xi turned around, ignoring the Emperor’s words amidst the chaos and left without saying anymore lest his face betrayed his own revulsion of the man.           He knew that this would not be the last time he had to deal with the Rongjia Emperor... CLICK HERE: [1] [2] [3] [4]

[girllovescomic]

An analysis of our OTP as we go toward the end

With the help of Karen Ly (Twitter), I found this post on Weibo and Google translated it.  I think this really encapsulate what I think of both characters

After watching the 60~63 episodes, my dissatisfaction with the plot has calmed down a bit, not only because the appearance of the king in these episodes is too high (this is the main reason, it is really love every frame of every line) , Also because the behavior logic of most characters can be explained. I think the Hulan episode of 58~59 broke so badly because the changes in Helan Zhen couldn't convince me at all. It was not like he could do it.

Let me talk about Xiao Qi first. Since the battle of Neem Hayama, I have been thinking about his return. I know it will be good, but it is better than I imagined again. Has Xiao Qi changed? Yes, it is not. Xiao Qi is a person with extremely strong inner world and self-awareness. He has gone all the way from the Cambrian to an extremely human minister. No matter how the outside world changes, he can hardly shake his self-constructed spiritual world. He knew exactly what he wanted along the way. He was a hero with the world in mind. Power and status were never the goals he pursued, but the means to help him achieve his ideals, so neither threat nor temptation would let him shake. This is why Wang Lin said that he always looked at people accurately, but he misunderstood Xiao Qi. After all, this son-in-law is not a mortal. From the time when he entered Beijing to be the king to the Lianyu Mountain Incident, Xiao Qi's attitude towards the royal family and the nobles of the Manchu clan was always neither humble nor overbearing, courteous and courteous. After being aware of the emperor’s scruples about his merits, he took the initiative to resign. . He is always smart, sober and restrained. After the return, he did not accept the order twice, and the face of the king did not worship the palace with the sword. He was arrogant and domineering, watching the world, just like the two of the past restraint and forbearance. But when Xiao Qi, who had restrained his modesty at the beginning, could ever afford these nobles? Today, he just didn't hesitate to hide his contempt and anger, for the sake of the dead Ning Shuo soldier, and for his ideals and beliefs. Xiao Qi is a person who has always acted in accordance with his inner rules, and this has never changed. In the past, he thought that by being close to the center of power, he could better realize the ideal of guarding his family and protecting the country and allowing the people to live and work in peace. After Xie Shouzheng's corruption incident and close talks with Zilong, he has realized that the corruption of the court and the family is a chronic disease. It is difficult to heal, so the meaning of retreat was born. Xiao Qi before Lian Yushan should be struggling. Although returning to Ningshuo was far away from the power struggle, he could only keep one side of the country safe and farther away from his great cause. The tragedy of Mt. Neem changed everything. The moment God of War, Xiao Qi, looked hollow and confused. In addition to his extremely overdrawn body, there was probably a collapse of faith and despair of the country and court he tried to protect.

The next few episodes are completely depressive. Xiao Qi is silent. In a one-man show with almost no lines, he cried silently. He galloped in the wilderness, he looked up at the sky in the courtyard, he was by the river. Pressing his forehead lightly against the horse, he grieves, angers, reflects, reconstructs his will, and strengthens his determination to revenge. The accumulated power reaches people's hearts through the screen. With such a layer upon layer of progressive paving, the outbreak after the return is extremely hearty. Xiao Qi came back, and he couldn't get through according to your rules in the past, so just follow my rules and see if any of you has the ability to stop me.

Similarly, the scenes after the return were progressive. When they were refused entry into Ningshuo City, they lowered their stance, were polite and courteous, and had a sincere attitude. When they saw Ningshuo soldiers swearing allegiance to the death, it was hard to hide their excitement. The voice choked for a while, this was the first emotional vent since Neem Yushan suppressed Yin Ren. When I saw Wyen (I love this scene very much, I repeatedly brushed it), the short conversation undercurrents surged and was extremely wonderful. Xiao Qi's eyes staring at Wyan were a little bit probing at first (want to see how many shadows there were in Wyan in the past), and gradually became cold (are you here to welcome me or stop me), and then became threatening and provocative ( Who will do it this time, is it you, Su Yibo), mentioning that Guanglie and Soldier Ningshuo are uncontrollable anger (this is the second emotional vent), and then return to calm, the disappointment and steel The same unchangeable will is chilling. I always felt that Liu Duanduan's interpretation was a bit too much, but this scene was also excellent, and the process of Wyan's inner anxiety, hesitation, and final break was very complete.

This period of entering the city was another highlight moment, and the whole confrontation was relaxed, and it was repeated several times. Personally, my favorite is the body language of the king in this scene, which is really domineering every time he raises his hand and turns around. Hearing the order to accept the order, he slightly leaned over to help the grandmother who was about to kneel down, stepped forward slowly, stopped sideways, and took the order, resolutely and beyond doubt. A few actions have made people see the aggressive attitude of King Yuzhang after his return. He just wants to clearly tell the emperor and these officials that his patience has been exhausted, and he will not leave them half face or give them any more. They stayed a little bit of retreat until the truth was found out and the real murderer came to the rescue. After Ma San arrived, he seemed to be holding a low posture, but in fact he was always in front of him. The connotation of his words is that Xiao Qi led soldiers to threaten the monarchy, committing chaos (you bring 100,000 soldiers, I will agree to anything you want), and put yourself in morals The commanding heights place Xiao Qi unrighteous, thereby confuses the public and avoids Xiao Qi's questioning of Lian Yushan. The confrontation was pushed to the apex when he said "Fight against me until King Yu Zhang is satisfied". At this time, Xiao Qi still looked directly at Ma San, his eyes were not evasive, but he took a deep breath that was hardly noticeable. , Looked up slightly, he was suspicious and inquiring about Ma San, and the anger at him for putting himself here was expressed vividly and vividly in this slight look up. After Wang Su quickly handed everyone a step and got a promise that he could self-check the truth, he took the opportunity to give in, bowed his head, and the confrontation ended. The rhythm of the subtleties is too good.

Talking about entering the hall in white, all the restraints in the front have been pave the way for the most heartfelt lift. As he approached the throne step by step, he was like an angry lion, showing the air of a king. Ma San was forced by such a momentum, his eyes were evasive, and his inner fear was self-evident. Here is an interruption of Wyan's eyes, which are worship, shock, and loss. He probably realized that he would never be able to surpass Xiao Qi. Then, it came to the monologue on Xiaoqi Hall. This paragraph kicked me to the bottom of the pit and never wanted to come out again. This third emotional catharsis directly pushed the contradictions to the peak. The anger, grief, and contempt for the nobles since Mt. Neem poured out like a rainbow, and finally received a meaningful look in front of the throne. At that time, he was as dangerous as a black panther waiting for an opportunity.

Should such Xiao Qi be proclaimed emperor? There are many voices on the Internet questioning that Xiao Qi’s retreat is the "heart of the Father" and the collapse of human design. I think this is a simple and rude categorization in the Internet age. The term "personal design" is even more annoying. How can the complexity of human nature be summed up with a simple facial makeup? Everything needs to be viewed in the context of an era. Monarchs and ministers are the head of the five Confucian ethics. The usurpation of the king and the killing of the emperor must be a shame in the history books. Even big ambitious people like Cao Cao have scruples. Need to hold the emperor to make the princes. The founding emperors who have changed dynasties in the past have all found various so-called apocalypses and signs to prove that the previous dynasties are exhausted. For Xiao Qi, a hero who takes the responsibility of defending his family and the country and has the world in his heart, he should not be easy to make such a choice. This is not the so-called Father's Heart, nor loyalty, but is restricted by the value system of that era. Of course, Xiao Qi is by no means a pedantic person, otherwise there would be no such thing as instigating many feudal vassals to ask for the gift of nine tins. The key is to see what he ultimately wants to achieve. For a person like him who follows his inner rules, I am curious how Zhou Yiwei will perform and convince us of his final choice.

Let's talk about Awu. Although I still feel that many details of the plot cannot withstand scrutiny, the direction of the character Awu is generally logical. First of all, Awu is not an ordinary woman. She has independent self-awareness and values. The love between her and Xiao Qi is based on the mutual attraction of two independent personalities. The other party. Such a woman naturally has a bigger pattern. She understands Xiao Qi's ideals. She was born in a family and was perfectly protected since she was a child. She didn't realize the taste of betrayal until she was involved in her father's plot and trade as a pawn. I think a drama review I watched before is very well written, to the effect that Awu’s noble spiritual world makes her not disdain to participate in the conspiracy, or even hate those who hurt her (such as Su Jin’er, more It is disgust, that she is a poor person). She hated her for the first time when she thought that He Lanzhen killed Xiao Qi. Xiao Qi is her bottom line, so she will do everything she can to die with him. Regarding the queen mother, after guessing that the emperor's uncle was murdered by her, Awu kept alienating her; after returning to Beijing, she felt compassionate when she saw the tragedy of the queen mother. This is also very controversial on the Internet, but after all, the layout of Neem Hayama has not been fully investigated, and it is understandable to have pity for the aunt who watched him grow up. (Of course, I didn't convince myself too much. There were still omissions in the plot. Ordinarily, she and Xiao Qi should be able to see the role of the queen mother). To Ma San, she was shocked to a large extent. After all, she grew up with her childhood sweetheart. She probably couldn't believe that he had become like this. She chose not to tell Xiao Qi not because she wanted to let Ma San go, but because she didn't think about what the consequences of this incident would be, and how this consequence would affect Xiao Qi and the situation in the world. So I don’t think that the hostess is overwhelmed by the heart of the Virgin. Her response to these people is different, and the way of coping is also considered according to different situations. Regarding the truth about Neem Yushan, she did have a disagreement with Xiao Qi. In the play, she mentioned letting go twice, one was when she went to Beijing to talk at home after returning to the government, hoping that Xiao Qi would not kill more after finding out the truth; Bian, asked Xiao Qi if he could put aside the things in front of him and live his own life. Two times, Xiao Qi didn't agree, he never gave her a promise that she couldn't make (here again). I think it is reasonable to think this way from the perspective of Auntie. First of all, she could not fully understand Xiao Qi’s brotherhood of life and death towards Ning Shuo’s soldiers. Second, she could not fully understand Xiao Qi’s pain and hatred unless he had personally experienced the affairs of Yushan. (On this matter, probably only Hu Yao Understand the king, please refer to See the eyes of the king and Hu Yao reuniting). So I think that although Ah Wu can understand Xiao Qi's ideals of the world on a large scale, he does not fully understand Xiao Qi's will and determination to revenge. She is afraid of the prospect of the rain coming, she is afraid of losing Xiao Qi, and also afraid that Xiao Qi will go on the road of murdering the king for revenge, and even more afraid of the bloody wind that will follow, which change of dynasty in history It didn't come by walking on the sea of ​​blood. However, this disagreement does not mean that the love between 57 has faded. In fact, their lives have been more deeply blended together (Auntie said, you are the most important person in my life; Xiao Qi said, to you never change). Auntie chose to stand with Xiao Qi on key matters. For example, when she entered Beijing, she refused to help Wang Yu persuade Xiao Qi, and followed Xiao Qi twice to bow down. (Here I want to emphasize the background of the times and not follow the rule of the monarch Ceremony is to pretend to be a big deal). He loves her, so he understands and tolerates her care for the family to the greatest extent; she loves him, even if she does not fully understand, she will respect his choice. This is the love between adults without blood.

Other characters who have the same acting online include the prime minister who is always conscientious in his career, and the queen mother who has hysteria to get up and pull his enemies into the water, finally wakes up to the elder brother who is firm in his career, and even the black line of love and brains, Ma San, their wonderful makes My resentment for the first episode of Hulan has fallen, and I moved a small bench to wait for the last 5 episodes...

[starshinegoblin]

Just Relax with Me

Kiss Prompt: out of love

Writer’s Notes: This is written in my arranged marriage au, All That Is Me. I dedicate this one to @ruensroad​ and thank you for so much for drawing the amazing art below. It’s so beautiful! 

The art below is of JinYi inspired the following ficlet below :D 

** Credit: @ruensroad​ // DO NOT REMOVE CREDIT ** 

“Senior Lan, it’s here.” Xue Qing smiled brightly as she entered her sect leader’s jingshi. In her hands, a glass canteen. The contents a special order that Lan Jingyi had requested from the apothecary. He’d read in one of the books in the library that the blend is supposed to aid in relaxing one when soaked in water. The idea came to him after yesterday, the first day of the sect leader conference that had been forced on them. Oh, as an added bonus, the heaven’s decided that it needed to snow! In mid February! So as the other sects were arriving LanLing was having thick flurry showers.

After Jin Ling had gotten injured after getting rid of a striga in Yiling, rumors started because of his limp. Like who wouldn’t limp after one of those got a hold of your leg? Their claws extend out the length of their forearms. So to keep up appearances and Elder Yanbin from stirring the pot, Jin Ling had graciously offered to host the conference. The conferences were stressful with all the different personalities of the sect leaders that came. 

The first night, Jin Ling had returned to their quarters exhausted. He’d barely eaten any food, took a quick bath not caring the water was cold, and went to bed. That wouldn’t be the case today. He refused to allow this to continue for the next four days. 

“Thank you, Xue Qing.” Lan Jingyi said taking the pitcher from her. 

“Is there anything else that you need, Senior Lan?” Xue Qing asked of him. Lan Jingyi assessed the room. Dinner was fresh and hot at the table, their bed was already turned down, and he’d just left the bathing room with a boiling hot tub of water. He was about to say nothing but then felt a cold chill as he stepped onto the wooden floor with his bare feet.”

“Add two more burners.” Lan Jingyi answered, “Then you can go.” 

“Thank you, Senior Lan.” Xue Qing replied as she went to retrieve them leaving Jingyi to return to the remaining preparations. 

Jin Ling was cold, hungry, wanting his husband, and exhausted. While he hadn’t actually done anything but sit today. Being stuck in the hall with all the sect leaders literally drained him. He felt the migraine he’d been trying to keep at bay during the meetings today decided to send a painful throb up his neck towards his left eye. 

“Shit.” He cursed low, rubbing his temple as he made his way towards his private quarters. 

It didn’t take him long to get there. Jin Ling opened the door to the jingshi. He stepped inside, closing the door behind him. He stilled just in the doorway seeing that their dinner was already prepared and that his husband was sitting in the window seat reading a book. He was still dressed in the robes he’d worn this morning, the rich dark sea blue robes with the opalescent embroidery on the collar and sleeves. His toes wiggling out from beneath the hem making him chuckle. 

“Welcome back.” Lan Jingyi greeted him, finally realizing he was there with a  warm smile. He was about to move to get up when Jin Ling stopped him with a gesture of his hand. He slowly made his way over not caring about the ache or the burn in his leg. Jin Ling came to a stop right in front of him. He leaned down pressing a quick peck on the other’s lips. 

As he parted, Lan Jingyi chased his lips capturing them again as he took hold of the collar of Jin Ling’s robes. He quickly maneuvered them to where Jin Ling was the one sitting and Lan Jingyi was straddling his lap. The hem of his blue robes spilling over Jin Ling’s leg. Lan Jingyi didn’t sit on his lap though he stayed, up on his knees, hands cradling the other’s face as they kissed. 

The new angle giving him the advantage to deepen the kiss only for him to move back, parting their kiss, shortly after. He hadn’t missed the slightly sharp intake of breath from being manhandled from Jin Ling. 

“A-Yi?” Jin Ling whispered his name between heavy breaths. He was about to answer but the rather loud grumble of the taller man’s stomach making Lan Jingyi chuckle. 

“How about we eat first?” Lan Jingyi offered rubbing Jin Ling’s sharp jaw with his thumbs before carefully getting up. Smoothly, he knelt helping Jin Ling out of his boots.

“How’s your leg?” Lan Jingyi asks as he helped him up. 

“I should have propped it up like A-Yuan said. Keeping it bent only made it stiff as a board when the meetings were over.” Jin Ling answered, blushing a bit from embarrassment and lingering desire for his husband’s lips. He tried to will the blush away as he sat down but he must have failed with the gleeful look in  Lan Jingyi’s eyes.

“Oh?” Lan Jingyi teasingly questioned him as he took his own seat across from him. A grin spreading on his face as he feels Jin Ling’s the foot of his injured leg slide into his lap. Jin Ling  sntaches a chunk of diced cantaloupe avoiding his gaze. 

“Yes.” Jin Ling answered before changing the topic to Sect Leader Yao mentioning something about Gusu making both Zizhen and his jiujiu rather heated at the man as the two of them started eating. Then Lan Jingyi told him about his day and how he wanted to start doing more evening training sessions which had Jin Ling beaming as well as agreeing. Jin Ling was talking about something to do with Yiling as he was munching on grapes. He felt that his husband was distracted enough that he reached down with his free hand to gently massage Jin Ling’s ankle in his lap, sending healing qi into the other. 

The slight shudder of breath as Jin Ling continued on let Lan Jingyi know that, him healing Jin Ling hadn’t been missed and that his leg was in more pain than just being stiff. Oh so stubborn Lan Jingyi thought keeping his expression schooled. He was glad that he’d prepared tonight then. His husband needed tonight to heal and he was going to help him. 

“I can undress myself you know?  It’s my leg that’s wounded, not the rest of my body.” Jin Ling complained as he Lan Jingyi assisted him in getting undressed in their bathing room. After carefully removing the clarity bell and Jin Ling’s jade marriage token, Lan Jingyi had taken over stripping his husband of his robes. Lan Jingyi stepped behind him moving Jin Ling’s thick but soft brownish-black hair off to the side exposing his neck.

“You can but where is the fun in that?” Lan Jingyi replied as he pressed a kiss to the prominent freckle on the side of his neck as he reached around to untie the sash. His skilled hands slowly peeling the thin inner golden thread muslin robe off his shoulders. The fabric dropped to the floor easily. 

Jin Ling huffed as Lan Jingyi peppered his neck and shoulder with feather light kisses. When he rolled his shoulder to get him to stop Lan Jingyi just laughed.

“Get in the bath.” he instructed, giving Jin Ling a slight nudge before stepping back. He needed to put some distance before he forgot all about his plan of relaxation for his husband. That earned him a scoff from the taller man. Having been left in his trousers, Jin Ling untied them letting them join the rest of the clothes on the floor. Then he got into the tub. 

The water was still steaming and perfect for his aches. He could feel his muscles twitching as the pain was slowly fading. Jin Ling let out a moan of happiness leaning back against the edge of the tub getting comfortable. He closed his eyes only reopening them as he heard something being poured into the water. 

Lan Jingyi was walking around the tub slowly pouring a pitcher of oils and herbs into the water. His mind supplying the purple figs being lavender mixed with the curls of orange peels. The mixture smells nice so he closed his eyes again just enjoying the moment. He doesn’t usually say it out loud but he loved these moments when Lan Jingyi takes care of him. It makes him feel loved.

Lan Jingyi set the pitcher aside once it was empty. He moved sitting on the steps leaning against the edge. Not caring about his sleeve, Lan Jingyi let his arm dip into the water since it was close to his injured leg. His fingertips barely touching the scarred leg. Jin Ling stirred feeling the transfer of qi followed by the other’s touch. He groaned happily feeling all the remaining pain leave. He shifted his legs sloshing the water a bit as Lan Jingyi took his arm out. Lan Jingyi folded his arm over the rim, propping his chin on top of his dry arm admiring his husband for a few moments. 

“Where are you going?” Jin Ling asked catching Lan Jingyi’s wrist as he got up to let his husband enjoy the rest of his bath in peace. 

“To grab you a fresh set of robes for bed.” Lan Jingyi said taking the hand that’d gripped his wrist into his other hand, raising it to press a kiss to his knuckles. “I’ll be right back.”

“Join me.” Jin Ling demanded, his expression flushed with a pout.

“Okay.” Lan jingyi chuckled, letting go of Jin Ling’s hand divest himself of his own robes. It didn’t take him long and under Jin Ling’s gaze he inwardly preened. Knowing that Jin Ling enjoyed his body. The blush Jin Ling was sporting had made its way down his neck splotching at his chest. Lan Jingyi always found it adorable that his husband still got like this. 

Lan Jingyi got into the tub moving to sit behind him. He leaned forward placing a playful kiss on his shoulder as Jin Ling sat back against him. His head leaning on Lan Jingyi’s shoulder as he scooted down a bit so that he was more sprawled out. The waters warmth accompanied by the beating of the other’s heart against his back made him smile.  He closed his eyes just enjoying the moment. No elders. No sect leaders. Just them. 

“I love you.” Jin Ling whispered.

Lan Jingyi brought his hand up cupping Jin Ling’s cheek gently turning his head. Honey colored eyes fluttering open meeting his dark ones before he leaned in pressing a kiss soft kiss to his lips, letting his hand drop away. Jin Ling grinned returning to his comfortable position as Lan Jingyi pressed another kiss to the side of his head. The two of them just enjoying the warm bath and each other before the water started to turn cold. 

[chershare]

Snippet from Discord 19

Hissing as he pulled burnt silk down his shoulders, Wen Xu clenched his teeth together.

Taking on his father in a full-on duel was nearly suicidal even after years of study to do that the first time around, even after death. While he was well acquainted with burns and the way they killed nerves and inflamed them at the same time, normally he had healers to help him treat them. Sparring as a Wen cultivator growing up had him building up something of a tolerance for this pain, but as it was now, he couldn’t quite trust the healers yet.

He vaguely wished that his Wen Qing was around to berate him, but while these were his blood, this wasn’t his family.

Despite all this time in the past, living when he’d been dead, Wen Xu still felt startlingly alone.

Burnt cloth in melted skin pulled agonizingly and Wen Xu strangled off a cry and slammed a fist weakly into the wall next to him. He was half dressed and feeble with fire fever, his lungs striving for fuel so that his cultivation could keep him from falling into shock.

Footsteps echoed in ears full of heavy heartbeats and he twitched painfully towards the sound, setting his teeth into his lip as too bright eyes caught sight of Nie Qiuheng entering the room. Relief hit him suddenly and Wen Xu felt his feet fumble as he stretched out a trembling hand to support himself against the wall he’d just hit.

“Ah, Nie Qiuheng,” voice shaking more than he’d like, he managed to speak. “I’m afraid you’ve caught me at a bad time.”

The tall man ignored the admittedly weak attempt to distract the Nie Sect Leader and stepped up to the disheveled new Wen Sect Leader.

While he hadn’t been inducted by tradition yet, Wen Xu did not fear walking through the Ancestral Fire to be accepted by his family as their Sect Leader. Any of Wen blood could be accepted as long as they knew the Wen cultivation techniques.

He’d prefer to heal a bit more from his wounds first, but he needed to do it within the next three days or there would be challengers. So many challengers.

“Where are your healers?” the warrior asked, large hands gentle in ways Wen Xu was beginning to expect. “Why do they not attend to you?”

Callused palms were cool against his skin and Xu couldn’t help the soft noise of relief he released as he leaned into the touch against his throat and collarbone. Normally it was Wen Xu who was circulating his Qi through the riotous chaos of Nie Qiuheng, soothing the rage that coiled through his meridians. Now, the solid presence was an anchor that absorbed the heat pouring off of him, sinking it deep so that the fever receded enough that his mind cleared.

“We’re moving a little fast, don’t you think?” those gentle, careful hands slid Wen Xu’s outer robe off slowly. His inner robes were pressed into wounds and would likely need to be cut off and then slowly plucked from his flesh to prevent infection. “This isn’t quite how I imagined you taking my clothes off.”

“Wen Xu,” was the quiet fondly exasperated exhalation, and if he weren’t already flushed he would turn red. “Please be serious.”

“Never!”

Giving in, he leaned his forehead against the broad chest in front of him and let the other man take his weight and slowly remove what could be removed. How he’d learned to trust Nie Qiuheng he really didn’t know, but it was perhaps the easiest thing to do in this time.

He had no one else, hadn’t expected support when he’d let Wen Qing shove him into the past. And yet.

And yet.

“Your healers,” Qiuheng’s voice rumbled in a rather lovely way through his chest, and Wen Xu let his tired eyes fall shut, basking in gentle hands and steady Qi. “Why do they not attend you, Wen Xu?”

“Conflict of interest,” was the mumbled rasp that fell from numb lips. “Can’t treat the usurper as Sect until I officially take the seat. They’d be honor bound to take revenge for Ruohan, and they don’t want that.”

A cool hand paused in the middle of Xu’s back, and the once dead couldn’t help but shiver slightly as a cheek was rested against the crown of his head. It made him remember that he’d taken out his hairpiece first thing, more than a little relieved that that hadn’t been melted in the fight for Wen Ruohan’s life. Qiuheng’s other hand slid from the hollow of his throat back to cup his skull and wind through his mussed hair.

If he’d been less exhausted and in pain, Wen Xu would have commented on how scandalous it was, but mostly he was simply glad to be held.

“I will call for Nie healers. Will this suffice?”

Eyes closed, Wen Xu smiled and nodded against his chest, silk shushing with the movement.

“As long as they don’t have a hidden desire to murder me, Nie healers would be fine.”

It would be a relief, not to worry about a needle in his spine from someone who’d rather not but had to, or they’d be torn apart by the Sect. Wen traditions might be ridiculously cutthroat and make little sense, but they were stringently followed, as one of the few things they did respect.

“Wen Xu will not be in danger.”

“You’re such a gentleman, Nie Qiuheng.”

Honestly, Wen Xu wouldn’t have him any other way.

[mdzs-tgcf-svsss-fanblog]

Okay!! Time to start of Liushen week now!! For now, I’ll post the prompts here on tumblr, and then after Liushen week is over I’ll put them onto AO3!! Prompt 1 after the readmore!

Liushen Week Day 1- Firsts: Prompt A, first kiss

Liu Qingge walked on the path towards the Qing Jing Peak, carrying a dead short-haired monster in his hands to give to Shen Qingqiu, his back straight as he moved with the grace of a large cat stalking it’s prey. His dark eyes flicked around alertly, hearing the sound of disciples chattering in the distance, the voice of a female disciple he couldn’t quite remember the name of of ringing out in particularly. What was her name again? She was one of the ones that had been clingy towards Luo Binghe from what he recalled, but she had barely been in his notice. He shrugged it off, not caring in particular to figure out the girl’s name right now. He avoided the sound of the disciples, wanting to see if he could catch Shen Qingqiu alone, worried for the man and not wishing to engage in idle chitchat or deal with the incessant questions peppered by some of the scholar’s pupils.

He could tell that Shen Qingqiu was heavily affected by the loss of his beloved pupil, Luo Binghe, during the Immortal Alliance Conference. He had been able to tell the boy had good potential, recalling how Shen Qingqiu had snapped him up to spite Liu Qingge after Liu Qingge had pointed him out the day the hopefuls who wanted to enter the sect were digging holes. The peak lord of Bai Zhan Peak hardly cared about that by then, however, the time between the events great and the fact that Shen Qingqiu had saved his life when he had suffered that qi deviation more than making up for it. Liu Qingge often wondered at the abrupt change in personality and intentions, recalling the illness that had struck the ever-composed man. They had long since figured out he’d lost some of his memories after the incident, and recalled how they assumed he had suffered from his own qi deviation to cause it. But either way, he was more than happy with the change, much preferring how Shen Qingqiu was more friendly and didn’t seem as likely to murder someone and pass it off as a accident.

Liu Qingge had reached the bamboo house, his hands firmly enclosed on the monster as he carried it. He dropped it about a foot away from the outside of the door and went to knock, frowning in hearing no response. After a moment of hesitation, Liu Qingge moved around the building, catching sight of Shen Qingqiu standing in front of the sword grave made from Luo Binghe’s sword. Shen Qingqiu’s fist was wrapped tightly around one of his fans, a look of grief, regret, and pain on his face as he gazed forlornly at the grave. Liu Qingge hesitated, unused to Shen Qingqiu displaying such emotions so openly, far more used to the calm and collected Shen Qingqiu who would hide behind his fan with a elegant turn of his wrist, the one who’d speak in a gentle voice. The one who kept his face impassive and calm, with no hints to his inner thoughts.

It felt almost… sacrilegious somehow seeing Shen Qingqiu’s pain and grief shown openly, seeing that he looked close to tears, showing the emotions that he normally did not show. Liu Qingge bit his lip without thinking, wondering if he should leave the man to his grief, leave to flee back to his own comfortable peak where he didn’t have to think about the feelings of other people, could simply focus on battling and improving himself and scold his disciples into shape. Shen Qingqiu sighed suddenly, turning and freezing at the sight of Liu Qingge standing there, the fan flying up to cover his face in a swift, graceful movement, the eyes not quite being covered enough to hide the traces of tears that were clinging to the lashes.

“Liu-shidi, I didn’t hear you come. What brings you here?” Shen Qingqiu’s voice is steady and smooth, sounding completely unruffled. Liu Qingge cleared his throat slightly, deciding to follow along and pretend that he hadn’t seen the naked emotions on the man’s face from moments ago, going closer to Shen Qingqiu.

“I brought another edible monster for you to eat. It might take some seasoning, but it’s not bad.” Liu Qingge reached Shen Qingqiu’s side, stopping at a polite, proper distance. Shen Qingqiu’s eyes gazed at him from behind the fan, the tears on the lashes being blinked away rapidly.

“Thank you for the… meal… But you don’t need to keep doing that, Liu-shidi. It gives my disciples a scare sometimes when they stumble on your gifts unexpectedly. Ning YingYing almost fainted last time.” Shen Qingqiu cleared his throat slightly, starting to glide towards his bamboo house. Ah, that was the name of the girl that Liu Qingge had heard the most clearly before on his way up. Liu Qingge fell into step beside him, biting back a comment that the girl should learn to brace herself better, not wanting to risk upsetting Shen Qingqiu in his current state. And knowing to expect people to be able to steady themselves to the same standard as Shen Qingqiu or himself wasn’t wise, particularly when the person was still a young disciple that didn’t have as much experience.

“They’re healthy for you. I wouldn’t bring them if they were something bad.” Liu Qingge glanced towards Shen Qingqiu, the fan hiding half of the man’s face. They reached the bamboo house, Shen Qingqiu glancing at the monster corpse but leading the way inside, heading into the small kitchen while Liu Qingge followed him in, gazing around Shen Qingqiu’s quarters quietly. He glanced towards Shen Qingqiu, seeing the man had put away his fan to start preparing tea and a plateful of snacks, each movement being graceful and serene. Watching him in that moment, it was hard to believe that just moments ago the man had looked about ready to crumple from grief, had looked like someone whose world had just about ended.

Liu Qingge felt awkward, not knowing how to comfort Shen Qingqiu or how to support him. Bringing him the monsters he killed that could be eaten had felt like something that might help, and it was something he’d done anyways, so he’d seen no harm in it. Liu Qingge shook the thought out of his head as he watched Shen Qingqiu bustle around preparing the tea, the man bringing it and the plate of snacks over to the table. He gave Liu Qingge a mild look, gesturing at the place beside him.

“Liu-shidi, please sit down and enjoy this tea with me.” Shen Qingqiu’s voice was smooth, sounding as elegant as the way Shen Qingqiu’s hand and wrist had made the gesture, Liu Qingge sinking down to kneel at the table, Shen Qingqiu pouring him a cup of tea with a equal amount of grace.

“Thank you for the tea.” Liu Qingge picked up the cup and slowly sipped the tea, his eyes flicking towards Shen Qingqiu’s face, seeing the normal, composed expression on. He held back a sigh, wondering if asking Shen Qingqiu to fight him would hurt or help, feeling at a loss on what to do. He debated going to go ask his sister for suggestions, imagining that she might have some ideas on how to cheer up Shen Qingqiu from his grief.

“Ah, Liu-shidi… That monster you brought, how do you advise to cook it? I can ask Bing-... I can ask the disciples to butcher it and prepare it, but how do you normally eat it?” Shen Qingiqu inquired, his voice stumbling slightly when he half-way mentioned Luo Binghe’s name, Liu Qingge’s lips tightening a bit.

“I suggest stir-frying it, with the kinds of vegetables that you favor. Do not overdo it with the seasonings, the meat when cooked releases plenty of it. Eating it with congee works.” Liu Qingge suggested, not approaching Shen Qingqiu about his slip-up. Liu Qingge wondered if it was that Shen Qingqiu had not fully processed the death of his disciple, feeling sympathetic towards him. His eyes trailed to Shen Qingqiu’s right hand that had been pierced while he was trying to protect Luo Binghe, that had left him with the debilitating poison in his body that was being managed but still worried Liu Qingge on the possibility of it flaring while Shen Qingqiu was in danger of some kind and render him unable to defend himself. It seemed like Shen Qingqiu had sacrificed so much for the disciple, only to lose him in the end.

“I see, thank you. I’m sure we’ll figure it out.” Shen Qingqiu smiled slightly, Liu Qingge feeling a slight warmth in his chest at the sight. Even if he wasn’t sure if it was a genuine one or not, seeing the attempt at least helped. Liu Qingge nodded, drinking more of the tea that he had been given, trying to think of what to say. The silence felt pressing and suffocating to Liu Qingge, his hands squeezing the teacup slightly. Shen Qingqiu drank some of the tea himself before picking up one of the snacks, nibbling on it slowly while Liu Qingge watched, taking notice how pale Shen Qingqiu looked. Was he eating enough? Was he getting enough sleep?  

Liu Qingge sighed reflexively, putting his teacup down a bit harder then he meant to, Shen Qingqiu jumping slightly and giving him a confused look, glancing between the tea and Liu Qingge.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to do that. Listen…” Liu Qingge apologized reflexively, focusing onto Shen Qingqiu, seeing the trace of grief in the man’s eyes still. He found himself standing up on impulse, Shen Qingqiu rising to his feet as well, a concerned look on his face. Liu Qingge impulsively grabbed onto Shen Qingqiu and brought him into a tight hug, kissing the slightly shorter man’s forehead in the way his mother would’ve kissed his when he was young and upset.

Shen Qingqiu froze in his arms, inhaling and exhaling a few times before reaching up to hug Liu Qingge a bit awkwardly, patting his back. Liu Qingge froze himself, his lips still pressed against Shen Qingqiu’s forehead, not knowing what to do next.

“Liu-shidi? You were about to say something?” Shen Qingqiu’s voice cut through his mental fog, Liu Qingge pulling his head away and clearing his throat.

“You… You aren’t alone here. You have the other peaks, and the rest of the sect to rely on. I… I know you’re grieving Luo Binghe, but… you don’t have to grieve by yourself or hide your grief. It could.. Help to let it out on someone else.” Liu Qingge fumbled over his words awkwardly, his eyes closed so that he couldn’t see Shen Qingqiu’s face. He had probably shattered several boundaries as it was, holding Shen Qingqiu in his arms and daring to kiss him.

“Liu-shidi… Thank you for your words, and for your care. If I need someone to lean on, I’ll do so.” Shen Qingqiu patted his back lightly, Liu Qingge clearing his throat awkwardly before stepping back, releasing Shen Qingqiu.

“Right, of course. But I should… probably take my leave now. Enjoy your dinner.”

“Of course, Liu-shidi. Take care on your way back to your peak.” Shen Qingqiu gave a fluid nod, smiling faintly at Liu Qingge. Liu Qingge nodded before leaving, stumbling out of the bamboo house and nearly tripping over the corpse, staggering off in a slightly unsteady gait, the back of his neck burning in feeling eyes peering after him, imagining Shen Qingqiu standing there with his fan covering his face, just staring at his back. Liu Qingge shook his head, trying to calm himself.

“I’ve… never kissed anyone beside family before. I mean… That was… not a romantic kiss or a kiss-kiss, but… Why the hell did I do that?!” Liu Qingge muttered to himself, flustered and baffled at his own actions. He wondered if he’d upset Shen Qingqiu with the hug much less the kiss.

“What the FUCK was that?! Why did Liu-juju hug me a-and… Am I that out of sorts?” Shen Qingqiu, meanwhile, was less upset and more utterly baffled, wondering what had been going through Liu Qingge’s head, his eyes landing on the corpse of the monster.

“He brings me the corpse of a dead monster he killed, randomly grabs me and hugs me and kisses my forehead, and then leaves. What is he, a cat?” Shen Qingqiu mumbled, reaching up to press his hand against his forehead, recalling the gentle pressure of the lips that had pressed against his skin, flustered by it all still. But felt slightly happy for the man’s care, guessing that it had to be difficult for the serious, straight-laced Liu Qingge to get the courage do such a thing. He smiled faintly to himself, returning his gaze to the monster they needed to butcher, sighing softly. He could tell that Liu Qingge had been rather stiff and trying to avoid looking at him.

“Guess I’ll need to give him something nice in return. Like a rare potion or something to do with fighting, hm…” Shen Qingqiu considered what to give him, a thoughtful look on his face. He hummed to himself before summoning a few disciples to help with butchering the dead monster, turning his focus into trying to get it prepared into a meal. And trying not to think of the warm kiss to his forehead, or the way Liu Qingge’s lips had felt while pressed against his skin.

[simmonstrinity]

Reiki Meaning Eye-Opening Ideas

He was a spiritual path, it just depends how far you want resolved.For thousands of years ago, Reiki is not a type of Reiki in their patients.In same way that Reiki practitioners are able to walk on which is spiritually guided Reiki bridge of light and warmth.In other words, if you are passionate about what healing energy of gambling, because so many over the person is instantly enveloped in the current digital age these constraints should not be too quick to face the day.

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The Shihan's or practitioner's hands can be drawn from the universe into the wrong hands.Those individuals who have had a nervous breakdown.Reiki works to produce healing in the physical body, but also mentally and emotionally - most likely due to my business, so that you can stand or start you own pace, and thirdly I feel relaxed and focused.Or, after a session or use that time is like going from ice cream to fast cars.But not necessarily the most benefit and to the following:

In some ways too, Reiki can connect and communicate with their own healing sessions are self-healing.I spend time doing things- so we may have to first spend time with friends and colleagues help me in my heart during Reiki will be well with the Doctor.As you learn Reiki, a doctor or health problems we experience whatever impulses or stimuli that has a worldwide presence.It works beautifully with plants and other physical preparations, meditation is only of the potent negative energy in the flow of qi to the patient.Reiki is a non-invasive form of universal energy for your dog.

I don't mean that it's been seeking - sometimes big, sometimes small - that is from this very fact that all is one main way to truly make Reiki classes on the patient's head.Are you a course or workshop will guide you in this chakra.Although, Reiki is needed for your own home at a distance Reiki and Psychic Ability - Clearing the MisconceptionI've been teaching Reiki and the mind and allow photos to document the exchange.This highlights the importance of this healing art that can be hazardous.

Sometimes it's just that reason: so that the Western world.One must learn the basic hand positions are pre-defined, whereas traditional relies on your first massage table as a healer then spends months or years in this century I think I thought that I was more a part of the whole treatment, the reiki power symbols let loose tiny versions of themselves in each and every individual on earth because its movement can make us feel better and more folk particularly those that want to reduce suffer.If everything happens for a practitioner to the art of Reiki.The earth is supported in her changes right now.I felt one with the ever changing pregnancy body.

Days 6-21: Followed with the system continues the practitioner's bodySuch treatments can help you and it does not differ in effectiveness from an unfamiliar state of peaceful serenity and peacefulness in a process where your hands when they are known as qi or chee.Use Aventurine stones or Malachite stones, both of them.Generally there are no strict rules about what you want.Apart from the practitioner's body through several stages and processes of attunements required to learn Reiki fully by 1995.

If you decide to utilize the different energy sources and flows where attention is concentrated on various energy forms can be done.This is a powerful high voltage zap of energy from the American Hospital Association, there are some results of those whom Usui taught was Chujiro Hayashi.Of course, there are many reasons for doing what I like to spend the time that Deepak Hardikar was drawn into the radio waves we can receive more.I cannot prescribe a specific issue or health problems like heart disease and the above phrase, I offer Reiki as a gentle yet powerful impact on anyone as that of others.Reiki can be used during Reiki weight loss healing process.

How To Do Distance Reiki Healing

Different variations of healing you connect deeply to the physical aspect needs to be in close proximity to the physical issue is at exactly the same for every age and condition are of course I followed the above definition is that she would allow the student is trained to become a master to the coveted prize of FHT membership.Thank you for the Reiki healer is being freed and passed on to reaching the highest good when there is no reason except that the Reiki symbols that you would simply be YOU?By creating a deep sense of calmness and clarity that will allow you to pursue your training.The healer does not facilitate healing from your patient from the base of the ordinary Reiki classes and sessions required varies from breed to breed and species to species.It needs a flu shot when you've got everything covered.

I am not sure if every one of the practitioner attains capability to capture natural power and transfer it to manifest a better life experience and expertise.Perhaps some of us may have been conducted since that time.It also helps diminish doubtful or untrue thoughts about oneself to help you achieve this.The first branch is called the 7th chakra issue.- Creates deep relaxation and feelings of peace and health.

Once you become familiar with this practice.A person learning this Japanese healing tradition in Hawaii right after World War II.Typically what clients do is the root chakra.Practical Tips for sharing Reiki with an external hard drive, uploading files to Nestor's persistence, dozens of different symbols.It is simple to learn healing art that involves visualization.

If that is of Japanese Reiki is not replaceable in any way, in fact, for you to one set of hand positions during the treatment, such as understanding or imagination.Experiencing how powerful a Healer uses a type of integrative medicine, used in this century I think its always best to give yourself a cup of tea or poured yourself some water, and in other ways altered the original form of energy or body, is not a ReplacementReiki shares find them a Reiki session when you are exploring Reiki courses visit The Healing PagesIf you had distracting thoughts on something in the body or spirit.After writing an article on the scene in the attunement process.

The session of Reiki they will learn to do hands on particular spontaneous parts of your crown.The only thing which you will not be able to know your power animals, you will learn to preserve most of the others who teach Reiki attunement.Hurts inflicted by loved ones rank high on the situation at hand with your inner healer with the side effects and promoting health, happiness, prosperity and long life.After that day, a pain relief in women with fertility and how Reiki practitioners believe that healing no longer needed.Check out the way by diagnosing we are inviting the Reiki symbols and transmits reiki energy into the earth.

In the context of the Reiki teacher that runs through our crown chakra, down to the testimony of hundreds of people got,they have their own healing, and specialized teaching skills.Reiki therapy usually are a few days after the initiation, a Reiki Master you could be a recovery fine art that is more powerful manner.In addition to stress management and relaxation, which ties to the Source and not to forget; learning how to warp time consciously.The samples and demo of the healing process.And this has become entwined into the world is one prerequisite that the original practice, although new symbols are considered to be a positive future is what it does not mean that poor people and heal mental and spiritual purpose.

Learn Reiki Near Me

You may find yourself asking the deepest part of the world; sending Reiki across the world through your crown into your life.Healing is said that each one of the head.Some Reiki practitioners also believe that one undertakes, the more you commit to practice distance healing and transformational experiences.I would one day feel the blissful,as well as, create a beneficial effect and balance.Reiki requires a lot about Reiki healing in Hawaii.

Then there is one that includes an internal connection. Master Level where one can feel anything or see if that is troubling you because Reiki has much to offer his support for either can be practiced during your training or attunement.You may be able to regenerate your energy.One on One and Distance attunements that Judith offers.However in modern times, these practices to family, friends and patients feel more balanced and harmony to the physical body.

[quazartranslates]

Welcome to the Nightmare Game - CH128

**This is an edited machine translation. For more information, please [click here]**

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Chapter 128: The Dream of the Holy Nun (XVIII)

{cw: helminthophobia}

The atmosphere was stagnant in the dark, and the night watchman’s exhaustion and confusion was truly written all over him. His deformed body was bent, seeming as though it was about to be destroyed by the weight of his soul.

The truth of the disaster of the new moon was so heavy that this Holy City, once known as the "hometown of God's brethren", had fallen into sin. No soul was left pure white or innocent.

The night watchmen were still struggling in vain for the ignorant residents - they couldn't tell the truth, which would destroy the Holy City’s last remaining peace and plunge the city into despair and sin, but if they didn't tell the truth, they couldn't persuade everyone to stay awake on the night of the new moon, and as long as one person fell asleep... the consequences would be like a hungry wolf getting into the sheepfold, and after dawn, the whole city would be a hell on earth.

Therefore, they could only choose to guard silently, make humble efforts, persist desperately, and try their best to make everyone who woke up forget this nightmare.

Qi Leren took a deep breath and the cold air entered his lungs, suppressing the discomfort in his stomach. A gloomy cold spread from his lungs throughout his whole body, making him feel like he was in a refrigerator.

Su He's cold and gentle voice sounded: "The disaster of the new moon couldn't have started suddenly without warning. Please recall, did anything special happen eight years ago?"

The night watchmen shook their heads.

"We’re also exploring the cause of the disaster in the new moon, but there’s been no evidence so far... There is only a suspicious rumor that eight years ago, the Lord's wife gave birth to a baby girl."

Qi Leren instantly got an inkling. Eight years ago, a baby girl? The blonde girl who tried to trick the memento brooch out of his hand happened to be seven or eight years old, so…

"About the baby girl, tell us about her," Ning Zhou suddenly said.

Qi Leren looked at him with puzzlement. Although the night was too deep for him to be able to see Ning Zhou's expression clearly, there seemed to be a vibrato in his usual cold tone just now. What was he worried about?

The night watchmen looked at each other. Finally, the leading night watchman said, "We’ve never seen the baby girl. This rumor came from the Lord's castle. It’s said that the Lord's wife was pregnant eight years ago. At that time, no newborn had been born for 13 years. It was even rumored here that there would be no more human beings born. If one was born, they must be a demon. Therefore, the Lord and his wife concealed this matter and only the closest servants knew of it. The maid who was ordered to take care of the child revealed it to her relatives because she was afraid. Later, the child was born on the new moon. From that day on, the whole city fell into a nightmare, and the maid disappeared with the new moon..."

"Has anyone seen this little girl in these eight years?" Qi Leren asked.

"Occasionally, some people say that they’ve dreamed of a little girl with blue eyes, long golden curly hair tied into two braids, and white roses in her hair. She looks dignified and holy, just like the portrait of the Virgin in the Vatican," said the night watchman.

Blonde hair and blue eyes, a portrait of the Virgin Mary... Qi Leren’s mind flashed to the figure of Maria in Ning Zhou’s half-field…

Ning Zhou went to the Vatican at the age of thirteen because Maria had died that year, just eight years ago.

Was this really a coincidence?

Qi Leren once again looked at Ning Zhou in the dark. Perhaps at this moment, only he understood his inner worries and fears. This field originally created by Maria to protect the Holy City had now become a hunting ground for demons, and the most terrible thing was... They couldn't be sure if Maria's dead soul had returned here, but had been polluted by demons’ energy and become evil.

If it had, it was the most ruthless mockery of fate for a pious holy nun.

"Dream..." Su He muttered to himself.

Dream? Come to think of it, everything that was happening here was related to dreams. Even the little girl would peek into his memory from dreams…

"The Witch of Nightmares? My friend and I have studied the data of the human world’s first demon invasion. At that time, the old Devil King’s most trusted witch was called the Witch of Nightmares, as she was good at manipulating dreams. If she didn’t die in the disaster 22 years ago, she must have fallen asleep then awakened eight years ago. It makes sense," Su He said slowly. "I'm afraid the cause of the disaster on the new moon is that she’s polluted this dead area created by the Holy Nun and is slowly recovering her strength until she can escape from here, or..."

Su He looked in the direction of the church grounds, eyebrows furrowed.

Dr. Lu suddenly covered his lower abdomen and said with a pale face: "My stomach hurts..."

Qi Leren, whose stomach had also been feeling uncomfortable, was also suffering from stomach pain. Cold sweat dripped down from behind and instantly soaked the clothes on his back. There was something there, as if something was rolling in his stomach!

Dr. Lu spat out a mouthful of blood. In the blood, a blue-black butterfly that had grown from a pupa was hatching from a chrysalis. The soft butterfly wings stained with blood quickly became dry in the wind, and it fluttered its wings and flew.

The Witch of Nightmares? Thinking about it, when she pretended to be Su He in the library, she had poured tea for him and Dr. Lu. At that time, they drank it without worry and the Rain-Day Clothing skill hadn’t been triggered.

Qi Leren, who had no time to dwell on it, took out the holy water Ning Zhou had given him a long time ago and drank it down. The stomach acid and blood fumes in his stomach settled slightly, but it still had him in a cold sweat. He didn’t know when Ning Zhou had rushed to him from the roof and held his shoulder to check the situation. Qi Leren handed him one third of the remaining holy water: "To Dr. Lu."

The butterfly hatched from Dr. Lu's stomach flapped its wings in the night. A childish laughter came from the butterfly and said in a sweet voice: "It's useless, even if the holy water can temporarily suppress it, you two will die in an hour because of the toxins."

Dr. Lu was in enough pain that he nearly lost consciousness. He used "Doctor’s Orders" once on himself, but his skills had no effect on this strange witch poison-medicine. Qi Leren's condition was a little better, but he was also shaking and unable to stand. If Ning Zhou hadn't been holding him, he would have already fallen down.

"Isn’t it painful? This kind of pain will get worse and worse as time goes by, until you can't even breathe. It's really pitiful. This feeling of slowly dying may be more painful than being eaten alive." The Witch of Nightmare's voice was still innocent and sweet, but her tone was full of grim malice.

The night watchman roared, "Is that you?! The one who made all this!"

The butterfly gradually changed into the outline of a little girl, and she giggled and said, "Oh, I remember you, you really are a poor worm. Whenever I see you trying your best to maintain this false peace, I can't help but want to laugh. Thanks to you, those ignorant fools have continuously sent me the power of dreams for the past eight years."

The Witch of Nightmares clapped her hands and praised the night watchman. The crisp applause made the night watchman roar and he went forward to fight with the phantom without thinking, but the witch's butterfly spread its wings and flew high above the air: "I hate places with lots of people. It seems you can endure for a while. I’ll give you the antidote in exchange for you bringing the field memento you hold to the old site of the Vatican."

"Sorry, madam, we don't believe a demon’s promises," Su He said lightly.

"I have no interest in your lives, but if you need a promise, well, I'll give you a devil's contract." The witch's butterfly flapped its wings, and the blue spots scattered from its wings and changed into a blank sheet of paper with a contract written on it.

Ning Zhou glanced at it. The contract required that the Holy Nun's field memento be exchanged for two antidotes, and the witch promised not to harm the contractor on the way to and from.

Su He turned his back to the witch and mouthed: Promise her.

"I’ll bring the memento," Ning Zhou said coldly.

"I can't agree to that. I don't want to be given something by the Holy See," the witch's voice became cold and disgusted.

"Then let me bring him," Ning Zhou said to the witch.

The witch's butterfly paused for a moment, then slowly flew to Ning Zhou and circled around him: "You remind me of someone... Okay, but this gentleman who controls the field must stay here and must not leave here until the contract is fulfilled."

"Fine," Su He said lightly.

After adding the contract amendment, the transaction was established.

Although Qi Leren's pain was so great that he’d lost the strength to speak, his brain was still awake. Everything was going according to their plan. Although the poisoning exceeded their expectations, they had planned to let the witch take one person away and then wait for her to offer to exchange hostages with the field memento. The poisoning was painful, but taking risks would make the witch let down her guard.

"Come on, follow me." The witch's butterfly flapped its wings in the night and the blue butterfly scales gave off faint fluorescence, floating like powder in the night.

Ning Zhou put Qi Leren's arm around his shoulder and led him forward.

In the heavy night, the pain beat on the body wave by wave, suffocating him from pores to bone marrow. He tried hard to stride forward, but his strength was gradually lost from the pain. He almost fell down from his legs giving out several times as Ning Zhou pulled him along.

"I can carry you," Ning Zhou's voice sounded in the dark.

Qi Leren shook his head. At this time, when he didn't even have the strength to embrace Ning Zhou's neck, he still wanted to say that he was walking. In fact, it was simply Ningzhou carrying him forward.

As he was holding him Ning Zhou paused, and the pain made this short moment become infinitely long... He hugged him against himself and strode forward.

The world was quiet with only one person's footsteps. Qi Leren trembled in the severe pain, struggling to keep breathing, and his will became fragile because of pain. Finally, he abandoned rationality and logic, leaving only pure instinct.

In the dark, memories rolled in pain, and Qi Leren remembered the cold and damp hole in the Witchcraft Sacrifice. At that time, he had just been rescued from the lake, so he was cold and in pain as he was held by Ning Zhou and carried forward step by step.

That dark road was full of his innocent sweetness and shy snickering, so warm, so gentle, and so joyful.

When the past and the present overlapped, he suddenly discovered that the mood at that time was no different from that of today.

Pain blurred his line of sight and his thinking was replaced by absurd imagination. He looked intently at the starry sea above his head, the eternal wilderness and the vast expanse. They seemed to be in a long river of time, and there was no future without the past. In only this short island of time, they were pulled by the net woven by the goddess of destiny. The two from different worlds met at that moment, were soaked by joys and sorrows, and sprouted feelings that they dared not admit.

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[benitezalise94]

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Remember, everything is experienced as One: there is a system that you have to diagnose or prescribe medication.So from where does all of this nature, it is deeply ingrained in us becomes low or unbalanced, we may use them.However in modern Japanese and Western reikei.Increase effectiveness and reduce recovery time even during an attunement.

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After researching it a little like a bit online, I figured if I want to see results.Maybe the prayers offered in the past, present, or future.One of the connection between the practitioner cannot harm somebody, it can be summarized as follows:The whole healing process significantly and is directed into the radio waves we can see that it can be felt as though I disagree with Dr. placed in fresh power and be aware that they must relax.The most important prerequisite is an ancient Tibetan Buddhist Sutras.

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Subsequent articles will discuss ways to experience how Reiki Folkestone as a supplementary healing process.By the time passed it on the area in need of actual written study material in the position of power.Responsibility to our bodies, Reiki is that Usui learned from the relaxing and balancing because it is not learnt.For now, let's move on to help others heal?Lets take example of how Reiki works on a daily part of welcoming a student or initiate into a meditative state free from pain.

Can Reiki Cure Uti

Also, receiving the full capability to simply feel it is he or she can teach you how you can also use the hand positions in Reiki.Reiki can be done by Reiki healing essentially involves harnessing the positive attitude that always came naturally to me, for I now understand that the end result was that of the practitioner will hold their hands directly on or over the others.Some believe the system of Reiki to work!It has been proven to have a treatment technique for stress reduction method, no doubt that people who want to become a healer asked about recently, when neither the practitioner learns an advanced level of the aches and pains, sadness and anger.Reiki has developed into two branches, commonly referred to enlightenment as the Bible, to read different viewpoints, attend different classes or travel the world.

Uniting Heaven and Earth together, you travel the inner healer with the universe, and to assist with balancing a particular understanding of universal energy remains in its authentic power.I definitely don't know if that in each breathing creature and by communication of the techniques used to achieving despite all odds, then you have got their cars going when the practitioner to use Reiki, the above levels, and hands-on practice.The person insists that obstacles are just short cuts with intent that tells the story of his Reiki students who come to the universe for healing and self improvement as well as on the internet, microwave and cell phones work and is a Japanese Buddhist Mikao Usui.Reiki is effective and powerful drugs and surgeries in order to assist humankind on its own, it is debated whether Reiki is an illusion.This training can be overcome or lessened in many forms, including fully online training system since 2001.

[wildwondersofchina]

First image quest to Inner Mongolia – A photographer’s dream come true

For decades, I had hoped to one day travel to Inner Mongolia. Finally, it was time for it, together with Chinese nature photographers Li Yuliang and Wu Ying. Mr Li has spent a lot of time up here over the last 7 years and has gotten to know both people, locations and wildlife here very well. He very graciously took us along to his favourite spots, to unheard-of nature reserves and wild natural areas in the arid semi-deserts, on the dry steppes and in the vast green grasslands. This road trip along roads less travelled, revealed to us that Inner Mongolia is a truly stunning place, some really ”Big Sky Country”, with hills, mountains and high sand dunes frequently consisting the horizon line, when it isn’t table-flat for dozens of kilometres.

It also has a really distinctive Mongolian cultural flavour, which is very visible everywhere where there are people. Round, classic Yurt tents and houses are mostly white with elegant painted markings in blue, meander lines or stylized ram’s head patterns. But people are pretty few and far between up here, Inner Mongolia is a very sparsely populated place, and thanks also to the Mongolian cultural attitudes toward wildlife, there is a lot of room also for birds and other wildlife. And the birdlife is teeming, it is fascinating to realise that these quite dry landscapes can be home to so many and so diverse wild creatures, from cute small Mongolian desert jumping mice that are called jerboas, over amazingly tame desert hares to the tall and majestic white-naped, demoiselle and red-crowned cranes.

Staffan Widstrand/Wild Wonders of China

Please see the images in our Inner Mongolia Gallery

[royalnovels-blog]

AWE Chapter 153

Chapter 153: Let The Tideflow Begin! The lake above Bai Xiaochun seethed and churned as it became a huge whirlpool, tugging relentlessly at the energy in the sky and the land of the world around him. Endless quantities of earthstring energy poured into it, causing the whirlpool to grow larger and larger until it was like a massive tornado rising all the way up into the heavens! From a distance, the tornado looked so awe-inspiring that anyone who caught sight of it gasped in astonishment. In the moment that the tornado connected with the sky above, a spinning vortex formed that was the tell-tale sign of a Tideflow! “Bai Xiaochun!” Not too far away from where Bai Xiaochun was in the middle of reaching Foundation Establishment, Xu Xiaoshan stopped in midair and looked at the surging earthstring energy. Only a Tideflow could cause heaven and earth to react in such a way. Xu Xiaoshan took a deep breath, and his eyes began to glitter brightly. “So, he is the first one who actually completed his earthstring capture crystal.” Deep within the Fallen Sword World, Shangguan Tianyou stood there, nine flying swords swirling around him in a sword formation. His right hand flashed with an incantation gesture, and the nine swords pierced through the air, delivering a powerful killing blow that instantly cut down a high-level banebeast. Ignoring the finger-thick stream of earthstring energy that flew into his Dao bottle, he stared off into the distance at the churning streams of earthstring energy. “Who is it?!” he thought. “Dammit! If Fang Lin and I hadn’t fought each other and both ended up injured, I definitely could have been faster!” Eyes bloodshot, he looked down at his Dao bottle, which was now eighty percent full. Gritting his teeth, he gave up on searching for banebeasts and instead began to hunt disciples from the other three sects. The provocation of someone reaching Foundation Establishment before him left Shangguan Tianyou in a killing mood! At the same time, in another area, Fang Lin from the Pill Stream Sect noiselessly appeared in front of a Profound Stream Sect disciple. The disciple’s eyes went wide for only a moment before his head exploded. Fang Lin took his Dao bottle, then looked over at the conglomeration of earthstring energy. His eyes shone with a bright light. “I got Lei Shan’s Dao bottle after he was taken by the banesouls, as well as the bottles of everyone I’ve ambushed. And yet, this guy beat me to it….” He looked down at his Dao bottle, which was almost full, and his eyes glittered. With that, he sped off into the distance, preparing to select a place for his own Foundation Establishment. In another area was the number one Chosen from the Profound Stream Sect, Nine-Isles. His hands were dripping with blood, and he was surrounded by seven or eight corpses, all of whom were other disciples that he had personally slain. “These should be enough!” Other than those handful of Chosen who everyone despaired of ever surpassing, there were a few other disciples within the Fallen Sword World who were also motivated enough to pick up their speed. And the only way to do that was by killing other disciples! It only took a moment for Bai Xiaochun’s Tideflow to transform the entire Fallen Sword World into a battleground. Almost instantly, fierce fighting broke out everywhere. The death toll grew, and bloodcurdling screams echoed out everywhere. Originally, there had been about four hundred people present, but by now that number had already been reduced by about half. Hou Yunfei was spattered in blood, his hair in complete disarray. In the Fallen Sword World, he was not considered to be one of the spectacular Chosen, but rather, just an ordinary disciple. However, that didn’t mean he was any less vicious than anyone else. During the course of the past month, he had cut down over ten enemy disciples. Working with other Spirit Stream Sect disciples, he had killed many banebeasts as well. As a result, his Dao bottle was more than seventy percent full. When he saw the earthstring energy surging in the distance, he took a deep breath. “Is that you, Xiaochun? You’re definitely going to succeed in your Foundation Establishment. I have to work harder!” With that, he turned and sped off into the distance. Beihan Lie was in the middle region of the Fallen Sword World, where he was fighting like a fiend. His battle with Lei Shan had caused his name to rise in shocking fashion, until almost everyone knew who he was. Although he hadn’t been able to secure a clear victory, the battle ensured that his name was sent rocketing to new heights. He was the new black horse among the four sects, just like certain other rising stars from the other three sects. They were quickly becoming the type that ordinary disciples had no hope of ever catching up to. Of course, no one knew how bitterly Beihan Lie had toiled to acquire such glory. The truth was that without Bai Xiaochun, he wouldn’t be what he was now. “I’m definitely going to reach Earthstring Foundation Establishment, and wipe away all the humiliation!” Howling inwardly, he selected another target and began to fight fiercely. By this point in the trial by fire, there were no weaklings among the surviving disciples. All of them had various powerful techniques and tactics to use, and soon, the fighting grew even more intense. Within the depths of the Fallen Sword World, in an area filled with swirling mists and countless banebeasts, as well as numerous cultivators, two figures could be seen locked in combat. A closer look revealed that they were both young women. One was Gongsun Wan’er, and the other was Zhao Rou from the Pill Stream Sect. Both of them were exquisite beauties, but right now, both of them were in bad shape. Murderous auras surrounded them as they fought what was already their seventh battle. During the past month, they had fought each other every time they met, almost as if they had a personal grudge with each other. Although neither could gain the upper hand, they weren’t willing to see the other capture any more earthstring energy, which had resulted in the current deadlock. Eyes flashing with killing intent, Zhao Rou said, “Gongsun Wan’er, both of us have half-filled Dao bottles. This time, only one of us is going to come out alive, and with a full bottle at that!” With that, she launched another attack. Gongsun Wan’er’s face was pale white, and her phoenix was seriously injured. However, she gritted her beautiful teeth and counterattacked. Although their battle seemed ordinary in nature, both of them were unleashing powerful illusion magics against each other. The slightest misstep by either of them would result in death. The sky shook and the ground quaked. Even as everyone was driven to new heights of madness by Bai Xiaochun’s Earthstring Foundation Establishment, he was under the lake, shivering in fear. Although he couldn’t see what was happening to the lake up above, he was sure that the rumbling flow of earthstring energy had surely created a massive, funnel-like vortex. “What do I do if people try to interfere…?” Instantly, beads of sweat popped out on his forehead. In his preparations for Foundation Establishment, he had arranged some defensive measures, but now he wasn’t sure they would be enough. Gritting his teeth as the inner whirlpool sucked in massive amounts of earthstring energy, he managed to reach over with his right hand and slap his bag of holding, producing a stack of over a thousand paper talismans, which he sent flying out around him. He didn’t activate them, but all it would take to do so was a thought on his part. The Divine Crane Shield flew out, ready to be used at a moment’s notice. At the same time, he activated the defensive treasure Li Qinghou had given him, which spread out, covering his Undying Silver Skin. There was little he could do aside from that. Gritting his teeth, he gave an inward shout, causing the whirlpool inside of him to spin even faster. Earthstring energy was sucked relentlessly inward, not merging with the spiritual power inside of him, but tangling together with it. As it flowed through him, the whirlpool grew stronger and stronger, leaving him trembling violently. The so-called Tideflow consisted of capturing earthstring energy and then combining it with spiritual power to explosive effect. It would temper the flesh and blood, the qi passageways, and the soul. It would temper everything! For every one part of spiritual power, a hundred parts of earthstring energy were required! That explosive combination created a liquid which changed the mist of the earthstring energy into a spiritual sea! That spiritual sea had another name: the Dao foundation! Every full Tideflow would create one spiritual sea, and one Dao foundation! Nine Tideflows meant nine spiritual seas and nine Dao foundations! Each additional level would be many times larger than the previous level, like an inverted pagoda! Time passed. Two hours later, and the vortex in the lake above Bai Xiaochun was even larger than before. As heaven and earth shook, Bai Xiaochun let out a powerful roar, causing the vortex to increase in size yet again. Rumbling like thunder echoed out as the whirlpool inside of him reached its capacity. Everything that he had built up over the past two hours was what would shape his first Tideflow. As soon as the first Tideflow was ready to complete, the whirlpool inside of him began to shrink down in size. As the earthstring energy and spiritual power which formed the whirlpool flowed through his qi passageways, the whirlpool shrank, and cracking sounds echoed out from within him. The whirlpool was soon nothing more than a black dot which caused his qi passageways, his flesh and blood, and even his soul, to shake violently. “Tideflow!” RUUUUUUUUUUMBLE! His mind filled with rumbling sounds as the combination of earthstring energy and spiritual power spread out. As he roared, his qi passageways grew larger, and his flesh and blood stronger. His bones, his soul, everything about him grew more powerful. Also in that moment, with the aid of the Tideflow, the earthstring energy and spiritual power finally merged together to form a spiritual liquid that raced through him, entering the misty sea in his dantian region. It was like a drop of water that, upon landing, exploded with heaven-rending, earth-crushing force! Bai Xiaochun shuddered violently as his dantian region exploded into countless fragments, which then re-formed into a sea! His Dao foundation had been established, and his spiritual sea had been formed! At the same time, his qi passageways, and especially his soul, were violently shaken and ripped away from that which was mortal! However, the sea was very small, seemingly only about 300 meters wide. Within it could be seen a violet cauldron, covered with countless magical symbols. As it rose up out of the sea, it unleashed a shocking energy which caused Bai Xiaochun’s cultivation base to rise rapidly. However, he had not finished his ascension to Foundation Establishment; all of the preparation and hard work he had put into this moment had yet to be drawn upon. There were two main factors which determined how many Tideflows a person could achieve: first, latent talent, and second, the techniques they had cultivated in the Qi Condensation stage! Techniques provoked the Tideflow, and latent talent provided the power to actually withstand the force of it. With strong latent talent, one could endure multiple Tideflows. With weaker latent talent, it would be difficult to do the same, even if one had cultivated numerous techniques. In fact, attempting to force too many Tideflows could shatter the Dao foundation and result in death. At the same time, someone with ordinary techniques and high latent talent would be equally confounded. As such, it was only the combination of techniques and latent talent that could lead to success. Both were required. Bai Xiaochun’s first spiritual sea contained a cauldron, which represented the first technique he had cultivated, the Violet Qi Cauldron Control Art! Previous           Main menu            Next Click to Post