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Chapter Text

The legendary battle with Tianlang-jun’s was a well-staged play.

How bold of these humans was to assume they could trick and defeat the Demon Emperor himself! What were they even thinking? That he’s just some inexperienced youth who can’t dodge a bunch of attacks and timely reevaluate his capabilities? That he doesn’t know when to retreat and hide his traces?

Foolish.
Tianlang-jun united the Demonic Realm with his bare hands, having to fight countless demon lords before they recognized his power. The worst of them probably was his own sister…Oh, these cultivators must be happy they picked on him and not his meimei. In the end she too lost to her brother in power, but she was definitely way more vengeful and wouldn’t leave it like that.

Tianlang-jun was not particularly interested in revenge. He was heartbroken by Su Xiyan’s betrayal, and, well, an unexpected fight ruined the upcoming month for him for sure as some damage had been done.

But that’s what he should have expected. He too once used the seducing strategy out of ulterior motives during his conquest in the Demonic Realm…But his Xiyan wasn’t the kind of person to do that, no.

Besides, Su Xiyan hasn’t even been among the cultivators that attacked him. Maybe she hoped he could escape…She was so close to him, she must have known he wouldn’t succumb.

If you want to hide something, leave it in an open space! Who’s going to look for a wounded Demon Emperor in a third-rate inn? He could disguise as human quite well; as for his wounds, well, he could as well claim to be cultivator or just a runaway noble youth (he believed he looked youthful enough) who ran into trouble. Most of the time, common humans didn’t really care at all. He rented a room and ordered some wine for himself.

Alcohol has surely cheered him up as he thought, maybe Su Xiyan knew he would escape? Of course she knew, how couldn’t she know? How could she ever doubt him? He’s here now, safe and relatively sound. She definitely will explain everything to him once they meet again, he just has to keep a low profile and wait for a good opportunity.

Memories of recent events flooded Su Xiyan’s head as soon as she regained enough consciousness to recall who she was. She tried to get up, but her whole body responded with terrible pain.
“Oh dear, don’t move! Your wounds will open,” an unfamiliar old woman with a worried face rushed over with a bowl of water and held it to Su Xiyan’s lips. Su Xiyan gladly drank it almost on instinct before even thinking of being cautious. “Lie back down, rest. Oh, just who could’ve done that to you, poor child? Rest, rest…You’re safe now.”
Su Xiyan looked around in confusion. The last thing she remembered after throwing away the flask and punching someone’s face to steal their sword and escaping the hell away from the Huan Hua sect was reaching the riverside. Then she had to land her sword, then she probably threw up, and then she staggered down the stream until…How long has she lasted?..

Long enough to reach the vicinity of some settlement, apparently. She began to connect the dots.
Hold up.
“Where…What’s with the child?” her voice sounded hoarse and she felt like words were scratching her throat on their way out.

“Ah, of course, of course,” the old woman smiled. “You probably don’t remember your fever and labor, but of course you wouldn’t forget about the baby. Hold on, he’s right here. Such a beautiful little boy.”

Su Xiyan only now noticed there was something else on the bed beside her, something thoroughly wrapped in clothes that the old woman scooped up and moved closer to Su Xiyan’s face.

“I’d lay him down on your chest, but I don’t want to risk disturbing your wounds. Watch him from my arms, okay?”

Su Xiyan couldn’t think of any words.

Her child was actually there before her. Even if she tried to touch it, her hands wouldn’t listen anyway. She blinked a few times, her brain still not fully processing what this little pink squeaking bunch was.
And then she felt every emotion possible at once.

The old woman was smiling gently at her. “Don’t cry, dear. The worst part is already over.”

It took Su Xiyan a lot of effort to force her trembling lips to move again. There were so many things going on in her head right now, but none of them could be put into words. In the end, she kept it simple.

“Thank you.”

Tianlang-jun was quite used to being alone, but…

It’s been so terribly long since he last saw Su Xiyan. And it felt like there’s not a trace of her left in this world, as if she never existed. Why won’t she send him any sign?

That’s what he thinks until he overhears a conversation between two disciples that wear the same kind of uniform as Su Xiyan.

“...It’s truly a pity. Shijie didn’t deserve such an end.”

“I know, right. It’s all because of that demon…Ugh, frankly, I think it was not a good idea to make her a spy to begin with. If he found out, he would have killed her even earlier.”
“Right, but who else would handle such a mission if not Su-shijie?..”

Ah.

That was quite a lot to process.

Something has gone wrong with peak lord Shen. One day he just lost his consciousness, and when he woke up…When he woke up, he felt like a different person.

At first no one paid attention to that. He seemed to have partial memory loss, which was unsurprising for his condition. Few days after his recovery, Shen Qingqiu has been recalling things and past habits, but…

He just felt different.

Nothing was wrong with his qi or his meridians. His mind didn’t seem to be particularly affected either. There were no signs of possession.

“Sometimes people change in the face of death,” that was Mu Qingfan’s best guess. “Maybe Shen-shixiong has experienced some sort of…enlightenment?..”

Not like anyone had any better ideas.

And, really, apart from Yue Qingyuan, everyone was quite happy with this updated Shen Qingqiu.

“I’m sure you’ll do well,” Su Xiyan smiled as she patted her son’s head. Time was flying so fast; she still couldn’t get used to the fact that her Binghe can speak in complete sentences, and here he was now about to try his luck to join a cultivation sect.

Not Huan Hua, of course.

She wanted her son to keep as far away from the Huan Hua sect as possible, and what could be a better place than the Cang Qiong Mountain sect? Even if for some reason someone from Su Xiyan’s former sect finds Binghe there…She knew that the Cang Qiong Sect always stood for their people. No other sect would be able to efficiently resist Huan Hua.

And it also would be best for the boy to learn to defend himself. There was so much Su Xiyan could teach him herself, but she didn’t want Huan Hua techniques to give out his origin one day.

Oh, and she left the name of Su Xiyan behind long ago.

Now she was Luo Tian, a commoner woman, the old washerwoman’s relative who’s husband tragically died and she moved in with her last remaining family. The old woman that saved her and her son was only happy about their stay; she was not feeling lonely, and also Luo Tian was strong and capable and took the breadwinner duty on herself. It was not too bad, really.

She was certainly earning more than the poor washerwoman ever could. They managed their little household, and as Binghe was growing up, he’s been a very eager helper too. Luo Tian was very proud of him.

“I will come see you and grandma sometimes, right?” Luo Binghe still looked at the people in light robes in the distance with mistrust and hesitation.

“Of course. They let their disciples visit families once a year. You can send us letters.”

“I will,” the boy nodded. He already knew how to write from his mother. “I will write to you everyday.”

“We won’t have enough paper to write back,” Luo Tian chuckled. “Better focus on finding some friends. We’ll always be waiting for you at home, but you are yet to make connections here. You must train and study hard too.”

“I will make you both proud,” Luo Binghe responded and hit his chest with his little fist confidently.

“We are already proud.”

She leaned in to plant a kiss on his forehead and lightly pushed him forward.

Chapter Text

A man reeking of alcohol was sleeping at the threshold of some leisure house, his face hidden under a shabby bamboo hat. The leisure house owner nearly tripped on him upon walking out, and she immediately grew infuriated.

“You again! I told you not to come by without money, old drunkard!” she started yelling, trying to kick the man away from the threshold. “Begone!”

The “drunkard” only groaned in dissatisfaction.

“Can’t a man catch a break?” he murmured, slowly getting himself up. 

“Perish,” the woman hissed. “You still owe me! Don’t come back until you can repay your debt!”

“Bluh bluh,” the man parodied, which earned him a hit on the back with something heavy, whatever happened to be within the angered leisure house owner’s reach. “I’ll pay! Someday I definitely will…”

Wobbling, he got on the move. Heavenly demons could easily get rid of a hangover, but he couldn’t care enough. Well, maybe he considered himself deserving of his hangover.

Tianlang-jun (though, what even was left of “jun” in him?) just grinned as he heard the woman keep cursing at him as he was walking away.

Ah, she has no clue how grand he once was! Once long ago, when he was still a Demon Emperor.

Before the woman he loved betrayed him.

Tianlang-jun wasn’t mad at her; even if she did betray him, she has already paid the price. She was already dead, and he was alive, shouldn’t he be happy about that? Everyone got served what they deserved, but it still didn’t sit right with him. 

Sometimes he kind of wishes it was the other way round. Most of the time, however, he simply was drunk.

He knew that the cultivators declared him dead when they failed to find him in the long run. Of course they did - after going so far, they couldn’t just openly admit their mission was a huge flop. He knew they were still waiting for his return, maybe some of them even see him in their nightmares, even though he’s never done any of the things people rumored about.

After trying the taste of having a companion, traveling alone was not so fun anymore. 

He was just thinking about where he should burn his life today. Need to find a place where his face is not yet known, because he ran out of money years ago. His pondering was abruptly interrupted by someone screaming, “ demon! ”

Tianlang-jun twitched and froze in place. Did he accidentally let his qi loose?! Did he get exposed? People started running away, but not from him. 

Oh, must be someone else then. A demon that would barge into a bustling human town in the daylight likely was not just an ordinary one, and Tianlang-jun wasn’t really feeling up for a fight. He quickly got rid of his hangover just in case and hoped he could just blend in with the crowd and escape.

In his dreams.

“Ge!” a loud voice sent shivers down his spine and he couldn’t take a single step. Slowly, he turned around to see exactly the person he least wanted to see ever again(after a bunch of cultivators that tried to kill him, probably). A tall woman with broad shoulders and bright demonic mark on her forehead. Absurdly long claws(no, really, even for a demon that’s just inconvenient!), obnoxious grin(runs in the family), crazy eyes and…snakes? New pets, perhaps.

“Meimei,” Tianlang-jun put on a smile. “How did you find me?..”

The street was empty as all the humans chose to hide away from the demoness’s eyes. Great, he can’t stay in this town anymore now that he was seen chatting with her.

“Pf, I’d be good for nothing if I couldn’t locate my own brother. Ge, I’ve got a favor to ask for.”

Tianlang-jun sighed. If she made all the way here to ask for it, that means he’s not getting away from her until she gets what she wants. Terrible little sibling that only remembers about his existence when she needs something! 

“Then ask,” he groaned. He only now noticed she had a sack behind her shoulder. As soon as he expressed his “agreement”, she tossed that sack over right into Tianlang-jun’s arms.

“Great! You’ve been hiding quite well, you know? Since nobody’s found you yet. Keep that up, that’s all.”

He examined the sack with his eyes and raised a brow in confusion. The woman looked back at him impatiently, as if waiting till he opens it, sees the thing and understands everything on his own. Tianlang-jun could never understand things she brought on his own, though.

Inside the sack was…an egg.

Tianlang-jun was not sure if he wanted to know where it was from.

“Things are getting heated on the Southern Border. My husband has already met his untimely demise,” his sister finally proceeded to elaborate, seeing his visibly even more confused look. “I don’t plan to follow his fate, but this is our progeny. Our successor! Just keep the egg safe until I’m back!”

Tianlang-jun was speechless. He had no idea his sister got married to begin with, which was not really surprising, considering how rarely they crossed paths. 

“...And what if I just kill it?”

“You won’t, ge. You’ve given up your position already, and seeing you now, I only got further convinced in that. You won’t win anything by killing it other than me kicking your ass.”

Try me , Tianlang-jun thought, but decided not to comment. He really didn’t want to throw hands now. And, well, maybe she had a point. He hasn’t had a decent fight since, uh, how many years has it been since Xiyan’s death? Seven? Ten? Maybe not even a year at all and he was just delirious from continuous drinking? He wasn’t really counting, but it felt like at least a decade when he thought about it more thoroughly.

Still, that left one more question unanswered.

“And since when are you concerned about your bloodline?..”

His sister arched her brow, mirroring him. 

“It’s my flesh and blood. If one day something happens to me, I’ll be able to take over its body. I have servants loyal enough to arrange everything. Isn’t that of interest to you too, ge?”

Ah, now Tianlang-jun had no more questions. He really wanted to refuse, but…

“Besides, it took me quite a lot of effort to birth this. Would be a pity if it died.”

Her tone did not sound usual. It was almost as if she cared; even her glance softened for a second, but Tianlang-jun wasn’t sure if he didn’t just make that up. Next moment, she was already back to her normal careless, unsympathetic self.

But in the end he couldn’t refuse.

The demoness soon rushed away, likely to break bones and draw blood, and Tianlang-jun continued his way to hell-knows-where with a “gift” in his clutch.

If I and Xiyan had an egg-...a child like we wanted to, we definitely wouldn’t treat it like that, he thought. Demons often were not the best at parenting, but he’s read about familial relationships in human books and found them very wholesome. Yeah, they certainly would have made better parents. And yet Xiyan was dead, he was alone, and it was his dumbass sister and her husband - who even was that beast to produce an egg with her?! - that got a chance at it. How unfair.

“Well, guess I have a listener for my poetry now,” he patted the egg through the sack. “Uncle’s going to instill some culture in you before that braindead idiot comes to take you back.”

Uncle, hm? That didn’t sound bad.

Tianlang-jun heard kids are not easy to handle, but now he certainly could claim that’s merely a misconception. His child was actually very easy to handle! It was just sitting in the sack like a good egg, not even making any noise. And it was listening patiently to everything he rambled about!

He had this egg for a day but he was already feeling like his title of an uncle was absolutely well-deserved. He was just so natural at it.

As the night fell, Tianlang-jun began to worry though. Shouldn’t an egg stay warm? His sister didn’t leave any instructions like a dumbass she is, and he was too dumbfounded to think about asking. Too bad that he couldn’t afford an inn to stay the night.

The egg was soft, making him guess its father must be some sort of reptile demon. He wasn’t an expert, but he hoped it was a reptile, because it certainly wasn’t a bird, and if it was some bug or slug demon…Tianlang-jun would rather not think about that. He made himself relatively comfortable on a large branch of some tree - he’s grown used to sleeping there when no better spots are available, took the egg out of the sack and hid under his robes, keeping it close to his warm body. 

“You sure are lucky,” Tianlang-jun hummed. “Not every egg can proudly say that it’s been hatched by the mightiest of heavenly demons.”

It was weird. It was even weirder that he didn’t dislike that.

It’s been a whole week and the egg still looked healthy, or, at the very least, unchanged. Tianlang-jun was enormously proud of himself. Certainly worthy of the uncle of the year award!

He sold his last books to scramble some money to rent a room. Hopefully, his sister returns soon because he’s not sure how long he can last with that.

He’s grown so used to the egg over these days that it almost felt like his own.

It was always somewhere there, in the corner of his eye. Listening to what he has to say and just vibing. Had he known eggs make such wonderful companions, he’d have gotten one long ago.

He grew curious about what is going to come out of it.

“You know, you definitely won the bloodline lottery. I mean, look at me. You won’t find a man more handsome in two realms,” Tianlang-jun mused, lying on the bed next to the egg. It couldn’t confirm his statement, but it couldn’t deny it either, which was sweet. “And my sister, well, she’s a bit intimidating, but she’s quite handsome too. Certainly lacking charisma, but, ah, I’ve got enough for the both of us. I’d say you have good chances at being half as handsome as I.”

He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling.

“Frankly, I almost wish your mother never comes back. I mean, we’re having fun, right? I’ve been so lonely.”

He got no response, but response was never necessary to Tianlang-jun. Having a listener was enough.

“Well, I guess you may be missing her nonetheless. I was joking. She definitely will come back for you,” he tried to sound assuring. He suddenly felt oddly relatable.

He too hoped Su Xiyan would come back for him. Perhaps he too was an egg, in a way.

“Woah. That was a deep one,” he commented on his thought. How convenient that he doesn’t have to elaborate since no one's listening anyway.

Chapter Text

A month later, his sister finally returns. Tianlang-jun has already spent quite some time surviving “in the wild”. Even with an egg on him, for a demon of his power it was not a big deal, all he had to do was avoid cultivators, which he was quite good at.

“Ge!”

“Meimei.”

He was not too excited about her return, but a deal was a deal. He could probably just throw a fight for custody over the egg, but…Tianlang-jun guessed he spent too much time around humans and became too human himself. He thought it would be unfair since he’s only an uncle. Even if he’s a really cool uncle.
“Many thanks for taking care of it,” his sister grinned, exposing her fangs. “Now we can return home safely. Where’s that little monster?”

“In our humble abode,” Tianlang-jun huffed. “Follow.”

He led her to a cave, the entrance of which was covered with something resembling a door, clearly made by an amateur who had little idea on how to work with wood (Tianlang-jun really tried, even though he could just steal a door from some humans’ house!). This was the place the former Emperor now called “home” and the place where he left the egg.

When he returned, however, there was only an empty shell left.

Tianlang-jun felt his insides freeze as he stared at it in shock.

What could have happened? Did a wild animal get in?!

He was brought back to senses when his eyes met two shining dots in the back of the cave, in its darkest corner.

“It hatched,” his sister whispered, apparently not to alert the hatchling.

“I see,” Tianlang-jun responded, trying not to make it too obvious how excited he was about that.

Finally, he can see his precious nephew he cared for so thoroughly! Ah, the greatest joy of parenting is to see the child grow!..

It hissed when his sister tried to approach it, and Tianlang-jun’s face stretched in a delighted grin. That’s right, the kid knows who to trust! He pushed her away and extended his arms towards the child. “Come to uncle~” he hummed.

The beastling stared at him, unblinking, frozen in place. At least it didn’t hiss!

“Come on,” Tianlang-jun tried to make his voice warm. “You recognize your uncle, right?”

It stared at him some more…before slithering right into his arms.

“Damn, you really tamed my child in my absence, huh?” his sister rolled her eyes, standing behind him. Tianlang-jun thought it’s very fortunate she can’t see his face right now.

Because his eyes very certainly were more watery than he’d like to admit.

Seeing the creature in proper light was…an experience.

No matter how well the demons see in the dark, sunlight always gives a better picture. This beastling sure wasn’t meant to walk under the light of sun though.

They could only catch a glimpse of the child’s shape before it started hissing and writhing as if from pain. Tianlang-jun himself was so shocked by what he saw that he couldn’t even hold it when it attempted to escape, plopping down on the ground and quickly retreating back into the cave.

His sister was just as wide-eyed as him.

“Are you sure that was the right egg?..” she asked, her face scrunching up into a pout.

“I’m certain, but now I wonder what did you have to fuck for this to be brought into existence,” Tianlang-jun took a deep breath. “I have never seen anything like that.”

“Guess I’m not sleeping with snake demons anymore,” the woman rubbed the back of her head. “Well, that was embarrassing.”

“It sure was.”

They kept silent for a while.

“Are you taking it back to the Southern Border now?”

“That…” she looked away. “It’s…perhaps not the best idea? I guess I won’t really be able to use it and, uh…I don’t think it can really make a successor to anything…”

It’s a horrendously ugly mistake of nature, you know it, I know it, and even the little creature seems to know it, unable to show itself in the light of day, so don’t bother making up reasons to get rid of it, Tianlang-jun concluded, but, just as he thought, they both knew it so there was no reason to say it aloud. Especially when the little creature could probably still hear them.

“Ge.” His sister’s face suddenly turned serious. “I birthed it, so I guess I must… end its suffering.”

How righteous.

Still, even if it was impossible to look at…Tianlang-jun warmed this egg with his own body. He recited poems to it. He didn’t even know if the child in the egg could hear him, but it recognized him and trusted to let him pick it up! 

“No,” he said confidently. He’s already got an idea. Hideous appearance is still only appearance; he can work with that. His sister was strong, but her power was only good for fighting; she was not as skillful in arts like shapeshifting, but Tianlang-jun could work with that. Of course he wouldn’t tell his sister though, that's his kid now, finders keepers. “I want to keep it. I need company.”

She gave him a weird look, but didn’t protest. Maybe she did feel some connection to her child somewhere deep inside after all.

“If you can bear to look at it, sure, I guess,” she shrugged. “But don’t change your mind later. I’m not taking this back.”

Or maybe she didn’t.

That night, Tianlang-jun was left with his little horrid nephew by his side. It was still painful to look at, but he didn’t really have to look - he could look away while gently petting its fluffy head. It would probably look better if Tianlang-jun just used his power to give it a more human look, but for all he knew, human babies were rather…not self-sufficient. And this one could already move around so easily, even though it was just the size of Tianlang-jun’s forearm. It probably would be terrified to find itself in an unfamiliar body when it has barely obtained its original one, too.

“Guess it’s best to leave you as is for now. Not that you really need to appeal to anyone while I’m here, right?” Tianlang-jun smiled at the thing wiggling on his lap, undoubtedly mesmerized by his radiance. “When you grow older I’ll make sure to turn you into a real handsome heartbreaker just like your uncle, just you wait.”

“Come here, you…Thing!” Tianlang-jun groaned as he once again had to bend down to try catching the little snake-like creature. In high grass it was nearly impossible - the sneaky beast was fast, and he’d always end up grabbing grass instead of that little green tail. Tianlang-jun began to feel that he’s a bit too old for these games…Or maybe the lack of activity and alcohol abuse in the past… a bit more than a few years took their toll on him. Nah, that's nonsense. “Alright, I give up! Look at you, got your poor uncle all worked up. What are you going to do if I die from exhaustion? Eat frogs?”

The “thing” stopped and poked its head out of the grass, staring at Tianlang-jun curiously. It probably couldn’t understand what he was saying yet, but guessed something from his intonation. Or maybe it just got curious when it heard about frogs.

“Okay, you already eat frogs,” Tianlang-jun sighed and realized it was the latter when the beastling tilted its head at the mention of frogs. “But you still won’t make it far without your uncle. Who else can tolerate looking at you? Not even your mother could.”

The creature was still listening attentively, so Tianlang-jun seized the moment and grabbed it into his arms. It wiggled a little, but eventually gave up - it was hard to hold it when it tried to escape, but Tianlang-jun has already gained some experience and knew that it can be quickly stopped if you caught its hair. Not the gentlest way, perhaps, but there was no other way to hold it still. Then the beastling accepted defeat, or maybe it changed its mind and thought that instead of being obnoxious it could enjoy the warmth of Tianlang-jun’s chest for a bit.

“That’s right,” he kept talking, and if the beastling knew speech, it would probably think that its uncle just likes hearing his own voice (which would not be particularly wrong). “You have to pick up some charisma from someone. You can hide your face, but not your lack of manners. You’re fortunate that this uncle is an outstanding example of impeccable…”

The beastling just dozed off in the middle of his lecture.

“Rude,” the demon patted the little thing on the back. “There sure is a lot of work to do.”

The “thing” needed a name.

Tianlang-jun grew certain on that matter when it brought him a dead mouse. Ah, clearly all his talking was not for naught! Look at his baby trying to take care of this old man and bringing him food!

Tianlang-jun wasn’t going to eat it, of course, but filial piety must not be discouraged! So he had to play along and pretend he ate the mouse, and later just buried it when the “thing” couldn’t see. Tricking the child was not hard, although he was not sure if he likes the idea or organizing a pet cemetery around their cave if the kid brings more.

Anyway, such a good child certainly deserved a good name.

“Come here,” he sat down cross-legged and patted his lap. “It’s time for something important to happen.”

The beastling didn’t understand much from his words, but pretty much understood the gesture and in a moment it was coiled in Tianlang-jun’s lap. The demon ruffled the creature’s hair.

“You need a good name. How about…”

He suddenly realized he didn’t even know if he had a nephew or a niece.

Up until this point, he didn’t even think of that, being perfectly fine with the little beast being a little beast. He didn’t even know how to tell a reptile’s gender to begin with. Should have asked his sister, probably…

“Uhm, you know what? When you grow up, you can make up another name for yourself,” Tianlang-jun decided. After all, what else did this kid need a name for if not for uncle’s convenience when calling it over? Besides, he had just recalled a poem and thought a name based on a poem is quite a smart solution, and he loved it so much that he would gladly give this name to literally anything solely for the sake of having named it so well. “How about Zhuzhi-lang? Do you like that?”
Of course the creature couldn’t understand that yet, but it made a yawn, which was as good as agreement in Tianlang-jun’s eyes.

“You’d better learn it quickly then, Zhuzhi-lang. And respond to me when I call you,” he poked the little thing. “Zhu-er. Zhu-er! It really sounds good. Am I not a naming genius?”

Chapter Text

Zhu-er was definitely a capable child. It quickly learned its name, and it was also quickly learning the words that were of interest to it, those being “frog”, “mouse” and “uncle”. It didn’t speak, but it was always listening attentively to Tianlang-jun, sometimes bearing a look of someone deep in thought, thoroughly trying to process what it was hearing.

Tianlang-jun was enjoying the company. Of course he'd probably be much happier if he had a companion that could drink with him, or appreciate human arts, or converse at least, but he was in no position to complain. Apart from Zhuzhi-lang, he had no one else.

He hoped to just live peacefully with his nephew (or niece, he still had no idea how to tell and he didn't want to freak it out by turning it into something more human and back) in the human realm. It was neat here, definitely safer than in the realm of demons, and he liked observing humans doing their little human things. Now that he had a little monster with him, moving through human settlements as they were traveling was a little problematic, but he thought that once the child grows up a little, he's going to give it a human appearance. Tianlang-jun was not sure how to correlate Zhuzhi-lang's aging with that of a human, but he suspected it's best to wait until it gets at least long enough to reach his thighs when…standing? If it could be called so.

Not that a child this small needed good looks for anything anyway. Tianlang-jun has already grown quite used to its monstrous muzzle. 

Even if Zhu-er couldn't understand him, it was smart enough to not stray too far away from uncle. It would always come back quickly when Tianlang-jun called to wrap around his leg and stare at him with its unblinking shiny eyes.

This time nobody came to his call.

Tianlang-jun waited for a few minutes for good measure, then called again. Still no response.

He began to worry.

After Zhuzhi-lang hatched, Tianlang-jun soon noticed its skin would easily get burned by sunlight, moonlight being just slightly better. It was convenient at first because then Tianlang-jun would put the tiny creature under his robes, and it would sit there quietly, and he certainly wouldn't lose it, but in the end he realized that catching frogs for it himself was not as fun for fifteenth time as it was for the first time. Besides, Zhuzhi-lang had to be ready to take care of itself in case of…anything.

Self-sufficiency in general is a good thing, so Tianlang-jun magnanimously shared a bit of his power to make the beastling more sun-resistant.

Ah, perhaps he's made him too self-sufficient? Perhaps the child has already entered its rebellious phase and decided to challenge the world, thinking it's big enough to survive without its annoying uncle? Tianlang-jun would be ready to greet it with open embrace then once Zhu-er realizes life is not all that simple.

No, really, he won't even scold him. Any experience is still experience, surely this will teach this beastling not to stray too far again… Really, no scolding, no dumb jokes, no nothing, the demon thought nervously as another shichen passed. Just come back already .

As the sun set down, he realized he couldn't wait anymore. Zhu-er didn't like staying alone at nights, didn't like the temperature getting lower and would always return before dark, Tianlang-jun was sure of that. He searched high and low, but the child was just gone without a trace.

Little creature got a bit too carried away chasing a bird.

It was a strange one, it seemed to be wounded, but it was acting way more lively than the wounded animals Zhu-er had seen before. It was chirping loudly and jumping away way too vigorously while dragging its supposedly wounded wing, as if teasing the tiny predator, leading it somewhere. Such prey was begging to be caught!

And so Zhu-er followed, however, without hurry to strike. The beastling was curious where this bird was leading it. 

Right into a trap, apparently, as once they got far enough, the bird flapped its wings and took off as if it never was hurt in the first place! Wide-eyed Zhu-er’s jaw dropped as the prey vanished in thin air. That was cheating!

A child that hatched not even a few months ago couldn’t know how the prey might play tricks to lead predators away from the nest. A child this young also didn’t know enough to memorize its way to return home.

Zhu-er couldn’t make up its mind on the right direction for a long time, but even choosing one didn’t help. Zhu-er was lost.

The sun hit the ground and disappeared behind the horizon once, twice, thrice, and then Zhu-er lost count - not that the beastling knew numbers anyway, but it was capable of grasping the concept of amount, as long as said amount did not exceed three. Holding more in its memory was a bit too complicated. The snake demon proved to be absolutely self-sufficient…apart from missing some things.

There still were plenty of “mice” and “frogs” and there certainly still was “Zhu-er”, Zhu-er saw it every day in puddles of water. But there was no “uncle”, no matter how hard Zhu-er tried to search, no matter how hard the lost little thing tried to force its lips to repeat the movements uncle did to call for him. Maybe its mouth just wasn’t made for that.

Zhu-er was not starving, and it still remained sun-resistant, but it felt an inexplicable bitter feeling in its stomach everytime it thought of being left all alone. And then it started shedding.

Zhu-er has already gone through shedding before, but back then, uncle was there, his warm hands being of great help to removing old skin, his qi flow relieving the itching. Now the best thing the beastling could do to help itself was trying to rub itself against some rock.

That's where it was found by a man in green.

Zhu-er got too careless; too absorbed in trying to deal with its own shed to notice a cultivator, who spotted the creature from some distance and hid his presence well to not alert it. The man was watching the little thing curiously, but when Zhu-er finally noticed him, the beastling got so startled that it froze in place, staring at the man unblinking. It had never seen humans before - Tianlang-jun tried to avoid human-inhabited areas while having Zhu-er on him, only going into towns on his own, leaving the child to wait in some hideout.

“Hello there,” the man spoke gently and tried to extend his arm, but stopped immediately when the creature flinched back.

But of course Zhu-er was a tad too young to recognize the renowned peak lord Shen Qingqiu. His voice sounded so soft and good though…And Zhu-er was just a lonely lost child. When the cultivator’s hand started moving again, the beastling didn’t move, letting it land on its head.
Shen Qingqiu was ecstatic. Shen Qingqiu probably was the only man who would enjoy touching a creature like this .

It was so miserably ugly, absolutely nothing like what Shen Qingqiu had seen before (though he had to admit that despite being ugly, it didn’t look scary …not yet, at least), but also so small. Considering such lack of awareness as to let a human touch it, undoubtedly, it was an offspring of some monster. Shen Qingqiu found an offspring of a monster. That alone was a rare event, but this creature also allowed him to touch itself! 

Of course he wouldn’t be so dumb to just touch a random little creature. He has already scanned the area with his qi to see if the beastling’s parents could be anywhere nearby, and the feeling he experienced when he found out there seemed to be none…

And then it leaned into his touch…

Shen Qingqiu did not have a soft spot for kids, to most of them he was rather…neutral. If he spoiled his sister in the past, that was only because she too was a little monster.

Monster babies, of course, were a whole different story. He nearly lost his breath and his heart almost exploded. He was the chosen one-

Ah, he has his own disciples to attend to, and his peak lord duties, and his peak wasn’t even specializing in beasts, but how could one look at this absolute tiny abomination, a freaky mistake of nature with big ol’ shiny eyes and not want to take it home? How could a righteous man leave the little thing all alone in the wild?

Shen Qingqiu was giving it scritchies, and Zhu-er was relishing in delight. This man right here seemed to be the embodiment of everything good there is in the world. Of course Zhu-er also didn’t object when Shen Qingqiu scooped up his new specimen in his arms. He was warm.

Holding his precious close to chest, Shen Qingqiu made his way back to his house on Qing Jing peak, perfectly unnoticed as an immortal master should. Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to expose his new discovery to everyone yet; first he's going to show it to his shidi from the beast peak to figure out what it is (though there were rumors that master Shen is even more knowledgeable in the field of beasts…), then ask Yue-shixiong's permission to keep it. Yue-shixiong, of course, will allow it anyway, but what if the beast turns out too dangerous to be kept and he'll have to release it? Shen Qingqiu didn't want to bother the Sect Leader over nothing.

And he also wasn't actually so sure if Zhangmen-shixiong would let him get away with this. The beast, after all, clearly had some demonic qi within.

Chapter Text

"Congratulations, it's a boy," Lu Qinggao, the lord of Shoushu peak snickered, handing the writhing beast back to Shen Qingqiu. It immediately calmed down back in his master's secure arms. Lu Qinggao's own arms meanwhile looked quite…pitiable. "But, Shen-shixiong, where did you find…this? What is it even?"

"I thought you'd know," Shen Qingqiu patted the head of his new favourite specimen. "But if you don't, I guess I'm the first to describe this species."

"I'm not quite sure about that…" Lu Qinggao's eyes ran over the creature again, his face looking perplexed. "I'd say it's some sort of a hybrid rather than a species, besides, it's demonic qi is faint but certainly present. It- He also vaguely resembles something human, doesn't he?"

"Do you imply?.." Shen Qingqiu raised his brow. 

"I don't know. I've already said I've never seen anything like that before!" The other peak lord shook his head. "Ah, I know a couple of people who would be interested in studying him, and maybe they could tell more…"

"He's not for studying," Zhu-er looked up at his master as his grip slightly tightened; he couldn't understand what was being said, but the man's voice sounded defensive, so, just in case, Zhu-er also let out a quiet warning hiss. "I'm keeping him."

"You're the boss, boss. But will Zhangmen-shixiong let you?"

Shen Qingqiu would cover his face with a fan if his arms weren't occupied. 

"When did he dare to object to me?"

Yue Qingyuan's smile became way too obviously put on when Shen Qingqiu reported on his situation. Privately. He didn't need other peak lords to annoy him with questions. Zhu-er, of course, was wrapped around his arms. He was the main subject of discussion, naturally, he had to be here.

"He's not dangerous," Shen Qingqiu assured. "I had him for a day and was absolutely fine."

"Shidi…"

Yue Qingyuan sighed, and the room remained silent for quite some time before he finally spoke again.

"You kept this creature in the Sect for a day behind my back."

"This one apologies. The Sect Leader is busy and I wanted to make sure it's worth asking to keep it. If it was too dangerous, I'd..." he glanced at Zhu-er, but couldn't bring himself to say kill or dispose of or give to Shoushu (poor thing already had bad associations with that place). "I'd release it back into the wild where I found it. It's far from human settlements anyway."

"No, Shen-shidi, I'm afraid you do not fully understand. Last night Mu Qingfan came to me to report the poisoning of Lu-shidi."

The silence fell between them again, this time terribly awkward.

"He was furious. He said some beast bit his arms all over but shidi Lu refused to elaborate what kind of beast it was. The effect of the venom took some time to show, fortunately, he mentioned it was something of a snake kind and shidi Mu could find a remedy. I see now how that happened."

Well, that was embarrassing. Damn you, Qinggao! If it was as simple as taking the cure for snake venom, couldn't you handle it with your own forces?! Do the beast tamers not keep antidotes on their peak?! Even Shen Qingqiu does! An occasional snake is not going to wait until your doctor is in close reach to bite you!

Shen Qingqiu had one thing left to do.

As much as Shen Qingqiu and Yue Qingyuan didn't get along, Shen Qingqiu began to suspect long ago that there's way more to their story than it's known to people. Yue Qingyuan was perfectly approachable and acted absolutely normal when Shen Qingqiu needed him for a serious conversation. Once he figured they didn't actually have to bicker about everything, his life became way easier.

Well, at first he tried that just to stay in character, but eventually gave it up. He really hoped it just looked like good old Shen Qingqiu nearly died, rethinked his life decisions and gradually, his relationship with the Sect Leader became better just as he too became a better person (compared to the original, the bar was low!). And also, he figured out it's not that hard to manipulate his shixiong. All Shen Qingqiu had to do was to make a little disappointed face. 

Getting mad wouldn't get him anywhere, it would only make it easier for Yue-shixiong to deny him. Showing a bit of helpless disappointment, though…The glance that spoke Ah, shixiong, I never expected any better from you anyway… That was a working strategy. Of course Shen Qingqiu wouldn't share it with anyone.

So he put on his slightly disappointed pout and ruffled the beastling's hair. Zhu-er rubbed on his hand.

"I have to apologize to both shidi Lu and shidi Mu then. But this child seems to have grown attached to me already. It would be just heartless to throw him out."

Yue Qingyuan's face darkened, his expression becoming unreadable. After keeping silent for some more, he gave his final resolution, much to Shen Qingqiu's content.

"Fine. Keep your beast, but if it-"

"He."

"But only until he bites anyone else. And explain your decisions to Mu Qingfan yourself."

"Thank you, Zhangmen-shixiong," Shen Qingqiu could barely hold back a smile. Ah, big bro could be such a sweetheart sometimes. "This one owes you a favor."

"I don't need any favors, just keep him away from my eyes."

This went way better than Shen Qingqiu anticipated.

Zhu-er was still shedding, now very obviously. Shen Qingqiu wasn't sure how he could help that, so he visited Lu Qinggao again, this time alone, hoping his beastling won't find a way to sneak out of his house. That would be too much trouble. When he returned, Zhu-er almost bit him for the first time, smelling Lu Qinggao on him.

It was a light bite, though. He quickly realized it's still his master.

Shen Qingqiu prepared warm water and put the beastling in it. The monster looked slightly relieved. Ah, taking care of his own beast was so satisfying .

He used his hand to rub the creature's back. Zhu-er's face was not made for displaying many emotions, but the best way he could come up with to express himself was to lick Shen Qingqiu's hand.

Shen Qingqiu was patiently and dutifully attending to his pet during the entire shedding duration. Naturally, he also collected the shed skin to preserve it, and some to study. Such a specimen was one in a million! Maybe he'll even give some to Mu-shidi, who knows if this skin has some useful qualities.

Since he was officially accepted as Shen Qingqiu's…for now, let it be "pet" - he needed a name.

Shen Qingqiu had already noticed that the creature showed signs of sentience. At the very least, he recognized himself in the mirror - back in his first life, Shen Yuan once read about mirror tests on animals. Shen Qingqiu also talked to Lu Qinggao a couple more times, and noticed that the creature learned their names - he would turn his head to look at Shen Qingqiu when his name was mentioned, and he would hiss at the mention of Lu Qinggaoi. That was amusing, but that also meant that it wouldn't be wrong to make sure the name Shen Qingqiu gives him comes to his liking. And he certainly can't just name him Pudding or some other silly name people give to their cats.

Shen Qingqiu was meditating in a little bamboo clearing near his house. Not exactly meditating, to be precise - that was just an excuse to sit there in peace and quiet and enjoy the warm weather. The beastling was accompanying him, enjoying it just as much. He didn't blink, but if he could, he probably would squint his eyes like a satisfied cat.

"Glad you like it here. Has to be one of my favorite places on Qing Jing," Shen Qingqiu hummed, extending his arm to ruffle the creature's hair and it flicked its tongue happily. "And the bamboo forest smells…refreshing, you know?"

Not like the city in his first life at all. Ah, anyway.

Much to his surprise, at the word "bamboo" the creature perked up and raised its head, staring at Shen Qingqiu as if expecting something. So far Shen Qingqiu only noticed such a reaction to a limited number of words that the creature seemed to know; those were names and food. Something was telling the cultivator that bamboo was not a part of the beastling's diet.

"Hm? Nothing. Rest," he stroked the creature, and it laid back down. "Bamboo."

The beastling rose his head again, staring at Shen Qingqiu. The peak lord got curious.

He tried to repeat that a few times, mentioning Lu Qinggao to see if the reaction to different names differs; it did. The monster would start looking around to see the mentioned person, give Shen Qingqiu a quick look of and what was that? and return to laying position. After a couple times, he stopped reacting to that though, seemingly understanding that the human is just toying with him. He didn't stop reacting to "bamboo" though, each time staring directly at Shen Qingqiu.

Shen Qingqiu was certain nobody called him bamboo, much less himself.

"Zhu-er?"

Zhu-er raised up a little.

So he did have a name in the end.

Chapter Text

Shen Qingqiu was busy brushing his hair and Zhu-er was coiled around his feet resting peacefully, but because he wasn't blinking, it was hard to tell if he was asleep or awake. Shen Qingqiu was quite confused about his "pet"'s current status - Zhu-er had a name, had a conscience, and was quickly learning. In the past few days, Shen Qingqiu focused on trying to teach him more words, and the training seemed to be quite successful. At the same time, he wasn't letting anyone see Zhu-er; the beastling was friendly to his master, but seemed wary of other humans (shidi Lu, you left a bad impression of other humans! Should have been more gentle while handling him!). Shen Qingqiu wasn't sure if it's safe to draw attention to Zhu-er so far; if the man who was accustomed to handling beasts somehow managed to touch Zhu-er wrong, the clumsy disciples certainly wouldn't do it right.

Shen Qingqiu was doing right just because he was Shen Qingqiu, of course. He knows what he's doing, okay?

The peak lord was distracted from his thoughts by someone knocking on the door.

"Binghe, is that you?" Shen Qingqiu hopped up, swiftly jumping out of his little companion's coils. "Hold on, don't come in. I'm dressing."

"O-okay, shizun."

Shen Qingqiu instinctively scooped up the beastling, thinking where to hide it, but then changed his mind. First of all, he has already received Yue Qingyuan's permission to keep Zhu-er. Besides, if he had to hide anything, then certainly not from his beloved little white sheep. Luo Binghe could keep it a secret if shizun even slightly hinted at that, though that probably would be unnecessary. Ah, and he deserves to be the first on the peak to know.

Well, also, he'd have to introduce him to the other disciples sooner or later. Zhu-er needed to socialize and learn that other humans can be good too. Luo Binghe is the nicest of all, one couldn't pick a better candidate for baby's first human encounter!

Still holding Zhu-er in his arms(just in case; no biting allowed, right?), Shen Qingqiu invited his disciple in.

"Come, Binghe. Just don't be startled. I have something to show you."

The disciple's fluffy head poked in, then he slipped in whole and then he noticed the scaly bundle in shizun's arms and froze.

Other kids used to mock Binghe and call him ugly out of spite, but now this disciple had no doubt that he must be quite a handsome boy since he's still capable of looking at his own reflection without the quiet horror he was experiencing right now.

And shizun was holding it like it was some kitten.

"Don't fret. Say hi to Zhu-er," Shen Qingqiu smiled warmly and encouragingly. Luo Binghe made a step closer, then another one. The beastling glared at him with suspicion. 

"Hello," the boy muttered.

Zhu-er nodded at him. Where have you seen monsters that know to nod?

Still, Shen Qingqiu needed to make sure to show Luo Binghe is a good human. He reached out to ruffle Binghe's hair the same way he did to Zhu-er. Luo Binghe was a little confused (but definitely not objecting!!), while Zhu-er watched that gesture, flicked his tongue and seemed to relax a little. So the message was conveyed.

In fact, Zhu-er understood a bit more than that, well, not really understood but interpreted. His big eyes were not as helpful as they may appear, and he was used to not relying on sight, but his sense of smell would not fool him. What he sensed was a familiar smell. It was not the same smell as his uncle’s but it was the closest to it he’s felt in a long time. To Zhu-er, that was the smell of safety. He was still small, and in his little brain things that smelled this way simply could not be bad.
But it still was not uncle’s smell, so there was no use trying to look for him.

"I rescued him. He's staying on Qing Jing peak now," Shen Qingqiu shared excitedly.

"What is…he?"

"That's what I'd love to know too. Regardless of what he is, though, he's a very sweet child. And very capable. I think I might even teach him to read."

"So he's…a new disciple?" Luo Binghe asked carefully. "Zhu-shidi?"

Perhaps that was a bit too far-fetched, but Binghe had a point; Zhu-er was too smart to be a pet!

"Hm. I'll think about that when he grows a little. We are yet to see what he's capable of. Beasts who comprehend speech are not unknown, but if I manage to teach him to read, that'll be..." A sensation, Shen Qingqiu uncosciously grinned, but immeaditely removed the smile from his face once he became aware of it.

"Should the others know?.."

"I'd like him to get used to you first. I don't want Zhu-er to feel overwhelmed by abundance of people."

Luo Binghe suddenly felt very proud. He was the first one to learn! Shizun trusted him this much! He still wasn't eager to touch his "shidi", but he already warmed up to the beast that demonstrated how special Binghe was.

"Does he have a full name? Shouldn't he have one if he becomes a disciple?" This child was looking way too far into the future…

"Mhm," Shen Qingqiu mused. "I don't know. I think…If I name him Shen Zhu. Sounds nice, doesn't it? I adopted him, after all."

Luo Binghe looked perplexed for a moment, but then just agreed.

"It does sound nice, shizun."

"Then so be it. Don't tell other disciples about him yet, alright? Zhangmen-shixiong won't like it if Zhu-er bites someone because they startle him. I want to get him used to people…gradually."

"Of course, shizun."

Also, even if Zhu-er bites Binghe, firstly, protagonists don’t die, secondly, his trusted disciple won’t admit under torture that it was Zhu-er if shizun tells him to keep silent. Of course he’d like to avoid that, but…Shen Qingqiu then put a hand on his disciple’s shoulder. “Zhu-er, that’s Luo Binghe. A-Luo. Luo-shixiong.”

Much to Shen Qingqiu’s surprise…Zhu-er tried to move a bit closer to Luo Binghe, intensely flicking his tongue. In the end…even if it’s not uncle, the smell was close enough, and Zhu-er wanted to feel it better. Luo Binghe seemed startled, but didn’t flinch.

“He’s trying to get to know you,” shizun smiled. “That’s the first time he’s curious about someone, actually.”

“Can I…hold him?”

Binghe still had very mixed feelings about it all, but so far the weird creature seemed to be peaceful and even friendly, the way it approached the disciple first. Befriending shizun’s pet also felt somewhat essential to getting closer to shizun. He was even a little jealous how easily the beastling got to bear shizun’s family name…

Zhu-er willingly slipped into Luo Binghe’s arms. The monstrous offspring turned out to be a bit heavier than Binghe imagined him to be from just seeing him, but nothing he couldn’t handle. Zhu-er stared at him with his usual unblinking glance. Absolutely hideous thing, but Luo Binghe strangely felt like he was holding his new little sibling.

“Can I write to my mother about him at least?” he asked quietly. After hesitating for a bit, Shen Qingqiu agreed.

Zhu-er’s socialization was going quite smoothly. He got along with Luo Binghe so nicely that Shen Qingqiu decided it’s safe to let him meet two other disciples before the end of the same week. He actually grew to like the boy a lot, and the peak lord suspected Binghe bringing delicious food contributed greatly to it. 

Ning Yingying and Ming Fan were astonished to say the least, but in different ways. Ming Fan was repulsed; that was okay. That was an expected reaction. Ming Fan was not always the most well-behaved kid, but he had a good side; Shen Qingqiu had no doubt that with some guidance he’ll reach acceptance too(he had no idea how deeply offended Ming Fan was that shizun now favored seemingly anything other than him). Meanwhile Yingying nearly broke into tears.

Something something the shizun is so kind and merciful and compassionate even to such a miserable being- and oh how awful it must be to exist in such a wretched form- and how sweet A-Luo is to treat it so nice that Zhu-er grew used to him- and then Ming Fan tried to divert her attention and was completely ignored. The girl, however, refused Luo Binghe’s generous offer to hold shizun’s new pet. Ming Fan didn’t want to even look at Zhu-er in the first place. Zhu-er wasn’t much eager to be touched by either of them anyway, but didn’t show any aggression.

Shen Qingqiu thought that if it goes on like that, he can let Zhu-er roam the peak freely in no time. Well, not exactly freely, of course - he still had grand plans for training his beast.

In the end he found a way to kill two birds with one stone though.

Luo Binghe was the most thorough disciple, but his example was not always enough to make Ning Yingying and Ming Fan settle down and work as diligently. Aside from following him, now there was another way to put something in their heads. They both got quite involved in “educating” Zhu-er.

Ning Yingying liked to read and recite poetry to him, and Zhu-er acted like a perfect listener, coiling near calmly, watching her attentively (though it wouldn’t be a surprise to Shen Qingqiu if Zhu-er was just sleeping; with his always open eyes, no one could tell). She also greatly enjoyed sharing the most recent knowledge she obtained with him, which was a good way to make her remember it better too.

Ming Fan didn’t want to interact with the beastling at first, but he also didn’t want to leave Ning Yingying with Luo Binghe, and since Ning Yingying now spent a lot of free time with Zhu-er and Zhu-er’s favorite shixiong, he tagged along too. At some point he had a nightmare in which the monster glared at him and called him shidi , because Ming Fan was the only one who had nothing to teach him. Truly a horrifying dream. And Ming Fan absolutely was not having fun joining Ning Yingying in her teaching practices. He did NOT enjoy even a second of it.

Sometimes while being read poems to, Zhu-er looked oddly wistful, but everyone just thought how miraculous it is that a monster has an inclination for fine arts. Zhu-er himself did not understand poetry, nor was he really charmed by the rhymes; he tried to imagine he was still with the person that once used to recite poems to him.

Zhu-er also liked watching the disciples’ sword practice, and under his attentive glance, they tried their best to not screw up. Regarding this, however, Shen Qingqiu had no such illusions as with poetry. He has already learned the beastling likes watching anything that moves. Of course he wouldn’t reveal that to the disciples; let them try harder to impress their underling!
And also, Zhu-er never bit anyone, and Shen Qingqiu was quite excited by that. His own personally trained monster that is possibly somewhat intelligent, no, literally his familiar …Being reincarnated as an immortal master was cool, and now it has become 20% cooler.

Chapter Text

Some people have a talent for fucking things up. Tianlang-jun never considered himself one of them (or at least masterfully managed to ignore it), not until the moment he realized Zhu-er was gone for good. He had one job - to look after the child - and he failed it miserably.

It’s been a few weeks already and what he wanted the most at that point was to stop at the closest town and get wasted. But he couldn’t afford even that, and not only because his pockets were all empty. He couldn’t help but feel his stomach turn at the idea that his poor Zhu-er might be still out there waiting for him. What if his beastling is suffering and only holding on in hopes that uncle is coming?!

What Tianlang-jun used on Zhu-er to make him capable of resisting sunlight was just a tiny fraction of his true power, and he wasn’t even sure if he could still feel that bit of power being consumed or he’s just making it up because he can’t accept the other option. He assured himself this sensation is not made up though, that it means Zhu-er is still alive and still somewhere within his power’s reach… Do you know how little that narrows it down? Tianlang-jun thought in response to his previous inner monologue, gritting his teeth. Being an overpowered purebred heavenly demon had its own disadvantages. 

Ah, he shouldn’t have been so lazy! He should’ve given Zhu-er a normal human child form. It would be bothersome to take care of that, but at least Zhu-er wouldn’t be able to go far on his own. Tianlang-jun’s only good decision was probably staying in the human realm; were they in the demonic one, he would have already given up searching because there was no way a little beastling would survive in such a hostile environment.

Or maybe it would. It was born to his sister, after all, and Tianlang-jun’s sister was the most resilient bitch he knew. Truly monstrous woman who happened to look just as good as Tianlang-jun himself, and he did not like the idea that he had to share the top two most powerful demons with someone like her with her atrocious and annoying personality (her brother was no angel either, but without a doubt he was incomparably better by definition!).

These thoughts made him feel melancholic enough to think of something poetic. Zhu-er is just like her, but inside out; meimei has a pretty face and an ugly soul, and Zhu-er may hurt to look at, but has a beautiful little heart. Tianlang-jun sighed plaintively.

Ah, if only he was smarter, if only he at least was smart enough to feed Zhuzhu some of his blood so he could locate the blood mites…Damn it, years of drinking really messed up his brain if he didn’t think about that at once. Tianlang-jun glared down at the earth, mentally calling out for his deceased mother. Old hag, this unfilial son truly learned nothing , he lamented internally. You’d always stuff me and meimei full of your blood so we wouldn’t rebel or run away; now I see how you cared for us! He doubted she really cared all that much, and she likely did that just to have control to not let them kill her(not that it stopped meimei in the end…oof), but he was hating her a little less for restricting his freedom now. He should have thought of her earlier and used as an example of how to handle a child. One only understands his parents when he becomes one himself, huh?..

Anyway, he really ought to keep searching. Sooner or later he must find tracks of Zhu-er, right? There has to be something left, something like that patch of what looks like scaly shed skin…Wait, what?!

Tianlang-jun immediately focused his eyes on the single patch of skin near some rock, then dashed towards and grabbed it as if it could crawl away any moment. Truly a miracle that he noticed it at all, a bigger miracle the patches were still here instead of getting blown away by wind or whatever else happens to shed skins in the wild! He ruffled the grass around and found another tiny patch. That wasn’t giving him much other than the fact that Zhu-er was here, or somewhere around, it served poorly even for providing the general direction the beastling slithered in, but it was something. Tianlang-jun tried to call out Zhu-er’s name, but there was no reaction or response. Still, he decided it may be a good idea to stay near and inspect the surroundings better in case he finds anything else. His knees quickly got dirty from rummaging through the grass, but, as a good uncle, he couldn’t care less about such minor inconveniences while on such an important mission. If any of his former subordinates or a decent cultivator saw him in such a state, what would they think of the state of the demonic nobles these days?..

Oh, who cares! Tianlang-jun gave up almost everything of a “jun” he had except for maybe his posture long ago. If his dear monstrous child is somewhere nearby, he will leave no rock unturned!

The peak lords meeting turned into a mess. Not that it was rare, but nonetheless.

“You’ve been keeping WHAT on your peak?!” Qi Qingqi barely held back from slamming the table. 

“There has been a demon on Cang Qiong all this time…” Liu Qingge hissed through locked teeth and then turned to Yue Qingyuan. “Zhangmen-shixiong, you-”

“I allowed that,” Yue Qingyuan sighed. “But Shen-shidi, what you’re asking for now…”

“It’s a small request compared to some other peaks’ demands,” Shen Qingqiu hid behind a fan. He purposely allowed everyone else to report first, only mentioning his matter is of special kind and thus he’d rather wait until everyone’s done. 

Shen Qingqiu asked the Sect Leader to officially accept little Zhuzhu as a disciple.

Though technically Shen Qingqiu as a peak lord had absolute freedom in choosing who becomes his disciple (and who stops being one), not even fantasy worlds were free of paperwork. Without a paper you are no one, and even if Shen Qingqiu accepted someone as a Qing Jing disciple, he still had to take care of the according documentation on his peak and then submit it to Qiong Ding to handle the rest, listing the new disciple of Cang Qiong Sect as a whole - without it, Shen Qingqiu’s documents alone wouldn’t be enough. At best, that would be just Shen Qingqiu’s personal disciple(and for that he could as well not bother himself with the papers at all) but not Cang Qiong disciple, which, in turn, could lead to a lot of troubles later…While it didn’t sound complicated as a concept, the work in life was rather tedious…Anyway, Shen Qingqiu speculated all these formalities were actually number one reason that no one talked about why the sect only opened recruitment once every few years - so that the peak lords don’t have to handle it all so often, and could make their bunch of reports at once, hand in and forget about it until the next recruitment (and not bother Qiong Ding more often than necessary). 

Shen Qingqiu’s current request was basically only involving himself and Yue Qingyuan, no other peak lords would have to do any paperwork, so why were they reacting so vividly? Some faces went green, some white, some red; shidis and shimeis, could that be just from learning that your shixiong has tamed a rare beast? Well, maybe it had some demonic blood, but was that a big deal? His Zhu-er wasn’t even half as dangerous as a good deal of Shoushu peak’s specimen!

Alright, alright, of course Qiong Ding wouldn’t appreciate it if every peak lord kept running up to them every other week to register the new disciple they picked up. But exceptions could be made, Liu Qingge, for instance, took Yang Yixuan out of recruitment season, and Shen Qingqiu had quite an exceptional case too!

And since he was going for it, sure it’s going to be easier to inform all lords at once when they’re gathered together. To prevent some of them from attacking Zhuzhu when visiting Qing Jing as well. And to begin establishing better relationships between humans and non-humans earlier, just in case. See, he’s a good shizun, always keeping his halfbred little sheep in his mind!

Liu Qingge just pardonlessly walked out, slamming the door, hopefully not in Qing Jing’s direction to catch the demon. The other lords were not as dramatic about it, but very certainly shocked. Shen Qingqiu in the meantime slipped the documentation prepared in advance over to Yue Qingyuan. 

“I know, I know, but I have already reached great progress. Shixiong, shidis, shimeis, my disciple might become a breakthrough, a fundamental revolution in the worldview of Jianghu-”

The Sect Leader took a brief look and his face suddenly darkened.

“...Shen Zhu?...” he muttered to himself, but it happened exactly when Shen Qingqiu took a little break to catch his breath so everyone heard that.

“Oh, yes. I figured he needs a proper name,” Shen Qingqiu nodded. He really went for the first thing that came to his mind, which was his own name since he practically adopted the beastling. 

“Hm, Zhu sounds quite befitting for his green scales,” Lu Qinggao had the recklessness to hum and suddenly all eyes were on him. He even raised his hands defensively as some peak lords' glares were almost physical.

“So did anyone else know or it's just me and Liu-shidi who were left in blissful ignorance?” Qi Qingqi huffed.

“Shidi Lu only helped me identify the creature,” Shen Qingqu explained, though, in fact, Lu Qinggao barely helped at all. “He has no relation to this. I was waiting for the lords’ meeting to inform everyone at once. But listen, my Zhu-er is absolutely safe to handle and he might be proof of demons’ capability to coexist with humans, as well as he’s a great specimen for studying…”

“You dragged a demon to Cang Qiong!”

“He’s still a child! His qi is so weak the barriers didn’t even react to it! With proper nurture-”

“A chicken raised by a duck will not swim!”

“This one apologies, but it’s incorrect to compare behaviors of humans and demons and demonic beasts to that of birds,” Lu Qinggao stepped in again, crossing his arms. “Shen-shixiong has a point. At the very least, we don’t yet have a deep enough understanding of demonic creatures' mentality, and many of them exhibit behaviors that are more complex than regular animals…”

“Shidi Lu suffered damage from the aforementioned beast,” Mu Qingfang interrupted. “Shen-shixiong, I assume you’re aware that your claim that your… Zhu-er is harmless is not right. It’s a venomous creature.”

“Not much worse than a regular demonic snake!” In all honesty, Lu Qinggao felt a little guilty. After all, it was just him who suffered from Zhu-er’s venom from mishandling him (what a hit to his beast tamer reputation!), moreover, he was foolish enough to bother Qian Cao instead of just guessing to use demonic snake antivenom. Still, this was not speaking in Zhu-er’s favor, and Lu Qinggao himself was quite curious about the possible outcome of Shen-shixiong’s experiments. Besides, it’s him whose passion for beasts should be unrivaled here, not Qing Jing peak lord’s! “And it was my own fault. Accidents happen all the time when working with beasts!”

Before the argument got too heated, Yue Qingyuan called everyone to silence. His resolution was not particularly satisfactory to many, but…not completely unexpected, really. After all, it was Shen Qingqiu who was asking.

“A while ago we agreed that it… Shen Zhu may stay under peak lord Shen’s responsibility as long as he doesn’t harm anyone. Has shidi Mu received reports of snake envenomation recently?”

Mu Qingfang shook his head.

“Then I assume shidi Shen should be allowed to keep his demon,” he barely held back a sigh upon seeing Shen Qingqiu’s grateful sparkling gaze. “As for enlisting him as a disciple, we’ll discuss it further privately…later. We might also need shidi Mu and shidi Lu’s assistance.”

So this was basically a yes . To be more accurate, yes, Shen-shidi, do whatever you please as always .

Chapter Text

Little Luo Binghe was having the time of his life rolling in the grass with Zhu-er like two fighting kittens. They indeed were fighting, and Zhu-er tried his very best, but he was clearly no match to a cultivator, even a disciple…or generally anyone bigger than him. 

Luo Binghe was laughing at his not very successful attempts to attack, but what would you expect of a tiny snake! All weapons Zhu-er had were his fangs, and of course he wouldn't bite Luo-shixiong; though he was still small, he was well aware that when he bites living things, they kinda tend to die. He very certainly didn't want Luo-shixiong to die or even suffer.

After all, aside from the fact that Luo Binghe makes the best delicacies, this boy also smells like uncle. 

Zhu-er's sight was not top-tier, but if he sensed a smell once he'd never forget it. It didn't matter that Luo Binghe looked completely different as long as the smell was there.

"You're not even trying, are you?" Luo Binghe groaned, pushing away the snake. A young vigorous boy with boiling blood wanted a better match! Not one like Ming Fan though, or else it would just turn into a senseless beating… 

"Zhu-er, you should come to our training more often. I know shizun is really eager to teach you literacy, but…" His eyes ran over the slithery body. "Um, you won't be upset, right? I don't really think you could ever write anyway…"

He was saying that without any ill intent, really, all he was thinking is that it just would be cool if the beastling was training with them. Not like Zhu-er could hold a sword either! But it was almost like they had a puppy. A huge morale boost!

Before he could finish his thought, the top of Luo Binghe's head got a not-particularly-gentle kiss from a very familiar fan, making the caught off guard boy let out a tiny squeak.

"He can hold a brush with his mouth; don't put the wrong attitude into Zhu-er's head!" Shen Qingqiu chided. "Speaking of, your literacy concerns me too. Pass on to Ning Yingying and Ming Fan that from now on you'll spend more time practicing calligraphy. I got so preoccupied with Zhu-er that it completely slipped out of my sight that all your slackers' writing got worse without my supervision!"

"Y-yes, shizun!" Luo Binghe jumped up from the grass and bowed. He didn't look upset about it in the slightest.

To spend time practicing calligraphy while shizun is watching him intensely? This little lamb could not be happier.

"Come on, find Yingying!"

Zhu-er stared at her until she realized he misunderstood. He learned what the word 'find' means, but why should he look for someone who's right here? 

"No, not me! Find this," she pointed at the paper in her hand with 'Yingying' written on it with large characters, " among these!" she then pointed at a larger paper with a lot of characters.

Ah, she wants him to find the same picture...

But all these pictures look the same!

The truth is, no matter how much Shen Qingqiu liked to think that Zhu-er is attentively watching him during their lessons, their efficiency was really questionable. Zhu-er watched attentively only because he couldn't do it any other way. When someone's watching you unblinking, you feel like the spectator is really focused, but Shen Qingqiu forgot too quickly that Zhu-er had no eyelids to blink to begin with!

He [I]was[/I] focused, but rather on the fan or brush movements than whatever he was taught...

And all this writing and reading was just too hard from him. It's just some inky lines on paper, they don't even taste good, why should he learn to find similar ones? No matter how hard he looked, even if he memorized one character, he'd forget it as soon as his glance moves to other characters. He'd tolerate that just to amuse his fellow humans since they look so happy when he does it right, but truly, what a nonsensical practice!

Zhu-er's mouth was not suitable for reproducing human speech, and yet, he was trying. He learned to say "Shen"; it was hardly intelligible, but when Shen Qingqiu figured out it's not just the regular hissing, he was ecstatic. Within the same day, all peaks knew that Shen Qingqiu's extraordinary beast- disciple began to talk. Ah, it was only right his first word was the name of his master-shizun-adoptive-parent! Shen Qingqiu was literally beaming.

The "Qingqiu" part was way too hard though, Zhu-er couldn't even begin to imagine how to replicate these sounds. "Shizun" was a little better - his pronunciation was already almost decipherable. 

Other disciples' names were problematic too. The name "Luo" probably wouldn't be a big deal for a human child, but Zhu-er was not one. He knew how to hiss and that could somehow imitate hissing sounds, he also began to learn to put his vocal chords to use(he wasn't completely a snake after all; he figured out such capability on pure accident though) to make something like a moan which could work for 'n' or 'm' sounds. He never tried to say his own name though - why would he call himself, right? 

...Really, the reason to try talking at all was just because he noticed that it was an efficient way to draw attention.

Ming Fan's name was quite convenient. Zhu-er found himself capable of producing similar sounds, and should it even be said that the aforementioned disciple immediately let it get to his head! Ha, the beastling knows who to respect! Zhu-er tried to call Ning Yingying too, but it would all sound like one long "nnnn", and she seemed to not understand that...

Zhu-er heard how Shen Qingqiu called him 'Shen Zhu'. In his simple brain, it was easily explained: Shen Qingqiu is taking care of Zhu-er, so Zhu is Shen's, why else would he put a part of his name next to Zhu-er? Following the same logic, the other disciples could be called like that too! That was convenient, because if so, he won't have to try so hard to differentiate m and n in Ming Fan's name. And so, Zhu-er went for it.

"...Did he just call you Shen Fan?" Ning Yingying face went pale, and then so did the faces of other two disciples, before all of them turned beet red.

"That's unfair..." Binghe clenched his teeth and turned away. Why does everyone here get to try on shizun's last name, but not him!..

"T-that...N-no! Bad, Zhu-er, that's wrong! Ming Fan, get it?! Ming!!!" Ming Fan panicked. Being referred to that way made him feel a whole load of emotions and not all of them were negative, and that was, frankly, the worst.

"Don't yell at him!" Ning Yingying immediately stood up. "He's just a little confused!"

Ah, so Zhu-er was wrong. The dots in his mind were disconnected, but it's not that he was going to spend a lot of time dwelling on that. 

He quietly slithered away from the fussy disciples to mind his simple and non-confusing little snake business.

Chapter Text

“Meimei, wanna run away to the human realm?” Tianlang-jun once asked his sister; although back then he wasn't even a ‘jun’ yet. Nor was he Tianlang. His birth name was not as cool as the courtesy name he made up later, following human manners. “I really want to go, but I'm afraid it will be a lonely journey before I make any human friends. That would be terribly boring.”

“Huh? Aren't you asking me just because you know you won't even reach the border on your own?” she pouted, making her brother laugh. 

Despite him being older, his battle prowess was lacking compared to this demon girl. Well, what else would you expect from a slacker who'd rather spend all day rereading the same half-torn apart novel someone once brought as a trophy from the human realm than go out and fight. In little Tianlang's defense, he was still just a boy and had plenty of time to catch up! And he will, soon enough, when another demonic war breaks out. Now, however, he's fully absorbed in his daydreaming. 

“Mayhap. Just walk me to the border, and from there on I'll make my way! Humans don't even have claws or sharp fangs. I've seen pictures in my novel!”

“Nuh uh. Your novel is stupid. Mother says they're dangerous and cunning!”

“They're not! Look, who knows better, she or actual humans who wrote this book?”

“That..That could be a trap! Humans are trying to fool you to trust them, and you're foolish enough to take the bait!”

“Duh. Vile creatures couldn't have written such a beautiful story,” he argued. “Even if I can't read the ending because some brute tore off the pages…”

Tianlang-jun's(no longer ‘jun’ again; time is a spiral, eh?) mind wandered in those distant memories as he followed a dusty road through a forest at the base of a mountain range. It's been hot for the past couple of days; not a big deal for a heavenly demon, but he worried if Zhuzhi was alright. What if he's thirsty? What if his hair is all dusty and messy to the point his own uncle won't recognize him? Nah, uncle would always recognize him, if not by hair, then by those bright eyes that either looked like there was not a single thought behind them, or unusually mindful, as if this tiny thing understood way more than it could express.

He really missed those eyes. 

Vile creatures couldn't have written such a beautiful story, his own words echoed in his mind. Why did he recall that now?

…Probably because the experience he gained once his dream came true and he entered the human realm proved him wrong. Humans were amazing, but they indeed were very cunning. If even the demon emperor could get fooled, then what a dangerous place the human world was for a baby like Zhuzhu! 

The traces Tianlang-jun's found were not enough for anything; his best idea was just keep following that vague direction. And if you keep walking and walking and walking, sooner or later you’ll end up…somewhere. Tianlang-jun sure was somewhere. 

A pleasant green scenery of pre-mountainous terrain, sunlit and warm, fresh air with a faint smell of herbs and the sky so blue. Demon Realm didn’t have such smells and such air. Ah, Zhuzhu was lucky that his mother brought him here to be hatched. 

Tianlang-jun didn’t notice when he found an actual road. That probably wasn’t the sign he was looking for, Zhuzhu wouldn’t go near anything human-made… At least Tianlang-jun liked to think he taught his child better than that. Wait, did he really ever mention Zhuzhu shouldn’t come near human-made stuff? Oh, he may have forgotten. Well, that’s embarrassing.

His thoughts were interrupted by the noise of a carriage coming closer. Tianlang-jun was going to just ignore it, but whoever was inside decided to make a stop shortly after the carriage passed by. And then something nearly jumped out of the carriage’s window, but was swiftly caught and pulled back inside by a couple of very elegant hands.

“Calm down, Zhu-er! What did you see there?!”

Tianlang-jun’s heart clenched painfully. Could it be?..No, that must be some other Zhu-er. Be real, who would take his beastling into a carriage? His Zhu-er, in all honesty, would be lucky if someone didn’t kill him on sight out of fear or in an attempt to spare such a hideous creature from the burden of living.

But before he could turn away and keep his fruitless search, the *something* managed to slip out of those gentle hands and plop on the ground. Tianlang-jun couldn’t believe his eyes, but he would recognize this scaly muzzle anywhere!

“Zhuzhi!”

Another person jumped out of the carriage, but catching Zhu-er was no easy feat unless Zhu-er wanted to be caught, and right now Zhu-er definitely didn’t want that. Zhu-er got restless as soon as he sensed a familiar smell in the air, sneaking out of Shen Qingqiu’s hands where he was resting, and now was rapidly approaching his long lost uncle.

Tianlang-jun ran towards him, picking up his wiggly nephew to bounce him in the air and then hug him so tight that the beastling nearly got flattened a little. “Zhuzhi, you silly child, do you know how much you made your uncle worry, ah?!”

Joyous reunion was interrupted by someone’s cough.

“And you must be?..” A cultivator in green robes glanced at him coldly and cautiously.

“Oh, where are my manners!” Tianlang-jun didn’t care, to be frank. “Thank you very much for returning my dear child, bye.” He really was going to just leave now and has already turned away, softly patting Zhu-er’s hair, but the Green Guy certainly had other plans.

“Hand. Zhu-er. Over. Now.”

Cultivator’s threatening aura filled the space. Tianlang-jun slowly turned his head, his eyes showing mind annoyance.

“That’s Zhuzhi-lang for you.”

“That’s my Zhu-er.” Green Guy persisted. “Let him go.”

Tianlang-jun just slowly put Zhuzhi down on the ground. Whoever this person is, this venerable demon will gladly show him what is what here. “Zhuzhi, who would you rather follow, your beloved uncle or this…um…”
“Shen Qingqiu.”

“Or this Shen Qingqiu?”

Poor Zhuzhi-lang looked completely distraught.

Of course he wanted to stay with uncle! He had missed him so much, he thought they'd never see each other again, but he’s grown so used to master Shen. He was just looking at one and then at the other and then again and again, sometimes twitching to move back or forward, absolutely unable to decide. Tianlang-jun didn’t like to see this hesitation, and, judging by Shen Qingqiu’s face, the cultivator was confused too.

“Fine, whatever, he…He recognizes you. I guess that means you are his…relative,” Shen Qingqiu finally sighed. “Zhu-er’s clearly stressed, if you care about this child, don’t make him choose.”

He wanted to add and give him back to me so badly that Tianlang-jun sensed it anyway. But the Green Guy was right. Poor Zhu-er must have already had a hard time…

“Fine, I won’t. And I’m taking it home.”

Shen Qingqiu arched an eyebrow.

“It?”

“What are you, a snake expert?” Tianlang-jun pouted as he picked up the beastling, who seemed to be…rather content about not having to choose. He still looked at master Shen a little wistfully, but it was easier when someone made decisions for him.

“You don’t even know that your child is a boy!”

“How could I tell? Not all single mothers can afford education!”

“You’re NOT his mother!”

“Oh, master Shen is an expert in heavenly demons too that you can tell on sight?”

Ah, that was a little impulsive. That was the moment Tianlang-jun knew - he fucked up. He could only hope his human disguise was good enough to fool this cultivator, but instead…

A little earlier, Shen Qingqiu felt odd when he looked at this stranger all over, but it wasn’t the time to think about that. Now Shen Qingqiu suddenly realized that these dark eyes look terribly familiar. Just like the eyes of his half-demon disciple.

“Tianlang-jun.”

Crap, a smart one . Confronted like that, Tianlang-jun saw no point in trying to keep his cover, revealing the heavenly demon mark. Now the whole cultivation world will know he’s still here, and he can forget about peaceful wandering. Or kill this cultivator, and keep the secret. Maybe the Green Guy was innocent, but nobody cared for Tianlang-jun’s innocence when those of Green Guy’s kind tried to kill him.

“How observant. Alas, I fear I can’t let you tell your friends about this curious encounter, master Shen.”

Chapter Text

“Shizun…” Someone's weak voice reached the cultivator's ears. And he had already forgotten the horses had to be guided and there was one of his disciples doing that job. If it was Binghe, the boy would have already jumped down to try to defend shizun, but this one preferred to be quiet, hoping whatever was going on would not involve him. Smart choice. Shen Qingqiu just hushed at the disciple: stay quiet till the end! Tianlang-jun didn’t pay attention to that kid altogether; even if he wouldn’t finish the master in one blow, a mere aftershock of his strike would likely be enough to finish the disciple.

Shen Qingqiu clenched his fan in his hand. This version of PIDW he’s transmigrated into was…very weird. Barely resembling the original even. First Su Xiyan somehow was alive, now Tianlang-jun showed up out of nowhere! 

Though, it wasn't necessarily bad. Once Shen Qingqiu realized who's standing before him, he got really nervous, but…The tenderness in the demon's eyes when he looked at the beastling gave him a little hope that he could be reasoned.

And perhaps he would look the same way at his real child, Luo Binghe, if he learned about the boy's existence. 

“Let's not jump into action,” the peak lord opened his fan, covering his face. He didn't know all that much about Tianlang-jun, other than he supposedly was a super bad villain. There had to be a reason everyone wanted him dead, right? 

…Nobody liked Shen Qingqiu a lot either. Shen Yuan himself hated him, and yet, it turned out that being a little nicer could fix everything. If Shen Qingqiu was really a totally hopeless, irredeemable scum, no amount of kindness would be able to fix that, right? Some things just were not what they seemed. Besides, if he was alive all this time, why didn't he try to avenge? What was he doing all these years? And, of course, Shen Qingqiu couldn't risk engaging in a fight when it could threaten the little beast in the demon's arms. “I'm open to negotiations, and Zhu-er doesn't need to see blood.”

“I don't see anything to discuss here. Zhuzhi is my nephew, so I'm taking him with me. As for you, you weren't supposed to know who I am, but I exposed myself. My bad, I admit, but alas,” Tianlang-jun's glare even seemed to soften a little for a moment, as if he actually regretted it. “You have to understand me too. I don't want a thousand angry wasps of righteous path to jump me again. I just want peace for me and Zhuzhi.”

Not sounding like a villain at all! 

“Sounds like we have matching interests then. How about we lay our arms down for now and have a conversation? Junshang can kill me any time later.”

Shen Qingqiu intended to use double manipulation! Firstly, he showed some respect, displaying submission(some beasts reacted positively to that, maybe he'd get lucky?). It's not boot-licking if he's licking the boot of a literal Emperor, okay! Secondly, the ‘kill me’ part was actually directed at Zhu-er. Yes, involving a child was dirty, but there was no way in the world a single cultivator would defeat the protagonist's daddy. Future lord Luo Binghe inherited his inhumane power from someone after all, and it very likely wasn't his human mother! 

Zhu-er actually reacted to that. He could sense very well that master Shen was in danger, but it was all too overwhelming for him. It appeared the source of danger was his uncle, and normally, danger for master Shen would be also danger for Zhuzhu, but how could uncle be dangerous to him?! Why did these two even want to fight so bad? Zhuzhi wiggled anxiously, but Tianlang-jun was holding him tightly. He did give Zhuzhi a quick look though, and seeing the little thing's distress, he seemed to begin to hesitate. 

“Mhm. From what I understand, master Shen has been taking care of my nephew?”

The way Tianlang-jun said ‘master Shen’ sounded polite, but very obviously didn’t mean any respect. He was a Demon Emperor(at least definitely used to be and it’s unlikely his power could have just vanished); some human emperor maybe would try to appease to an immortal master like that(Shen Qingqiu wasn’t sure how exactly it was in this world, PIDW never elaborated much on common folk politics), but even a lower rank demon lord wouldn’t remember about manners in front of a cultivator. Ironically, this actually was a reminder that master Shen is in the lower position here. Now was not the time nor the place for a fight though.

“That's right.”

Zhu-er has even grown a little and didn't look malnourished or damaged at all. A healthy and tidy demon baby. Ah, this Shen Qingqiu must have noticed it's a demon, right? But he still took care of this child. 

“Fine,” Tianlang-jun sighed, the air suddenly becoming lighter as he calmed his qi down. “Kindness must be repaid, so I will entertain you for a bit. Don't think that I'm ready to let you get away though, Shen Qingqiu.”

This was actually better than anything the aforementioned Shen Qingqiu could have expected. Relieved, he snapped his fan close and pointed at the carriage. “Let's not tire our feet when we have a place to sit. The way to my destination point is still long, more than enough to discuss…things. Unless Junshang needs to go in the opposite direction?..”

“I don't need directions, I walk wherever I want,” the demon answered confidently in such a lofty manner, that Shen Qingqiu didn't even realize at first that what it really meant was probably something like, I have nowhere to go and nothing to do, that's why you met me here in the middle of nowhere in the first place . He then leisurely walked over and got in and let Zhuzhu rest on his lap. Shen Qingqiu hopped in as well, taking a seat near.

“Go,” he told the disciple on the perch. “Follow the route as planned. We should reach Songlin village before the sun sets.”

“B-but there’s a demon-”

“This master has figured so. Shen Zhu is a demon too, and he’s been living in our sect for a while now, and nobody was hurt, ah? And what’s that attitude, ah? Since you have so much vigor to argue with elders, you might as well have enough to run ten laps when we’re back on Qing Jing.”

The disciple could only obey, choosing to silently believe shizun has a plan and he should just act natural . He desperately wanted to believe so.

Tianlang-jun only raised his brow at ‘Shen Zhu’, but Shen Qingqiu ignored that. He has never heard any other names of the Demon Emperor other than ‘Tianlang-jun’, and he assumed that was the whole name, and if this guy doesn’t have a family name to bestow upon the child, might as well let someone else do it! All’s fair!

Before it could become a matter of an argument, the beastling decided to stretch out to occupy master Shen's lap. To be precise, occupy master Shen's lap as well . Zhu-er was just long enough to rest both atop his uncle and Shen Qingqiu at once. 

Two men exchanged indecipherable glances. They both had extremely mixed feelings about this, but neither would have it in them to tell Zhuzhi to get off, or only choose one(what if he chose the other? Tianlang-jun didn't want to let go of the child he hatched himself, and Shen Qingqiu didn't want to let his unique and very lovely disciple slip through his fingers!). This position was awkward, but they could put up with that. For some time at least. 

“So, what did master Shen want to discuss?”

A lot of things, actually. Does Tianlang-jun know Su Xiyan is alive? No, probably not, after all, not even Shen Qingqiu was supposed to know she was alive. Officially, he didn’t even know any ‘Su Xiyan’, he knew that one of his disciples, Luo Binghe, a totally regular little boy, had a mother named Luo Tian, who lived together with her old aunt after her husband - Binghe’s dad - died. That was the legend fabricated for the neighbors. In the original novel, Luo Binghe only had one adoptive mother, why would he suddenly need a second one if she was just a random NPC? From Binghe’s tellings, she also knew a few things about cultivation.

Then, he was curious to know the details of the battle. Protagonist’s generic fights with low level mobs were boring and repetitive, but a battle with a true heavenly demon - or, from said demon’s point of view, with a hundred cultivators - sounded quite exciting. Oh, right, he still had to inform Tianlang-jun that he has a son…And what’s with this nephew, where even did a nephew come from? Fortunately, the trip was promising to still take a few hours.

But first and foremost, Shen Qingqiu wanted to confirm his guess. He took a silencing talisman out of his sleeve and activated it, so that nobody outside the carriage heard their conversation, remembering about the disciple on the perch.

“That story of you seducing Su Xiyan and sowing chaos in the Human Realm, is any of that true?”

Now Tianlang-jun was truly surprised. He didn’t expect that there would be a day when someone asks him for his part of the story, much less that it would be a cultivator asking.

He’s heard some of those rumors himself, but what was the point of trying to disprove them? He wasn’t in the mood for that anyway, he was busy grieving his unfortunate love, and then he discovered that while qi can be used to quickly sober up, it can also be used to speed up intoxication, and the next few years flew by in a sweet wine-induced delirium. Anyway, Tianlang-jun didn’t expect his testimony would be heard by anyone ever.

“As for seducing Xiyan, no, certainly no. If I only wanted to seduce her, do you think it would take me that long?” he smirked. “Come on, with a face like this-”

“Understandable,” Shen Qingqiu fanned himself, changing the topic. This answer felt genuine enough, and also annoying enough. “And what about the…countless crimes?”

“Oh please, I only stole an apple once,” Tianlang-jun scrunched his face. “Is it such a big deal? I just didn’t have any gold on me that day. If I wanted to do crimes, I’d do it with grandeur! Overthrow some lord, for example, or spar with some great sect leader.”

Indeed, why would someone of Tianlang-jun’s power waste his time on minor mischiefs? The crimes Tianlang-jun supposedly committed were reported mostly by Huan Hua Palace, and the ones Shen Qingqiu heard of at least were…not befitting a ruler of the Demon Realm. Burning down some manor, kidnapping some poor maiden, killing numerous no-name cultivators for unclear reasons; it was also weird how those crimes were all scattered around large territory randomly instead of following some kind of route…Weird all around. Not that it was impossible, but…Shen Qingqiu hasn't known Tianlang-jun even for an hour, but he didn't give off an impression of someone who would do any of that. Not that Shen Qingqiu was ready to trust him yet, but he was willing to give the demon a chance. 

“So you and madam Su had it all serious ? ”

“So I thought,” Tianlang-jun couldn't hide the bitterness in his tone, or maybe wasn't even trying to. “Alas, she didn't feel the same, it seems.” He sighed heavily. “I hoped she'd come for me again to tell me…Anything. Any lie she'd make up to excuse herself, I'd take the bait, you know? But she didn't give me even that.”

“And you didn't kill her.”

“Oh I should have! The whole demon realm would laugh at me for leaving her alive. Killing a liar is only honorable, but…how could I do that to her? Even if I had a chance to see her again…”

Tianlang-jun sighed heavily as he rested his hand on Zhu-er’s tail and gently stroked it.

“What would happen then?” Shen Qingqiu carefully inquired. “If you saw her again?”

“I’d like to say I’d get really mad, but honestly, I think I’d just forget all I’ve ever learned and fall for her again. Such a dangerous woman she was.”

The demon could be lying. He could be playing 5D chess with Shen Qingqiu. They could be in a mental match of L vs Kira right now, for all Shen Qingqiu knows. If Tianlang-jun was at least half as vicious as Huan Hua portrayed him, it could just be a game.

But if Shen Qingqiu had to choose who to trust, this guy was…way more persuasive.

And if so, Su Xiyan could be his trump card, a way to make Tianlang-jun not kill Shen Qingqiu before the cultivator has a chance to tell someone the Demon Emperor is alive. Well, maybe he has an extra trump card named Luo Binghe. 

Or maybe his sleeves are actually empty. All or nothing. Not like he has any other choice now, does he?..

Chapter Text

“Then what if I said that-”

He couldn’t finish. The silencing talisman wasn’t letting the disciple hear them, but Shen Qingqiu could hear the disciple very well, and right now, that kid was yelling at the top of his lungs: “SHISHU LIU!”

“Crap,” Shen Qingqiu snapped his fan shut, such a reaction definitely amused Tianlang-jun. He tore down the talisman, now there was no point, and this kid will have to run twenty laps for losing faith in shizun and shizun’s plans! Thirty laps! Shen Qingqiu hasn’t, in fact, finished thinking up a current plan and now he already has to change it!

The disciple truly rejoiced upon seeing a sword of unmatched speed - though the figure was too far to be recognized, everybody knows only Cheng Luan of the Bai Zhan’s war god can fly this fast. Not that he didn’t trust in shizun, he just…there was a demon holding them hostage, okay?! Not some vaguely cute thing like Zhu-er everyone’s grown used to, but a real demon, realest of all! Shizun was basically a hostage!

“Shishu Liu, Liu…Who?” Tianlang-jun peeked out of the carriage window curiously just to be yanked back in by Shen Qingqiu, who impulsively grabbed the emperor by the collar. Ugh, no time to mind his manners!

“Liu Qingge, Bai Zhan peak lord,” he hissed. “He became a peak lord not long after your…’death’.”

“Ah, now I remember. Indeed, I’ve heard of that, a young war god,” the demon nodded. “In that case, my apologies, master Shen. Your time is up; I don’t want to inform any more people of my return, so I’m afraid I must end you here quickly, and your disciple too.”

He was speaking calmly, even somewhat sounding like trying to coax Shen Qingqiu into accepting death willingly. No fucking way!

“No need to get so radical. Take on your human disguise.”

Shen Qingqiu left Tianlang-jun to that, and opened the carriage to toss something at the disciple - another silencing talisman, but this time one meant to silence people instead of a room, literally. Poor kid couldn’t make a sound anymore, and was only staring at Shen Qingqiu in confusion, while Shen Qingqiu hushed at him and told him to be quiet. Liu Qingge was approaching rapidly, and Shen Qingqiu’s brain had to maximize output to outspeed him.

When Shen Qingqiu returned to his seat, next to him was a very much human-looking entity.

“It’s a risky game, master Shen, but I decided to play for a bit longer. You’re a curious specimen for sure.”

Shen Qingqiu didn’t respond to him as he had to respond to his shidi, who had already landed near the stopped carriage and was about to ask the disciple why he was yelling. Before that happened, Shen Qingqiu hopped out. Covering his face with a fan as if it could help cover his lie, he approached Liu Qingge.

“This shixiong apologizes. My disciple got a bit too excited upon seeing our war god.”

“Is that so?” Liu Qingge scoffed. “He screamed like there’s a fire.”

“Thanking shidi for his concern, but it’s really fine,” Shen Qingqiu pulled on one of his sweetest smiles. For some reason, it always had a disarming effect on the Bai Zhan peak lord.This time it seemed to work too, Liu Qingge’s shoulders relaxed.

…And immediately tensed up again when Tianlang-jun decided to poke his head out. Was Shen Qingqiu supposed to say aloud that he should stay in and keep a low profile too?! They were truly lucky Liu Qingge didn’t know what the infamous Demon Emperor looked like.

“I thought you went on a mission alone.” 

The disciple ruling the horses got simply discarded just like that, but he couldn’t protest even if he wanted to.

“Master Shen wasn’t alone,” Tianlang-jun replied, getting out of the carriage with Zhu-er in his arms flicking his tongue. “This sweet child was also a part of the entourage.”

The disciple got simply discarded just like that twice in a row.

Liu Qingge didn’t pay Tianlang-jun any attention, instead staring at Shen Qingqiu. Shen Qingqiu folded his fan and decided to introduce Tianlang-jun before Tianlang-jun blew up his own cover again .

“Wang Qiong* is a traveler I picked up on my way. He was heading the same way.”

Tianlang-jun grinned, whether he found the name Shen Qingqiu whipped out of his ass funny or in an attempt to look unsuspicious and friendly, either way it made Shen Qingqiu’s knuckle itch. Such a handsome face, but so punchable!..What are you grinning at? Was it so hard to stay inside? Why make it harder for everyone?! At least he guessed to play along, thanks heavens for that.

Liu Qingge looked Tianlang-jun all over with visible mistrust, his eyes stopping on Zhuzhi.

“Your disciple.”

“Hm? Yes, even Zhu-er trusts him. I’m even a little jealous of how easily they got along.” Shen Qingqiu just wished it was over. Why is Liu Qingge contributing to the confusion? Doesn’t he see nothing happened here? Go back to hunting down beasts or whatever! Find your own problems to deal with, leave this shixiong’s ones to himself!

“And you allowed it?”

Right, normally Shen Qingqiu wouldn’t let anyone touch Zhu-er unless Zhu-er actively sought it. Little beast wasn’t too fond of strangers, even if he stopped hissing at every unfamiliar face.
“This one is familiar with beasts, it was easy to make friends,” ‘Wang Qiong’ helpfully supplied.

Still full of suspicion, Liu Qingge exchanged a few more words with his shixiong, occasionally eyeing the cowardly disciple that was looking at him with some sort of worrisome expression yet remaining silent. Shidi just had to make sure everything was alright, but at long last, he left. Shen Qingqiu exhaled with relief, before turning to the disciple again.

“This old Wang doesn’t think we can trust this young man to keep his mouth shut,” Tianlang-jun whispered as he somehow got extremely close to Shen Qingqiu, making the cultivator very ungracefully twitch. Shen Qingqiu couldn’t handle him anymore and just slapped his cheek with a fan while moving away.

That was actually very satisfying. 

But he was right, and while the wide-eyed demon was processing what had just happened(he was ASKING for it, getting so close!), Shen Qingqiu knocked the disciple out with a swift movement of his hand. To be precise, he blocked the kid’s meridians.

“He will take a little rest, and when he wakes up, I’ll scold him for falling asleep on the perch, and everything he’s seen was just a dream.”

“Very clever, if only master Shen plans to stay alive that long,” Tianlang-jun has already recovered from a hit, no, he was beaming. Sick. “Although I have to admit, I really don’t want to kill you anymore.”

Thank you very much! It was actually funny to hear that from someone with a red cheek from being smacked, clutching a wiggling little Zhuzhi like a big plush toy in his arms, and the fact that this was a Demon Emperor was making it feel completely absurd.

(Holy shit, he smacked Tianlang-jun ! Wait, but it…It helped?..)

“Oh? And when did that change of heart happen?”

It was good, actually. Maybe Shen Qingqiu could save his trump cards for later. It’s always good to have aces up your sleeve! 

“The moment master Shen put a silencing talisman on his disciple, though you piqued my curiosity even earlier.”

“This master believes we can work with that. You see, I really don’t want you killed too.”

Shen Qingqiu hopped on the perch, moving the disciple a bit to the side. He still had a mission that he had to make a report of after all, if he wanted his mingling with the Demon Emperor to stay unnoticed. Tianlang-jun looked bewildered once again.

“I don’t understand you at all, Shen Qingqiu. What do you know that others don’t to treat me like this? Or is it a part of a larger plan?”

“Get in,” Shen Qingqiu said tiredly. “Zhu-er likes you, consider it my reason to want you alive for now.”

“Will master Shen elaborate as our bond deepens during our adventures?”

Master Shen was beginning to feel that he needed a break. How is he supposed to explain why a righteous cultivator, seeing a notorious Demon Emperor, who wasn’t even supposed to be alive, immediately decided to befriend him? Solely because his little pet-disciple liked the guy or because he trusts every stranger he meets with gullibility so befitting his status of a fucking peak lord ? And what if it really is just a part of his masterplan on recapturing Tianlang-jun, who’s the gullible one then?..

Or maybe Tianlang-jun felt the same about Shen Qingqiu as Shen Qingqiu felt about Tianlang-jun. Something like he’s so weird, there’s possibly a trap somewhere here, but there’s something about him that makes me want to believe him . Maybe they both will fuck around and find out.

“We’ll see.”

Chapter Text

At last the carriage arrived at Songlin village. True to its name, it was surrounded by pine forest, dark and gloomy, and the village itself was small and was literally just a hole in the middle of nowhere. 

“What business required a peak lord's intervention in a place like this?” Tianlang-jun hummed, getting out of the carriage with Zhuzhi in his arms. His nephew looked around carefully, flicking his tongue and expressing no desire to go down yet. With a light touch, Shen Qingqiu unblocked the meridians of the ‘sleeping’ disciple. The kid wouldn't wake up immediately, but it's not like Shen Qingqiu needed him for anything but watching the horses anyway.

“Our sect doesn't only help the wealthy. If common people die out, who's going to feed the rich ones? Everyone deserves protection from demons, and demons here are reported to be.”

“Master Shen's speech is smooth like the flow of a river and sweet like honey, but let's end the poetry competition here,” Tianlang-jun clearly didn't believe a single word. Or maybe he did, just that he knew it's not the true reason. “What's under the righteous surface? What's the ulterior motive?”

“Does this venerable expect every human to have ulterior motives?” Shen Qingqiu hid behind a fan. Once he said it, he realized it probably was a bit too harsh - after all, Tianlang-jun had quite a reason to think so.

“Not just humans. There's always ulterior motives,” the demon nodded. “They aren't inherently bad. I also suspect yours have something to do with my nephew.”

“That's where you're wrong, Zhu-er accompanies me all the time. Even if I tried to leave him behind, he would follow me anyway. I figured it's way less troublesome to just let him.”

Tianlang-jun felt a prick in his heart. Following this cultivator so loyally, but with his uncle he dared to escape to hunt in the vicinity all the time! On second thought, though, poor baby, maybe he just got so scared after getting lost that he decided to never stray from someone who's kind to him again? This thought was even more heartbreaking! 

Holding Zhuzhu with one arm, he used the other to gently ruffle the beastling’s hair. In turn, this random gesture of affection pricked Shen Qingqiu, but the peak lord decided not to think about what he was going to do about Tianlang-jun's relation to Zhu-er. He really didn't know. Is he really in the right to separate them, wouldn't Zhuzhi be better with his own kind? There's this much a human can give to a demon child. 

Luo Binghe needed a father too. How easier would it be for him if someone provided guidance in using demonic power?..

“...but you're right. I came here personally because I'm looking for something that might be in this village. The demons mentioned in the report were two-tailed vulpers, and those usually only appear…”

“Around breaches between realms, but only when the breach is still small, before larger beasts appear.”

Of course the ruler of that realm would know, Shen Qingqiu mentally rolled his eyes. 

“Exactly. These creatures aren't dangerous and often go unnoticed, and generally, common people are unaware of what an omen they may be. Sometimes these breaches grow, sometimes they don't. The villagers, of course, don't need to know that, it only sows panic. I’ll inspect the breach.”

“Only heavens know if it grows or closes on its own. Or master Shen knows how to predict that?”

“This one does.”

The demon looked genuinely impressed. 

“Oh? How so?”

“The qi of the surrounding nature behaves differently depending on whether the chasm is growing . I made this little discovery during my study of…” Of demons and Abyss. Tons of useful knowledge for the protagonist in the future on his conquest of realms. Shen Qingqiu didn't want to let Binghe fall into Abyss this time, but surely the brilliant protagonist would have to leave Can't Qiong's nest at some point! The world does, after all, belong to him! But nobody needed to know about that yet.

“All this way just for an inspection?”

“If it’s a growing one, a disciple might fail to seal it properly. Broken seals make things worse than just leaving it be would,” the peak lord patiently lectured. Naturally, the demon wouldn’t know the details of differences in cultivation level and the capabilities it provides. “Anyway, we need to question the locals about vulpers sightings.”

Tianlang-jun obediently followed Shen Qingqiu, being surprisingly(impressively) quiet. He had a good reason - he finally found his nephew and never wanted to let go of the beastling again. Zhuzhu looked scary, but he actually was so pettable and even wagged his tail a little when petted! Adorable!! So precious!!! Tianlang-jun missed his nephew so much!! He didn't even remind Shen Qingqiu of his presence while the cultivator was talking to the villagers, who were staring wide eyed at Zhuzhu (or maybe they couldn't take their eyes off Zhuzhu's exceptionally handsome uncle, hm?~), until the peak lord finally paid attention to him on his own.

Once again, what were they doing? Tianlang-jun got a bit too distracted, teasing Zhuzhi with his hand and then pulling it away when the little beast tried to playfully bite it.

“...south of the village, across the river. It seems the vulpers come from that area,” Shen Qingqiu summed up. “Now we just need to find the breach and examine it.”

“Let's not waste time then. By the way, how long has it been since Zhuzhi last ate? Vulpers are easy prey, we could let him hunt one or two.”

“Vulpers are almost the size of him! He won't digest them properly!” Shen Qingqiu nearly used his fan inappropriately again. “That's the last thing he needs. And he's already eaten this week.”

Fair enough. Not like they tasted good anyway, but Tianlang-jun kept that remark to himself. 

As they proceeded forward and crossed the river, Shen Qingqiu stopped and frowned, closing his eyes for a moment. Trying to pick up traces of demonic qi to track the source, Tianlang-jun guessed. Humans, so helpless…Not waiting for him, Tianlang-jun just moved forward. 

“Where are you going?!”

“Towards the breach. It's right in front of us.”

Shen Qingqiu hurried after the demon.

“You can see them?!”

“All demons can,” Tianlang-jun nodded. “How do you think we often sneak into your realm but humans rarely come into demon one?”

Shen Qingqiu looked impressed and already opened his mouth to ask something else, but then quickly recovered his hard-to-impress image and hid behind a fan. How curious. 

Most of humans couldn't see the passages between two worlds until they grew large; Su Xiyan said, to them it's more of a feeling than a vision, and visually it only manifests as the space slightly melting and warping at the breach's edges, kind of like what things look like behind a fire. Mostly, however, it was about the weird qi around.

“Doesn't master Shen want to know what they look like?” Tianlang-jun knew humans yearn to perceive what they can't perceive, that's how they learned and expanded their culture, and he couldn't hold back a grin when Shen Qingqiu's eyes sparkled. He guessed right! 

“What is it like?”

“Very colorful. Inside the breach, it's like all colors gather and flow into each other, all imaginable colors at once. Once it grows, the breach becomes like a huge lens painting everything you see through it these colors, always changing, and if you look closely, you can see shadows of another realm.”

The way Shen Qingqiu looked as he listened resembled a child, albeit a very serious looking one, but still a child that was eagerly learning about the miracles of the vast surrounding world. So focused on Tianlang-jun’s speech, truly a grateful audience! 

“That's..very interesting,” Shen Qingqiu stared into the nothingness before which they stopped, but of course he couldn't see anything. Well, they were close enough to it for him to sense anyway. 

Shen Qingqiu was wondering if there are other things demons perceive so differently from humans. Was Binghe's perception demonic too? Was it still under a seal, or maybe the boy just learned not to expose his strange view of the world? 

He could try to ask Binghe later. The boy trusts him, he would tell. Maybe it would be a nice way to lead the conversation to Binghe's demonic heritage…

…after all, now that his father is here, it's time to do something about it. The truth would come out one way or another just like Tianlang-jun came ‘back from the dead’, just like Shen Qingqiu knew Su Xiyan was alive and Luo Binghe was a half-demon when nobody was supposed to.

In fact, all these things were just begging for him to act and do something! Even if the plot of this novel he transmigrated into strayed way, way too far from the original, if it still was to remain at least semi-decent, there had to be some laws. And one of such laws said that if there's a gun, sooner or later it's going to shoot. 

“...and then this humble one helped the esteemed master Shen locate the breach,” Tianlang-jun - currently hiding behind the name of ‘Wang Qiong’, so helpfully provided by his new cultivator friend - finished his summary. The disciple that only recently regained consciousness and still was processing everything that happened to him and his master looked at him with a bit of mistrust; the man looked back with amicability. But, most importantly, Shen Qingqiu was agreeing with everything this man said.

“So we’ve been attacked by dream bats?” the boy rubbed the back of his head. “And that’s why I thought I saw a heavenly demon?”

“Precisely,” Shen Qingqiu nodded from behind a fan. Actually, having Tianlang-jun around had one great benefit - he could hold Zhu-er so that the peak lord’s hands were free to hold the most important artifact from his inventory, one that protected his thin face. “You nearly attacked Wang Qiong, this master believes you owe him an apology.”

“T-this one is very sorry!” the disciple made a bow, no longer questioning the plausibility of everything that happened. If he truly almost assaulted or accused an innocent man, that was a shame to the sect, and he should be grateful he’s not getting punished for staining the reputation like that(after all, everybody heard that Shen Qingqiu used to be exceptionally strict once…You never know when it strikes again!). “B-but still, how could I see a heavenly demon if I don’t even know what they look like…”

“Then how can you even know what you saw?” Tianlang-jun grinned. “Dreams don’t make sense, don’t think about it too much! As for the bats, worry not, master Shen dealt with them swiftly and easily right on the way! The power of a peak lord is truly impressive!”

“And what about the breach?..”

“Nothing to worry about. It was closing on its own,” Shen Qingqiu gracefully hopped into the carriage. “The vulpers fear humans more than humans fear them, they won't do any harm other than scaring someone by making noise in the woods. We won’t have to take any measures protecting the village. Let’s hurry back to Cang Qiong. I still have reports to do.”

The disciple couldn’t help but feel alerted again when ‘Wang Qiong’ joined Shen Qingqiu in the carriage though.

“Sanren* is heading in the same direction?”

“He’s coming with us.”

“This lowly one and master Shen figured we have a lot in common,” ‘Wang Qiong’ hummed. “It was an honor to receive the venerable master’s invitation into his private quarters-.”

His words were followed by a noise suspiciously resembling the sound Shen Qingqiu’s fan made when he used it to discipline some obnoxious kids(and occasionally shishu Liu; funny enough, it seemed everyone took great pleasure in that). The disciple asked no more.

Chapter Text

The way up the mountains was impassable for a carriage - the staircase that would make commoners (or enemies) stray until the patrol found them was a great inconvenience in this regard. The disciple took the carriage to the horse stables located at the bottom of the mountains, decently hidden away from the main road. Since it was a senior disciple, there was no need to wait for him - he wouldn’t get lost on the stairs.

“Asking Junshang to stay close and keep silent should we run into patrol. This master will do the talking.”

“Is anyone even allowed to question the peak lord and his guests?” Tianlang-jun responded.

“They probably won’t, but one should be ready for any situation.”

The silence that fell hadn’t lasted even a minute.

“Passing the patrol is no issue, but surely you have to report to the sect leader? No, shouldn’t you have reported first and only then allowed me to step into the sect’s territory?”

“I should, but even if he disallows, this master fears Junshang wouldn’t leave us in peace with the knowledge of his presence. It’s a complicated situation, isn’t it? Neither of us wants to die, and neither really wants to kill each other, and yet we can’t just part ways. Let’s speed up the process of finding resolve and come together at once.”

“...Shen Qingqiu, Shen Qingqiu…” Tianlang-jun mused. “Say, which side are you on?”

One that survives, the peak lord didn’t say. This version of the novel was…really almost family-friendly so far, but how could he let his guard down completely, especially when he had recently been reminded that he shouldn’t? What he was doing right now could already be considered treachery by most sects, but…

For Zhu-er, for Binghe, for everyone who was not just a character in a book anymore, Shen Qingqiu wished the best.

“One that judges fairly,” he finally said, secretly proud of how deep that sounded.

There was something touching about it. Something that made Tianlang-jun wonder again what does this man know that makes him treat the enemy of all humanity like this. It was not acting out of fear; Tianlang-jun knew fear well when he saw it.

Perhaps this human truly was just such an unbiased person who was willing to listen to a demon before trying to kill him.

“...The generation that attacked you has already ascended,so the current peak lords won’t recognize you. That will be handy if I manage to convince Zhangmen-shixiong to let you stay in the sect…” Shen Qingqiu frowned as he spoke again, deep in thought.

“He would be a fool to attack me at once. The whole cultivation world tried and yet here I am, outliving quite a bunch of them.” 

“He won’t. I know Yue Qingyuan,” Shen Qingqiu liked to believe that, at least. Sometimes he felt like he understood the man better than the original Shen Qingqiu did, but sometimes he felt like the original knew something his involuntary successor missed. He could never quite define what exactly made him feel this or that way, but in the end, it seemed he was successfully maintaining Yue Qingyuan’s favor, so he probably wasn’t half bad. “We’ll figure something out…once we get there.”

“So that’s where the peak lord’s farsightedness ends,” Tianlang-jun commented. “Well, solving problems as they arise is not a bad strategy either. Spares you the need to think through all the ‘what if’s.”

He then stopped for a moment to let Zhuzhi go down from his arms.

It was a bad, bad idea to follow this cultivator. To have anything to do with cultivators at all. To think that a leader of any self-respecting sect would agree to have anything to do with a heavenly demon? Nonsense. He should have just distracted Zhuzhi somehow and killed this man and then grabbed his nephew and ran away. Why is it that he’s so lenient with humans…

Tianlang-jun decided to give himself the last chance to act like the demon he was. If Zhuzhi follows Shen Qingqiu, so be it, his uncle will trust that the peak lord really doesn't want him dead and might even somehow convince the sect leader, his former opponent, to, um, allow the ex-Emperor to stay near his dear child. 

Allow . Quite humiliating. Tianlang-jun was the one allowing things, not the one being allowed! 

…but he probably should have done something to maintain that attitude instead of getting wasted for years, mourning his betrayed love.

And if Zhuzhi sticked to him, Tianlang-jun would just pick him up and run away. Even if Shen Qingqiu wanted Zhuzhi back (come on, who wouldn't want to keep this lovely little atrocity?), Tianlang-jun would just take his nephew to the demon realm. It wouldn't be hard to win his status back, he'd manage to protect Zhuzhi from all dangers there! Most likely. 

…as if sensing his uncle's thoughts, Zhuzhi decided to let go of his uncle and crawl along Shen Qingqiu.

And what could his poor uncle do? Make Zhuzhu hate him by separating him from his beloved human?? Tianlang-jun couldn’t help but sigh.

“Zhu-er, ah? Why are you on the ground?” Shen Qingqiu’s voice went softer as he gently scooped up his little scaly disciple. “Come here, the stairs are uncomfortable for you, you’ll only get tired quickly.”

Such a heart wrenching scene, in more ways than one!..

The green Qing Jing peak looked welcoming and bright in sunlight, although it was quiet as the disciples were busy with classes, green stalks intermittent with shiny light grey stone.

As they approached the peak lord’s bamboo house itself, Zhuzhi eagerly slipped out of Shen Qingqiu’s arms and slithered forward.

“Excited to be home, hm?” Shen Qingqiu smiled, and it pricked Tianlang-jun’s heart. Home . He wondered for a moment if his palace in the Demon Realm was still standing or if it had already been scavenged to bits and pieces. Not like that place felt like home to him anyway, but what other home could he provide for Zhuzhi? They were always on the move, and he thought it was fine, but Zhuzhu really looked as excited as he could be about having a place to return.

Or maybe it was Tianlang-jun who was secretly yearning to belong somewhere again and projected it on his nephew. He belonged to Su Xiyan; he knew he still did and probably always will, but Su Xiyan was no longer anywhere around.

However, Zhuzhi froze at the door and hissed at it, flicking his tongue, trying to locate something. Shen Qingqiu frowned.

“What’s wrong? Someone is here?”

“Just was,” a voice from above responded. As Shen Qingqiu raised his head, his face relaxed.

“Shidi,” he greeted, opening his fan.

Liu Qingge landed from Cheng Luan, sheathing the sword.

“Shixiong. I only visited to see if you were back yet. I was already on my way out when I accidentally looked back and saw you appear.”

Accidentally , Tianlang-jun repeated in his mind with delight. There was something satisfying in that thought; he felt like it was an important detail he should remember. How close exactly were these peak lords, could he tease Shen Qingqiu about it? That would be fun. If he was going to stay here for a while, he needed some source of fun.

“Did you need something?”

“Just wanted to make sure you returned back safely,” Liu Qingge’s dark eyes darted at Tianlang-jun. He now looked like a wary cat, ready to pounce. “I see you brought a guest.”

Tianlang-jun was definitely going to have fun.

“Wang Qiong is a wandering cultivator that turned out to be an interesting companion,” Shen Qingqiu lied as naturally as he breathed. Not that it was completely a lie, eh? He felt a little bad about fooling his shidi, but it had to be done and he’d rather do it himself than let Tianlang-jun spit out something about ‘invitation to private quarters’ again. “He spent years in the borderlands and possesses great knowledge of demonic beasts, which would be of great help in mentoring Shen Zhu.”

That didn’t disperse Liu Qingge’s suspicion though.

“Does Zhangmen-shixiong know?”

“I informed him before returning to my peak, shidi needn’t doubt this one’s competence,” Shen Qingqiu sounded a bit annoyed, but really, he was just getting nervous.

Liu Qingge interpreted it as being offended at an assumption that Shen Qingqiu would disregard the sect leader like that (he absolutely did, but his shidi didn’t need to know!) and backed down. He definitely didn’t intend to offend shixiong. 

They bid their farewells quickly, leaving Tianlang-jun a lot of interesting thoughts to think about later featuring these two. It seemed the other peak lord really had no other business than checking on Shen Qingqiu, ah, but there’s nobody in the world without ulterior motives!

Meanwhile Shen Qingqiu couldn’t even exhale with relief yet.

First and foremost, the fucking  Demon Emperor! It was a problem through and through! He wasn’t even beginning to think of what he was going to tell Luo Binghe, how he was going to tell Tianlang-jun about Binghe; and he certainly would have to very soon! Next, he needed to hurry to see Yue Qingyuan and tell him a lot of things before Liu Qingge carelessly mentioned Shen Qingqiu’s guests or asked anything. 

What a headache! Speaking of other peak lords, how was he going to inform them?! Hey everyone, this guy here is actually Tianlang-fucking-jun in flesh and blood, but he’s the legal guardian of my disciple so now he’s allowed to fuck around in our sect! Please don’t mind him and don’t tell anyone so the other sects don’t start hunting us for sport!

The more he thought, the worse it was getting!

His worries probably displayed on his face as Zhuzhi also started nervously wriggling around his legs, trying to look him in the eyes to figure out what emotion he was experiencing, and Tianlang-jun didn’t let that slip unnoticed either.

“I assume master Shen is pondering how to break the news of my return to the sect leader since he would learn of it anyway sooner or later?” Tianlang-jun pretended to be looking around, politely pretending he didn’t notice the cultivator’s complicated expression. He was going to let Shen Qingqiu save some face he was so thoroughly trying to hide all the time. While he still can. The demon was sure that should he witness a few more interactions with ‘shidi Liu’, he’d have enough intel to mock the peak lord mercilessly(after all, since he’s already here, why not?). “Considering that one of your shidi’s is already aware, I’d guess sooner.”

“Right,” Shen Qingqiu raised his fan, covering his face. One step at a time. “This master apologies for not being hospitable enough, but I fear we don’t have the time for a tea break. Let’s just get it done.”

“Reasonable,” Tianlang-jun agreed. “Zhuzhi, let’s go.”

Shen Qingqiu didn’t want to involve his little disciple into it, but it was obvious Tianlang-jun wasn’t ready to part with his nephew again yet. He watched silently as the beastling willingly crawled into uncle’s arms. Ah, he certainly couldn’t make it worse than it was already going to be.

He then summoned Xiu Ya out of sheath and gestured at it. As much as he hated the idea of sharing a sword, he didn’t want to waste time. “Begging Junshang pardon for the inconvenience, but it would be faster to fly there.”

“That’s not an inconvenience,” the demon jumped on the sword all too eagerly. Why were his eyes glistening so happily? Was he expecting to have a fun ride?!

Shen Qingqiu took a deep inhale. 

Alright, that shouldn’t be so hard, he just needs to find a way to carefully deliver that the beastling he once found turned out to be a relative of the Demon Emperor, who also turned out to be alive - by the way, here he is in disguise! - and depending on how well it goes, perhaps also mention that it wasn’t the only relative of his residing within the sect…On the other hand, that would be a shock for everyone in the room, so maybe not…Oh, this was totally awful no matter how you look at it.

Hoping for the best, he stepped on Xiu Ya.

Chapter Text

Standing before the Sect Leader’s office’s door, Shen Qingqiu felt like he’s back at school from his previous life, a student who had just realized he forgot his homework for the class led by the strictest teacher ever.

“Come in,” the warm voice behind the door spoke. Yue Qingyuan must have sensed Shen Qingqiu's presence…and must have been wondering what caused his hesitation. Perhaps Shen Qingqiu spent a bit too much time gathering himself. It was good that Tianlang-jun was busy toying with Zhuzhi instead of making remarks regarding that. 

Taking a deep breath(only mentally, of course), Shen Qingqiu entered the room. 

“Shixiong, I must present you my…guest,” he said before thinking of any better wording. Guest? Oh no, he could only dream that Tianlang-jun would limit his presence to guesting. Besides, he had to establish at once that this was not an enemy. “Dare I say, my…new friend.”

Yue Qingyuan's usual smile froze on his face - deadly pale face as he recognized the man standing behind his shidi.

“Shidi, step aside,” Yue Qingyuan’s hand darted to the handle of his sword, Xuan Su filling the air with a faint tingling.

“Shixiong, this man…”

“So you’re the sect leader now, hm? How you’ve grown~” Tianlang-jun squinted his eyes and bared his teeth in a grin that felt more wolfish than amicable. Not that he meant any threat, really. Old acquaintances make fun of past conflicts, right?

Shen Qingqiu could hardly suppress the urge to hit the heavenly demon with a fan. Maybe he actually should- No, not in front of the sect leader. Not yet.

“Shixiong, let me explain. Tianlang-jun does not have any malicious intentions. He’s, in fact…”

“We’re family now. Me and master Shen.”

Such audacity left both peak lords speechless. Shen Qingqiu glared at the demon, unable to even find words to argue.

And damn, Shen Qingqiu very officially adopted Tianlang-jun’s nephew (that seemed to be as good to him as own child), even gave the beastling his family name, so…

Tianlang-jun’s grin was blindingly radiant. Oh how he basked in the humans’ visible discomfort triggered by his nonchalant chaotic remarks. What a bliss to be insufferable!

It seemed that even little Zhuzhi could understand how bad this was though, as he tried to wiggle out of his uncle’s arms, and when he failed, having no alternatives, he just hid his face in Tianlang-jun’s chest.

“...We are not. It’s just that my disciple turned out to be his nephew.”

Yue Qingyuan was silent. To be fair, if Shen Qingqiu was him, he’d probably have trouble thinking of what to say to this too. Since they were at it, he decided to answer some of the possible questions before they were asked.

“Shixiong, I suppose you understand I had no choice. Tianlang-jun was not good at keeping a disguise, and once he gave himself out (the demon’s face didn’t even twitch, shameless! How can he be so calm when someone points out his obvious fuck up?!), I could either let him kill me, or…”

“Or? Shen Qingqiu, you’d better have a good explanation,” when Yue Qingyuan finally spoke, his tone was so cold that it felt like the temperature in the room suddenly dropped. That was the first time in a while - maybe in forever - since Shen Qingqiu felt on thin fucking ice . He’s even been addressed so formally- His mind was screaming “danger”, even though he knew that his shixiong won’t do anything to him. Probably. Once he hears him out, certainly. 

Shen Qingqiu was really hoping so.

“That will take us forever,” Tianlang-jun sighed, breaking in. “Master Shen indeed cracked my flawless disguise, and I indeed intended to get rid of this witness at first, but my nephew has grown attached to this human. What could I do? But, of course, I couldn’t just let him go away either, especially not with my dear long-lost child!” With that, he extended his arms in Shen Qingqiu’s direction, holding Zhu-er like one would hold a really long cat. “And he would be so sad if I took him away from his favourite human now! In the end, I didn’t have it in me to force Zhuzhi to choose one side, so I decided to come with him myself.”

Feeling that he was no longer held tight, Zhu-er swiftly darted to Shen Qingqiu, right into the peak lord’s arms, coiling in them neatly. Looking at Shen Qingqiu with almost puppy eyes. As much of puppy eyes as snake eyes could be. So cute that Shen Qingqiu could almost distract himself from this absolutely disastrous performance he got trapped in.

Yue Qingyuan’s eyes moved back to Shen Qingqiu once the demon finished talking, as if expecting anything more.

“Alternatively, I could have just whisked your shidi away…” Tianlang-jun suggested, drawing attention back to himself. “But that would be utterly useless since we also were seen by shidi Liu. Flying swords are such an unfair game - he would easily get away and tattle on me to the whole cultivation world.”

That’s Liu Qingge for you! Shen Qingqiu did not hiss through gritted teeth. This foul beast must have passed Zhu-er to him on purpose, so that his arms are busy and he can’t use his disciplinary fan! Really, he couldn’t even experience the tension of the moment properly thanks to Tianlang-jun’s antics!

“Shixiong, the fact that he didn’t kill me or anyone else so far is proof enough that negotiation is possible. This master calls for your prudence,” he said instead, trying to be the cool and serious peak lord that he, undoubtedly, normally was. “Our story aside, this one would also like to review Tianlang-jun’s case.”

“This one would like that too,” Tianlang-jun nodded. “The court didn’t bother to read out what exactly I was blamed for, and the folk legends clearly give me more credit than I could achieve even in a few reincarnations.”

Well, with that Shen Qingqiu couldn’t argue. Surprisingly, it seemed that neither could Yue Qingyuan. His glance slowly moved from Shen Qingqiu to Tianlang-jun as he frowned in hesitation, but his hand released Xuan Su.

“Does anyone else know?..” though he never specified what exactly, it was clear anyway.

“Not as far as we’re concerned, no. Shidi saw us, but he doesn’t know about Tianlang-jun’s identity.”

“I’m traveling incognito. Master Shen gave me a new name, and now I am Wang Qiong,” the demon remarked in a comically conspiratorial half-whisper.

“...May Wang Qiong be our guest then.”

And then Yue Qingyuan procured a sound isolating talisman out of his sleeve and tossed it at the door. Nobody would dare to eavesdrop at his door anyway, but in this case, no precaution could be considered unnecessary.

“But there’s a lot we’ve got to discuss, and I’d rather not delay the matter.”

Chapter Text

Shen Qingqiu was drained .

He didn’t expect Yue-shixiong to suddenly decide to become this productive and immediately have a discussion with him and Tianlang-jun! They’d only just arrived and didn’t even get a tea break!

Though, that was understandable. Demon Emperor’s don’t stop by at your sect daily, especially ones that were supposed to be dead - or, at the very least, pretending to be dead. They had a lot to discuss indeed.

Firstly, Shen Qingqiu witnessed Yue Qingyuan admitting that even Cang Qiong made some false accusations at Tianlang-jun back in the day to get rid of some cases they failed to solve. There was little doubt that other sects hadn’t done the same.

Secondly, it turned out that even back then, Yue Qingyuan already knew something was off. Nobody even heard much about Tianlang-jun’s feats in the human world until the day when Huan Hua first presented him as a threat. To the shame of the cultivation world, they actually had no idea he was there to begin with!

Yue Qingyuan was not only a head disciple. He was a head disciple that knew everything he should and shouldn’t have. He worked hard to secure his position in every way possible, and that included poking his nose into ‘elder’s business’.  Back then, of course, the matter of some demon’s guilt or innocence was not a great concern for him.

He kept looking at Shen Qingqiu as if he wanted to add something else, but in the end never did. Perhaps it was something along the lines of, “back then all I cared for was how to save Xiao Jiu sooner’ , but since he didn’t say it, there was no way for anyone to know. Perhaps it was for the best; clueless Shen Qingqiu could have asked who was Xiao Jiu, and that…That would be a whole different story.

And lastly, they discussed what to do with Tianlang-jun now.

“You admitting your wrongs won’t return my Xiyan to me,” the demon shrugged. “Nobody feels better from that. See, if I wanted revenge, I would have gotten it long ago, but even that wouldn’t fix a single thing. I have Zhuzhi now, but, of course you won’t believe that I won’t make a mess if you hand me back my nephew and let me go. Isn’t that so?”

That was obvious. Tianlang-jun’s innocence at this point was just as impossible to prove as his guilt. Although, one thing Shen Qingqiu was certain about.

Tianlang-jun did not kill Su Xiyan and likely did absolutely nothing that would lead to her death. If he wanted her dead or kidnapped, he would have succeeded. The very first Huan Hua accusation that started the whole fuss was a fake, and if Su Xiyan living under a fake name far away from her sect was not proof enough, then the fact that she sent her child to Cang Qiong instead of Huan Hua too must say something.

Shen Qingqiu had never seen Luo Binghe’s birth mother in person. He really wanted to take a peek and even followed Binghe a few times on days when disciples were allowed to come down the mountain to visit their families. He hoped someone would be greeting Binghe, but it was just an old woman - probably the washerwoman that was supposed to be his adoptive mother. She didn’t look as poor as Shen Qingqiu imagined when he was still Shen Yuan reading the original story… that generally was not bugged like this one seemed , but it made sense if the washerwoman had a ‘helper’, say, a strong cultivator living in her house undercover, capable of taking some jobs that would pay a little more decently. Of course, such a character wouldn’t come close to a sect where someone might recognize her, especially if she used to be a head disciple of the most influential sect. You never know who else might come down and recognize you.

But he was certain it must be Su Xiyan. The puzzle was coming together just so well! And yet, he couldn’t risk revealing that now. If there was at least a little chance that it was just another bug in this version of the story, if it’s not her…First of all, Tianlang-jun would be very unhappy if he heard that his Xiyan was alive, went to check on her and found someone else. The rest, actually, didn’t matter anymore.

In the end, they came to a resolution that for now, Tianlang-jun will stay. Not under his real name of course. Shen Qingqiu (politely) fought for his life in a debate of where he shall reside to get him to Qing Jing though.

For the sake of Zhu-er, of course! His disciple stays on his peak! And since Tianlang-jun now comes in one package with him, well…so be it. Besides, that might actually be good for everyone. Tianlang-jun will see Binghe, maybe they’ll feel some unusual connection, befriend each other and be very happy when it turns out they’re actually family. That was the ideal scenario, of course. And also Zhu-er was his personal responsibility, so if Tianlang-jun was kept on Qiong Ding under Yue Qingyuan’s immediate control(as much as one could control him…) and managed to lose Zhu-er again and it led to some accident-

Little beastling himself got completely forgotten somewhere mid-conversation and slithered away to hide in a corner of the room and sleep. When all the talks were finished, Shen Qingqiu’s heart almost bled at the sight of his precious little atrocity lying there all alone, so small and abandoned.

With his disciple in his arms and Tianlang-jun breathing into his neck (no, really, was Xiu Ya THAT short?! Could he move away at least a little?!), Shen Qingqiu returned to Qing Jing in the dead of night feeling nearly dead as well.

“There’s a guest house,” he remembered as he stepped down on the ground. Right, he still has to show the way. Even though he landed so close to his bamboo house…

“Do we really want a detour?” Tianlang-jun purred, hitting the aching spot. Oh, Shen Qingqiu absolutely had no wish to go anywhere but straight home! Physically, a peak lord was cool enough to last days without sleep, but mentally he really needed it right now! Or at least a couple of hours of peaceful meditation! “Although I have to say, I’m pleased that master Shen trusts me enough to put me in a different house. I could just take Zhuzhi and run away anytime.”

Not so fast, you manipulative fuck,  Shen Qingqiu did not say. “Of course you could. And then you won’t find peace in the human realm again.”

“Kill the witnesses?”

“And raise an even bigger ruckus. Junshang, I thought we’re past that. If you wanted to do so, you would have done it already. Either way, I’m not letting you inside my private chambers .”

“And what if I decide to take a midnight stroll to another peak? If I remember correctly, Liu-shidi departed in that direction…”

Awful, terrible, foul demon!

“...the side room is free,” the peak lord hissed, opening the door. “Begging Junshang to not do anything unreasonable.”

Said side room was meant for the head disciple, but Shen Qingqiu’s personal ones were too young and inexperienced yet to be useful and worthy of annoying (affectionately) shizun with their presence even at his home; he had no other reason to pick one yet either (yet). When he first saw that room, he considered letting Luo Binghe live there if other disciples bully him, but so far it all seemed peaceful. Shen Qingqiu didn’t have to encourage the bullying; he, in fact, had the freedom to cut it off early - which he did. He was even surprised back then that absolutely nothing happened. He really had absolute freedom of will. Of course a bit later Luo Binghe would make a great head disciple, but as of now, it was best to not treat him that much better than everyone else. After all, nobody else was supposed to even suspect that Binghe was more than a regular boy.

Now the room was occupied by his dad.

For some reason, it felt comically absurd.

Chapter Text

Shen Qingqiu’s life wouldn’t be Shen Qingqiu’s if the degree of absurdity didn’t break through the roof every now and then. The whole thing with transmigration after death was, probably, the most normal event still. What was not normal was waking up to see some curious demon staring at his face!

“...Good morning,” he said through gritted teeth. The fact that he managed to speak proved that it was not sleep paralysis, and oh how Shen Qingqiu wished it was!

“Morning, love~” Tianlang-jun beamed and moved away. Shen Qingqiu nearly choked on air. “I was going to wake you up, but got distracted by your handsome face.”

Shen Qingqiu sat up on his bed. Know what? He should have let Tianlang-jun kill him immediately when they met. It would still be better than this!

“That was unnecessarily vulgar.”

“Hmm, let’s think of something better then. Remember, I’m Wang Qiong now. And even despite being your new friend , I’m already sleeping in your house instead of a guest house…So, what are we now?”

Tianlang-jun was delighted. Shen Qingqiu was seething. He did not foresee this !

“It’s not too late to move. Nobody saw us,” he put on a calm smile, quickly getting himself back together.

“This one would not be so sure about that,” Tianlang-jun looked away and then side eyed the peak lord playfully. “One of your disciples came earlier to see you and looked very confused when I opened the door. Worry not, I only said his shizun was still asleep and he should come later! Those exact words, no more.”

Shen Qingqiu fell back on the bed.

Even though he had no classes planned on that day, Shen Qingqiu badly needed a distraction from his new demon roommate. A roommate he desperately needed to kick out, and do it quickly.

So, his disciples now had an unscheduled calligraphy class. While they were busy carefully writing to please their shizun that organized the class so suddenly for whatever reason, Shen Qingqiu enjoyed his moments of peace. Tianlang-jun deemed that kind of activity too boring and preferred to stay at Shen Qingqiu’s home to read some novels (fortunately, Shen Qingqiu had a little stash of some trash for his hater’s heart’s relief; Tianlang-jun found it immediately as if he had a hunch for it, took without the peak lord’s permission and got so invested that Shen Qingqiu didn’t even get mad; whatever keeps him busy!). Zhu-er was also successfully snatched away to class, his carefree uncle either not noticing, or just entrusting him to master Shen.

As he figured out, the disciple that came for him was Ming Fan. Shen Qingqiu really hoped the kid kept his mouth shut about any strange men at shizun’s house! Not to mention, he didn’t believe that Tianlang-jun didn’t say anything weird at all!

He was quite proud of himself for smoothly finding a way out though.

That’s Wang Qiong. He’s a friend and will stay on the peak as Shen Qingqiu's guest for some time. He’s knowledgeable in terms of demons and beasts, and so this master invited him as some of his knowledge might be useful in understanding Zhu-er better. Besides, he helps this master write a book on demonic creatures. Alas, they arrived late last night and this master wasn’t sure if the guest house was in pristine and decent state, so after today’s class, someone’s ought to hurry and clean it up thoroughly.

Perfect performance! Now the only problem was getting Tianlang-jun to actually move into a different house.

“Zhuzhi! When have you darkened so much?” the demon scooped up the little beastling. “Master Shen, what have you done to my nephew?”

“Nothing. He’s been practising calligraphy and got some ink on him.”

“He writes?”

“Not much, but yes, this master has achieved some success in his education,” Shen Qingqiu hid his face behind a fan to not expose how obviously proud he was. “He has no hands, but he manages to hold the brush in his mouth quite steadily now.”

Tianlang-jun made a mental note. He should definitely give this child human form. Holding a brush in your mouth must be so inconvenient! But it also sounds like a cool niche skill…

Speaking of that, Tianlang-jun spent quite some time pondering on that matter. Demons were generally growing faster than humans, especially beastlike ones. If he gave Zhuzhi a human form now, how old would he be?

But he wasn’t so dumb to expose his power to everyone like that.

“Perhaps there could be a way to make him more…human? To ease his burdens with literacy and such?”

“Something like the way you can give yourself human disguise? This master fears he knows no such technique, unless there’s some demonic art for that,” Shen Qingqiu replied. “Some beasts are known for developing a human form on their own with sufficient cultivation, but as you see, Zhuzhi hasn’t yet.”

“Would master Shen like that?”

“...Whatever is best for Zhu-er.”

On one hand, human form makes a monster way less interesting…On the other hand, the idea of being a mentor so good that he made a beast cultivate into human form was quite attractive…That was a tough question, but, of course, in the end Shen Qingqiu’s opinion didn’t matter. He’s not the one to dispose of his disciple’s body!

Tianlang-jun didn’t respond, just silently nodded. If he gives Zhuzhi human form now, it will look weird, and even master Shen wouldn’t find a reasonable and believable explanation. The beastling’s cultivation was obviously too low to evolve on his own yet. He didn’t want to wait too long for it though…After all, Zhuzhi won’t be small forever. One day he might realize how terrible his form was, and the world wasn’t full of caring uncles and kind master Shen’s.

...unless a certain caring uncle stays here to protect Zhuzhi (and master Shen, since he’s at it). In fact, if Cang Qiong covers him and the other sects never know of Tianlang-jun’s whereabouts, wouldn’t it be just perfect? Being able to freely roam the territory of cultivators in the Human Realm, no hiding! Surely it’s not the whole world, but there’s still so many places to wander around. And he still had a few years before Zhuzhi became a truly decent companion, not to mention that the idea of losing him again was quite unnerving.

He didn’t know how long Yue Qingyuan would let him stay. Even though in the end the sect leader never bared his sword, Tianlang-jun really meant it when he said he’s grown. That was the power he clearly didn’t have as a disciple; a power that could ruin even Tianlang-jun’s day. While it would be fun to have a match someday, he’d prefer it to be a day when Zhuzhi is grown enough to take care of himself. Just in case.

He decided to enjoy his days in the sect in the meantime. The novels in Shen Qingqiu’s collection were truly the trashiest literature Tianlang-jun had ever seen, but that was exactly the most fun.

Chapter Text

Zhu-er was resting on his uncle’s lap while Tianlang-jun was reading aloud one of the glorious novels of the peak lord’s. This one must’ve been Shen Qingqiu’s favourite; the pages looked quite worn out from being turned, a lot of words and whole sentences were circled with ink, with occasional comments written on the sides, which were even more delightful to read. That’s when Shen Qingqiu returned from a sword class.

His disciples should have been thankful to ‘Wang Qiong’! Their shizun didn’t want to spend time at home with him so bad that he attended classes way more than usual!

“Ah, master Shen! Welcome home~” the demon hummed, turning his head to the peak lord, and…winked. “Dar-ling~”

That was exactly the line in the book he read a few minutes ago, and the follow-up was even funnier, but he decided to test the waters first. How far could he take it before master Shen utilizes his ultimate punishment tool?

But Shen Qingqiu was not going to take this bait. He was way above that. He calmly grinned, fanning himself in his casual manner as he walked in and took a seat at his table.

“The guest house is ready. Wang Qiong no longer has to share the limited living space with this master.”

“It’s not a burden for me at all.”

It was a burden for Shen Qingqiu though, and he just happened to find a solution.

As much as he didn't want to have some disciple disturb his peace, he'd take anyone over Tianlang-jun!

“I’m afraid I have reasons to insist. This master has been thinking of picking a head disciple for a while now, and I think I’ve made up my mind. I’ll need my head disciple by my side, of course.”

This time, after a moment of hesitation, Tianlang-jun decided to play along. It was no fun to stay in Shen Qingqiu’s house if Shen Qingqiu avoided him anyway! Giving the peak lord one last dramatic glance, he put aside the book, picked up Zhuzhi from his lap, and leisurely, like a cat, walked over to the exit.

“Does Wang Qiong need help moving?” Shen Qingqiu hummed, sounding a bit too satisfied.

“No need, all my belongings are already on me,” the demon patted Zhuzhi.

And then the little traitorous thing slipped out of his arms as if he suddenly realized he’s being separated from master Shen. The beastling quickly wrapped around the peak lord’s leg.

Ungrateful! Unfilial! Disloyal child!

“Zhuzhi, if you don’t come with me now, I won’t let you in,” Tianlang-jun attempted to sound strict. He didn’t want to use his command tone to not scare the baby, but maybe he should have - Zhu-er seemed to be hesitating, but in the end didn’t move.

One couldn’t help but sigh and accept defeat!

Lying alone on his bed in the guest house, Tianlang-jun stared at the ceiling absent-mindedly. Playing with his nephew was quite fun, Shen Qingqiu was quite fun, his novels were extremely fun (he even allowed to borrow some!). Besides, he now resided on the peak dedicated to arts, there sure was a lot to see!

But also he was in the nest of his enemy. He revealed his identity to more than enough people, and it was very likely that his life might not be so peaceful anymore, unless Shen Qingqiu by some miracle actually convinced Yue Qingyuan to be friends with Tianlang-jun. Then, of course, he’d also have to convince Tianlang-jun that they all can be friends , which won’t be easy either, but that part was at least under his control.

Peace was just beneficial for everyone, but as he kept wasting time, the cultivators might’ve started setting up a new trap. Not that he won’t be able to escape it again, of course! But…

His thoughts were interrupted by some noise at the door. It was subtle, but demon ears were sensitive enough to pick it up. Since he wasn’t asleep anyway, might as well take a look at his visitors.

Much to his surprise and satisfaction, it was Zhu-er! In the end, he missed his uncle too, and though he chose master Shen at first, he was still internally tearing apart!

“Oh, what’s that? Has master Shen suddenly fallen out of favor?” he purred mockingly, relishing in the sight of his little nephew giving him the guiltiest look. 

But of course he would let him in. 

“...Such a declaration would be akin to admitting that the greatest sects togethers failed to defeat one demon. I’ve seen what the old masters were capable of; few of them haven’t ascended yet. The situation in other sects is similar. Us, the successors, had too little time since that battle to advance enough to match their power.”

Had they told everyone Tianlang-jun never died, the reputation of all sects would drop significantly; the public would demand the ‘enemy of humanity’ gone, and another loss would be fatal. 

Shen Qingqiu has already thought about that. But he also saw a great solution. Potentially great.

“Shixiong, we can make him our ally instead.”

“We’re talking about Tianlang-jun , shidi.”

“That’s exactly why this one thinks it may work out.”

Yue Qingyuan kept silent for a while.

“I know this look. There’s something you know that others don’t.”

“Precisely, shixiong. I only ask to trust in me for now.”

“Care to elaborate?”

“Not yet.”

The sect leader sighed as he turned away from his shidi’s foxy eyes.

“Then good luck, Qingqiu. Just please…be careful.” 

Chapter Text

That day the peak lord was absent, visiting Qiong Ding. Though he said it’s for other business, Tianlang-jun had no doubt that his matter will be discussed too. And behind his back! Though he was curious what exactly kind of discussion that would be, however, he had something more interesting at hand.

Three of Shen Qingqiu’s disciples were looking for Zhu-er, and, expectably, found him near his unc…Pardon, Wang Qiong.

“Ah, Zhuzhi’s shixiongs and shijie came to torture him with calligraphy?” Tianlang-jun grinned.

“Sword practice,” seemingly the eldest one made a little bow (too little to be considered properly respectful; by demon standards, a daring kid like that would be an example for others!..as long as he could stand up for his discourtesy). 

“I’d love to watch. Can’t imagine him even holding a sword,” he replied carelessly while looking over the other two disciples. The girl looked like a normal human child, but the other boy…

When he saw the other boy’s face, he spaced out for long enough to miss whatever the eldest disciple was saying.

“Is…Is something wrong?”

Luo Binghe could feel that he was stared at. This stranger was brought here by shizun, so he probably wasn’t a bad man, but being stared at so thoroughly would make anyone nervous!

“No, not at all. Your face just looked familiar,” Tianlang-jun beamed again, shaking off the thoughts that plagued his mind a moment ago. “Almost like an old friend of mine.”

“Maybe A-Luo is your friend’s child!” the girl immediately supplied. Ah, a child with vivid fantasy. “He never knew his father!”

‘A-Luo’ blushed and pulled her sleeve, very obviously hinting that she should stop.

“That’s unlikely,” Tianlang-jun laughed. “Although who knows…That friend had quite a few secrets from me.” But he wouldn’t let that spoil his mood now. “So, sword practice, hm? Let’s go see that~”

He was curious what had master Shen taught his disciples. For some reason he also wanted to watch this A-Luo for a bit longer, though he couldn't figure out what exactly drew his interest. Clearly it wasn't just his face, but what else?..

The kids exchanged confused looks between each other. They really were only looking for Zhu-er, but…would it be rude to refuse shizun’s guest?

In the end they all reached a silent agreement that it wouldn’t please shizun (in fact it would, but shizun wasn't there to tell them!), and so Tianlang-jun got to follow the kids to a patch in bamboo forest where they often practiced their swordsmanship. On their way, Zhu-er kept sneaking between the disciples legs, but they didn’t seem bothered at all, so it must’ve been a common practice by now. Good balance training that also forms a habit of watching your step! Ah yes, Zhuzhi was an exemplary disciple, even teaching his martial siblings something! Making his uncle proud! He seemed to favor A-Luo the most though, clinging to his feet a lot.

“Wooden swords?” Tianlang-jun noticed only when they reached the patch in the bamboo forest where Shen Qingqiu’s disciples practiced in their free time. “Aw, does your shizun think real ones are too heavy for you?”

“We must master a wooden sword first,” A-Luo replied. “Shizun says, if we can wield a wooden sword, we’ll be able to work with anything.”

“Isn’t that silly though? A cultivator’s sword is a part of his body!” the other boy argued back. “Why would we need to use anything else? Shizun just doesn’t want us to get hurt, but he underestimates us.”

“Watch your mouth!” A-Luo puffed up. The girl immediately jumped to his side, grabbing his sleeve as if trying to calm him down. “Shizun knows better! And what will you do if you lose your sword?”

“A-Luo, Ming-shixiong, don’t fight! Not in front of people!” she whisper-yelled, two boys immediately side-eyeing Tianlang-jun and getting themselves together.

These kids sure were a fun bunch! 

“Where I’m from, children get their first blade as soon as they can hold it,” the demon-in-disguise did what a demon would be expected to do - teased.

“Are you a barbarian?” ‘Ming-shixiong’s eyes glistened with curiosity, his shimei immediately yanked his sleeve as well. “Hey!..”

“Hm, if I look like one to you,” Tianlang-jun laughed.

“And you fought a lot? Since you were a kid?” In the end, the girl was just as curious.

“I did! My first serious fight was, hm, let me think…I was about six! Nearly died there, haha.”

“Oh, shizun said you know a lot about beasts! And you’re helping him write a book! Are you from the south, from the borderlands? There’s a lot of beasts and demons there, right?”

A book? Tianlang-jun had no idea he was helping anyone write anything, but he’s not screwing up an improvisation! How interesting, he must ask Shen Qingqiu about it later…

“Good guess,” he nodded, avoiding answering about his exact birthplace. “And yes, growing up in a harsh environment taught me a lot of stuff about demonic creatures.”

“Then do you know what…who is Zhuzhi?” A-Luo finally joined the conversation again, but while his shixiong and shimei were already looking at Tianlang-jun with fascination, his deep dark eyes stared with skepticism. Exceptionally beautiful eyes, one must say! The kid sure is to grow into a heartbreaker! Tianlang-jun just couldn’t recall where exactly he saw eyes that looked quite like that (it’s been a while since he looked into a mirror afterall...). The kid’s frown also looked like he had to bear the burden of intelligence, unlike his martial siblings. “I mean…what kind of creature is he?”

Though he seemed to be the youngest, Tianlang-jun could bet this is the one Shen Qingqiu picked as a head disciple. Must be the one.

“That’s simple. He’s a mix of a snake demon race from the far south of the Demon Realm and a…a human.”

Had his meimei heard he just called her a human, even for the sake of conspiracy, she would have beaten him mercilessly. Well, he probably could fight back and beat her up as well, but childhood memories of regular banters made his ribs ache. With nostalgia, of course.

“Gross,” the kids scrunched up their noises at once. 

I had the same reaction, Tianlang-jun thought to himself. Yeah, as much as he liked weird romance in the books, this one he’d rather not imagine.

“...Are all human and demon mixes so…unusual?” A-Luo asked, nodding at Zhuzhi. Zhuzhi hissed back almost offendedly.

“We’ve never seen demons yet!”

“Yes, what do they look like?”

“Shizun said they come in various forms!”

“Have you ever seen…a succubus?..”

From what Tianlang-jun knew, the children in sects usually were taught strict discipline, but right now they all acted like just kids. And well, wasn’t that wonderful? Master Shen truly preserved the sparks of curiosity in them, the same trait that led Tianlang-jun into a lot of wondrous places and thrilling adventures (and unforgettable heartbreaks, but we don't talk about that). He was even a little touched that even the matter of demons didn’t seem to scare them. Shouldn’t these little humanlings be so afraid that they’d blindly hate all demons instead of inquiring more about them?

Tianlang-jun once had a dream of making peace between humans and demons so that everyone could travel the realms freely, explore the best of both worlds. As he grew a little older and a little smarter, he realized that dream is unattainable, and eventually left his throne to do it on his own - at the very least, he could afford to attain his dream of traveling on his own! When he met Su Xiyan, his mind often wandered back to that dream. In such a world, would he be able to be together with her without secrets? But at the current point of his life, he had long been certain that humans and demons can’t make peace. They can either pretend to keep up an illusion of peace, or fight. Not that fighting was bad, but not when it was a thousand cultivators against a single demon who didn’t even know what he was being punished for.

Maybe he was just a hopeless dreamer, because now those thoughts returned to his head again. He just shook them off like an annoying mirage.

He sat down on the grass, preparing to answer all of the questions though. The audience wanted him to speak, and to speak he loved the most! Funny to him, Zhuzhi immediately occupied his lap and quietly hissed at other disciples when they tried to sit down too until they took a step back. He only didn’t hiss at A-Luo ( But of course he favors the one who feeds him delicious stuff! the other two thought).

Seeing the way he looked at them and then at Tianlang-jun…that was unmistakable jealousy. His nephew wanted to show this is his uncle! Keep your distance!! Tianlang-jun almost shed a tear. Sweet, sweet beastly child!

…It goes without a mention that Shen Qingqiu’s disciples ended up listening to stories about demons instead of practising swordsmanship that day.

Chapter Text

Although peace would truly be the best option for everyone, Shen Qingqiu was close to considering a drastic change of politics upon his return. As it turned out, his disciples not only spent the day idling instead of practising sword formations like he told them to, and he wouldn’t be mad at all if the kids simply did a kid thing and got distracted while playing or anything like that(no, he’d be quite happy to see them act normally childish, frankly! Luo Binghe in particular, poor boy has always been trying so hard to be the best disciple one could wish for! If he suddenly decided to unwind a little, shizun would only support that!!!), but no, his kids were distracted by someone . Someone who distracted them enough to choose his yapping as a priority over shizun’s orders!

Of all people, it had to be the most obnoxious of demons! Even his always-perfect Binghe was now bowing before him, red to the tips of his ears and extremely sorry that he forgot shizun’s task for the day. 

Besides, for the sake of the good name of the sect, discipline had to be maintained!

It wasn’t Luo Binghe’s fault, of course! Nor was it Ming Fan’s or Ning Yingying’s, although those two could have worked harder on their guilty look. As for his youngest disciple, Zhu-er was nowhere to be seen at all, likely loafing around with his uncle at his temporary abode. Speak of nourishing a snake on your bosom!

“Fine, let’s consider today a day off. But you all will have to catch up tomorrow.”

The disciples livened up and agreed as one.

“And before you’re dismissed, this master has an announcement to make. I’ve chosen a new head disciple of Qing Jing.”

The three perked up and froze. Surely it was one of them, but who? Ning Yingying was sure it must be Luo Binghe, Ming Fan was sure it must be himself, and Luo Binghe only hoped it wouldn’t be Ming Fan.

“Shizun chose Ming Fan!” Ning Yingying chirped. “Yingying was so shocked! We all thought it would be A-Luo!”

“ Nobody thought that!” Ming Fan, in turn, puffed up. “Of course shizun would pick the oldest of his personal disciples!”

Ning Yingying pouted at him, Ming Fan blushed and did what a normal boy of his age would - called her stupid, which started a whole argument. Meanwhile Luo Binghe himself looked so calm as if it didn’t relate to him at all. If only feeling a little cringe from his friends’ childish behavior.

‘Wang Qiong’ was distracting them again. Shizun had other stuff to take care of and didn’t come to keep an eye on them, trusting his disciples on word that they’ll train thoroughly. This time they didn’t even bother looking for Zhu-er! Went straight to the training grounds! But Zhu-er missed their company, apparently(at least so they’d like to think), and found them on his own. And Wang Qiong, who seemed to have some weird affinity with the beastling, tagged along.

The minds of human kids were too simple to have a conversation that would be any interesting, but that A-Luo really caught his attention last time. At first it was just his odd resemblance to Xiyan that drew the demon’s attention, but the more time he spent around, the more he felt something. It was something unclear, uncertain, a faint tingling sensation. For some reason, he couldn’t get it out of his head for the whole night, and only now it suddenly clicked.

It was demonic qi! Now that Tianlang-jun was thinking in this direction, he could definitely tell it! It could barely be sensed at all as if it was suppressed with some powerful seal; a cultivator or a regular demon never would have even noticed at all.

One could assume it’s just traces of Zhu-er’s qi, the beastling indeed liked to hang out with this boy for some reason, but Tianlang-jun could tell it was different; it was the boy’s own.

Considering Shen Qingqiu had one openly demon disciple, it wouldn’t be a surprise to find another demon as well. Tianlang-jun wondered if Shen Qingqiu knew. He wondered even more if the boy himself knew.

“Well, not being a head disciple is not a big loss,” Tianlang-jun winked. “Higher position means more responsibilities and more work! While your shixiong will be busy unburying himself out of a mount of paperwork, you guys can dilly-dally freely.”

After all, that was the part he loved most about not being an Emperor anymore.

When Shen Qingqiu returned home that day, he was greeted by a demon sitting on his table. Literally on the table. Neither demurely, nor mindfully.

“This one heard that we’re writing a book .”

“That…” Shen Qingqiu was caught off guard. He’s already forgotten he ever said that! “I needed an excuse to keep a guest here.”

“Master Shen doesn’t normally have guests?”

“No, not at all. Shidi Liu occasionally comes over, but never stays for the night.”

“Would master Shen like him to?”

The strategic disciplinary fan had almost been launched at the demon’s forehead. Almost. He was so close to doing it, but that would probably only amuse the nasty thing.

“This one’s begging to leave my shidi in peace. Anyway, is that all?”

“Nope, I want to write that book. Something about demonic creatures, right?”

Shen Qingqiu drilled the demon with his glare.

But the truth was, he was lucky to have such an opportunity. If there was anyone at least somewhat knowledgeable about the Abyss that might threaten Binghe one day, it must be Tianlang-jun. Yes, so far the plot had been completely different, but what if the Abyss was some sort of a canon event? Something that made Luo Binghe into Luo Binghe and would happen in every universe? Perhaps the random idea about the book was not so bad…Shen Qingqiu unfolded his fan again, switching from annoyance to benevolence.

“Very well. There’s still work to be done today, so let’s get back to it a bit later.”

“There’s no hurry at all~” Tianlang-jun hummed. But it alerted Shen Qingqiu that he didn’t seem to be going to leave so soon. The demon bothered to be so kind as to move himself to only occupy one end of the table instead of all of it, making space for Shen Qingqiu to take his seat, but he didn’t get off just yet. Instead, he kept watching the peak lord curiously.

“...Is there anything else?” the latter arched his brow.

“Master Shen sure knows his disciples best, but why that child?”

“Which child?”

“Your head disciple. This humble venerable once had to command an army and a palace and has some sort of an eye for people that are capable. Master Shen’s choice is…quite ordinary, to say the least.”

“Dare I say I know them for longer than a day.”

“My apologies if my judgement is wrong then.”

He was disturbingly right.

Shen Qingqiu knew that Ming Fan was ordinary, and that was one more reason to make him a head disciple just as the original peak lord did. He didn’t need the most outstanding head disciple, he just wanted to get Tianlang-jun out of his house! Letting Ning Yingying live with him felt weird, especially knowing what kind of rumours surrounded the original; even though the ‘new’ Shen Qingqiu hadn’t heard anything like that in a long while, he’d rather keep a safe distance to not remind anyone of those. And Luo Binghe, well…Luo Binghe was already his secret favourite, but what kind of shizun would he be if he displayed his favoritism too obviously? He didn’t want to draw too much attention to Binghe either. He wasn’t bullied here and really seemed to be living his best life, and it felt like maintaining the status quo would be the most reasonable course of action. And hey, so far it seems like by the time he grows up, he won’t have any reason to hate the world! Shen Qingqiu would be more than happy to just watch him from the sidelines as just a side character instead of a villain and live a calm life.

Shen Qingqiu didn’t like Tianlang-jun’s words not just for being right though, but because it could imply he saw a better candidate, and by laws of all genres, of course…

“Your youngest disciple just looks more promising. Not Zhu-er, that A-Luo boy. I’d strongly advice to keep an eye on him.”

“This master will take that into consideration.” Shen Qingqiu hid his face behind the fan. 

Tianlang-jun was just testing the water, but from Shen Qingqiu’s replies it was hard to tell if he knew about the boy’s demonic qi or not, but if he did, he clearly wasn’t willing to expose that. And why is that? He managed to even get Zhu-er accepted as a disciple, and A-Luo looks much more human and neat! Or Shen Qingqiu didn’t know at all, but…No, he definitely must’ve been aware.

Two - now three! - demons under the same master; this could not be a coincidence, unless every of Cang Qiong’s peak lords had a secret hobby of keeping demon pets.

“In that case, this one has nothing more to say,” with the grace of a cat, the demon leisurely slipped off the table and headed to exit. Just before he stepped over the room’s threshold, Shen Qingqiu spoke again.

“Binghe.”

“Hm?”

“That boy’s name. It’s Luo Binghe.”

How interesting that he decided to specify exactly this name and not the one of his head disciple.

Chapter Text

Restoring universal justice was not a part of Shen Qingqiu’s plan; that was way too ambitious and too naive. He just needed to assure Yue Qingyuan that tolerating Tianlang-jun’s presence in the sect is not a completely godawful terribad idea, even though it probably was.

He only needed to see Su Xiyan and ask her what really happened. 

But as he left Cang Qiong on Xiu Ya (hoping the trip would be short), he couldn’t help but worry. What if he’s actually making a mistake? What if it really is not Su Xiyan? Finally, what if she confirms that Tianlang-jun did, in fact, try to kill her?..

Guessing was useless and frustrating. He would get his answers soon enough. He decided to shake off those thoughts and enjoy a smooth flight.

So much better than a horse carriage! Stupid author that made cultivators use horse carriages probably has never even seen a horse in his life! Using carriages was a waste of time, and maintenance was a waste of the sect’s budget.

He got busy mentally complaining to nothingness about how inefficient the whole Cultivators x Horses system was, and how in reality it was just a stupid ‘oh look how many of these anti-profitable things we can afford because we’re so rich’ show (and Shen Yuan knew such schemes well when he saw them, he’s been in a rich family once), then his hater’s mind jumped to another stupid issue worth complaining about, then he started doing it aloud - when else would he have a chance to emote openly? - and as he kept amusing himself in that manner, Shen Qingqiu didn’t even notice how the time in the trip passed.

Meanwhile on Qing Jing peak, Wang Qiong was amusing himself by watching three little disciples and one little beast struggle with guqin. There was no better way to describe it other than ‘struggle’, as the sounds really felt like the rumble of the Abyss. Zhu-er didn’t even stand out that much in this bunch, even though other kids had the advantage of hands and fingers! Zhuzhi was trying to use the tip of his tail and his mouth to pluck the strings, and even if it wasn’t very productive, it was quite cute.

Even A-Luo seemed to be challenged. His thick brows curved in a frown as he thoroughly tried to make a melody sound at least a little resemblant of the way shizun showed them before. He probably was doing better than the others, but the overall cacophony made it hard even for demons’ ears to properly make out anything.

Though, if you unfocused a little, one could even find some odd rhythm in it…

“Alright, we’re not going anywhere with it,” Ning Yingying shook her head. “Let’s just ask shizun to show us again when he returns! I’m so tired, why don’t we practice sword formations instead?”

“You just said you’re tired,” Ming Fan huffed.

“Tired of sitting!”

Luo Binghe - right, that was his name - didn’t get distracted at all, ignoring his friends. He was fully focused on his guqin. Now that the two stopped torturing their instruments and started arguing instead, Luo Binghe’s melody could be heard better. It was far from perfect, but he clearly was doing his best.

“A-Luo, let’s go practice swords!” Ning Yingying finally put aside her guqin for good, hopped up and ran over to Luo Binghe. Ming Fan quickly joined her, though he didn’t seem as eager to drag the other boy with them. Instead, he picked up Zhu-er. He still wanted to believe that the beastling would acknowledge him, but Zhu-er only slipped out of his hands and crawled over to Luo Binghe. Ming Fan looked very offended.

“You go. I want to practice some more. I think I have an idea how to improve my playing.”

Ning Yingying sighed, but she really didn’t want to sit here anymore. Ming fan brightened up when she grabbed his sleeve and dragged along to the training ground. May the treacherous beastling enjoy his extra qin class, and he gets Yingying to himself for once!

Luo Binghe didn’t mind Zhu-er’s presence, but he was surprised when he raised his eyes and noticed that Wang Qiong stayed too, once again drilling the boy with his glance. But he didn’t say anything. He was a smart kid and he quickly figured that Wang Qiong was the kind of person that likes attention, so Luo Binghe would simply pay him none and hope he’d get bored and leave.

Wang Qiong didn’t seem to be leaving any soon though.

It was distracting. Annoying even.

“Do you intend to keep ignoring my presence?” the man hummed, and now Luo Binghe had no choice but to pay him some attention. Ignoring him even now would be rude, and he didn’t want to dishonour shizun by being an unmannered disciple.

“This one is not ignoring. I am simply focused on my music.”

“There’s still a way to go before it can be classified as music,” Tianlang-run grinned. “You’re doing well though. Me, for example, I don’t know a single note.” And then he moved closer to Luo Binghe, making the boy gulp nervously. “But there’s something else I know for sure when I see it.”

Luo Binghe froze, glaring at the man before him. Tianlang-jun raised his hand, and…poked the boy’s forehead. It was missing something, now he felt that for certain, and Luo Binghe felt a weird tingling sensation in the place of the man’s touch.

“What…is it?..” the boy murmured.

The man’s dark eyes briefly scanned the surroundings before he spoke again, and A-Luo could swear for a second he saw a reddish glint in them. Wang Qiong’s grin that looked simultaneously amicable and wolfish grew wider.

“You, my child, are a demon.”

Bonus

Salacious rumors always spread fast like a plague. Naturally, a rumor that Shen Qingqiu, with his cold and mysterious and unapproachable demeanor (at least in the eyes of disciples, especially those that hadn’t seen him up close), had a man sleeping in his house spread just as quickly.

Shen Qingqiu, inviting guests ? Into his very house? No no no, this can’t be true. He would not invite someone so spontaneously that he’d have no accommodation to offer other than his house.Not to mention that man came there at night…

Here one must specify that these rumors found a very, very specific audience. Ning Yingying heard something from Ming Fan and mentioned it to a friend of hers from Xian Shu, and also added from herself that that Wang Qiong was quite handsome, and the storm broke out. Former LiuShen fans separated into the old and loyal stans and new WangShen believers, stirring discourse among the peak lord love genre fans and writers first on Xian Shu, and soon reached other enjoyers on other peaks…Ones from Bai Zhan, of course, were most displeased.

Ning Yingying, being the only fan from Qing Jing, was lucky to not have to argue with anyone, free to pick any side or even both at once. She, of course, kept supplying her fellows from Xian Shu on how Wang Qiong was charismatic and lively, contrary to preserved and cool shizun, and how he was a wild warrior, contrary to shizun’s scholarly flair…

But on the surface, nobody heard a thing. Peak lord love fandom was very good at hiding their guilty pleasures.

Chapter Text

“I’m definitely not,” Luo Binghe clenched his little hands into little fists.

Of course his shizun taught him that demons, just like humans, aren’t inherently good or bad, but the rest of the world was telling him a different thing. Zhuzhi was obviously a good demon, but it felt the same as comparing a dog to wolves. It’s not that Shen Qingqiu’s words hadn’t sunk deep enough into his disciple’s heart though. Just that whenever someone other than shizun brought up demons, they didn’t mean it in a good way.

Not to mention that Luo Binghe was very certain that he wasn’t a demon and never particularly wanted to be one.

“Yes, you are. But something holds back your nature and power…” Tianlang-jun tilted his head, observing the boy curiously. “Let me check your meridians. Maybe we could work with that.”

“I’m a human,” though the boy really wanted to run, he didn’t even flinch. Moreover, he found the forces to extend his hand. Luo Binghe didn’t want to act cowardly, even if he really didn’t like the situation he was in. “You may check. I have nothing to hide.”

He then felt Zhuzhi by his side nuzzling him. The beastling looked absolutely relaxed, if anything, it seemed that he was curious of what was going on. Of course it was silly to rely on Zhu-er, but it was making Luo Binghe feel a little less tense.

Tianlang-jun hummed and put his fingers on the boy’s wrist, but only touched him lightly. This child seemed to think that he was good at hiding his fear, which he was absolutely not. Tianlang-jun himself had heard rumors that the Demon Emperor ate kids, which was absolutely untrue. Not that he held any sentiments for them, but he never took pleasure in harming weak creatures - there was no pride in such domination.

So he didn’t maintain that contact long. He didn’t need much time anyway, a few seconds were enough to further confirm his quess and send a tiny flick of his own demonic qi to see the reaction. Luo Binghe barely even felt anything.

“Yup, you’re a demon. Just that your demonic side is under some sort of a seal. No wonder now that Zhuzhi seems to favor you most among disciples.”

“I’m not!..” the boy began to lose his patience. “Zhu-er likes me because I bring him snacks and don’t bother him. How can I be a demon? I’ve always been human. I’ve been examined by Mu-shishu before, and by shizun, and none of them ever noticed anything odd!”

“It’s a very good seal,” Wang Qiong shrugged. “Whoever put it on you must have really wanted to give you a perfect disguise…hiding you even from yourself. Even I was almost fooled.”

Luo Binghe perked up.

“ Even you?..” he hadn’t even processed yet what about it felt wrong, but his brain picked out that part immediately. This man was speaking nonsense so calmly and confidently that Luo Binghe had already started to doubt himself, but really, who was Wang Qiong to be so knowledgeable to notice things even peak lords didn’t? If he was any renowned master cultivator, everyone would’ve already known. And the way Zhu-er was attached to him… “Who are you?”

‘Wang Qiong’ ‘s grin didn’t twitch. Oops, he did it again. He blew his own cover. Almost.

“I’ll tell you if you let me break the seal.”

“Why?”

“I’m curious, that’s it! Like, how long will it take for me to break it? What kind of creature you truly are? I’m also curious who snuck a demon into the sect and why said demon is not even aware of that. So many questions. Aren’t you interested too?”

More than anything Luo Binghe was now interested in going back in time and going to practice swordsmanship with Ning Yingying and Ming Fan. He liked being a human.

He was scared of what shizun would say. Of what his family would say.

Demons aren’t inherently bad. Luo Binghe had always tried his best to be good. It was nonsense that he didn’t want to believe, but if there was the smallest chance, how could he rest easily…Maybe he was just being fooled? Was this a stupid prank?

“I don’t want it.”

‘Wang Qiong’ looked disappointed as he sighed.

“You know where to find me if you change your mind then,” he was finally going to leave. Zhu-er followed him casually. The beastling in general didn’t show a single sign of distress this whole time. Zhuzhi himself, in fact, was quite confused why A-Luo was nervous. “But, by the way, your shizun knows who I am. Though I still haven’t figured out if he knows who you are.”

The man left, humming some melody. Tianlang-jun wasn’t planning to bother the kids in their training anymore. He found out what he wanted to find out; now he just had to wait till this A-Luo comes to him on his own. And if he doesn’t, well…Not a big deal at this point. Because Tianlang-jun was certain that A-Luo would come. One can’t just receive the news that they’re secretly a demon and not inquire more.

And poor Luo Binghe couldn’t touch his qin again. His hands just felt wooden and he felt confused. He didn’t even join his martial siblings for the rest of the day, spinning the conversation he had with Wang Qiong in his head again and again. 

At the end of day, he found himself standing at the porch of the guest house where Wang Qiong resided. Was he making a mistake? He felt like it. But for a child, even those few hours he spent in hesitation felt like eternity.

He probably should have waited for shizun’s return and talked to him about it. Surely shizun would check his meridians thoroughly and tell him that he’s a regular human boy. 

And what if he wouldn’t? What if he was not a regular human boy?

The door slowly opened on its own- oh no, it was opened by Wang Qiong himself.

“How long were you going to just stand there? Funny, your shizun acted the same before we went in to see your sect leader until he called us in. Come in, don’t fret,” he gestured by nodding in the direction of the house inside. “Zhuzhu’s here too.”

That last remark was the only thing that was giving Luo Binghe at least a little assurance that this is not his dead end. He gulped and entered.

…Looking at the house now, they really had no reason to work so hard on preparing it for a guest. Wang Qiong clearly didn’t care much about keeping things in order, at the very least, his books. They were all over the place. On second look, it’s not even that anything was messy, but these books everywhere created and image of disarray; occasional piece of clothes carelessly tossed wherever didn’t help at all (Shen Qingqiu actually managed to procure some clothes for his quest to make him look presentable; too bad Tianlang-jun had spent not even a minute of his noble life folding clothes and in absence of servants he didn’t know better than to just hang them somewhere so they don’t wrinkle too badly).

It took a few moments to find Zhu-er among all that. Little snake seemed to rest, but then smelled Luo Binghe, flicked his tongue a couple of times before he fully awakened and slithered close to greet the boy. A-Luo squatted down to ruffle Zhuzhi’s hair.

“I still don’t believe that I could be a demon,” A-Luo murmured.

“Definitely not the Zhuzhi’s kind. Maybe you’re even the kind that looks very human, maybe you’re half human or a descendant of some noble clan.”

“If it’s true…and if the seal gets broken, I won’t be able to go back to live normally…”

“And yet you’re here anyway. Relax!” Wang Qiong was behind A-Luo’s back, so the boy didn’t see what was happening over there. “I can easily give you a human disguise again. Nobody will even notice.”

“How-” as A-Luo turned his head, he almost lost his breath. ‘Wang Qiong’ had changed.

That red glint Luo Binghe had seen in the man’s eyes wasn’t just an illusion. Pointed ears, long claws and a bright red mark in the middle of his head-

“How? The same way nobody guessed who I was. Except for your shizun, but that was a mistake on my end.”

“You’re a demon!” Luo Binghe exclaimed as he jumped back.

“So is Zhuzhi, but you all act normal about it,” ‘Wang Qiong’ gave him another disappointed glance. “What evil have I done to you ?”

That was a fair question.

And he said shizun knew. Could it be lie? Was Luo Binghe the bad guy for assuming a demon would immediately be a liar just because he was a demon?

“So you’re…a good demon?..”

In the end, he was such a child. Tianlang-jun sighed. 

“Let’s not oversimplify things. Nobody is perfect,” with a snap of his fingers, he turned back into a very human-looking Wang Qiong. “And you should absolutely not enter the house of someone you don’t know well, by the way. If you’d like to run away and forget everything you saw, now’s the perfect moment. Only keep in mind that not only you know my secret, but I know yours too.”

Words that could be a threat were said so casually, almost gently.

Shizun brought a demon into the sect but kept it a secret. Or maybe he didn’t? Did the sect leader know? Did Ming Fan, as the new head disciple, know? Did-

He was pulled out of his rapid chaotic thoughts by Zhu-er poking into his hand. How absurd everything was. There was this much a kid could withstand.

Luo Binghe darted out, grabbing Zhu-er with him. Whatever, he would just tell shizun everything and let shizun sort it out! There was only one person in the world who could fix everything, and it was Shen Qingqiu.

Tianlang-jun watched the boy run away for a few seconds and, behind the closed door, switched back to his true form. “I can’t be that scary. I suppose I overestimated the open-mindedness of Shen Qingqiu’s disciples…” he commented to himself, then turned his head to face the wall, but in his head there was an imaginary audience that had been visibly amused by his performance the whole time (or bewitched by his demonic beauty; might as well be both). “Though if someone told me I actually was a human, I guess I’d be shocked too!”

Chapter Text

Trips outside all on his own were nice. With no disciples or other peak lords around, Shen Qingqiu could truly relax; even though over the years maintaining a cool image became a habit, it was great to feel like he can just not do it. Even if he was going to do it anyway because it makes him feel cool. He could also take his time to satisfy his curiosity over whatever randomly draws his attention; not this time though as he had a very important task at hand.

Finally he reached the town on the bank of the Luo river. He didn’t know the exact house, but Binghe would occasionally talk about his home and his family either to Shen Qingqiu or to his friends (and his attentive shizun obviously picked that up!), so he had some ideas on what to look out for. A street with a huge hole in the road, a building with a weird roof, a building with prettily decorated doors that ‘Binghe is too young to know about’(or so his mama told him), a stall that sells trinkets…finally, the house was not far from the river itself. Finding the region that had all the things Binghe ever described wasn’t hard, now he only had to be patient and look around, certainly the local inhabitants would be appearing outside now and then and he just needed to spot a woman with good posture.

After all, in this small town and especially in the poor region, a good posture worthy of a head disciple of one of the largest sects was rare. After all, Luo Binghe knew how to keep his back straight even when he had just entered the sect, so someone must have taught him. Then of course she must bear semblance to the boy, but Shen Qingqiu would rather not approach every lady he sees to take a good look at her face.

He saw a couple of women walking by, one even smiled at him, but he only hid behind a fan. They looked ordinary , like some background characters existing to create an illusion of a crowd. Even if someone put them in the clothes of a master cultivator, they would still look ordinary.

And then he saw her . Even though her clothes were just as plain and simple, her shoulders were broad, her posture looked proud and even her face looked strong . She looked a tiny bit ragged from hard work, but that only added some special flair. She could probably be a goddess of war, had her fate taken a different turn once.

If there was anyone fitting for the role of the protagonist’s mother, it was her . Besires, at least from the distance her face looked similar and she had an old woman walking by her side, must be the washerwoman that adopted little A-Luo in the novel.

Shen Qingqiu tried to be as nonchalant as possible while approaching, but of course his excitement grew exponentially when he saw her face a little closer and it was almost an exact copy of Luo Binghe's, only older. 

Another sign that it was Su Xiyan was that she noticed him. She must have noticed him long ago; it wouldn't be hard, Shen Qingqiu didn't even try to cover his identity. Even if anyone sees them, they might as well think he just got lost. 

Su Xiyan looked alert as he was getting closer, but she didn't speed up her pace. That would make it too obvious that she wants to avoid confrontation. Too bad that Shen Qingqiu had no time for cat and mouse games; with every second that Tianlang-jun spent in the sect Shen Qingqiu was testing his shixiong's patience. He wanted to get things done quickly. 

“Madam Luo, I assume?” he tried to put on his most amicable smile. Absolute OOC for the original Shen Qingqiu, but he's broken that image long ago already, and Su Xiyan never knew him anyway.

Both she and the old woman by her side stopped.

“How can this one be of help?..” Su Xiyan - now certainly Su Xiyan - replied with a bit of hesitation. She didn't look scared, but clearly unhappy about this encounter.

“This master is Shen Qingqiu from Can't Qiong mountain Sect. And there's a number of things I'd like to discuss regarding your son and your…and his father.”

The Luo family hut looked quite…minimalistic. While it didn't look well off, it wouldn't be fair to call it a state of poverty either; besides, it was very neat and clean. One would say its inhabitants were on the poor side, but didn't lack warmth in winter. Poor within reasonable limits.

Though, Shen Qingqiu's perception was a little twisted by his living on the rich side in both his previous life and his ‘reincarnation’. Had he seen some neighboring homes, he'd know that the Luo family was faring way better than many. As expected of the protagonist's mother! The Demon Emperor's choice couldn't be just whoever! Of course she would make a decent living even out of harsh conditions.

Su Xiyan rushed to invite him in; whether he was here with good intent or bad, she definitely wasn't going to have this conversation outside. 

“Let's clear it up at once. I'm aware of Luo Binghe's nature.”

“A-Tian…” the old woman worriedly put her hand on Su Xiyan's arm, and the latter gave it a light squeeze.

“Don't worry. I knew it would happen sooner or later,” her voice was softer then, but it became colder when she turned back to Shen Qingqiu. “You're my son's shizun, the Qing Jing lord, right?”

“That's so.”

“He told me in letters about some of your…unorthodox teachings about demons.”

“And this one believes madam Su could agree with me to some extent.”

He didn't want to blow her cover outside, but now that nobody would overhear, it was time to reveal some cards.

“To some extent,” she nodded, ignoring the change of referral, and crossed her arms on her chest. It seemed she knew there was no point in denial. “So how did you find out? Has the seal broken?”

Naturally, he couldn't just say he'd known from the start. Indeed, how would he know about Luo Binghe's demonic side if the boy's powers were still sealed?

“It has not. Yet.”

“So you just saw through it.”

Aside from looking worried, Su Xiyan looked disappointed, probably disappointed with herself and her work. Even if it would he convenient to just go with this excuse, Shen Qingqiu couldn't bear to upset her further and make her think that it's a matter of time before some other master cracks her son's disguise. 

“I couldn't. I wouldn't know if I hadn't found some…archives.”

She raised her brow in response. 

“This one cannot disclose that information outside of the sect leader's office. My apologies.”

“I understand,” Su Xiyan said after some thinking. Obviously any matter regarding Tianlang-jun would be top secret. Sects spying on each other was a rare and not very honorable occasion, but definitely not unheard of. It wasn’t impossible for Cang Qiong to dispose of some information on Su Xiyan's relation to Tianlang-jun and its outcome. “No matter. Does anyone else know?”

“No, and nobody will. That… private part of my source had been destroyed. Unless you, madam Su, decide to unveil the truth to the world.” 

“And I have no intention to do so. Besides, I still don't understand one thing. Let's say I believe that you had information about my son's existence; how did you know it was Luo Binghe of all people? Why now?..”

How convenient that he already had Tianlang-jun at his disposal. His next words drew the expression of shock on Su Xiyan's face.

“I encountered his father. Their eyes look exactly the same, don't they?”

Seeing how pale her face got, Shen Qingqiu rushed to reassure: 

“Tianlang-jun doesn't seem to feel anything but mourning about you. Though, in fact, that's exactly what I'm here for - to check if I'm not mistaking it for something else. As for your son, madam Su needn't worry. He's doing well and his nature is of little importance to this master. Even if the seal breaks, I won't turn my back on my disciple.”

He really hoped he could convince Su Xiyan he was a friend and he was on their side. 

Su Xiyan closed her eyes for a second. The old woman by her side tapped her on the shoulder. 

“A-Tian, isn't that good news? He's alive…”

“What's good…” she pursed her lips in a bitter smile. “What's good about it now? Where have you found him, master Shen? How long do we have before the cultivation world finds out he's alive and how long until they find out he has a progeny?”

She was happy. Some part of her definitely was, Shen Qingqiu saw it in her eyes. But of course her motherly feelings were a priority; she worried for her son more than about her own emotions. She wasn't as surprised as one would expect though; perhaps deep inside she always believed Tianlang-jun would find a way to make it out alive.

“He's hidden in our sect for now. On my peak, to be precise.”

Both women stared at him wide eyed. An understandable reaction, really. At this point he was just collecting heavenly and heavenly-adjascent demons like pokemons. 

“Binghe…”

“Tianlang-jun is behaving very appropriately and will make no bad influence on Luo Binghe, this master promises.”

“But…how? What?..”

“He's there incognito, though our esteemed sect leader is aware and he's very unhappy about it. I convinced him to cover Tianlang-jun’s presence for a little longer. It can't last forever though, and I need your help to solve this situation. I want to make a future in which Luo Binghe won't have to suffer even once his seal is broken. I want to cleanse Tianlang-jun’s name…if that is possible.”

To be honest, I want him gone for good, and I assumed you might want to get him back to yourself, Shen Qingqiu did not say, but it was heavily implied. And for that, he had to make sure that Tianlang-jun becomes a “good guy” in the eyes of public so the demon won't need to worry about cultivators plotting behind his back. And then he won't kill Shen Qingqiu along with all witnesses, and, most importantly, won't whisk Zhuzhi away.

“I see,” her voice finally gained the firmness that Shen Qingqiu had been lowkey expecting from her looks. “Then I'm ready to testify for his innocence. You're right, it can't last forever. Even if I keep hiding, now that Tianlang is back…” she shook her head. “...there will be no peace. But you must've already realized how he is.”

Oh, Shen Qingqiu absolutely did. 

“In that case, let us start from the beginning. This one is also curious how did you end up here and not in your home sect…”

Luo Binghe was (im)patiently waiting at the porch of his shizun's house. If he had to spend nights here, he was ready! He had to be here the very moment shizun would return! 

He still refused to believe he was a demon. He could hardly believe what he saw a while earlier too. Shizun really brought a whole demon into the sect! Not just a beastling like Zhu-er, but an actual whole demon!!! 

Did shizun really know? Could he have been fooled?! The more reasons for Binghe to clear it up! 

Speaking of Zhu-er, he was right here by his side, looking as chill as if nothing strange was happening at all.

“Did you know too?” Luo Binghe frowned. “You didn't even alert us!”

Zhuzhi stared back with a surprised look, flicking his tongue. 

“Of course you should have! Demons are not allowed here!” The boy continued. “You're an exception . Don't give me such look…Listen, it's our shizun who has so much faith in demons, but not everyone else. People wouldn't like that. If someone finds out, shizun might be in trouble!”

Zhu-er didn't seem to share A-Luo's worries. Unlike real snakes, demons of his race weren't just a small copy of adults. But they did develop extremely fast once out of the shell, faster than human kids. Zhuzhi could already comprehend speech quite well. He understood what he was being told, but he couldn't quite grasp what trouble could Shen Qingqiu have. 

To be fair, he also never really understood what was the issue with humans and demons. They had different smell, that was true, and for some reason, humans were absolutely oblivious to some things Zhuzhi could sense and see, but he couldn't understand why demons were such a big deal to humans. These creatures were so big and had cool sharp swords, not to mention they could use practically anything in a fight using qi(one must clarify Zhuzhi hadn't seen any humans up close that weren't cultivators…). And he, a “demon”, as they called him, was so small and weak.

His uncle was called a “demon” too, but was way stronger. Would Zhuzhi become like that too once he grows up? But still, he had never really seen Tianlang-jun fight, much less put up a real fight. Maybe he did sometime when he was a total baby just out of shell, but he couldn't recall that anyway. To him, uncle had been nothing but caring. Not scary at all.

And Luo Binghe's smell was quite similar to uncle's. Zhu-er always associated Luo Binghe with demons a little more than with humans. He was surprised to learn Luo Binghe didn't think the same this whole time. After all, Zhu-er was still a kid too young to fully realize that thoughts in other people's heads were not the same as his own.

He lied curled up by Luo Binghe's side, and the boy reached out his hand to pet him, then hesitated for a second, but in the end did what he intended to. Zhu-er's hair was smooth and nice. A snake with hair. A beastling. An actual demonic creature that Luo Binghe and others had grown so used to that he didn't even look weird to them anymore. 

No, Luo Binghe didn't want to confirm that he was a demon. It was a delusional idea. Well, maybe somewhere deep inside he did allow a thought that it could be cool. Terrifying, really, but also, that's quite a unique quirk, no? But it couldn't be true, of course. 

“What do you think you’re doing here at this hour?..”

Luo Binghe was so deep in thought that he didn't even notice the door behind him open Zhu-er was so deep into getting pet that he didn't notice either, and both jumped up at the sudden appearance of Ming Fan, who was in the house the whole time. He was a head disciple and now lived there too, after all. 

“Shixiong!” Luo Binghe made a little bow(so little it was more disrespectful than respectful). “I'm awaiting shizun. I need to talk to him.”

“You can totally do that when he returns. Go back to the disciples' dorms!”

“It's urgent!”

“You sitting here won't make shizun return faster!”

“But I need to see him as soon as he returns!”

Ming Fan puffed up. This audacious shidi really forgot his place and in all honesty he deserved a good beating! But shizun did not encourage such discipline measures.

He was a strange man, his shizun. Back at home, Ming Fan learned that a disciplinary stick was more educational than lectures on manners, and his brothers were quite eager to “teach him lessons” now and then. And shizun, at least in his memory, only looked harsh at first but then turned out to be a very kind man. So good that going against his rules even in his absence felt wrong.

In the end his fist never reached Luo Binghe. This time at least. Shizun never said anything about manipulation though.

“Is that so? You really want shizun to come home tired after a trip and immediately start dealing with your problems? Is that what you want?! Have you no shame being so selfish?”

Fatality! 

Luo Binghe was defeated.

He once again found no better option than to grab Zhu-er and run. Ming Fan made a solid point - it would be selfish of Luo Binghe to load shizun with all that nonsense as soon as he returns. 

Having business with Su Xiyan was a great pleasure - she was brief and precise, and didn’t bother herself with endless courtesies and ceremonies. Whether she had always been like that or that was the effect of simple life, it was refreshing for Shen Qingqiu to talk without planning his speech three sentences ahead for the sake of maintaining his lordly aura. He eventually dropped the formalities too.

As soon as Shen Qingqiu persuaded her that Luo Binghe was safe, she regained her cool and from the way she relayed her side of the story one would think she’s absolutely impartial to it. Only sometimes her glance would soften a little, but then Su Xiyan would quickly focus back on the main events, avoiding delving into personal memories.

The conversation was short, but Shen Qingqiu learned all he wanted to know…and a little more.

“Tianlang is not your enemy,” Su Xiyan concluded. “But my former sect may be.”

“If they find out, yes.”

“ When they find out.” Her glance turned grim. “If only your sect leader didn't know…”

“I gladly would have helped you grab your son and husband and move somewhere quiet,” Shen Qingqiu nodded sympathetically. “But it is what it is. I'm sure Zhangmen-shixiong will understand it once I relay your words to him.”

“Let me talk to him myself then.”

“A-Tian.” The old woman wasn't getting in between two cultivators, but she kept looking at Su Xiyan with visible anxiety. “A-Tian, do you really have to do this? This is dangerous, both for you and Binghe…”

Su Xiyan shook her head, her face taking a sardonic expression. “The moment master Shen saw me it became too late to run and hide, it's pointless now. But if I at least can see him once again and be with my son…”

“Let's not focus on unfortunate scenarios,” Shen Qingqiu cleared his throat, hiding behind a fan from the sudden air of negativity in the room. “If madam Su wants to come with me, we can arrange that. After I brought a bunch of demons to the sect, surely he can excuse me for bringing an actual human for once.”

Su Xiyan smirked. 

“I see master Shen likes walking on thin ice.”

“Not at all. I'm simply trying to do what's right.”

Seeing the way Su Xiyan looked at him now…Shen Qingqiu felt a little guilty.

After all, he did have ulterior motives - he wanted to help Binghe because he was a big fan of that cool Luo Binghe from the future, and also he wanted to avoid the fate of the original goods at all costs. Even if so far his existence was peaceful, once he met Tianlang-jun he felt like the peaceful image this whole time was held together by a thin string that was about to tear.

“Then let's not waste any more time.”

Su Xiyan sure was a woman of action. In the given circumstances, Shen Qingqiu really appreciated that. In fact, he figured out during his stay in this old era that life in general was slower, more leisurely(as long as you were not a poor working pony like An Ding disciples and such). Shen Qingqiu, so used to living in the time where every minute means money and deadlines are always burning, took a while to get used to it at first, but sometimes still missed the rush that would speed up problem solving (let's once again have a moment of silence for An Ding ponies). Endless ceremonies and courtesies also contributed to turning any process into a pain in ass. 

Well, at the very least, that's how it was for Shen Qingqiu. At least in a peaceful time. As the sect's strategist, he didn't have a lot of work now (thanks heavens!) and as a peak lord, it seemed that the original goods arranged everything before to make sure he's as unbothered as possible.

He only got a bit confused when he considered offering Su Xiyan to stand on his sword…After all, she was a lady. But he didn't even have to offer in the end - Su Xiyan procured a roll of rags from somewhere and unfurled it to reveal her own sword.

And by the glint of it one could tell the sword that clearly was well taken care of all these years.

Shen Qingqiu's worst expectations turned out to come true. As he neared the peak with Su Xiyan flying at his side, he heard the rumbling chaos even before he saw clearly what was happening. 

Tianlang-jun, of course, was in the middle of it. Surprisingly, Liu Qingge was involved too. Their fight did not look like a friendly spar at all, though, judging by how easily the demon dodged and danced around the blade, one would think he's simply having fun. It was Liu Qingge's fury giving out that it was, in fact, a bloodthirsty battle.

Shen Qingqiu hurried to land, quickly scanning the surrounding and figuring out, to his horror, that his peak suffered quite some damage. He whipped out his fan to cover his pained grimace.

“Miss Su, I'm afraid the reunion will have to wait. No need to stir things up even more now.”

Su Xiyan nodded. “Should I wait here?”

“No need. Here, let me take you to our guest house. I'll invite you when we all are ready for productive and adequate communication.”

begs you to stop,” Shen Qingqiu said calmly and coldly, and in a moment everything went silent. The disciples that gathered round to gawk and cheer all turned their heads and made space for the suddenly returned peak lord to pass. Across that path, Shen Qingqiu’s stern glare landed right on Liu Qingge, whose expression switched from bloodthirsty grimace to a surprised cat that got caught mid-mischief.

At least he looked a little guilty, unlike the other participant of the ruckus. 

“Master Shen!” ‘Wang Qiong’ exclaimed and waved his hand, his grin shining bright as the sun. So punchable. Liu Qingge scowled . “Welcome back~”

“Shixiong,” the other peak lord greeted. “I'll explain.”

“I'll gladly hear you all out in my cabinet,” Shen Qingqiu snapped his fan intimidatingly. Now both men looked troubled. The we'll talk at home trick seemed to work on everyone. 

The disciples didn't need any more hints to scurry away.

In the end, the three men ended up in Shen Qingqiu's house. The peak lord was frowning from behind a fan, keeping the other two on the edge, while actually pondering on how to prepare Tianlang-jun best for an encounter with Su Xiyan. After an excruciating(for his audience) minute, he came to a conclusion that he will just let it happen.

Su Xiyan seemed like a reasonable person and wouldn't do anything stupid(hopefully), and trying to predict Tianlang-jun’s action felt like an exercise in frustration anyway.

“Shixiong, I can compensate for the damage,” Liu Qingge finally spoke up, unable to handle the judging silence anymore.

“Compensate from what? Bai Zhang still has a budget despite the never ending repairs on your peak?” Shen Qingqiu sighed. “You’re too energetic.” For some reason, instead of angering Liu Qingge, his sarcasm had an…oddly opposite effect? Liu Qingge looked anything but mad. Maybe even a little flustered. “I don't need repairs, I can put my disciples to work for free. Instead, I want to make sure this won't happen again.”

“That's because he- ”

“Mama has a new favourite baby and he can't deal with it,” Tianlang-jun smirked. Well now Liu Qingge looked furious. “Isn't that right, master Shen? I was goofing around and this peak lord got so offended. He's fuming even now at an innocent joke.”

“You..!-”

“Enough,” Shen Qingqiu, already desensitized to the demon's antics, just ignored him completely. “Shidi, next time you have a problem with someone from Qing Jing, please wait for my return so we can settle this either peacefully or elsewhere.”

Tianlang-jun rolled his eyes. Liu Qingge looked a little flushed that he was the only one getting attention in the room.

“Fine. But what if he says things offensive to your honor and-”

“Wang Qiong is an eccentric man and doesn't mean any malice,” Shen Qingqiu was getting tired of this conversation. “Besides, he's come from a different place with different culture…But I'll take my time to…enlighten him on local customs.”

The last words were hissed through teeth. 

After drawing an insincere and not very convincing apology from Tianlang-jun and making Liu Qingge solemnly promise to not wreck Qing Jing again(which sounded sincere, but not convincing either) and seeing the peak lord out(he looked very disgruntled by the fact that he has to leave while ‘Wang Qiong’ stays), Shen Qingqiu could exhale with relief. 

“Taking into consideration your recent return from a long trip, this one won't make any remarks regarding that guy's attitude to master Shen,” Tianlang-jun hummed, grinning like a mischievous cat. He was about to slip away too, but Shen Qingqiu suddenly snapped his fan. 

“Begging Junshang to stay here tonight.”

Tianlang-jun's eyes widened for a moment as he made a full 180° on his heels. “Yes?”

“Now excuse me for just a moment. We're missing one more person for an important conversation,” Shen Qingqiu made his way towards the door, passing by the visibly puzzled demon without sparing him any unnecessary glances.

This didn't feel like an invitation for something naughty though. 

“Very well. It appears to be serious. Is the sect leader-”

“No. Wait and see,” with that, Shen Qingqiu left. 

With a bit of a surprise, he also once again realized he's acting so familiar with a damn heavenly demon. And they totally don't even get on. He might never get used to that thought. Actually, it probably would be funny to see Liu Qingge’s face when he finds out…

Meanwhile Tianlang-jun thought he figured it out now. If it wasn't about Yue Qingyuan and ‘Liu-shidi’ was just seen out, it must be about Luo Binghe. There was no way Shen Qingqiu didn't know about the boy's nature. Tianlang-jun would never believe that a person so extraordinary as to collect heavenly demons on his peak, intentionally or not, would not know such a plot-relevant detail, because whatever Shen Qingqiu’s life was, it sure sounded more like a fantastic plot.

Perhaps Shen Qingqiu wants Tianlang-jun to guide the boy in unlocking and using his demonic powers. Really, Tianlang-jun wouldn't be opposed to that. It sounded fun. Although he kind of did fuck up earlier, seemingly turning off Luo Binghe, but Tianlang-jun didn't see any issue with that. You don't need to like someone to learn from them.

There was more than just one guest house on Qing Jing. Of course, they all were kept clean and ready for some delegation anytime. Of course, out of all places, Su Xiyan was guided into Tianlang-jun's.

“I figured you could be interested in taking a look…”

And interested she was. Of course she was willing to see anything related to the man she thought she lost forever.

That weird kind of clean mess and messy neatness, the books so terrible you could tell it from titles alone, a weird little creature… 

Wait, what was that?!

A weird beast curled up in some robe dropped on the ground. It looked like a hairy lizard, glaring at her with unblinking eyes. It was the ugliest thing she's ever seen. It flicked its tongue and hissed.

Su Xiyan didn't recall any passion for collecting rare beasts in Tianlang-jun, but who knows what he's been up to all these years? She moved across the room carefully, keeping an eye on the creature. It didn't move, but kept staring back. She slowly sat down on some chair, and that’s when it made its move. 

The thing crawled closer, flicking its tongue more frequently, and for some reason it stopped looking tense. In fact, the closer it got, the more relaxed it looked…

Then it finally clicked. Her son told her in his letters about his shizun's unusual pet-disciple! 

“Zhu-er?”

The beastling perked up. 

He recognized her smell. Just like way back he felt comforted by Luo Binghe's smell that was similar to uncle's, now he was comforted by Su Xiyan's smell that was similar to Luo Binghe. What a curious thread of smells! Zhu-er felt like that's important, but his little head couldn't connect the dots just yet.

Anyway, A-Luo was great and had greatest snacks, so a person that smells somewhat like him must be good too. As he crawled closer, he could also see her face better, and it looked like A-Luo's too.

“Sorry for intruding. I'm just waiting to speak to someone,” seeing that the creature really seems to be Zhu-er and isn't acting hostile anymore, Su Xiyan calmed down as well. Trying to display her disposition better, she leaned closer to pet the beastling on its head. 

Zhuzhi leaned into her hand as well, enjoying his rubs. It was only then that Su Xiyan remembered that, at least from Binghe's words, this was, in fact, an intelligent creature. Was it acceptable to touch it? She wouldn't pet a random stranger human, nor would she enjoy being touched by one… 

But, oh well, Zhuzhi seemed to enjoy. She petted him for a bit more.

He actually wasn't even that ugly. Certainly had his own charm.

She spent some more time looking around, even scrolled a few pages of some book. Interestingly, there were some field notes made in neat handwriting, awfully critical ones, definitely not Tianlang-jun’s. Su Xiyan had to admit the remarks were quite…admirable. Whoever wrote them definitely had a taste, but the question remained why would that person bother to read and comment this second rate trash…On the last page, there was another note, and now the handwriting looked familiar. 

Master Shen's remarks on this one novel were exceptionally delightful.

She put the book down, deciding against thinking about it or questioning anything.

At that moment, the door opened. 

“Master Shen,” she greeted, noticing how Zhu-er darted towards shizun. Shen Qingqiu's face even lit up for a moment. 

“Miss Su. Everything is ready. I haven't told Tianlang-jun about you yet, though.”

“That's fine. We'll figure it out from here.”

“Good to hear your confidence. Please follow.”

But before leaving, he picked up Zhu-er. Upon seeing him, Shen Qingqiu got an idea. He didn't know what would Tianlang-jun’s reaction be like, but in front of his nephew he probably would stay relatively mindful. Hopefully he would.

As they stood before the entrance of Shen Qingqiu’s house, he turned to check on her. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes gave out slight anxiety. Not everyday you meet someone coming back from the dead, after all.

“Say when,” he said quietly. “If you need a moment…”

“I'm fine.” With a blink, anxiety changed to determination. “Master Shen…thank you.”

The corner of his lips went up, but it was more of a stress response. Dear heavens, just in case, may his house stay intact after this… 

“Thank me later if it plays out well.”

With that, he opened the door.

Chapter Text

In the brief minutes of Shen Qingqiu's absence, Tianlang-jun was amusing himself by exploring Shen Qingqiu's house in search of anything interesting, like another trash novel or even another demon (you never know what master Shen hides!). Besides, he was just curious. This peculiar peak lord certainly must have had more secrets to unveil. 

Lurking around, Tianlang-jun thought that he’s also been growing strangely fond of the peak's aesthetics lately; the demon was feeling like once he leaves, he’s going to miss this place. 

Or at least he would miss messing with master Shen.

It didn't take long for the latter to return, but even before Tianlang-jun saw the other person that came along, before he even recognized it with his mind, something about that person's aura “resonated” with him - his heart simply skipped a beat for seemingly no reason.

“Junshang, this one would like to introduce someone.”

Holding Zhuzhi tighter, Shen Qingqiu prayed that Tianlang-jun doesn't overreact. The heavens must have heard him, because the demon froze in place. Su Xiyan looked just as shocked even though unlike Tianlang-jun, she was aware that her ex was alive and she was about to meet him. Perhaps she just couldn't fully believe it until she saw him with her own eyes. 

Tianlang-jun tried to say something, but his voice refused to collaborate; he could only produce a short gasp as he made a step ahead, his hand reaching out for her face. 

“Xiyan,” he finally managed to mutter. 

As if all these years never happened. As if all that ever existed and mattered was her face here and now.

“Tianlang,” she leaned into his touch, covering his hand with hers. Whatever explanations they owed each other, it seemed like it could wait.

The atmosphere suddenly became too intimate for Shen Qingqiu. Was it really a good idea to let Zhuzhi witness such scenes? He even felt guilty; hell, he wouldn't bring a child to witness such a scene, but because Zhu-er looks like a little beast, even master Shen would occasionally(crossed out: often) forget that he too was a child…

And then intimacy(if there was any to begin with and it wasn't Shen Qingqiu’s delusion) changed to awkward silence.

“I knew you'd live,” Su Xiyan looked at him with both fondness and sorrow that couldn't be faked. “But still, forgive me.”

“Remind me what I was mad at you for?” 

Tianlang-jun seemed to be just lost in her eyes now. The way she spoke to him, the way she looked at him…he was ready to fall for a trap again just for a few more seconds of it.

And also, upon seeing her face, something like an alarm went off in the back of his consciousness, but he couldn't care enough to think about what it could mean. 

Shen Qingqiu cleared his throat. Though this was going way better than he expected, he felt like that only made for a good opportunity to seize control of the situation before it became even more awkward.

“You both have been fooled, but this one believes you can figure it out a bit later. Miss Su is already familiar with Zhuzhi; but Junshang, you have someone to meet too.”

“Right,” Su Xiyan suddenly backed off from Tianlang-jun, and one could almost see his wagging puppy tail drop down at that gesture. “Tianlang, you don’t know, but…”

She gave a quick glance to Shen Qingqiu, as if asking to confirm that she should do what she’s about to do and the moment is right. Not that Su Xiyan doubted if she should tell; it was just…a lot. A lot of events for one day. As cool as she was, she too was a person of flesh, blood and built up stress. Receiving a nod from the peak lord, she continued.

“You have a son.”

The demon stared back at her unblinking for a few seconds.

“I do?”

He felt like there was something important. Something that he was missing and that he only remembered now. Now of all moments? No, he must focus on the present information…

“It’s Bing…Luo Binghe,” Shen Qingqiu fanned himself. He was still holding Zhuzhi, but now with one arm. His face was feeling too naked without his beloved accessory. “But you may have already noticed the boy’s outstanding aptitude.”

The puzzle pieces came together.

“I knew the boy was a demon, but…Oh dear. Oh heavens, that explains everything,” Tianlang-jun lightened up, but his eyes kept running from Su Xiyan to Shen Qingqiu and back. “No, actually, wait- No, I see now…My son- our son? We have a child?”

And for what reason did he keep staring at Shen Qingqiu?! The cultivator snapped his fan.

“You two, yes, you have a child. Please don’t stare at me like I’m the one you have a child with.”

Tianlang-jun nodded. “Well, we have Zhuzhi, but-” and, turning to Su Xiyan: “Dear, you’re back and I just became a father.”

So oblivious to literally everything in the world. Shen Qingqiu could only envy the passion with which the demon attack hugged his human lover. He was expecting to see some nasty sloppy kissing, but this was actually kind of cute. How much their souls must have been missing each other…

He turned his face down to look at Zhuzhi just to meet the beastling’s curious gaze aimed right back at him. Though there was no need to keep him here any longer to keep Tianlang-jun in line, if Su Xiyan and Tianlang-jun wanted to see Binghe now (a perfectly reasonable demand that Shen Qingqiu would gladly satisfy), it would be great to have Zhuzhi be a part of family reunion as well.

To think that peak lord Shen Qingqiu was hosting a heavenly demon’s family reunion in his house…

While his mind was wandering, something else happened between the two who had just found each other.

“My dear, I thought I lost you forever.”

Su Xiyan only huffed into his neck, her warm breath warming his heart. Cliche, she would have said, but she felt that if she tried to make a sound, she would break into tears there and then.

She felt exactly the same.

“Should I call for Binghe now?” Shen Qingqiu decided to interrupt the heartwrenching scene. Great job guys, make way for the protagonist now! It’s about time he finally gets a loving family that he deserves!

He could swear that for a second Tianlang-jun gave him a death glare for ruining his moment, but Su Xiyan seemed to be on his side in this. As a mother, of course she immediately switched focus from the love of her life to the priority of her life - her son.

“Yes. The sooner he knows…And master Shen, this one can’t thank you enough…”

“Dear, hold on just a minute,” Tianlang-jun squished her hand. “Can’t we have a bit more time just together?”

“People with children don’t just have time so easily,” Su Xiyan scoffed lightheartedly. “Since you’re a father now, get used to it.”

There indeed was a lot left unsaid and still a lot to discuss, but now that they were together again, Su Xiyan was sure that they could figure it out later. Besides, her boy deserved to know too. 

“Luo Binghe! Where the hell is Luo Binghe?” Ming Fan yelled, entering the disciples’ quarters. This annoying kid was so obnoxious trying to see shizun, but now that shizun wanted to see him, he just couldn’t be found anywhere! 

Meanwhile the poor boy simply ran away. Nowhere far, of course - just into the bamboo grove, on a small training patch that was empty at the moment. Hugging his knees and pondering about life.

He just couldn’t get those words out of his head.

You, my child, are a demon.

His qi was always perfectly fine and nobody ever assumed that Luo Binghe could be a non-human. He never had any special powers - yes, it was true that he was better than many, but that was the result of his own hard work, and nobody found it odd too.

He didn’t doubt his shizun’s teaching, how could he? But being a demon in a world that hates demons; in a sect that hates demons - how could little Binghe feel secure?

Besides, wouldn’t his shizun and his family get in trouble should anyone else find out?..

He wasn’t a demon, of course. Whatever ‘Wang Qiong’ had in mind, no words of his could sway Luo Binghe. Totally. Even while thinking those heavy thoughts, he was not swayed at all. He shook his head.

Soon he would see shizun, and everything would clear up. 

“LUO BINGHE!”

Sudden shriek almost made him jump up. He did have to jump up immediately after to greet Ming Fan.

“Shixiong!”

“Shizun called for you!” the other boy’s face looked red, he clearly hurried to fetch Luo Binghe quickly. “He said it’s important, and where have you been?! Making him wait on you, making me run around…”

“Shizun…I’ll go see him right now! Thank you, shixiong!” Luo Binghe felt saved. Twice, actually; saved from his demonic dilemma and from Ming Fan’s lectures. He ran away without even listening till the end. Shizun called, that was a good excuse to ignore his shixiong!

But when he finally entered shizun’s house, he felt that things were only about to get even more tangled up.