#the kid is too reasonable for xianxia

[natstarbuck]

[i-cant-cast-that-yet]

Y'know, I read a lot of Jiuyuan--or really just anything Shen Jiu in general, and Id like to pitch this idea to the class:

Disciple Shen Jiu who fuckin haaates men, right? Shen Jiu who goes to brothels to sleep bc he just can't around the other boys knowing full well how shit his reputation is bc of it but Fuck You he's gonna do what he has to to get some fucking rest on this shit ass peak of pretentious rich-kids who wouldn't know the tip of their sword from the hilt unless it was jammed in their throats--

Disciple Shen Jiu who's seen just about every flavor of man in the streets both from his nights with his jiejie's and from his time with the Qiu and the slavers, and loathes them with a passion and is, shamefully in his mind, afraid of them.

Standoffish, rude, holier than thou, venom spitting queen with a cruel streak a thinly veiled mile wide, Shen Jiu. A scum villain in the making.

Enter Disciple Shen Yuan.

Shen Yuan, in all his millennial transmigrator glory. Hikkikomori ass lame ass chokes on a meatbun and fucking croaks after reading a porn harem web novel for the fucking plot (cough-lbh-cough) Shen Yuan.

This rando ass dude with Shen Jiu's family name--no they aren't related stop asking, Shen Yuan why do you look grossed out do you wanna fight??--

Shen Yuan who doesn't get close to any of his shijie's, bc "Oh they're all gonna be in Bingge's harem at some point, I don't wanna steal the protagonists wives!!"

Shen Yuan, a shut-in nerd in his early to mid 20s, who also shirks any of his shixiong's attention for other reasons. He's not big on sports in the first place, and as cool as swords are they're fucking heavy!!! Where's the training montage skip button, system!?!? All this (ugh) comraderie...he just wants to stay in the library and pretend the scrolls are as interesting as zhongdian was, okay?

Shen Jiu, who sees these avoidant traits in a boy with his name and a face that looks like his and assumes Shen Yuan has the same traumas as him.

He hates men, Shen Yuan included for both the happenstance of his birth and also because he's an idiot, but now he's seeing more of him reflected in this dude and it itches.

Maybe he bullies Shen Yuan like he does Binghe. Maybe Shen Yuan, who isn't actually a teenager in his own head like lbh was and fucking hates the scum villain (he called for castration in one life and he'll do it again!! This life gave him cultivation and a sword, he'll get creative if he has to) fights back.

Puts all that time in the forums to good use and verbally eviscerates the guy. Hits on several sore topics all at once and if it wasn't for the very public scene being caused Shen Jiu might have killed this upstart instead of just throwing a punch and jumping him like he currently is.

And listen. Fighting between peaks is typical. The Qing Jing peak lord of the time could care less if Shen Jiu fights the Liu kid from Bai Zhan--there's history between the peaks as it is. But the two Shens beefing so publically?? That's bad for Qing Jing's image.

Shen Jiu might be hated, but Shen Yuan is adored by several key figures across the sect and this Shizun can't tell if the brat did it on purpose or not but it's troublesome either way. Shen Jiu is here on Zhangmen-shixiong's head disciples request, so she can't get rid of either of them.

So she strategizes. It's like her whole thing.

Qing Jing peak lord-jie sticks the Shen's in the xianxia equivalent of the get along shirt. She makes them go on missions together, do chores together, etc. They'll either snap and kill one another or become friends. She wins either way.

It's bad at first. Blood is drawn, fans are thrown and broken over heads. They're too alike and too different and Shen Jiu sees himself in this kid but also every rich boy who wastes their own potential and privilege that they can't realize they were blessed with and he haaates it. Shen Yuan is pissed bc this ass is cruel and awful but so fucking sympathetic once he's spent enough time around the guy to put some pieces together. Bro loves a problematic blorbo and Binghe was a lot of things in pidw, but the product of Shen Jiu's projection is chief among them and Shen Yuan is getting a whole lot of it right now and it puts a lot into perspective.

...................

This is getting away from me now. It's late. Maybe I'll pick this up later.

[verysium]

『02』 原神: genshin impact recs

魈: xiao

preta by @itoshisoup

"People think that ghosts are born exclusively of resentment, but they can also be born of love. Between those driven by resentment and those driven by love, which do you think cling most strongly to their suffering?" Xiao replies without pause, his gaze unfocused yet fixed upon something you cannot see. "Love." After a yaksha saves your life on the Plains of Guili, you insist on joining him in his war against the evils of Liyue. As the two of you encounter hungry ghosts and resentful spirits, you learn about the ones haunting him. notes: incomplete but intricately woven together; heavy emphasis on chinese culture, wuxia/xianxia genres; if you have watched any historical cdrama, you will like this fic; xingqiu and chongyun are wrapped up into the dynamic; xiao wishes to protect you for centuries; him and his paradoxes; not being strong enough to be considered invincible but still strong enough to try

公子: childe

thin ice by @falconcoast

childe is that senior frat boy on teyvat university’s campus. the one who majors in economics because he’s on scholarship to play sports. the one who is way too loud and you can hear him all the way across campus. the one who’s daddy’s money rich because he’s already sponsored, even while just in the ncaa. the one who manages to get everyone to swoon over him.  oh, right. and your favorite title for him: the one hockey captain who hogs all of your free time to skate after lessons because he always steals it.  all you want to do is do your job and teach skating lessons to the kids to keep your mind off the year-old mess with your figure skating, maybe even get an hour of skating in afterwards as a reward. that is, until the hockey coach sits you down and tells you that surprise! you’re the new team manager for liyue’s hockey team! ...it can’t be that hard to manage twenty or so boys and their captain, childe, right? spoilers: it absolutely is.  notes: wonderfully curated modern skating/hockey AU; childe is so american white boy in this; teucer being adorable; diluc and kaeya sibling dynamic is well-established; university and post-grad plans; figuring out your life and then working other people into it

国崩: scaramouche

tea screen by @after-witch

The trembling voice of the tea apprentice carries through the room, and though you can’t see him, you imagine he must be shaking. Who wouldn’t be, tasked with gaining the approval from the Sixth of the Eleven Fatui Harbringers?  notes: forced marriage and abuse; tea ceremony; sort of reminds me of the edo period; examination of womanhood within a patriarchal society; sexy, sad, and scary all at once; i pity the reader at the end; cycle of love and violence

a simple cup of tea by @after-witch

You have to be prepared and poised and perfect. But it’s hard to be all those things, even with the looming threat of your husband sitting next to you, when you’ve got a secret hidden underneath your clothes... notes: reader grapples with lust and objectification; unhealthy dynamic but portrayed realistically in an almost historical setting; reader is unable to separate her identity as wife apart from her husband; women being defined in the context of men; could be a social satire on traditional gender roles if you squint

love is a dog from hell by @itoshisoup

"A will is something you don't have. That's why you'll follow mine." notes: this fic is the reason why i do not think the concept of ownership in love would translate well into real life because it would be so self-destructive; reader struggles with aftermath of abuse and mistakes possession for protection; realistic depiction of unhealthy relationships; the fatui is exactly the dark criminal organization it is supposed to be; human trafficking and child sexual abuse; scaramouche is so goddamn funny i can't

钟离: zhongli

spoil of war by @bye-bye-sunbird

In the dead of night, you hear the sea calling your name. Sometimes the sound is as soft as a love song, gracing your skin in a gentle breeze that lures you to the seashore where the waves can finally lay claim on you. Other times, the sea strikes the land in a deafening, challenging roar. "Really now... How long do you think those mountains of his will stand in my way?" notes: accurate depiction of characters because archon war morax was genuinely terrifying; zhongli trying to deny his obsessive tendencies; rivalry with osial; reader is essentially sanctified as a symbol of innocent purity; imagine having two spiritual gods pine after you while you are helplessly stuck in the middle of their tug-of-war and simultaneously trying to mourn; that is basically the entire premise of this fic

迪卢克: diluc ragnvindr

the parent trap by @falconcoast

twelve years ago, you got married to a man who had swept you off your feet in a little under two years. diluc was like a prince out a of storybook; effortlessly charming, strikingly handsome, and a kind man. you were supposed to live happily ever after at that winery, running a wedding planning empire, having a family, and growing old together.  until it all goes off script with a divorce. flash forward, and the only remnant of diluc that is with you is your daughter, dawn. the only piece of you that remains with diluc is your other daughter and dawn’s twin sister, phoenix.  it isn’t until both of your children get you and your ex-husband in a bit of mess that you realize that maybe, just maybe, you still harbor feelings for diluc.  or maybe it’s the wine talking. notes: one of my favorite comfort fics; i am a sucker for second-chance romance; diluc and reader now older but still being the same bumbling idiots they were when young; at this point the children have more situational awareness than them; based on the original movie; treat yourself to a cup of tea and a friday night with this work and trust me life will be good

博士: il dottore

deus in absentia by @bound-in-parchment

The first time was a coincidence. The second time was a fluke. But the third time? You were starting to think it was fate. Or, more likely, a calculated trap. notes: at this point we can just scrap whatever mihoyo puts out and use this work as canon instead; the world building is so originally creative; this author must possess such a giant sexy brain; reader is basically adopted by dottore and forced to be his apprentice/assistant; idea of losing yourself to your own ambitions; slow-burn to the max; reader is oblivious to full extent of feelings until it is too late; tragic to the point i need a time machine to resurrect them

dream a little of me by @bound-in-parchment

Celestia had a cruel sense of humor. He knew this, even before his days as a student. But to be given a soulmate? Now, when he openly blasphemed against the cursed island in the sky? He would outlive you and the dreadful fated bond that haunted your shared dreams. There was little point in this. He could at least put a Vision to good use. People were nothing but disappointments. He had no use for you. Until you pulled the bow across your instrument and awoke a part of him long buried by self-hatred and arrogance. notes: soulmate trope but with the two most aromantic fools to ever exist; zandik drowns himself in the river of denial; comic dynamic between segments; music and failed dreams; reader actually has a backstory dark enough to match dottore's character; does not shy away from the uncomfortable and gritty aspects of trauma, abuse, and literal mental insanity

chemistry / magnum opus by @jessamine-rose

In the realm of science, love and insanity are closely intertwined mysteries. Disillusioned with the world, you had long forgotten its beauty until the wise doctor gives you a change of perspective. notes: by far the most accurate characterization of akademiya zandik; he hates you then hates himself then hates the world for allowing your paths to cross; treats you as an objective experiment but then wonders why he's suddenly humanizing you; slow-burn; zandik is selfish and machiavellian and somehow you fit into that equation

the only hope i had was the freedom of death by your hands that held me together by @tiens-letters

It was a burden. The weight of the power you hold in all the land. Any human who has enough ambition would dare to covet it and any god even given divine powers would lust after it. You were powerful, able to end civilizations and make a new world altogether. Many would think that you are a sovereign being but you too are limited to mortality than what most would believe. You were human with a blessing of a god and you felt cursed and dirty. notes: honestly the ending made me so mad but take it as a good sign; basically entails the circumstances that would drive dottore to become somewhat capable of love; what is done cannot be undone; zandik finally meeting someone who is wiser and more depressed than him; deluding himself into thinking he could ever be domestically normal; somewhat idolizes/idealizes reader; themes of betrayal and misunderstanding

富者: pantalone

house cat / alea iacta est by @jessamine-rose

Your entire life has been a gilded cage. The gods refuse to grant your greatest wish, and so you have resigned yourself to the will of destiny. But what happens when the red string of fate is severed and replaced with the silver chains of the Regrator? notes: liyue nobility; dishonest business and financial deals; reader is a cat hybrid but i didn't notice until part two because the plot was so good; pantalone is the mastermind behind all his interactions with reader; heavy manipulation and orchestrations; wolf in sheep's clothing; alternate ending found here

隊長: il capitano

herbarium / fairytale / forget-me-not / astilbe by @jessamine-rose

You had long given up on wishes and happy endings. After what you believed to be the end of your tragic story, you resigned yourself to a shadow of a life with only your books and flowers to keep you company…until the vestiges of Windblume brought forth a mysterious stranger and a new ending for your dark fairytale. notes: capitano being the strong stoic protector of a delicately fragile reader; manipulation is so subtle and that is what makes it alarming; somewhat stirred my daddy issues because he is so parental; reader struggles between accepting his love versus hating him for taking away her personal agency; flower motifs

[mscloud]

svsss chunibyo au

I honestly think MXTX series would go great with this AU because of their characters and how elastic and devoted (obsessed ) they are especially their main characters however feel the dynamic would much suit SVSSS rather than TGCF or MDZS because you can swap with most of the characters and it would still make sense to imagine :

A1 Shen Yuan was a huge nerd who used to pretend he was a grandmaster or smth like a cultivation expert and post lots of nerdy shit online (and do in real life) of him "cultivating" in tons of Xianxia clothing and teaching the next generation of "immortals" on his blog until his reputation got too so bad he couldn't talk to anyone thinking of that, so he can't continue he moves to a new school. He decided to start his new life by deleting his blog and getting rid everything but then he moved to his new school. For some reason, this kid luo binghe (a really big chunibyo) keeps calling him shizun and seems to know his past as a chunibyo determined to cure/help this kid so he can fit into normal society (and keep his past a secret) Shen Yuan must keep a close eye on luo binghe.

OR

A2 you change perspective and make Luo binghe fill the role of Shinka

a bright student and love throb for most of his year has a dark secret, his peaceful life is threatened by an annoying rat of a student named Shen Jiu who has kept a copy of his blog that contains the record of spells and daily life of "heavenly emperor luo binghe" whilst he was a chunibyo, to which luo binghe tries to convince him that he is that emperor which fails and now he has "supervise" shen jiu and make sure he doesn't go telling people.

______________________________________________________________

Yue Qingyuan would fill the role of Yuuta's mother or Kumin

Tianglang would be Touka but instead of being a chef he's a CEO and he's a lot more devious and less quiet; although in AU1 he is a lot less judgemental and more accepting he is still quite worried.

Liu Qinge is a bit harder cause I don't really imagine him chunibyo however I don't think he cares if either of the MCs are, so I think he takes something similar to Kumin a person who isn't really Delulu but likes hanging out and being silly with friends but he'd be a bit tsundere about it however if he was chunibyo he be similar to role Sanae most likely in AU2 (tbh I don't know I'm just saying purely out of stubbornness that both characters have)

Zhushi Lang would be the role of one of Yuuta siblings or Kumin but only A2 universe (I know I'm saying her name a lot but she is a very neutral character)

ShangQing Hua is SHINKA but instead of being popular his main goal is to be a likable NPC the only one who knows about this past is probably Mobei and until the rest of the gang finds out about his self insert Xianxia immortal demon way.

I have more thoughts for other characters but I've really thought about these four a lot!

anyway closing note PLEASE MAKE OR SEND FANFICTION OF AN AU LIKE THIS !!!

[bytedykes]

Artist Asks! 1, 5, 6, 10!

Do you prefer traditional drawing, or digital?

i used to draw almost exclusively digital but lately ive been reallyy getting back into traditional art... i think overall i prefer traditional more currently! i think i have better control over the lines i made when im using a pencil or pen than when i do digital if that makes sense

another thing is that digital art strains my eyes really badly :( i can look at my computer for hours at a time no problem but as soon as i start Drawing on my computer its only maybe an hour or two before i have to stop and give my eyes a break which sucks

ive also been trying to explore more mediums in traditional art this year which ive been having a lot of fun with! i think my watercolor skills have really improved :) and im even giving gouache another try akjskg

5. What’s your favorite thing to draw?

yaoi LMAOOOO

no im kidding i think my favorite thing to draw. well the honest answer is The Characters eating my brain. but more generally i love drawing people i think its really fun. esp faces!! an overly specific bit is um i got into xianxia stuff this year and i reallyyy like drawing the collars on the robes jkasfj like all the overlapping clothing layers...

6. What’s your least favorite thing to draw?

LEGS. I HATE HGJKHAKGK I HATE!!!! i can NEVER get the proportions right on the first or even second try and i just really struggle w them for some reason?? feet too. maybe my new year's resolution can be actually doing anatomy studies and improving my leg drawing skills

10. Are you confident about your art?

honestly yeah!! i definitely think i have a ton of room to improve especially in anatomy and the skill of actually like, finishing pieces instead of just sketching bullshit all the time, but i like my art and comparing my current stuff to a few years ago ive really improved a lot :)

[dangermousie]

I love this so much! I love that he’s not some innocent abused darling who just suffers and takes it. Yes, he’s warped and clever and vengeful and scheming but he’s done it to survive and to not have a horrific life and he’s harmed nobody innocent. Compare him to Sifeng in Love and Redemption, imo the last time a xianxia had a hero that mistreated. Sifeng was a sweetheart who took it and took it. But Tantai Jin’s reaction is honestly more likely. You keep brutalizing someone, they are unlikely to turn good. And I think that is what Susu (who has been sheltered her whole life) needs to learn - that things are not black and white. Tantai Jin can be and is both someone who has been severely abused for no reason AND someone who hurt and manipulated others. Both things can be true, he can be both a victim and perpetrator in turn.

Exactly. I don’t blame Susu for not getting it - she is sheltered and sees him as future demon king, but TTJ is completely right.

Oooof. At this point, he’s just lashing out to draw blood, to hurt because he’s hurt (because otherwise it’s more to his advantage for her to think the sex was real.)

He keeps eyeing her so carefully but I don’t think even he knows what reaction he wants.

But whatever he wants, it’s not the reaction he got.

He keeps raising the stakes and pushing and pushing to get reaction, to get attention, to get emotion, to get her to care. He’d rather have her fear or hatred than indifference; he craves her attention. Thanks to his insane upbringing, Susu is witnessing the world’s future most powerful sorcerer go through terrible twos at the age of twenty plus.

As the cool kids say, stop capping, Murderella! You couldn’t even kill her when you had a clear shot.

On one hand this is not a surprise because I read the novel, but on the other it is because I never thought they would keep that in!

Lady, the woman was going to poison him! Any nobleman of that world, however nice and undevilboned, would have been morally in the right by the place’s morals to kill her for that. Why should he be the only one to take it?

He tries to protect or at least not hurt anyone unless they are out for him. Turning the other cheek is a whole other step too far and nobody else in that world does it, not sure why he should. This is what this drama should have been called:

[plotweasels]

This Child is Spicy--Does He Ever Unspice?

So, this SVSSS AU is based on a combination of this picture and comments from people on discord. (Basically, this picture inspired a age-reversal plot weasel.) I think this dynamic has some potential, either as a bingjiu fic or just "Luo Binghe is basically a copy of Tianlang-jun" Not Very Accidental Child Acquisition.

To set this up, Su Xiyan was actually part of the previous generation of cultivators. Still ended up with Tianlang-jun, still betrayed by the Palace Master, but in this case Tianlang-jun found out about the set up for one reason or another. Palace Master's plot collapsed because of Cang Qiong Mountain Sect figuring out it WAS a plot. Su Xiyan and Tianlang-jun go off to be married.

This makes Su Xiyan and Demon Emperor very partial to CQM, which is why Baby Binghe ends up at Cang Qiong Mountain Sect. (Being half human, and pretty balanced he needs to learn human style cultivation anyway for a base before working on the demon side of his cultivation. Su Xiyan doesn't want to pass on anything of Huan Hua because she's extremely pissed at Huan Hua.) Luo Binghe is either selected for one of the Peaks or does whatever is the xianxia equivalent of auditing classes.

Two possible plotlines come to mind.

--Luo Binghe ends up becoming a Peak Lord! This is possibly hilarious and I kind of like this idea. In this case, Luo Binghe figure out why his Shixiong's favorite inner disciple/head disciple just about killed himself trying to take a sword when he wasn't ready. (Or, actually keeps him from doing it.)

Luo Binghe pries the story out of the kid and decides to go get this Shen Jiu kid. So he goes off, locates the Qius and absconds with a frightened, rage-filled fourteen year old Shen Jiu. Shen Jiu ends up as a guest of sorts on Cang Qiong until he can go through the diggydiggy hole test. Luo Binghe ends up picking him for his Peak. Stuff Happens.

--The other possible plotline is Luo Binghe becomes a wandering cultivator affiliated with Cang Qiong Mountain Sect. He goes on various missions for CQM and also for his father. (Sometimes those missions are pretty much shopping trips for books) A lot of what he does is the equivalent of bounty hunting as well as hunting ghosts/monsters/demons/demonic animals.

Luo Binghe's current bounty is Wu Yanzi! He is able to track Wu Yanzi down to the Qius, where he is up to some kind of scam. He is too late to stop the scam, but he is able to kill Wu Yanzi. Luo Binghe is now stuck with a hysterical young mistress and a slave having a goddamn qi-deviation. Luo Binghe dumps the young mistress with the local cultivation sect, and keeps the kid, who is only barely being kept from wrecking his spiritual veins due to qi deviation.

Shen Jiu wakes up, confused, angry and terrified. He does not calm down. He has no chill. Luo Binghe doesn't know if this is funny or incredibly sad. He decides the kid needs help, and decides to cart him off to Cang Qiong Mountain Sect to recuperate. And then Stuff Happens.

[poachedeggssocool]

For all the talks about future of growing old together, I found it so meh to have an ending where the husbands just wait for their reincarnation. Like??

I know this is based on a novel so please cut me some slack if I go off tangent here. I just need to know why xianxia cdramas always does not have an ending where the main couple ACTUALLY together in the final scene. Not something like one is some sort of flora or fauna where the other is human just waiting and nurturing for them. Like sure you have entities living thousand of years, all sorts of unimaginable ideas went into the story but to have a good ending that shows the main couple together couldn't be done.

Thank god I enjoyed most part of the dramas. It gave me some sense of satisfaction eventhough the ending is like that. I honestly enjoy the main couple. I like Shaodian Youqin character so much because as a high immortal being, how should I put it, very human. This is why he fell for Yetan's chaotic nature.

I love Liguang Yutan character. She grown a lot in the drama, carrying herself to survive and basically saving her sister. She is so dedicated to the people that she loves despite talking big about how she's doing everything just for herself. Two scenes that break me the most are when she didn't kill Heavenly Emperor and when she still consider herself as somewhat selfish at Guixu only to say that she finally understand why she needs to protect the realms. In reality she has never been someone that's selfish or just thinking about herself. She could have killed the Heavenly Emperor like what she did with the Void king, but because that's the father of the man that she loves, she decided to just end it with the second worst possible scenario. She didn't bring an e ntire army to face him, when she could be very well do that. After all, the most horrible person who broke their deal was in fact the Heavenly Emperor.

Liguang Yetan by far is my most favourite character in Xianxia cdramas (as far the watched list goes) and I just wish, I could see the drama end with her and Youqin growing old surrounded by their kids and loved ones at the Beast Realm.

Overall the drama for me was good except for that meh ending. No unnecessary dragging plots. Character dynamics are so good too. I kept thinking for someone so shitty, Heavenly Emperor has 3 good children who are considerate, selfless to certain extent, ethical and responsible. On top of that, despite the atrocities that their father have done, they still wish him well and respected him as THEIR father. Heavenly Empress truly nurture them all with so much empathy. It hits just right to see how she considers Yetan as her daughter too, didn't judge her, wishes nothing but well with Youqin and Yetan relationship.

I do think all the characters in this drama has the right balance and dynamic between each other. Every character has a role to play in the drama and was not just there to move the plot forward. The twin sister story just hit right with their personality. And so it make sense the dilemma and struggles they're dealing with. I love how Qingkiu is lowkey that sibling who's book smart and go to medical school while Yetan is the street smart sibling who adapts well and catch on fast. We always have siblings like that, one way or the other.

Now that I am done with this drama, I badly need recs for main lead like Youqin please because major part of the reasons why I always dropped Xianxia dramas halfway are because of male leads unexplained shitty decision making combined with unnecessary communication gaps between the leads.

[tc-doherty]

Stories I would have liked as a kid (through high school):

Celestials, I think I would have liked it even more if I had pushed the concept a little bit further but I was writing this for the actual middle grade age range so I didn't want to make it too fucked up

Second Chances, I started writing this in high school and it's only gotten more overwrought since then, this would've given me such serious brainrot

Laero, given that this vaguely started out as a tribute to Redwall which I was obsessed with as a kid, I think that I also would have liked it

Untitled 2, tribute to xianxia, which I admittedly did not know about at the time, but also the shonen manga that I loved a lot when I was a kid so definitely

Hildspel of Athelhyrst, very Fire Emblem-y so yeah, I would have liked it. I also think I would've found the idea very entertaining even back then considering how I was moderately into conlangs

Magic Black as Knight, it's a gay tragedy, what more do you want me to say?

Stories I would've started appreciating in college:

Miracles, I could see this one going in the above category as well but I think, in all honesty, for it to have been true Arwyn would need to be the main character, not Larkin

Hoofbeats, I don't have an exact reason for this one I just kind of think it would be true because even though I've been obsessed with horses for a million years I didn't actually read horse books when I was young

The Deadlands, hard to say exactly about this one because it needs to be rehauled so thoroughly but I feel safe putting it here

Untitled 3, this also could possibly go up in the above category but as I'm thinking about making it much more comedic and I generally didn't/don't care for comedy I'm gonna say that it goes here more

Silverwood, this almost certainly comes as a shock because of course Silverwood has been around since middle school however the plot of the story back then was very different as were the relationships between the characters. So Silverwood in its current form I'm not sure if I would have liked it as much, or else I probably would've written it like this to begin with

Stories I would not have liked until I was an adult:

Dragon's Daughter, honestly it's just not angsty enough for me to have put up with it when I was younger

Temitope, the main characters are both character types that I definitely appreciate more as an adult so while I think I would have read it when I was young I don't think I would've enjoyed it as much

Northbound, it is true that I've always liked war strategy being obsessed with Fire Emblem from a young age, but I don't actually know at what point in time I started getting really into the kind of politics that Northbound is focused on so I feel the most comfortable putting it here

[jade-len]

before i say anything, i would just like to say that i definitely agree with many of your points; that abuse was normal back then, that liu qingge beating the shit out of his students is NOT a good method of teaching, justice being a scale, and that luo bingge is an awful, cruel person who went above and beyond for revenge.

while i know the main point of your post is that luo bingge wasn't "cool" for "taking revenge" (which i also agree with... because bingge, holy shit), at least to me, it feels like you're slightly dismissing how shen jiu was also cruel to luo binghe. i do see that you already acknowledge that abuse is abuse, yes, but fail to mention that shen jiu specifically went out of his way to exclude and abuse luo binghe, a child who didn't do anything. he wasn't just mean to everyone (excluding ning yingying). there is a difference between just being mean and being horrifically cruel, just like how there's also a difference between wanting justice and being cruel.

lets be honest: in ancient china, there was nothing wrong with a teacher physically abusing a student. it was common even. im not saying its okay but it HAPPENED and A LOT. for gods sake, it was normal in my country to teachers beat students until the 90s! even after that!

yes, definitely! it wasn't okay but it did happen a lot. but, i believe you forgot to mention that yue qingyuan himself thought the punishments to be too far. in the first chapter, yue qingyuan literally tells his xiao-jiu this, and he lets him get away with everything! if he, a guilt-ridden man (or even any authority back then who wouldn't blink an eye at ancient china abuse!) even slightly goes, "uh.. hey, i know you don't like him but aren't you being too harsh..?" it's a pretty big deal.

"Yue Qingyuan sighed. "I know you don't like him. But that child's already worked hard enough, and he hasn't made any significant mistakes. Don't punish him any further, all right?"" - Chapter 1: Scum

pouring boiling hot tea on a child upon first contact? giving a preteen a false cultivation manual that could literally kill him? having luo binghe's peers actively group against him?

"He always found new ways to taunt and demean Luo Binghe, even enlisting the boy's peers to belittle him. Throughout these years of studying, Luo Binghe endured every humiliation. It was another heart-wrenching arc in his story, filled with blood and tears." - Chapter 1: Scum

this could just be shen yuan over exaggerating and being a bingge stan, but he is the oh so infamous peerless cucumber who has everything memorized despite being an unreliable narrator when he goes through the action himself. the whole thing with him is that he's so familiar with PIDW so well to the point he's blinded by it, unable to see the new storyline SVSSS offers.

im not saying shen jiu was right, or what he did a good thing, because it wasnt. abuse is always abuse, and it should be treated as it is. but lets take Bai Zhan Peak as an example. Liu Qingge beat the shit out of his disciples, and no one batted an eye

i believe the reason why no one really batts an eye at liu qingge beating his disciples is because he, while it is still child abuse and not at all a good teaching method or teacher, wasn't specifically cruel to one or a couple of kids. to him, i'm sure it was a teaching method to him. beat up a couple of little brats and they'll learn how to fight, surely (hey, i could be wrong! we never get liu qingge's pov, but i genuinely believe this is what he thought based on just watching how his character works). shen jiu wanted to torment and outright kill luo binghe.

plus, shen jiu is known to be a cruel and lecherous teacher (yes, i know the lecherous part is false, but the cruel part isn't). what does that say about him, when even this xianxia world with slaves and horrible abusive punishments thinks that?

but thats not my point right now, my point is: Luo Bingge was not "cool" for "taking revenge" cause what he did was not revenge, it was pure CRUELTY

it would be revenge if he hit shen jiu with a whip several times. it would be revenge if he made him do forced domestic work. it would be revenge, if he made him go through the same suffering that shen qingqiu put him through in the abyss

like i said earlier, i do agree that luo bingge wasn't cool or anything for taking revenge.

but, everyone has different viewpoints on what exactly revenge is. you may see revenge as a scale, but luo bingge sees it in a more twisted, crueler way. just because he's heinously cruel with it doesn't mean it isn't revenge.

Revenge: the action of inflicting hurt or harm on someone for an injury or wrong suffered at their hands.

now, to clear things up a bit more, i am in no way saying this to try and defend bingge and i don't believe you should like him or whatever. everyone has their own opinions, hate him, love him, whatever! but, i do wish for what he went through to be thoroughly recognized. just like how i wish for shen jiu's struggles to be recognized as well. hurt people hurt other people.

it's horrible what luo bingge did. he brought everyone down, not just shen jiu. but to him, in his sick way of what he believes is fair, that is perfectly acceptable revenge. that is the only way he can (unhealthily) cope with the abuse he went through.

maybe to you it's not equal. that a couple of whips should do it, or throwing shen jiu down into the abyss.

but luo binghe does think it is. the bottled rage has been building up for years, and he cannot let go of it until he throws it up on shen jiu and everyone else who has ever wronged him. those lonely nights at the shed as a scared, confused child. being discarded as a disgusting mix of human and demon. his first time of intimacy being with someone (qin wanyue) who basically coerce raped him. the knowledge that shen jiu, this almighty cultivator who he so desperately looked up to and forgave and made excuses for time and time again as a lonely child didn't care about him at all? to the point the man outright just wanted to kill him? how can he possible make shen jiu understand how he felt? his pain? betrayal? misery?

so, luo bingge destroys everything shen jiu has, and ultimately, him as well. but it doesn't help. because no matter what, shen jiu will never understand. and it continues and continues, the misery and incompleteness. the suffering and emptiness. to the point where luo bingge throws away all his hard work in the bingge vs bingmei extra just so that the void from meaningless vengeance can be filled with love instead.

that doesn't excuse anything luo bingge did though. he's a murderer, a manipulative womanizer, a rapist, a selfish man-child who can't let go of the past and move on because his rage is the only thing that keeps him warm. like you said, luo bingge is a horrible, disgustingly cruel monster who can only live with the blood of his enemies on his claws and pumping through his veins. he only proves shen jiu right in the end (but, obviously this doesn't mean what shen jiu did to him was right and that just because someone turns out to be a terrible person, what they went through as a child shouldn't be used against them or justified, like "oh, well they did this so what they went through was completely deserved!").

and, i'm sure someone out there in PIDW is planning to do the exact same thing to luo binghe as luo bingge did to shen jiu.

luo bingge and shen jiu are both tragically horrific characters. abusers. the products of the cycle of abuse. cruel in their own ways, but ultimately parallels with their own twisted morals and ways they see the world. they are fascinating and i want to put them under a microscope as they rip each other's faces off. i personally actually love both of them and their little fucked up shit they have going on. i would've done the same explaining shen jiu's whole thing if this post seemed dismissive of luo binghe's actions and cruelty against him.

all in all, again, i know that the point of your post was that, but to me, the way you worded some things comes off as dismissive to the horrific treatment luo binghe suffered through/shen jiu's actions and character. i don't believe "bad" can be measured, since everyone has different ways of scaling. to someone else, they may think that stealing is just as bad as smacking someone. they may think that murder is wrong no matter the situation, even if it was self defense.

but, i could be wrong about your intention with that! i'm not you, i can only come to my own conclusions based on what i read. i hope you know that this wasn't meant to attack you or anything of that sort. i really do agree with the general gist of this post. while i don't really see people exactly praising luo bingge for what he did like you, it would definitely unnerve and disgust me if i saw people doing that as well. and, apologies for the long reblog

i think i finally understand why i hate luo bingge so much

i usually love the kind of character he is: vengeful, merciless, villainous. im all the way down for villains with a reason for them to be evil (and if you think bingge is anything BUT a villain, youre wrong). but i didnt felt that way toward bingge. and that really bothered me

there is a very thin line between revenge and cruelty. but its still there. and bingge crossed that line

that 👇👇 is the best way i could explain the difference

lets be honest: in ancient china, there was nothing wrong with a teacher physically abusing a student. it was common even. im not saying its okay but it HAPPENED and A LOT. for gods sake, it was normal in my country to teachers beat students until the 90s! even after that!

im not saying shen jiu was right, or what he did a good thing, because it wasnt. abuse is always abuse, and it should be treated as it is. but lets take Bai Zhan Peak as an example. Liu Qingge beat the shit out of his disciples, and no one batted an eye

but thats not my point right now, my point is: Luo Bingge was not "cool" for "taking revenge" cause what he did was not revenge, it was pure CRUELTY

!!Spoiler alert!!

it would be revenge if he hit shen jiu with a whip several times. it would be revenge if he made him do forced domestic work. it would be revenge, if he made him go through the same suffering that shen qingqiu put him through in the abyss

but no.

he made the entire cultivation world see sqq again as nothing more than the slave he was, he ripped off shen jiu's legs and arms, he tortured him for god knows how much time, he let his wives torture him, he destroyed the ENTIRE sect that had nothing to do with it, and he killed the only person shen qingqiu really cared about

and dont get me started on how he destroyed earth by bringing together the demonic and human worlds

lets use a metaphor for better understanding: theres a perfectly balanced scale between you, and every other person. And when someone hurts you, theres this natural desire to push back. To seek justice. To bring those scales back into balance. But when you do the other side of the scale never dipped below the balancing point

and thats not what bingge wanted. he didnt want the scale to be equal

because even if things were restored exactly to the way they were before, shen jiu would never knew what bingge felt like

he would never be brought down. And THATS what bingge wanted

he didnt wanted justice for what shen jiu did to him. he didnt wanted revenge either. he wanted to be cruel

he turned into a monster

and that make me sick

i honestly cant stand seeing people praising bingge as if he was a good person for doing what he did

[mousieta]

Review: Love Between Fairy and Devil

Year: 2022 Country: China Platform: iQiyi; Viki

Love Between Fairy and Devil is right up there with Love and Redemption for xianxia dramas. It is literally everything I love about them coupled with gorgeous visuals that made my kid-raised-on-80s-fantasy heart soar. Admittedly, it took a handful of episodes for me to fall in love . But as The Untamed took me 14 eps – thank you Tortoise of Slaughter – I try to give C-Dramas a while before I pull the plug. Also, I turn a blind eye to how women lead’s characters are drawn early on because its often going to toe my line of too-gratingly hyper-feminined sexist. (If China could skip the innocent idiot trop at the beginning of every xianxia I would be eternally grateful)

Alright, caveats done, once we got over those hurdles, I fell hard and fast. Something about pained-stoic-overlord-of-evil having to submit to their thematic opposite is just catnip to me. So, by the time the Devil is bound and determined to secure the Fairy’s happiness For Reasons, I was hooked.

The story is fairly straight forward: imprisoned Devil and is tied to Fairy and together they have to save the world.

A lot of the show’s charm lays in its actors. I’ve had a soft spot for Dylan Wang since Meteor Garden. He is not the worlds best actor though he has definitely displayed some growth and more expressive range as the Devil, Dongfang Qing Cang. He also has that alchemical ‘it’ factor: an ability to render what should be, on paper, an unlikable character as sympathetic and a touch self-aware. There is a layer he adds to would could easily become a flat, uninteresting, and toxic character.

Esther Yu was good enough as the fairy though I feel she may have largely been constrained by the demands on women characters and I don’t think her voice actress did her any favors either. I did enjoy her eventual character growth, however.

As always, I am a sucker for equal and complimentary powerful OTPs, where each pushes the other and neither over-shadows the other. I also so much prefer a forthright admission of love and care to annoying love triangle shennanigans which I feel this drama delivered well. We can’t completely avoid a love-triangle and I recognize their purpose in storytelling, I just appreciate when the writers know their use and place within a story.

I think what sets this show apart is its handling of trauma and recovery, of how it shows the fallout of abuse, especially that taken from the hands of a mis-guided parent I love that while Fairy is obviously the catalyst for Devil’s healing, she is not his savior. Healing is something that generates from within him. Definitely check out @dangermousie​ who has written some great meta. (spoilers for the whole show obv but def check out their tag when you’re done)

Ultimately, this show is solidly one of my favorite of the year. The acting is captivating, the directing and cinematography beautiful and the writing thoughtful. It hits on all levels and overcomes its flaws with how well it gets right the important things. I suspect this show will wind up having a high rewatch value as well.

[translations-by-aiimee]

The Husky and His White Cat Shizun - Chapter 27

Original Title:  二哈和他的白猫师尊

Genres: Drama, Romance, Tragedy, 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 27 - This Venerable One Will Cook You A Bowl of Noodles

Chu Wanning felt completely faint.

He blamed himself for being so distracted and unsuspecting on Life-Death Peak. He didn't even notice someone come over.

What was going on? Where did this child come from? His last name was Mo, but Mo. . . what was is again. . . ? Mo Shao? Mo Zhu? Mo. . . Yu?

He composed himself and put on an expression that screamed: "get away". The surprise and panic in his phoenix eyes were quickly masked by his usual harsh and threatening demeanour.

"You—"

He raised his hand out of habit to discipline him, but something suddenly caught his wrist.

Chu Wanning was stunned.

He had been around for a while yet no one had ever dared grab his wrist so casually. For a while, he was frozen in place, not knowing what he should do.

Pull it away and give him a backhanded slap?

. . . It felt like a good word to describe that would be "indecent," like he was no different from a woman in this situation.

Then pull his hand away and not slap him?

. . . Wouldn't that seem like he was being too nice?

Chu Wanning hesitated for a long time and didn't move but the young man laughed: "What's this on your hand? It's pretty good-looking, do you teach how to make stuff like this? Everyone else has introduced themselves already but you haven't spoken yet. Which elder are you? Hey, do you have a headache?"

With so many questions thrown at him, while Chu Wanning's mind hadn't hurt before, now it did.

His mind felt like it was about to split in half. . .

As he got irritated, a golden light in his hand started to glow. When they saw that Tianwen was about to be summoned, the other elders were horrified and moved - Chu Wanning was crazy, right? He would even dare to whip Young Master Mo?

Then, Mo Ran was suddenly holding his hand.

Now Mo Ran had trapped both of his hands. Mo Ran didn't up on the danger of his situation. He pulled him closer and stood in front of him. He tilted his head and said with a smile: "My name is Mo Ran. I don't know anyone here, but just from looking at you, I like you the most. How about I worship you as my shizun, okay?"

This was completely unexpected. The people around them were even more horrified. Several elders gaped with mouths ajar.

Elder Xuanji: "Huh?"

Elder Pojun: "What!"

Elder Qisha: "Oh?"

Elder Jielu: "Uh. . ."

Elder Tanlang: "Hah, ridiculous."

Elder Lucun was the most feminine of the bunch with wavy hair and eyes flooded with peach blossoms: "Ah, this little boy is so bold. He's truly a courageous young man. He might even be so bold as to touch Elder Yuheng's ass."

". . . I beg you, can you not say something so repulsive?" Qisha said with disgust.

Lucun rolled his eyes gracefully and hummed: "Fine, let me put it more eloquently. He's truly a courageous young man. He might even be so bold as to touch Elder Yuheng's buttocks."

Qisha: ". . ." Just kill him and forget this ever happened.

The most popular of all the elders was the gentle and jade-like elder Xuanji. His techniques were easy to learn, and he was a modest gentleman. Most of the disciples on Life-Death Peak worshipped underneath him.

Chu Wanning originally thought that this Mo Ran would've been just like all the others. If not Elder Xuanji, then it should be the energetic Elder Pojun. It never should have been his turn

But Mo Ran was standing so close to him. His face showed a kind of intimacy and affection that was unfamiliar to him. He was like some clown that was just chosen. It was all so distressing for no reason.

Chu Wanning only knew how to deal with "awe", "fear" and "disgust". Something like "affection" was too complicated.

He didn't even have to think about it. He immediately rejected Mo Ran.

The young man froze. Hidden under his slender eyelashes, there was a sense of loneliness and unwillingness in his eyes. He lowered his head, thought for a second, and unreasonably muttered: "Anyways, I still choose you."

Chu Wanning: ". . ."

The Lord was watching with great interest. He piped in with a smile:, "A-Ran, do you know who he is?"

"He didn't tell me, how would I?"

"Haha, since you don't know who he is, why would you pick him?"

Mo Ran was still tugging on Chu Wanning's hands. He turned his head, smiling and said to the Lord: "Because he looks the most gentle and easiest to talk to."

In the darkness, Chu Wanning's eyes snapped open, everything appearing fuzzy.

. . . That was one hell of a scene to see.

He didn't know what the hell was wrong with Mo Ran's eyes back then to actually think that he was gentle. Not to mention that all of Life-Death Peak heard about it. They all sent affectionate greetings to Young Master Mo Ran with looks that said "look at this foolish kid".

Chu Wanning lifted his hand to the corner of his faintly throbbing forehead.

His shoulder hurt, his mind was in turmoil, his stomach was hungry, and his head was spinning.

It seemed like he wasn't going to sleep anytime soon.

He fumed on the bed for a while. He sat up and was about to light a stick of incense to calm his mind when suddenly there was another knock on the door.

Mo Ran was outside.

Chu Wanning: ". . ."

He didn't answer. He didn't say whether to stay or leave.

But this time, the door opened by itself.

Chu Wanning looked up gloomily. The lit match in his hand hovered in mid-air but never reached the stick of incense. After a while, it went out.

Chu Wanning said: "Get out."

Mo Ran strolled in.

He was holding a steaming bowl of noodles, fresh from the pot.

This time it was a bit simpler. The noodles weren't as fancy. The rich white noodle soup was garnished with chopped green onion and white sesame seeds, small spare ribs, bok choy, and a slightly browned poached egg.

Chu Wanning was incredibly hungry but he didn't let it show on his face. He glanced at the noodles, then at Mo Ran. He turned his face away and didn't say anything.

Mo Ran put the noodles on the table, and gently said: "I asked the inn's chef to make another bowl."

Chu Wanning lowered his eyes.

Sure enough, Mo Ran didn't make this dish himself.

"Eat some." Mo Ran said. "This bowl isn't spicy, has no beef, and no bean sprouts."

After speaking, he left and closed the door for Chu Wanning on his way out.

He apologized for Chu Wanning's injury.

But he could only do so much.

In the room, Chu Wanning leaned against the window, not knowing what to think. He crossed his arms and stared at the bowl of spare rib noodles from a distance until the heat of the noodles dissipated and they grew cold.

He finally walked over and sat down. He picked up the chopsticks, stirred up the cold and soggy noodles, and slowly ate them.

The case of the Chen family's haunting had been closed.

The next day, they picked up the black horses they had boarded from inside the stables and returned to the sect the same way they had arrived.

In the streets and alleys, tea stalls and rice shops, the people of Caidie Town were all talking about the Chen family's affairs.

The not-so-small town had broken out in scandal, one large enough for the townspeople to talk about it for a whole year.

"I didn't expect that Young Master Chen had been secretly married to Miss Luo for so long. Miss Luo is so pitiful."

"If you ask me, if the Chen family hadn't gotten rich, they wouldn't be able to survive this affair. Sure enough, men can't handle their money. Once they have money, only misfortune will await them."

One man was unhappy and said: "This wasn't Young Master Chen's fault. It's his parents' fault. Mr. Chen, that son of a bitch. His children and grandchildren should only give birth to children without assholes in the future."

Another said: "The dead are pitiful but what about the living? Look at Chen Yao, Yao Qianjin. She's the one who's truly been wronged. That black-hearted mother of the Chen family deceived her. Tell me, what should she do now?"

"Just get remarried."

The man rolled his eyes and sneered: "Remarried? Are you here to get married?"

The mud-coated man who was teased bared his teeth and picked at them, grinning: "If that woman at home agrees, I'd marry her. Ms. Yao looks so beautiful, I don't mind her being a widow."

"Bah, the toad wants to eat swan meat*."

(T/N: 癩蛤蟆想吃天鵝肉 - means having unrealistic wishes or expectations)

Mo Ran sat on the back of the horse, ears perked up, listening to all the conversations in high spirits. If it weren't for Chu Wanning's closed eyes, frown, and the words "extremely noisy" essentially spelled out on his forehead, Mo Ran might have wanted to go join the villagers.

They walked together and finally left the main city, arriving at the outskirts.

Shi Mei suddenly gasped and pointed to the distance: "Shizun, look over there."

In front of the ruined Master of Ceremonies Ghost's earthen temple, there was a large group of peasants in brown clothes and shorts. They were busy moving the bricks and stones. It seemed that they were planning to repair the damaged earthen temple and remould the golden body of the Master of Ceremonies Ghost.

Shi Mei said anxiously: "Shizun, the old Master of Ceremonies Ghost is gone but they've made a new one. Will this be cultivated into an immortal body again and do evil?"

Chu Wanning: "I don't know."

"Should we go and persuade them not to?"

Chu Wanning: "The custom of ghost marriages in Caidie Town has been around for several generations. How would you or I be able to persuade them in just a few words? Let's go."

As he spoke, dust flew up from the horse's hoof and he walked away.

It was already dusk when they returned to Life-Death Peak.

Chu Wanning said to the two disciples in front of the mountain gate: "You go to Danxin Hall and explain what happened. I'll go to the Court of Discipline."

Mo Ran looked puzzled: "Why would you go to the Court of Discipline?"

Shi Mei, on the other hand, looked worried: ". . ."

Chu Wanning nonchalantly said: "To receive my punishment."

Although it's said that an emperor commits the same crime as the common people, what emperor would actually have to go to jail for killing someone? The same goes for the cultivation world.

The elders who break the sect rules are as equally guilty as the disciples - in most sects, it's just empty talk.

In fact, if an elder breaks a rule, it was good enough just to write an apology letter. What fool would actually go to be punished with a willow vine or dozens of sticks?

So, after listening to Chu Wanning's explanation, Elder Jielu's complexion turned green.

"No, Elder Yuheng, did you really. . . did you really beat your client?"

Chu Wanning was indifferent: "Yes."

"You're so. . ."

Chu Wanning raised his stare and gave him a sullen look. Elder Jielu shut up.

"According to the law, for breaking this rule, the punishment is two hundred cane strikes, kneeling in Wushan Temple for seven days, and being forbidden from leaving the grounds for three months." Chu Wanning said. "I have no defence, and I voluntarily accept the punishment."

Elder Jielu: ". . ."

He looked around and hooked his fingers, and the door to the Court of Discipline closed with a clang. The surroundings fell silent, and it was only the two of them that stood opposite each other.

Chu Wanning: "What's the meaning of this?"

"Well, Elder Yuheng, it’s not that you don't understand the rules and their consequences, it's just that it shouldn't be something that you should be overly concerned with. This matter is finished. Let's forget it. If I beat you, won't the Lord be angry with me when he finds out?"

Chu Wanning didn't bother to talk such nonsense with him and simply said: "I hold people accountable according to the law, and I should also be held accountable myself according to the law."

Kneeling down in front of the hall, facing the plaque of sect rules, he said:

"Punish me."

[shinebrightlikeanarwhal]

I am a firm believer in a healthy and happy childhood SJ would not have been in the sect at all and, if anything, the world would have gone to shit faster.

Think about it:

No SJ means;

•Yue Qi is over working himself to death and taking care of the other slave kids

•QJL never took in SJ and used him as his literal punching bag. His perverse actions would either go to another slave or QHT herself (as she was who they were mostly directed at if I’m correct)

•LBH would not have been pushed and hurt to grow but he would have been in extreme danger as the other PLs would rather kill a demon, whether they are a child or not, and present his head to the others as proof.

•God even knows how they would handle many circumstances without SJ since he was an outstanding tactician and strategist.

•He genuinely would have no need or reason to cultivate with them. He could probably be a traveling cultivator if anything. He has emotional connection to these people and would live a better life elsewhere..

•He isn’t traumatized physically and psychologically. He has no physical handicaps to his body to limit himself. He has no need to hold himself back because no one believes him. He would speak his peace no matter what. Whether they like it or not.

•Many people would suffer without him baring their burden. Especially with no one watching SQH so closely? He might actually kill many more kids to get LBH into the abyss.. or the whole sect

•LQGs Qi deviation could have been a violent bloodbath whether he lived by SY or died by SQQs attempts. Anyone else that would come up there may not have been able to think critically to subdue him in time, even YQY.

(PSA: I dont care if you like SY but I call SJ SQQ, that’s his earned name whether you like it or not. Shen Yuan is Shen Yuan just like OOC is OOC he didn’t earn anything.)

Im certain I’ve said something like this before but I will say it again. Your favs piggy backed of SJ’s suffering. (Except QHT, if you fav her pls exit the premises…)

BTW, branching off the “SJ is the reason LbH survived the conference” I don’t mean he had good intentions. I mean his actions gave LBH a chance of survival. The other PLs would not have cared about the consequences of killing their disciple, especially if all they have to do is present his head to show his demon mark. Particularly YQY and LQG, they are not nice people. LQG canonically beats the shit out of his disciples to “build character”. YQY rarely uses Xuan Su but would whip it out if LBH is a heavenly demon…

Branching off the “LQG Qi Deviation”

He was already tricky for SQQ to try and save him in PIDW. In SVSSS SY also had to fight him down to help him to regulate his Qi. Another Pl would also struggle and god forbid a disciple comes, they would be torn apart… if LQG doesn’t die before someone finds him.

YQY being able to cultivate is a gray area because SJ helped him not only survive being overworked, but also kept him safe from the other slave/street kids bs that could possibly kill him or get him enslaved by people like the Qiu’s! Cause let’s be honest the Qiu’s were terrible but more than likely not uncommon of slave owners in xianxia…

There’s a lot to discuss about SJ being basically PIDW catalyst and then getting tossed aside for dumb wifeplots.. but honestly, I’m not in the mood to make myself annoyed with what an amazing og plot could have been if we got more content with actually interesting characters… (GYX… I’m talking about GYX he looked like such an interesting character in novel and show form.. a strong character killed off too early with SY and with no screen time in PIDW…

[project-paranoia]

Let’s Watch: Yin Yang Master: Dream of Eternity

I have watched this movie 85 Whole Entire Times and I do not regret.  The only thing wrong with this movie is that it wasn't a fifty episode series.  I cried, I laughed, I fell in love.  The cinematography is on point, the acting is amazing, the crew member who put snow on people's eyebrows did an amazing job, and the acting!  The subtlety, the gentleness, the love and affection, the discussion of race is one of the best I've ever seen.

As people have pointed out before in series like X-Men that fear of mutant's is practically if not thematically justified due to the laser eyes in a way that fear of ethnic minorities just isn't in real life.  In Dream of Eternity however humans are equally if not sometimes more super powered than the yao they hunt.  Demons - very much not in the Christian sense - are a mixture of spirits, resentful souls, and animals and plants who cultivated to human form.  They often appear human at first glance and in some cases the extent of their power seems to be the limited to turning into a smaller more vulnerable animal.  Qingming's deliberate care and gentleness not only reflects his upbringing as a Yin Yang Master, but parallels the experience of racial minorities labelled as aggressive.

The movie takes particular care as well in the way it looks at trauma, grief, and love.  The three of which haunt the main characters and send out ripple effects into the world around them.  In the world of Dream of Eternity no loss is purely private, it spools out into the world around the person effected until they make an effect to acknowledge and deal with their experiences.  Qingming's warmth and gentleness isn't just marked by his behaviour but by the orange light he's lit by and his variety of shishen - but he is also separate, standing alone in frame and facing away from the people around him.  Boya's loss has made him unforgiving and as cold as the blue light he's lit in, and yet he is open and instinctive, talking and acting as soon as the thought enters his head.  The Empress is lost and drifting, trapped and grief stricken, vulnerable to those who profess to love her.  The film is simple, it says and shows what it means when it means it - but it is also as complex as the very human characters it depicts.  

The movie is made even more complex by its pull from theaters.  Claims of plagiarism drench the edges of the movie, which as true as the assertion that Fan BingBing went on a spa vacation in 2018.  Although this blog is about Chinese censorship dealing specifically with BL content, Chinese censorship also effects those who criticize governmental policy.  I hope that supporters of this blog will also support Chinese media threatened by censorship for many reasons so that artists and others involved in film making can continue to make meaningful content.

Doing a watchthrough of a movie is not feasible, but please enjoy a few thousand words - with spoilers on Yin Yang Master included:

* That gentle chiming and rain soundscaping is so soothing, what a great way to calm and lull the audience before the movie even starts * Qingming is so small and isolated in the frame - cinema! * The lighting and cinematography is just so good * Shifu, soft gentle teacher * So much love stored in the Shifu * Instant grow * This boy is Sassy * This theme of deflection in Qingming's character is established early * Deflection with a teleportation portal and then immediately deflection verbally * Shifu is certainly an attractive man aged up, but his face is also soft and gentle, something to note when his double pops up later * Also the awkward question of don't you have someone you want to protect, maybe part of the problem is that shifu is just really bad at wording things * The answer that yes he does has several meanings, one of which is immediately apparent when Shifu acts out one of those Father Saves Child By Yeeting them youtube videos * ACtion MuSIC * I love them your honour * The spirit guardian's design is so specific and elegant, absolutely superb you funky little shishen * I wonder if Qingming ever thinks about that if he didn't come back with all his fellow disciples that Shifu would have been fine * Maybe it's not that he doesn't have someone he wants to protect and more that he believes that he's not capable of protecting those he wants to * subtle indication Shifu's qi is corrupted * Precious Magic Childe ;-; * The framing, I'm living for it * The Serpent graphic is lovely * Also the way they set things up * Qingming cares so much about his shifu * Mark Chao just has the ability to crumple his face like paper * Sad Time exposition involving the corrupting influence of desires * "When you're gone I'll be all alone" in just about all you need to know about Qingming at this point in the story * Also like, sympathy for Shifu in raising this lonely child.  By all accounts he was an absolutely superb father figure, and Qingming I'm sure was not an easy child to raise.  He's the sort of kid that would take a lot of calm and patience. * Slumber party! * It's kind of interesting that this is an activity Fangyue and He Shouyue are doing together.  He's definitely obsessed and in love with her and she's just doing friends and family activities with him * Also yellow/gold lighting is kind of their thing * It's interesting how they do the make up for He Shouyue.  The actor is very attractive, but they make him up to look doll like, a little too pretty, a little too shiny.  Like a porcelain doll. * Cool lit Boya and warm lit Qingming appear! * Camels! * The framing is so good, they're careful to be sure he's shown as obviously isolated as much as possible * And it should go without saying that I adore the City * The matte painting is outstanding * But there's also the lighting, the vignettes, the clusters, the foliage * It is a supremely beautiful set * The irony that Killing Stone is playing along with Boya's music and then it's Boya who kicks him around * A small note, but one I appreciate - even when Boya has warm highlight's they're red instead of orange * "It's Jason Bourne!" * I hope Qingming paid for that water taxi * It's interesting how Killing Stone goes from the safety of Qingming's orange light to the danger of Qingming's blue * Colour related foreshadowing! * Look at this poor sweet man, how could anyone suspect him of anything.  He's just a sad man who loves his dead wife * Qingming's use of a fan is interesting - battle fans show up all over wuxia and xianxia, but it feels like it also ties into the way he's so very careful in how he presents himself.  There's that quote that a sword can only be a sword but other weapons are also able to serve other purposes - not a perfect quote but the point is got across. * The way Qingming just knocks Boya back, like get An Clue, my dude * The way that Killing Stone curls around the pipa ;-; * So the movie is based on the book series 'Onmyoji' by Yumemakura Baku.  The books start with Seimei (Qingming) and Hiromasa (Boya) already in a relationship talking about various cases Seimei has recently experienced.  Plotwise, obviously the stories are different, however thematically Seimei and Hiromasa discuss why some yao stick around and solutions to the difficulties and dangers they might cause - which is generally from Seimei's very successful perspective to listen and treat them like humans.  So in that way the plots of the books and the movie are quite different, but the themes are just about identical. * Boya says Don't Talk Me I Angy and also that demons don't have feelings and Qingming's face takes out a billboard that's just like Ah, Another Fantasy Racist, Excellent * Qingming also does what should be done in this situation, taking care of the victim not the racist * Fight scene!  Fight scene! * Qingming's first few moves aren't to attack, they're to distract and just hold his fan up to block Boya's way and his view - it's only when Boya persists in attacking that Qingming fights back * Qingming's sassy smile, he is very much deliberately irritating Boya as much as he's refocusing his attention and distracting him * "nICE sWORD" * I've sighed that sigh before * This boy is taking great pleasure from teasing Boya, but also he makes a really good point * I understand and relate to what Qingming did, but also I can understand why Boya was ready to throw rocks at Qingming when he saw him again * Killing Stone lit in Qingming's orange light again * Killing Stone, my beloved * A good gauge to the state of the world for yao is no one has told this sweet boy before that demons have feelings too * There are several lines like this in the movie that just drop kick you with Implications * The same way Qingming clung to Zhongxing, Killing Stone wants to join up with Qingming to have some compassion in his life * The way he asks to be a spirit guardian is so formal too, and Qingming is so gentle with him, I cry ;-; * The warm orange light of Qingming's love ;-; * He heals the wounds * It took me an embarrassing amount of time to realise it's the actual imperial degree speaking and not one the of Jingyun Temple Masters * The mutual this guy again is delicious * "Is it because of your pretty face" * Boya draws his sword so fast and Qingming is so amused by it * Longye!  Queen!  I love her! * The two of them seem to understand each other instantly * Those sassy little smiles * He Shouyue looks even more like a doll than before * Longye has her head on a swivel from second one, she plays the Maiden so well like she's not a skilled master * And her customer service smile * Qingming is shooketh

* What happens next?  You'll have to watch and find out!

[magicabout]

Howl’s Moving Castle Scum Villain AU

aka what my scum villain brain rot has driven me to produce- headcanons (long, whoops) under the cut

Howl: Shen Yuan would actually make a good book grad student!Howl, but ofc it has to be Binghe. I mean. “Demon Lord Luo Binghe” instead of “Wizard Howl Pendragon.”

And he starts out all suave and charming and shit, but then at the end when Sophie says “A heart is a heavy burden” he just breaks down in huge sloppy tears like sticky white lotus Binghe.

Probably his outfit would change to reflect that going from the pointy tight donghua blackened Binghe to softer (imo) novel version. It would make sense for his hair to go from straight to curly after he stops hiding the curls but I wanted to draw curly-haired Binghe so bad lmao forgive me ヾ( _ _ ;ヾ)

idk about Howl’s messiness... maybe it’s more like Binghe is too busy seducing left and right to get his work done so it’s more flakiness?

none of these are going to be perfect 1:1 interpretations such is headcanon

Sophie: Shen Yuan as oblivious-to-her-own-powers book!Sophie is perfect. His reaction to being magically old would be an immediate millennial “guess I’ll die” ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ which is A++

In a pseudo-xianxia setting his health would probably be more “delicate” than the “constantly on the verge of death” it is in fanon, but he’d likely still accept being old with deadpan “wow never thought I’d get here!” kind of excitement.

He’d never see Binghe as a viable romantic option first because “Demon Lord Luo Binghe only like pretty people” (insert his siblings’ resigned eye rolls), then because he’s old and old = undesirable in his mind.

With delicate health he’d likely be kept to contained inside-type activities, so maybe he was managing the expenses? Is really good at book-keeping and organizing paperwork? Comes into the castle and flawlessly manages all of Binghe’s household while accidentally crafting spells? Something like that because you won’t catch this boy doing Sophie-typical housecleaning lol

Cue Binghe following him around and spoiling him rotten and Shen Yuan just thinks it’s filial support for the elderly.

Calcifer: It’s Meng Mo. Annoyed at putting up with these kids and their antics? Grouchy but sympathetic despite himself? Did not realize tying himself to Binghe meant being present for all of Binghe’s nonsense? Yes to all of the above. Plus, it makes him cute, which is funny.

Alternatively it could be Sha Hauling for some of the same reasons, but-

Witch of the Waste: If you’re going with the movie’s more sympathetic version it would be Sha Hauling. If you’re going for book version it’d be Xin Mo (”Heart Demon of the Endless Abyss, Xin Mo”). If you’re going for an in-between version it’d be Xin Mo, but Sha Hauling the trapped fire demon gets freed at the end.

Michael: Mobei-Jun did NOT realize swearing allegiance to Binghe would involve so much customer service and household management while his Junshang goes off on “dates.” Like, they are basically living the young demon bachelor life up until Shen Yuan shows up and suddenly it’s not acceptable to have slabs of raw meat or small pest demons hanging about.

One day Mobei-Jun finds a nice secluded courtyard to take a quick breather and a worker from a nearby shop comes out to talk to him, but unlike Junshang’s customers he’s not expected to answer. He comes back on a whim and the same worker tells him a story, completely unprompted. It’s very relaxing to be talked to without having to talk back, and with whatever’s going on with Junshang and Shen Yuan Mobei-Jun decides to start visiting regularly...

For the Hatter Sisters it makes more sense to change the birth order and make Shen Yuan the youngest.

Lettie Hatter: Shen Qingqiu is the oldest and most beautiful of the Shen brothers. Overprotective and fussy, he and their middle brother work while delicate Shen Yuan is meant to stay home.

Maybe he was working at Cesari’s like in the book/movie (despite customer service being a horrible horrible job for him lol) until Shen Yuan’s disappearance prompts him to get both himself and their other brother apprenticed to Mrs. Fairfax (Ning Yingying).

Martha Hatter: I’ve seen fics where Shen Qingqiu and Shen Yuan are siblings, but none where Shang Qinghua is related to them and I think that’s a shame because the character dynamic potential is real good.

He’s the middle Shen brother (and arguably the smartest by being the least oblivious). Not suited to learning magic, he’s apprenticed to a printshop because it’s close to his ambition of being an author.

This really handsome guy just turns up one day when he’s taking his break and starts listening to Shang Qinghua’s stories. No way is he this lucky (but, omg, handsome guy listening! to! his! stories!!)

Mrs. Fairfax: I just really like the role reversal of Shen Qingqiu being taught by Ning Yingying instead of the other way around. She could be Qi Qingqi for Shen Qingqiu sniping reasons instead.

Wizard Suliman/dog-man: Yue Qingyuan spends a lot of his time in this AU cursed. If you’re going off movie-version this won’t make sense, but in the book he’s a romantic interest for Lettie Hatter (Shen Qingqiu).

I imagine Shen Qingqiu’s way of thinking is that Yue Qingyuan is an idiot for getting himself cursed, but if he’s willing to teach Shen Qingqiu then Shen Qingqiu is going to take him for all he’s worth. He definitely doesn’t like Yue Qingyuan, or appreciate him, at all! When Yue Qingyuan shows romantic interest in him it’s obviously the perfect opportunity to secure himself a stupid, rich husband. His brothers’ matches are so unreliable, Shen Qingqiu needs to be the dependable sibling who can support them if their situations fall through. Love has nothing to do with it!!

Prince Justin/turnip-head/scarecrow: It’s Liu Qingge, also spending most of his time in this AU cursed lmao. Mostly because I want Liu Mingyan to be the King of Ingary, but I guess it conveniently makes him ineligible as Binghe’s rival for Shen Yuan (not like Shen Yuan isn’t enough of a roadblock on his own). Ah, yes, Liu Qingge the brilliant tactician who’s always going off on his own and getting himself in trouble. V appropriate.

Wait, but all your headcanons are based on the book, but you drew a scene from the movie? The skywalk is just very iconic ok (´-﹏-`；)

[randomprose]

MoShang Week 2021 Day 01: celebrity au / sugar / rivals

When all is said and done—that is, after Shang Qinghua had accepted his victory and fielded the press of any question of the stunt Mobei Jun pulled—Shang Qinghua goes back to the Endless Abyss Sugar Masters kitchen studio.

He sits in front of the xianxia sugar sculpture monstrosity Mobei Jun made to tell Shang Qinghua and basically the whole world of his feelings and couldn’t help but snort a laugh at the life sized cultivator Mobei Jun sculpted out of pastille in Shang Qinghua’s likeness.

It’s…big. When Shang Qinghua called it a monstrosity, he wasn’t even exaggerating. It’s bigger than even Mobei Jun with its base, an intricate background, and a truly impressive pose of him riding a sword. Shang Qinghua truly believes Mobei Jun would’ve won had he not been technically disqualified.

The theme was ‘famous historical people’ and while Shang Qinghua has surely made a name for himself in the culinary industry, he isn’t exactly in the same line as Athena or Leonardo Da Vinci.

It’s just…fucking massive (has he already said that? Because it is) and just really, really intricate. Wow. Shang Qinghua can’t take his eyes off it. It took a truly herculean effort earlier for him to snap out of how amazed he is. This could probably sell way more than the average expensive sugar sculpture. He doesn’t even know if anyone will have the heart to melt this shit for consumption. Hell, it shouldn’t be. This piece should be preserved and put in a food art museum or something.

Is that egotistical of him? To want this sugar sculpture of himself preserved for all eternity? Well, it doesn’t matter! Embarrassing at it is, it really is such a work of art. Mobei Jun should’ve won the whole damn thing and he would’ve too! If the stupid man hadn’t—if he wasn’t so—why did he—

Mobei Jun really likes him this much?

Shang Qinghua doesn’t even know where to begin to process things. For the longest time, he always thought of Mobei Jun as a cocky upstart hellbent on running him out of the industry. Up until this competition and having been forced to work together at the start, Shang Qinghua has never thought of Mobei Jun other than as a rival no matter how one-sided it may be. And now suddenly he finds out it’s not only one-sided but he’s apparently Mobei Jun’s muse and the whole reason he got into patisserie and confectionaries? That he wasn’t out to ruin Shang Qinghua’s career but just actually wants to work with him? And date him?? Apparently???

How does he even respond to that? Does anyone know? Because Shang Qinghua sure as hell doesn’t!

And it’s not even that he finds the idea of dating Mobei Jun unthinkable. They’re friends! Sort of! He thinks! Well, they’re friends now that’s for sure. Before the producers decided that ‘hey, you know what will be great? If we pit the members of the final team against each other like the fucking Hunger Games!’ they were teammates and they were one of the strongest teams to beat. They’re very popular with the audiences too. And no matter how Shang Qinghua had tried his best to not like Mobei Jun at the start, you just don’t go clearing through one of the toughest most cut throat culinary competition in the country as a team without developing some sort of friendship along the way.

When Shang Qinghua finally got over himself and got to know the guy, he found that he’s actually…nice. Great, even! Mobei Jun is funny in that quiet sort of way and has the driest sense of humor Shang Qinghua has ever known of someone. Once, Shen Jiu was grilling them about their spun sugar technique and Mobei Jun mumbled something vaguely offensive and rude that made Shang Qinghua laugh and had Shen Jiu nearly flaying him alive on national TV.

And Mobei Jun apparently likes him way more than how a friend should but it’s...not bad? He’s not uncomfortable or creeped out or anything. It’s just…surprising! Yeah. Shang Qinghua is self-aware enough that people who look like Mobei Jun don’t usually go for people who look like, well, him.

Still, the question remains.

Does Shang Qinghua feel the same for Mobei Jun? And if he does, will he really be opposed to dating him?

The doors to the studio open and who should come in but Mobei Jun himself. He’s a little early than Shang Qinghua expected. He’s not done thinking things over! But he looks at Mobei Jun changed out of his chef’s attire and into a casual loose fitted shirt over dark jeans and combat boots, perfectly at ease at himself despite the earlier stunt he pulled while the person said stunt was directed at is already way in over his head overthinking things.

Mobei Jun stops just by the side of his confession piece looking expectant and Shang Qinghua sighs.

Ah. Who is he kidding? Mobei Jun is exactly, exactly, his type it’s insane. His ideal man in every sense of the word and he kind of hates himself for it.

“You idiot,” Shang Qinghua exhales leaning forward on his knees where he’s perched on the steel table of their former work station. He lets out a short almost hysterical laugh as he runs his hands through his face then his hair in exasperation. “Why did you have to throw in the towel? Don’t even try to reason. That’s what you fucking did. You couldn’t just follow the theme and then ask for my number right after? What the fuck.”

Mobei Jun has the audacity to not look affected at being called out. He just blinks at Shang Qinghua who’s clearly having some kind of Crisis. He thinks it’s cute.

“Do you feel like your victory has no meaning?

“What? No.” Shang Qinghua sits up and sees Mobei Jun has come closer. “I don’t believe in shit like that. A win is a win no matter the circumstances. I won and you lost. Hah!”

“Hmm,” Mobei Jun hums, leaning on the edge of the table beside Shang Qinghua with his phone held out. “So, can I get your number now?”

Shang Qinghua rolls his eyes but takes Mobei Jun’s phone anyway. “See, this is what you should’ve done instead of being all cheesy and confessing on national television.”

“Well, you know,” Mobei Jun shrugs. “Grand gestures and all that.”

Shang Qinghua spies the slight tilt of his lips as he hands him his phone back and, God, this man makes him want to expire right on the spot.

“Well, you looked like a straight-up fool,” he says instead by way of deflection but he really can’t do anything with the stubborn smile spreading on his face.

Mobei Jun doesn’t rise up to the taunt. He just holds up his phone and snaps a quick picture of Shang Qinghua, making him blink after the flash went off.

“Wha—”

“No, see, you look like a straight-up fool,” he says showing him the picture he took where Shang Qinghua looks, for all intents and purposes, a deer caught in a headlight. It’s quite literally unflattering.

“I wasn’t ready! No!” Shang Qinghua attempts to snatch Mobei Jun’s phone but he quickly turns the other way. Shang Qinghua tries to reach for it still while draped across his back. “Don’t you dare put that as my contact photo. Argh!”

“Nah,” Mobei Jun says easily avoiding all of Shang Qinghua’s attempts and already setting the picture as his contact photo. “I like this one. Very candid.”

“I don’t like you.”

“Mm. Pick you up later at seven?”

Shang Qinghua huffs as Mobei Jun returns to leaning against the table. He does not get off of him and just remains slumped on Mobei Jun’s side, chin propped on his shoulder. If Mobei Jun leans down just a little he could easily just plant one on Shang Qinghua.

“Eight and you’re paying for everything. Then afterward, we’ll take another photo, a nicer one, and that will be my contact photo. I’ll take one of you too I guess.”

Mobei Jun hums low and warm sounding content. “Alright,” he says before leaning in to kiss Shang Qinghua sweetly on the nose.

Shang Qinghua scrunches his face at that before leaning forward to give Mobei Jun a proper kiss. He feels Mobei Jun smile against his lips and couldn’t help smiling in return.

[ao3 | twt and other moshang week prompts | buy me a ko-fi // more fics]