#wu xie figure

[dailyfigures]

Wu Xie ; The Grave Robbers' Chronicles ☆ Myethos

[levemetal]

Retired happy Junmei for no reason at all except let them be happy post-canon that's all.

[bloopitynoot]

Reading TGCF: Chapter 105

For those who don't know, I am reading TGCF for the first time and sharing my thoughts!

If you have not read it, there will be spoilers! Consider this a warning.

Also- if you want to follow along, I am aiming to post updates daily. You can find all the posts in the tag Bloopitynoot reads TGCF. You can also check out the intro post for context on my read BUT if you followed along with my SVSSS read, the rules and vibe are the same.

I was really feeling a vanilla chai with milk and sugar when I set up for this chapter and when I went to go and make my tea, my body said- Nope, we're making oolong.

So here I am! Oolong tea and the first chapter of book 7!

Let's get into chapter 105;

Guy who has tortured Xie Lian basically his whole life: Do exactly as I say and you'll definitely get through this. -- Absolutely NO THANKS! p13

ooooo! White No Face being the Crown Prince of Wuyong?! If this is the case I need to know how he became such a crusty piece of shit. p15

Knowing that the swords original name (if White No Face wasn't lying) was Zhixin, honestly makes sense. p16

Being freed from the mountain but stopping to get his bamboo hat- my heart!!! p18

omg their reunion (hualian)!!! The status Hua Cheng made, his best one, his most perfect one, saving Xie Lian :'3 Why is this so cute?! Why does it have me tearing up??? p20

omg. Now they have a BBEG battle and an active volcanic eruption p25

They are definitely kissing for safety reasons LOL p26

Damn. All of the struggle with the BBEG and the active volcano and now we have three mountains to evade, a dark cloud of spirits, and the entirety of the evil beings in the mountain barrier. p28

Feng Xin's reaction to the giant statue of Xie Lian is so real lmao p33

The barrier is down?!?! They're unleashing basically the equivalent of the end times from that mountain :S p36

Y'all this was a breath of fresh air

Book seven has me back in the intrigue plot, the battles, the fast pace. I am so glad we made it here.

[ideasloading]

Dianxia must ensure that his best soldier stays flexible

[the-peerless-cucumber]

Jun Wu is the father who stood up. He was there. Xie Lian may not have been his biological son but that didn’t matter. That boy wasn’t gonna be traumatized on his own.

[pmakuma]

01 / 29 / 24

horsey :-)

[ghost-kings-court-jester]

I find it so interesting that time and time again Jun Wu never considered other peoples kindness and how that foiled all his plans.

Like originally he wanted Xie Lian to fall apart and break like him but Wu Ming was there to be sure he wasn’t alone and to take on all that resentment.

The man with the bamboo hat was there making sure Xie Lian remember that people can be kind.

Like even 800 years later after Jun Wu failed he tries to cause rifts for Xie Lian so that he has no one and becomes isolated and hopefully insane like him.

Except Pei Ming who would have lied and manipulated the situation doesn’t blame Xie Lian for figuring everything out, he knows it wasn’t personal and he’s able to work with him later despite Jun Wu constantly pitting them against each other.

Shi Wudu is the strongest elemental master and while he didn’t ever warm to Xie Lian, Shi Qingxuan did and they loved him for who he was. They always came to Xie Lian defence to give him backing in heaven because they were friends. (Which honestly might be why the Shi Wudu plot was revealed starting the Black Water Arc.) then even after leaving heaven and Xie Lian losing a popular gods backing. Shi Qingxuan is kind and doesn’t hold a grudge and even when they have nothing and can’t be an ally in heaven they still care about Xie Lian and help him when they are literally crippled and mortal.

Ling Wen is shrewd and could have been a very strong antagonist against Xie Lian except he was always polite and kind to her and she respects that. She has no real desire to do him harm outside of protecting herself and doesn’t really consider him an enemy in any way.

Lang Qianqiu should have turned against him and all of the heavens against too except he only wants the truth. He hears the whole story and immediately clears Xie Lians name and makes sure the heavens know it was Qi Rong so Xie Lian can’t be banished again.

He pairs Xie Lian with Quan Yizhen a god known for being confrontational and picking fights except Xie Lian was kind to him and that makes him a for lifer in Quan Yizhen’s mind he literally wouldn’t turn against him or even think about it because Xie Lian proved himself to be a good person and that’s all Quan Yizhen needs to like you.

Yushi Huang happily tried to help Xie Lian with the drought and gives him her spiritual device as a show of kindness. Then she helps him hide Banyue, helps in Tonglu and helps Hua Cheng infiltrate Heaven because she’s a kind woman who gave up her life for her people and understands Xie Lian is the same.

Jun Wu assumes this whole time that Feng Xin and Mu Qing would be resentful because that’s what happened to him with his friends except Feng Xin and Mu Qing are insane and deranged and just want Xie Lian to be their friend again so they make little disguises to help all the time and take some of the scrutiny of Xie Lian because they were there too. Feng Xin pays of Xie Lians huge debt to smooth things over for him with the other Gods. When Xie Lian is “kidnapped” they follow him to get him back immediately because hey wait that’s our friend. Jun Wu tries to bring suspicion between them by making them assume the worst about each other but Mu Qing literally takes a shackle over betrayal. Then both of them go to Mount Tonglu to protect Xie Lian and begin to mend their friendship because that’s how they roll.

And of course we have Hua Cheng who is Wu Ming that constant loyal thorn in Jun Wu’s side because through all of these events he is with Xie Lian. He offers comfort and support and insures that Xie Lian never even begins to spiral down the same dark path by helping him in every situation, acting as a buffer and a confidant and reminding Xie Lian he isn’t alone and he will be there loving Xie Lian more than Jun Wu could ever hate him.

There’s probably more instances but I just love how this all kinda plays out like yes Xie Lian is truly kind and hopeful and that’s why he’ll never fully be Bai Wuxiang anyway but other people are kind too! There is so much more to people than Jun Wu expects and that’s why his plan is foiled over and over again. Not by smarts or by fighting but by simple human kindness and compassion.

[flowersdiceandlove]

Au where Hua Cheng stays as Wu Ming. All the canon stuff during the first banishment happens, but when he goes to Mount Tonglu, he stays as Wu Ming instead of becoming Hua Cheng. He decides to keep the name Wu Ming bc that’s the name His Highness gave him. He keeps wearing the black robes and Xianle soldier uniform/armor. He makes it clear that he was a soldier in the Xianle army, that he still considers Xie Lian his god, and he wants to serve and protect his god for the rest of his existence just as he wanted in life. He still becomes the calamity and founds Ghost City and challenges the gods, but he does it as Wu Ming. Instead of Crimson Rain Sought Flower, he becomes Crimson-Teared Smiling Ghost (or maybe Crimson-Teared Smiling Soldier?) bc when he’s standing in the blood rain, it slides down his smiling mask making it look like he’s crying tears of blood.

The Heavens know that he’s looking for Xie Lian, and when the Mount Yujun mission happens and Xie Lian’s asking about the young man who controls silver butterflies, they’re like “ah, yes, Wu Ming... Of course he was there since you were…” And Xie Lian is balking learning that Wu Ming is still here and has been looking for him and is still openly worshiping him after all that happened. Xie Lian finds out where to find Wu Ming and hurries down to Ghost City and finds Wu Ming.

This could either be a speed run for their relationship (more than it already was in canon) because Wu Ming’s devotion makes it kinda clear of how much he loves Xie Lian and Xie Lian figures out that he’s Wu Ming’s beloved that Wu Ming wanted revenge for—and, while Xie Lian’s not sure he deserves this love after all that happened—is touched deeply and falls in love with Wu Ming as they spend time together. Or it makes it drag out so much bc they both feel guilty about the past and inadequate to stand next to the other. Xie Lian not feeling worthy of Wu Ming’s steadfast devotion, and Wu Ming feeling he’s failed his god since he left Xie Lian to fight White No-Face alone and is only just now finding him. Either way, like hell Xie Lian’s leaving Wu Ming’s side after their parting 800 years ago and is 100% on Wu Ming’s side in everything. The Heavens have some sort of critique about Wu Ming or warning to Xie Lian about him? In one ear and out the other along with a pointed reminder that Wu Ming is his ghost and his follower. Do not speak I’ll of him again :) Wu Ming’s poor heart is pounding and his face is flaming at how steadfast his god, his love, his everything is defending him and fanboying so hard about it to He Xuan and Yin Yu.

I think at first Xie Lian would move into one of the shrines or temples that Wu Ming built in Ghost City, but then after a little move into Paradise Manor properly.

Also, while Wu Ming openly worships Xie Lian, he doesn’t make any of the denizens of Ghost City worship him. However, bc their beloved Chengzu is worshipping this god, they want to as well and learn about this god that their Chengzu loves. Because of this Xie Lian has a lot of temples and shrines in Ghost City. This number increases after Xie Lian moves there and actually starts answering their prayers, helping where he can, becoming just as beloved as their Chengzhu to them in his own right.

Since Xie Lian has all these temples and shrines, when he has his initial debt, he actually has merits streaming in that Ling Wen is plucking from Xie Lian before he even gets them to start repaying the debt. He still needs to do the Mount Yujun mission though because it is a big debt. And Wu Ming has no intention of purposefully giving more offerings to Xie Lian to help him pay the debt that way cause he doesn’t think Xie Lian should have been billed in the first place. And, since the gods know that any merits from Xie Lian would be coming from Wu Ming and Ghost City, they’re actually scared to take the merits since they think it would piss Wu Ming off (they’re right, of course). So they’re more than happy when they learn about the Mount Yujun arrangement, saying they only want merits if it comes from that mission. (Some still decide to just wave the owed merits all together just to be safe.)

Most of the gods in Heaven still avoid Xie Lian like he’s the plague because of his past but also because (and as the leading reason) because they don’t want to piss Wu Ming off accidentally if they say something offensive to Xie Lian by mistake. After Wu Ming challenged the gods and it came out that he worshipped Xie Lian, the incident of the 33 gods kicking Xie Lian off the mountain came out and so people are scared they’ll be next if they make a wrong move around Xie Lian. They don’t know Xie Lian very well, so they don’t know what he would consider offensive.

Feng Xin and Mu Qing know Exactly why Wu Ming’s pissed at them and can’t even blame him for it after learning of Wu Ming’s devotion. I think their interactions would be really funny. The three of them dragging up old, petty grievances, and hurling Xianle insults at each other. Wu Ming and Mu Qing are winning this because their memories are so good that they remember a lot while Feng Xin is wondering how these two remember so fucking much and so many fucking details. He’s doing pretty good with the insults, though. Those he remembers just fine. Pretty much all of Heaven has learned insults and swears from the Xianle dynasty and dialect and they actually use it. (Xie Lian is pretty shook after ascending again and hearing his native dialect used so casually after it being out of use for centuries.)

The gods eat up Wu Ming, Feng Xin, and Mu Qing’s beef because they know it’s personal instead of left wondering why he’s so against the two and are enjoying watching the matches, arguments, and fall out with them all just like they did with just Feng Xin and Mu Qing in canon.

While Wu Ming does have a lot of fake skins, he still always wears the smiling mask when he’s going up against the gods or in any Official business as Crimson-Teared Smile Ghost/Soldier(?) as a matter of trademark and principal. If he’s not wearing it over his face, he might slide it to the side of his head or have it hang from his waist. When he’s in a human disguise in the Mortal Realm, he keeps it tucked away out of sight, but still on him and easy to grab to put on. He might also just have a technique for making and shattering them for when he needs them. Like how his butterflies come out of his vambraces.

I really like the idea of his title starting out as “Crimson Teared Smiling” because it’s so beautifully tragic. The blood rain falling down makes him look like he’s crying tears of blood, and horrible type of grieving for his his god who went through so much. He wears his smiling mask, though, and is makes it look like he’s smiling because his god was kind and smiled kindly to all, offering shelter and a helping hand. Xie Lian’s duality is reflected here, the pain and suffering he went through with the bloody tears, but also the kind smile he kept and still offers despite it all. We also can’t forget White No-Face’s cry-smiling mask. That just feels like the cherry on top of hidden meanings.

As for whether it ends in “Ghost” or “Soldier” I keep wib-wobbling back and forth on because they’re both so good. “Ghost” is good because that’s what Wu Ming is. He is a nameless ghost. He was nobody until his god gave him purpose. He was ready to die and felt dead because of his shitty life and luck before he remade himself for his god. Even when he was alive, he was always told he’d be better dead and that he’d not live to 18. He was always surrounded by death and tragedy. A ghost is a very good descriptor of what he is even before he died. In volume 1, Chapter 6 it says:

Many believe that, as the God of Misfortune, any paintings or writings of the Prince of Xianle have the powers of a curse. If placed on the back of a person, or on the main entrance of a household, then the cursed person or household will run into all sorts of bad luck… …It was hard to tell whether this was a description of a god or a ghost.

With Honghong-er's luck, even as alive, I would not be surprised if this was true for him also. So, "Ghost" is a very good word to describe him and has a lot of meaning to it.

However, "Soldier" also has a good meaning to it. Wu Ming was a soldier in the Xianle army. He took up arms to defend the capital, but mostly his god, Xie Lian. In the first battle after Xie Lian desended, Mu Qing notes that Wu Ming(still a nameless soldier) was fighting really closely to Xie Lian the entire battle, trying to keep enemies away from Xie Lian. Later, as the ghost Wu Ming in actuality, he was a soldier once again, serving Xie Lian directly, working as his blade and tool. He made himself into a solder for Xie Lian. He did that. That was his choice. He pushed away his fate and became what he wanted. A soldier. A protecter. All for his god. He still wears the armor and attire of a Xianle soldier because that's what he is in this au. He is a champion of Xie Lian, the Crown Prince of Xianle, his weapon, tool, protector. He is a soldier and he wears that honor proudly. Xie Lian is the one who told him he would be suited for a saber and gave him tips. He pledged himself to Xie Lian many times, and Xie Lian accepted that pledge. He is Xie Lian's soldier. His champion. Everything Wu Ming built was towards that end of protecting Xie Lian. The fact that Wu Ming made himself this, is so very in line with canon that it would be so beautiful for his title to reflect this just as the "Sought Flower" does in his canon title.

"Ghost" is a good descriptor of him, but holds tones of his past and what was given to him.

"Soldier" is what he made himself despite it all.

Both are so good, and I'm not sure which would be better. Maybe it's something they change? In canon, there are multiple titles used for people. Just Qi Rong is called both "Night Touring Green Lantern" and also "Green Ghost." So, idk.

I thought up this idea about a week ago and was like "I should write that. That's such a good idea and would be so much fun." but then I remembered that I have so many other fics I need to finish and that this idea would be a big one because there's no way that this could be a oneshot or anything even in the realm of short. I would think 50k at least, but the way my writing goes, it would probably end up closer to 100k. So, i decided to release this idea to the wind and see if any of you got inspiration from it. If anyone writes this or has ideas, let me know because I really do love this idea and want to see stuff about it.

[dailyfigures]

Zhang Qiling & Wu Xie ; Grave Robbers' Chronicles ☆ Good Smile Arts Shanghai

[csilla-nocturne]

Another older AU idea:

AU where Xie Lian isn't banished after his second ascension, but spends most of his time wandering the mortal realm hoping to find Wu Ming while slowly becoming a god of the dead.

He is in fact away when Hua Cheng ascends and leaves, but he just happens to arrive as Hua Cheng finishes annihilating the 33 gods. At this time Xie Lian is still pretty much considered a laughing stock. Mu Qing, and Feng Xin both keep their distance out of guilt,(Jun Wu had a lovely talk with them.) but everyone thinks they also really look down on Xie Lian. So when Xie Lian challenges Hua Cheng himself and Hua Cheng accepts, the gods think they are about to be entertained by seeing XIe Lian get humiliated again.

However two things happen very quickly:

1. They figure out Hua Cheng was just playing with everyone before.

2. Everyone gets a reminder that Xie Lian is a damn martial god.

The fight goes on for 3 days. The heavens shake, buildings fall. Even Jun Wu can't get them to stop. Xie Lian and Hua Cheng look like they are having the time of their lives. As the third day is ending they finally stop, no one watching is quite sure exactly how victory between the two was decided, but Hua Cheng reverently takes a crystal ring on a chain and places it over Xie Lian's head, kneels pledging his eternal loyalty and devotion, and then collapses from exhaustion. When other martial gods start to approach Xie Lian raises his sword at them, and says in a clear, surprisingly cold voice "No one touch him. He is mine." Seeing he's made his point he sheathes his sword, and picks Hua Cheng up taking him to his palace, where promptly puts up a barrier keeping everyone else out. He suspected while they had been fighting that Hua Cheng was Wu Ming, and Hua Cheng's actions afterward confirmed it for him. He is absolutely not going to let his Wu Ming be taken from him again.

[sisislair]

More on the re-listen/read.

The second Jun Wu gets back he starts chipping away at Xie Lian's support base.

First with Feng Xin by telling Xie Lian about him forgiving the debt and helping him out. Which on the surface would seem nice of him, to let Xie Lian know that his old friends might still care about him. But he already knows that due to their very poorly disguised selves helping him out. What this is doing, however, is making Xie Lian complicit in Jun Wu breaking their secrecy. He was specifically told not to reveal this information to Xie Lian. So now there is no way for Xie Lian to acknowledge their good deeds naturally, without revealing how he found out.

And surely, if he's been told this secret, what other things are being said about the two of them behind their backs between Jun Wu and Xie Lian? It's not that big of a thing, but it doesn't have to be. The gap between the three old friends is already large enough that Jun Wu widening it ever little bits at a time won't be noticed.

Secondly, of course, he tries to drive a wedge between Hua Cheng and Xie Lian. The support of a ghost king is no joke, and I think by this point he has already started to make assumptions about their relationship. Same as the rest of the heavens honestly lol.

But either way he sends him to investigate Hua Cheng specifically because he knows it will fuck Xie Lian up to have to investigate someone who's being nice to him, and even if he can't make him distrust Hua Cheng with all the bits he's been dropping about how evil he is, then the least he can do is make Xie Lian feel so guilty that their friendship withers because of that.

And Xie Lian is torn up about it! Hua Cheng is being a wonderful host and friend to him, and he's snooping through his stuff! The wind master is like, 100% you should not have accepted this mission, ghost king or no, even if Jun Wu himself told you too. Because he obviously considers you his friend. But Xie Lian still sees Jun Wu as a trusted mentor figure, even if he doesn't always agree with him, so he reasons that of course Jun Wu knew this would be awkward for him. So he must have thought that Xie Lian was the only person who could do this task right.

And I mean, to be fair, not entirely inaccurate, if by do this right, you mean not jump to the immediate conclusion that Hua Cheng is in the wrong. As well as subtlety. Of which Lang Qianqiu has none lol.

So on the guilt end he is very much succeeding, which like, no surprise.

Xie Lian is the champion of feeling guilty about things. But on the trust end? Ghost city arc is so important for establishing a foundation for their relationship.

Jokes on Jun Wu, because his sending Xie Lian on this mission very firmly sets into his mind that Jun Wu and the other heavenly officials are all just talking bullshit when it comes to Hua Cheng.

Oh he can't be trusted! And yet he keeps his promises.

Oh he lives in a den of depravity and is cruel! But he obviously has a handle on things, and is very well respected, not just feared.

Oh his scimitar is super cursed! And yet it does Xie Lian no harm, and acts like an eager puppy.

Xie Lian's been on the wrong side of the rumor mill for a long time, he knows how this shit goes.

[aceofgifs]

I have made a better one (also dedicating him to @cozyteademon, lol) Hat Wu Xie the 2nd

My first gif made with ps {I am dedicating our boy to @cozyteademon} Hat Wu Xie

[tea-cat-arts]

Ranking mxtx couples by whether or not I think they'd be good parents

(I'm 90% sure I'm forgetting someone)

Yep, next question (S)-

Wangxian: tried and tested good dads. I wish them luck with the whole “trying to get wwx pregnant” thing 

They have some shit to work through, but after that I think they'd be fine (A)-

Ling Wen/ Bai Jin: if we're just going off the original publication, I would put them in a much lower tier, but since the revised edition added that thing about them raising orphans together and said orphans turning out alright before unfortunate circumstances, I'm putting them up here. I think they'll be alright once they work through the miscommunication

Xiao Xingchen/ Song Lan: They obviously have a lot of trauma they're working through, but I'd like to think they and A-Qing will be a loving family in the long run 

One of them would be a good parent, the other wouldn't be a bad parent (B)-

Jiang Yanli/ Jin Zixuan: there's no canon reason for me putting them this low. Jin Zixuan just gives off a mediocre parent vibe to me (and we all know Jiang Yanli is the best)

Yushipei: Yushi Huang has good mom energy, and Pei Ming has been shown to be a not terrible mentor. I'd want the misogyny fully beaten out of him with a mace before I'd think he should have kids of his own though 

Lang Qianqiu/ Little Guy: at the very least, they're making sure Guzi is fed, clothed, washed, vaccinated, and has access to education. Neither of them know what they're doing, but I think Little Guy is good at faking it. I wish them luck in their upcoming custody battle  

You know what, surprise me/ I'll hear you out (C)-

Bingqiu: My first instinct is “no, do not bring kids into this,” but then I remembered tharnShen Qingqiu has a surprisingly decent track record? Like, Ning Yingying and Ming Fan both turned out a lot more health than they did in the original novel, and though I wouldn't call him in a good place, Binghe is doing a lot better than Bingge. The wild card for me here is Luo Binghe because I have no idea how he'd be with kids

Quanyin: Yin Yu had a decent track record until he was pushed into snapping. I think rn, he needs a couple centuries of being a babygirl before he's ready to parent again. No idea how Quan Yizhen would do though 

Born to “dual income, no kids, rich uncles/aunts” (D)-

Fengqing: Feng Xin is canonically a bad dad. I know he's working on it, but it is what it is. Mu Qing has been shown to be decent with kids, but I think he’d have a melt down if he had to deal with the mess constantly. 

Hualian: I mean, Xie Lian has raised three kids at this point and one of them became a god, another became state preceptor and then sorta complicit in a genocide, and one became god AND committed genocide + he babysat a ghost king for months and didn't even realize that's what he was because it was a miracle if he remembered to feed him… so, a mixed bag. Hua Cheng may be schrodinger’s child hater, but I'm intrigued by the idea of him raising kids just because I want to know how his own childhood would influence his parenting abilities. They should probably just stick to babysitting for now though 

Mingling: Liu Mingyan is too busy writing gay porn to be dealing with kids, and I just can't imagine Sha Hualing as a mom

Please don't bring a kid into this mess (F)-

Beefleaf: Do I need to explain this one?

Mobeishang: Shang Qinghua should not be put in any position where he has to teach someone about consent (Binghe’s early attempts at flirting being a prime example of why that's a bad idea). I also think Mobei Jun is still working on the whole “why hitting people is not cool” thing. 

QiJiu: I think the original timeline is a prime example of how they're just not in a place to be raising kids 

Jun Wu/ Mei Nianqing: Xie Lian would like a refund on his adopted father figures. They had one kid and he only made it to age 20 because he was cursed to not die

[foxfeast]

after jun wu is defeated and the surviving gods are all trying to figure out who should be the next heavenly emperor they do the whole “yeah xie lian should do it, he defeated white no face” but xie lian pulls an uno reverse and elects lang qianqiu. after all lang qianqiu is the only god present who actually has experience being a king and ruling over a nation

[nikito0x]

I want to read a fic where Xie Lian's cooking saves the world.

Like, oops, he had the bad luck to trip, and the dish he spent so long on, for the most magnanimous emperor - who has truly been so kind to him - falls right onto Jun Wu's ashes.

For the rest of the fic Jun Wu is sickly and doesn't feel well enough to get out much but he never figures out why. He becomes frantic trying to find what is happening to him, this is not a part of his plans.

He ends up making a little mistake that snowballs and suddenly all of Heaven knows he's a calamity. By the time he realizes what must have happened to his ashes, it's too late.

Or a Percy Jackson moment, where instead of the hairbrush that was able to stop a titan in his tracks, it's someone throwing XL's cooking in Jun Wu's face.

San Lang, happily munching away: weak.

[rejectedfables]

t4t hualian where Xie Lian actually did sleep with that soldier in the fuck-or-die cave, and then also Wu Ming. Has not figured out they're all the same person. Finally gets into Hua Cheng's pants to find yet another pussy and is like "I am no longer convinced penises are real. I have never seen one. I think they are a myth."