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Chapter Text

Shen Yuan does not wake so much as claw his way to some semblance of consciousness. It was definitely a fight to drag himself into awareness and even then he doesn't know if he wants it. He feels... out of it. His body aches in a familiar way he loathes immediately. Look! No matter how many times you wake up with a fever it still sucks okay!? You can't expect a guy to be all sunshine and roses when coming to while burning up!

【 SYSTEM STARTING... 】

A mechanical voice like Google Translate suddenly rings in Shen Yuan's ears. Or maybe not ears. His head? He tries to grasp at it, he gets the sense that it's saying something important. Didn't he just hear this voice a bit earlier?

【 SYSTEM STARTING... SYSTEM STARTING... 】

Shen Yuan cracks his eyes open. The stars sprawl out overhead and he can hear the crackling of a campfire. He's bundled up so tightly in blankets that he can't really move much more than his head. It's night-time, obviously, but he moon must be out or something because it's not hard to make out the shapes in the darkness around him. There's someone sitting next to the fire with their back to him, but more distracting is the green-blue screen that hovers right in his face.

【 SYSTEM START SUCCESSFUL! Greetings user! You have been successfully transported into Proud Demon Immortal Way. Bound role: Some Little Nobody. Do not forget to improve the work! Good luck! 】

Shen Yuan is silent for a moment, he feels like his head is going to explode. That's right, he'd died hadn't he? Improve the work?! Is he supposed to make this dumpster fire of a novel better!? Why him?? That's something the author should be doing, not the reader! He squirms in the confines of his blanket prison with a frown.

And what kind of role is "Some Little Nobody?"—was that the System's way of saying he is some nameless NPC or something? How is he supposed to fix anything when he didn't even have a name in the story!? Shen Yuan grimaces to himself. Well, it could be worse. He could have transmigrated into cannon fodder.

Granted, there is no guarantee that he isn't cannon fodder. He just might be cannon fodder that doesn't have a name.

As he manages to wriggle his way into a sitting position he feels like his head starts swimming. Shen Yuan reaches up to press a palm to his forehead, wincing when he realizes it's damp with sweat. The person who has their back to him suddenly turns around, eyes widening as he rushes to Shen Yuan's bedroll.

"You're still ill little one," the person—a man, apparently—says as he gently pushes Shen Yuan back into his blankets. "Lie still and rest."

Shen Yuan lies back and eyes the man—he doesn't seem familiar in any way to Shen Yuan, and he feels like he'd stand out. If only because most of the men and women in Proud Immortal Demon Way were all described as beautiful in some way. While he wouldn't call the man in front of him hideous, he definitely isn't beautiful. His face is grizzled and patched with unshaved whiskers, he has a crooked nose—perhaps having been broken in the past?—and his hands are overly large too. Shen Yuan thinks that if there was a man like this in the novels he would have probably been crushing someone's head with his palm.

"Little one?" Shen Yuan croaks instead, pausing at the sound of his voice. Little one indeed! He sounds like a child—wait!? Has he transmigrated into the body of a child!?

【 Correct. Current character age: 7 years 3 months and 12 days!】

Shen Yuan can feel the blood draining from his face. Seven years old!? Seven!! The last thing an old man wanted was to be shoved into the body (and mind) of a child okay!? He was fully grown! Wait... maybe that's not so bad. He can't really recall Luo Binghe having wantonly murdered any little children before. Maybe he'll be able to charm the protagonist into not doing away with him!

System? Shen Yuan tests inwardly, Who is this man?

【 Character is the rogue cultivator Xun Fu. Role: User's guardian by blood oath. Status in original storyline - dead before The Protagonist joins Cang Qiong Sect.】

Well, he supposes it makes sense for a no-name character to be the guardian of another no-name character. Well, okay. Maybe that isn't very fair, after all, Xun Fu is a name. It's just not a name that was ever really mentioned in the book. Which is fine! At least as a rogue cultivator he isn't completely helpless, and it explains why they're out in the world.

Does my character have a name? Shen Yuan asks inwardly, letting Xun Fu fuss over him and tuck him back into the blankets. He feels a cool rag being placed on his forehead, and notes that the broad man is surprisingly gentle for his grizzled looks. He feels a little bad for his cannon fodder guardian, doomed to die before the story even properly kicks off.

【 Role's current only name is his family name: Shen. 】

Ah. He only had a family name? What's with that!!? How lazy can you get System!? He didn't need to be a literal nameless character! He tries to sit up again only to break into a fit of coughing. It burns his throat, and Xun Fu rushes to his side immediately with an oilskin of water. He helps Shen Yuan sit up, and gently brushes back Shen Yuan's hair as he does.

Shen Yuan feels his ear twitch and that's the first thing he notices that's really off with this child body. He blinks, and now that he's thinking about it he can individually twitch the ear again. First his right, then his left. As he sits up he also becomes aware of another appendage. He turns his head and catches a glimpse of a fluffy, black tail with a white tip on the end. He reaches up with one hand, finding a triangular, fluffy ear under his fingertips.

Now, to Shen Yuan's credit, he does very little outwardly upon this discovery. Inwardly, however, he is feeling a very complicated array of emotions. Because it becomes incredibly clear that... obviously Shen Yuan isn't human. This is, for one thing, quite exciting! He can tell that he must be some kind of cat demon, if the tail is anything to go by and the ear seems pointed enough to be. It explains his superb nightvision too! It's not that the moon is out, just that Shen Yuan can see in the dark very keenly!

On the other hand, what the hell is a demon child doing with a rogue cultivator that seems to care about him!?

"Fu-ge," Shen Yuan tests. Really, the man could be an older uncle as opposed to a brother, but he doesn't really want to offend his benefactor. Xun Fu blinks and a look of amusement crosses his features as he rubs Shen Yuan's back. "Can this one have his own name?"

Look! It might be out of the blue for the man, but Shen Yuan refuses to go through his new life with just a family name. Granted, even that is - hold on that's weird. Why is it he only has a family name? Demons don't have family names in general. Why is that the only one that Shen Yuan has?

"Of course," Xun Fu says with a chuckle. "What do you want to be called?"

"This one... likes the name Yuan," Shen Yuan says. Sure, maybe he could come up with another name, but it's easiest this way. Shen Yuan is already his name. Though, he considers, maybe he should posit changing the "Shen" part of his name? Sure it's a common one, but he doesn't really know if he wants to match the Scum Villain in that way. Though... he's really tired, and he doesn't want to call himself Peerless Cucumber when he's a little kid.

"Then Shen Yuan is your name," Xun Fu says after a pause. Shen Yuan feels a little glow of pride at the fact that his suggestion is so easily taken into consideration. "Now, go to sleep Xiao-Yuan. You need rest."

Shen Yuan isn't sure about rest, but he does know that this new body of his still seems to have a fever. He ends up sinking back into the blankets, and before he knows it he is drifting off into a quiet sleep. Even with the fever, he's pretty sure it's the best sleep that he's had in a good long while.

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Morning comes with the sound of bird song and a slight chill in the air. Shen Yuan's fever must have broken in the night, which isn't terribly surprising considering his race. He sits up slowly still, careful not to give himself vertigo, and looks around the camp.

The campfire is smoldering, only faint wisps of smoke curling above darkened wood. Xun Fu is lying with his outer robe bundled up all around him. Shen Yuan's heart twinges with guilt. Had the man decided to give Shen Yuan every blanket in the camp? He manages to squirm his way out of the bedding and carries the large blankets over to Xun Fu. He's clumsily in the process of giving him the blankets when Xun Fu's eyes snap open.

Shen Yuan jumps, feeling strangely as though he has been caught doing something bad. Even though he definitely has not been. He freezes in place though, and can feel the fur on his tail fluffing up against his own will. Xun Fu sits up slowly, reaching out to gently ruffle Shen Yuan's hair.

"Xiao-Yuan is up early," Xun Fu says, sounding groggy. Shen Yuan feels a twinge of pity for the man. How late was Xun Fu up keeping watch over him? Many thank yous to senior for his care! "Do you want breakfast?"

Shen Yuan opens his mouth to protest, to let Xun Fu know that he can get more sleep, but then his stomach growls. Shen Yuan feels heat flush to his cheeks, and his ears droop as embarrassment sweeps over him. Aaahh!? Seriously stomach!? Let the poor man rest! He was probably up all night thanks to him!

"Fu-ge doesn't need to make me breakfast," Shen Yuan says, but Xun Fu only huffs as he gets up.

"What would your mother say if I didn't? Sick the first night I have you in my care, feeding you nothing? No, we'll have some breakfast," Xun Fu says, and Shen Yuan feels his ears perk up as curiosity washes over him. His mother hm? Who was this interesting demon that left Shen Yuan in the care of a cultivator of all things?

A cultivator that actually cares about him, apparently. Or maybe about his mother? One does not make a blood oath lightly, they can't be broken after all. Just what would drive a cultivator to make a blood oath to protect a demon child? The more Shen Yuan thinks about it, the more confused he feels. Just who is Xun Fu?

"Is Fu-ge close with my mother?" Shen Yuan asks, and winces when Xun Fu stiffens like he's just had water thrown in his face.

"She... yes," Xun Fu says softly. "She would have loved to meet you again, now that you've grown up so big."

Ah, Shen Yuan thinks. So she must be dead then, likely anyway. Was she like Luo Binghe's mother and had she died in childbirth? It certainly isn't unheard of in a world such as this. He finds that some dried meats are held under his nose. Before Shen Yuan can think much further on the mystery of his own past, he finds himself grabbing the jerky greedily with both hands. He tears into it, suddenly realizing that he's not just hungry but ravenous.

"Whoa there," Xun Fu says, he hands over some more pieces that Shen Yuan finds himself scarfing down like they're nothing. Shen Yuan finds himself sniffing around for more after he's done, almost instinctually. Xun Fu gives what may be a nervous laugh, "We'll need to hunt something to feed you it seems. At least before the city."

"We?" Shen Yuan asks, looking up. He can't help his surge of excitement. Look, even children demons are super strong! He wants to test what he's able to do with this body! ...And okay, fine. Maybe he's also excited by the notion of getting more food. The jerky seems to not have done anything to touch his hunger.

Xun Fu nods to him, and Shen Yuan feels like he can barely contain his excitement. He jumps to his feet and helps to pack up the camp. Or tries to help. He's really strong but also really small, so he's finding himself under Xun Fu's feet more often than not. It's also harder than he expects when he has to sit down and let Xun Fu brush his hair and put it up in a small tie. He doesn't quite have the long hair of an adult yet, but enough that it'd be better for it to not be in the way.

"We'll be looking for the Giant Lily-Petaled Duck," Xun Fu says.

Giant Lily Petaled Duck! As far as creatures went in Proud Immortal Demon Way, they were pretty chill. They were large ducks, about the size of a medium-sized dog, that had the fascinating ability to grow flowers out of their backs. This was likely used as camouflage, though it was hard to say how effective at concealing the creatures it was. Their plumage was a bright, vibrant green that put the mallards of Shen Yuan's home world to shame. Though, females were usually duller in color they were still green as well. They were also completely flightless, far too heavy to take off into the sky on wingpower alone.

It's also thought that the "lilies" on their backs can be a strong medicine too. Unfortunately it is the kind of medicine that most frequently shows up in PIDW. More fortunately, it has to be refined before taking on such properties. So hunting it down shouldn't be too much of an issue. Shen Yuan can barely help his own excitement. One of the few cool things about Airplane's book was the creatures in it. Now he gets to see them for real.

And like, sure some of those things could probably kill him but... it's fine. He's got Xun Fu here with him after all.

The forest that they step into is showing signs of the changing season. Leaves above flitter to the ground around them, and though they blanket the forest-floor, Xun Fu walks with a silence that has Shen Yuan feeling a tinge of awe. He tries to move quietly as well, his keen hearing strained to its limit as he tries not to make sound. It's much harder than Xun Fu makes it seem, and Shen Yuan finds it difficult to concentrate on anything but trying to be quiet.

Xun Fu breaks that concentration when he gently taps Shen Yuan on the shoulder and gestures with his chin ahead. Shen Yuan turns his eyes in that way and feels a spark of excitement. There, the Giant Lily-Petaled Duck! A male, by the very bright gleam to his shining feathers. He is a proud looking animal, duck or not. The animal is using its bill to nibble at the grass that still has green shoots on it off the ground.

Shen Yuan isn't sure when he began stalking forward. He just knows that he is, crouching low to the ground he creeps in the duck's direction. Xun Fu doesn't do anything to stop him, so Shen Yuan remains transfixed on the creature in front of him. Some deep, primal thing within him thrills at this. It is a hunt. An easy hunt.

The duck lifts his head, his dark bill is specked with dirt and leaf litter. Still, with a turn of that head, Shen Yuan finds himself staring into one, bright red eye. There is a moment of stillness where the other creature seems to be registering that Shen Yuan is there, and then it lets out a loud, honking QUACK!

Oh holy shit! Shen Yuan thinks as the duck turns and runs at him. The lilies on the back of the shake wildly as it charges forward. Shen Yuan lets out a sound that can only be called a yowl, turns around and arrows back in Xun Fu's direction. He almost bowls the cultivator over in his haste to escape the enraged duck, barely registering the hiss of metal as Xun Fu draws his sword. By the time Shen Yuan has scrambled to turn back around, the Giant Lily-Petaled Duck has been felled.

Shen Yuan's tail is bushed up to three times it's usual size, and he can feel is ears pressed flat against his head. Xun Fu looks over his shoulder at Shen Yuan, his eyes gleaming with obvious amusement. Shen Yuan finds himself puffing his cheeks out and narrowing his eyes, which only serves to make Xun Fu laugh out loud.

【 B-points -20, C-points +5】

B-points? C-points? Hey! Why did he lose a bunch of points and gain only a tiny bit? And what were the points even for!?

【 B-points are measured by user's Badassery, ability to be cool. C-points measure user's "Cute Factor". 】

"Xiao-Yuan did very well at first," Xun Fu says gruffly, ruffling Shen Yuan's ears as he steps toward the felled creature. "Come, I'm going to show you how to butcher it."

At first, Shen Yuan thinks grumpily. He can't believe he got scared by one of the more harmless creatures in PIDW!! Just how was he going to handle meeting the Protagonist if a duck that grew a garden out of its back scared him!? Get it together Shen Yuan!

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The two of them work together for the better part of that day to butcher the Giant Lily-Petaled Duck. Xun Fu gathers many of the feathers, explaining that they can sell quite well as materials. Shen Yuan goes on to brag a little about how he knows that they are, and that it is also useful to gather their downier feathers as some luxury shops will gladly use it to make soft bedding. That's an especially uncommon luxury for this period, and even considered an oddity.

He also almost points out the uses for the flowers grown on the creature's back, but decides that would lead to an incredibly uncomfortable conversation. So he keeps his mouth shut about that. Still, Xun Fu is very interested in Shen Yuan's ramblings, and Shen Yuan is glad that his current companion is willing to do so. The nice thing about being a child is that it's perfectly acceptable for him to go on breathlessly excited tangents.

It's also really hard for him to not be child-like, something that has him a little worried. He still feels as smart as before, but like with the Giant Lily-Petaled Duck before, sometimes it's like his rational brain takes a back seat. It's not so big that he doesn't feel like himself, but he notices it. Which means that someone else would notice it, probably.

Though, it might not just be child-brain.

Shen Yuan finds himself... very easily distracted by the kinds of things that would distract a cat. Which, okay. Fair. Makes some semblance of sense. Still, it's still a little unnerving to be thinking like a normal person one second, and then the next realize that you've pounced on a grasshopper. One that you've crammed into your mouth and eaten without thinking.

"Xiao-Yuan," Xun Fu says to him, making Shen Yuan look up from where he's been trying to force himself to spit up the grasshopper he just ingested like a little animal. "Come here."

His serious tone makes Shen Yuan nervous. He hurries to the cultivator's side, blinking up at him as the man rests a hand on his head and crouches down.

"Xiao-Yuan, we're going to be going to a city with other humans soon," Xun Fu says, his words are very solemn. Shen Yuan twitches one ear. Briefly, he wonders what Xun Fu is going to do with him. He's a demon and no matter how well-behaved he is, no human is going to want him around right now. Child or not, demons are strong enough to kill ordinary men with very little issue. Hell, some cultivators would struggle against a child demon.

"Am I going to have to stay outside on my own?" Shen Yuan asks, he really doesn't mean for the nerves he feels to creep into his voice. He doesn't like the idea of being without Xun Fu. What is he supposed to do if he gets attacked by something in the dark? Or what if more cultivators show up? Won't they just kill him without hesitation? Aah! He's like seven! That's way too young to die!

"No! No, of course not," Xun Fu reaches into his robes and pulls out an amulet. Shen Yuan finds his eye drawn to it immediately. It seems to be carved jade, but the carving is extremely intricate. A small cat is featured on it, perched on a blossoming tree-branch. It buzzes with a strange energy, and as Shen Yuan reaches out to it he feels himself recoil automatically before touching it. "It's... it won't hurt you Xiao-Yuan. It's going to keep you hidden when we're with humans is all. You'll look just like an or-... a human boy."

Shen Yuan blinks, and Xun Fu loops the amulet's cord over Shen Yuan's head. It doesn't feel good. Shen Yuan can feel his senses being dampened, feel the way his demonic qi is smothered under what feels like layers and layers of cotton. He feels weaker, like he could be pushed over with little to no effort at all.

It's strange to say, as he hasn't been in this new body for longer than two weeks, but he hates the way this feels. His demonic qi has been a living, thriving thing inside of him. It's fueled his excitement, his energy, his happiness and now it just feels so... dull. Like someone has taken the world and leeched the color from it. He must be making a face, because Xun Fu frowns and gently pats Shen Yuan's head.

Shen Yuan's head that doesn't have its usual pointed ears.

"Just while we're around others Xiao-Yuan," Xun Fu says softly. "When we're on our own, you can take it off and be yourself."

"Okay," Shen Yuan responds, but he can't quite muster his earlier cheer. Even the prospect of the city ahead of them seems to be duller now. He obediently lets Xun Fu grab his hand as they walk through the woods. They reach a road very soon, and there are already some people visible. It makes sense that he's wearing the amulet, but Shen Yuan can't help but feel a little embittered.

They make it through the gates well enough, the two guards outside seem to be reverent in regard to Xun Fu even. Though Xun Fu doesn't belong to any sect, he is still a cultivator. Regular humans regard him with a lot of respect, and they all seem to watch Shen Yuan with open curiosity.

When Xun Fu leads the two of them to a stately manor, Shen Yuan can't help but let his mouth fall open in amazement. Maybe it's his diminutive new body, but the gates seem to tower over his head to the point where he expects them to vanish into clouds. There's a well-dressed noble standing outside of the gates, and by the impatient look in his eyes he thinks that they're late.

"Finally! Do you have any idea-" the man cuts off, as though seeing Shen Yuan for the first time. "What is this little beast?"

Little-fucking rude!? He's not a beast!

Well... okay he is a demon. And he is hiding the fact that he is a demon. Still, he can't help but glare at the nicely dressed man, and Xun Fu lets out a barely restrained sigh.

"He's my shimei's son," Xun Fu says coolly. "He's a good boy, he won't get in the way."

"A little young to be one of those disciples," the noble man sniffs. "I don't want it in the way."

"He won't be," Xun Fu says, words hard. "The boy stays."

"Tell it to go play around or something, this is a safe enough city," the man says. "Or do you not want this job?"

Shen Yuan can see that Xun Fu's jaw is clenched. Sees the way his free hand tightens into a fist. For an exciting moment, he thinks he'll hit the man. It would be very satisfying to see! But Xun Fu turns to look down at Shen Yuan with such a torn expression that Shen Yuan can't help but give the man a way out.

"Fu-ge, I'll be good!" Shen Yuan promises. "I'll stay right here by the gate!"

Xun Fu still looks torn, but eventually gives Shen Yuan a little nod. He turns back to the nobleman, and the two adults step through the manor's threshold, leaving Shen Yuan to sit outside.

It's fine! He doesn't mind doing a little people watching. It's a little fascinating even, to get to see the people wandering around the city streets. There is a tempting smell of food from the market that, even with the amulet dulling his senses, makes Shen Yuan's mouth water. The clamor of the city is also exciting. He wishes he could explore.

But he did promise Xun Fu that he would sit and wait.

He makes it to about half a sichen before he caves and finds himself up and walking down the street. Just to look! He'll keep the manor in his line of sight and be back as soon as he even sees a hint of that gate opening! All sorts of people line the streets, and he wishes he could have asked Xun Fu to look around before.

Shen Yuan is walking past the mouth of a dingy alley when he hears some shouting. He pauses, looking down it to see a group of older boys huddled around one another. They're hooting and hollering, kicking out with their feet and pummeling something with their fists. I hope they haven't cornered some poor dog or something.

Really, he shouldn't get involved. He's smaller than the majority of those children. But then he hears a tiny, plaintive cry, and he can't just ignore that okay!? What kind of person would he be to hear that sort of thing and turn a blind-eye to it!? A shitty one, that's who! And Shen Yuan is trying his best not to be shitty, thank you very much.

He stoops to pick up a rock and throws it at the tallest of the group. Xun Fu has been teaching him how to aim, and he feels a burst of pride when the stone bounces off the top of the boy's head. He turns around immediately, and Shen Yuan tries his best, most intimidating voice as he yells, "Leave them alone!"

"You threw a rock at me!" The ringleader yells, and Shen Yuan finds that many eyes are on him. He maybe was a little reckless with this.

"You were ganging up on someone!" Shen Yuan snaps back, before he can quite catch his tongue. "Do you have such little thought in your brain that you can only find entertainment by being cruel? Maybe you should go be a mouth-breathing jerk somewhere else!"

"Oh yeah? What are you going to do about it?" One of the other boys steps up. Shen Yuan opens his mouth, closes it again, and then reaches up to grasp the amulet around his neck.

He doesn't need to hurt the kids. Just scare the shit out of them. Xun Fu said he shouldn't take it off, but Shen Yuan knows that his intimidation factor will go up by at least a thousand points if he does. Maybe he is a little reckless, but he takes it off and drops it on the cobblestone ground.

The rush of familiar everything is almost enough to distract from his anger. It's not quite enough though, he still can tell his ears are flattened against his head, his tail lashing back and forth. He bares his teeth and lets out a long, low growl that makes the boys all freeze in place. The ringleader has gone so pale that Shen Yuan thinks he might faint.

Ha! Shen Yuan thinks triumphantly. Whose scary now!?

【 B-Points +20, Subtlety Points -50 】

That puts a brief damper on his celebration. Stop making up random categories! He doesn't even know how many subtlety points he used to have System!? What the hell!?

"DEMON!" One of them hollers, and that sets the boys off like firecrackers. They run around in panic, and send themselves hurtling down the alley in the opposite direction. Shen Yuan watches them go, before snorting and leaning down to pick the amulet he discarded back up and put it on.

It doesn't do much to dampen his pride, at least not until he turns to the boy that he helped and sees them flinch back. Shen Yuan winces internally and says, "It's okay! I'm not going to hurt you."

The boy he sees there is honestly so cute that some part of Shen Yuan wants to pinch his chubby cheeks. He's a little shorter than Shen Yuan himself, but just about the same height. His eyes are dark, and make Shen Yuan think of fallen stars, of the sky on a warm summer night. He tries to offer a smile to the wide-eyed boy. It says a lot that the kid didn't also run screaming from the alley!

Maybe it wasn't a good idea to take that amulet off. It seemed like it at the time, but Shen Yuan is pretty sure things might get pretty bad.

"You... helped me?" The boy asks hesitantly, Shen Yuan offers the boy his hand. He deserves to be helped up off the ground. For a moment the boy stares at his hand, but then he takes it and Shen Yuan pulls him to his feet with a grin.

"I'm Shen Yuan!" Shen Yuan says, pointing at his chest. "And yeah! You looked like you needed it."

"I'm... my name is Luo Binghe," the boy responds, and Shen Yuan feels like he's been struck by lightning.

The Protagonist!? He just helped the Protagonist! Oh!

It puts him at a timeline too. If Luo Binghe is seven then he must still be with the Washerwoman. He must be living his happy (but very poor and very mistreated) days of his childhood with her and her kindness. Shen Yuan processes this all very quickly, but he can't help the thrill of excitement rushing through him. So Binghe isn't even a disciple yet!

He gets to see him as a little bun! AAAH!

Chapter Text

Shen Yuan tries to temper his excitement—sorry protagonist! He's not trying to be weird! It's just, what are the odds!? Well sure, this world is Proud Immortal Demon Way, so technically the odds aren't zero—probably way less than zero actually. The whole thing sort of revolves around Luo Binghe. But this is fortuitous! Luo Binghe is little right now! Just like Shen Yuan happens to be right now.

The ideal plan would be to avoid the plot in its entirety, of course, but as mentioned previously the chances of that are probably pretty low. If he can't avoid the plot, then getting his foot in the door at a time where he can perfectly cling to the protagonist is a win that Shen Yuan simply can't let go! Plus, if he sticks with Luo Binghe then he can make sure that he has someone with him. Suffering with another person to help carry the weight is suffering halved right!?

Since he's a demon he might not be completely useless to a blackened Binghe either.

"Thank you," Luo Binghe says, startling Shen Yuan out of his racing thoughts. The other boy seems torn between wariness and curiosity. Not that Shen Yuan can blame him—not with a history of living on the streets, nor with the fact that Shen Yuan is a demon.

"Like I said, you looked like you needed it," Shen Yuan says, he's thankful that he's a little taller than Binghe is. It's hard to seem cool when you're a child, except maybe to other children. Luckily that's what Binghe is right now. He walks forward smoothly, clasping his hands behind his back in a way that he has watched Xun Fu do when he's being particularly distinguished. "Wait, are you hurt!?"

His worry immediately diminishes the air of cool that Shen Yuan was attempting in that moment. He can't help it, Luo Binghe has a cut on his cheek and it is seeping blood. Shen Yuan reaches into the qiankun pouch that Xun Fu had given him. He pulls a kerchief out, reaching forward to grab Luo Binghe's face. The other child startles, as if expecting to be hit, and Shen Yuan wants to die a little inside.

Of course Binghe is wary!

"I just want to help, I promise," Shen Yuan says. Luo Binghe's eyes are so dark in color, but Shen Yuan still sees the moment that Luo Binghe relaxes his guard a little. Shen Yuan gently wipes at the blood on his cheek, brow furrowing in concentration as he pulls some ointment from the pouch as well. He smears some on his thumb and swipes it over the cut on Luo Binghe's cheek.

"Oh," Luo Binghe's voice is very soft as he reaches up to touch the area around his cheek. His eyes have gone wide now, and he's staring at Shen Yuan like a god has come down from the heavens to stand in front of him. Shen Yuan is a little embarrassed by that intense look of wonder actually. It's nothing protagonist! He just doesn't want you to get an infection!

"Fu-ge—I travel with him—gave me this," Shen Yuan says, holding up the qiankun pouch. Luo Binghe's eyes latch onto that and Shen Yuan feels a small burst of amusement at the wonder in Luo Binghe's eyes. "Fu-ge is a cultivator, so he has things like this. It's a qiankun pouch, it can hold a lot more than you'd expect inside it."

"Shen Yuan travels with a cultivator?" Luo Binghe asks, surprised, but he's ducked his head closer to look at the pouch in Shen Yuan's hands in fascination. Shen Yuan's heart feels warmed to look at the wonder on Luo Binghe's face. This is probably the first real item from the cultivation world that he's gotten to see firsthand.

"Mn," Shen Yuan responds, "He looks after me and—"

Shouts from the street cut Shen Yuan's words short. He and Luo Binghe's heads snap up and one of the kids from before is pointing in their direction. Shen Yuan's stomach drops when he realizes that there are two men with robes next to him. 

Fuck!!!

Shen Yuan hasn't even made up his mind to bolt away when he feels a hand clasping around his own. He barely has time to register that the protagonist has grabbed onto him, and then Luo Binghe is running through the narrow alleyway with him. Shen Yuan doesn't question it, he lets Luo Binghe take the lead and the two of them run.

It is terrifying.

It's all too obvious to Shen Yuan how close those cultivators are, that Shen Yuan is a demon, that he is a child and powerless against humans with any level of cultivation at all really. He shouldn't have taken the amulet off after all—why did he do that!? To show off? To help!? And for what!? If anything, now Luo Binghe has been dragged into this! What will happen to the protagonist if he gets dragged into a mess all because Shen Yuan recklessly threw his magical cloaking device out the window!?

【 The protagonist has plot-armor and will not die, regardless of the mistakes made by the user. 】

Great! Okay, what about me!? Shen Yuan mentally screams.

【 The user will reap what he sows. :) 】

So get fucked then right!? Shen Yuan's terror reaches new heights. He can't manage to keep much of a grasp on it, he feels like he's trembling with it. He needs to run or—! "Binghe! I-I need to find Fu-ge!"

Luo Binghe doesn't answer him, just squeezes Shen Yuan's fingers tighter. To let him know he heard? Did he hear? Shen Yuan's voice feels choked off in his throat, he can barely breathe. To Shen Yuan's horror, his throat starts to feel tight, and his eyes are fucking hot around the rims too. What the hell!? Is he going to cry!? He's a grown man! Sure he's in a kid's body, but this isn't the time to break down and cry goddammit!

"Here!" Luo Binghe gasps, and Shen Yuan actually barrels into him when the other boy stops running. Luo Binghe almost falls, but Shen Yuan's grip on his hand keeps him standing. Luo Binghe points up and Shen Yuan looks and—genius! The protagonist is a genius!

There's a little window just over the street with a stack of crates leading up to it. Luo Binghe lets Shen Yuan go first, and he clamors up the wood shakily. Even still, even with his heart in his throat and panic gripping him, he turns and offers his hand to help Luo Binghe climb up after him. Luo Binghe pushes Shen Yuan through the window, and then—like he planned it this way all along—kicks a wooden plank that blocks the window behind them.

The two of them are breathing heavily—the window leads into a dusty space that Shen Yuan doesn't think is used by anyone. It smells like damp rot and earth. Shen Yuan can't hear over the sound of his thundering heart, but he doesn't dare speak or move for a long time. His chest feels so tight with terror. Like something is crushing him physically. Shen Yuan tugs his knees to his chest and tries to slow his breathing.

"It's okay," Luo Binghe says breathlessly after a while. "When it gets bad and I don't want to bother my mother I hide in here. There's another way out but no other way inside. They won't find us."

Shen Yuan doesn't realize that he hasn't responded until Luo Binghe touches his shoulder. He jumps despite himself, wired with adrenaline and stuck without his good night vision with his amulet on. Luo Binghe makes an apologetic noise, and Shen Yuan realizes that he's worrying the protagonist. Who is an actual child. Unlike Shen Yuan, who is an adult man in a child's body.

One who almost got himself killed. Or worse.

"They'll kill me," Shen Yuan chokes out despite himself. He feels like his throat is tight again, and—yup. He's definitely crying. Why!? He wipes at the tears on his cheeks, grateful that it's dark in the room. He doesn't know if it helps, because his breaths hitch in an infuriating sob. He's fine! They're fine! Neither of them got hurt, they got away!

"You're okay," Luo Binghe repeats firmly. "You helped me, I won't let them hurt you."

Shen Yuan can't help the gusty laugh that escapes him at that. If there's anyone in this world that can protect him, well... Luo Binghe would be the one huh? He thinks it might offend Luo Binghe, because he quickly clarifies, "Thank you Binghe."

"Does Yuan-ge get chased by cultivators a lot?" Luo Binghe ventures.

"No, Fu-ge protects me," Shen Yuan says. The words sound pathetic in the gloom, and small. Shen Yuan feels a spark of irritation at himself. "But I ran off without him and..."

And now he has no idea where they are in this city, let alone how to get back to Xun Fu. Let alone how to avoid the cultivators, who are now looking around for a demonic child. Really, Shen Yuan couldn't have been more stupid if he tried—short off inventing neon signs and waving them around. He feels a shoulder bump into his.

"Let's stay here for a little bit, then we can look for him," Luo Binghe says encouragingly.

"They'll be looking for forever," Shen Yuan says gloomily. He reaches up to trace his fingers over the outline of his amulet. Luo Binghe huffs at him.

"They'll get bored," Luo Binghe sounds very sure of himself. Shen Yuan supposes he has every right to. Running from people—even very malicious ones—isn't new to the protagonist. There's a reason he has a little hidey-hole, after all. A place to be safe and not bring direct trouble to his mother.

Shen Yuan doesn't respond to those words, but he doesn't refute them either. As their heartrates slow, the two of them remain quiet and listen to the world outside. At some point, Shen Yuan does hear the sound of many feet outside. He stiffens, shrinking into Luo Binghe's side before he can quite stop himself from doing so and staring at the rim of light around the board that blocks their entrance. 

It does not move, the voices fade away.

The protagonist was, as always, correct.

"Binghe?" Shen Yuan asks, and Luo Binghe starts a little, "Is there more to this place?"

Shen Yuan doesn't want to sit in this cramped little room anymore. He wants to not focus on the world outside so much, on the sounds of feet and distant chatter. He doesn't want to freeze up thinking that someone will poke their head in. Luo Binghe takes Shen Yuan's hand in his own again. Shen Yuan knows he should probably let go of it, but the comfort that it gives him is such that he can't bring himself to. Instead he squeezes Luo Binghe's fingers and the two of them inch their way out of their narrow space.

It is a simple storage shed that they must be in—or perhaps an abandoned home that is serving as storage. Stacks of objects line the dimly lit space below. The two boys can hear the rustling and scurrying of small rats in the walls, disturbed by the two intruders that have made their way into the building. Shen Yuan wishes he could take his amulet off—it would make it easier to see in the dark here, but also he might be able to have a little fun with chasing the rats around.

...that's a weird thing to think.

"Do you have anything in your qiankun pouch that lights up the dark?" Luo Binghe asks curiously. Shen Yuan peeks into the bag, but he already knows the answer without really rifling around in it. Xun Fu wouldn't waste giving a pearl to a cat demon. He sighs heavily and shakes his head, before realizing that Luo Binghe can't see it.

"No, not even candles," Shen Yuan carefully ties the strings up and feels Luo Binghe's fingers squeeze his hand. He squeezes back, "I could take the amulet off and see around for us though but..."

But the cultivators are looking for him, and if anything is hiding his qi right now it is the amulet.

"That's okay! We don't need it right now," Luo Binghe says.

The two of them fall quiet again, the rustling and scratching of the rodents had fallen quiet while the two of them had been speaking. After a few beats of silence they start up again, returning to their little lives in the walls or in the dark just out of sight of the two boys. Shen Yuan can't help but track where he's hearing them, despite the fact that his keener senses are dulled right now.

"Shen Yuan?" Luo Binghe asks tentatively.

"Mm?"

"Can... can I call you A-Yuan?" Luo Binghe asks, the words are shy and catch Shen Yuan off guard. Hastily, Luo Binghe barrels forward, "You keep calling me Binghe, and—and you... you're my first... my first friend."

Oh.

Really, they haven't known one another for very long at all. A little over an hour at most, and a large chunk of that has been spent running around. But the two of them have faced the fear of capture together, and have bonded in darkness. Of course the two of them would walk out the other side as friends. Still, the words make Shen Yuan's chest ache and feel warm all at once.

"Pff, A-Yuan is—if you want," Shen Yuan says, feeling flustered. A-Yuan is, admittedly, a little cutesy, but he is little and Luo Binghe is the protagonist. He can practically feel Luo Binghe radiating happiness. Still, he lets out a yelp of surprise when he feels arms around his neck and the two of them are falling backward. "WAGH!"

"Sorry!" Luo Binghe exclaims, right as Shen Yuan cracks his head against the corner of something. His ears ring, and he has the entire crushing weight of the protagonist on top of him. Shen Yuan thinks he might cry again, if only because he's never had a more pathetic moment of declaring friendship with another person in both of his lives. "Are you okay?"

"Fine, fine," Shen Yuan wheezes, "Binghe, please, you're crushing me!"

"Oh!"

There's a little bit of scrambling, Shen Yuan wheezes as he feels a knee get in his gut, and then he feels like he's got to fight back. He lets out a laugh, looping his arms around Luo Binghe's neck. Luo Binghe is surprised, but Shen Yuan knows how to rough-house. He's got two older brothers—but he's also got a little mei-mei, so he knows how to hold his punches too. Luo Binghe's used to people beating him up, so Shen Yuan is mindful of that as the two of them start to elbow one another in the dark.

They knock into something which falls over so loudly that the two of them stop wrestling long enough for Luo Binghe to burst into laughter. He manages to roll off though, and then Shen Yuan is being effortlessly pulled to his feet. He doesn't need to be able to see to know that the two of them are filthy now. Shen Yuan sneezes loudly, three times in a row.

"A-Yuan, are you okay?" Luo Binghe asks, but the barely bitten off laughter ruins any note of concern he might have had.

"Don't—achoo!" Shen Yuan shakes his head, "Don't mock me!"

Luo Binghe doesn't quite bite his laughter off fast enough to avoid Shen Yuan trying to swipe at him in the dark. He misses, cracking his hand against a crate instead. Fuck! That's what he gets for trying to hit the protagonist!

The two of them pick their way through the dark room to another room that should have once been separated by a door. The frame is all that is left of it though, and as the two of them step through there is a faint light in this one that the others did not have. Luo Binghe leads the way to another board, this one leads out onto the edge of where the roof hangs over. He sticks his head out, and Shen Yuan waits for a moment, his stomach suddenly twisting with nerves.

"It's safe," Luo Binghe says, popping back in. "If you follow me out there's a little place to put your foot, then you can climb up after me. Easy!"

"Easy," Shen Yuan repeats to himself, he means to keep it to himself but he doesn't. Luo Binghe pulls the rest of his body out of the hole, and then he is up and out. Shen Yuan stays quiet for a moment, staring after him into the faint light from outside. He takes a deep breath, and then follows the protagonist.

Climbing, thankfully, comes easy to Shen Yuan even if he's wearing something to dampen his demonic abilities. He scales up after Luo Binghe in a way that isn't what he might consider graceful, but he doesn't fall into the street below so there's that. Luo Binghe smiles at him, and the full breadth of that smile is something that Shen Yuan thinks is almost blinding. Little Luo Binghe is so precious!

"See?" Luo Binghe says, pointing down at the street below. Shen Yuan follows the tip of his finger. There seems to be no disturbance at the moment. People mill about normally, though there aren't very many of them out anymore. Shen Yuan blinks, looking up at the sky and feeling a jolt of panic, "They gave up so—"

"I gotta get back to Fu-ge!" Shen Yuan blurts, it's getting dark. What if Xun Fu finished his job before Shen Yuan got back to where they last split up? He felt his stomach flip. Forget enemy cultivators, Xun Fu was going to skin him alive at this rate! He hurriedly picks his way along the rooftop. He almost stumbles enough times for Luo Binghe to make several small exclamations of worry behind him, but they both find a safe path down to the streets below.

"I'll help you look!" Luo Binghe says, and Shen Yuan feels the protagonist grab his hand again. Shen Yuan shoots him a grateful smile. With the protagonist on the case, they'll find Xun Fu in no time!

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"No time" is definitely not how long it takes to find Xun Fu. Well, unless you take it very literally and mean that they don't find him at all. Because they don't! Find!! Xun Fu!!

The sun has set by the time that Shen Yuan finally feels hopelessness crash into him. Luo Binghe is looking at him so sympathetically that Shen Yuan thinks he might burst into tears for Shen Yuan. Not that he needs to. No matter how much he fights it, Shen Yuan can't keep the tears at bay. He wasn't even a particularly weepy child when he was growing up in his first life!

Granted, in his first life he had things pretty easy and certainly wasn't facing losing the person who had been looking after him all this time in a world where people would very much kill him if they found out what he was.

Shen Yuan wipes at his face, trying to ignore the way that Luo Binghe is looking more and more worried for him. The other boy is seconds from crying too, and that's not going to help things in the slightest! Shen Yuan scrubs fiercely at his face, and takes a deep breath to try and center himself. It hiccups out of him though, and dammit.

It's not his fault okay!? This all just went downhill the second that he left where Xun Fu told him to wait. He can't help the guilt that is gnawing at him, the fact that Xun Fu is probably out of his mind with worry by this point. Not to mention the fact that Shen Yuan might have to spend the night outside, alone... it fills him with an indescribable fear. There is a part of him fiercely fighting to stay calm, to be an adult about this. If he can't find Xun Fu, the best thing to do would be to find one of the gates and ask for an official of some sort to help him. 

But this world isn't always kind. Children like Shen Yuan that are healthy can be used for all kinds of things. If he isn't stuck out having a miserable night, he could be caught by he cultivators—or even worse, human traffickers. Or someone else entirely sinister. It isn't safe for a child to be out alone in a city like this at night.

"A-Yuan?" Luo Binghe asks, startling Shen Yuan out of his spiraling thoughts. "I have to go home, my mama will be worried... You should come with."

Shen Yuan wipes his face, feeling a rush of embarrassment as Luo Binghe watches him closely. Gosh, he can't believe what a crybaby he's been in front of the protagonist! If he really clings to Luo Binghe he might find himself dying of shame if this is ever brought up in the future. Still, he manages to wrangle himself into some semblance of self-control.

He nods, knowing how pathetic it is that that's the best he can manage. Luo Binghe takes his hand again, and the route the two of them take through the streets now is much more confident. Luo Binghe leads the way, careful to avoid the places that would be more dangerous at night. When they finally make it to the manor that Luo Binghe's adopted mother works at, Shen Yuan has managed to at least stop crying like a baby.

Luo Binghe pushes the door open first, a soft, "Mama?" leaving his mouth.

"Binghe-er!" A woman's voice, frantic and high with worry, is the first thing that Shen Yuan hears. Then Shen Yuan is being tugged into the warm room soon enough to see a woman pulling Luo Binghe into a tight hug.

The Washerwoman.

Shen Yuan has a brief moment to feel a little starstruck as the woman looks over Luo Binghe. She takes in the dirty clothes, the dust and cobwebs in his hair, the cut on his cheek, and a complicated expression crosses her features. Still, it is ultimately a soft sigh that leaves her as she softly says to him, "You had me worried Binghe-er."

"I'm sorry Mama," Luo Binghe says, his words are earnest. "I was trying to help my friend A-Yuan find his way, he's lost."

The Washerwoman isn't necessarily an elderly woman, but she's no longer young either. Her eyes have crows feet at the corners, and she has graying hair. Above all though, her eyes are incredibly gentle and warm. She offers Shen Yuan a small smile, her brows tilting up in concern as she looks him over.

"I'm sorry A-Yuan," the Washerwoman says softly. "I'm Luo Binghe's mom. Where were you supposed to be?"

"My—my Fu-ge is working for one of the noble families," Shen Yuan says, eyes dropping to the ground and then back up to the Washerwoman's face. "But... I don't..."

"I see," the Washerwoman sighs softly. "It's alright, first thing in the morning we'll both talk to someone and get you where you need to be."

Shen Yuan's eyes widen despite himself. She... she's letting him stay the night?

Let it be known, that the Washerwoman and Luo Binghe were not well off. They aren't in this version of the story either, as far as Shen Yuan can tell. The Washerwoman doesn't seem bedridden yet, but the home they live inn is little better than a shack. It doesn't have much to offer in terms of space, and even less to offer in terms of food.

Yet, she was willing to let him stay.

"I'm—thank you! I'm Shen Yuan," Shen Yuan says—well. Squeaks, more like. Embarrassingly enough. He feels his cheeks warm, but continues regardless, "Luo Binghe is my friend."

"So I hear," the Washerwoman's smile is very genuine. Shen Yuan blinks as she turns around with a sigh. "We don't have warm water, but the two of you boys will need a bath. Then we can split a bowl of congee, and then it'll be bed. Alright?"

"You don't have to share your food," Shen Yuan protests, but the woman will have known of that. She ushers the two of them away, firm but very gentle despite that.

"Don't worry about it sweetheart," the Washerwoman soothes. "One thing at a time, alright?"

One thing at a time. Shen Yuan takes a deep breath. Right.

Chapter Text

The bath is not much more than a rinsing off—the Washerwoman does not have any bath beans to really use, but it’s better than nothing at all. Luo Binghe helps to scrub the dirt out of Shen Yuan’s hair, and Shen Yuan does his very best not to tremble miserably the whole time. He doesn’t quite succeed, but the Washerwoman bundles both him and Binghe into warm—if not a little worn—clothes.

“There,” she says, her eyes warm and soft. She works on drying Luo Binghe’s hair, and Luo Binghe works on drying Shen Yuan’s. It is, for all its simplicity, a very soothing moment. Shen Yuan didn’t even realize how much his anxiety had truly climbed until he feels his muscles relaxing. The exhaustion of the day is sneaking up on him. “That’s better, the two of you must have been through a lot today.”

Shen Yuan doesn’t miss the concern in her voice, nor the way her brow slightly furrows. Luo Binghe gives her a little smile, turning his dark bashful eyes on Shen Yuan, “A-Yuan rescued me today.”

“Oh! No no, it was nothing,” Shen Yuan says, when the Washerwoman looks at him. He turns away, trying to avoid her searching gaze. He doesn’t know how to explain how he scared off a group of rowdy children from bullying his new friend. But she doesn’t pry any further.

“Alright, dinner time,” the Washerwoman says, getting up and moving to a simple counter. The kitchen isn’t much of a kitchen at all, to be honest—more of a glorified standing surface than anything.

If Shen Yuan remembers correctly, the food is based off of the work the Washerwoman does—but her employers are not kind and do not spare much in terms of what to feed their servants. Luo Binghe is scrawny, and she is far more thin than she should be herself.

“I don’t need anything,” he says again, but she brings the bowl over anyway. She passes it first to Shen Yuan—just one bowl. It looks like it may have been congee, at some point, but it’s gone cold and is so watery that he’s not sure it qualifies as that. Still he meekly takes a few bites before passing it on to Luo Binghe. Luo Binghe does the same, and passes it to his mother, who again passes it to Shen Yuan.

A single bowl is nowhere near enough for three people and the meal is—frankly—awful. Still, it is something to fill the stomach. Shen Yuan doesn’t complain, he knows that this is a kindness that outshines even that spot their friends for an expensive meal. They have so little, and yet shared what they did have with him.

When Fu-ge and I reunite, I’lll ask him what we can do to help. Surely we can spare some coin—or maybe even go hunting for them! I bet Fu-ge still has a little of the dried duck meat, we could share that… Shen Yuan sighs inwardly. Truly, he can’t look such kindness in the face and just turn away like it’s nothing! He’s not heartless! 

He doesn’t dare quite ask the System directly if that will be okay—after all, Luo Binghe is the protagonist and the whump of his childhood is somewhat important to his development. But there’s no alarms going off or anything, so surely it can’t hurt to lend a helping hand! Plus, Luo Binghe is officially his friend now. Shen Yuan can’t let his one and only friend (besides Fu-ge of course) suffer through whump!

It is this decision that makes him feel a little better for taking up their time. The Washerwoman busies herself into setting up a place for them to sleep for the night. The bed is not large enough for three—really it isn’t even big enough for two. She still hesitates as she hovers over it though, “Perhaps, tonight it might be best if Binghe-er…”

“I can still sleep on the floor,” Luo Binghe says quickly. “A-Yuan, would you mind curling up down here?”

“Oh!” Shen Yuan says, “I can but—wait.”

He pulls out his qiankun pouch and tries not to smile as he reaches in and pulls out a bedroll. He rolls it out on the floor, and pats it quite proudly, meeting the wonderstruck look of the Washerwoman with barely contained excitement, “Yu-ge made me this! I showed it to Binghe a little earlier, but it holds a whole bunch. Next time I’ll make sure I have food to share in it too!”

If there is a next time.

“Ah,” the Washerwoman says, her eyes are wide. She is a commoner, and Shen Yuan knows she has ideas of grandeur when it comes to cultivators. Well, truly, most commoners do. It’d be like running into a superhero or something—or well. It’d be like running into a superhero’s sidekick… or no really more like running into a superhero’s favored rescued citizen…

This metaphor is getting away from him—the point is, ordinary folk tend to feel wonder when faced with even simple objects from the cultivation world. A pouch that holds things like bedrolls may seem mundane to a cultivator like Xun Fu, but for the Washerwoman it’s an incredible artifact. Luo Binghe’s eyes are shining with curiosity too.

“A-Yuan, does your Fu-ge belong to a sect?” Luo Binghe asks, as Shen Yuan pulls the top of the roll down and crawls under the blanket. He pats the spot next to him until Luo Binghe lets out a laugh and squirms his way under the warm covers as well, right next to Shen Yuan.

“Not now,” Shen Yuan says—Xun Fu hasn’t talked much about being in a sect, but he’s said things that suggested he used to be. Shen Yuan knows that his mother was one of his martial siblings; and that the sect was a small one. But not much more than that. “Right now he just goes wherever people need help. We walked so far to get here.”

“But he is a cultivator?” the Washerwoman asks, blowing out the candle on the table. Shen Yuan still doesn’t like how the dark looks with the amulet on.

“Mn,” Shen Yuan says with a yawn. “He’s really nice. He’ll like Binghe, and his mom.”

There is a beat of silence after that, and then a soft chuckle, “He sounds like a good friend. Rest now you two. You’ve had a big day.”

She Yuan is sure that she has also had a big day. The bedroll is good at keeping him warm, especially with Luo Binghe all snuggled up under the covers too. Shen Yuan lies on his side and heaves a tired sigh.

“Thank you for your help,” Shen Yuan says into the dark. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe whispers. His mother utters a soft goodnight as well, and then the three of them fall quiet. 

For a while, Shen Yuan thinks he might struggle to sleep. But the warmth of Luo Binghe, coupled with the excitement of the day as a whole, starts to weigh heavily on him. Soon enough, he finds himself being dragged down into a comfortable sleep. Lulled as he is by the soft breathing of his kind hosts, he doesn’t even dream.

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The next morning starts very early—the sky has only just begun to lighten when the Washerwoman gets up. She lets both Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe sleep a little longer, while she gets ready for the day. Shen Yuan can hear her though, the small shack makes it difficult to do otherwise. Still, he snuggles closer into the warmth of his bed, pressing his face into the pillow drowsily. He feels comfortable and happy.

“Do we need to get up?” Luo Binghe says sleepily, and Shen Yuan lifts his head up to blink into the dim shadows of the little shack. Luo Binghe sputters a laugh, reaching up to help Shen Yuan pull some of his hair out of his mouth.

“That will be for the best. A-Yuan, I’ll be heading to work but I’ll talk to the other servants to see if they’ve heard anything about a cultivator helping at the manor or the neighbors. We’ll work on finding Fu-ge for you Shen Yuan,” the Washerwoman smiles gently at the two of them on the floor. 

Luo Binghe gets up almost immediately, and then Shen Yuan reluctantly follows suit.

He’ll admit, it’s much easier getting up in this world than it was back in his old one—the aches and pains he had before his untimely death had made it difficult to haul himself out from under the covers on the best of days. On the worst, he’d just bury himself under them and hope that by lying still the pain would forget that he existed (it did not tend to work). While he doesn’t have the plethora of physical issues that had plagued him in this universe, old habits die hard. Shen Yuan can’t help but want to burrow deeper into the warmth.

Also… honestly he feels more tired than he expected. Xun Fu has worked hard to keep Shen Yuan well-fed, and he’s realizing the privilege of just how much energy his little demon body seems to require now. There’s no promised breakfast either, and though Shen Yuan won’t complain he does find himself struggling to find the energy.

He has noticed that he typically eats more than even Xun Fu—which is actually fascinating! Clearly demons require more food! But it does mean that skipping meals, at least for a child like Shen Yuan, is apparently harder on him. He’s sure that when he’s older and better able to use his demonic qi it won’t be an issue, but now it is making things difficult. And he feels like a brat!

He decides not to say anything, so that he can not feel like as much of a pain. His stomach hurts, and he doesn’t have much energy, but he’ll be fine. He gets to his feet and rubs his face with a tired sigh.

“Did A-Yuan not sleep well?” Luo Binghe asks, not without some guilt on his face. Shen Yuan blinks at him.

“Oh! No, I slept fine,” Shen Yuan says, forcing a smile. He doesn’t want to seem ungrateful! These people opened their home up to him! And really, he did sleep very well. “I was very comfortable.”

“Good,” Luo Binghe’s shoulders relax, and then he sets about getting ready for the day. Shen Yuan does as well, pulling a comb out from his pouch and putting away the bedroll. He brushes out his hair, pulling it into a short tail. He’s young, so his hair isn’t very long yet, but it certainly isn’t short. Thankfully it’s not too hard to manage, and Shen Yuan used to do his mei-mei’s hair all the time back in his other life.

It’s not the same as doing it for himself, and he knows the tail is a little crooked, but come on! He’s got little hands!

“I can fix it, if you want,” Luo Binghe says eagerly, seemingly noticing Shen Yuan’s frustration. Shen Yuan lets the other boy do that, and Luo Binghe manages to gather his hair up and put it in a much nicer tail. “There!”

“Thanks!” Shen Yuan can’t help but beam, and despite himself he reaches out to pat Luo Binghe on top of the head. Luo Binghe leans his head into Shen Yuan’s palm, like a dog that hasn’t gotten enough pets. Shen Yuan can’t help his little laugh at that, and whatever distant worry he might have had about patting the protagonist dies in that moment. 

“Alright you two,” the Washerwoman says gently. “Now, both of you must be very polite. Stay close to me and do not get under anyone’s feet.”

“Yes Mama,” Luo Binghe says, while Shen Yuan nods very seriously. The last thing he wants is to cause trouble for Luo Binghe or his mother.

The three of them set off—there is a chill in the dawn air that makes Shen Yuan miss the clothes he’d dirtied the day before. It does help to wake him up, though he can’t help but notice a slight headache that starts to bother him. He buries it though—he’s had worse in his past life. This is nothing!

The manor that the Washerwoman works at is—at a glance—quiet in this early hour. But that’s only at a glance. The servants are already busy with the day, making sure that the house is running for the nobility and that everything is going smoothly. Shen Yuan knows immediately why the Washerwoman cautioned the two of them—there is an undeniable flow to the work of the people here. To step out of line would be to ruin everyone’s whole morning, probably. He makes sure that he sticks to Luo Binghe like good, trusting the protagonist will keep him out of trouble.

The few times he does step forward is so that a few of the other servants can get a look at Shen Yuan, so that if they hear anything they can remember his face. They’re all busy, taking only a few moments out of their routine to do so, but Shen Yuan is thankful to them regardless. And hopeful.

By the time the morning is in full swing Shen Yuan is starting to lose hope. None of the servants seem to have heard anything, but right when he’s about to see if it might be best to start wandering the streets one of the house servants pauses. He’s an older looking man, who lets out a hum of thought.

“Yesterday I heard some rumors that the Su family has been dealing with some,” and here the old man pauses—looking over his shoulder—before continuing, “hauntings. Spirits in their manor—they’ve heard the sounds of screaming and weeping at night. Perhaps your cultivator gentleman is there?”

Shen Yuan perks up—it sounds familiar. He knows that the job that Xun Fu works on did involve a ghost. He isn’t sure about the details, as he got turned away at the gate. Still, he can’t help but feel his rush of hope, “Ah—where is it at? Please.”

The please is added hastily, but the old man only laughs at him, his aged voice warm.

“The Su family lives at the end of the street that the market is on,” he says, “If you go there and head up the hill you should find it in no time.”

“Binghe! That sounds right!” Shen Yuan says, he remembers a marketplace for certain! He’d been curious about what was in it. The Washerwoman looks greatly relieved, but her expression is also clearly torn.

“Thank you,” she says to the other servant warmly, “Now…”

“Mama, I can take A-Yuan to the other manor,” Luo Binghe says. She can’t miss a day of work, and has already spent much of her time asking around for Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan nods at her enthusiastically, so fast that he feels a little dizzy.

She still seems hesitant, so Shen Yuan adds, “We’ll stay safe, and I’ll bring Fu-ge to meet you after your day!” 

It isn’t as though she is asking for a reward, but she does deserve one for her kindness. You should repay kindnesses, that’s a good lesson for Luo Binghe anyway. If he can teach him that, then maybe he’ll be less likely to give so wholeheartedly into his grudges. Shen Yuan is going to be such a good influence on him!

Not that the protagonist needs good influences, he’s the protagonist after all.

“Stay safe, and if you cannot find him there you come right back,” the Washerwoman says sternly, though mostly at Luo Binghe. Luo Binghe nods, looking the picture of an obedient little son. Shen Yuan makes sure to mirror the protagonist, hoping that he can help lend to the image of trustworthiness. She still seems hesitant, but the Washerwoman gives Luo Binghe a quick hug and ruffles Shen Yuan’s hair gently. “Be good you two.”

“We will!” Luo Binghe promises.

“Thank you again,” Shen Yuan adds politely. Then, Luo Binghe is grabbing his hand and tugging him along.

The way out of the manor grounds is as hectic as the way in, though it goes much faster since they don’t have to stop and ask everyone along their way about Xun Fu. Still, Shen Yuan is careful to stick to Binghe’s side and figures that being tugged around by his hand is the best way to do that at the moment. And if it makes him feel a little less nervous about getting in people’s way, well that’s nobody but Shen Yuan’s business thanks!

By the time they get out into the street, Shen Yuan’s earlier excitement has given way into a new feeling all together—nerves. He knows that Xun Fu is not going to be happy with him—relieved that they’re reunited, probably, but he’ll definitely be angry. The idea of it puts Shen Yuan on edge. He’s not really seen Xun Fu angry yet, and he’s not sure why but he feels nervous about facing it.

Maybe an instinct of this body?

Growing up in his old life, he was pretty spoiled—Shen Yuan’s parents weren’t terribly strict with him since his brothers were set to inherit the business and he was sick all the time. He arguably got away with a lot more than most other kids would have; so it’s definitely not a result of their treatment of him. He’s been grounded maybe three times in his whole life—granted, he also didn’t disappear for an entire night in a strange city. That would have probably made his parents angry, regardless of how spoiled he was back in his childhood.

“Do you think he heard from the other cultivators about what happened yesterday?” Luo Binghe asks, and Shen Yuan jumps—startled from his thoughts. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I just—he’s going to be upset,” Shen Yuan says with a sigh. “I hope he isn’t too worried.”

Luo Binghe gives Shen Yuan’s hand a little squeeze, and shoots him a smile. Shen Yuan gives him a small one back. 

“Does he…” Luo Binghe trails off—corporal punishment is hardly rare in this time period, but it still clearly makes Luo Binghe uncomfortable to suggest it. Shen Yuan shakes his head.

“I don’t think so—he never has before,” Shen Yuan says hurriedly.

“...Either way, I’ll protect A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says firmly.

Aaah! Protagonist! You’re just too sweet! Shen Yuan can’t help the genuine smile at that, really. Just who wouldn’t feel safe when the protagonist says that he’ll protect you? It’s a good feeling, actually. Even if he’s just a little bun right now, Shen Yuan doesn’t doubt that Luo Binghe would defend him.

“Against a full grown cultivator?” Shen Yuan teases, and laughs when Luo Binghe gives him a very serious nod. Still, he squeezes Luo Binghe’s fingers. “Thank you Binghe.”

He means it, and Luo Binghe seems to be able to tell. He beams at Shen Yuan, lighting up like the sky when the sun peeks from out behind the clouds. Shen Yuan can’t help the rush of fondness for this little protagonist. Truly, Luo Binghe is too good for words.

The market is busy enough that it becomes absolutely necessary that they be holding their hands. Especially because Shen Yuan’s second wind seems to start lagging. After about a sichen of walking, he starts to lag behind. 

That’s when he hears a soft, crooning cluck. Shen Yuan’s head shoots up and he turns his head toward a stand with hens and other livestock for sale. The white-feathered chicken that caught his attention is a plump little thing, visible through the wooden slats of the cage it preens in.

Shen Yuan’s senses have been dampened since he started wearing the amulet, but it feels like he can feel them tugging to the surface. His mouth waters, and he finds his steps slowing, his fingers slipping from Luo Binghe’s grasp as he hones in on the little animal. Its white feathers look clean and pristine, even in its wooden cage.

“A-Yuan?” Luo Binghe asks, and Shen Yuan barely hears him.

He’s just—he’s been so hungry. In this moment he’s more aware of it than he has been the entire morning. He finds himself taking two smooth steps forward—regardless of his hidden demon features he slips into a motion that is more prowl than walk.

There is a man at the stand, but he isn’t looking at Shen Yuan or Luo Binghe. His focus is on the street, and Shen Yuan creeps closer. Shen Yuan exhales slowly, keeping low—if he can kill the hen quickly enough, then the man tending the stand doesn’t even have to know…

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, finally claiming Shen Yuan’s attention. He snags the hem of his sleeve, his eyes wide as he says, “What are you doing?”

Shen Yuan starts, guilt flooding him. He realizes what this must look like—does it look like he was hunting the man at the stand? Wait, he was hunting a chicken at a stand, which belongs to a guy selling it. That’s still stealing, and also weird as hell . He feels heat rush to his cheeks and he forces himself to turn away from the hen.

“I—uh, that—” Shen Yuan can’t seem to find the words. He grabs Luo Binghe’s sleeve and starts marching in the direction they were going before. He can’t believe that! What was that!? He had one smaller than usual meal last night, and just missed one breakfast. It’s not like he’s starving to death! Why on earth was he resorting to hunting down poultry like some starving alley cat!?

“Is A-Yuan okay?” Luo Binghe asks, his concern obvious. 

“I’m fine,” Shen Yuan says hurriedly, “Really! Just… just got distracted is all.”

“Shen Yuan!” A shout catches Shen Yuan’s attention and his head snaps up. His heart jumps into his throat, and there—across the street with an expression mixed with fury and relief—is Xun Fu. The man storms towards them, and Luo Binnghe quickly gets between the two of them. “Where have you been !?”

“Fu-ge!” Shen Yuan says, and he decides that he’s relieved enough to see Xun Fu that even him being angry isn’t going to scare him into being more nervous than happy. He darts around Luo Binghe, throwing himself at the cultivator who grunts in surprise when he crashes into him. Xun Fu doesn’t seem to know what to do with that, his hands hover awkwardly above Shen Yuan before settling on his shoulders.

“You could have been killed,” he hisses at him, not quite softened enough by the greeting to let go of his anger. He pulls back to look Shen Yuan over, “You said you would stay put Shen Yuan, do you have any idea how long I’ve been looking for you!? There was a stir among some cultivators last evening—”

“It’s okay! I was with Luo Binghe and his mom,” Shen Yuan says, “Those cultivators chased me and I got lost. Luo Binghe helped me by taking me to his home so I would be safe.”

Xun Fu furrows his brow, looking up to focus on Luo Binghe. Luo Binghe looks nervous, like a dog that has been kicked by people too many times to quite trust approaching them. Still, he gives a polite greeting, and Xun Fu gives a heavy sigh.

“I see,” Xun Fu says. “Luo Binghe is it? I’m Xun Fu.”

Xun Fu is not as fancy speaking as many cultivators. His informal speech must put Luo Binghe at ease some, or maybe it’s the genuine relief in Xun Fu’s voice that does it more. Luo Binghe nods and scoots forward a bit, gently grabbing Shen Yuan by the sleeve again. As if he’s half afraid Xun Fu will pick Shen Yuan up and run with him out of the city.

“Did Fu-ge get the ghost?” Shen Yuan ask.

“Of course not,” Xun Fu snorts, “I was busy looking for you .”

“Ah,” Shen Yuan hopes that the people hiring Xun Fu aren’t too angry. The young lord didn’t seem happy to see Shen Yuan in the first place. He probably wouldn’t be too pleased considering the whole delay.

Xun Fu looks both Luo Binghe an Shen Yuan over, his brow furrowing. “When was the last time that Xiao-Yuan had something to eat?”

“I had a little dinner last night,” Shen Yuan says hurriedly—Xun Fu’s expression darkens. He hurriedly says, “They were very generous Fu-ge!”

“I’m sure they were,” Xun Fu says, tone clipped. Luo Binghe’s eyes narrow, and he looks ready to defend his mother, but Xun Fu interrupts with, “Come, let’s get some lunch in you both.”

“Both?” Luo Binghe echoes, startled.

“That’s what I said,” Xun Fu gruffly says, but not without some amusement. He ruffles Shen Yuan’s hair, and gestures for the two of them to follow him as he heads across the market. Shen Yuan shares a glance with Luo Binghe, who looks wary, but when Shen Yuan takes his hand again he comes along willingly.

Chapter Text

The restaurant Xun Fu chooses is not the most fancy spot in the city, but the scent of food wafting down the street made Shen Yuan’s mouth water before they even got inside. Now, sitting next to Luo Binghe amongst chattering patrons, Shen Yuan struggles not to jump to one of the nearby tables and start hastily devouring what is on their plates. He’s surprised by the voraciousness of his hunger—it isn’t as if missing one meal is grounds for starving to death.

He feels even worse when he spots the way that Luo Binghe’s eyes look huge in his gaunt little face. He clearly has never set foot inside of a place like this before, and looks hesitant and awestruck in equal measure. The servers do glance over at him, noses wrinkling at the sight of his ragged clothes. Xun Fu casually flips through a stack of talismans, and at the sight of them the server immediately perks up.

“Hello xiansheng hello!” A wide smile stretches over the woman’s face as she greets the rogue cultivator. Cultivators, even rogue cultivators, tend to have far more money than commonfolk. Shen Yuan wonders if Xun Fu brought the talismans out on purpose, to make sure that they didn’t hound him to remove Luo Binghe from the premises, “We’re honored for your patronage—will you be having the hot pot today?.”

“Thank you, we’ll take that to share,” Xun Fu says with a small smile. “I’ll take two plates of your cod with chili sauce. Three catties of beef, and four mantou.”

“Ah!” Luo Binghe softly exclaims, “Xun-xiansheng, I…”

Luo Binghe seems embarrassed—Shen Yuan can understand why immediately. If Binghe is eating he’ll naturally want to save some food for his mother. Xun Fu glances over at him pats his shoulder. The movement makes Luo Binghe flinch, but only slightly and Xun Fu doesn’t say anything about it, “It’s alright. I have a way of bringing any leftovers with us. Order all you’d like.”

‘Order all you’d like’ is all well and good to say Xun Fu, but Luo Binghe has never been in this sort of situation before! Shen Yuan immediately notices how flustered and overwhelmed his little friend is. He scoots his seat over so that he can gently bump his shoulder into Binghe’s.

“It looks like a lot of the foods here are spicy and fragrant,” Shen Yuan says. His mouth is watering at the mere thought, even if loads of spice has never really been his thing. It would be a lie to say his palette was completely mild though. “Does your A-niang like shredded pork? It tastes a little like fish, and might be best for her since she hasn’t had a big meal in a while. Oh! And some of the mantou too, definitely.”

“Maybe the sweet pork with rice?” Luo Binghe says timidly. “I’ll take that. And some of the fish with mustard greens, I think she might enjoy that.”

“Of course, of course,” the server’s smile is a little more strained but nevertheless she seems to be thinking of the order seriously. Shen Yuan gives her a look himself.

“And um, I’d like some of the sweet pork too,” Luo Binghe says softly. “And three mantou.”

With all the air of a little young master that Shen Yuan can muster—which is quite a lot considering he was a rich second-gen in his first life!--Shen Yuan perks up and says loftily, “I’ll take the duck and shredded pork. And five mantou for me.”

Hey, he’s starving okay!? If everyone is going to load up on food then he’s going to also! He honestly feels like he might be able to eat the whole hotpot on his own…

“We’ll take some of your osmanthus cake as well,” Xun Fu says.

The most torturous part is the wait after that. Shen Yuan knows it doesn’t take long, but the scent and sound of others eating has him twitching and his mouth watering. He starts to consider if he can get away with jumping on someone else’s table after all—as extremely dramatic as that sounds—when several servers return.

The hot pot is brought out, and even if the color is bright from chili sauce the smell alone makes Shen Yuan’s mouth water. He almost wants to dive in before anything has been added to the damn thing. Still, he manages to hold off—sipping on his soymilk and humming with enjoyment at the taste.

Even with how large the table is, their choices of dishes pile it high with a feast for the senses. Some dishes are bright red in the style of the local cuisine. Even the sweeter dishes are fragrant and smell delicious. Shen Yuan lets Xun Fu start to get started on the hotpot while he claims his duck.

The smoked smell is divine, and when he munches into the first piece he finds that the skin is crispy and perfectly seasoned in his mouth. Though the spicy warms his tongue, the smoked flavor makes him hum in delight. He finds himself scarfing it down, pausing only when he notices that Luo Binghe is looking his way with open amusement on his face.

“A-Yuan must be hungry,” Luo Binghe says. He is much more reserved with his food—and Shen Yuan’s face heats up as he picks up a piece of the duck and sets it in Luo Binghe’s plate.

“It’s good!” Shen Yuan grumbles, “Eat it.”

“Is that why A-Yuan is almost eating his chopsticks?” Luo Binghe teases, and Shen Yuan sticks his tongue out at him, making Luo Binghe laugh. Shen Yuan huffs, reaching over to snag some delicacies from the hotpot. He doesn’t quite manage to not eat that enthusiastically either.

“Xiao-Yuan don’t choke,” Xun Fu chides him. Shen Yuan pays him little mind, eating his dishes with fervor. The hotpot leaves his tongue numb from the spice, but he manages to snag a pig brain from Xun Fu, causing the man’s eyebrows to raise. “Hey! You little—”

“Too slow Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan says primly, and Luo Binghe bursts into laughter. Shen Yuan didn’t realize he was tense until he feels himself relax at the sound. 

The rest of the meal is spent cheerfully chatting, bickering and passing around bites of the food between the three of them. By the end of the meal, Shen Yuan feels stuffed and more human again. Well. More demon—er. More demon that isn’t about to start hunting little animals in the street that is.

“There’s a lot left over…” Luo Binghe says softly—even with Shen Yuan wolfing down a decent amount of almost every served dish on the table there is plenty left. Even with the full chosen dishes for the Washerwoman, they have a ridiculous amount of food that still sits on the table.

“Like I said, I have my ways,” Xun Fu chuckles, pulling out several boxes with talismans on them. “If you boys could help me pack some of it away though, that woud help.”

They set to work, though Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan both pause to look at the talisman. Neither of them knows how to read a talisman, nor tell how it works, but it seems to emanate a clear aura of spiritual energy. Shen Yuan hums thoughtfully.

“They keep the food warm,” Xun Fu says, “It still won’t be as fresh as if she were here with us, but it will still be good and there is enough here for several meals for you. Think of it as thanks to you for looking after Xiao-Yuan.”

“Ah!” Luo Binghe’s eyes are wide again, but the smile that lights up his face is really as charming as it can possibly be. Even Shen Yuan feels his heart melt, and he has to stop himself from hugging onto the protagonist just at the sight. He’s adorable alright?! Nothing is cuter than a happy Luo Binghe, surely.

After they pack their food away, Xun Fu pays their bill and the three of them make it into the street. Shen Yuan feels a surge of energy as he does, and he turns around to face Xun Fu and walk backwards. "Is Fu-ge going to get the ghost tonight?"

“I have to, don't I? Since I was looking for a certain lost child instead,” Xun Fu says, eyes narrowing at Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan lets out a nervous laugh, but the man gruffly continues, “In the meantime, Xiao-Yuan will be staying in the inn and not leaving it.”

“I can’t come with!?” Shen Yuan says, knowing he shouldn’t be as surprised as he is. The client clearly didn’t like Shen Yuan when they had briefly interacted before. Still, he can’t help but feel let down. This is the first official job that Xun Fu has taken since Shen Yuan transmigrated! He’d wanted to see a real cultivator in action.

“Wouldn’t it be dangerous for A-Yuan?” Luo Binghe asks, and Shen Yuan heaves a loud dramatic sigh. “Does Fu-xiansheng think it’ll be an easy job?”

“Mn, it doesn’t seem to be too much trouble,” Xun Fu answers Luo Binghe’s curious question. “I’ll tell you both about it when I’ve finished up, for now I want to wait until after.”

There’s something in the tone of his voice that suggests that he has a reason for waiting to speak about it. Shen Yuan sighs heavily, again. He has so much energy now that he’s eaten! What is he supposed to do, just walk around with Xun Fu looking at him like he’s going to run away at the next possible moment!?

As if reading his mind—surely he can’t right!?—Xun Fu says, “The two of you can play nearby. I have things to gather for my hunt tonight. You will stay within sight though.”

Luo Binghe hesitates, but ends up nodding. He probably figures that his mother will send him away after he explains everything to her anyway—while she’s a servant at the manor she has always done her best to keep him from being too burdened with that life. As much as one possibly can. He’s not technically owned or paid by them, and her wages are garnished for him to even remain in the little hut they have anyway. Luo Binghe doesn’t have to work, he’s just a good kid who likes to help his mother.

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

The day is spent playing around with Luo Binghe. They chase one another up and down the street, they stop to look at the chickens that Shen Yuan almost hunted earlier in the day, they eventually sit to the side and start building dust castles in the dirt at the side of the main thoroughfare. Shen Yuan catches more than one annoyed look thrown their way, but even if he’s an adult man he can’t bring himself to care. It’s a fantastic way to work out his energy, and every moment they spend together has Luo Binghe smiling brighter and brighter.

And… alright so maybe it’s been fun! So sue him, he can’t help but have a good time playing around with Luo Binghe. It’s what Binghe deserves anyway, and Shen Yuan hasn’t realized how much he’s wanted someone around his age for a while. Xun Fu is great, but he’s often boring and focused on important adult things like survival. It’s nice to have a little companion to unwind with.

Xun Fu is chatting with a couple in the street a little bit away—Shen Yuan has a feeling it might be about the case, if the fact that Xun Fu is speaking quietly and politely is any giveaway. Luo Binghe sits next to Shen Yuan, their shoulders brushing. They both have some of the street food that Xun Fu bought a few minutes ago in their hands.

“Will A-Yuan and Fu-xiansheng be leaving after his hunt?” Luo Binghe finally asks, breaking their companionable silence. Shen Yuan blinks, his heart sinking. He’s gotten along so well with the protagonist, it truly felt as if they’ve been friends for years. He’d forgotten that, like kids at summer camp, they’re destined to part soon.

That must be doubly awful for Luo Binghe, who had no friends at all in the original novel until he met Ning Yingying at Cang Qiong Sect. Shen Yuan really doesn’t want to part with him! He’s just gotten addicted to seeing Luo Binghe happy.

System? Shen Yuan thinks, hearing a tiny ding in the back of his mind. Is there any way that I can stay with Luo Binghe?

【 User 002 is currently under the debuff “A Child in a Big World”—User’s safety is directly tied to his guardian Xun Fu until the story progresses. User may attempt to run away from said guardian, but may suffer grievous bodily injury or death. 】

But what if Xun Fu takes Luo Binghe with us instead? He’s got great foundation for cultivation! Shen Yuan points out.

【 Suffering the loss of the protagonist’s motherly figure is considered a canon event and cannot be skipped. If Luo Binghe does not witness his mother die a tragic death in the next FIVE years 10,000 B-points will be deducted from User 002’s account. 】

She has to die!? Wh—wait what do you mean I lose points!? What does that even have to do with me? And I asked if I could stay, not if I could save her! Shen Yuan protests, eyes narrowing at the little blue screen in front of him.

【 If Luo Binghe does not witness his mother die a tragic death in the next FIVE years 10,000 B-points will be deducted from User 002’s account. 】

That’s bullshit! Stupid fucking system, what a hack! So he was just expected to do nothing at all to change the course of things but still change the story?! What kind of backwards, Catch 22 bullshit was all this!?

“I don’t know,” Shen Yuan finally says. “I think so. I don’t think Fu-ge likes being in the same place for very long. And I have to hide…”

Shen Yuan reaches up to brush his fingers against his amulet, his brow furrowing. Luo Binghe’s lips twitch, and Shen Yuan realizes with alarm that the boy looks on the verge of tears. He lets out an awkward squawking noise, but before he can think to be too embarrassed about it he wraps his arms around Luo Binghe’s narrow shoulders.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry!” Shen Yuan soothes, “I’ll think of some way to be able to see you again. Maybe Fu-ge will let us come visit—or I can write to Binghe! Oh… I don’t know how to write. Do you know how to read? That might be a problem…”

“I just—it’s been so great to be around A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, voice watery and trembling. “I don’t want to lose my only friend so soon.”

Shen Yuan’s heart aches for the boy in front of him. What is Shen Yuan meant to do in this situation? He reaches up and pats Luo Binghe’s curls, trying to give him a smile. The corners of his mouth don’t quite want to obey him, and Shen Yuan’s own throat feels tight. Damn child emotions! They’re getting him.

“Alright, let’s go get Xiao-Binghe home,” Xun Fu says as he walks over to them, rubbing his hands together. Both Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe burst into tears on the spot—he just can’t help it. Luo Binghe’s plight truly is so sad, who says everything in his childhood should be so awful!? Airplane, why did you have to like whump so much? “Wh—what’s happened?”

“I don’t want to say goodbye!” Shen Yuan manages to say. Luo Binghe manages to nod his head rapidly, fingers clenching tightly around Shen Yuan’s. Xun Fu looks at a complete loss as to this turn of events, though the expression slowly becomes chagrined.

“Let’s get to your home, I’ll speak with your mother for a bit. I need to thank her for her kindness regardless,” Xun Fu says, gently ruffling Shen Yuan’s hair and patting Luo Binghe’s back. The two boys are both still hiccupping through their tears, and somewhat helplessly Xun Fu says, “I’ll make sure you have plenty of time to play more.”

Shen Yuan nods, but his heart sinks in his chest. How much can they do? This was always meant to be temporary. Somehow it just hadn’t sunk in before now. Still, the two of them manage to be calmed down enough to start the walk to Binghe’s home. By the time they get there they aren’t bawling, though Luo Binghe is still teary-eyed and sniffly. Shen Yuan’s own eyes are red at the corners.

“Mama,” Luo Binghe says as he opens the door. The Washerwoman looks up from where she has been organizing some of the newly washed clothing that Luo Binghe and her have. Her smile becomes a little wary as she looks over his shoulder to see Xun Fu. She stands and deferentially greets him.

“This lowly servant greets xiansheng—I’m pleased to see that you have been reunited,” the Washerwoman’s smile is polite, but it warms when she looks down at Shen Yuan. “There seem to have been some tears.”

“No need for the miss to be so formal with me. I’m Xun Fu, Shen Yuan’s guardian. A thousand thank yous to the miss for looking after him. …Ah, the two of them are fast friends,” Xun Fu says with a strained smile. “It seems they’re sad to part.”

“I see,” the Washerwoman smiles and gently runs her fingers through Luo Binghe’s hair. “Yuan-gongzi and Fu-xianshing have important things to do Binghe-er. We can’t keep them forever.”

Luo Binghe hangs his head, his shoulders drooping. The sight brings tears to Shen Yuan’s eyes again. Xun Fu, determined to avoid more waterworks perhaps, steps forward while clearing his throat, “May I ask a request of the miss?”

There is that wariness again. She is not unkind, the Washerwoman. Even wary her features are warm and mostly open, but she has dealt with those higher in rank than her for a long time. Being asked to do things is something she is resigned to, but does not always bode well either. Especially out of the house she works for. Still, she nods at him while gathering Luo Binghe into her arms.

“Shen Yuan and I are traveling often, but some of the jobs I take are deadly and he is young. I can’t care for him all the time, until he’s old enough to defend himself and start learning,” Xun Fu glances at Shen Yuan. “It would not be all the time, but would the miss mind looking after Xiao-Yuan when I am unable to take him on these jobs? I will pay for his food, as well as for your services in looking after him.”

“Much of my day is spent working,” the Washerwoman admits with a small smile. “I cannot guarantee I’ll be able to be with him at all times, unless he joins me in my work. The Lord is not always kind…”

“I don’t expect you to be with him all the time,” Xun Fu says softly. “He’s a good boy, he won’t get in your way. Right Xiao-Yuan?”

Shen Yuan stares with his mouth open. The Washerwoman looks to Shen Yuan and smiles before looking to Luo Binghe. The protagonist’s eyes are open wide, eyes glimmering pleadingly at his mother. She sighs softly.

“If xiansheng will do me one favor,” the Washerwoman says, eyes still on Luo Binghe “This child of mine is a good boy, he is strong and has a heart for kindness and justice. It is my dearest wish that he cultivate to immortality, and live a good and happy life. When he comes of age, is that something you could help him achieve?”

Xun Fu and Shen Yuan both blink in surprise. Xun Fu looks startled, and opens his mouth to protest before closing it again. He steps over to Luo Binghe, clearing his throat. “Xiao-Binghe, allow me to check you for a foundation for a moment. Give me your wrist, it won’t hurt.”

Luo Binghe has no reason to distrust Xun Fu—he bought him food, let him play with Shen Yuan, and even made sure his mother would eat. There is no hesitation when the small protagonist extends his hand, watching with curious dark eyes as Xun Fu presses his fingers on the inside of his wrist.

Shen Yuan knows what the results will be—he can’t help but watch Xun Fu’s face. The man’s expression goes from dutiful to surprised to amazed. The man lets go of Luo Binghe’s wrist with a thoughtful noise.

“I’m not certain I would be the best Master for him—his potential is outstanding in a way that will pass my own skills quite thoroughly,” Xun Fu admits. Shen Yuan privately thinks that Xun Fu shouldn’t shoot himself in the foot too much, after all, Luo Binghe is bound to lap every cultivator over and over again as he grows in power.

This could be fantastic though. And the System isn’t making any noise about it either! If Xun Fu takes Luo Binghe on, sure he may lose the security and name of the massive Cang Qiong Sect, but he’ll definitely have a better time as a disciple. Xun Fu is a good man, he might be rough around the edges and informal, but he cares about people. He’d be a leagues better guide than the scum villain! And Luo Binghe wouldn’t be ready to cultivate and train seriously for several years yet…

“I’ll look after the boy, when he reaches the age to be made a disciple,” Xun Fu’s expression is complicated as he speaks. But Shen Yuan hardly notices, Luo Binghe’s eyes are wide with wonder, and he meets Shen Yuan’s with excitement brimming in them.

“Then I will watch over your Shen Yuan while you are away on adventures too dangerous for him,” the Washerwoman says warmly. She makes a noise of surprise as Luo Binghe launches himself out of her arms and into Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan lets out a loud noise of surprise, and ends up on his back on the ground with an arm full of Binghe. His ears ring for a second and he sees stars as his lungs are crushed.

“A-Yuan! A-Yuan! We get to stay together!” Luo Binghe says, overjoyed. Shen Yuan laughs, hugging his new friend as tight as he can.

“Binghe is going to be a cultivator! Fu-ge will be his shizun!” Shen Yuan crows. Xun Fu flinches at those words, but Luo Binghe is too much of a handful for Shen Yuan to pay it much mind. That and the strained edge to the man’s smile.

“Oh!” Luo Binghe says, after his laughter has managed to taper off. He leaps to his feet and turns to the Washerwoman with a beaming smile. “We brought food for Mama!”

That brings some genuine surprise to her face, an softens whatever edge had descended on Xun Fu’s. He manages to pull out some of the boxes with talismans, passing them over to Luo Binghe who stacks them up. Luo Binghe’s eyes are warm and happy as he explains what dishes they chose, and the Washerwoman looks over at Xun Fu with a grateful expression. She mouths a, “thank you” over Luo Binghe’s head. Xun Fu nods.

This is a good thing, Shen Yuan decides. It’ll bring a better future for Luo Binghe to have another caring adult in his life. And Xun Fu might even be his shizun! He can’t help but imagine a world where Luo Binghe never has to be darkened, can explore the world and be a righteous cultivator. Shen Yuan can even teach him how to take care of his demonic traits… well, somewhat anyway. But most of all, he won’t have to be alone! Sure he might not be as interested in hanging around Shen Yuan or Xun Fu by the time that he has hundreds of wives, but they’ll be on the protagonist’s good side!

That has to count for something right?

Chapter Text

Xun Fu and Shen Yuan make their way to the inn (after a very long, very tight hug from the protagonist and a promise that he’ll definitely see him the next day) once Xun Fu is satisfied with the agreement made with the Washerwoman. The older cultivator is quiet and contemplative as the two of them walk through the streets, his expression somewhat distant. Shen Yuan doesn’t pry, he’s just relieved that he’ll still get to see Luo Binghe!

As for the Washerwoman’s fate… well, he’ll figure that out as he goes. Surely there’s something he can do—【 There is not! (●'◡'●) 】—to change that. Five years is a long time after all! Shen Yuan chooses to ignore the System being a downer about that.

Xun Fu doesn’t say anything until the two of them are in the room that Xun Fu had purchased. The rogue cultivator pauses as Shen Yuan runs over to the bed and clambers onto it—though really the hard bed isn’t exactly up to Shen Yuan’s preference for softness. At least when it’s a bedroll or camping he can kind of come up with a reason for the lack of padding. What he wouldn’t give for a soft mattress and pillows!

“Xiao-Yuan,” Xun Fu says, making Shen Yuan jump. The man is rooting through his bags, before he stops and crouches in front of the bed that Shen Yuan is perched on. It makes the man somewhat shorter than Shen Yuan at the moment, “Do you… remember the night that your mother asked me to look after you?”

Oh. Shit. 

Shen Yuan had worried about this but honestly in the past few days it had taken a back seat. Of course he doesn’t remember! What he knows of PIDW is based entirely on what he’s read, and these background characters were either so negligible that they didn’t have names or were never even mentioned in the story! He must not clamp down on his panic enough, because Xun Fu’s expression twists.

“No, no don’t—you’re not in trouble if you can’t,” Xun Fu says, somehow reading the worry Shen Yuan has but also landing off the mark. Granted, he couldn’t really be expected to hit the mark on this particular thing, ah? Xun Fu sighs, “I had a feeling with everything that happened and the fever…”

“I don’t… Fu-ge I don’t remember anything,” Shen Yuan says softly, opting for honesty in this for once. Xun Fu blinks at him, and Shen Yuan can’t bring himself to look the man in his eyes as he quietly says, “I don’t remember that and I don’t… remember…”

“ Anything ?” Xun Fu says, and the words sound like he’s been hit. Shen Yuan winces, looking up at the man and immediately feeling his heart twist at the sad expression on his face. “No… no I… I should have expected this. It’s okay, I’ll… I can tell you some things.”

There is a kind of grief in Xun Fu’s tone that makes Shen Yuan desperately want the man to not tell him some things. This feels personal to Xun Fu, and he supposes it’s personal to the child that Shen Yuan has stolen the body of. It feels like a massive intrusion on his part. Shen Yuan isn’t really the little boy that Xun Fu was asked to protect, he’s an imposter. A lump forms in his throat.

Would Xun Fu still look after him if he knew the truth?

【 WARNING! WARNING! User cannot tell characters from the world of this novel about the existence of the System without immediate punishment and account termination! Caution is warranted! 】

That isn’t a surprise, it’s not like he was planning on spilling everything to Xun Fu anyways! It’s just a hypothetical System! Calm down with the alarms already…

“Fu-ge doesn’t need to,” Shen Yuan finally manages.

“No I… I want to,” Xun Fu says with a sigh. He holds out a bound book to Shen Yuan, who binks at it and slowly takes it from the man. It is simple, but Shen Yuan can’t read the ancient writing stamped on the cover. It’s an exquisite little book though, and he traces his fingers over the gilded symbols with wonder. “That is a manual to help you cultivate your demonic abilities. Your father wrote it.”

“My father wrote?” Shen Yuan can’t help but ask, despite himself. Demons weren’t typically the literary sort, and from what he read in PIDW a lot of their writings were focused on lineages and things like that. Something that is the demonic equivalent to a cultivation manual is unusual.

“Mn, sometimes—though not usually books like that,” Xun Fu says as he stands up and sits on the bed next to Shen Yuan. “Most of what he wrote was for his research. I have some of his books—bestiaries mostly. The Clan that he was the lord of, the Western Clan, had a focus on taming, training and raising demonic beasts and creatures.”

Shen Yuan furrows his brow, the Western Clan? So he has the blood of some demonic lord or other in him and not just some commoner demon? He doesn’t remember much about a beast taming Clan though, that would definitely have stuck out to Shen Yuan! What a neat concept!

“Qiang-Jun—your father that is—he could be a bit arrogant,” Xun Fu continues, there’s a trace of fondness in his tone despite the descriptor. “Never could believe that Shen Ruoxi-shimei fell for someone who was so full of himself. But he had a soft spot for her, and she had one for him. Shizun knew they were in love before they even said anything about it. I remember how worried he looked—ah, but he couldn’t stand in her way when she confessed either. He wasn’t that kind of person.”

“Was my mother part of your sect?” Shen Yuan asks, he remembers Xun Fu mentioning her before.

“Mn, she was my Shizun’s only other disciple,” Xun Fu admits. “She met Qiang-Jun when she and I were on a mission to hunt a strange beast that had been preying on a small village. When we arrived we found that the issue had been dealt with, but that the mysterious ‘cultivator’ was a demon in disguise. We got into a fight, but Shen Ruoxi noticed that the man had been injured when defending the villagers so, somehow, we befriended him.”

Shen Yuan is mystified—he can’t help it. It’s intriguing that demons ever had anything to do with cultivators, even a smaller sect, in a way that was largely positive from the sounds of it. Even Xun Fu’s shizun seemed comfortable with them. It seems groundbreaking, but in a dangerous way. A way that tells him he might have an idea of why that tiny sect no longer exists.

“Wait! Wait is—was—my mother human ?” Shen Yuan blurts. Xun Fu blinks in surprise.

“...yes, she was,” Xun Fu seems surprised at the question, but quickly brushes over it.

Shen Yuan is immediately privately having a crisis of sorts—another half-demon in Proud Immortal Demon Way!? Isn’t this a great way to accidentally steal the protagonist’s spotlight!? No wonder this character was never brought on screen, what kind of OC backstory bullshit was this?!

Granted he’s not of the line of demons directly related to Luo Binghe. He’s some other fallen bloodline of sorts. Still! Too close, too close; won’t the protagonist see him as competition in the future? Shen Yuan sure hopes not! Though, maybe he can use this to his advantage? After all, if Luo Binghe has another friend who is part demon like him then he might not feel so alone when trying to find himself later in life…

“It’ll mean working on your spiritual cultivation as well, when you’re old enough,” Xun Fu is saying, and Shen Yuan realizes he has tuned out half of what the man had been talking about. Xun Fu doesn’t seem to notice at all. “But you belong, Shen Yuan. Never forget that. Your parents wanted you to know that.”

Ah. Shen Yuan can see that pain in Xun Fu’s eyes again. Shen Yuan finds himself hugging the man around the neck before he can stop himself and Xun Fu pauses for a moment, before patting Shen Yuan’s back.

“Shen Ruoxi-shimei, she wanted me to take care of you and to find your Jiu-jiujiu,” Xun Fu says quietly. “The two of them were separated very young from… from when—when we were…”

Xun Fu is struggling with this part. Shen Yuan can tell it’s something that he doesn’t want to think of. To talk about. He tightens his hug a little, feeling a little helpless.

“Thank you Fu-ge. You can tell me more later, okay?” Shen Yuan says softly.

“Okay,” Xun Fu responds. The words seem buried under hurt, and Shen Yuan wishes he were better at this kind of thing. But he doesn’t know what to say, and he’s just a little kid, so he can only hug his guardian and hope it makes things even a little better.

He really does hope.

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

Xun Fu keeps his promise to Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe—Shen Yuan doesn’t get to be with Luo Binghe constantly over the next three years but their visits are not infrequent. Xun Fu regularly drops Shen Yuan off with the Washerwoman and Binghe and while doing so the rogue cultivator ensures that the two are living well. It isn’t a bad childhood, all things considered—indeed, for the protagonist things are much better than they were in the original book!

Binghe and his mother get an upgrade for their home after Xun Fu manages to help the Washerwoman find work with a better family. The house isn’t anything fancy by any means, but it has a kitchen and even a bedroom for Binghe and his mother to share. It is warm in the winter and the two of them seem healthy and happy. Indeed, the Washerwoman hasn’t even begun to get sick or anything! 

Shen Yuan hates that there’s a small part of him worried about that—the guilt and the shame and the fear that brings. The Washerwoman has become an important figure in his second life. He wants her to be okay.

She teaches Shen Yuan skills such as mending clothing and washing—things he admittedly was not familiar with in his old life. To be honest, Shen Yuan isn’t a huge fan of hard work even in this second life, but it doesn’t hurt to know things. 

She tries to teach him to cook too, but he quickly decides to leave that to the protagonist. After his third time ruining a pot trying to make simple congee, the Washerwoman decided that perhaps she and Binghe would stick to that particular chore.

When he lives with the Washerwoman and Binghe he wears the amulet and learns about regular human life. It’s nice, especially since he can have fun with and be there for Binghe. When he’s with Xun Fu he learns about living in the wild—about night hunts and regular hunting. It’s an interesting balance of two very different life experiences but… it’s not bad. It’s good even! 

Xun Fu doesn’t bring up his parents much again—sometimes he’ll off-handedly mention them, but he doesn’t push the topic again. Maybe he senses Shen Yuan’s discomfort. It’s not that he isn’t curious about the parents of this body, but it feels like a lie to Shen Yuan. Xun Fu being vulnerable with him makes him feel bad for lying to him.

Not like he can help it, but still.

Xun Fu does give him more of his father’s books though. Shen Yuan has some of the bestiaries that Qiang-Jun wrote and some of the books on flora as well. The books have jogged his memory in the least, he’s pretty sure that his Clan is the one who has a chamber in the Holy Mausoleum filled to the brim with deadly plants and beasts. 

He’s sitting with the demonic manual in his lap now, his tail swishing behind him as he narrows his eyes in concentration at the words on the page. At ten years old he isn’t starting any spiritual cultivation techniques—even though he burns with curiosity to try—but demon children begin to cultivate their paths much sooner. Whether that’s because of how fast their abilities manifest or whether it is because of how aggressive demonic culture is, Shen Yuan isn’t sure. He’s asked Xun Fu, of course, but the man knows very little about actual demonic cultivation beyond his friendship with Qiang-Jun.

“Did you know I can apparently shapeshift?” Shen Yuan says as Xun Fu enters their campsite with some water. The man raises his eyebrows and Shen Yuan looks back down at the book with a grumble, “I can’t work out how to move my demonic qi to do it quite right though.”

“Don’t skip ahead,” Xun Fu says lightly, he walks over and flips the manual pages back toward the beginning of the book and taps the page. “Before you work on the hard stuff you have to start with the basics.”

“I know ,” Shen Yuan sighs—and he does know! It’s just, there’s a lot of cooler things in the book later in the series. It’s all very useful in general, actually. Especially since Shen Yuan is a half-demon—it means that he can help Luo Binghe alongside Meng Mo when his friend’s demonic heritage is discovered! Shen Yuan knows Binghe will outshine him by leaps and bounds, but if Shen Yuan gets ahead in his cultivation he’ll at least have a chance to do something useful for the protagonist that’s not just handing over his book.

He still isn’t sure how they’ll get the Meng Mo thing to work out without going to Cang Qiong Sect but that’s neither here nor there.

“Work on hiding your demonic attributes without the amulet first,” Xun Fu says with a soft chuckle. “That’ll probably help with the other things involved with changing your shape.”

Shen Yuan sighs heavily—perhaps even dramatically, if the chuckle Xun Fu gives is any indication. He does admit that he hates wearing the amulet though, and that hiding his attributes is higher on the list of important abilities probably. Even if turning into a monstrous cat is absolutely cooler.

“I’ve got good news though,” Xun Fu says lightly, “We’ll be going back to visit Xiao-Binghe and his mother soon.”

Shen Yuan perks up at that, his ears flicking up and brightening despite himself, “We are?”

“Mn, I’ve got some information in the city to dig up. An important lead,” Xun Fu grins at Shen Yuan, his eyes bright with excitement.

“For Jiu-jiujiu?” Shen Yuan asks, feeling a spark of nerves despite himself.

It isn’t that he doesn’t appreciate that Xun Fu is trying hard for his sake—or well, the original goods’ sake anyway—but he can’t help but worry about what will happen when his mysterious uncle is found. He knows that Xun Fu wants them to have a relationship, because that’s what his mother wanted as well, but who is to say the other man even wants a reminder of whatever past he had that caused them to separate? Even Xun Fu can’t talk about it.

He thinks Xun Fu has nightmares about that. Or maybe nightmares about the night he took over looking after Shen Yuan. He isn’t sure.

“Mn,” Xun Fu is, “We’re getting close Xiao-Yuan. We’ll find him.”

Shen Yuan smothers his nervousness to give the cultivator a smile. It must fool him, or maybe he’s too happy himself, because he goes off to complete setting up the camp. Shen Yuan stares at the book in his lap a little longer, feeling his stomach twist with nerves before he closes the book.

He’ll try focusing on that later.

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

Shen Yuan is deep in sleep when he’s roused by a noise so loud that it rattles his head and sets his teeth on edge. He whines, curling into his nest of his bedroll, trying to make sense of the blaring sound that grates unnaturally in his ears. His tail brushes out, and he looks up to see that Xun Fu is still lying in bed asleep despite the flashing red lights and the noise.

【̸̛͙̔ ̵̨̛͜͝W̷̨̰͔̍Â̵̮̫̑̈Ŕ̴͕͈̈́N̴̰̝̏͝I̸̟͈̙͋N̸̜̉G̸͖͕̀̌͌!̷̺̀ ̴̨̣̱̊A̸͉̐ͅn̷̙̖͗̕õ̶̃ͅm̸̼̜̅͝a̶̤͍̎̆̓l̴͍͎̪̃̌͌ỷ̵̢̜̀ ̵̱̗͚͠d̷̡́ẻ̷̢̅̚t̴̮̀̀e̸̘̮̮̽̚c̷̘̽͂t̶̥̥̘͒̔̈́è̸͚͉̽͘d̷̠̾ ̵ SYSTEM ERR̴̞͈͒͑͛O̵̲̬̱̽͠R̵͍̩͐̎! User is advì̶̡͒s̵̛̪̅e̸̠̮̓̆d̵͚͕̾ ̴͇̻̯͗́t̵̡͓̠͝ỏ̸̮̍ ̷̦̓̀t̶̢̆ą̷̦̃͗͛k̷̝͔̬͌͂ȅ̷̫ ̴̟͖͖̓C̷̼͝Ả̷̭Û̵̡̄̑TION! WARNĬ̶̡̛̘̙͘Ñ̷̘̚G̵̱̻̙̔͋̓!̴͙̑ ̵̩̥͔̑͌A̷̯̟͆͝n̵̞̠̼̈́ò̸̼̦maly detected - SYS— 】

The System cuts off completely, dead silence leaving Shen Yuan’s ears ringing and his heart racing from the strange message. He could barely hear it properly, it sounded all garbled and jumbled up. Like coming through a channel on the radio that struggles to connect. The quiet feels ominous to him, his heart hammering in his chest for a moment.

“System?” Shen Yuan ventures cautiously.

【 The System is currently experiencing technical difficulties. We hope to be up and running for user ASAP! In the meantime, please assist yourself. We’re sorry for the inconvenience! (づ◡﹏◡)づ 】

Shen Yuan swallows thickly. He isn’t sure if it’s the strange warning getting to his head or if the night is really too quiet. He sits up and sniffs at the air. A thick, metallic scent makes him clap his hands over his nose and his stomach twists. He scoots over to Xun Fu, and nudges the cultivator hurriedly.

“Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan whispers, and Xun Fu jerks awake immediately. He turns bleary eyes onto Shen Yuan, an expression of confusion on his face. He must see how afraid Shen Yuan is , because he’s sitting up. “There’s—I think there’s something nearby.”

The fact that it is something dangerous goes unspoken. Shen Yuan prides himself in not being an obnoxious child. He can be fearful about some things, true, but he doesn’t bother Xun Fu with things like nightmares. Xun Fu reaches for his sword, silently getting off his bedroll and creeping toward the edge of their tent. Shen Yuan half wants to ask the man to stay—that he didn’t mean to fight something, but to hide from it. 

“Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan whispers after him, and the man shushes him immediately. He pulls his sword from its sheathe and uses the blade to gently nudge the flap of the tent open. The campsite is dark beyond him—a thick darkness that makes Shen Yuan’s tail bristle further. A soft, unsettled growl starts to roll out of his throat.

A sharp, buzzing whine suddenly fills the clearing. Shen Yuan flinches, ears flattening against his skull and hands clapping over them. It’s a sound that reminds him of the feedback on a microphone when it’s pointed at another one—high pitched, shrieking, unnatural in every way. Nothing is animal about it. It sounds almost like a machine. 

“Don’t!” Shen Yuan yells, reaching out and snagging Xun Fu’s robes before the man can rush into the clearing. Xun Fu doesn’t seem to expect Shen Yuan to do this, he stumbles backwards at the force of the demon-child’s grip, turning surprised eyes on Shen Yuan. “It’ll kill you, we have to run!”

“Xiao-Yuan…” Xun Fu says, some exasperation in his voice. But the sound is getting louder, and Shen Yuan’s terror is climbing through him.

“ Please !” Shen Yuan begs. Xun Fu swears under his breath before gathering several of their qiankun pouches and stooping to scoop Shen Yuan in his arms. Shen Yuan wraps his arms around the man’s neck. Is it because he’s a child that he’s so afraid? The whining sound is so loud that his ears remain flat on his head. Xun Fu turns and cuts a hole in the back of the tent, and steps through.

The shrieking noise reaches a pitch that even Xun Fu finds unbearable, and something sparks just behind them. A blindingly white beam of energy blasts the tent the two of them were just in, digging a massive ditch into the ground behind them. Shen Yuan hisses, sinking his claws into Xun Fu’s shoulders without quite meaning to as blind terror smashes into him.

Xun Fu immediately jumps onto his sword, and the two of them lift into the air.

What stands in the clearing doesn’t look like a monster that Airplane ever wrote about. It’s a hulking creature, and the shape keeps shifting and changing. As if it’s being looked at through an indistinct picture. It seems to be made mostly of darkness, but flecks of white flash through its shape and its eyes and mouth are vibrant white in its shape. It’s looking up at them, jaws parting wide, that horrible grinding noise starting again.

“Fu-ge!” Shen Yuan says, ducking his head so that he can’t see when the creature sends whatever deadly blast it sent before at them. The shrill, grating noise of it reaches its fever pitch as another beam fires just next to them. The sword swerves, and Shen Yuan’s stomach drops like they’ve gone over the top of a rollercoaster’s hill. He sinks his claws further into Xun Fu’s shoulders, the scent of blood only heightens his fear.

“We’re fine, we’re fine,” Xun Fu says through grit teeth. Shen Yuan can’t tell if he is talking to Shen Yuan or himself. The sword lifts so quickly that Shen Yuan’s ears pop, but the strange noise vanishes beneath them and the cold night air grows still and quiet where in the sky. Quiet, except for Shen Yuan’s panicked growling and hissing. “Xiao-Yuan, we’re okay. It’s okay.”

“What—” Shen Yuan can’t finish the question. He presses his face against Xun Fu’s chest, shaking so hard that his teeth are chattering. He can’t remember feeling a fear this primal in the entirety of his two lives. He feels sick , his ears are ringing terribly. 

“I don’t know,” Xun Fu says, “I’ve never heard of anything like that before.”

Xun Fu’s voice is tinged with pain, and Shen Yuan jolts with realization that he still smells blood. He releases the man’s shoulders from his claws with an anxious sound escaping his throat. He can’t bury it right now, he’s too frazzled to act like anything but a mess, “Fu-ge, I’m sorr—”

“It’s fine,” Xun Fu says softly, “You were scared. I’ll take care of it when we land again.”

He doesn’t say it out loud, but Shen Yuan gets the feeling that they will be flying for at least an hour before they land again. He glances at the ground below, expecting to somehow see the creature that had crept up on their camp in the middle of the night.

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They don’t land until the middle of the afternoon the next day. By then, they’re getting close to the city and Xun Fu insists they push on toward it. Shen Yuan has an urge to protest, somehow afraid that the monster will have tracked them all the way here. He knows that isn’t possible. Probably. Maybe. Xun Fu refuses to spend another night outside of the city walls though. Thankfully, the man does pause long enough to take care of his injuries from Shen Yuan.

His shoulders have nasty puncture wounds deep in them, and the flesh looks red and infected. Shen Yuan feels so guilty that he ends up hovering nervously nearby while Xun Fu tries to treat it. It ends up being a lesson for the day, when the man decides to teach him how to use a knife to cut away the most infected looking pieces of flesh and how to apply poultice to the wounds. His stomach churns to know that he is the one who caused this, but he somehow keeps his hands steady as he works.

“Good job,” Xun Fu praises when he’s finished dressing the cultivator’s wounds. Shen Yuan’s throat feels tight, and he looks up at the man who smiles down at him. “Don’t feel bad, Xiao-Yuan. You were terrified.”

“I hurt you,” Shen Yuan says softly.

“You saved our skins,” Xun Fu counters. He reaches over and picks Shen Yuan up. Shen Yuan is, really, too old to be carried around like this. He still settles into the man’s arms, feeling safer here than on the ground. He wishes Xun Fu would fly a little longer, but he’s sure the man has exhausted his spiritual energy. “If I stayed to fight that we would both be dead. Good instincts, Xiao-Yuan.”

It wasn’t just instinct though. It was the System as well—something about that thing set that off. What had the System said? Anomaly detected? Shen Yuan feels his tail starting to bush up again, the hair along the back of his neck lifting. Something tells him that this thing isn’t supposed to be in the world with him.

He mentally nudges the System again, but gets the same error message as before. Shen Yuan sighs heavily, before he closes the window out and settles into Xun Fu’s arms. He isn’t sure how he manages to feel tired after everything. Especially out in the open. Still, somehow he finds his eyes drifting closed, and before an hour has passed Shen Yuan falls into an uneasy sleep.

Chapter Text

The wide city streets are bustling with activity as Luo Binghe winds his way through them with a parcel clutched to his chest. If he wasn’t so used to this he might be worried about being crushed beneath the feet of the people around him—but at this point he’s more than aware that he’s all but invisible to most people on the street. Maybe some children would stick out, but Luo Binghe knows how to keep people from tripping over him so he passes through with relative ease. Some of the perks of having grown up as a filthy, dirty thing in the streets.

Things are different now though. Now he has his mother, who is happy and healthy for the first time in years. Now he has A-Yuan and Xun-xiansheng, both of whom visit regularly and bring with them the kind of fortune that Luo Binghe imagines home truly feels like. Safe and warm and happy.

It is a treasure he cherishes every day.

“Luo-ge!” A small girl’s shout catches Luo Binghe’s attention and he looks up with a furrowed brow. Standing at the gate of Qin Estate—where his mother has worked for the past three years now—is little Qin Wanrong. At five years old she still has soft and round features of a child just out of toddlerhood. Her fingers are slightly sticky as she grabs onto one of his hands. “Luo-ge is here!”

“I only went away for a bit,” Luo Binghe says with a laugh, shifting the parcel from under the arm that Qin Wanrong is holding onto into his other hand. “Your da-ge asked me to pick his package up from the market, remember?”

“Da-ge should let you play!” Qin Wanrong says with all the stubbornness a five-year-old can muster. Luo Binghe lets out a nervous laugh as he slows his steps so that she isn’t tripping to follow after him. The two of them make their way through the estate grounds.

“How is Xiao-Qin doing?” Luo Binghe says neutrally, deciding not to open the topic of his playing versus helping with simple chores. She and her sister—a girl Luo Binghe’s age named Qin Wanyue—have always been vocal about Luo Binghe spending his days with them instead of helping his mother work. But Luo Binghe prefers to stay busy, as long as Shen Yuan isn’t around to distract him anyway. It’s the least he can do to help his mother out.

“Good! Baba says he’s going to give us a puppy! Luo-ge should come see!” Qin Wanrong says happily, “ And we get to pick the best one out of all the other puppies! Oh, and Mama got me some pretty ribbons and a dress too. She’s going to show Jiejie how to em—embroyd them.”

“Embroider?” Luo Binghe offers, and Qin Wanrong nods very seriously, her small fingers tightening around Luo Binghe’s.

“I’m too little to use the needles, but I wanna learn too!” Qin Wanrong says, seemingly remembering something she has been quite upset about. The little girl stamps one foot dramatically, puffing her cheeks as she looks up at Luo Binghe.

Truth be told, even if she could work the needle Luo Binghe doubted she would have the patience to sit through learning such a detailed task. But he gives her a sympathetic smile anyway, and it seems to make the little girl feel like she’s being agreed with. Luo Binghe has been learning quickly that when it comes to the youngest of the Qin children a well-placed smile goes a long way.

He’s about to say something diplomatic to gently steer the conversation away before a tantrum starts up, when he spots a familiar robe from a distance. His heart leaps and he gently—but firmly—pulls himself from Qin Wanrong’s grip, “Ah! Luo-ge?”

Luo Binghe might have felt a little guilty about the hurt in her voice if Luo Binghe’s destination weren’t completely on his mind. He runs over so quickly that the other boy he throws his arms around—only just remembering to not crush the parcel—is almost knocked over. Luo Binghe steadies them both though, and hauls Shen Yuan into a hug, “A-Yuan!”

“Ah! Binghe!” Shen Yuan says—there is a moment where Shen Yuan tenses in his arms but he relaxes very quickly. He squirms to get his arms—which Luo Binghe has accidentally pinned to the boy’s sides in his excitement—free so that he can pat the top of Luo Binghe’s head with both of them. “Sticky, so sticky! I just showed up and you’re already clinging to me.”

“This lowly one didn’t expect xiansheng and A-Yuan to be back so soon,” Luo Binghe says by way of explanation. Shen Yuan doesn’t mention that Luo Binghe would be clinging just as much if they’d show up the full week later that he was expecting them to.

“Lowly one, what lowly one?” Shen Yuan grumbles. He does manage to squirm his way out of Luo Binghe’s hug, but doesn’t complain when Luo Binghe steps up to his side so that their shoulders brush. Shen Yuan looks exhausted, Luo Binghe notes immediately. Like he hasn’t slept in a long time, and very pale. Luo Binghe finds himself pressing closer to his friend with a frown.

“Xiao-Binghe,” Xun Fu says with a strained smile. Luo Binghe notices that the man’s expression seems drawn and tired. Luo Binghe’s worry rises up a notch, something must have happened. He’s trying to think of how to ask when Xun Fu says, “I need to speak with Lady Qin, but maybe Xiao-Binghe would be willing to take Xiao-Yuan home for a rest?”

“Of course xiansheng,” Luo Binghe says immediately. Xun Fu roughly ruffles Shen Yuan’s hair and moves to do the same to Luo Binghe. Luo Binghe manages to duck though, slipping around Shen Yuan so that he’s between the two of them. Xun Fu chuckles at that.

“Stay in the city,” Xun Fu says firmly to Shen Yuan, who only gives a tired nod. The two of them share a moment of eye contact, and Luo Binghe is struck by the feeling that he has missed something. After Xun Fu leaves, Shen Yuan turns back to Luo Binghe with a blink.

“Ah—do you have something to do?” Shen Yuan asks, he looks like he’s ready to fall asleep on his feet. Luo Binghe remembers the parcel and winces, “It’s okay, let’s go there first.”

“A-Yuan, did something—” Luo Binghe starts, but a small voice interrupts him.

“Luo-ge!” Qin Wanrong stomps her foot, now that Xun Fu is gone she seems to have gathered the courage to approach. “You abandoned me! Who is that ?”

Luo Binghe tries not to bristle—Qin Wanrong is still little after all—but her tone seems to suggest she immediately dislikes Shen Yuan. Luo Binghe cannot even imagine why. Shen Yuan is probably the best person to ever exist. At the very least he’s the prettiest , even when he’s tired his green eyes are bright and curious as he looks over at Qin Wanrong.

“This one is Shen Yuan,” Shen Yuan says very politely.

“My best friend,” Luo Binghe can’t help but add, feeling a burst of pride when Shen Yuan’s face gets a little red. His friend bats at him half-heartedly, but Luo Binghe doesn’t take it back.

“Then how come we’ve never met? I thought I was your best friend,” Qin Wanrong says. Luo Binghe is usually quite patient with her, but he can sense a tantrum building and can’t help but be annoyed that she’s throwing a fit over Shen Yuan. He’s happy his friend showed up sooner than expected! He doesn’t want to argue with a silly little girl about who his favorite person is. Which Luo Binghe knows better than her, since he is himself.

“A-Yuan, this is Qin Wanrong,” Luo Binghe says. He expects to see the expression Shen Yuan gets when he wants out of a conversation but is too polite to say so—but when he looks over at his friend he notices that the other boy’s eyes are suddenly sharp with interest. 

“Ah! I see. Already meeting her so young?” Shen Yuan mutters to himself, making Luo Binghe tilt his head to one side. His friend doesn’t notice, instead focusing on Qin Wanrong. Then he gives her a deferential bow as if he’s greeting a genuine high class lady or something, and not a little girl. “It’s an honor to meet you.”

Qin Wanrong seems caught between preening and her jealousy at this new rival of her friend’s affection. She eventually decides on the prior, seemingly, because she puffs up a little bit and holds her chin up in a way that would look dignified on an older girl. As it is, it looks only somewhat cute but mostly annoying.

“ This one has a puppy to pick out,” Qin Wanrong says in a way that heavily suggests she wants to make Shen Yuan jealous. She turns to Luo Binghe and adds, “Luo-ge can come still if he wants!”

“I have things to do,” Luo Binghe says firmly. Qin Wanrong’s eyes widen a little, and then look a little glossy. For a second, Luo Binghe worries she might cry. Even if he’s annoyed, she is still little after all. Before he can do anything to brighten her up a bit she turns on her heel and storms off. 

“Are you sure you don’t want to go play with her?” Shen Yuan asks, “If she’s your friend you’ll want to make sure you stay nice with her so that in the future…”

“I can play with Qin Wanrong all the time,” Luo Binghe says dismissively. “A-Yuan is my favorite though.”

Shen Yuan’s eyebrows raise and he looks somewhat puzzled before he shrugs and mutters something to himself about, “Must still be too young to be interested in that sort of thing.” Luo Binghe is about to ask what he means by that, but Shen Yuan waves the question off before it he even says it. 

Sometimes Shen Yuan is like that—saying and doing little things that confuse Luo Binghe. It’s just part of him though, if anything at all it’s adorable and Luo Binghe wouldn’t change anything about Shen Yuan for the world. He bumps his friend’s shoulder with his own.

“I have a parcel to deliver, but then we can head home,” Luo Binghe promises his friend. Shen Yuan nods as the two of them start their walk through the estate. The sun is shining and while Shen Yuan looks as pretty as ever, Luo Binghe can’t help but notice how tired he looks in the direct light.

Something definitely happened, he’s not sure what but both Xun Fu and Shen Yuan are clearly bothered by it. Luo Binghe is trying to work up a way to ask his friend what happened when the two of them reach the door where he’s meant to deliver his parcel. He hurriedly does so, not wanting to leave Shen Yuan alone for long. He hustles his in, sets the parcel down politely and then hurries out before he can be asked to do anything else.

By the time that he makes his way back out he notices Shen Yuan looking around the clearing with a nervous expression. No—not nervous. He seems afraid. Like he expects something to crawl out of the shadows.

“A-Yuan?” Luo Binghe says, and despite how softly he speaks, Shen Yuan still jumps. Luo Binghe frowns, reaching over to gently rub his thumb between his friend’s furrowed eyebrows. “Are you okay?”

Shen Yuan hesitates, and Luo Binghe’s concern spikes more. Eventually, Shen Yuan shakes his head. It’s the tiniest motion, Luo Binghe might have missed it if he were speaking with anyone else. But he’s learned by now that when speaking with Shen Yuan it is best to pay attention to every little detail, or else he misses some of what his friend is trying to say.

“Let’s go home,” Luo Binghe suggests. He takes Shen Yuan’s hand in his own, and half expects Shen Yuan to try to pull free. Sometimes he fusses about little things like that. This time he doesn’t though, and his fingers tighten around Luo Binghe’s.

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Luo Binghe holds his hand the entire way home, and Shen Yuan might have been a little more stubborn about not doing that if he wasn’t so on edge. Part of him still feels bad, if only because he’s stolen Luo Binghe away from one of his future wives. Apparently Luo Binghe knows the two Qin sisters? Poor Ning Yingying has been upstaged in terms of childhood friends by two other harem members! It’s not her fault she won’t meet Luo Binghe until he goes to Cang Qiong Sect.

Or, well. If he goes to Cang Qiong Sect…

Still, he supposes it’s okay for now. Luo Binghe is ten , it’s not like he needs to start worrying about harem stuff yet. Shen Yuan will make sure to be polite to both of the sisters if he meets them—and maybe he’ll have a conversation with Qin Wanyue about not pressuring people to do things by using your misfortune to guilt them. And maybe how to avoid poisons too.

Later though, for now he is feeling his exhaustion starting to compound uncomfortably with his anxiety leftover from the creature attack. He still hasn’t been able to contact the System without the error about him needing to provide himself service. With no answers from the System and no idea what creature it was that they ran into, Shen Yuan feels like he can’t relax. Who is to say that the thing isn’t still after them?

Maybe that is childish of him to think though, after all, most creatures don’t hunt others down with single-minded focus. Even most demonic beasts need a very good reason to expend that kind of energy on someone. It could have been hunting them (though he doubts there would have been anything to eat if they’d been vaporized by the damn thing) or even trying to kill them for treading into its territory…

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, in a worried tone that suggest he’s been trying to get Shen Yuan’s attention for some time.

“Ah—sorry Binghe, what was that?” Shen Yuan answers, blinking at his friend.

“Are you hungry?” Luo Binghe asks, far more patient than Shen Yuan deserves truly. Shen Yuan wants to wave the protagonist off, but those dark eyes are wide and distraught. Shen Yuan gets the feeling that if he says no that Luo Binghe’s feelings might get hurt or something.

“A little,” he relents.

Luo Binghe nods very seriously, and by the time that they push the door open to the home he and the Washerwoman live in, the protagonist has squared his shoulders like he is planning on facing down some beast. Shen Yuan can’t help his small smile as he is led to the table and takes a seat at the cushion there.

As far as homes go, the upgrade that the Washerwoman and Luo Binghe have gotten since they were hired at the Qin Estate—as in Qin Wanrong and Qin Wanyue!!! Of course!!!—is a much nicer place to live than their small hut from before. It is still simple, more small than it is cozy, but there is space for a table and a little kitchen as well as a separate room for sleeping. Shen Yuan gently traces his fingers over the worn wood of the little table, something definitely secondhand, and thinks that even if it is simple it is not a bad place to call home.

Luo Binghe has made his way into the kitchen and started the process of making something for Shen Yuan to eat. Shen Yuan would protest, but he won’t deny himself the opportunity to enjoy his friend’s cooking. Even at ten, Luo Binghe has skills in the kitchen that would put any professional to shame—as expected of the protagonist!

In the original story, Luo Binghe had a very important relationship with food. As a child on the streets he had never gotten to eat more than scraps, and after he was adopted to his mother things had only just improved. The Washerwoman had taught him to cook, but in the original they hardly ever had proper ingredients to indulge in more than the simplest of fares. Then, of course, she had died before even getting a mouthful of simple congee in the original…

The Luo Binghe that Shen Yuan knows still obviously values food as well. Though the Washerwoman has not died of illness in this timeline—something that Shen Yuan knows the System would pester him about if it was up and running like usual—the first real meeting they had with Xun Fu involved a veritable feast at that restaurant. Xun Fu also indulges Luo Binghe’s budding talent by going out of his way to purchase spices that the two of them come across in their journey that he thinks that Luo Binghe might like to try using.

“Does A-Yuan want to talk about what happened?” Luo Binghe asks, startling Shen Yuan from his thoughts by setting a steaming bowl of noodles in front of him. The broth is hearty and rich, smelling mouth-wateringly delicious. Shen Yuan digs in without hesitation, and though he doesn’t answer Luo Binghe right he feels his friend sit next to him at the same side of the table.

For a moment he focuses on the noodles—delicious, the noodles are the perfect texture and the broth’s rich flavor makes Shen Yuan hum in delight—before he finally sets the bowl down with a sigh. His friend is patient but expectant. He asks if Shen Yuan wants to talk about it, but Shen Yuan knows he won’t drop it if he doesn’t.

“There was this… thing,” Shen Yuan starts. “It showed up at our camp the night before last. Binghe, it almost killed us. It was… this, this monstrous thing, but I’ve never seen or heard about anything like it before. It looked like it crawled out of a comp—no, just. Strange. Like it didn’t belong here, like it shouldn’t have been here at all.”

Like an anomaly.

Luo Binghe’s brows were furrowed in thought as he listened to what Shen Yuan was saying, “Even Xun-xiansheng couldn’t fight it?”

“It almost turned us into dust Binghe,” Shen Yuan says while shaking his head. Luo Binghe’s eyes are wide, and Shen Yuan finds that his arm is being clung to suddenly. Like Luo Binghe has to convince himself that Shen Yuan is okay and right in front of him. Shen Yuan gives Luo Binghe a little smile, and can’t stop himself from pressing his palm against the top of Luo Binghe’s fluffy head.

“We’re safe now, I just… it…” Shen Yuan trails off. He feels silly saying aloud that it scared him. He knows better than to let something like this shake things to his foundation. But he can’t help it. Something about that thing was wrong.

“It’s strange that A-Yuan didn’t hear about it before though,” Luo Binghe says, referring to Shen Yuan’s near-encyclopedic knowledge of all things creature in this universe. Shen Yuan gives him a small smile despite himself. “Maybe that’s why xiansheng wanted to speak with Lady Qin?”

“Maybe,” Shen Yuan says, though he can’t help but think that Xun Fu will probably find nothing about that creature. 

“The Qin’s have a very extensive library,” Luo Binghe continues thoughtfully, getting up to fill Shen Yuan’s bowl with noodles once more. Shen Yuan digs into his next serving, looking up at his friend who offers him a smile, “Maybe… maybe we could go look for something there?”

Shen Yuan blinks—there’s mischief in his friend’s eyes. Harmless mischief, mostly, but mischief nevertheless. Shen Yuan isn’t surprised that Luo Binghe knows about the library. After Xun Fu taught him how to read, Luo Binghe’s voracious curiosity has led him to read wherever he could get his hands on. Still, a library featuring texts regarding spiritual, demonic and other powerful creatures is typically not something that just anyone can get into. Shen Yuan can see how Luo Binghe might be able to work his way into something like that—especially if he’s friends with the Qin sisters already—but he doubts that Shen Yuan would be allowed in.

There’s also the fact that this creature is almost certainly in no books in this world. Shen Yuan still thinks that it’s something other that doesn’t belong.

But—and here’s the thing—Shen Yuan really wants to go. He loves a lot of the creatures and beasts in this world, but Airplane never went into enough of them to really be satisfying. It’s meant that Shen Yuan will take any ounce of information about them that he can get—even more so now actually! After all, that was technically this body’s birthright to be interested in things like this. Not that he needs the narrative excuse, it’s just a really convenient one.

“And if we get caught?” Shen Yuan asks, trying to temper his excitement. He must not be very convincing, Luo Binghe’s eyes are gleaming like bright stars. Shen Yuan has to look away or his stomach is going to keep feeling weird. “I don’t want to get you in trouble.”

“We won’t,” Luo Binghe says firmly, confidently. Shen Yuan huffs at his friend, and Luo Binghe takes the bowl and fills it again for another serving. Shen Yuan would protest the amount of food he was being given, if he wasn’t very sure that the Washerwoman and Luo Binghe were well fed.

And also if he weren’t sure that he genuinely needed it.

“If I don’t go with you, you’ll just go in by yourself,” Shen Yuan says, carefully avoiding the fact that Binghe is probably allowed to be in there by himself. “We can go then after I eat.”

“After you sleep we can go,” Luo Binghe says firmly. Shen Yuan opens his mouth to protest and his friend huffs, “You’ll fall asleep otherwise, A-Yuan.”

Shen Yuan isn’t sure if he’ll be able to sleep, but he doesn’t say that out loud. Instead he gives a hum of agreement and tucks into the last bowl of his noodles. For the first time since he and Xun Fu left their camp, he feels safe.

That protagonist aura sure is good at that sort of thing.

Chapter Text

Xun Fu has always been a little nervous leaving Shen Yuan behind. Even after all these years, the fear that he’ll return to find the boy missing or worse is a nagging thing. Ever present and bearing down on him like a suffocating cloth—but Xun Fu is used to his worries by now. It’s why he can’t bring himself to just patron the Washerwoman and leave the boy with her entirely. It’s why he doesn’t want to take her son as a disciple (it is getting to the point where he won’t be able to avoid that anymore, will have to officially say yes because he cannot bring himself to say no). Xun Fu worries that he will lose what little he has managed to grasp with his hands, and he knows with acuity that what he has now are two young boys that he may not be strong enough to protect.

These nerves are worse after the encounter at the campsite. He follows Qin Wanshin trough her manor halls, not truly listening to her animated chatter as she talks about the older of her two daughters likely going to Huan Hua Palace this year, though he feels numb. She’s ten now, the perfect age to begin cultivation—Xun Fu thinks of Luo Binghe again and feels his stomach twist in knots. He thinks of a young boy named Bai Chen from almost twelve years ago now, and how he’d be a young man if Xun Fu hadn’t failed to—

“Have you been listening to a thing I’ve been saying?” Qin Wanshin asks, her arms crossing over her chest and her eyes narrowing fiercely. Xun Fu blinks, caught in the cycle of his worries so intensely that it takes a moment for him to realize what she’s said.

“Apologies, Lady Qin,” Xun Fu says deferentially. Her eyes are still on him, “The creature we encountered has been on my mind.”

He has been reminded again of how fragile the lives of what he cares about are.

“En, you mentioned the beast seemed to be made of energy?” Qin Wanshin asks after a pause that lets Xun Fu stew in his discomfort. She continues her walk with her brow furrowed, “This Lady hasn’t heard tell of such a beast before. Though, perhaps the news she has to offer you will put you in a better mood.”

“Regarding Shen Jiu?” Xun fu asks, startled despite himself.

“Do not look so surprised—this Lady may not belong to a large sect any longer, but she is still one of the top minds in the Cultivation Realm,” Qin Wanshin says loftily. “Though she will not deign to suggest that Xun Fu hasn’t given her a challenge with this job.”

As she speaks she reaches into her sleeve and offers a scroll. Xun Fu takes it, opening it up and skimming over the neat handwriting. As he reads, Qin Wanshin continues speaking;

“This Lady discovered that your Shen Jiu was briefly owned by the Qiu family—the trail there ran cold, as that very family found every male in the household brutally murdered,” Qin Wanshin’s eyes are glimmering as she speaks. Despite the grim story that she paints, it is clear that this has been a subject of particular interest to her. Xun Fu hopes that she will not use what she has learned against him or his, but he is not a man able to do the kind of work that she does. “However, a simple rumor of a woman on the hunt for Shen Jiu led us to our greatest lead. Not only was she certain that Shen Jiu had survived the slaughter, but she was certain he instigated it.”

Xun Fu frowns at that—Shen Ruoxi had so loved her little brother but had admitted to him herself that she had not known him for long in their life. They were separated young in the slave trade—Shen Ruoxi having been split into another group that was intercepted by their shizun, Jiang He. He had picked her up there, as well as several other children that joined the sect that he and his friend had started.

Their shizun was a man known for his bleeding heart. He had tried finding Shen Jiu for Shen Ruoxi for years —it seemed that the boy had been picked up by a family. Never to be rescued by Jiang He and whisked away to the ill-fated Xinghui Sect. 

Xun Fu knows it is biased of him… but he was also a child rescued from the streets by Jiang He and he cannot help but think that the manor must have done something to bring such brutality on themselves. He does not comment on the right or wrongness of these doings, simply softly asking, “Do you know where he may be now?”

Qin Wanshin’s eyes are gleaming, and Xun Fu has the distinct feeling that the information she has gathered on this is something that she need not hold over his head. There will be others with much more power that she can heckle with it. He isn’t sure if he should feel guilty regarding that or not. He tries to keep his face carefully blank.

“This was by far the most difficult information to track down,” Qin Wanshin says slowly, her mouth twisting into a bright smile. He would consider her expression almost girl-like if she didn’t look so giddy. At least she only aims above her head and doesn’t punch down, “Someone very powerful is protecting your Shen Jiu from facing his blighted past. No matter—it is information I will happily covet as part of your payment of this. You will find that your Shen Jiu no longer carries that name, and is instead known by Shen Qingqiu. The Xiu Ya Sword, and the strategist Peak Lord of Cang Qiong Sect.”

Xun Fu is glad that they have stopped walking—if they hadn’t, he’d have tripped. As it is, he feels a little dizzy with this information. Shen Qingqiu? He has heard the name, here and there, but nothing much except for rumors that the Peak Lord is extremely difficult to get along with. He considers the few memories Shen Ruoxi liked to go over regarding him and finds that he isn’t terribly surprised by that.

It does complicate things—on the one hand, Xun Fu is happy to know that Shen Jiu still lives and that he may well be able to introduce Shen Yuan to him within the year. On the other hand, Shen Jiu is in a position of power that others may openly covet. Xun Fu has the letter that Shen Ruoxi penned for her brother, as well as several objects that she wished to give him, but they do not at all compare to the prestige of a Peak Lord. What if Shen Qingqiu suspects that Xun Fu is trying to trick him to take advantage of his status?

Not only that, but his history is obviously something he has worked painstakingly to bury. Understandably so. While Xun Fu is certain there is more to the story than a young servant boy snapping and killing his masters ( Only the men, he thinks nervously not liking the picture that that paints for him in the slightest, every male member of the household and staff dead but no women. ) there are few that would see it that way. Especially if Shen Qingqiu is a man who is prone to making enemies and has few friends. Xun Fu is certain that if he reveals he knows that match about his history that he may be written off as a much more dangerous enemy.

“Thanking Lady Qin for her information,” Xun Fu says politely. She watches him with curiosity bright eyes, but Xun Fu does nothing more than pay her after that. As he begins to walk away, his brow furrowing in concentration, Qin Wanshin calls after him.

“I’ll look into that unusual creature you ran into,” Qin Wanshin says, “But perhaps your destination will have the answers for you. I hear that Shen Qingqiu is the Peak Lord of Qing Jing Peak—they’re scholars and strategists there.”

Xun Fu blinks and bows to her again—he doubts that simple rogue cultivators would have access to that information. He does not say as such though, and simply makes his way out of the manor to step back outside. He pauses for a few moments in the courtyard—he could follow after Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan. Catch the boys up and inform Shen Yuan of these changes. Instead, he finds himself turning and heading toward the inn where he will be staying the night with his brow furrowed in thought.

He should… write a letter. Consider what it is he will say to Shen Qingqiu to get him to accept Shen Yuan as his family. Xun Fu had never considered that the man may not be interested in meeting them until he realized his status—he knows that this should have been a thought far sooner though. Not everyone who manages to claw their ways from the gutter are willing to lower themselves even remotely near it again. What if Shen Qingqiu would rather bury every iota of his past as Shen Jiu? Including Shen Ruoxi?

Xun Fu sighs. He’ll add it to the pile of things to worry about he supposes.

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Shen Yuan wakes to the smell of something cooking and the soft murmur of familiar voices. The sounds of the kitchen reach him, and he is comfortable and warm. He’s pretty sure that he’s slept for several hours—especially because he recognizes the other voice in the hut to be the Washerwoman. She and Binghe must be making dinner, which means that most of the day has been devoured by the nap that Shen Yuan decided he had to take.

This should mean that he gets up and out of bed, but Shen Yuan remains where he is, hovering between sleep and being awake. He must have made some movement or noise though, because he feels Luo Binghe’s hand press gently against his cheek. Then, he is aware of fluffy hair falling all over his face as his friend leans down so that their foreheads touch.

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, and his breath tickles Shen Yuan’s cheeks. He cracks his eyes open and tries to give the most unimpressed look he can manage, but it’s no match for the warmth in Luo Binghe’s eyes. “Wake up, Mama and I made some congee for supper.”

“Mmf,” Shen Yuan says, reaching up to push Luo Binghe’s face away. His friend laughs and lets him, but doesn’t completely leave until Shen Yuan sits up. The Washerwoman has set some bowls at the table and looks up in time to see this.

“A-Yuan,” she says with a soft laugh, “Come here you silly boy. Your hair is a mess.”

“I’m not silly,” Shen Yuan says very seriously, knowing that it makes him sound more silly to say it. He still gets up and moves to the Washerwoman’s side. Luo Binghe fetches the comb and she works on fixing the tangles and wild nature of Shen Yuan’s long hair with a soft chuckle.

“Of course, did A-Yuan defeat the blanket that fought him so viciously as to give him such bedhead?” The Washerwoman says, her hands are stiff from the hard work she does, but she is still gentle. The knots she detangles never hurt and she is patient as she works them out of his hair. “There, much more presentable.”

“Thank you,” Shen Yuan says sheepishly, moving to get his bowl of congee and take his seat with Luo Binghe between them. His friend gives Shen Yuan a wide smile.

“Lady Qin says her oldest daughter will be joining Huan Hua Sect this year,” the Washerwoman says.

“Ah—is that Qin Wanrong’s sister?” Shen Yuan asks, Luo Binghe’s nose wrinkles as if he’s bothered by Shen Yuan merely mentioning the young girl. She really wasn’t that bad Binghe! Just a little rowdy, but you’d expect that of any kid her age.

“En, her name is Qin Wanyue,” Luo Binghe says. His nose continues to be wrinkled, and Shen Yuan can’t help but reach out and tap him on the tip of it. Luo Binghe swats his hand away with a laugh, “Stop!”

“Binghe is old enough to start cultivating too,” Shen Yuan says, tipping his head to one side. “I wonder if Xun Fu is going to let you do your bows this year so that you can start…”

“True,” Luo Binghe says, but his tone is subdued. He glances over at his mother, and Shen Yuan understands immediately—aw Binghe! Even with the promise of cultivation, he’s hesitant to leave his mother behind.

【 Reminding User that Luo Binghe’s mother must die for him to join Cang Qiong Sect. 】

Fuck! Shen Yuan thinks, so startled by the pinging Google Translate-esque voice that he actually jumps. He’s aware that Luo Binghe gives him a concerned look but Shen Yuan waves him off as he mentally chides, Now you show up out of nowhere? Are you done malfunctioning now?

【 (╥﹏╥) Thanking User for his concern. This System is 100% back to complete functionality!】

Alright, great. Shen Yuan pauses as he eats and thinks to the System, What was that anomaly thing?

【 An anomaly is something that deviates from the standard, normal or expected. Hope this helps User!】

I wasn’t fucking asking you to give me the definition! Shen Yuan snaps, I meant what the hell was that thing!?

There is a lengthy pause where he gets no answer at all. He thinks that he can hear the sound of the System trying to process the question, but the longer he doesn’t get a response the more disquieted he feels. Is it keeping something from him? Or does it actually not know? He isn’t sure which he finds more unsettling.

【 It is something out of this System’s control. Apologies User, that is all this System can explain.】

Figures, Shen Yuan thinks. He tries not to acknowledge the chill creeping down his spine at the thought that, whatever this is, is something that doesn’t belong so much that the System seems unable to deal with it. But then, is the System able to control much? Surely not most of the people in this world. Not Luo Binghe absolutely—if the System could control a lot then it wouldn’t be pestering him about meeting unavoidable plot points right?

【 Apologies User, it is out of this System’s control.】

“I’ll speak with Xun-xiansheng,” the Washerwoman says thoughtfully. Luo Binghe makes a wounded little noise and she reaches over to pull the boy into her arms. “Oh hush you, I’ll be fine. We’ll write to one another, you and I. And when you visit you can tell me of all your grand adventures in helping people.”

“But won’t Mama get lonely?” Luo Binghe asks, burrowing into her arms.

“Your mother has her friends at the estate,” the Washerwoman chuckles, gently pinching Luo Binghe’s nose. “All she wants is to see her son be who he wants to be. Strong and happy, helping people.”

“What if I can’t get strong enough?” Luo Binghe says softly.

“Binghe is the strongest!” Shen Yuan says, he can’t help but put it in—his throat feels tight with emotion. He doesn’t know what he’s meant to do about Luo Binghe’s mother, it seems to him that Luo Binghe will leave without her dying. Do they have to fridge her just for his whump-heavy backstory?

“He is the strongest,” the Washerwoman agrees with a laugh. Shen Yuan finds himself tugged into the hug as well, “You both are the strongest. You’ll both make me very proud.”

“Mama,” Luo Binghe says softly, sinking into her warmth.

Shen Yuan hugs her tightly. She smells of the washing she’s done through the day—of her hard work. Her hands are rough against their cheeks, but like when she brushed his hair earlier she is unendingly gentle. Shen Yuan realizes, with a jolt, that he cares about her. She’s like family to him. He doesn’t want her to get hurt. He doesn’t want her to die.

For once, when he considers this, the System does not make a comment.

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

It is full dark when Shen Yuan is gently shaken awake. Despite his lengthy nap during the day he had fallen asleep quickly after their dinner with his stomach stuffed full of delicious congee. For a moment he blinks into the dark and sees that Luo Binghe is next to him with his dark eyes glimmering at him. Shen Yuan sits up, rubbing his eyes and getting out of the bed.He pulls on a couple of layers of robes, not as put together as getting fully dressed but enough to be considered decent. Then, he and Luo Binghe creep to the front door and then out into the night.

They are as quiet as possible, and the Washerwoman doesn’t stir the whole time. The two of them remain outside the door for a few moments after shutting it, making sure that she hasn’t woken in the meantime. Then, when nothing happens, they both heave a sigh at the same time. Shen Yuan snorts a laugh after that, and that seems to pop the tense bubble and Luo Binghe has to cover his mouth with both hands to keep from giggling.

“Alright, alright, the library,” Shen Yuan says quietly. 

Luo Binghe’s shoulders are shaking with restrained laughter—possibly simply a case of the late night giggles. It’s infectious though, and Shen Yuan struggles to keep from bursting into laughter himself. He snags Luo Binghe by the hand and tugs him away, toward the manor proper.

The two of them make their way through the moonlit courtyard. There are few people out at this time, mostly guards that keep a watch over the estate at night. Still, Luo Binghe knows exactly where to walk to avoid them. Shen Yuan follows after him like a shadow, until the two of them are up against one of the walls of the manor itself. Luo Binghe pulls open a small door, and gestures for Shen Yuan to step inside.

Secret passageways sound more exciting and fun than they often are—which is to say, that the secret about them is that typically serving staff is wanted to be out of the way for many estate. These are back hallways and passages that allow the staff to move freely and not clog the actual walkways of the manor itself. It makes sense, though isn’t as fun as the initial term makes one think.

It is one of these hallways that they find themselves in. Luo Binghe gestures for Shen Yuan to continue following him. Shen Yuan does so without a word, trusting his friend to know the way. In Proud Immortal Demon Way , Luo Binghe was a voracious reader—it is obvious that he continues to be thus in this world as well. But he’s getting an early headstart on things with the manor’s library here!

And! Shen Yuan has his father’s bestiaries and the demonic cultivation manual as well—these will be indispensable to Luo Binghe. Qing Jing Peak may be the Scholar Peak, but it doesn’t have anything on the firsthand accounts of an actual demon. Especially one that specializes in the taming, breeding and study of demonic creatures and beasts! Take that scum villain!

“Here,” Luo Binghe says, stopping so abruptly that Shen Yuan almost crashes into him. Luo Binghe gives Shen Yuan a look of open amusement at that, but She Yuan pretends he doesn’t see it when he brushes past his friend and into the room.

The library is sprawling and wide—the smell of scrolls and dust permeate the air. Shen Yuan covers his mouth with his sleeve and sneezes as quietly as he can.

“Do they ever even come in here?” Shen Yuan asks, wrinkling his nose. It’s dark, but he reaches into his qiankun pouch to pull out the night pearl that Xun Fu had given him. He cups his fingers around it to dim the light as much as possible before he lights it. Through the crack of his fingers, the light can be faintly seen. It lends the library around them a strange, cozy sort of spookiness that reminds Shen Yuan of nights under blanket forts telling scary stories. 

The two of them make their way through the library, scanning the labels and organizational plaques for the scrolls and books. Shen Yuan pauses in front of one regarding creatures that have escaped from the Abyss, and when Luo Binghe isn’t looking he plucks the book from the shelf and slips it into his pouch.

He hopes they won’t need that, but it won’t hurt to have.

“Are you going to keep that?” Luo Binghe asks him, startling Shen Yuan so badly that he actually drops the pearl with a squeak. Luo Binghe stoops and picks it up, cupping his hand around it as well to try and dim the light that had brightened around them. “Sorry!”

“It just looked interesting,” Shen Yuan says a little defensively.

“A-Yuan can keep what he likes,” Luo Binghe says in response.

“I’m a terrible influence on you,” Shen Yuan despairs, and Luo Binghe laughs at that. It isn’t a loud noise, but Shen Yuan finds it relaxing despite himself. The two of them pick through a few more books to gather into their arms. Then, they slip into the dark secret passageway, out into the courtyard, and then into a little corner near the wood pile where the two of them can st alone.

It is nice over here—there’s a pond nearby that has a few koi swimming in it. Shen Yuan catches himself staring longingly into the water every now and then, eyes drawn by the shift of shimmering scales in the almost ink-black water. His feline distraction doesn’t manage to wrest him away from their current mission though. The two of them set the night pearl up on a nearby stump, choose a book each, and settle next to it.

The night is quiet and peaceful, and Shen Yuan is very focused on a paragraph detailing the dining habits of the Serpent Backed Emerald Feathered Harpy—which he admittedly did get distracted by—when he hears a soft beep. 

【 Warning!】

Shen Yuan freezes where his finger presses against the page. He feels the hair along the back of his neck rise, and knows that if his tail wasn’t hidden by the amulet right now it would be bristling to. System?

【 Å̶͈̹̑n̸̩̠̿ö̴̠̜m̴͕͊͊aly̶̹͎͋ Found! E̸̘͒̚x̸̰͒̋͜t̷̜̪͌̒r̵̖͖̚ë̵̹͉́m̸̘͒̚é̷͓͚̓ ̷̡̧̔C̶̭̘̽̐a̴͕̪͊ution War̵̦̈́͝ŕ̷͕̽ạ̶̯̈́ṇ̸̈͊ẗ̴̻́ͅe̵̼̯̐̌d̵̹̅̋!̸̝̈́ 】

Shen Yuan leaps to his feet, startling Luo Binghe from his reading. The young boy looks up at him, and seems to read his expression quickly. “A-Yuan?”

“Th—it’s,” Shen Yuan can’t think, the System starts it’s alarm again but he mutes it rapidly. He grabs Luo Binghe by the hand and starts to tug him away from their spot, eyes wide as he tries to take in the darkness around them.

His eyesight is useless in this form! He curses, pulling his amulet over his head and ignoring the soft sound of surprise that Luo Binghe makes.

“A-Yuan, if someone catches you—” Luo Binghe frets.

“Binghe, something is here,” Shen Yuan says quietly, and Luo Binghe’s mouth shuts with an audible snap. He steps a little closer to Shen Yuan, shifting so that he is looking into the darkness behind Shen Yuan while Shen Yuan peers into it in front of them. His heart is pounding so hard that he can hardly hear the soft whisper of the wind through the grasses.

Nothing moves in the darkness, the only sound is the wind and the loud sound of Shen Yuan’s rapid breathing. He feels Luo Binghe’s fingers curling around his own after a moment, and Shen Yuan doesn’t flinch. He’s so tense that he feels like he’s become a statue, but when his friend gently tugs on his hand he still looks at him.

“A-Yuan, there’s nothing here,” Luo Binghe says softly.

Shen Yuan opens his mouth and closes it again, his ears flatten against his head and he braces himself for a headache of epic proportions, System? What the fuck?

【 Cong̴̯̤̒r̷͙͑̌a̶̜̝̅t̶̟̏͝u̸̍̃͜l̶͔̼͌͛ā̷̩t̵͍̀̈́ḯ̷̩͓o̷̖͐̓n̶͔̜̏s̶̢̬͊̓!̴͎̉ ̷͎̙̂̈́Ċ̴̢͗ơ̵̫͌n̸̈́͜g̵̠̱̉ratulations! Congratṳ̶̓l̷͎̊̓a̶̧̮͗̋t̵̨̞͠ȋ̵͓͔̈ǒ̷̪͇n̴͔̾͗s̸̯̪̈́̃!̶̉ͅ ̵̱̏͘G̶̓ͅõ̵̬͔̉ǒ̸̖̫͠d̸̗̓ͅ ̶̡̓͜ẗ̵̟́h̷̯̠̐i̵̛̦͓n̶̜̳̈́̎ḡ̴̗̗s̵͕͔̑̂ ̵̧͉̔m̶̟͍̀̿u̸̟͂͒s̷̪̋͝t̴͇̆͠ ̸̩͓̾͘b̸̡̞͝ê̷͚͔ ̷͚̄̎s̷̮̳̄͛ã̶͍͎͝i̴͍͗̔d̴̢̜̍ three times! Req̵̳͉̋̕u̵̩̣̍͝i̵̻̇r̶̰̝̀͊e̶̤̗͘d̸͎̥̔͝ ̸̟͙͗̂p̶̩͐͝l̶͈̭̇o̷̢̗͝ť̵̡͍p̵͓̒ō̷̜̻̾int: A Mo̶͎͉͠t̵̙̜̂h̶̖͔͌̆ḛ̵̛̖ȓ̴̖͕͂'̵̬̀͜s̷̮͓͝ ̷͒͜F̸̢͓̍a̸͕͛͝r̸̖̈́ẻ̸̫̜w̷̢̟͠ell Achieved! B-Points +500̶͎͍̍!̶̤͕̀̆ ̶̲̿͒Ķ̸͚̃e̴͇̽͛e̴͕̅p̶̞̍̒ ̸̻̈́u̷͚̎p̶̥͗ ̵̠̜̿́ẗ̸̯́̚͜h̴̟̫̉e̶̥̤͘͝ ̸̨̧̄͝h̷̤̑á̴̜ͅr̶̩̗̂d̷̢̓́ work!】

It takes him a moment to understand, through the garbled words. Then, like he’s swallowed a ball of ice, he feels cold settle into his chest and stomach. Shen Yuan scoops Luo Binghe up over his shoulder—his friend letting out a surprised sound as he does. He pays it no mind, dreadful certainty has crashed into him. He should be going anywhere else. The opposite direction, if anything at all, but he runs toward that little home.

“A-A-Yuan!?” Luo Binghe squeaks at him, but Shen Yuan keeps running until the house is in his view—and then his knees lock and he trips. Luo Binghe crashes on top of Shen Yuan, elbow accidentally driving between Shen Yuan’s shoulderblades and causing the air to gust out of him painfully. “What’s going—”

Luo Binghe’s words die in his throat as Shen Yuan scrambles to his feet. There is a sound like crackling static, and that strange thing is staring straight at the two of them.

Shen Yuan hardly got a look before—now looking at it makes his head throb painfully. It is a long-limbed thing, the type of creature that can walk on hind legs but run on all fours. There’s something vaguely mammalian about its face, its jaws a mixture of jumping and shimmering darkness and light. The maw is stained with something dark and thick, but what is most noticeable is what dangles from it like a broken doll. Blood drips from the shape it carries, the stench of death is in the air and it makes Shen Yuan’s heart feel cold and hot all at once.

The Washerwoman.

Luo Binghe screams, and Shen Yuan lets out a noise that isn’t human in the slightest. The creature in front of them drops the Washerwoman’s broken corpse, splits its jaws wide, and bellows back at them in a sound that feels like it scrambles Shen Yuan’s brains.

Then, to Shen Yuan’s absolute horror, Luo Binghe rushes at the creature like a wild animal poised to attack.

Chapter Text

Shen Yuan freezes for just a moment too long—he’s unable to snag Luo Binghe as his friend runs forward with red-rimmed eyes and a furious scream. Oh he tries, a second too late his fingers close on empty air and he swears under his breath as the Anomaly Beast turns it’s head toward the protagonist. Those eyes—too bright, glowing unnaturally, image shifting, Shen Yuan swears he can hear static—narrow at Luo Binghe’s reckless approach. One massive paw reaches out, and bats him away in a gesture that could be mistaken for gentleness almost.

It is not gentle. Luo Binghe is sent flying and crashes into the wall of the house, a choked noise escapes him that sounds a cross between pained and frustrated. Shen Yuan runs toward his friend.

“Binghe!” Shen Yuan chokes, there’s blood pouring down Luo Binghe’s face. Shen Yuan feels a nauseous jolt of panic as his friend tries to get up and falls back down. “Don’t, don’t! I’ll carry you, we need to—”

His words cut off when he hears a high-pitched, buzzing whine start from the creature. It throbs in his head and in the roots of his teeth. Shen Yuan scrambles to pull Luo Binghe up and into his arms, but Binghe squirms against him. Struggles, his eyes flashing with a wild fury so unlike the warm-hearted boy that Shen Yuan has come to know.

“I’ll kill it!” He seethes.

“No, it’ll kill you ,” Shen Yuan snaps. “You’re too little— we’re too little! Luo Binghe, you’re not stupid! Snap out of it!”

Shen Yuan doesn’t get a chance to see if his words manage to soothe his friend. Claws sink into Shen Yuan’s back and pain explodes through him. Shen Yuan lets out a shriek that is a mix of a child’s scream and a caterwaul, dropping Luo Binghe and twisting around to lash out at what attacked him. It’s pure instinct , all lashing tails and panicked hissing as Shen Yuan slashes with his claws at the creature’s paw. The pain sinks into some different part of his brain.

Survive, survive, survive! Shen Yuan isn’t sure if he’s thinking the word or feeling it alone. He’s not sure if he is landing any of his scratches effectively, only that he’s sinking his claws wherever he can get them and writhing furiously. Shen Yuan’s fear has transformed into something closer to fury now. 

The creature bleeds, but the blood is foul and bitter. There’s a metallic taste to it unlike the iron tang of blood, it makes his teeth ache like he’s decided to chew on aluminum foil. The creature seems to decide that Shen Yuan is not worth the trouble, and it’s when it drops him that Shen Yuan realizes he was lifted off the ground in the first place.

Somehow, he lands on his feet. His instincts have flipped though, and while his head screams for him to run he can’t seem to make himself move. What he’s struck by now is an unreasonable rage, it leaves his ears buzzing and a low growl is edging out of his throat It rises to an eerie yowling noise, and Shen Yuan lashes his tail as he fixes his eyes on the anomaly’s glowing ones.

Shen Yuan is aware of Luo Binghe staggering to his feet behind him, but only barely. Only in the sense that he shifts his stance slightly, as if to block the other boy behind him. He hisses furiously. “Don’t touch him!”

【 Ű̶͓̥̀s̸̬̄er awarded 300̶͚̻̋ B-Points. User sh̷̦͛o̷̧̞͗̄u̷ld ̷͓̜̈̃n̷͚̍ȯ̵̳t̶͇̒ ̵͍̱͆̃é̵̪n̸͙͗gag̵̠̑e̷̠͋ ̵̻͐̒ŵ̴͕̠ï̶̦̝̕th ̷͈̫̽anomal̴̢̠͌͠ȯ̵̟̭́ȗ̵͈ş̵͉͐̽ ̷̢͝ȇ̷̢͙ntity̷̪̩̕!̷̢̒̈́ ̶͔͂̄Userr̸͔̫̊̓ ̴̝̈́a̸dvis̷̙͝é̵͍̬ḓ̷̛ ̴̼̋t̶̹̚ö̷͚́ͅ ̸̘̜̔ȋ̸͇ḿ̵̛͍m̵̮̽́e̵͙̔͌diately ̴̧͇̀l̴̯͖̉̕ȇ̵̼͘a̶̟̅v̸̡̛e! 】

The beast swipes at Luo Binghe.

Some unseen thread of tension snaps, and Shen Yuan lunges forward. The creature slashes down at him, and Shen Yuan lumps toward its face. His claws sink in deep , and the beast howls as it rears back so hard that Shen Yuan’s back legs are kicking at the air. He hisses furiously, his ears are ringing with the sound the beast is making. The high pitched, whining buzz crescendos, Shen Yuan can feel it vibrating in his chest.

Then, a spark of electricity painfully arcs through Shen Yuan. He yowls, his muscles seizing against their will. The night around them is suddenly blindingly bright, and Shen Yuan realizes that the Anomaly Beast has fired the beam of energy it had before. The one that had completely destroyed their camp.

Then he crashes to the ground and the beast’s massive claws pin him to the ground. They dig into his chest, Shen Yuan hisses, twisting to try and get away but the Anomaly Beast is too large. Too strong. He tastes blood in his mouth—is he going to die here?

There is a cracking noise and the beast’s claws let up just enough weight so that Shen Yuan can squirm free. The claws rake him, but he manages to get out of the Anomaly Beast’s grip and finds his hand grabbed by Luo Binghe’s the next second. The other boy’s eyes are wild with panic, and his friend pulls him to his feet. He’s saying something, but Shen Yuan can’t hear him over the screech of the Anomaly Beast.

Shen Yuan stumbles as Luo Binghe tugs him and starts to run. He tries to stay on his feet, but he trips and drags them both down. Luo Binghe yanks them both up, and then the two of them do what they should have done in the first place. They run .

The buzzing whine is so loud that Shen Yuan wonders if it’s actually the noise of the Anomaly Beast, or if he’s just having the worst case of tinnitus to ever exist. But under the deafening noise he hears the sound of thunderous pawsteps behind them. Luo Binghe yanks the two of them left, just as massive jaws click shut with a snap that Shen Yuan can almost feel in his bones.

“Binghe—” Shen Yuan starts, he wants to tell his friend to go get Xun Fu while he distracts the Anomaly Beast. He wants to tell him to leave Shen Yuan and run for his own life. None of these things come out, instead he feels himself clutching at his friend’s hand for dear life. “Binghe we can’t.”

Binghe tugs them right next, and Shen Yuan stumbles a little but catches his feet the next moment. He struggles to keep up with his friend. He feels dizzy and realizes with a strange distance that he’s sticky and wet. Did he fall in some mud at some point?

He doesn’t have the time to think about it. Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan dart around the manor’s grounds, until they find themselves at the outer wall. Luo Binghe makes a strangled noise of panic, and Shen Yuan turns to face the Anomaly Beast again. He wars with resignation and the desire to fight until he can’t move anymore. Until it kills him.

Before it can attack again a gleaming sword glare cuts through the night, crashing into the Anomaly Beast’s side and causing it to stumble in its run. It turns its head with a furious scream that makes Shen Yuan flinch and cover his ears reflexively—but even so, he looks to where the glare came from and his heart leaps in his throat.

“Xun-xiansheng!” Luo Binghe yells, relief bleeding into his tone. “And Lady Qin!”

Xun Fu stands with his simple spiritual sword in his hand, the edges of it still glowing with the light of the spiritual energy he pushed through it. Next to him is a woman who Shen Yuan has never met, her face grim and her dark eyes narrowed up at the Anomaly Beast. It is obvious that her own sword is of a much higher caliber than Xun Fu’s.

Xun Fu once told Shen Yuan that the sword had no name—that few sects were able to get devices of such a high caliber easily. But in that moment, Shen Yuan can’t think of a more heroic picture. Xun Fu’s robes whip wildly around him, and he sends another sword glare at the Anomaly Beast.

What follows is a deadly dance of blade and slashing claws. For every swipe of the beast’s claws, Xun Fu barely brings his sword up to block it. The metal of the blade clangs and sparks fly. Xun Fu moves with a grace that belies his stockier frame—as if his body is as light as a feather to him. Even still, when the blows of his sword collide with the Anomaly Beast’s claws the weight behind them is evidently powerful.

While he drives the beast back, trading blows and blocking them, Lady Qin sends her own sword glares into the fray. Every slash seems calculated carefully, and when she dives in close the creature snaps at her with its teeth to try to bite. However, Xun Fu takes that moment to drive the blade of his sword deep into the beast’s haunches, causing it to scream and slash its claws down his chest.

I was afraid it would kill him so easily, Shen Yuan thinks, dizzy and in awe by Xun Fu’s prowess. Even still, though Xun Fu’s blade slashes the creature every now and then it doesn’t seem hurt so much as angry. As if every single cut it takes as a personal slight, it grows more violent and Shen Yuan feels like he’s going to be sick.

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, shoving his hands into Shen Yuan’s sleeves to pull out his qiankun pouch. His fingers are trembling as he fishes out the amulet and pauses, “If I put this on will you be able to heal?”

Shen Yuan doesn’t know how to answer—Luo Binghe frowns and loops the amulet over Shen Yuan’s head. The strange dizzy feeling increases, but so does the pain . Shen Yuan staggers, and realizes with a rush of embarrassment that he’s whimpered about it. Come on now!

“I know, I know,” Luo Binghe says, his voice choking with sobs. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry A-Yuan.”

Why are you apologizing to me? Shen Yuan thinks, but he feels himself tugged into Luo Binghe’s arms. He hisses in pain despite himself, but Luo Binghe just sobs and doesn’t seem to know what he can do.

Xun Fu crashes into the ground a few meters away, and Shen Yuan jumps with surprise. The man is on his feet in a way that makes even being thrown look graceful, talismans at his fingertips and hurtling at the beast. Xun Fu barely yanks his hand back in time to avoid the Anomaly Beast’s jaws and keep his hand. Instead he casts a glance over his shoulder.

The Anomaly Beast drives forward, this time bolder, and its jaws snap shut around Xun Fu’s middle. The man grunts in pain, but at that exact moment a spiritual blast is fired down the creature’s gullet. Behind the beast, a massive sword glare—so bright that for a moment Shen Yuan can’t see at all—slices the creature’s torso down the middle.

Its jaws go lax and with a rasping hiss it falls to the side. Xun Fu staggers a bit, slamming the blade of his sword into the ground and heaving out a shaking breath. Luo Binghe sags against Shen Yuan completely, a sob escaping his chest. Standing with her blade in hand, Lady Qin approaches the dead Anomaly Beast with a frown.

It rapidly disintegrates, like sand blowing into the wind. Not even bones or organs remain, only the grass stained black with its miasma. Only then does Lady Qin let out a soft sigh of relief.

Xun Fu seems to force himself to his feet before he limps to where Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe are. He looks over them both, eyes wide with panic, “Xiao-Yuan, look at you—ah, Xiao-Binghe you too. You’re both hurt. I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner.”

Luo Binghe’s sobs burst into a wail at that, and he buries his face into Xun Fu’s arms. The man stumbles, but he doesn’t fall backward since Lady Qin manages to keep him steady. Her expression seems distant as she assesses the damage to her courtyard.

“My mother, my mother,” Luo Binghe sobs. Xun Fu looks toward the direction of the home.

“I’ll go check on her,” Lady Qin says, she sounds very composed despite everything. She does not sheathe her blade as she heads in the direction of where Luo Binghe’s mother was dropped. Shen Yuan’s throat feels  tight, and he hugs Luo Binghe as close as he can without hurting himself. 

“Are you okay?” Shen Yuan asks Xun Fu, he keeps seeing the jaws of that beast snap around the man’s torso. He wants to look, he wants to help make sure he’s fine, but Xun Fu only nods slightly and rests the palm of his hand against Shen Yuan’s shoulder. A warm burst of spiritual qi starts to push through his veins. He hasn’t started to properly cultivate on the spiritual side, but it seems to help regardless.

He feels like he is basking in the sun on a day that is almost too cool to do so. Like he can taste the smell of fall on his tongue. It is not a cold feeling, it is warm like being sheltered from the oncoming winter. It’s familiar, and Shen Yuan leans into Xun Fu’s hand with a shaky sigh.

He has no reason to cry. It isn’t him who has been hurt—well okay. He’s been hurt but not emotionally technically. So why does it feel like his chest is aching so badly? Why does his throat feel so tight?

Back in his original world, Shen Yuan had the fortune of being a wealthy second-gen son. Perhaps as a result of that, his grandparents and other family were quite wealthy and well-cared for. Shen Yuan hadn’t even had one of them pass away, let alone something as terrible as this.

You knew , he thinks to himself with no small amount of accusation. He finds himself pressing his face into Luo Binghe’s fluffy hair, and ignoring the burn of the wounds on his body as he hugs his friend close. You knew she had to die. That something was going to happen.

Not this though.

Lady Qin returns in less than an incense time. There are staff with her now, looking shaken and terrified. She shakes her head at Xun Fu slowly, and Xun Fu sighs. Luo Binghe sobs, burying himself closer to the man. As if he can hide from the whole world that was so cruel to tear his mother away. 

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

Despite his injuries, Xun Fu carries both Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan to the inn. The two boys protest, but Xun Fu won’t be swayed and neither of them have the strength to get out of his grip. They resign themselves to their fates, and when they are in their room at the inn Xun Fu orders water for them to bathe. 

Xun Fu tends to their wounds first, and when those are property cleaned the two boys bathe. They’re both silent—Shen Yuan’s body hurts and aches all over. He knows that there will be bruising along with the cuts and wounds. Still, he’s careful to clean up best he can.

It isn’t until Xun Fu tucks Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan in to bed that he moves behind the privacy screen to bathe himself. Shen Yuan watches him go carefully, before turning his eyes up to the ceiling. He’s exhausted after the adrenaline left him. His eyes feel heavy, but his heart is too and he feels like sleep is just dancing out of his grasp.

Luo Binghe cries softly next to him.

“Binghe,” Shen Yuan says softly, wrapping his arms around Luo Binghe. His friend snuggles closer to him. “Shhh, Binghe.”

“She must have been so scared,” Luo Binghe sobs. “Did she notice we were gone? Did she think it killed us? A-Yuan, she must have been terrified .”

Shen Yuan swallows thickly. He presses his face into Luo Binghe’s hair again and rubs his back soothingly. Shen Yuan is hyper-aware of the bandages wrapped around his friend’s torso. Proof that this has been more than just emotional pain for him. 

“I’m sorry—I—it… it…” Shen Yuan can’t speak. He doesn’t know what to say. Isn’t this their fault? Shen Yuan’s fault even? They ran from the Anomaly Beast. Then it showed up here and killed Binghe’s mother. The guilt seems to shred him from the inside. He realizes that, to his horror, he is also crying. “I’m sorry Binghe.”

“It’s not A-Yuan’s fault,” Luo Binghe says with a sob. “I thought I lost  you too. I thought—I thought that because I tried to fight it it was going to kill you. And then you kept fighting it to protect me. I can’t lose A-Yuan, I just lost my mother. I can’t lose you too.”

Shen Yuan hugs Luo Binghe tighter. Hoping that this can somehow convince him that Shen Yuan is still here. That he isn’t going anywhere.

“You won’t, I promise,” Shen Yuan swears to him. “Binghe will never lose me, no matter what he does or what happens. I’ll always find my way to him.”

“I’ll find you too. No matter what,” Luo Binghe says nasally. His voice is still tear choked, his eyes gleaming with tears in the dark. “I’ll never leave I promise A-Yuan.”

The oath feels gravely serious, despite its being made by children. But then, what could be more serious about two kids that have just been violently reminded of their mortality? That have just been shown the very cruelty of the world?

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Shen Yuan wakes the next morning before Luo Binghe. The morning light seeps through the window, and Luo Binghe’s chest rises and falls with the deep breaths of sleep. Shen Yuan can hear Xun Fu moving around the room, and he turns to look over at his guardian for a moment. Shen Yuan remembers the image of Xun Fu with his sword held out, blade gleaming from its sword glare, and feels a strong surge of fondness for the man.

“Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan says softly, and Xun Fu is over by the bed in moments. He adjusts the blanket for Shen Yuan, looking worriedly over Luo Binghe for a moment. “Thank you for saving us.”

“What is that for? ‘Thank you’ he says,” Xun Fu huffs, but he hugs Shen Yuan. “I couldn’t let you two die. I’m here to protect you both now.”

Xun Fu’s expression grows a little strained and he straightens slightly with a sigh.

“Did it badly injure you?” Shen Yuan asks, staring Xun Fu in the eye. The man looks away after only a few moments.

“I’ll live,” he says affectionately, ruffling Shen Yuan’s hair. “We’re going to be going to a sect with a very good doctor, I’ll see what I can do to get him or his staff to take a look at me. Does that make Xiao-Yuan feel better?”

Shen Yuan narrows his eyes but nods slowly. Xun Fu ruffles his hair again—ugh, he’s lucky that he’s technically still in bed!—before he looks over to Luo Binghe and grows pensive in expression. He sighs and then gently adjusts the blanket for the two of them again.

“We’ll bring Xiao-Binghe with us,” Xun Fu says, brushing his thumb over Luo Binghe’s forehead as if to check for fever. He does the same to Shen Yuan a moment later before nodding in satisfaction. “We’re going to Cang Qiong Sect.”

Shen Yuan sits up, eyes wide, “Why there?”

Luo Binghe stirs where he sleeps, grumbling under his breath.He pulls Shen Yuan down so that the other boy squawks with surprise, snuggling close to him. Shen Yuan huffs trying to squirm from his friend’s iron grip.

“...I know where Shen Yuan’s jiujiu is,” Xun Fu says. “He’s a member of the sect. Your mother wanted you together.”

“You’ll still stay right?” Shen Yuan asks, fingers catching the hem of Xun Fu’s sleeve. “You won’t leave Binghe and I there all alone?”

“What kind of guardian would I be if I left you all alone just like that?” Xun Fu chuckles. “Don’t you worry, you won’t get me out of your hair for some time yet Xiao-Yuan. If I can’t stay we’ll figure out our next steps carefully.”

Shen Yuan relaxes at that, sinking back against Luo Binghe with a sigh. He’d rather stay away from Cang Qiong but it seems that the plot wants them there. He can’t deny that he’s leery of avoiding it too much now. Not after what happened last night. Still, he hopes that they can at least avoid the Scum Villain.

“Go back to sleep,” Xun Fu tells him, “It’s still early.”

Shen Yuan makes a soft noise of protest, but as Xun Fu gets up and busies himself with whatever it was he was doing before, his eyes grow heavy. Shen Yuan finds that he can’t fight sleep even a second time, and eventually is dragged under into chaotic dreams.

Chapter Text

The Washerwoman is buried three days after the attack—long enough for Xun Fu to make sure that she has a proper memorial tablet to wipe down and burn incense at. Shen Yuan goes through those days within arm’s reach of Luo Binghe as much as possible. Just in case. Xun Fu is busy the most during those three days though. Tracking down the right people for burial, a monk to ensure that rites have been made so that she does not rise as a walking corpse and working to gather new supplies to take Binghe with the two of them. Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe rarely see him, they stay quietly in the room at the inn in the meantime.

On the seventh day of her death, Xun Fu brings Luo Binghe to her grave to say goodbye. He had explained to the boys that he wanted her Earth Soul to have made its return, giving her the chance to see Luo Binghe one more time before departing to the Underworld to prepare for reincarnation into her next life. That way, she would hear Luo Binghe’s words and know that he was safe. That way her soul would rest easily.

Now Shen Yuan is watching as Xun Fu quietly speaks with Luo Binghe at his mother’s grave. Curiosity itches at him, as well as the desire to protect his friend from the world right now, as to what they are speaking about. But it feels private, so he plucks at the hems of his sleeves and tries not to sneak over to eavesdrop. That would be rude, probably.

“At your age, one should stand properly,” the mild voice of a woman startles Shen Yuan from his thoughts. He looks up to see Lady Qin standing at his side, her eyes are twinkling despite what she’s just said. “Shen Yuan-gongzi doesn’t wish to join his family in their mourning?”

Shen Yuan blinks and looks over to where his friend and Xun Fu are. Xun Fu is crouched next to Luo Binghe, a broad hand resting on the boy’s shoulders as he speaks with him in a low tone. It feels so private. Shen Yuan isn’t… he doesn’t know how to deal with grief. Even after he died and woke up in this world, he just shoved the loss of his own family into a corner where he could conveniently ignore it. He doesn’t know what he can say or do, except to hold Binghe. He doesn’t feel like it’s his right to grieve the Washerwoman.

He didn’t do anything to protect her. Regardless of what the System said.

“I—this Shen thinks that Luo Binghe needs a moment with Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan says slowly. He looks up to Lady Qin’s face, “I don’t… it’s not…”

Shen Yuan can’t find the words. He doesn’t deserve to mourn for the Washerwoman. He doesn’t know her name. Just that she is Binghe’s mom. That she is like his mom. As a child, you don’t really ask for the names of adults around you that you just know by their titles. It had occurred to Shen Yuan a few times to ask after hers, but he never worked up the courage. Too little too late, he supposes.

“Mn, I can understand how you might feel like that,” Lady Qin says softly. Shen Yuan glances up at her. “Would Shen-gongzi give Lady Qin his hand for a moment?”

Shen Yuan blinks, reaching up to hold out his hand. She takes it and flips it so that his palm faces up—as though she intends to read the lines of it—and then places a small coin in the center of it. It hurts —a spark of burning pain that makes him jerk his hand back with a gasp and out of her grip. The coin falls to the ground sizzling, and Lady Qin’s eyes are bright with excitement.

“Forgive this Lady,” she says, sounding not at all sorry for what she has done.

“What—what was that? It hurt,” Shen Yuan says, there’s a burn in the center of his palm. He rubs at it with his finger and winces, turning baleful eyes up on the woman in front of him. She still does not look sorry in the slightest.

“This Lady saw,” Lady Qin says, holding a finger to her lips which curl into a smile. It takes a few seconds for it to click in Shen Yuan’s head, and a chill races down his spine at the realization. Her eyes are filled with curiosity, “Shen-gongzi is a demon, isn’t he? Or perhaps something closer to a Yao? Fascinating that you’re living so close to humans if that’s the case, and with a cultivator no less.”

“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Shen Yuan says, he desperately wishes he could hide. Or that Xun Fu could be a little bit closer. He’s very aware that Lady Qin has positioned herself so that she is between him and his guardian and friend. He takes a step backwards.

“Don’t be frightened little one,” Lady Qin says with a soft laugh, “This Lady only has questions for you. Would you answer them?”

“No,” Shen Yuan says. He wishes his voice didn’t shake, he intends the word to be firm but it comes out small and frightened.

“I’ll give you something if you do,” Lady Qin coaxes, and Shen Yuan narrows his eyes at her. Creep! What, is she going to scoop him up and run off while Xun Fu yells “kidnapper” after her!? He takes a hesitant step backwards, frowning. “No? Your… A-Die? …Xun Fu. He said you like to read. I’ve got a really big library. Do you want to come see?”

“I don’t know how to read,” Shen Yuan lies, taking another step backwards.

“Just like you aren’t a Yao,” Lady Qin says with no small amount of amusement in her tone. “Come now, there must be something this Lady can provide you. Maybe a spiritual device? You look like a curious boy, I bet you’d like to see that right?”

“Why are you offering Xiao-Yuan a spiritual device?” Xun Fu asks, causing Lady Qin to straighten with a sigh. Shen Yuan really is a coward, when you come right down to it. He immediately darts behind his garden, clutching onto fabric of his robes to hide like a shy toddler. Xun Fu looks down at him with a concerned expression, “What were you doing to him?”

“I wasn’t doing anything,” Lady Qin says, sounding mildly offended. “Truly Xun Fu, this Lady is only curious about your young ward.”

“He’s not the shy sort,” Xun Fu says, his tone low and warning.

“This Lady merely made note of some things during the incident a few days ago,” Lady Qin says lightly. She bends down and somehow manages to make picking up a coin look elegant and nonchalant. She tosses it to Xun Fu, who catches it and stares at the coin for a few moments. His mouth sets in a grim line, “But since her curiosity is not to be sated this day, she will simply leave Xun Fu and his young ones with a bit of advice.”

Shen Yuan casts a look over his shoulder to where Luo Binghe stares vacantly at the memorial tablet. Xun Fu rests his hand on top of Shen Yuan’s head, but Shen Yuan gets the distinct sense that he’d rather be resting it on the hilt of his sword instead. Lady Qin, for her part, looks perfectly unruffled and calm. 

“It would behoove young demons to control their qi best that they can, even when not disguised as human,” Lady Qin says slowly. “Not all will be as magnanimous as this Lady and merely curious about what they may discover otherwise. There are ways to train against methods of testing, such as that coin. Living amongst cultivators without a true seal will be more dangerous if they do not prepare for such. Especially in a place such as Cang Qiong Sect.”

“Lady Qin Wanshi’s advice would be useful to young demons, but not to a wandering cultivator and the young boys he is looking after,” Xun Fu responds. His words are gruff and have a note of irritability that Shen Yuan does not often see on display. “We will be taking our leave. Xiao-Binghe!”

Luo Binghe jolts as if he’s been shocked and looks up from the grave. He hurries over to where Shen Yuan and Xun Fu stand before giving a very polite bow to Lady Qin. Her eyes soften at the sight of him. Protagonist bias! 

“Luo Binghe, should you ever wish to visit your mother and offer her incense know you will always be welcome,” Lady Qin says gently. “Take care on your journey, Qin Wanyue and Qin Wanrong will miss you terribly.”

“Thanking Lady Qin,” Luo Binghe says softly, cupping his hands to her. She smiles at him and straightens.

“This invitation extends to Shen-gongzi and Xun Fu as well, of course,” Lady Qin says. “With the hope that there would be a conversation or two in return. Until such a time comes, this Lady must bid you all farewell.”

After this, she politely takes her leave. Shen Yuan watches her go, trying to decide if he should be on edge about her or not. She seems nice to Binghe, but Luo Binghe is the protagonist! Granted this is supposed to be the arc where everyone is awful to Luo Binghe. Xun Fu watches her go with a grimace, his hand finally dropping to his sword and gripping the hilt for a few moments. He lets it go with a sigh.

“Do you want to say goodbye one more time?” Xun Fu asks, looking at Luo Binghe again. Luo Binghe looks over his shoulder and swallows thickly. Shen Yuan grabs his hand and squeezes his fingers gently. He ignores the stinging pain in his palm, and it is worth it for the very little smile that Luo Binghe gives him in return.

“No… I’m okay,” Luo Binghe says, wiping his eyes and reaching up with his free hand to curl his fingers around the fake jade guanyin around his neck. Even with the story changed at least he has this last item to remember her by.

“Xiao-Yuan,” Xun Fu says, nudging him. “She would have wanted you to say goodbye.”

Shen Yuan wants to protest. But he can’t quite find the will to do so, not with Luo Binghe right here. He walks over to her memorial tablet, taking one of the incense sticks and placing it in the burner. He lights it clumsily, fingers shaking as he kneels at the grave and quietly stares at the tablet.

“Song Jia”. Shen Yuan’s throat feels tight. With the character for family. Shen Yuan traces his thumb over the engraved name, heart feeling heavier and heavier.

He hates that this is how he’s learning her name. He bows until his head touches the ground in front of him, his throat feels tight and strangled. He is weighed down by the knowledge of a grown man in the face of death, and with the emotional bandwidth of a fucking child. It’s so unbelievably overwhelming. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispers to her grave. “I’m sorry I don’t think this was better. Maybe—I’m happy you got more time with Binghe. But I… I couldn’t help you. I hope that you weren’t too afraid. I—I.”

The words choke in his throat, and he closes his eyes. He takes a few deep breaths, ignores the heat in his face, the fact that his cheeks are wet. This is why he didn’t want to do this, something about this makes him want to freeze in this spot and never move. It makes everything impossible to ignore. 

“I won’t leave Binghe alone,” Shen Yuan promises. “He’s so good, and I’ll stay with him and help him remember that okay? I—I couldn’t… I couldn’t stop this but maybe I can make things better for him. I’m sorry that’s all I can do.”

A heavy weight clasps his shoulder, and Shen Yuan jumps—Xun Fu is crouched next to him, eyes bright with concern. Soft. Luo Binghe latches onto Shen Yuan the second that he gets to his feet, almost knocking him to the ground. 

“A-Yuan, it wasn’t your fault,” Luo Binghe says, words muffled against Shen Yuan’s shoulder. Xun Fu wraps his arms around both of them and squeezes the two of them tightly. “A-Yuan can miss her, but he’s not allowed to blame himself.”

You don’t understand, Shen Yuan wants to say to them. I knew. I knew and I didn’t warn you. Or her. I valued my life more than hers, and because of that she’s gone.

【 User need not commit self-flagellation over this! User would do well to remember that even without his presence in this world, Song Jia was destined to die. 】

He doesn’t respond to that. Instead, he lets himself sink into the holds of both Luo Binghe and Xun Fu. He rubs Luo Binghe’s back, and sniffles around his tears with a slight huff.

“I should be comforting Binghe,” Shen Yuan says softly.

“I know that A-Yuan loved her too,” Luo Binghe says. “And that he knows I’m hurting.”

Xun Fu squeezes both of them tightly, as if he hopes that he can shield them better that way. All it does is make the air puff out of both Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe. Despite himself, Shen Yuan sputters a laugh. He squirms, tired of the hug. Xun Fu lets them both go, standing up with a wince and rubbing his side with a sigh.

“Alright,” Xun Fu says. “Are you two ready?”

Shen Yuan finds that Luo Binghe’s fingers are curled around his own. He doesn’t have the heart to pull his hand away. And if he squeezes Luo Binghe’s hand back himself for comfort, well that’s just between him and the protagonist. They both nod.

Xun Fu leads the two of them away. Lady Qin still stands at the entrance to the gravesite. She smiles at them, but Xun Fu moves Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe so that they’re walking with Xun Fu between them and her. He doesn’t take his eyes off of her until they leave the gates behind them. Shen Yuan half expects her to follow them.

She doesn’t.

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They don’t get far in terms of travel that day—Xun Fu doesn’t want to push them too hard and he’d like to test Luo Binghe’s physical endurance. It isn’t Luo Binghe that makes Xun Fu pause for camp though, but the pain that starts to throb from his side. He’s careful to keep it off of his face, but it has begun to pulse with his heartbeat. Travel is quiet between the three of them, so when they finally break to make camp Xun Fu assigns the children a task.

“Xiao-Binghe, Xiao-Yuan, I want you to stay within a li of this clearing and to look for some forageables,” Xun Fu says sternly to the two of them. Shen Yuan perks up visibly, the first time since they left the gravesite really. He feels a small twinge of relief at that, “Xiao-Yuan, explain to him how to identify what you find.”

“Okay!” Shen Yuan’s green eyes are brighter than they have been in a while. He goes to remove his amulet and Xun Fu stops him by resting his palm against his head.

“Ah—no. You need to keep that on,” Xun Fu keeps his tone stern. Shen Yuan’s brow furrows and Xun Fu adds, “We’ll be at Cang Qiong for quite some time, if all goes well. You need to get used to working with that on. We don’t need any repeats of whatever Lady Qin Wanshi was threatening you about.”

“She was threatening A-Yuan?” Luo Binghe says, his eyes on his friend narrowing. “What did she say?”

“I—I don’t know about threat ,” Shen Yuan says. “She just said she saw this one with his amulet off…”

Xun Fu taps the boy on the top of his head with one finger, “Xiao-Binghe should also not know about this. But he does, doesn’t he?”

Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe both wince and Xun Fu sighs. He’d guessed long ago that Shen Yuan had spilled that secret to his friend. At least Luo Binghe is a trustworthy boy, and there is no question that he’s loyal to Shen Yuan. Xun Fu tries to set his own misgivings aside.

“This will be your first task as disciples,” Xun Fu says, ignoring the way his stomach twists a little at the words. Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe straighten, exchanging excited glances.

“Shouldn’t we do our bows?” Luo Binghe asks.

Xun Fu shakes his head, “I’m not really… the traditional sort. You’re my disciples, I’m your shizun. That’s enough right?”

“Fu-ge, I don’t think that’s how it works,” Shen Yuan says with a sputtered laugh.

“That’s ‘Shizun’ to you now,” Xun Fu teases, and Shen Yuan rolls his eyes. Luo Binghe is looking at him with excitement though. Good. The boy needs focus to not drown in his grief. Xun Fu will be happy to give him something to focus on. This, he thinks, is worth the small amount of discomfort he has at being a shizun at all. The boys need this. Focus is good. “We’ll work on some meditation techniques after dinner and before bed. Be back in a shi.”

“Yes Shizun!” Luo Binghe says excitedly. Shen Yuan rolls his eyes again, but he has a slight smile and it’s more than Xun Fu has seen in days. Xun Fu watches the two boys as they hurry off into the treeline, and waits until they’re out of sight.

After they leave he lets himself relax, and lets out a soft hiss of pain. He leans against the tree that he’s next to and exhales through his nose slowly, keeping up appearances to keep the boys from worrying is exhausting, but he can’t trouble them. These last few days have been bad enough for them. Besides, Xun Fu needs to be strong for them. They need him right now.

It’s this reminder that lets him set up the new tent. Xun Fu hurries to do so, ignoring the pain that grows in his side as he moves more and more. By the time the tent is up, he feels lightheaded and weak in the knees. He still has time left, so he ducks into the tent and keeps an ear out for the boys. As he does, he removes some of his layers to rebandage his wound.

It should be healed by now, but it isn’t. Of course not. Whatever that strange beast was, it certainly had a nasty bite. Xun Fu winces as he pulls the bandages off. The wound looks red and swollen. He rubs some medicine into it, and even that small touch makes him grit his teeth. The pain is intense, it makes the tips of his fingers twitch and he has to pause every few seconds to breathe. A cold sweat has broken out over his back.

Damn, he thinks to himself. This is bad.

It’s an understatement. It’s worse than bad, the physician he saw back in the city saidas much. The man hadn’t even been sure that the medicine he gave Xun Fu would help. It deosn’t matter, he’ll talk to the healer when they get to Cang Qiong. Mu Qingfang’s skills are legendary, and Xun Fu has coin, hopefully that will be enough to get help. He can make it that far, surely. He’s a cultivator. 

The boys need him. He can do this.

Xun Fu exhales, wrapping fresh bandages around himself stiffly. At least he managed to dissuade Shen Yuan from removing the amulet. It’s better that Shen Yuan practice with it on, really it is. It just also has the benefit that it hides the smell of infection from his keen nose. Xun Fu has to be strong for them.

He burns the old bandages with a flare of qi. It makes the wound in his side twinge painfully, but he ignores it for now. Xun Fu can hear the chatter of Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan in the clearing, and it’s time to square his shoulders again. 

He’ll get them through this.

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“These look poisonous,” Shen Yuan is saying to Luo Binghe, “See the bright colors? This usually warns predators not to eat it. We can eat it just fine though! It’s actually a case of—”

“Did my disciples find something for dinner?” Xun Fu asks, interrupting Shen Yuan’s very important rambling. Shen Yuan feels a little put out for it, but Xun Fu is watching them both with a fond smile.

“Yes Shizun!” Luo Binghe chirps, and really it’s kind of adorable how much the protagonist gets so much joy out of that. See? Xun Fu is much nicer than Shen Jiu. Sure they’re going to Cang Qiong, but that doesn’t mean that he needs to be taught by the scum villain! Luo Binghe’s got a good shizun now!

“Good, bring it here so that we can get started on that—ah. Xiao-Yuan says that Xiao-Binghe is good at cooking. Has he ever cooked over a campfire?” Xun Fu asks. Luo Binghe shakes his head, and Xun Fu gestures for the protagonist to come over to him. “Here, I’ll show you how. Xiao-Yuan, clean the ingredients for us please.” 

“Sure, sure,” Shen Yuan says, but he sits down and pulls out Xun Fu’s qiankun pouch. He roots around in it for a moment, before pulling out a small clay jug of water with a spell etched into it. It’s a simple little thing, but will pour out clean water reliably. It’s probably Shen Yuan’s favorite camping item. An almost endless jug of clean water? He wishes Airplane made more practical things like this in the world. This is handy to have. Xun Fu explained it to him once that the water isn’t just created by the jug, but sort of teleported out of it. So as long as the spring it is attached to is running clear and isn’t dried up, then the jug will have water.

Very useful!

He uses the jug to wash what they’ve foraged—they happened on a patch of Bright Painted Biting Mushrooms. The “bite” is that they’re actually quite spicy and delicious. Shen Yuan was explaining as much to Luo Binghe, and he’s excited to see what the protagonist can do with them in a proper dish. The rest of what they’ve gathered amounts to some nuts and berries. Shen Yuan passes the ingredients over as Xun Fu pulls out some boxes with talismans that keep meat fresh. 

“When eating with Xiao-Yuan we need to account for his appetite,” Xun Fu says.

“Hey! I don’t eat that much…” Shen Yuan protests, but knows that’s not really true. Look, his demonic abilities aren’t really sealed away like Binghe’s! Even with the amulet, his body still needs more food than the average kid! It’s not his fault!

“But if you’re ever out on a mission on your own it doesn’t hurt to make as much food as you can and then to use these to keep them until you can eat them. You may keep several of these boxes yourself, Xiao-Binghe,” Xun Fu says, biting back laughter. Not well, mind you.

“Thanking Shizun,” Luo Binghe says softly, accepting the qiankun pouch that Xun Fu passes over to him. He peaks inside it curiously. 

“You may look through that later,” Xun Fu says, tone somewhat fond. “Right now let’s focus on finishing the meal.”

Xun Fu really doesn’t need to give Luo Binghe much instruction. After all, Luo Binghe’s second golden finger is arguably cooking. The protagonist catches on quickly, and by the time dinner is served—some sort of hearty soup—Shen Yuan is about ready to wolf the whole thing down himself. He doesn’t though, thank you very much. He controls his appetite and waits to be served. They sit around their little campfire and eat their soup.

“Binghe it’s delicious!” Shen Yuan says, and Luo Binghe preens where he sits.

“Mn, it’s very good,” Xun Fu says with a small smile. He seems a little more tired than usual, but Shen Yuan figures that it’s been a long day and he has to deal with two children now. The poor man is probably exhausted.

“Fu-ge, are you sure about us working on meditation before bed?” Shen Yuan asks, his guardian looks up and gives Shen Yuan a smile.

“It’s good to teach you before bed. I want you both acquainting yourselves with your spiritual meridians, and it’s a good way to start the day and wind down. It can help center you for the day,” Xun Fu passes the dishware over. “You two wash up. Binghe, you’ll find a cultivation manual in your qiankun pouch. I want you to bring that out and Shen Yuan you should have yours in your own pouch.”

“Oh!” Luo Binghe’s eyes are twinkling as he meets Shen Yuan’s, “A-Yuan, you’ve been traveling with Shizun for so long. Doesn’t that make you my shixiong?”

“Huh?” Shen Yuan blinks, “Binghe, at most I’m months older than you.”

“If Shen-shixiong says so,” Luo Binghe says cheerily. Shen Yuan huffs at his friend, batting at him like an irritated cat. For some reason that flusters him, he’s not sure how to handle that. “Shen-shixiong doesn’t like his title?”

“You’ve called me so familiarly for so long, and now you’re doing that?” Shen Yuan huffs. Luo Binghe grins cheekily at him. Then, the smile fades a little and he fiddles with the hem of his sleeves.

“I wish I could tell Mama about today,” Luo Binghe says softly, reaching up to brush his thumb against the jade guanyin around his neck. “She’d be so happy that Shizun has finally accepted me as a disciple.”

“Hey…” Shen Yuan says softly, his shoulders slumping a little. Grief is… strange. Sometimes things feel good and normal, and then it seems like everything rushes back in full force again. Painful. Shen Yuan leans against Luo Binghe, “Maybe we can burn letters for her? I dunno, people burn money so maybe…”

Luo Binghe laughs, “Should we? I can burn some bills for her and a letter.”

That’s better. Shen Yuan likes when Luo Binghe laughs and smiles. He thinks Song Jia would have liked that too. No—he knows she would. He nudges his friend again.

“Come on,” Shen Yuan says. “Fu-ge looks like he’s about to fall asleep on his feet. Lets meditate and go to bed.”

Chapter Text

Something is wrong with Xun Fu.

Shen Yuan will be the first to admit that he probably should have noticed this sooner—after all, he’s been traveling with Xun Fu since he first came to this world. But it isn’t until about a week into their journey that it really starts to bother Shen Yuan at all. Between Xun Fu’s new focus for training for his two new “disciples” and the grief after Song Jia’s death, Shen Yuan has been distracted. He should  be doing better, he knows he should be, but it’s been hard to.

Now, as evening creeps at the edge of the clearing and Shen Yuan watches Xun Fu adjust the meditation stance that Luo Binghe is taking, it is glaring obvious that there’s something wrong. Xun Fu is favoring his side, carefully avoiding even brief touches from Luo Binghe. Thinking of it, he has been keeping a bit of distance between both Binghe and Shen Yuan when possible.

Shen Yuan furrows his brow, he’s not stupid. He remembers the fight with the Anomaly Beast like it was yesterday—if the memory hadn’t been clear enough the recurring nightmares of the night would have filled him in. The thing is, Xun Fu is a cultivator with a golden-core. He should be healed of his injuries by this point, or at least healed enough that the pain would be negligible.

With a furrowed brow, Shen Yuan reaches into his qiankun pouch and rifles through i for a moment. He has many sachets of herbs that he has found on their journeys. He hesitates, rubbing this thumb along the silk of one of them before squaring his shoulders and getting up.

“Xiao-Yuan?” Xun Fu asks, looking up from where he’s explaining spiritual circulation to Luo Binghe. Shen Yuan walks over to him, glaring up at his guardian. He isn’t hiding his annoyance in the slightest.

“You’re hurt,” Shen Yuan says firmly.

“From the fight?” Luo Binghe asks, immediately. Shen Yuan silently thanks the protagonist for this, leaving no room for Xun Fu to deny it is easier with two people to pester him than one. 

“Don’t worry about it,” Xun Fu says, resting a hand on top of Shen Yuan’s head.

“Too late,” Shen Yuan says with narrowed eyes. “Fu-ge shouldn’t hide when he’s hurt. What if it gets worse? Or what if something happens and we don’t know how to help?”

“A-Yuan is right. Shizun… Shizun is all we have left,” Luo Binghe’s words are quiet and a little pained. Xun Fu’s shoulders stiffen and he heaves a sigh before resting his other hand on Luo Binghe’s head. He ruffles both of their hair roughly, making Shen Yuan squawk in irritation and try to shove the hand away.

“I won’t hide it from you boys then,” Xun Fu says with a sigh. He gestures for the two of them to sit, and when Shen Yuan stuffs the sachet into his hands he chuckles softly. Obediently, under Shen Yuan’s stubborn gaze, he gets some tea started before sitting down across from them with a sigh. “The injury is still bothering me. It’s badly infected, the doctor in the city said it was beyond him.”

Shen Yuan tries not to feel alarmed at the words, Xun Fu doesn’t sugar coat them. He knows this is what they asked for, but he feels a foreboding twinge of helplessness. It is Luo Binghe who asks something first, “Is there something these disciples can do to help?”

“Hopefully you won’t have to,” Xun Fu says firmly. “One of the Peak Lords of Cang Qiong Sect is a renowned healer—possibly the best in the world. I plan to see if he can help with the injury.”

True, even in the original novel, Mu Qingfang’s prowess had been nothing to sneeze at. Xun Fu was probably right to seek his aid. Still, Shen Yuan couldn’t help the way his stomach twisted. How far was Cang Qiong from them?

“In the meantime,” Xun Fu says gently. “You can both do what I’ve been asking you to do. It helps when you gather things like water and help to set the tents up for the night. It’s just also good for your training to do physical chores like that.”

“So we’re already helping,” Luo Binghe says with some relief in his voice. “I can make some good meals too. Mama always says—” Binghe pauses before swallowing. “Mama always said that a full belly helps fight infection.”

“I won’t complain about that,” Xun Fu chuckles warmly at Luo Binghe. “There’s something else I should tell you. Listen here for a moment, alright?”

Luo Binghe, who had started to get up to likely work on their dinner, sits back down. Shen Yuan looks over at Xun Fu, forcing himself to focus. Xun Fu reaches into his own qiankun pouch, passing Shen Yuan two letters. He taps them both.

“If the worst happens,” Xun Fu starts, making Shen Yuan’s stomach plummet, “You will need both of these for when you get to Cang Qiong Sect. This one is for Shen Yuan’s jiujiu—it’s a letter from your mother that should, I hope, serve as proof of your heritage. I haven’t read it, but she wanted that delivered to him.”

“The worst won’t happen,” Shen Yuan stubbornly says.

“The other letter is for Yue-zhangmen,” Xun Fu continues, his tone gentling somewhat. He doesn’t stop though, and Shen Yuan clenches his hands into fists. “That explains the same but to him, it’s less personal and includes some what I’ve written them. I do not believe that either of these mention Shen Yuan’s demonic side of his blood. I encourage the both of you to be certain before revealing such things to anyone else.”

“Of course,” Luo Binghe says softly. “I’ll protect A-Yuan’s secret Shizun, no matter what.”

“The worst won’t happen,” Shen Yuan repeats, and Xun Fu reaches over to ruffle his hair again. Shen Yuan ducks away, “Say it.”

Xun Fu sighs softly, “I can’t guarantee that Xiao-Yuan.”

How bad is the injury, that he won’t even say that? Shen Yuan is trying not to panic. He’s not a child, he’s also a grown man. But he keeps thinking of the Anomaly Beast and it’s jaws around Xun Fu. He keeps thinking of watching Song Jia fall to the ground lifelessly, of Luo Binghe at her grave, of Luo Binghe saying that Xun Fu is all that they have left. He keeps thinking of the System, telling him that Xun Fu was a character that died before Luo Binghe joined Cang Qiong Sect.

“If it gets worse, Fu-ge will tell us?” Shen Yuan says slowly, looking up to meet Xun Fu’s eyes with his own. Xun Fu blinks and then nods at him slowly.

“I will,” Xun Fu responds. “Don’t be mad Xiao-Yuan.”

“I’m not mad,” Shen Yuan huffs. That isn’t exactly true. He’s a little angry but also aware that even being told about the injury doesn’t do much. Shen Yuan’s little herb sachets aren’t really for serious illness or injury, and if it’s above a doctor’s paygrade then his silly attempts at first aid won’t be useful.

No, more than anything, Shen Yuan is scared. System?

【 How can this System help User?】

Is… is it a required plot point for Xun Fu to die? Shen Yuan asks, he’s terrified of the answer. He hadn’t considered the question before. 

【 The death of Character: Xun Fu is not a significant plot point in the journey of the Protagonist. As such, it is not required for the story to progress.】

So we can help Xun Fu, Shen Yuan clarifies.

【 If it is within User’s power to do so, many characters may be saved from their deaths as long as it is not a required plot point. Only one character has plot armor in the story, the Protagonist, so others will require intervention or alteration of the plot to save.】

Shen Yuan’s stomach flips. He watches as Xun Fu sips dutifully at his medicinal tea and Luo Binghe starts to cook their dinner with determination. Shen Yuan doesn’t like that—what a non-answer! Sure you can save him, if you can save him!?  

Or… or the story has changed enough that the path they’re on now is all that he’ll need to survive. Who is to say that the injury is even deadly? Shen Yuan hasn’t even seen it. He just has a bad feeling. That doesn’t have to mean anything at all.

“Who is A-Yuan’s jiujiu?” Luo Binghe asks, which is fair. They probably should know that, but Shen Yuan is being stubborn and doesn’t want to ask it himself.

“A man named Shen Jiu,” Xun Fu says. “He is Peak Lord of one of the peaks, I believe his courtesy name is Shen Qingqiu.”

Shen Yuan chokes on nothing at that—his head snapping up to stare. His uncle is the fucking scum villain !? He isn’t sure whether to laugh or to cry at that. Shen Qingqiu had family!? Granted, the scum villain’s backstory had largely not been included in PIDW. Shen Yuan can’t say for certain if he had a sister or not, or really even anything else. There’s a terrible irony in the fact that Shen Yuan is a half-demon related to him though.

“A-Yuan!?” Luo Binghe says, patting Shen Yuan’s back to try and help him get the nonexistent thing he is choking on out of his throat. He waves Luo Binghe off, coughing to convince him that he’s fine.

What the fuck is he meant to do with this info? Shen Yuan rubs his temples. Well. They still need to go to Cang Qiong Sect, even if his uncle isn’t going to want a damn thing to do with him. While he’d never tell Shen Qingqiu his heritage in the first place, he can’t imagine the man as the type to take in a nephew or even care about a relationship with one. Especially one that is basically an orphan. If anything, he’d probably want to kick Shen Yuan while he was down! No, it’s best they deliver the letter, get Xun Fu better and never go back to Cang Qiong Mountain ever again.

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Shen Yuan is curled up with his head tucked into Luo Binghe’s shoulder when he wakes to the sound of someone talking. It’s three days after the “If the worst happens,” conversation and he is aware that they’re a little over two weeks away from Cang Qiong. For a moment he isn’t sure why he woke in the first place, and then he realizes that Xun Fu is saying something while he is on his bamboo mat.

“Fu-ge?” Shen Yuan asks, sitting up and trying to rub the sleep from his eyes. Luo Binghe stirs as well, “What was that?”

“Bai Chen, you have to stay away from here,” Xun Fu murmurs. She Yuan furrows his brow and gets up to stand next to his guardian, the man isn’t fully awake. His eyes are half open, brow slick with sweat. Though he is looking his way, Xun Fu seems to stare right through Shen Yuan. Seeing something else entirely. “Don’t—it’s dangerous.”

Shen Yuan’s stomach flips, he doesn’t need to rest his hand on Xun Fu’s forehead to feel the fever. He does so all the same, the man is burning up. Shen Yuan wishes that there was a way to get better knowledge on his exact temperature, but he doesn’t remember a xianxia thermometer being mentioned in PIDW. 

“A fever?” Luo Binghe asks at Shen Yuan’s shoulder. Shen Yuan nods and Luo Binghe furrows his brow, “I’ll get some of the tea brewed.”

“Please,” Xun Fu croaks out, but Shen Yuan knows he’s not talking to them. He settles himself next to Xun Fu’s bamboo mat, taking his hand and pressing his fingers to the man’s wrist. His pulse is rabbit-fast under his fingertips, even the skin here feels hot to the touch. Shen Yuan furrows his brows as Xun Fu tosses his head and murmurs, “I can’t let you go on your own.”

“Shhh,” Shen Yuan tries to soothe, sending a stream of qi into his guardian’s veins tentatively. This is new to him, but has largely been the focus of their lessons the last few days. He feels his own qi brush into Xun Fu’s familiar qi, like a cat rubbing its body against its owners legs. Xun Fu’s qi has always felt like the sun just at the turn of the season—when the weather starts to get cold but the warmth of sunlight is enough to bask in if one ignores the cool brush of a breeze. It makes him think of air tinged with woodsmoke, of crunching leaves and the wind blowing them to skitter over dirt roads. It has been a comforting presence in his second life to this point.

Now it feels strange, as Shen Yuan brushes against it. It snags at the edge in weird ways, like someone has broken up a familiar pathway and one can’t help but trip on the new potholes that they find there. His brows furrow as he brushes through Xun Fu’s meridians. He’s new to this, but have Xun Fu’s meridians always been this way? He’s so focused that he hardly notices when Luo Binghe returns with the tea.

“Binghe,” Shen Yuan says, gesturing to Xun Fu. “Can you cycle his qi for me and tell me if it feels weird?”

Luo Binghe blinks and then hands the cup of tea to Shen Yuan. He obediently crouches next to their master, fingers taking up the same place that Shen Yuan’s had a moment before. He stays still for a moment,brow furrowing in concentration before he opens his eyes, “It’s… I don’t think it’s supposed to feel like that.”

“Right?” Shen Yuan’s fingers tighten around the teacup. Xun Fu seems to have relaxed for the boost in qi though, and Shen Yuan adds, “Can Binghe help him sit up for me?”

Luo Binghe does so immediately, pushing Xun Fu into a sitting position. The man blinks blearily at the two of them, before landing on Luo Binghe with a little more clarity. He makes a soft, pained noise before he hugs Luo Binghe and quietly murmurs, “Don’t die Xiao-Binghe, not like him, please Xiao-Binghe.”

“Sh—Shizun?” Luo Binghe says, startled by Xun Fu’s sudden panic.

“You’re a good boy, don’t let me fail you too,” Xun Fu is mumbling, hard to understand with how slurred his speech is. Still, Shen Yuan cannot help the distinct feeling that they’re hearing something Xun Fu would rather they didn’t hear at all. He pushes the thought down, gently prying his guardian away the best he can. The man winces, and Shen Yuan’s heart aches when he realizes he’s accidentally touched his injured side.

“Sorry Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan softly whispers. “Binghe is okay though, see? Nobody’s dying or hurt.”

“Don’t go with Bai Chen,” Xun Fu stresses to them, glassy eyes focusing on one then the other. “Don’t do it, it’s too dangerous.”

“We won’t,” Luo Binghe promises.

“ Please, ” Xun Fu repeats.

“We won’t go with Bai Chen,” Shen Yuan reiterates. “Drink this, Fu-ge, it’ll make you feel better. Okay?”

Shen Yuan presses the tea into Xun Fu’s hands. The man’s grip trembles enough that Shen Yuan doesn’t dare completely let the cup go, holding onto it as Xun Fu takes a tremulous sip. He’s never thought of Xun Fu as frail in his life. Tha man’s hands are wide, his shoulders broad and his back straight. Xun Fu is strong. Shen Yuan thinks of him standing with his blade glowing faintly while fighting the Anomaly Beast, the relief he felt at the rescue.

“I can’t lose you two,” Xun Fu croaks after dutifully drinking his tea. Shen Yuan slowly releases the cup when he’s sure that Xun Fu won’t spill it.

“We’re not going anywhere Shizun,” Luo Binghe says to him.

“I’m not a good Shizun,” Xun Fu rasps. “I let Bai Chen die.”

Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan share a look. Shen Yuan knows very little about Xun Fu’s life while in Xinghui Sect. He knows that he was a disciple alongside this body’s mother, he knows that Xun Fu was loyal to Xinghui’s cause, and that the sect was destroyed. He knows that he had a disciple at some point.

Just one though, until Luo Binghe.

“It wasn’t your fault Shizun,” Luo Binghe says softly. Xun Fu makes a choked noise, and to Shen Yuan’s horror he realizes that the man is crying.

“It is, it is,” Xun Fu sobs. The man is delirious and sick, Shen Yuan feels like the world is shaking to its very roots to see him in tears. “I sent him on that hunt, I should’ve known it was too much. I didn’t make it in time, I failed. I failed. Don’t go with him. It’s dangerous—there’s something in the barn. A-die, there’s something…”

The longer he talks, the less sense he makes. Shen Yuan gently pushes so that Xun Fu lies back down. The man whimpers and mutters some more, before he falls into what seems to be an uneasy sleep. Shen Yuan watches him for a moment, his throat feels tight with dread.

“What do we do?” Shen Yuan asks, more to himself than to Luo Binghe. The protagonist bumps his shoulder with his own and exhales slowly.

“We wait for his fever to break and then we keep going,” Luo Binghe says resolutely. “He’ll be okay A-Yuan. He has to be.”

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Xun Fu is not okay. It’s the third night of a fever so intense that the man seems to waffle between delirious and only a modicum of lucidity. He doesn’t stop begging the two of them to stay safe. He cries out for his father—he wonders if Xun Fu’s dad is even alive to call out for. Xun Fu doesn’t seem to know where he is. There’s a few times where he asks for Shen Yuan’s mother, when he asks for his Shizun, when he asks for Bai Chen. Once he asks for Luo Binghe’s mother, and Luo Binghe tries not to cry when he tells him that she’s okay. That Xun Fu doesn’t need to worry about her.

The sick Xun Fu seems to only worry though. To worry about the people he’s loved, and maybe the people he feels he failed. Shen Yuan feels helpless, part of him wants to assure Xun Fu that he isn’t failing anybody. That he’s done his best. The other, more childish part of him, wants to plead with Xun Fu to not leave them. The one thing that is categorically clear is that Xun Fu is not getting better, and they have to do something about it.

That’s how Shen Yuan finds himself with his demonic cultivation manual on his lap. He has removed his amulet, despite Xun Fu’s protests at the beginning of their journey. The scent of sickness and infection from the man is cloying—he has an idea of why Xun Fu had asked him to keep it on. Still, he sits with his brow furrowed in concentration as he focuses on the passage in front of him.

“ This beastly form is a part of my son as much as his humanoid one,” the passage reads in Qiang-Jun’s impeccable calligraphy. “To change his shape he must embrace this side of himself. Imagine that he wishes to change, and let his demonic qi swallow him like a shroud to change robes behind. This form is stronger, though more prone to instinctual behaviors. It is important to note that aggression and temper may be affected by the change. Wounded or bleeding prey may be distracting to my son in this form, and it is best that those he holds dear do not run from him in this shape to avoid provoking wilder tendencies, especially the first times that he changes.”

Shen Yuan traces his fingers over the words, taking a breath. He looks up to see Luo Binghe watching him with naked concern, and forces a smile, “I think I can do this, but Binghe needs to be careful. No running away from me while I’m like this, I don’t want to pounce and hurt you. Remember, I might act more like a beast than a person while in that shape.”

“I trust A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says firmly. He turns back to the stretcher that they’ve built. It’s made to be pulled by an animal, with Xun Fu strapped inside. Shen Yuan may have shamelessly based it a little off of the sleds that people use in the Iditarod, except with qi enforced runners that will hopefully make the journey a little smoother. Since they don’t have snow to use here, it’ll be the best they can do. Shen Yuan just hopes that their novice abilities to do that are enough to stabilize it.

“Right, okay. Let’s help Fu-ge into the bed of the stretcher,” Shen Yuan says. “Binghe will have to hold onto the back of it. To keep the qi running on the runners.”

“It’s a good idea A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe soothes. “We can do it. You can do it.”

They get Xun Fu up from his stretcher with effort. It’s not been easy to do this, the man has been practically completely bedridden since he woke with his fever the other night. Still, he stumbles obediently along, murmuring apologies to Luo Binghe for failing to save his mother. Luo Binghe’s jaw is set stubbornly, and though he has tears in his eyes he firmly says, “Shizun did not fail her. Mama is watching from the Underworld, Shizun is taking good care of this Binghe. This way Shizun.”

They get him set into the bed of the stretcher, and Shen Yuan makes sure that he is strapped to it securely. He doesn’t want him rolling out. The man winces and whimpers when Shen Yuan has to draw the straps over his middle.

“I know it hurts Fu-ge, I’m sorry,” Shen Yuan says softly. “We’re going to get you help though, it’ll be better soon okay?”

Xun Fu only blinks at him blearily, but Shen Yuan presses his forehead to the man’s shoulder for a moment. He takes a deep breath, and tries to ignore the way his eyes burn. The fear that thrums in the bottom of his chest. It’s hard to breathe around it. Like something is making it so his lungs can’t fill up the whole way.

Shen Yuan inhales again, as deeply as possible. His ears are drooping as he sits up, and he knows Luo Binghe can tell he’s upset because of it. Luo Binghe hugs him fiercely, enough to make Shen Yuan let out a little squeak. He squirms after a few seconds with a huff, pushing his friend off of him.

“Okay, okay,” Shen Yuan says.

“If A-Yuan can’t transform we’ll take turns pushing and pulling,” Luo Binghe assures him.

He knows they could, but the point of Shen Yuan shapeshifting in this instance would be to make sure that they can move faster . Xun Fu is too sick, they’re running out of time and they can’t wait anymore.

He nods all the same and lets Luo Binghe rub soothing circles into his back. Then, he steps away and Luo Binghe obediently backs off to stand next to the sled. Shen Yuan swallows his worries—will he be able to change? If he does, will he view Xun Fu as weak prey and attack him? What if he kills his dear guardian? The idea makes him sick, but he pushes the thoughts aside. Embrace that side of himself.

He imagines running through the forest—of the times that his instincts become too strong to stop before he embarrasses himself. Stalking little creatures in the woods, of listening to the heartbeat of the prey animals that cross his path. He thinks of prowling, powerful and strong, mighty enough to drag down the most vicious of beasts that PIDW has to offer. Of vicious claws and fangs, of unlocking that part of himself.

Shen Yuan’s body feels warm, and then he feels like something sparks and catches fire in him. Demonic qi engulfs him, and the next thing he knows the world is the same but sharper . Every smell, the way he sees, the way he falls to his feet.

No, not feet. Paws . Shen Yuan tests his balance on the four of them for a moment. The urge to run and run and run seems to yowl in his heart. He wants to dash into the forest. To hunt and stalk and roll in the sun. He barely manages to wrestle the urge down, the foul scent of festering injury—like rot—grounds him.

With a strange, rumbling noise in his chest, Shen Yuan turns to focus his eyes on Luo Binghe, who is staring at him in open-mouthed awe.

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Shen Yuan looks beautiful like this.

He isn’t a small animal—Shen Yuan’s ears and tail have always reminded Luo Binghe of a house cats but it isn’t a housecat that stands in front of him now. Long-furred, though slender, Shen Yuan is built in a way that reminds him of a slimmer tiger. He looks almost entirely black though, though he thinks that he can see the fainter pattern of stripes if he looks closely at his pelt. They make it difficult to see him, the shadows seem to gather around Shen Yuan’s paws and cling to him in a way that makes it seem like he’s made for hiding in forests. His pointed ears are long, with tufts at the end that lend an air of wildness to his already predatory shape. His tail curls in a hook above Shen Yuan’s head, a confident posture that reminds him of the strut of alley tomcats. Unlike any housecat, or indeed tiger, that Luo Binghe has ever seen two long fangs curl over his lips and are long enough to edge just past his chin.

His form doesn’t seem fully grown—Shen Yuan’s slender build seems graceful enough but has a lankiness to it that seems to reflect that he is still young and growing.

What stands out most though, is his eyes. Like the zuiyin on his forehead they are a luminous, vibrant green that are far too intelligent to belong to any ordinary beast.

Shen Yuan stalks toward him, a confident and smooth grace to his steps that makes some of his movements in his humanoid form look almost clumsy. The demonic form of his friend stands over Luo Binghe’s head—he thinks that he might reach Xun Fu’s chest if the man was standing up tall. Luo Binghe has to crane his neck to look up at him, and is suddenly aware that he’s baring his throat to him like this.

The beast that is his best friend presses its nose into Luo Binghe’s curly hair and rasps a barbed tongue over it. Luo Binhe laughs, reaching up to push Shen Yuan’s snout away as his friend swipes his tongue out of his mouth to disentangle the long strands of hair from it. He looks deeply chagrined, and Luo Binghe wonders if Shen Yuan even meant to do it or if some part of his cat hind-brain just told him to do so.

“A-Yuan, you did it!” Luo Binghe says, and Shen Yuan has the grace to look loftily at him. It makes Luo Binghe want to laugh, the sight of this demonic cat looking upon him with an expression that seems to say, ‘ Of course I did it, was there any doubt at all?’

Shen Yuan pads over to the head of the stretcher, stopping briefly to brush his nose against Xun Fu’s cheek. Luo Binghe hears a soft purr rumbling from his friend’s chest, a sound that seems more there to soothe than to express any real happiness. Luo Binghe itches to scratch Shen Yuan behind the ears to see what a happy purr might sound like. A genuine purr. He holds himself back though, waiting for Shen Yuan to stop at the front of the stretcher before dutifully strapping it to him.

They didn’t have the exact measurements for Shen Yuan’s beast form, so they didn’t know exactly how to make the harness. It takes a few adjustments, and a bit of Luo Binghe asking if Shen Yuan can comfortably move with it on. His friend rolls his feline shoulders, tail swishing behind him in apparent agitation. He looks mournfully at Luo Binghe at some point.

“We’ll think of a way to make it more comfortable when we take a break,” Luo Binghe assures his friend. Shen Yuan seems to consider this for a few moments before nodding slowly. He presses his cheek to Luo Binghe’s for a second, a soft purr ebbing out of him. Again, to soothe. To comfort.

Luo Binghe turns and heads back to the place where he is meant to stand. He focuses his qi to the runners—Shen Yuan’s idea for this remind him a little of what it’s like to make a sword fly. Or he thinks it might be making a sword fly. Shen Yuan had delightedly said something about it being, “Kinda like air hockey!” but Luo Binghe still isn’t sure what that is supposed to mean.

He grips the handlebar, looks up to see Shen Yuan watching him with those bright green eyes. Luo Binghe holds on as tightly as he can, and nods. Then, Shen Yuan turns and starts off at a walk. 

It’s an easy pace at first, one of Shen Yuan’s ears is twitched back to listen behind him as they flatten rocks and vegetation in their path. The qi helps to break the little obstacles down, leaving a distinct trail following them. Luo Binghe looks over his shoulder and murmurs, “At least we’re not trying to hide from someone.”

Shen Yuan looks back at him flatly.

“I’m not jinxing it! Who would chase us?” Luo Binghe points out. Shen Yuan rolls his eyes, and sets off at a faster pace—this time a trot. Luo Binghe focuses his qi work, grateful that Xun Fu had been so focused on getting them used to how to work it. 

Over the course of half an hour, Shen Yuan goes from his trot to a full out run. As the stretcher picks up pace and the forest around them starts to blur with movement, Luo Binghe feels a little bit of excitement in his gut. So fast! Shen Yuan’s body stretches out and runs with an ease that takes Luo Binghe’s breath away.

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Shen Yuan runs, and eventually grows used to the extremely unsettling feeling of the stretcher behind him. At first, it had felt a bit like he was being chased. Oh his logical brain knew that it wasn’t, but it took about an hour for his brain to accept that that was the case. Now he feels like the whole world is unfurling beneath his paws, and despite the desperate reason that he forced himself into this shape his heart is racing with excitement. Joy thrums through him, a feeling of freedom that seems to be screaming, ‘Finally! Finally! Finally!’ in his very heart.

Thankfully their run through the forest is not quiet. The lush greenery cracks under his paws and the stretcher pulverizes anything that would make it jump that is small enough to. It means that no little prey animals (or bigger prey animals) make their way across their path. The worst part is the tantalizing scents that sometimes catch his nose and make it twitch. He forces himself to stay on track, but it does take active effort.

 There are times where he has to slow his run to a casual lope, either to gently swerve around large obstacles or crest hills in a way that doesn’t send his passengers flying. Each time he looks over his shoulder, and he sees Luo Binghe’s bright eyes like stars on him. Filled with hope.

We can do this, we can save him, Shen Yuan promises himself. He keeps it up as a mental mantra. Shen Yuan dares to let the hope seep into his limbs and lend him energy. He loses track of time, and the shadows have grown long before Luo Binghe calls for a break. Shen Yuan slows his run and they stop at a stream.

Shen Yuan’s flanks are heaving a little with the breaths that he’s taking, and he flops onto his side as soon as Binghe removes the harness to the stretcher. He doesn’t shift back, aware that they have more distance to cover, but lets himself stretch his long body out in the sun so that he can soak in more energy. Do cat demons photosynthesis in PIDW? Probably not, but Shen Yuan feels like his energy is coming back thanks to the sunbath regardless.

He does need to resist the urge to groom his coat. It has bits of plants and other debris in it, and though he wants to clean himself off he can’t bear the idea of Luo Binghe seeing him licking himself. Bad enough that he did that weird thing where he licked Binghe’s hair. He settles for awkwardly using his claws to pick some of it out, flicking his eyes up to where his friend is busily flits about to make them a meal and make sure Xun Fu has some water.

Maybe just a little… Shen Yuan rasps his tongue over his pelt while keeping his eye on his friend. Eventually he finds himself losing the fight to pay attention to Binghe though, and gets focused on his task. It isn’t gross! It’s totally natural to lick your entire body like an animal—he is an animal right now. What had Qiang-Jun written? He had to embrace this part of himself!

The crunch of footsteps catches Shen Yuan’s attention and he snaps his head up to see Luo Binghe approaching with a large bowl of food. Shen Yuan crosses his paws and tries to look as if he was not just giving himself the cat equivalent of a bath in front of his best friend. He sternly reminds himself that this isn’t weird. 

“A-Yuan has been running a long time today,” Luo Binghe says, sitting next to him with a soft oof. “I wish I could do some of the running for you. We could take turns.”

Shen Yuan blinks at his friend slowly, squinting his eyes in his best attempt to convey that he’s been enjoying himself. Plus, Binghe has been working hard too. He can see that his friend is tired, using the qi to help the stretcher they’ve built isn’t a completely easy job after all! It’d be easier if Luo Binghe and Xun Fu could ride on his back, but he doesn’t know how to keep Xun Fu from falling off that way.

Shen Yuan tucks into his meal—delicious as always. Even his tastebuds seem more powerful like this! He gobbles up his food, and Luo Binghe dutifully refills his bowl when it doesn’t seem enough. When he’s done, Shen Yuan licks his paw and cleans his face. He ignores the fact that it flusters him a little. Nothing to see here! Just washing his whiskers!

“I think this harness will work better than the one before,” Luo Binghe says when he’s done. Shen Yuan gets up and moves to check on Xun Fu. His guardian’s breaths are shallow but steady, though the stink of his infection still churns Shen Yuan’s stomach. Some part of him wants to curl around Xun Fu and purr and purr—would that even help? 

Shaking his head, he pads to where the front of the stretcher is and allows Binghe to hook him up again. He again feels the uncomfortable urge to just stiffly fall over onto his side. It makes him think of the way his mei-mei’s cat would just give up on everything when she would put it in little sweaters. Shen Yuan rolls his shoulders and finds that the harness is much more comfortable.

He waits for Luo Binghe to take his place and then when his friend signals that they’re ready, he’s off. They’ve lost a few days, but with this idea he is sure they’re back on track. They’ll get to Cang Qiong on time—maybe even faster, if they push themselves.

The hope is there in his chest. He won’t let Xun Fu die. He has the power to save him, he does.

Chapter Text

Xun Fu thinks that he may be dreaming, or maybe just remembering things. Part of him knows that these are things that have already happened, but there is another that lets himself be buried deep under the fever. Maybe it is a desperate thing, but more likely it is a tired one. It is all too easy to be swept up in it, to allow the tides of time to lap away at the edges of his mind.

In this memory he is sitting at a long table filled with familiar faces and surrounded by bright chatter. He sips a strong wine from his cup and feels the pleasant swim of the alcohol in his veins as a young man plops into the seat next to him. A green zudian, vibrant eyes and a cat ears and tail—his son will look more like his mother in the coming years but these features will have him there too.Unlike Shen Yuan, he has the smatterings of markings on his cheeks and brow that are reminiscent of a jungle cat’s spots. It lends him a wild look, despite the small spectacles on the end of his nose. This is Qiang-Jun on the night of the banquet celebrating his marriage to Shen Ruoxi.

“Aiyah, Xun Fu!” Qiang-Jun says, wrapping an arm around Xun Fu’s shoulders and giving him a squeeze that smarts. The demon lets him go to pat him hard on the back and adjust his glasses, the rosy blush from the alcohol makes his eyes look overbright. But maybe that’s just the happiness. “Sitting quietly all on your own! My wife will worry about her shixiong if he doesn’t mingle.”

“I am mingling,” Xun Fu says mildly to the demon. Qiang-Jun’s tail twitches behind him a few times in lazy loops and he huffs. “I was just speaking with Duàn Qiang before you.”

“You were?” Qiang-Jun squints as he looks over the dancing groups with a furrowed brow. “Where’d she go?”

“She’s looking for Shizun,” Xun Fu says softly.

“Ah—he’s with A-Ruo right now,” Qiang-Jun says, a dopey smile crossing his features as he rests a chin on Xun Fu’s shoulder. “Xun Fu, Xun Fu, I’m married .”

“So you are,” Xun Fu chuckles.

“We gotta get you married next!” Qiang-Jun tipsily declares, slamming a hand on the table hard enough to make the whole thing rattle. Demon strength is no joke, and Xun Fu has to lift his wine to keep it from spilling. “We’ll find you a pretty wife Xun Fu, don’t you worry!”

“I don’t necessarily need a pretty wife,” Xun Fu says mildly.

“Ah… a pretty husband?” Qiang-Jun says, and the wine goes down Xun Fu’s throat making him choke. That’s absolutely the reason why. Qiang-Jun preens, “Noted.”

“Please don’t get involved with my love life Qiang-Jun,” Xun Fu says, dreading the idea of Qiang-Jun turning his single-minded focus onto the efforts of finding Xun Fu a spouse. “I’m busy being a cultivator right now.”

“You can be a cultivator and married,” Qiang-Jun points out. “A-Ruo is! To me !”

“Husband, stop draping yourself all over poor Xun-shixiong,” Shen Ruoxi’s voice—calm and cool as water—sounds behind the two of them. Qiang-Jun immediately rights himself, taking her hands in his and purring so loudly that he can’t even speak. 

Now Shen Ruoxi is a lovely woman—some might mistake her features for cold or distant, if not for the warmth in her glass-colored eyes. They’re bright with happiness, and though she rolls her eyes she allows herself to be pulled closer to her tipsy husband. Her voice is warm with laughter when she says, “I told you that some of that wine had Thousand-Year Catnip in it and that you’d get like this if you drank too much. You’ll be embarrassed tomorrow.”

Though she chides him softly, there is no mistaking the fond warmth in her tone. Xun Fu likes to remember this night for them. He likes to think of the laughter and the smiles. He likes the part of the memory where, as the rest of the world celebrates for them, Shen Ruoxi and Qiang-Jun keep forgetting it exists. Lost in the simple joy of newlyweds. That, more than anything, makes him happy. That this young woman he has grown with is so clearly taken by her new world that he cannot possibly deny her joy.

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Is he awake? Xun Fu’s mouth tastes bitter and foul. He lies on his side, and there is pain radiating from the side he isn’t lying on. It is a stabbing pain, with each beat of his heart. He feels a hand touching his face, murmured words that sound concerned. His ears are ringing. He’d rather be back in the memories again. Here it is painful, and his skin feels too hot. His stomach churns.

“Keep him on his side,” he hears the familiar voice of Shen Yuan. “If he gets sick again we don’t want him to aspirate on it.”

Xun Fu tries to say through the heat and the pain that he would rather lie on his back. He tries to say that Shen Yuan is a clever boy who has always been too smart for his age, with his bright green eyes and that face that says he’s thinking. Always thinking. He wants to ask if he remembers Bai Chen suddenly, but he’s afraid too. Shen Yuan hasn’t mentioned Bai Chen since he got terribly sick.

“He was your favorite,” Xun Fu rasps when he feels cooling fingers pressed against his forehead. His eyes feel heavy, he leans the weight of his head into those hands and can tell they struggle to hold it up. His heart is breaking, “Remember?”

“It’ll be okay Shizun,” Luo Binghe’s voice breaks through the fever but seems to play with his head. One moment the boy is Luo Binghe, the next he is Bai Chen. Then Xun Fu’s eyes are closing and he’s dreaming or remembering again.

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In the next memory he is standing on a grassy hill. The sky is golden-orange as the sun sets, but he keeps his eyes on the young boy of twelve that runs through the fields at the foot of the hill. On the boy’s shoulders there is a toddler, triangle-like ears perked up and tail sticking straight up in the air while he holds his pudgy arms out to the side like a gliding bird. Xun Fu chuckles softly at the sight of them, and hears a gentler laugh join his own. He turns to see his Shizun has approached.

Jiang He is a tall man, though has always had a strangely delicate look despite his strength. Lychee eyes soften his face, dark in color but keen in the way that they look over the two younger members of his sect. Jiang He’s robes are in rich, earthy tones that offset his pale skin. Comparably simple to other sects really. But there is a serene expression on Jiang He’s face that makes Xun Fu think that he would look at ease regardless of the quality of his clothing.

“Ah, I see Xiao-Shen has taken over Bai Chen’s training,” Jiang He says with a warm chuckle. Xun Fu looks down to where his disciple and Shen Ruoxi’s son make meandering paths through the fields below. Shen Ruoxi had explained that the boy could take another name in the future, if he wanted, but most demons did not have a family and given name. They tended to have one name, or simple names that reflected titles. So in the beginning the child would  “Xiao-Shen” since he was the little version of Shen Ruoxi. If he wanted another name later, he could always choose one after all.

“Shen-shimei dropped him off because he kept pestering her to watch some disciples doing their training. She and Qiang-Jun had to go get that doctor to take a look at that Three-Headed Sapphire-Backed Hyena’s paw. We’re happy to watch after him, and if he wants to boss Bai Chen around he’s welcome to it for the day,” Xun Fu answers with a laugh. There’s a point where the little toddler lets out an exclamation and points at some invisible opponent. Bai Chen pulls out his sheathed sword and pretends to do battle with it to the exclaimed directions of the small child below.

“His training is coming along well,” Jiang He comments after a moment. “Those are good sword forms.”

Xun Fu can’t help the thrill of pride he feels at the words. He has never quite grown out of hearing praise from his shizun, and doesn’t think that he ever would. The man had never been stingy about it, but that did not mean he gave it away without meaning at all.

“He’s a promising disciple,” Xun Fu says, the pride warming his tone is impossible to hide. Jiang He hums with agreement. 

This is a good memory too. Where Jiang He stands at his shoulder and they watch the children below play in the fields. Like this, he feels like he has not failed his master so much. But this is also a memory, and Xun Fu is in the memory but aware of what comes after. He knows that this happiness is a fragile thing.

“Shizun!” Bai Chen’s breathless shout catches the attention of the two men. The youth is charging up the hill, his long hair is completely down around his shoulders because Xiao-Shen has managed to pull the ribbon keeping it out. Jiang He laughs at the sight of the boys, impropriety or not. “Ah! Jiang-shizu, hello!”

Bai Chen is a youth of good bearing—a round face with wide-open eyes and a bright smile. He looks like the kind of upright young hero that kids like to read about in their stories, though his appearance is somewhat dashed thanks to his hair falling wildly around his shoulders. Xiao-Shen, perched on top of said shoulders with the ribbon that once held Bai Chen’s hair up in his hands, lets out an exclamation of, “Ah!”

“Hello,” Jiang He says with a soft chuckle. He plucks baby Shen from Bai Chen’s shoulders when the child holds his hands out to him and starts to kick his stubby legs. Even his tail is a stubby little thing at this point, more of a triangle than anything—like most kittens. Still, he purrs as he sinks into Jiang He’s hold. “Your sword forms are coming along well.”

Bai Chen visibly puffs up at that, shooting Xun Fu a delighted look. Xun Fu chuckles, ruffling Bai Chen’s hair even more than it already was. The youth laughs, ducking out of his grasp, “Shizun! Don’t! Ah, Xiao-Shen give Bai-shixiong his ribbon, okay?”

“Ah!” Xiao-Shen declares, stuffing said ribbon into his mouth. Bai Chen’s eyebrows twitch and he manages to snag the end of it before gently pulling it from the toddler’s grip. Xiao Shen makes a small sound of protest, kicking his little feet and holding out his hands. Bai Chen immediately caves and hands the ribbon back over, much to the little boy’s obvious delight.

“It’s fine, I’ve got plenty of ribbons,” Bai Chen says with a laugh. “I’ll let my little shidi chew on it all he wants as long as he doesn’t eat it. But Xiao-Shen’s too smart to do that, aren’t you Xiao-Shen?”

“If you spoil him he’ll expect to get his way with you all the time,” Xun Fu warns, as if he is not the martial uncle in the sect that absolutely spoils his shizhi rotten. As if he can perfectly understand Xun Fu’s words, Xiao-Shen gives him an aghast look. Bai Chen huffs at that. 

Xiao-Shen seems to have realized that his shixiong is no longer holding him and is now holding his hands out to Bai Chen to be grabbed from Jiang He. 

“Ah, the hearts of children are capricious. I’ve been abandoned so readily,” Jiang He says with a chuckle, passing the toddler back over.

“It can’t be helped, Bai Chen is Xiao-Shen’s favorite,” Xun Fu says. “Shen-shimei says he gets more excited to see him than his own parents sometimes.”

Bai Chen beams at that. Xun Fu knows that Bai Chen is an only child and lonely besides, perhaps that is why he has taken such a shine to the young toddler. The youth has friends in the sect, of course, but he’s one of the youngest members and the one with the most influence behind his name. Most of the members of Xinghui Sect were picked up off the streets by other members, but Bai Chen’s parents wanted him to train with them after Jiang He saved their business.

Then, Bai Chen became Xun Fu’s disciple.

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“Oh, A-Yuan your hands,” Xun Fu hears when he wakes up next. He can see Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe sitting side-by-side next to a small campfire. Luo Binghe is rubbing salve onto Shen Yuan’s palms. Xun Fu thinks they look worn and bloody.

“What’d you do?” Xun Fu asks him groggily, but the boys must not hear his words as lucid. He struggles to hold onto his consciousness, focusing on the two boys.

“They’re healing quickly, see?” Shen Yuan’s voice is filled with forced cheer. The boy looks exhausted, Xun Fu wants to ask what he’s been up to. The words won’t make it out of his mouth, lie on his tongue and leave his mouth feeling disconnected from his person. “After we rest a bit we can get back to running, I’m sorry we had to stop for this.”

“We shouldn’t run as far before a break,” Luo Binghe says.

“Fu-ge can’t afford for us to take more breaks,” Shen Yuan argues.

“I’m fine,” Xun Fu protests, but the words only make the two look up. Shen Yuan scrambles toward him, and he finds the boy is crouching in front of him. “Look at you, you’re exhausted.”

“Fu-ge, are you feeling better?” Shen Yuan asks, the back of his hand brushes Xun Fu’s forehead. It feels cool on his skin, and Xun Fu only closes his eyes tiredly. “Don’t go back to sleep! Please drink something first.”

“Am I sick?” Xun Fu asks, and feels like perhaps he knows the answer. He feels a cup in his hands and obediently drinks. The water is cooling on his throat, but his stomach churns even after only a little. He drops his hands, watching as the cup falls to the ground and the water spills. “Ah.”

“It’s okay Shizun!” Luo Binghe chirps, picking the cup up.

“Please drink more, Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan says to him, but Xun Fu’s eyes are closing. He had questions he wanted to ask Shen Yuan. What was it again? It’s lost in the murk of sleep.

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The next memory is of fire and smoke—the screams of people in the distance. Xun Fu runs with his blade drawn, and every breath of air scrapes the lungs like claws. He runs his blade through the gut of a cultivator in gold and white, the garish robes stained scarlet in seconds as Xun Fu shoves the cultivator to the ground. He pulls his blade out and flicks the blood away from it, pulling it up to block the blow of another cultivator.

“Demon sympathizer!” The cultivator snarls through grit teeth, and Xun Fu kicks the man in the chest before slashing his blade down. His stomach had clenched with nausea at the first death of a person in their camp, now he just feels numb.

“Xun-shixiong!” Shen Ruoxi’s voice calls out, a talisman flies over his shoulders and with a spark of electricity the cultivator who very nearly decapitated Xun Fu falls to the ground. Shen Ruoxi rushes to his side, breathing heavily and wiping blood off of her cheek, “I was scared to death that they’d gotten you.”

“What is happening? Why is Huan Hua attacking us?” Xun Fu asks as Shen Ruoxi gestures for him to follow. Xinghui Sect is in the depths of a forest, and it is because of the dense trees that Xun Fu does not see what she is showing him until he is right before it. His breath catches in his throat.

A barrier rises before them, maintained by Huan Hua cultivators on the inside of it. The screams of the others ring out from inside of the domed barrier. “What is the meaning of this!?”

Xun Fu bellows the words, and sees the two cultivators inside of the dome glance at one another. They turn their eyes forward and do not answer him though. Grim determination writ all over their faces.

“It’s a purge,” Shen Ruoxi says grimly. “We can’t get in, they can’t get out.”

Xun Fu’s stomach drops, his head snapping to the barrier. Before the question can leave his mouth, Shen Ruoxi softly says;

“It’s the Bai family. They hired Huan Hua Palace, said we were housing demons,” Shen Ruoxi lets out a bitter laugh. “That’s true, I suppose. I guess they wanted more than just someone to blame.”

Bai Chen’s parents. Bai Chen, who had died the month prior on a Nighthunt that Xun Fu had okayed—Bai Chen, who would be heartbroken to know what was happening to his martial family now. Demons included. Xun Fu feels like he’s going to suffocate. The guilt of his disciple’s death feels heavier by a hundredfold.

I did this, he thinks. Maybe he says it aloud. Shen Ruoxi gives him a sharp look and pulls him away from the barrier and the two disciples within it. Xun Fu feels like he’s descended into a nightmare. One moment he’s standing before those two cultivators, the next Shen Ruoxi is opening the door to one of the homes outside of the barrier. She pushes Xun Fu inside and turns on a lantern.

“Xun-shixiong, I think I know a spell that can get me inside,” Shen Ruoxi says to him. “I can get myself and maybe two other people out. But I can’t bring you in with me.”

“You—you can’t go alone!” Xun Fu snaps, holding her shoulders fiercely.

“Shizun is in there, and Qiang-Jun,” Shen Ruoxi says, she ducks out of his grip and offers him a watery smile. Then, she opens the door to one of the rooms and Xun Fu sees Xiao-Shen, now seven years old, crouched on the floor. His head snaps up, ears flat against his skull and tail fluffed up to twice its size. The boy doesn’t say anything as Shen Ruoxi says, “I need you to stay with Xiao-Shen. Take him away from here, I don’t know if they’ll increase the size of the barrier and I can’t risk them killing him.”

“You’re leaving?” Xiao-Shen asks, despair in his green eyes as his head snaps up.

“Just—just open the barrier and have me go inside,” Xun Fu says to her. “He needs you far more than he needs me, Shen-shimei.”

“You aren’t good enough at breaking down arrays and barriers,” Shen Ruoxi says to him. “I don’t want to  go either, but I have to try to save his father. Or Shizun, if I can find him.”

“If you can get inside and kill the cultivators holding the barrier up…” Xun Fu replies, desperate for a way to make this easier. To make this anything more than a death wish. She shakes her head at him.

“They’ve rigged it so that it’ll explode if they die,” Shen Ruoxi laughs bitterly. “Huan Hua Palace has always been good at arrays.”

Xun Fu finds himself pacing back and forth, he wants a way out of this. Any way out of this. He can’t handle this responsibility—hasn’t this just proven that the last person that Shen Ruoxi should trust with her son is him? Xiao-Shen rushes forward, seemingly unlocking from his frozen state on the floor and holds his hands up to his mother.

“You can’t!” Xiao-Shen cries, and Shen Ruoxi crouches to hold him in her arms. “You can’t, you can’t—I can’t lose you. I already lost my other family, Mama please!”

“Hush now, what are you talking about?” Shen Ruoxi breathes, wiping his tears. “Your family hasn’t been lost yet, Mama is going to try to get them out alright?”

The child shakes his head, his eyes wide and tears spilling out of them. “Not them, my other family from before! I don’t want to lose my other Mama, I like you, I love you, don’t go!”

Children are strange, and say strange things, but something about Xiao-Shen’s words send a chill up his spine. Maybe the boy remembers aspects of his previous life? Short of the child not drinking Meng Po’s soup the way he is meant to, he doesn't know how such a thing could be possible. He doesn’t stop sobbing, burying his face in Shen Ruoxi’s arms while the bewildered woman looks over her son’s head. She strokes his back.

In these days, Xiao-Shen is so small and childlike—it reminds him of how much the boy has grown since this. It is not a heartening thing, to realize a child has grown up because of the pain he has experienced. Even in this memory, it strikes Xun Fu as particularly painful. The boy drew into himself after the fever, he never spoke of things like a former family—Shen Ruoxi and Qiang-Jun and Bai Chen—or otherwise. Xun Fu never remembered to ask the child of this, considering the trauma the situation brought.

“I’ll come back,” Shen Ruoxi says to Xiao-Shen, hooking her pinkie around his and squeezing it. The child sniffles, turning big eyes up towards her. “Promise, alright?”

“Promise,” Xiao-Shen says. He doesn’t let go of the hems of her skirts, even when Shen Ruoxi rises and pulls a dagger out of her sleeve.

“Swear to me, Xun Fu,” Shen Ruoxi says, “Swear that you will protect Shen through the entirety of his life. That you will stand by him and do all in your power to make sure that he lives safe and happily.”

As she speaks she slashes her palm open. Xun Fu stares at her before he takes the dagger as well. It thrums with spiritual energy, but even so he grimly murmurs, “I will protect Shen for every day of his life. I will stand by him and do all in my power to make sure he lives safe and happily. I swear this, Shen Ruoxi.”

He cuts his own palm open. The blood forms an array in the air, and Xun Fu feels a burn on his upper arm that he knows is the same array sinking into his skin. His muscle, his bones. He is bound to this oath now. Shen Ruoxi nods and leans down one more time to kiss Xiao-Shen on his forehead.

“Until we meet again,” she says to him softly. She presses her forehead to his and softly says, “You be good for your Fu-shishu, alright?”

“Don’t go,” Xiao-Shen whimpers. “What if the ghost makes me forget?”

“The ghost” is a nightmare that Xiao-Shen has had since as long as Xun Fu remembers. He says it doesn’t like him talking to other people about certain things. That it doesn’t like if he loses points. That it’ll kill him. But, after much searching, it seems to just be that—a recurring nightmare that the child will not let go of. Shen Ruoxi doesn’t respond, simply finally detaches the boy’s hands from her hems and kisses the backs of his little hands. Her own eyes are bright with tears, but when she stands and squares her shoulders she doesn’t tremble. She holds her chin steady as Xun Fu kneels and gently pulls Xiao-Shen over to him.

“I’m sorry,” he says to the protesting child. Xiao-Shen sobs, but only half-heartedly tries to break his grip. As if he knows that no matter what he does, Shen Ruoxi is going to walk out of that door.

“Everything we have found on the search for Shen Jiu is in the qiankun pouch in the study,” Shen Ruoxi says as she pauses in the doorway. “I know I’m asking so much of you already, Xun-shixiong, but please look for him if I don’t come back. Xiao-Shen deserves to be around family.”

“Of course,” Xun Fu responds, his palm throbbing with his rapid heartbeat. “Come back though, okay? Xiao-Shen needs you.”

Shen Ruoxi looks over her shoulder one last time and offers them both a strained smile, but never really says the words goodbye. Xun Fu wishes he pressed her for it, wishes that—if only for Shen Yuan’s sake—he had found another way.

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Xun Fu wakes and it is dark and quiet around him. His chest hurts, his side hurts—everything burns. He thinks he may have been crying in his sleep. He tries to turn over, but doing so makes pain lance through him violently. His vision swims with it, making the stars overhead spin and spin and spin. He can hear the soft snores of Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe. The noise seems to overlap with the screams in his memory. He lifts one hand and rests his arm over his eyes.

Even the starlight seems to stab into his skull. Or maybe he wants the pressure to keep the tears at bay. He needs to be strong for Shen-shimei. If he lets on how hurt he was she’ll be afraid to go on the next Nighthunt—no wait. Shen-shimei is dead. Isn’t she?

Yes. Along with Qiang-Jun, Bai Chen and Jiang He. Dead and buried under the scorched and salted earth with the rest of Xinghui Sect, all but Xun Fu and Xiao-Shen. Dead, and now all that is left is a terribly injured man and a little boy who doesn’t deserve to lose the last threads of family this world wove together for him. The last family the boy seems to remember. Because Xun Fu has tried to avoid the thought, but he is pretty sure that Shen Yuan has forgotten Shen Ruoxi and Qiang-Jun. He thinks he’s forgotten everything since before that fever, when he kept saying the ghost was mad at him and was going to take all his memories away as punishment. Xun Fu couldn’t even recall what it was. Just that the boy had been terrified and so ill. He wants to ask him about it, suddenly. To finally hear whether or not his dreaded worry is true.

Stay awake, Xun Fu thinks to himself, tries to claw his consciousness to the surface in this moment of lucidity. It fades though, buried under the heat and the pain.

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Shen Yuan wakes and feels like every muscle in his body is screaming at him, but he doesn’t complain. When this had first started it had been a good kind of pain, of physically pushing himself but not going too far. It isn’t a good kind anymore, it’s the kind that makes it hard to move. That makes him imagine his muscles simply refusing to keep giving. But he lived through chronic pain in his past life, and in this one he’ll force himself through this without issue.

He’d run until his paws were bloody yesterday. Now his hands are better after Binghe treated them, but they’re rough and calloused. He hopes it’ll mean he can run a little farther today. Shen Yuan sighs as he manages to get to his feet, and hobbles over to where Xun Fu lies on his side. He’d thrown up before, and Shen Yuan had been paranoid that he’d aspirate if they left him to sleep on his back.

Xun Fu is on his back though, and Shen Yuan winces as he hurries over to the man. He’s still feverish and his breathing rasps in his throat alarmingly. But he is still alive, and a terrible part of Shen Yuan had been scared he would not be.

“The map says that we should be near there soon—maybe by wǔ?” Luo Binghe says, making Shen Yuan jump. “Ah—sorry A-Yuan, I thought you heard me coming over.”

“You’re fine, I was focused on Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan says to him, leaning down to brush his fingers through the man’s hair and frowning. “Should we try to get him to drink more? I don’t think he vomited last night at all.”

The two of them spend the next shichen getting Xun Fu to sit up and drink just a little water. There are unpleasant aspects to taking care of a sick man, but fewer of those have occurred since the two of them haven’t been able to feed him or get him to drink. Shen Yuan tries not to panic over the fact that he looks worse than he did yesterday, which was worse than the day before that.

Shen Yuan starts his run again after a very quick breakfast between him and Binghe. Just rations and then hitting the road. Binghe didn’t complain, though Shen Yuan knows it tears at him. Still, there are more important things.

Like the run. It is not so freeing anymore. The pain lessens a little when he runs, but it never goes completely away. Shen Yuan knows he’s pushing himself much further than he should be. He can feel his legs shaking, and knows that when he stops he’ll be trembling again and Luo Binghe will fret and fret. But he runs until he feels like his heart is going to explode.

They break out of the treeline and Shen Yuan ignores the few people that they pass. He sees their destination now, in the tall mountain that reaches up so high that it disappears into the clouds in the sky. Joy almost thrums through him, but he won’t stop. He can’t stop, not yet, not now.

He is forced to stop by Luo Binghe using his qi as a brake to keep sled from going further. Shen Yuan yowls in pain as it does, and Binghe says over and over, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry—A-Yuan, we have to stop here.”

Shen Yuan digs his claws into the ground, his flanks are heaving and he tastes blood around his mouth. He doesn’t move though, as Luo Binghe reaches his side and says urgently, “You can’t—if we get to Cang Qiong and you’re like this what will they do? At best they’ll think you’re a tamed yao.”

I’m not worried about me! Shen Yuan wants to snap, he tugs on the harness and jerks his head. I’ll figure it out!

But Luo Binghe can’t read his mind, he wrings his hands and looks over at Xun Fu and then at Shen Yuan. “We won’t be able to carry him up the stairs like this anyway, A-Yuan.”

Right. Fair. He’ll need someone to help Xun Fu walk as best as they can before then. Shen Yuan sheds his beast form after that, straightening and trying to still the shaking in his hands. He puts on the amulet, and treis not to pout as he and Binghe go back to the stretcher and Binghe watches Shen Yuan closely.

“I’ll pull it from here,” Binghe says, and though Shen Yuan wants to protest he finds himself pushed to the back. “Just a little further.”

It takes an incense time to get to the steps of Cang Qiong, and by then the shakes have traded with a feeling of jelly in his arms and legs. Shen Yuan gets off the back of the stretcher, and the two of them set about removing the bed from their little vehicle. This is more of a stretcher in a traditional sense, and will truly be their only hope for carrying Xun Fu. Shen Yuan chooses the head, he figures that with his demon strength he can lift that much. If Binghe drops the end with Xun Fu’s feet it is much preferred than the man hitting the steps headfirst.

“There’s so many,” Luo Binghe breathes, and Shen Yuan notes the dismay in his voice. He swallows as he tilts his head up and up. It’s one thing to read about the thousands of steps cut into a mountainside, it is another entirely to see it. He can’t breathe for a few moments, and he thinks of the pain in his arms and legs and wonders if they can do this. Or if this last step will be what beats them.

“There’s an array that will trap us on them,” Shen Yuan says, and Luo Binghe blinks at him in surprise. “It should bring someone to us though. That’s what we need right now.”

“Right,” Luo Binghe says.

Shen Yuan takes the first step, and lifts Xun Fu’s head. His body trembles but he forces himself to keep going. He has to . Xun Fu will die if he doesn’t, he knows this with absolute certainty. So he grits his teeth and lifts his end of the stretcher. Luo Binghe struggles and manages to get some of the other end. They’re both ten years old, not the most physically strong. A full grown man is difficult to carry.

But Shen Yuan is a demon, and even with the amulet on he has enough of his start to cultivation to keep him held up.

It is still the hardest part of the journey. Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan are trying, but Shen Yuan is exhausted and Luo Binghe’s demonic abilities have nowhere near awakened. The little cultivation they have makes this difficult to carry out. Determination is hard to live on, and all the desire to do this in the world doesn’t stop the fact that they are small children. Somewhere along the way, Shen Yuan’s eyes start to burn with tears. He grits his teeth, and he finds himself muttering furiously, “Come on, come on, come on .”

If this was a threat, then what would Cang Qiong do!? Where are the cultivators that are supposed to be watching the fucking bridges? Shen Yuan wants to give them the biggest dress down of his life, when he looks over his shoulder to the end of the stairs he finds that it’s disappeared behind them. Only more stairs stretch out where they once were.

“A-Yuan, keep going,” Luo Binghe pants out. The other boy is shaking and Shen Yuan continues the arduous climb. 

It is almost a shichen before Shen Yuan’s knees give out. He’s surprised that it’s him who falters first, but he manages to catch Xun Fu’s head before his end of the stretcher falls. His knees crack into the stone though, and he hisses with pain. The tears he’s been fighting fucking hit then too. Humiliating. As if this isn’t bad enough.

“Are you okay?” Luo Binghe says in alarm.

“No! No I’m not,” Shen Yuan snaps, and he turns furious eyes up the stairs. “Where the fuck are you people!?”

As if this is what summons them, he hears footsteps on the stairs overhead. Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan’s heads snap up in tandem to see a disciple storming down the steps with an ugly expression on his face. Shen Yuan bares his teeth like an animal backed into a corner but the disciple is saying, “We’re not accepting visitors to the mountain today—especially not some snot-nosed kids. The selection of new disciples happened a month ago, if you want…”

The disciple’s clearly memorized lines trail off as he sees that the two of them have an injured man in a stretcher. His footsteps falter, and Shen Yuan pushes the advantage; “I don’t care if you’re not accepting visitors. Get us to Qian Cao Peak, where the disciples aren’t useless.”

The disciple stares at him as if he’s seeing a ghost for a second, and Shen Yuan considers actually attacking him, before he turns and runs up the stairs. Shen Yuan watches him go with an expression of disgust and Luo Binghe quietly says, “It’s okay. They’re getting someone else right?”

Shen Yuan doesn’t answer. The two of them stay where they are, and Shen Yuan can feel anger starting to seep into his posture. He’s going to get a second wind made of pure fury at this point, but before he can do so several people whisk down the stairs in front of them. At the head of them is a tall man who immediately gestures for two disciples in similar robe colors to him to take the stretcher. A small, irrational part of Shen Yuan wants to fight them for a second. Afraid of what letting go of Xun Fu might mean.

“Take him to a room quickly,” the tall man leading the procession says to the two disciples. They hurry off to do so, carrying Xun Fu out of reach and making Shen Yuan scramble to his feet. He wants to climb after them, but feels a firm hand on his shoulder. “With this one.”

There is a pause for a moment as the man looks down at him, his brow furrowing as he glances over at Luo Binghe but the unerringly back to him.

“This one is Peak Lord Mu Qingfang,” the man introduces himself. “This one will do all he can to take care of your shifu, but needs more information.”

“Ah, this disciple is Luo Binghe,” Luo Binghe chirps. “And this is Shen Yuan.”

“ Shen Yuan,” Mu Qingfang repeats, looking sharply down at Shen Yuan.

It isn’t like the name Shen is uncommon but he has a feeling that Mu Qingfang might be comparing him to the scum villain. Which is awfully rude, and also not something that Shen Yuan has time for at the moment. He wants to take the stairs two at a time, but his exhaustion is catching up to him. He stumbles as Mu Qingfang draws his sword and steps onto it. The man reaches down and plucks both children from the steps like they weigh nothing. Even a healing cultivator is strong!

“There was a beast that bit him several weeks ago,” Shen Yuan says, “The wound won’t heal and when we looked at his meridians they were all… weird. They didn’t flow right. He’s been feverish and delirious most of the time. Yesterday he started throwing up a lot, we haven’t been able to get him to drink water since.”

Mu Qingfang’s mouth sets in a grim line as Shen Yuan speaks. He asks about the Anomaly Beast after that, and even though Shen Yuan knows it won’t mean much he describes it in excruciating detail.

“A-Yuan has drawn it,” Luo Binghe adds, as the two of them step off of the sword. “It’s very accurate.”

“Let this master see,” Mu Qingfang says, and Shen Yuan scrambles to pull his sketchbook out of his qiankun pouch. He didn’t even realize that Binghe had see him drawing the damn thing, unable to get it from his head. He hands it over to Mu Qingfang who nods. Shen Yuan is glad that his ability to draw has been something he’s been working on for this world, if only to keep track of the cool creatures he sees.

The two of them follow the man’s fast strides, and Shen Yuan has the impression that Mu Qingfang is not a man who is used to young children tagging along with him. Or maybe just not the kind of man that slows down when walking with people in general. Or, he doesn’t want to consider, Mu Qingfang wants to make sure they reach Xun Fu before he dies.

“You two may stay out here,” Mu Qingfang says. “This master’s disciples will be by to look after the both of you and to check your health—do not deny that you need it.”

With that, Mu Qingfang disappears down the hall and leaves Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe in the hands of disciples that look the two of them over. Shen Yuan collapses onto a nearby cushion, and the aches in his body finally hit him. Luo Binghe crouches next to him, his brow furrowed in deep concern as they’re both fretted over. Shen Yuan half wants to brush his friend away, but instead he finds himself resting his head against Luo Binghe’s shoulder. He feels exhausted. The disciples give the two of them some bitter teas, and while it helps the aches that Shen Yuan has it doesn’t stave off the intense drag of sleep.

“You can sleep, A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe encourages, “I’ll wake you up if anything changes.”

Shen Yuan should protest. He should try to push through and stay awake. He’s terrified for Xun Fu, he doesn’t want to leave Binghe alone here. He’s reeling from everything that has happened in the last few hours. Shen Yuan wants to stay awake, he has to.

Instead, he finds himself murmuring a soft, “Kay.”

Then, he presses his face against Luo Binghe’s shoulder and succumbs to sleep.

Chapter Text

Shen Yuan can’t be sleeping for long before he feels Luo Binghe gently shaking him awake. He struggles to wake up but the smell of food reminds him that it’s been some time since he’s had a proper meal. He sits up, rubbing his eyes to find a disciple with trays of food to pass out to the two of them. Luo Binghe hasn’t started eating yet, patiently waiting for Shen Yuan to start with him.

“Thank you,” Shen Yuan says. Now that the adrenaline of rushing here is gone, he feels tired and subdued. His worry coils in his stomach, and though he feels like he’s starving he worries if he’ll actually be able to eat. He picks up his chopstick and pokes at the very plain looking meal.

“A-Yuan needs to eat,” Luo Binghe urges gently. “They wouldn’t let me into the kitchens or I would cook for him…”

Shen Yuan blinks and reaches over to pat his friend on his head.  “It’s okay Binghe I… I’d rather have you with me right now.”

Luo Binghe blinks and then leans against his friend. The two of them are quiet as the eat, but the longer that Shen yuan is awake the more aware he becomes that there are people actively staring at them. He knows that he’s with the protagonist, but surely all these disciples have other things to do besides just stand around and gape at them!? Learning maybe? Or even, he doesn’t know, looking after their patients!?

“Should you tell them that you have a letter for the Sect Leader?” Luo Binghe murmurs in Shen Yuan’s ear. Shen Yuan leans his head against his friend, taking a thoughtful bite of very dry chicken. Truly, Qian Cao Peak is like a hospital, down to the food. Shen Yuan wryly pushes his rice around.

“Maybe,” Shen Yuan concedes. He doesn’t want to be whisked away from Xun Fu, to be honest. He casts a glance at the door that his guardian disappeared behind and his stomach twists. It is a novel experience to be on the other end of this. To be the person waiting to see if someone he cares about is going to be okay when they’re terribly ill.

He hates it.

“If we get it done, as soon as Shizun is better we can leave,” Luo Binghe says. The protagonist’s optimism is obviously forced, there is worry creasing his brow but he looks determined. Shen Yuan offers him a little smile.

【 Hello User! New mandatory mission “The Protagonist Joins Cang Qiong Sect” has begun! Completion of the mission will result in 200 B-Points! Failure will result in a deduction of 3,000 B-Points! 】

Shen Yuan could spit blood—the fuck!? What was with the point gap!? System, System, how on Earth would such a thing be considered fair? And why wasn’t this mission here until just now!?

His stomach drops and his head snaps to the door that Xun Fu is behind. He isn’t subtle, Luo Binghe touches his shoulder and utters a soft, “A-Yuan?”

System, is Xun Fu alive? Shen Yuan asks, his hands are shaking. He feels sick.

【 This System cannot divulge the status of characters that User does not have immediate sight of or until certain advances in the quest or plot have been reached. Apologies for the inconvenience User. ( •̯́ ^ •̯̀) 】

Apologies my ass, Shen Yuan thinks. 

“I—I’m just worried about Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan says aloud, and Luo Binghe takes his hand and squeezes it gently. He squeezes Luo Binghe’s hand back, but nobody bursts out of the door to tell them the worst. He lets out a slow breath, relaxing and looking down at his tray of food. Suddenly, he doesn’t have an appetite at all. He grits his teeth. “Let’s get this over with.”

Luo Binghe politely flags down one of the many disciples still staring at the two of them. The young woman approaches after glancing at her sectmates. She’s a pretty enough girl, with a round face and surprisingly pale eyes. Her nose has a smattering of freckles that lend her a youthful appearance despite likely being eighteen or nineteen, “How can this one help the two gongzi?”

“This disciple has letters to deliver to two members of the Sect,” Shen Yuan says, sitting up and trying to appear distinguished. He’s aware that he is filthy, that he is exhausted and probably looks drawn. “One for the Sect Leader and one for a different member of the sect that he may help this one find. A family member.”

This causes a burst of exclamations, and the disciple stares at him.

“A-ah, of course,” she says, sounding nervous. “May this disciple have the two gongzi’s names? This one is Meng Meixiu.”

“This one is Luo Binghe,” Luo Binghe politely says.

“This one’s name is Shen Yuan,” Shen Yuan replies. This causes more chatter, and he feels his eyebrow twitch in irritation and snaps, “Is something the matter with that?”

“N-no! No of course not Shen-gongzi,” Meng Meixiu soothes immediately. Shen Yuan pulls out the letters and hands the one meant for the Sect Leader over. He considers the other one, but something makes him hesitate. He wants to wait until he meets his uncle to pass that over personally.

“Is there a bath that these two could have?” Luo Binghe asks as well.

“Of course,” another disciple steps forward. This one is a boy closer to fourteen with a rather unfortunate appearance. The less said about that the better, to be honest. “Come along Shen-gongzi, Luo-gongzi.”

Shen Yuan sets his tray of food aside, ignoring the concerned look that Binghe gives him after he sees that much of it still remains. Then, his sticky friend sticks to his side as the two of them follow the male disciple down the halls. Shen Yuan notices that, before leaving the building, Meng Meixiu talks to some of her friends and casts some looks over her shoulder.

“You must not get many outsiders as patients,” Shen Yuan comments, making the disciple with them glance down at them. “Since you’re all acting like these ones are Sword-fanged Tiger Bats.”

“Er—not often no,” the disciple says. “We do go to the local villages in the area sometimes, if there’s an outbreak of illness. Shizun likes to stop in every few months or so if he can, but the stairs deter most strangers.”

“Despite having the best doctor in the Realm here?” Shen Yuan can’t help but say, tone dry. He knows it’s not realistic for Mu Qingfang to work on every ill commoner. Stll, he’s salty about the stairs and his knees still ache with pain.

“Does the little gongzi think he can run the sect better than Zhangmen-shishu?” The disciple seems irritated now, “Or maybe he thinks he can heal better than my Shizun?”

“I’m just saying, there could be something for emergencies. No need to get touchy,” Shen Yuan snaps back.

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe gently urges again, squeezing his fingers. “It’s okay.”

“It isn’t okay! We wasted precious time! Time that Fu-ge could have been getting healed, all because of their stupid fucking maze array!” Shen Yuan snarls, he wishes he could have his claws out. He wants to be scary right now. He’s so mad when given a second to think about that.

“Well we don’t,” the disciple snaps. He throws open a door, “The tubs are in there. Find your way back on your own.”

With that, the other boy storms off. Some wild instinct in Shen Yuan urges him to pounce on him as he turns his back, but he feels Luo Binghe squeeze his hand again and forces himself to relax. 

“A-Yuan knows it’s not that boy’s fault about the stairs,” Luo Binghe says very gently.

“I know,” Shen Yuan grumbles. Ah, the white lotus part of Luo Binghe is here to stand up for the little guy! Fair enough, he probably shouldn’t be yelling at the nursing staff for issues with the street outside. Shen Yuan probably should have eaten more, he always gets more demon-y when he’s hungry. He and Luo Binghe prepare for their baths and climb into separate little tubs. The water is freezing , but Shen Yuan has been bathing in creeks and is too tired to care.

“I just don’t want people to misjudge A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, poking his head up over the rim of his own tub and staring at Shen Yuan with star-bright eyes. “A-Yuan is good and kind, he’s just scared for Shizun right now.”

Shen Yuan huffs, sinking into the water a little self consciously but scrubbing himself over best he can anyway before dunking his head under the water and then standing up enough to wash his hair. “I just… I hate this. I hate that he’s sick.”

“I do too,” Luo Binghe says softly. “But he’ll be okay, Shizun is very strong. Remember?”

“Will he?” Shen Yuan asks.

“He has to be,” Luo Binghe responds, eyes determined.

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It has been a busy day.

Truthfully, most days simply are busy for Yue Qingyuan. That is a part of being the leader of a sect. Still, amidst the heaps of paperwork, finding out that a rogue cultivator has collapsed at their doorstep adds another layer to everything. Yue Qingyuan will, of course, send his Head Disciple to check matters when—or if—the man recovers from his injuries. They will need to know if whatever monster attacked him has been dealt with or if it is still a threat in the area.

He sighs and rubs his temples—a throbbing headache is starting behind his eyes. It only sharpens when he hears a knock at his door, but he straightens his posture and plasters on a benign smiles as he says, “Enter.”

His head disciple, a scrawny, reedy youth named Yi Yang, enters with a bow. “Sect Leader Yue, this disciple has an urgent letter to deliver to you from Qian Cao Peak.”

Yue Qingyuan blinks and Yi Yang approaches cautiously. The youth has been on Qiong Ding since childhood, but around all adults he moves in an all-too familiar way, like a dog that has been kicked too many times but is too starved to truly leave the reach of a boot. He hands the letter over, stepping back and bowing.

Yue Qingyuan offers the boy an encouraging smile that he knows doesn’t reach his eyes. He knows he should probably have a less timid successor—but Yi Yang has his good points that shine every now and then. He just wish the child wasn’t frightened of him in particular. Confidence takes time to rebuild, he knows not everyone out of dark backgrounds bounce back quickly. Yue Qingyuan reminds himself to trust his judgment and opens the letter.

Sect Leader Yue Qingyuan,

This one wishes he had more to offer beyond a request of your illustrious sect. This one has been traveling for long and looking far and wide searching for the family member of a friend as per her wishes before her death. Please rest assured that this one means only well and wishes to reunite family with family. This one’s shimei desired for her only son to know his uncle, whom she was separated from at a young age. It is this humble one’s hope that Sect Leader Yue will aid us in the final steps of this quest and facilitate our ability to strengthen this familial bond.

This one’s shimei was called Shen Ruoxi—she was a strong cultivator who never stopped searching for her brother, Shen Jiu, as soon as she was freed from her own shackles. It is my understanding that Shen Jiu now goes by the name of Shen Qingqiu and has become Peak Lord of Qing Jing Peak. Please understand that this one does not ask for Shen Qingqiu to adopt the boy, Shen Yuan, though if it is his desire this humble one will not get in the way of such designs except to request that he may stay near to ensure his safety and health. There is no desire for inheritance or coin, only for the two to meet and hopefully grow to know one another. I know life is not always so simple, but this humble one stresses that it is Peak Lord Shen’s oldest sister’s dying wish to complete this quest. She has a personal letter that should, at the very least, be delivered to Peak Lord Shen.

I know this is asking much, and seems out of the blue. As proof, I will offer that she once informed this humble one that her name was Shen Si before she changed it after joining my sect. Please let this meeting occur.

Humbly,

Xun Fu

Yue Qingyuan reads the letter thrice, the words sinking slowly in. He recalls Shen Si, a girl older than him and Xiao-Jiu’s older sister. She had been bought and taken from their group when Xiao-Jiu was so young. Does he even remember her? He traces the characters of her name, feeling an inexplicable sorrow for the fact that she met her end in this world, despite escaping her bonds.

How was Xiao-Jiu going to handle this? The idea that he had a sister only for her to be revealed as dead? The idea that she never found him even though she continued to search? He knows from experience that Xiao-Jiu holds such things as not being found in time in his heart—nothing Yue Qingyuan can blame him for. He deserves his oldest friend’s vitriol for failing him.

He stands immediately, walking toward the door. Yi Yang shies away from him, and then falls in step at his heels. “Yi Yang, clear this one’s schedule for the rest of the afternoon.”

“Yes Sect Leader,” Yi Yang responds quickly. The boy turns to begin his task without question, and Yue Qingyuan makes his way out of the door and onto his—still sheathed—sword. Xuan Su still obediently rises, the tug in his soul noticeable but familiar to him at this point.

Without delay, Yue Qingyuan heads for Qian Cao Peak.

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

Shen Qingqiu sits with a cup of tea clasped in his hands and his attention focused on the young girl sitting across from him at the table. A rare relaxation sits in his posture and has settled in his chest as he hums thoughtfully at the end of the girl’s excited explanation of her afternoon. She takes a breath and then seems to realize she hasn’t been drinking her own tea so Shen Qingqiu takes the time to mildly say, “Ning Yingying is in a better mood than her last visit.”

The young girl had been visibly disappointed that nobody had really caught her or Shen Qingqiu’s eyes at the selection ceremony last month. She’d really wanted some shidimei to look after and Shen Qingqiu was rarely in a position not to give the young girl what she wanted. Her warm, bright eyes and innocent ways were Shen Qingqiu’s soft spot. But he would indulge his desire to look after her, to preserve what happiness he could for her. It was a luxury his position afforded, and Ning Yingying was almost thoughtlessly kind at times. 

It made sense she wanted a younger disciple to dote on. He hated to have disappointed her, but can’t help but feel a little relieved that she’s begun to recover. He’s never been a man known for having strengths in soothing or cajoling others.

“This Yingying realized there’s always next year!” She says cheerfully. Shen Qingqiu hums thoughtfully.. Truthfully, he is not sure there will be a next year. That spineless Peak Lord, Shang Qinghua, had an unusual reaction to him not choosing disciples this year. He doesn’t know if the obnoxious man is planning something, but he loathes the thought of that rat of a man pushing him into something he has no real need for. Still though, he inclines his head in a nod at Ning Yingying. She brightens visibly at that small gesture, “Shizun, next year can this Yingying go with you again?”

“If she is able to play this master five songs on her pipa by the next selection ceremony this master will consider it,” Shen Qingqiu says coolly. There is a brief moment where her shoulders sag but she brightens again quickly.

“This disciple won’t disappoint Shizun!” She brightly says.

“Good,” Shen Qingqiu says, and though the word is clipped it doesn’t seem to bother her in the slightest.

“Would Shizun come for a walk with this Yingying?” Ning Yingying asks. Shen Qingqiu glances down at her, and she is turning those pleading eyes up at him. Hm. She’s getting far too good at realizing he’s weak to that look. He considers saying no, out of principle. Shen Qingqiu’s favorite disciple is Ning Yingying, but he can’t allow himself to be so easily swayed.

“Ning Yingying may join this master while he checks up on the progress of the qi manipulation course that Xu Tung-Mei is in charge of this afternoon,” Shen Qingqiu relents. It does not give into her demand but doesn’t disappoint her completely. She jumps to her feet as Shen Qingqiu rises and takes the time to clear his table. Shen Qingqiu, for his part, drifts to his desk to check over a few missives while he waits for the girl. It’s been slow in the sect lately, but these times always set his teeth on edge.

“Shizun!” Ning Yingying call from the doorway, and Shen Qingqiu looks up to find the girl is now ready for him. She bounces on the balls of her feet, and Shen Qingqiu walks in her direction.

“Straighten your posture,” he says, and obediently she does. With that, he sets out onto his Peak.

Qing Jing Peak is peaceful that morning—the distant sounds of his students playing the qin the only real sound that can be heard between birdsong. Ning Yingying chooses another topic to speak about as they walk—this time about some of her shixiong that have apparently been spoiling her. Shen Qingqiu’s pleasant mood begins to dip, he will have to watch the boys if that is the case. He doesn’t trust them to not have ulterior motives—his own disciples or not. Most of the children on his Peak are unfortunately either talented enough as to be made arrogant elsewhere or they are young lords and masters with the same problem. Shen Qingqiu doesn’t trust either, especially in men.

“If any are untoward to Ning Yingying, remember to do what I taught you,” Shen Qingqiu says coldly.

“This Yingying knows, Shizun! She’ll do so, then go straight to you if anything happens,” She smiles up at him adoringly, eyes bright. This child expects him to protect her, and so few people in the world do.

Shen Qingqiu has clawed, killed, fought and bled to get where he is today. Even then, what he has is not enough to him. Too meager. Too little. He cannot hold what he has that is precious to him tight enough, so when he has it he refuses to let it go. Ning Yingying is his disciple, and the only one who looks at him as if he is not something to fear. She looks at him with gentle warmth and persistent adoration, not terror. It is no small thing to Shen Qingqiu, he will not let harm come to her. Any who dare to do so under his watch will regret it a thousandfold.

“Uh-oh,” Ning Yingying says softly at his side, and Shen Qingqiu glances up toward the training grounds. Instead of meditating or working on their exercises, all of the disciples are clustered in groups and seem to be chattering at one another. She looks up at Shen Qingqiu, eyes wide, “They don’t seem very busy.”

“No,” Shen Qingqiu says, tone absolutely frigid, “They do not.”

Ning Yingying slows her steps and stops talking as Shen Qingqiu quietly walks toward the group. The teacher of their session is standing with her brow furrowed and arms crossed as the group talks. This is not something he blames her for—Xu Tung-Mei is one of his more focused teachers on the Peak. She is no-nonsense, but more than willing to allow disciples to dig their own graves if that is what they are determined to do. She looks up and bows respectfully to Shen Qingqiu as he enters the fields. The disciples don’t even notice, much to Shen Qingqiu’s annoyance.

“They must have been on the stairs for almost an hour at least!” Disciple Wei Duyi is the one speaking, surrounded by most of his classmates. Seventeen years old, from a family of humble origins without a middling level of cultivation. Not one of what Shen Qingqiu would consider his most loathsome of students, but certainly not in his good books at this moment. “And one of them looks exactly like—Sh-Shizun!”

The end of the sentence is yelped out as Shen Qingqiu snaps his fan shut ominously right by his ear. He taps it against his open palm and frowns down at the boy. The teenager scrambles so that he can bow respectfully, the rest of his peers doing so hastily. Shen Qingqiu sweeps an unimpressed glare over the group of youths, “What was that you were saying disciple Wei Duyi?”

“U-uh-uh,” the boy, clearly a fool, seems to have swallowed his own tongue. Shen Qingqiu walks toward Xu Tung-Mei, letting his fan open so that the only thing the students can see is the steely look in his eyes. They all quail before him, except for Ning Yingying who is standing somewhat awkwardly to the side as she watches her older sectmates.

“Surely if it interrupted your studies to such a point that you’d neglect them it must be of vital importance,” Shen Qingqiu says coldly. “Spit it out!”

Wei Duyi swallows thickly and glances around himself. No other student steps to his aid, none would dare. Shen Qingqiu meets his eyes without a hint of mercy, and the boy looks like he is going to faint on the spot. Shen Qingqiu’s patience—already rather thin—is at its breaking point when he blurts, “A wandering cultivator and two children were found on the stairs! The cultivator was really injured and the—one of the kids looks… um. Looks just like Shizun. According to An Ding disciple Ding Shoushan, that is.”

Shen Qingqiu will admit that this isn’t what he expected the child to be talking about. He raises a brow at him and the boy quails.

“He said he acted like you too,” Wei Duyi says, because apparently he is the type to dig his own grave. Shen Qingqiu looks severely at him for a moment.

Shen Qingqiu is not a foolish man. He is aware of his reputation among the sect, and has done little to cull the rumors simply out of an apathy to do so. If they want to think the worst of him then let them, they aren’t worth his time. Shen Qingqiu knows what is being implied, that the child is a bastard of his. Nevermind that this isn’t the case, considering that his more “unsavory” tendencies of going to the brothels is not what it appears to the more judgmental of his critics. 

A sneer curls his lip, and he sweeps his sleeves as he turns around. “Xu Tung-Mei?”

“Yes, Peak Lord Shen?” Xu Tung-Mei asks immediately, straightening her posture.

“Since the disciples do not wish to study they clearly are ready for their tests. Give the exam for the end of the quarter for the rest of this class,” Shen Qingqiu sneers. “Any who fail will report to me tomorrow morning.”

Though there is desperation and panic in the faces of the youth present, none dare to voice a complaint. Shen Qingqiu stalks away, shoulders tense and mind working as he considers what this will mean for rumors surrounding his already muddied name in the sect.

“Bye everyone!” Ning Yingying says cheerily, and Shen Qingqiu’s mien almost breaks for a moment in sheer amusement. His favorite disciple follows at his heels as she adds, “Where to next Shizun?”

“Ning Yingying should go to her literature course,” Shen Qingqiu says. Unlike the other students, Ning Yingying freely groans in dismay. Shen Qingqiu sternly adds, “Go. Don’t disappoint this master.”

“Okay! Bye Shizun!” Ning Yingying says, recovering immediately. Shen Qingqiu waits a moment to watch her run off toward her next class. When he has determined that she has made her way safely before unsheathing Xiu Ya and mounting the blade.

If someone was injured they would be at Qian Cao Peak. As loath as Shen Qingqiu is to interact with any other Peak beyond his own, he will grit his teeth and bear it to get an idea of just how much of a problem this rumor will be. He hates surprises.

Chapter Text

Finally clean, Shen Yuan admittedly feels a little better than he did before the bath. He and Luo Binghe make their way back to the xianxia waiting room they were in before, and Shen Yuan finds that his food has had a talisman placed on it to keep it warm. He’s grateful, the hunger has managed to come back full force and he wolfs down the meal that is on his tray. Dry and tasteless as it is, he doesn’t really take the time to register the taste of the food. When he finally leans back with a soft sigh, Luo Binghe looks a little relieved.

“You can’t be that worried for me,” Shen Yuan says to his friend, a little self conscious under the protagonist’s stare. Luo Binghe shakes his head and leans over to rest his cheek against Shen Yuan’s shoulder.

“A-Yuan is important to me,” Luo Binghe says softly, “I just want to make sure he’s okay.”

As okay as we can be, Shen Yuan thinks, and flexes his fingers. His muscles ache terribly and he knows it will only be worse after he sleeps. He’s still hungry, even after what he’s eaten and he’s never been more exhausted in his life. He’s pretty sure he’s running on spite at this point. Nothing compares to the anxiety that keeps sneaking in though—the fear that the last time he saw Xun Fu is going to be when he disappeared behind those doors.

He doesn’t say this to Luo Binghe, because he knows that Luo Binghe knows this. That his friend is probably just as anxious as him. It falls in line with the whump of Luo Binghe’s original backstory. The kind mentor that he almost has, only to fall into the hands of Qing Jing Peak’s scum villain thanks to his untimely death.

Shen Yuan glances over to pull up the window of the System. He reads through the log of their recent conversation and closes it out. He knows he didn’t miss anything, but he can’t help but do it. He can hardly work up the energy to move, but he doesn’t think he’ll be able to fall asleep again. 

The door at the entryway slams open, making both Binghe and Shen Yuan jump. The two of them turn to see a frazzled looking woman—her hair is curlier than Luo Binghe’s, and a bit lighter in color, barely seems to be held up in her Peak Lord’s guan—that is hurrying down the hallway. Though she is small, she carries enough scrolls in her arms to effectively block her sight from anything. Disciples duck and dodge out of her way as she walks through the hall. Shen Yuan cannot remember her description from the book in the slightest, so it’s likely that she’s from one of the unnamed peaks in the story.

“Ah—Chu-shigu!” One of the disciples cries in dismay as the woman crashes into them. Scrolls go flying everywhere, and the Peak Lord lets out her own frazzled noise. She pulls up her sheathed sword and gives the disciple that got in her way a solid thwack, “Look what you’ve done!”

Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan sharea glance with one another, and Luo Binghe politely gets up and starts to help her gather her scrolls up. The woman grumbles the whole time, and when she snatches the last of the scrolls from Luo Binghe she barely pauses to go, “Thank you.”

Then, she’s rushing into the same room that Xun Fu disappeared behind, leaving the disciples, Binghe and Shen Yuan staring in her wake. As soon as the door shuts behind her there’s a collective sigh from the disciples.

“Who was that?” Luo Binghe asks curiously. Seeing a chance to complain, the disciples jump to answer him.

“ That was Chu Qingru-shigu,” one of them sighs, checking over her shidi’s status after Chu Qingru’s battering with her sheathed sword. “She’s the Peak Lord of Xun Shou Peak, they know all sorts of things about ghosts, demons, beasts and monsters. She usually comes down here if there’s anything that our Shizun doesn’t know about a creature that may have hurt a patient.”

“Maybe she’ll know the thing that attacked us!” Luo Binghe says, turning excited eyes on Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan blinks at him, but doesn’t think that there’s much of a chance of that. But what the fuck Airplane!? There’s essentially a Beast Peak and he never named it or brought up its function in the story!? Truly fuck you Airplane! Shen Yuan would have loved reading about that! “A-Yuan, do you think?”

“Maybe,” Shen Yuan says softly. He feels bad when Luo Binghe visibly deflates, and is reaching for his hand when the door opens at the end of the entry again. This time it’s much softer, and the two of them exchange a glance. How many experts are they taking into the room with Xun Fu at this point!?

But this man doesn’t go into the room with Xun Fu. He stops in front of Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe with an expression that briefly wavers into shock before smoothing into an almost neutral pleasantness. Shen Yuan grew up in his past life with parents in the socialite sphere, there were many parties where he saw a smile like that. It makes you look genia, but doesn’t touch the eyes. This tall man has that kind of smile, but he doesn’t seem entirely unkind to him. He’s ridiculously tall though, and if his sumptuous robes, important guan and massive sword are anything to go by, Shen Yuan is fairly certain that this man is Yue Qingyuan. Sect Leader of Cang Qiong Sect.

Holy shit he’s big when you’re in the body of a ten year old.

“Hello,” Yue Qingyuan says, and Shen Yuan scrambles to his feet alongside Luo Binghe. Look, Shen Yuan may have been raised by Xun Fu—who doesn’t really care about being overly formal or polite addresses—but this is a sect leader . Like hell he’s going to stay on his ass and not show deference! “You don’t need to—ah!”

Shen Yuan’s vision goes dark for a second as he’s stood up too fast, or maybe he’s just too tired. To his embarrassment, he’s been caught in the other man’s grip and steadied, and Shen Yuan glances up at him and mutters an embarrassed, “I didn’t—sorry.”

“Is Xiao—ah. Is Shen Yuan alright?” Yue Qingyuan asks, and Shen Yuan has to remind himself that he must have read the letter that was delivered to him. What exactly did Xun Fu write in it to get the sect leader to come here in person though? 

“I’m—This one is fine,” Shen Yuan responds, face heating up with embarrassment and not quite meeting the sect leader’s gaze.

“Mn, this sect leader just read the letter your master passed on to me,” Yue Qingyuan says, bending slightly over the two of them. “He was a friend of Shen Si—your mother, Shen Ruoxi that is—when we were children. Did she ever mention a Xiao-Jiu?”

“I—” Shen Yuan starts, before the doors at the end of the hall are slammed open again . The Qian Cao disciples all heave exhausted sighs that are bitten back almost immediately. Shen Yuan is struck by the man who stands at the entryway, eyes locked on Yue Qingyuan like he’s just seen his mortal enemy appear before him. 

“Xiao-Jiu,” Yue Qingyuan says, expression looking almost guilty as he quickly straightens up, which does little to even slightly dampen the newcomer’s ire. The other man is beautiful, with a lofty appearance that screams the immortal aesthetic. The fan that he has in his hand and the way his phoenix eyes are narrowed in an expression Shen Yuan can only describe as hateful immediately has him clocking onto who this is.

Shen Qingqiu, the scum villain himself.

And he undeniably looks just like Shen Yuan.

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Shen Qingqiu inwardly curses his foul luck—of course when he wants to get to the bottom of this he runs into that fool of a man Yue Qingyuan. That infuriating look of guilt crosses that man’s features—though, no. That’s not his usual look. That is a look inspired by some new thing that he feels he must have done wrong. Shen Qingqiu narrows his eyes at him over the top of his fan, and lets his gaze drop to the children that his illustrious sect leader has deigned he speak to. At a glance he can size them both. Not from money, but the robes suggest they are getting training. Possibly in a manner similar to how Shen Qingqiu got his own training in the beginning, by some rogue cultivator.

The glance alone tells him that the child at the center of the rumors does look just like him. Shen Qingqiu narrows his eyes, reads the guilt on Yue Qingyuan’s face and then glances back at the boy. He snaps his fan shut and stalks over to the trio, eyes fixated furiously on his sect leader.

“You didn’t even consider speaking with me first!” Shen Qingqiu snarls, though he likely would have been just as unhappy to see Yue Qingyuan set foot on his peak in the first place. “What is it you planned to do with the boy? Whisk him away before I ever saw him?”

“Xiao-Jiu—” Yue Qingyuan starts.

“Don’t call me that!” Shen Qingqiu snaps, hating the way the words make his skin crawl. He hates the mournful look Yue Qingyuan gives him, but ignores him. Looking down at the children before him he says coolly, “Who are you?”

“This one is Luo Binghe,” the one child that Shen Qingqiu actually hasn’t even bothered with speaks up. He cuts a glance to the boy. A pretty face, and the bearing of one of those idealists that says they’ll be a hero but ends up dragging everyone through the mud and stepping on their lessers. These kinds of boys are dangerous, with their polite words and too-clever eyes. Shen Qingqiu immediately dislikes him. 

“...this one is Shen Yuan,” the child that looks like Shen Qingqiu replies. There is a grudging politeness in his voice, and Shen Qingqiu raises an eyebrow.

“Shen Yuan,” Shen Qingqiu repeats, and the boy’s shoulders stiffen and he looks positively mulish. The resemblance is uncanny, truly—though Shen Yuan’s eyes are much lighter in color, more vibrant. The child glances back up at him, his expression faltering slightly at the sight of him. He seems torn, and Shen Qingqiu is not a patient man. “You have something to say, so say it.”

“Peak Lord Shen,” Yue Qingyuan says, as if he intends to intrude. Shen Qingqiu shoots him an utterly venomous look, but finds his gaze turning back to Shen Yuan when the boy clears his throat.

“My mother said that you were her brother, I think,” Shen Yuan says. The boy’s surprise has settled into a wariness that reminds Shen Qingqiu far too much of himself. It’s disquieting on the face of another. “I have a letter for you.”

Said letter is passed to Shen Qingqiu’s waiting hand. The boy is staring at him with those green, green eyes, and Shen Qingqiu has half a mind to snap at him for it. Instead, he turns his back on the boy and unrolls the scroll. It has a neat, tidy calligraphy that he has never seen before. Yue Qingyuan stays near his shoulder, and Shen Qingqiu resists the urge to slap the man to get him to move away. Let him fret for now, he supposes.

Didi,

I don’t know how to start a letter like this, my didi, Shen Jiu. In all the years that I have been looking for you, it never once occurred to me that I would leave it before I found you. I won’t beg forgiveness for my failure in tracking you down myself, only know that I never did give up. I know we promised that we wouldn’t do that if we were to get free after we were separated. “It isn’t practical,” I remember you saying. Maybe it wasn’t, but I felt I must look for you all the same. I am not a practical woman, I miss my didi and I want him in my family again. 

I do not have much time to wax poetic, truly I wish I did. I want to talk about how much we’ve missed—I want to know you and to see how clever you’ve grown. You will have made a name for yourself. I know you’d say it isn’t realistic if I told you that when we were young, you’d scoff. But that’s why I think, for sure, you are someone great now didi.

I won’t go into my death, as it has not happened and you would scold me for my choices leading to it. Just know that I am entrusting to you the greatest thing I could give—the chance to know my son and your nephew. Shen is a smart boy, he is strange and you may not understand him. I know that you can grow to love him though, the didi I know loves what belongs to him fiercely. I know that we change as we grow didi, but surely this is the same, yes?

Xun Fu is a dear friend to me and he is caring for Shen. He can tell you in detail any questions you have of my life. There are things I would gift to you that he will have on his person, I do not know if he has delivered that with this letter. I understand the want to be wary, and if you are slow to trust it is a well-earned caution, but you can trust Xun Fu. He is a loyal man, he will die a fool’s death before he gives up on a promise he has made. He will transfer Shen’s care to you but do let him and Shen stay in touch with one another. The boy loves him as a kind of family by now I am sure.

I hope he finds you before Shen grows too old. I hope you both meet and grow as people together. If this can happen, then I will be at peace while I wait for the both of you before we reincarnate. Don’t fret, I’m not going to move on without you. I want to see my didi one more time before I go to my next life, and I want to see my Shen too.

I will not apologize for my death, you know I would not want this. I wish though, that I was there to see you too.

Your A-jie,

Shen Si

Shen Qingqiu stays very still after reading the letter. A bitter taste is in his mouth, and he has to resist the urge to laugh—it would not be a happy sound. Shen Si, Shen Si—he does have faded memories of her. They had known her life was destined to be a different one than his. It was a surprisingly practical moment in his childhood, to tell her not to bother looking for him if she got out. She was off to the brothels to be raised until she was old enough to take clients—Shen Si had hated that fate. She was prepared to die to avoid it. That was why he didn’t ask for her to save him like he asked for Qi-ge to.

And yet, she had looked. She lived, at least, long enough to look. Then when she could not find him she asked someone to carry on looking for her. Of course the one who would to do such a thing—the one who would not give that up—would be dead and waiting for him to join her in the afterlife instead. Fury rushes through him, a tidal wave of rage that makes him want to tear into something with two hands. To fight and fight—but he pushes it down and takes a breath.

He hates the wary look of pity on Yue Qingyuan’s face.

“What is that look for?” Shen Qingqiu sneers at him, “Do you think I’d be angry with her? She didn’t give up, unlike someone else.”

“Xiao-Jiu—” Yue Qingyuan croaks.

Shen Qingqiu snaps his fan open, giving a look so venomous to his sect leader that the man’s mouth snaps shut with an audible click. Shen Qingqiu keeps his eyes on him for a few moments, before he turns his expression to the children before him. Well, the one that is of interest to him in any case. The boy is watching him with that same wary expression as before, like someone might watch an animal that they know has a history of biting that they’ve been told to pet. Shen Qingqiu keeps his expression as neutral as possible—not welcoming, but not outright hostile either. It helps that the fan is in front of his face, so that he can peer over at the boy.

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Shen Yuan is doing his very best not to lose his mind. The “jiujiu” he’s been searching for all this time is the scum villain himself!? He wonders at the possibility of getting Xun Fu—once he is better, he’ll definitely be better—to abandon the dying wish of his mother based on Shen Qingqiu’s shit personality alone. Shen Yuan doesn’t like the way the guy even looks at him—it rankles him. He can imagine his hidden hackles rising, and he wants to bare his teeth at him. 

This is the guy that made Luo Binghe’s life so miserable on Qing Jing Peak in the book, he thinks. The worst of the worst—fair without, foul within.

He knows this with his head, but there is a small part of him—a part that he doesn’t understand—that feels like something has finally fallen into place. Shen Qingqiu reminds him of someone, a memory he can’t quite grasp, and that memory makes him feel safe. Maybe the original goods feels this way about him? He isn’t sure how he feels about the idea that a child’s soul may have even fragments left in this body with him if that’s the case. Shen Yuan can’t imagine why he would feel this way otherwise.

The disciples nearby begin whispering between one another—it isn’t subtle in the slightest. Shen Yuan’s hearing is sharp, even with his demonic abilities sealed away, but he’s sure Shen Qingqiu’s is even better. The man’s cold gaze cuts toward the gossiping group, and the way they seem to harden. He doesn’t even say anything, but the gaggle of youths immediately clam up like they’ve been audibly yelled at. Then, without a word, the man turns to look at him again.

What’s with this standoff!? Shen Yuan can’t help but think. Is he waiting for me to say something first? What the fuck does he want from me, just a staring contest?

“You’re my jiujiu?” Shen Yuan says slowly, breaking the quiet first.

“So it would seem,” Shen Qingqiu’s response is quick and curt. He snaps his fan shut and keeps his severe phoenix eyes narrowed at Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan hates that he is actively ignoring poor Luo Binghe, who shifts from one foot to the other. Or maybe that’s better, considering the treatment of him. “You introduced yourself as Shen Yuan, the letter only called you Shen.”

“I chose the given name ‘Yuan’ myself,” Shen Yuan replies, in a tone that suggests that that should be obvious. Shen Qingqiu’s eyes narrow and Shen Yuan tries to remember that this man is an absolute bastard as he continues, a little more politely, “Meaning ‘Wall’.”

“Do not be impertinent!” Shen Qingqiu snaps, tone clipped. “Where is this Xun Fu the letter mentions?”

“Shen-shishu, the man with them is currently being tended to by Shizun,” one of the disciples answers for him. “He will let us know if there is a change to his status, but he was not lucid when he arrived due to his injuries.”

“And the beast with you?” Shen Qingqiu says, not really acknowledging the disciple that interjected but instead snapping his chilling glare onto Luo Binghe. Binghe straightens his shoulders—ah! White lotus, you can’t impress this terrible man. “The letter made no mention of him.”

“Luo Binghe is not a beast!” Shen Yuan hisses through grit teeth.

“What this master plainly sees is none of your concern,” Shen Qingqiu  says to him coolly.

“It is when you treat my best friend like he’s not a person!” Shen Yuan snaps.

“A-Yuan, it’s okay,” Luo Binghe tries to soothe him, and Shen Yuan swallows his irritation. He’s already having the worst day today, Xun Fu is dying and fucking Shen Qingqiu is his uncle. Just wonderful. He turns to look away from the other man, focusing on Binghe.

“Lacking in basic sophistication and manners. Give me your wrist,” Shen Qingqiu says, gesturing to Shen Yuan. When Shen Yuan doesn’t immediately move the man snorts. “Are you afraid of me? Give it.”

I’m not scared of you, Shen Yuan thinks mutinously. I just want to scratch your face off!

Still, he offers his wrist and feels the man’s hand grasp it. Shen Qingqiu’s grip is surprisingly gentle, his fingers as cool as the stream of qi he sends through Shen Yuan’s meridians. Shen Yuan holds his breath for a moment—he’s never really asked Xun Fu if his meridians are noticeably different when his amulet seals his ability. Suddenly he rethinks his stance on whether or not he is afraid of this man.

“Decent foundation, working on core formation. Not an embarrassment there, at least,” Shen Qingqiu says. “Can you read and write?”

“Yes,” Shen Yuan grits out. Learning traditional characters had been troublesome, but he’s always been a quick learner with things like that. He’d even taught Luo Binghe  large majority of what he knows while he was staying with Binghe and the Washerwoman.

“Good. Instruments? Art?” Shen Qingqiu says.

“Xiao-Jiu, what do you intend to do with the boy?” Yue Qingyuan asks, earning an utterly frigid look from Shen Qingqiu. Shen Qingqiu doesn’t answer him, only turns his eyes back to Shen Yuan who doesn’t know how to respond.

“A-Yuan is good at drawing and sketching, but hasn’t had much access to paint,” Luo Binghe says softly, and Shen Qingqiu’s eyes cut to him with that same frigidity as before. Luo Binghe doesn’t balk under that gaze though, he remains polite and steady as ever. “Our Shizun doesn’t have an instrument for him to learn with though.”

“This master does not remember asking you this question,” Shen Qingqiu snarls at him. Luo Binghe winces slightly, and his eyes drop.

“Well he’s right,” Shen Yuan snaps. “Are you done with the twenty questions?”

Not that any of these people know what that game is. It doesn’t diminish the sass in Shen Yuan’s tone, and he meets Shen Qingqiu’s gaze head on. Daring the man to do anything to his friend while he stands here. Shen Yuan doesn’t care if the man is a powerful cultivator, he doesn’t care if Shen Qingqiu is a bastard who hurt a child out of sheer envy, he’ll bite him if he even thinks of touching Luo Binghe.

“You’ll be staying on Qing Jing Peak,” Shen Qingqiu says. “This master will be taking over your training.”

“Wh—you can’t just make that choice for me! And Xun Fu hasn’t released me from being his disciple!” Shen Yuan says, alarmed.

“This master will discuss the matter of transferring your care to Qing Jing Peak once he wakes,” Shen Qingqiu says. “Shen Yuan is this master’s nephew, and he will be taught properly so that he will not humiliate this master with his mere existence.”

“And if I don’t want to join your Peak?” Shen Yuan grits out. He ignores the System window that pops up in the corner of his eye—it has a small reminder that he’s meant to be getting Luo Binghe to join Cang Qiong Sect. He knows, immediately, if he joins Qing Jing that Binghe will follow him. That’s just who he is. But the least Shen Yuan can do is try to join literally any other Peak if he has to join this stupid sect.

“If Shen Yuan wishes to put up a fight he may, but this master will follow the wishes outlined in this letter to him,” Shen Qingqiu responds almost regally. “Your care is to be transferred to me, as your living family. If this master is to care for you, it will be he who is in charge of your education in cultivation and the scholarly arts.”

Shen Yuan grits his teeth, “Plenty of children aren’t directly taught by their family.”

“This master is not like other families,” Shen Qingqiu responds to him immediately.

“...I won’t go without Luo Binghe,” Shen Yuan responds, and Luo Binghe jolts and looks at him. “And Fu-ge has to be able to stay in the Sect.”

“Does Shen Yuan think this is a negotiation now?” Shen Qingqiu says calmly, almost amused.

“We can arrange for Xun Fu to stay with Cang Qiong—whether as a member or a residential guest is fine,” Yue Qingyuan answers easily. “Xiao-Yuan may feel more comfortable knowing that his guardian remains nearby.”

“Don’t you dare call the boy that!” Shen Qingqiu snarls, whirling on Yue Qingyuan. “And you will stay away from him! Do you understand me?”

Yeesh, he just wants to help, Shen Yuan thinks. He finds that Luo Binghe’s hand is suddenly in his own. Luo Binghe squeezes his fingers and gives Shen Yuan a small smile. The tension slowly eases from his shoulders as his friend murmurs to him.

“A-Yuan should go with him,” Luo Binghe says, as Shen Qingqiu and Yue Qingyuan argue in the background. Well, as close to arguing as the two must get. Shen Qingqiu is mostly the one doing the arguing bit, Yue Qingyuan is just calmly—and sadly—responding to his snarled words. “I think… I think he cares about you, and wants you close.”

“Wh—where’d you get that?” Shen Yuan hisses back. Protagonist! Don’t give the scum villain more props than he’s due!

“He’s like you are when you haven’t eaten,” Luo Binghe responds to him, as if that does anything other than insult Shen Yuan. The expression on his face must be quite expressive, because Luo Binghe bursts into soft laughter. “A-Yuan, I think he’s just outwardly angry.”

No, he’s definitely inwardly angry too, Shen Yuan thinks. But he can’t really say as much to Luo Binghe. He tries to cajole himself—this doesn’t mean Binghe is joining Qing Jing. If Xun Fu joins the sect he surely would join a peak like Wan Jian or Bai Zhan! Luo Binghe can join Xun Fu at either of those and flourish! Or maybe he’ll even join Qiong Ding Peak! It will suck to not be near his friend all the time though…

The idea makes his heart hurt terribly.

“Binghe will be in the sect too,” Shen Yuan stresses to Binghe, who rubs the back of Shen Yuan’s hand with his thumb.

“Yes yes, your beastl can stay,” Shen Qingqiu says, making Shen Yuan’s head snap up. It isn’t up to him in the slightest, but Yue Qingyuan doesn’t interject with the words. The man is standing with his head bowed, looking a little cowed by the recent tongue lashing he’s experienced. Shen Yuan pours one out for him in his mind.

Shen Yua opens his mouth to argue that Luo Binghe is not a beast again, but the door to Xun Fu’s room slides open. Shen Yuan’s heart jumps into his throat, and Luo Binghe’s fingers tighten around Shen Yuan’s. Mu Qingfang walks out looking significantly tired, and then surprised at the sight of both Yue Qingyuan and Shen Qingqiu.

“Sect Leader, Shen-shishu,” Mu Qingfang says, bowing at the neck toward the both of them. “I take it there’s a reason for the two of you to be here?”

“What about Fu-ge?” Shen Yuan asks impatiently, he doesn’t want to waste time listening to Yue Qingyuan and Shen Qingqiu catching the doctor up on unimportant shit right now. He’s terrified of whether the man who has been with him since he came into this world has been killed. If they made it in time.

“Ah…“ Mu Qingfang says, looking at Yue Qingyuan and Shen Qingqiu. He tries not to be annoyed, these adults don’t have anything to do with Xun Fu! They don’t even care about him!

"He is a friend of this master’s deceased sister,” Shen Qingqiu says, immediately contradicting Shen Yuan’s irritated thought. “Is there anything that this one should know of his condition?”

“He remains in need of recovery, but is stable as of now and will survive. Thanking, of course, Chu-shimei’s expertise,” Mu Qingfang answers with a sigh. “However, his cultivation and body have both been badly damaged. He will at the very least be unable to improve his cultivation any longer. If he can still use it in a manner that is not dangerous to him, this master will be surprised. His body as well, will likely show permanent signs of this injury for the rest of his life.”

There is a moment’s silence at the words. For a cultivator, little is worse than their cultivation being lost or damaged in a significant way. To add on the issue that his martial ability will likely be impacted truly is terrible for Xun Fu. But he is alive. Alive and stable, and if Xun Fu is alive they can keep going. Shen Yuan knows what it’s like to live with chronic pain and disability. The bad days were miserable but they were far better than being dead.

Relief hits him so hard that his knees buckle, and Luo Binghe has to prop him up with one arm. He finds himself being hugged tight by his friend, and turns to press his face against his chest. Humiliatingly, his eyes are flooding with tears. He doesn’t want to cry in front of the scum villain, but he can’t help it. Xun Fu is alive! He’s alive. They made it in time.

Chapter Text

The uncertainty of the last few days seems to hit Luo Binghe with all its force when Shen Yuan’s knees buckle. He manages to help catch his friend and he exhales shakily. It is a breath that has felt lodged in his chest since the delirium really hit with Xun Fu. They had both clung so desperately to hope, Luo Binghe doesn’t know what they would have done if—

No, it’s better not to think about that now. Xun Fu is alive and will continue to be alive.

Shen Yuan manages to get his feet underneath him after a moment, and Luo Binghe doesn’t miss the nervous look he shoots toward his uncle. Luo Binghe will admit that the man is extremely intimidating in presence. The older Shen is devastatingly beautiful but frigid in his behavior. Binghe can’t help but notice the similarities between him and Shen Yuan—will Shen Yuan be that beautiful when he grows up? Or, perhaps, more so?

…Best not to get distracted about that.

It doesn’t change the fact that Shen Yuan is obviously nervous about this man, he keeps glancing at him as if expecting immediate disapproval. Luo Binghe wants to encourage him that he’ll be fine, his uncle would have to be a fool to not love Shen Yuan. Yet, he holds his tongue. Luo Binghe knows what it’s like to worry that you’re not measuring up intimately well. He’s sure that, if any of his living family remained, he would be worried upon meeting them too.

So instead he takes the hand he’s been holding to squeeze and nudges Shen Yuan gently. Shen Yuan blinks over at Luo Binghe with wide, relieved eyes that are wet with tears. Luo Binghe doesn’t mention them, he knows that Shen Yuan hates when he cries. As if aware of his friend’s thoughts, Shen Yuan scrubs at his eyes with his free hand and swallows thickly.

“Can… can we see him?” Shen Yuan asks, his voice sounds hoarse.

“He is awake,” a voice interrupts Peak Lord Mu before he can answer. The woman who walked into the room before with an armful of scrolls is now standing to the side of their group—that is, Peak Lord Chu. She’s standing so that she’s almost facing away from them and looking at something on the wall next to her as she speaks, “It’s up to Mu-shixiong though.”

“Allow this master a moment to check on his patient before answering then,” Mu Qingfang says, before bidding a hasty farewell to Shen Qingqiu and Yue Qingyuan. Luo Binghe watches him go, before turning to look up at the adults in their group.

Chu Qingru has doubled down on looking at the wall—there appears to be some sort of shape that she is either genuinely fascinated with or is simply hoping to use to avoid looking at them. She isn’t leaving though, which Luo Binghe would think less noticeable if it weren’t for the palpable hostility radiating from Shen Qingqiu. The man is glaring daggers at Yue Qingyuan, who shifts from one foot to the other.

That is the leader of a sect, Luo Binghe thinks, somewhat mystified that such a powerful figurehead could so easily be cowed by his second-in-command. No, that isn’t even the right word. The poor man looks miserable. While Luo Binghe can’t help the pang of sympathy he feels for him, he reminds himself to be wary. Surely there’s a reason that She Qingqiu is acting like this regarding him right?

“Xi—” Yue Qingyuan begins, but is immediately cut off. Not by Shen Qingqiu, but by Chu Qingru instead.

“Don’t talk to him!” Chu Qingru interrupts, finally turning to stare up at the man. Her eyes skate away from him the second that Yue Qingyuan turns bewildered eyes on her. Shen Qingqiu’s expression is inscrutable—hidden as it is behind his fan. “I want to talk to him. If you do it first he’ll get angry and leave. Shen-shixiong, I want to talk to you.”

“Ah,” Yue Qingyuan says, in a tone that suggests he’s not quite sure what to think of that.

“What does shimei wish to talk to this one about?” Shen Qingqiu says, phoenix-eyes unerringly focused on Chu Qingru. The woman’s own eyes seem unable to quite look at the man, sometimes glancing at him only to look over elsewhere.

“One of those boys made this,” Chu Qingru says, pulling out the pages of Shen Yuan’s bestiary that he drew before. She barely turns her head toward them and says, “Which of you made this page?”

“Ah, that’s me,” Shen Yuan says. Chu Qingru’s lips purse.

“This master is assuming there’s a reason you’re fixated on the fact that Shen Yuan drew this?” Shen Qingqiu says, leisurely fanning himself while watching the woman.

“It’s brilliant, work well above his age. I want him for Xun Shou Peak,” Chu Qingru says.

“No, he’s joining Qing Jing,” Shen Qingqiu immediately responds, his tone brooks no argument. It should be the end of the conversation, but it clearly isn’t.

“You would waste his potential,” Chu Qingru does not back down, “He is intelligent and observant about demonic creatures. He noticed things that most would not, promising traits in a disciple for my Peak. He still remembered clear details and notated them despite facing a traumatic scene. Better than any that have joined my Peak in years.”

“His intelligence and observance are well-suited to Qing Jing Peak as well,” Shen Qingqiu points out coolly. He reaches forward and plucks the pages from Chu Qingru, looking over them with detached interest. “The artistic quality is promising as well, not to mention the calligraphy. You’d waste an intelligent mind mucking out the stables of your strange monsters.”

“You, boy,” Chu Qingru says, turning to Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan—who has been scowling as two people argued over him while he stood right there—straightens under her gaze. “Would you like to join Xun Shou Peak?”

“Chu-shimei, as Shen Yuan’s guardian it is ultimately up to Shen Qingqiu where he will end up,” Yue Qingyuan interrupts before Shen Yuan can answer. In tandem, both Shen Qingqiu and Shen Yuan scowl at the tall man. Luo Binghe has to bite his lip to keep from laughing—he’s reasonably sure that neither of the two noticed. They both reply at the same time, voices overlapping:

“This master does not need your help,” Shen Qingqiu seethes.

“Let me at least talk ,” Shen Yuan snaps.

The two Shens stare at one another for a few moments. Before Shen Qingqiu gestures to Shen Yuan with his free hand to continue. Shen Yuan keeps his eyes on the man as he answers Chu Qingru’s question from before.

“If given the choice, this Shen would prefer Xun Shou Peak,” Shen Yuan responds.

Shen Qingqiu’s fan closes with a loud snap at that, the man looks furious.Chu Qingru looks positively smug , even in the face of Shen Qingqiu’s palpable anger. Yue Qingyuan looks like he’s going to say something again, before he seems to think better of it after Shen Qingqiu slaps his fan down into the palm of his hand.

“What about a compromise?” Luo Binghe asks, refusing to quail under the furious gaze of Shen Qingqiu. The man looks like he wants to throw his fan directly at Luo Binghe’s head, but Luo Binghe calmly continues. “A-Yuan could spend some time at Xun Shou Peak and some of his time at Qing Jing Peak. That could help him with his full potential.”

“We don’t really do it that way,” Chu Qingru says, though she sounds more curious than anything. As if she’s considering Luo Binghe’s idea. He can’t help but feel a little buoyed by the thought, though Shen Qingqiu still looks as if he’s seconds from losing his temper.

“Jiujiu,” Shen Yuan says softly, and Shen Qingqiu’s attention snaps to him immediately. Shen Yuan’s friend looks tired, he is tired. Luo Binghe squeezes his friend’s fingers gently, and wonders if he’ll be willing to let Luo Binghe carry him on his back. “Please. It’d make me happy.”

For a long moment, Shen Qingqiu just stares at Shen Yuan as if he isn’t sure how to respond to the phrase. The man’s eyes drift to Luo Binghe and narrow once more, but then he snaps his fan open again and all that is visible are his eyes.

“We will discuss this further at a later date, Chu-shimei. The children are exhausted,” Shen Qingqiu says finally. “Visit me for tea in four days, we will discuss the matter then.”

Chu Qingru blinks a few times before nodding seriously. She turns to Yue Qingyuan and bluntly says, “You may still wish to not make him angry, Sect Leader. Goodbye Shen Yuan, Shen-shixiong and… other child.”

“This one is Luo Binghe,” Luo Binghe says politely.

Chu Qingru nods and then, to Shen Yuan’s clear dismay, she seems to decide the conversation is more than over. She leaves walking so quickly that Luo Binghe expects her to break out into a run. Shen Qingqiu watches her go with narrowed eyes, he turns to look to Shen Yuan. Still, he’s so hard to read. Poor Shen Yuan doesn’t seem to know what to think.

“That isn’t a yes,” Shen Qingqiu says calmly. “Merely me considering her arguments. If you want a yes you will put in the work to help convince me.”

“But it isn’t a no,” Shen Yuan responds, too quickly to keep the cheek out of his tone. Shen Qingqiu narrows his eyes and Shen Yuan adds a rapid, if overly polite, “Thank you Jiujiu!”

Shen Qingqiu merely narrows his eyes at him. For Luo Binghe’s part, he struggles to hide a smile. If Shen Yuan is already negotiating what he wants this quickly then he is doomed for the future. Not that Luo Binghe can blame him for that, considering he’s pretty sure most of the people close to Shen Yuan would do just about anything for him. Luo Binghe included.

It is at this point that Mu Qingfang clears his throat to interrupt them, “You may come in to visit him for a short time. A short time.”

Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan don’t even glance at one another, they just move as one to the room.

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

Some part of Shen Yuan—the part that has been trying to smother the hope in him—is afraid that when they step into that room, Xun Fu will actually be dead. He knows that Mu Qingfang would have no reason to lie to them, but it isn’t until he lays eyes on his guardian that the last of his anxiety finally bursts in his chest. He struggles around the lump in his throat for a moment, taking rapid breaths.

Xun Fu sits propped up in the bed, looking exhausted but for the first time in days his eyes aren’t covered in the haze of his deep fever. He still has ruddy cheeks, like his temperature is stubbornly running high despite his treatments, but the point is that he seems lucid. Shen Yuan walks swiftly to Xun Fu’s side, his chest welling with emotions.

“How dare you!” Shen Yuan manages to snarl, and his voice comes out embarrassingly choked up. Xun Fu winces at the anger he must see on Shen Yuan’s face, and Shen Yuan realizes he’s trembling with it. “Why did you hide that you were this hurt!? No—don’t interrupt me, I know we talked about this before but that was then and this is now Fu-ge. You almost died. Binghe and I—we, we. What if…”

He can’t look at him. Shen Yuan buries his face in his hands, pressing his palms into his eyes and sucking in air around the ball that seems to have lodged itself in his throat.

“Shizun, it’s good to see you awake,” Luo Binghe says softly, thankfully drawing attention from Shen Yuan while he struggles not to have a mental breakdown. Come on! Xun Fu is fine! Stupid kid emotions, why does he want to cry like a baby?

Shen Yuan jolts from his position when he feels an arm hook around his shoulder. When he opens his eyes he sees that Xun Fu has drawn both him and Luo Binghe into his arms, and he hears Binghe make a sniffing noise. He cautiously hugs Xun Fu himself, mindful of the injury on his side, and buries his face against his guardian’s chest.

“I thought for sure you were going to die,” Shen Yuan chokes out, and dammit there are the tears. Luo Binghe makes a sobbing noise, and Shen Yuan takes a little solace in the fact that he’s not the only one.

“We barely made it Shizun,” Luo Binghe adds with a sniff. “I thought—I thought that like mama you were going to be gone.”

“I know, I know,” Xun Fu says, and hugs the two of them tightly. Shen Yuan knows that it isn’t quite Xun Fu’s fault that he was so ill, but he can’t help but feel wronged. Like all the fear he was suppressing is rushing to pin him down all at once. He sobs like a baby, and Xun Fu soothes them both with a soft voice. “I’m sorry, you should never have had to do that. You were both so strong and brave.”

“Never again,” Shen Yuan cries out, “Never ever again. Please Fu-ge, I can’t do that again.”

“I won’t,” Xun Fu’s voice is suspiciously hoarse. Shen Yuan knows it’s not a promise that anyone should be made to make. He can’t help it, as if the oath itself is enough for Xun Fu to stay with them in this world. He rubs both of their backs, and Shen Yuan pretends for a moment that he can just bury himself in Xun Fu’s arms and that nothing will hurt him. He completely feels his age in this moment, at the mercy of the fact that he almost lost someone he sees as family.

Shen Yuan tries to ignore the fact that he can’t even bear the thought.

“We met A-Yuan’s uncle,” Luo Binghe sniffs after the two of them have cried it out in Xun Fu’s arms. The older man leans back as he takes turns wiping away Shen Yuan’s tears then Luo Binghe’s. “He’s…”

“An asshole,” Shen Yuan finishes before his friend can find the words. Luo Binghe lets out a startled laugh at the open swear, and Xun Fu gives him a tired look. Shen Yuan wishes he could ask Xun Fu to leave. He has a feeling that if he pushed it he would.

But Luo Binghe has to join the sect. It’s an unavoidable plotpoint, apparently.

“Sometimes it takes a bit to get to know someone, Xiao-Yuan,” Xun Fu says, leaning back to take a deep breath. The man winces, but his eyes are still wet with tears and focused. Shen Yuan can see the toll that the sickness has had on him though. While carrying him, his guardian had seemed impossibly large.

Now, he realizes that Xun Fu must have lost weight over the course of his illness. The exhaustion is so clear on his face that Shen Yuan fears he might fall over asleep.

“So you are the illustrious Xun Fu,” the cold voice of Shen Qingqiu breaks through Shen Yuan’s open concern. The man is standing in the doorway, eyeing Xun Fu the way that one might eye a wounded tiger. As if he expects the larger man to lash out at him. Those cunning eyes sharply look him over, “A-jie’s letter says I can trust you, but I will judge that for myself.”

“Wh—” Shen Yuan is outraged on behalf of his guardian. Who does Shen Qingqiu think he is!?

“Understandable, Peak Lord Shen,” Xun Fu says softly, uncharacteristically polite in his words. He flashes a tired smile at him, despite the open hostility radiating from Shen Qingqiu. “Apologies for imposing on you.”

Shen Qingqiu closes his fan and says coldly, “You almost failed to bring my nephew here. What would have happened if they had been attacked while you were incapacitated? If you had died?”

“I would have fought my way out of the underworld itself to ensure that they were both safe,” Xun Fu responds calmly.

“So you’d become a ghost,” Shen Qingqiu sneers, “A dangerous mindset to have for a cultivator. Not to mention utterly stupid. Spirits are easily warped into demons, are easily taken by obsession even without that.”

“Don’t be mad at him for a—a hypo thetical!” Shen Yuan snaps, furious with the other man. Shen Qingqiu looks down at him, lips twisting in a frown. “You don’t even know him, you don't get to scold him like that!”

“Your safety is paramount to me,” Shen Qingqiu replies quickly. “Any who jeopardize that will at the very least receive a ‘scolding’ as you put it. He is lucky that I will allow him to live on my Peak so that he can stay nearby while I take over your cultivation training.”

Xun Fu looks surprised at that, and a little awkward—Shen Yuan can’t quite blame him. He himself isn’t sure how he feels about living in a large sect, so used to the wandering way of their life. Luo Binghe looks uncertain as well, shooting looks from Xun Fu to Shen Qingqiu.

“Fu-ge also hasn’t released me from his tutorship,” Shen Yuan adds mutinously.

“If shimei’s brother wants that then I can do so,” Xun Fu says, giving Shen Yuan a torn look. Shen Yuan looks at him, feeling actively betrayed. Still, Xun Fu seems to be carefully choosing his words. “If it is alright with Peak Lord Shen, I would still like a hand in his studies.”

“Fine,” Shen Qingqiu snaps.

“And Xiao-Binghe?” Xun Fu asks. A muscle in Shen Qingqiu’s jaw jumps as he seems to grind his teeth. Shen Yuan isn’t sure if he hates Luo Binghe that much or the affectionate term of address makes him angry. He still remembers the way he bit off Yue Qingyuan’s head in the hallway earlier. “I will advise, the two seem to learn better together. They balance one another out very well.”

“Do you wish me to encourage codependency with them?” Shen Qingqiu snarls.

“Not at all,” Xun Fu responds, seeming too tired to rise to the bait of Shen Qingqiu’s angry words. Or perhaps Shen Yuan’s guardian is simply that calm. He’s rarely seen Xun Fu truly angry, after all. He doesn’t think the man the petty sort. “But the thing about two children as close as these two is that if you attempt to separate them it will only encourage that codependency. It is best to get them to work together to teach them how to work apart.”

“I will not teach that beast,” Shen Qingqiu says coldly. “I don’t care if he stays on the mountain, Shen Yuan has already requested as much. I will not extend my resources to educating him, he is not worth my time.”

Xun Fu’s demeanor changes at this, the genial—if tired—calm he had approached the conversation with melts away. He doesn’t look angry, merely gives Luo Binghe a concerned look and quietly says, “Xiao-Binghe?”

“If possible, this disciple would prefer to keep his Shizun as his master,” Luo Binghe says softly, not at all approaching the fact that Shen Qingqiu called him a beast. Xun Fu frowns, brow furrowing a little before he leans back and meets Shen Qingqiu’s eyes.

“You’ll struggle to form bridges with Xiao-Yuan if you treat him or his friend poorly,” Xun Fu says quietly. Shen Qingqiu’s fan audibly creaks in his grip, and Xun Fu glances at Shen Yuan. The concern in his eyes seems to harden into decisiveness, “I will continue to teach Luo Binghe, Peak Lord Shen, I ask only that he may also attend other lessons with Xiao-Yuan.”

“Fine,” Shen Qingqiu snaps, “He may attend the classes that others take, but only so long as he does not serve as a distraction to others. But if he is to learn on my peak he will be expected to keep up with the chores of the other disciples. You may be in charge of his training ultimately, but I will not have my peak getting a bad name because of the boy.”

“Thank you, Peak Lord Shen,” Xun Fu says quietly. Shen Qingqiu snorts as though he does not want even a modicum of the thanks that Xun Fu has to offer. Still, he turns to the two of them, “Both of you behave for Peak Lord Shen.”

“Of course,Shizun,” Luo Binghe responds. Xun Fu’s eyes linger on Shen Yuan, before Shen Yuan grudgingly nods. He suppresses the urge to look over his shoulder at the man, instead focusing on his guardian’s face. 

“We will go and let Xun Fu rest,” Shen Qingqiu says, and Shen Yuan hears the door slide open at that time. Had Shen Qingqiu heard Mu Qingfang coming to the door? “This master will ask that Xun Fu not refer to the children with such undignified nicknames in this master’s presence.”

Xun Fu has a moment to look bewildered at that, and Shen Yuan wants to protest. Xun Fu has called him Xiao-Yuan since he added “Yuan” to his name. But Xun Fu does not protest, merely tips his head to one side thoughtfully and Luo Binghe only glances over at Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan decides to hold his tongue for now. At least he didn’t scream at him about that, “I will keep from doing so then.”

“Now. The two of you,” Shen Qingqiu turns his eyes first to Shen Yuan and then to Luo Binghe, “Come with this master.”

With that, Shen Qingqiu takes long strides from the room. Isn’t this asshole supposed to be a teacher!? Shouldn’t he know that kids have short legs at this point!? Shen Yuan scowls, but turns to look at Xun Fu before saying, “Please get better soon.”

“Give him a chance, but don’t let him push you two around or be cruel,” Xun Fu says to both of them. “If he does, we will leave immediately. I will not make you stay.”

Shen Yuan feels some of the tension leave his shoulders. Even if the System won’t let them leave, at least Xun Fu isn’t going to stand for cruelty. That might be an issue later down the line, but Shen Yuan has already decided he won’t let Luo Binghe be bullied the way he was in the book anyway. It just means he’ll have an adult on his side.

“It’s okay, I think he’s just like A-Yuan when he’s grumpy,” Luo Binghe says, and Shen Yuan wishes that he could guarantee to his friend that this is not the case. Shen Qingqiu absolutely has bite to back up his bark—or at least a little pack of weasels that will do the biting for him. Not this time. Not if Shen Yuan can help it.

The two of them hurry to follow Shen Qingqiu. The hall is empty of people when they come through—both Yue Qingyuan and Shen Qingqiu are nowhere nearby. The man has not waited for the two of them, and they both have to run to catch up. When they settle into a jog next to Shen Qingqiu, the cultivator snorts as though annoyed that they decided to follow him at all. He pulls out his blade, eyeing the two of them.

“The beast can walk,” Shen Qingqiu says, offering a hand to Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan does not take it, stepping to stand next to Luo Binghe. Operation: The Fuck You Won’t has officially started then. “Don’t be stubborn.”

“I’ll walk with Binghe, or we can both ride,” Shen Yuan snaps back.

“A-Yuan, this Binghe will be fine,” Luo Binghe urges him but Shen Yuan stubbornly grabs his friend’s hand. That seems to quiet his denial, and he feels Luo Binghe squeeze his fingers gently.

“Then get on. If he falls off you only have yourself to blame,” Shen Qingqiu sneers. Both Luo Binhe and Shen Yuan get onto the sword, and Xiu Ya glides into the air smoothly almost the moment they have their feet on it.

Luo Binghe holds onto Shen Yuan, and Shen Yuan holds onto Shen Qingqiu’s sleeves. The man gives him a cold glance when he does, but he does not shake him off despite that. Instead, the three of them make their way to the mountain and Shen Yuan can’t help but be impressed with Xiu Ya, and Shen Qingqiu.

In the book, Shen Qingqiu had been mentioned to have weaker spiritual powers than most cultivators his age. Maybe it’s the combination of the high quality spiritual weapon - or maybe it’s just that Shen Qingqiu is still really strong as a Peak Lord, but it does not seem to struggle with the weight of the three of them. He knows that Xun Fu would have trouble flying for long with the three of them on the sword.

For the first time, Shen Yuan allows himself to see the Sect around them. Cang Qiong is beautiful—though they call it Cang Qiong Mountain it is more apt to call is something of a range, since it has several peaks. The mountains around them are majestic, vanishing into the clouds and connected by rainbow bridges that spread between them. They’re a beautiful sight, and Shen Yuan can’t help his excitement as he looks over them. 

Each mountain has thousands upon thousands of stairs. He’s glad that he managed to convince Shen Qingqiu to take the both of them on the sword—it would have taken at least the rest of the day to get to where they are headed.

Qing Jing Peak is green and lush, even near the very top. As they get closer and closer, Shen Yuan can’t help the inner fanboy in him. To see things he only had described to him in a book in person is a magical feeling, and Qing Jing is a one-to-one for the descriptions in PIDW. There is, however, noticeably more around them in general. The breathtaking scenery has Shen Yuan gaping, even as they touch down on the ground outside of a cluster of buildings.

“You will catch flies with your mouth open like that,” Shen Qingqiu says, rapping Shen Yuan on top of head with his fan. Shen Yuan snaps his mouth shut, and he turns toward the buildings and notices that, without a word, Shen Qingqiu has begun to walk away. When he and Binghe catch up, he continues calmly, “This master will allow Shen Yuan three days of respite. Then he will be expected to attend courses at that time. It is assumed your pet will join you.”

“Binghe isn’t a pet,” Shen Yuan protests.

“It’s fine,” Luo Binghe urges softly, squeezing Shen Yuan’s fingers.

“It is not,” Shen Yuan hisses back.

Shen Qingqiu pauses at the door to what must be one of the classrooms—music pours out of the door as he opens it. Almost the second he does, the notes fall completely silent, “Cui Yanmei, Ming Fan, come.”

Two students pull away. Shen Yuan recognizes the name of one of them—Ming Fan is not much older than he and Luo Binghe, and already he has an unfortunate appearance. His features are pinched in a manner that makes him look disappointed or as if he has smelled something foul. Shen Yuan expects hostility from him, but instead the other boy’s eyes are bright with curiosity as he looks the two of them over.

The other student is a young woman of eighteen or so. She has a scar down the side of her face, and Shen Yuan wonders what could have done that to have marked her so even with a level of cultivation to heal injuries. She bows politely to Shen Qingqiu, as does Ming Fan.

“This is my current head disciple, Cui Yanmei,” Shen Qingqiu says to Shen Yuan. “She is training Ming Fan to take her place, as other duties are pulling her from the sect. You will mind them both and do so politely.”

Cui Yanmei, who is standing with a ramrod straight back, does nothing to acknowledge she is being spoken about except to nod at the two of them.

“This is Shen Yuan, my nephew,” Shen Qingqiu says. He lets the words sit for a moment, and Shen Yuan can see the twin surprise on both disciple’s faces. Cui Yanmei schools it quickly, but Ming Fan doesn’t quite manage to, instead opting for a look of excitement. Shen Yuan tries not to feel uncomfortable about that. He knows the boy worships the ground Shen Qingqiu walks on, but he hopes he doesn’t make things weird for them. 

Or hell for Luo Binghe.

“This is Luo Binghe, my friend,” Shen Yuan says, because he knows if Luo Binghe introduces himself that Shen Qingqiu will get all pissy. He also knows that Shen Qingqiu won’t do it himself, because he’s a bitch. So Shen Yuan steps in. Cui Yanmei looks at Luo Binghe and then Shen Yuan with a nod.

“This master requests that you assign them both a room in the dormitory,” Shen Qingqiu pauses, narrowing his eyes at both Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe. He seems to debate something and adds, “One for the both of them, I don’t want to argue with my nephew any further today. As for you, Shen Yuan. You will join this master for dinner this evening. You may do your tea ceremony at that time.”

“You want me to have dinner with you?” Shen Yuan asks, surprised. He thought that Shen Qingqiu didn’t like him in the slightest, why is he going out of his way to eat with him now?

“Do not be late,” Shen Qingqiu says in response. “This master has much to do for the rest of the day that has been put off.”

This, to Shen Qingqiu, must serve as a farewell. The man turns and with gliding steps he walks away. Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe watch him go. The other two disciples must as well, because as soon as Shen Qingqiu vanishes around a corner, Cui Yanmei’s shoulders relax. Not so much to be improper, but enough to tell that she was much stiffer around her shizun.

“Come along—Ming Fan, this is an unusual circumstance for a joining, but a good opportunity for me to show you how to get new disciples settled into the sect,” Cui Yanmei says softly. She turns and heads off and the boys follow at her feet. Shen Yuan is exhausted, but he doesn’t complain. Or let go of Luo Binghe’s hand.

“You’re Shizun’s nephew?” Ming Fan asks curiously, “What’s he like when he’s around family?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Shen Yuan says, “Well—apart from today. Which I think is just the same as he usually is. I only just met him.”

“Ah, that makes sense,” Ming Fan seems a touch disappointed but brightens almost immediately. “Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe are welcome to Qing Jing Peak though—Ning-xiaoshimei will be happy to have new shidis. If you have any trouble at all, you can come to this shixiong!”

It is strange, to see a Ming Fan that isn’t a sneering little toady. Maybe it’s because Shen Qingqiu wasn’t openly hostile to Luo Binghe. At least, not at this point. Still, it’s refreshing, and Shen Yuan feels himself relax. Maybe they can get to him first, and if they recruit him as a friend then they won’t have anything to worry about. He glances over to Luo Binghe, and is surprised to see the protagonist eyeing Ming Fan with narrowed eyes.

What’s that about Binghe-ah!? He hasn’t even done anything to you in this universe!

He resolves to help this cannon-fodder disciple. If he’s going to keep Binghe from getting bullied it’ll help to have a friend for him. Shen Yuan pats Luo Binghe on the top of his head, and his friend shoots him a beaming look right away. He almost laughs at the change in expression.

“This is where the bedding is,” Cui Yanmei says, she gestures for Ming Fan to join her.”See this here Ming Fan? This requires our signature, infused with a small amount of qi, to check out items. It’s to make sure nobody is taking more than their share, and to make sure we can keep An Ding up to date on such matters.”

Ming Fan makes a noise of understanding, and Cui Yanmei pulls several blankets from the bin as well as a few pillows. These are both passed onto Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe. Shen Yuan feels a burst of rare gratefulness to Airplane for some of his anachronistic tendencies. Some places still have porcelain pillows, and Xun Fu doesn’t use one at all, but it seems that the peak offers soft and plush pillows to sleep on. He hopes the same can be said for the bedding. Shen Yuan may have lived in this world for a while, but he’s still a spoiled second-gen who prefers a soft mattress thank you!

“Dinner is at yǒu time,” Cui Yanmei says, adding a couple of robes to the pile. He passes Luo Binghe a pair, and Binghe eyes them curiously for a moment. Then, Cui Yanmei turns and as she walks adds. “We take our meals in the refectory, the building is over there. You will find many of the masters housing just beyond the dorms. Shizun’s home is in the bamboo forest, when it comes time to meet him for dinner give yourself at least a ke to get up to the Bamboo House. Ask one of your shixiongdi to assist you in pointing out the path. If they mess with you, ask for their names to tell Shizun.”

“Will he care if they mess with me?” Shen Yuan can’t help but ask.

“Probably. Shizun is strict, but not terrible,” Cui Yanmei responds, “He is also not unreasonable, usually.”

I beg to differ, Shen Yuan thinks, considering how he treated Luo Binghe. Unless the very worst of his behavior was aimed at Luo Binghe in the book. That makes him feel sad, and he doesn’t want to dwell on that too much. 

The two of them are led to their dorm room—already a step up from the book!—and Shen Yuan breathes a soft sigh of relief when they do. He takes his blankets to one of the beds, and dumps them onto it. Luo Binghe claims the other without complaint.

“Ming Fan-shixiong, do you mind meeting up with Binghe and helping him out at dinner?” Shen Yuan asks, as the two disciples turn to leave. Ming Fan looks over at Luo Binghe, who is giving Shen Yuan a look as if he has just betrayed him terribly. This is for your own good Binghe! Make other friends too!

“Sure, this shixiong will do that,” Ming Fan says, puffing his chest out as though rather proud to be relied on already. “I’ll meet you at yǒu, Luo-shidi.”

Luo Binghe opens his mouth—maybe to protest—but the boy is already off. Cui Yanmei shakes her head and mutters to herself, “Don’t inflate his ego too much. That boy likes being relied on, but it can go to his head. Especially if Shizun asks.”

“Noted,” Shen Yuan says, knowing that this has already been noted before she ever mentioned it. She nods, before bidding the two boys farewell and leaving them to their own devices. 

For a moment, Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan just stand in the room. Shen Yuan reels with all that has happened in the day—it’s still some time before dinner too! Absolutely ridiculous. He looks out the window, and flops onto his bed after that. It isn’t the softest mattress, but it’s enough padding that he won’t suffer from back pain daily.

“We did it,” Shen Yuan breathes out.

“We did it!” Luo Binghe confirms, and Shen Yuan can see his friend is beaming at him. Luo Binghe clambors onto Shen Yuan’s bed, nudging his shoulder. “A-Yuan should have mentioned to his uncle how tired he is.”

“Mn, if he even cared I would have,” Shen Yuan says, rubbing his eyes.

“A-Yuan dislikes him,” Luo Binghe says softly.

“He’s mean.” Shen Yuan turns so that he lies on his side. Luo Binghe, sticky friend that he is, begins to gently play with his hair. Shen Yuan sighs. “You want me to give him a chance too.”

“If this Binghe met any of his family…” Luo Binghe trails off. Shen Yuan sits up to look at him with a frown and Luo Binghe flashes a strained smile, “I would hate for A-Yuan to miss out on such a thing based on first impressions.”

I had your whole whump-filled backstory to have an impression of him, Shen Yuan thinks. But he says out loud, “I’ll try Binghe. I can’t promise anything, but I’ll try.”

“Good boy,” Luo Binghe says, and Shen Yuan pinches his friend’s side at that. Luo Binghe laughs, and the two of them end up rough-housing for a bit. When Shen Yuan knocks Luo Binghe off the bed Binghe wheezes and gives up the ghost. Victory for Shen Yuan!

Cautiously, as if expecting his friend to attack him again—and it is a strong part of the cat brain that longs to pounce and wrestle and bite—Luo Binghe gets back on the bed. Shen Yuan relaxes into his side with a soft sigh, exhaustion weighing down on him. His heart still aches when he thinks of Xun Fu. He hopes that gets better soon.

“Binghe?” Shen Yuan says sleepily.

“Mn?” Luo Binghe responds, sounding as though he’s drifting off.

“I’m glad we made it in time. Thank you for being with me. For helping me with Fu-ge. For being my friend,” Shen Yuan says. Luo Binghe turns his head to look at him, and his face seems to go pink for a second. Ah! The White Lotus protagonist really is too sweet for his own good! To be so moved by what Shen Yuan said…

“No A-Yuan, thank you,” Luo Binghe breathes. Then, because he truly is exhausted, Shen Yuan cannot help but succumb to sleep.

Chapter Text

The boy clearly hates him.

This should not bother Shen Qingqiu—he is used to children disliking him. He is used to people not liking him. Shen Qingqiu has always been abrasive and unlikeable, and that was well before his distrust poisoned his actions. He keeps others at bay because he knows they will only disappoint him—he keeps himself at arm’s length because he knows that he may as well not fight their preconceptions of him. People think what they will, and Shen Qingqiu has long learned that they do not think well of him.

Yet.

Shen Qingqiu has always struggled not to cling onto what little he has with both of his hands. He has never liked teaching, but he is Peak Lord of Qing Jing Peak. He has never liked the rich, but the generous amount he has to his name he keeps hooked in his hands with determination. He could be opulent about his home on this peak, but he keeps what he can without touching it. A man who grew up with everything, every single thing, taken from him that now cannot stand to even give what he has to his name away. He is a possessive man, he recognizes this in himself but will do absolutely nothing to fix it.

The point is, that the boy—Shen Yuan—is his nephew. He is not Xun Fu’s nephew, yet the man and the boy clearly have a strong bond. Shen Qingqiu is still tempted to find Yue Qingyuan and insist the man be quietly thrown from the mountain. The jealousy that festers like a poison in his chest makes that very tempting. The fact that Yue Qingyuan absolutely would, spineless thanks to his worthless guilt, makes it even more so.

But no. If he were to do that Shen Yuan would figure it out quickly. The boy is smart.

He looks like his mother.

Shen Qingqiu has not thought of Shen Si in years. She was another thing torn away from him in his hellish childhood. The fact that she had been even further moved from his grasp now festers like a wound in his chest. He feels more frustration than grief, if he is being truthful to himself. Shen Qingqiu hates knowing she kept looking when someone else didn’t, and in the end she still never found him. She had never promised to find him again. There had been an understanding—one that most coddled children would balk at—when they had separated.

She would not promise to find him again simply because the life that was set for her was one that was difficult to escape from. Still, there had been a kind of hope in him—loathe as he is to admit that he had that hope at all. He’d always found the brothels more comfortable than many places, and he had hoped his sister had either escaped her fate before she came of age or had at least been somewhere like the Warm Red Pavilion. Where the ladies were all treated well and safe as one could be in sex work.

He’d always known that for every brothel with a Madam that gave a damn there were five more with one who cared more about the coin. He’d always known that it was a profession that could chew up the girls who stepped into it and spit them out again, no freedom and a constantly moving goal that meant it was never truly reached. So Shen Qingqiu did not think that his sister would ever look for him, and he had not looked for her because she had already been lost to him.

The fine calligraphy brush in his hand breaks in half, and Shen Qingqiu stares at it for a moment. He had not been using it, simply holding it as he drowned in his thoughts. To lose control in such a way is humiliating. He is glad that nobody else is there to see it, and thankful he had not dipped the brush in ink before breaking it.

A shame about the brush itself though.

With a scowl, Shen Qingqiu rises from his desk. Clearly this is not happening today. Part of him longs to summon Ning Yingying to his side once more—the bright and cheerful girl has a way of making him feel better. He will not pull her from her classes again though, and instead folds his hands into his sleeves and stares out of his doorway at the tranquil bamboo. His peak, his home.

He wonders what it would have been like if he could show Shen Si the Bamboo House. The quiet pride he may have indulged in as he let his sister know just how well he had done, how far he had clawed his way up in the world. A frivolous, worthless thought that sticks in his throat and weighs heavy like a stone in his chest. 

And here she has left him something in this world—a son she wants him to know, and the boy hates him.

Since he is staring out of his doorway he sees the man approaching well before he’s within earshot. Shen Qingqiu waits patiently for him, and pretends that he was not thinking some uncharitable thoughts not long ago. By the time the man reaches his doorway he seems exhausted, and Shen Qingqiu opens his fan and imperiously looks over the edge of it, “I thought that Mu Qingfang would keep you much longer, Xun Fu.”

“I believe he wanted to,” Xun Fu says in response. The man has a crutch made of bamboo under his left arm and his eyes are curious as they look Shen Qingqiu over. Judgmental. Shen Qingqiu’s lip curls reflexively behind the paper of his fan. “I wanted to speak with Master Shen before it was too late, if that is alright.”

Truly, Shen Qingqiu can think of few things he wants less. This genial, friendly man with his warm, dark eyes reminds him that he cannot trust this kind of person. Even so, this man is his best chance for him to better connect with Shen Yuan. As loath as he is to admit such a thing, he may have need of his time and efforts. So he snaps his fan shut and tilts his head in a gesture to invite the man indoors. As he walks in he brushes the tips of his fingers against a talisman to summon a disciple to make them tea and he gestures to the table for the man to sit.

Xun Fu takes a moment to struggle to the cushion on the floor. Shen Qingqiu does not offer to help. If the man is fool enough to rush his recovery then he will suffer the consequences on his own goddamn time. Shen Qingqiu settles far more gracefully, still holding his fan before his face as he regards Xun Fu.

The man seems like nothing special, though he will admit that he has the benefit of clearly not being of noble birth. Shen Qingqiu would guess that he has roots in a simple family, perhaps the first cultivator that showed any real promise in a long while. This is not impossible but not at all common, if only because it seems that cultivation is best passed down from family with strong foundations of it themselves. It is possible, of course, that Xun Fu simply is a bastard child that was lost in the cracks, but he somehow doubts that.

For all that he is regarding Xun Fu, the man is watching him with equal intensity. Shen Qingqiu hears the door to the small kitchenette open and knows that one of the disciples must have answered the talisman. Punctual, as always, it is the familiar broad shoulders of one of the older disciples on the mountain that he sees. The young man carefully serves the tea, then stands off to the side with a bow.

“You had a desire to speak with this master?” Shen Qingqiu asks with a sip of his tea.

“Yes, about matters that I felt were more private than the setting allowed before,” Xun Fu responds. His eyes dart to where the disciple still stands nearby, ready to assist his Shizun should the occasion call for it.

“Disciple Mo Taoting is dismissed,” Shen Qingqiu says with no hesitation, waving the disciple away. The boy startles in response, looking to Shen Qingqiu in surprise before bowing and hurrying out. Mo Yaoting has been on the peak since before Shen Qingqiu claimed the title of Peak Lord. He’d been much, much younger back then. Shen Qingqiu sips at his tea and meets Xun Fu’s eyes and without hesitation he slaps a privacy talisman onto the table. A barrier raises around the Bamboo House, and he arches one eyebrow at the man. “Better?”

“Thanking Master Shen,” Xun Fu responds politely. He looks uncomfortable, be that the pain or the weight of what he wants to say, Shen Qingqiu is uncertain. “I wished to answer any questions you had about my Shen-shimei, but also felt it important to draw some aspects of Shen Yuan’s care to light. Some insight for that, perhaps.”

“Do you think me unable to raise a child, Xun Fu?” Shen Qingqiu asks, eyes narrowing at the man.

“I think you are abrasive and Shen Yuan is willful,” Xun Fu responds honestly.

Shen Qingqiu almost wants to laugh at the words. His mien is very good, so he doesn’t break it in the slightest as he sets his tea down, but he does find that his mood toward this man is slightly improved. He prefers honesty when it comes to conversation, not faltering fear or over-exaggerated bluster, “Most do not insult a Peak Lord in their own home.”

“Is being abrasive an insult?” Xun Fu asks, setting his own teacup down. He shifts his weight in a way that Shen Qingqiu reads as physical discomfort, but says nothing to draw attention to it. Instead he takes a deep breath, “The first is that Shen Yuan has a different constitution than many children. He must eat much more than his fellow disciples—this is imperative to his health.”

“A different constitution that requires him to eat more than most,” Shen Qingqiu says, mentally combing through any number of curses or disabilities that cause that. “And is Xun Fu going to elaborate on this?”

“It is a delicate matter,” Xun Fu responds softly.

“Is it why his qi felt so strange when this master tested them earlier this day?” Shen Qingqiu asks, eyes sharp. Xun Fu’s expression does not falter or change, but he dips his head in assent. “So what is it? A parasite, a curse that you have allowed my nephew to fall into?”

“It is a condition he has had since birth, I do not know much more about it than that,” Xun Fu responds quietly. “Only that it effects his spiritual qi, and that the amulet that Shen-shimei made him keeps this in check for him.”

Are you lying to me, Xun Fu? Shen Qingqiu thinks, looking the man’s face over. He seems in pain, and the pain is making him more difficult to read. He will see if he can get more information about this “condition” from Shen Yuan during dinner then, but Xun Fu is not a person that he trusts just yet. He does not think this is the whole truth of the matter, but it does explain why things felt strange.

“You noticed things were different when checking his meridians?” Xun Fu asks quietly.

“Mn, this master did but did not mention as such as he was not in private company,” Shen Qingqiu says in response. He would not bring such a thing up in front of Yue Qingyuan, nor among Chu Qingru. “How did this master’s sister die?”

Xun Fu is quiet for a moment, as though he is trying to gather his thoughts on the matter. Shen Qingqiu watches him like a hawk as he does, determined to spot any lying tells or anything else that may stand out.

“Due to the death of a disciple our sect was purged,” Xun Fu replies after a moment. Carefully. He is keeping matters of this to himself. Interesting. “Another sect was hired to exterminate its members. As far as I know, it is only I and Shen Yuan that have survived.”

“You went back to find this master’s sister?” Shen Qingqiu asks.

“Yes—both she and her husband have been buried. I am willing to take Peak Lord Shen to their graves if he wishes to pay his respects,” Xun Fu responds, words soft and with an edge of kindness that settles uncomfortably on Shen Qingqiu.

“The sect that exterminated yours?” Shen Qingqiu questions, he will consider going somewhere with Xun Fu if the man better earns his trust. Keeping secrets and censoring his story is not a good step toward that, however.

“Huan Hua Palace,” Xun Fu’s expression darkens, eyes narrowing as he speaks.

Interesting. Shen Qingqiu is no friend of the Old Palace Master—the man has always disliked Shen Qingqiu, on account of the fact that Shen Qingqiu has never been the type that has allowed him to suck up. He is a loathsome old man, powerful in his cultivation but utterly spineless in his demeanor. Worse than Yue Qingyuan, the kind that would say things to a person in the hopes of being remembered in a fond light. The more uncouth would call him a kiss-ass. 

Empty flattery has never worked well on Shen Qingqiu—especially from men as powerful and rich as the Old Palace Master. Shen Qingqiu knows his type. There are skeletons in his closet, it is only a matter of finding what they are.

“Of course it was,” Shen Qingqiu says coldly. “Enough coin and a small sect’s extermination would be nothing. Shoddy work too, allowing the youngest to survive.”

It is a cruel observation, but one to make nevertheless. Cang Qiong Sect would never take such a job over, but if they had there would be no remaining survivors. Survivors grow into avengers, and Shen Qingqiu would not allow his sect to let such a thing happen. Even still, even if they could justify it, this is not something Huan Hua Palace will want brought around. Exterminating a sect without mentioning it to the other Great Sects in a meeting is something that Shen Qingqiu will happily hoard in a pile of information that may be useful to use against Huan Hua Palace.

Filled to the brim with the exact kind of cultivator that Shen Qingqiu hates.

“What was the name of your sect?” Shen Qingqiu asks, because this will be important information. Xun Fu hesitates, and Shen Qingqiu’s eyes sharpen as he looks at the man.

“Xinghui Sect,” Xun Fu responds quietly.

Shen Qngqiu has never heard of it—not surprising, there are any number of very small sects that do not make real names for themselves. Still, he files the name away mentally to look through the libraries later. Perhaps he will be able to figure out just what it is that has Xun Fu hesitating to tell him even the name of the sect itself. He sips at his tea.

“This is important information, regardless of Xinghui Sects potential crimes it should not have been outright destroyed without more input from other sects,” Shen Qingqiu says. He sets his tea down and lifts cold eyes to Xun Fu, offering what must be a chilling smile, “This master will ensure that there will be a reckoning for that. However, it will likely take time. Huan Hua Palace is powerful.”

“You—you want them to be punished?” Xun Fu sounds surprised, as if he had not considered this possibility.

“Of course, they killed this master’s family and may possibly be a danger to my nephew,” Shen Qingqiu responds. “As said, this will take time and this master will likely need to do more research. Should there be other information that you think important to inform this master of, do so when you can. Now, you spoke of advice on Shen Yuan’s care.”

“Ah—yes,” Xun Fu clears his throat. The awkwardness has shifted into a different breed of discomfort now. Not as though he is lying, but as though he is attempting to think of how to ask. He seems to give up on wording his question in a manner that is polite when he bluntly asks, “Why are you being so terrible to Luo Binghe?”

“Is this master being terrible to the beast?” Shen Qingqiu asks.

“You just called him a beast, so yes,” Xun Fu responds immediately.

Did Shen Qingqiu earlier think he appreciated this man’s honesty? He is not so certain now. He narrows his eyes at Xun Fu, but the man sounds more curious than outright hostile. Honest, but as if he is trying to understand something. Shen Qingqiu does not want to dive into this with a near stranger. Friend to his sister or not, the reasons he does not like Luo Binghe on sight are as personal as his own history.

“He reminds this master of someone,” Shen Qingqiu decides to answer vaguely. When he looks at Luo Binghe he sees a scrawny, desperate boy in rags—he knows the look in those eyes. He knows what a child with eyes like that is capable of, when pushed too far. It is best if he breaks somewhere where others will not be killed as a result.

“Do not hold the actions of others against the boy,” Xun Fu says, in the tone of a man giving advice. It still rankles Shen Qingqiu.

“This master is allowing him to remain on this Peak,” Shen Qingqiu bites out.

“Shen Yuan is extremely close with Luo Binghe,” Xun Fu says, “This is fact, Master Shen. As I mentioned to you before, attempting to separate the two will result poorly. Shen Yuan is a willful child, and he has a strong moral code. He does what he believes is right, even if that means not listening to what others have told him to do. I would not put it past him to whisk Luo Binghe off the peak and run away, should treatment of his friend become too bad.”

“You’ve raised him to be impertinent,” Shen Qingqiu responds, narrowing his eyes.

“You’ll understand how he’s like that better when you get to know him more,” comes the tired reply. Still, there is a fond smile on Xun Fu’s face. “I would no more be able to guide Shen Yuan from a path that he thinks is right than I would be able to lift the Luo River from its bed and onto my shoulders. He is not unnecessarily defiant, and he will often speak as to why he would like to follow a decision. I am just advising that you be aware that when it comes to that boy he will do all he can to keep him safe and happy.”

“Children do not have much control over such things,” Shen Qingqiu says, not without some bitterness.

“True enough, but it still stands. If you insist on being cruel to Luo Binghe, you will never earn a shadow of affection from Shen Yuan,” Xun Fu says softly.

“This master is not a kind man, Xun Fu,” Shen Qingqiu snaps.

“Did I say you must be kind, Master Shen? Tolerate the boy, don’t attack him or bully him,” Xun Fu’s eyes meet Shen Qingqiu’s at these words. He says, very calmly, “You are an accomplished master, surely that will not be difficult?”

Shen Qingqiu has an urge to throw the man out at that very moment. How dare he challenge his authority here? “So you have read the rumors.”

“I have, but I’m not basing these words on rumors, Master Shen,” Xun Fu says. “Even in the short time you have known Luo Binghe—even in the brief moments I’ve seen you interact—you have been openly hostile. Don’t. I will aid both boys if they do not wish to stay.”

“Bold of you to tell this master you intend to kidnap his only living family,” Shen Qingqiu sneers, his heart is racing and he feels his anger simmering. 

“Shen Yuan’s favorite food dishes are fish but he is fond of good food in general,” Xun Fu says, moving on as if the two of them were not just in a heated argument. Shen Qingqiu narrows his eyes and Xun Fu continues, “Good food is likely one of the better ways to get on his good side.”

“...you are suggesting this master bribe the boy with food?” Shen Qingqiu asks.

Xun Fu laughs, and his teeth flash in a grin, “A little. I think you need all the help you can get. You may dislike it, but if you allow Luo Binghe to cook for him you’ll quickly be in the good graces of both boys. Especially Shen Yuan.”

“Luo Binghe again,” Shen Qingqiu sneers.

“Let’s see—he likes to read, and is very fond of learning about demons, demonic beasts and creatures,” Xun Fu says thoughtfully. He is actively smiling now as he chuckles, “He seems to be popular but doesn’t quite notice it often. You’ll find he’s got his martial siblings wrapped around his fingers soon enough.”

“He did not seem particularly charismatic,” Shen Qingqiu says blandly. Not in the way Yue Qingyuan was. Most of the other disciples nearby seemed to think that he was going to bite them.

“He may not be in the best mood,” Xun Fu says, and winces. “My fault—they’re both likely exhausted.”

So, Shen Qingqiu can see, is Xun Fu. Shen Qingqiu looks the man over, his earnest expression as he talks about Shen Yuan. That ugly, possessive jealousy is rearing its head. He could let the man continue on so that Shen Qingqiu can truly try to get in the boy’s good graces. It is not as though he really cares about the man.

He thinks of Shen Yuan hugging the man, and his chest feels sour. Yet, Shen Qingqiu is not a foolish man.

“Xun Fu has given this master plenty to think on,” Shen Qingqiu says. “Some of the advice given has been repeated, if explained in better detail, but this master thanks him.”

He removes the privacy barrier, and uses the talisman to summon Mo Yaoting again. The young man is in the doorway in moments, and bowing to Shen Qingqiu. Shen Qingqiu waves him off and stands, “Mo Yaoting will guide you to the dwellings for our teaching staff. Take your time and rest where you must, your injuries must heal well. After all, you are important to Shen Yuan. This master does not wish to make his time on this peak more difficult to adjust to by allowing Xun Fu to die pushing himself too far.”

“Ah,” Xun Fu blinks, and Mo Yaoting helps the other cultivator to his feet. “Thanking Master Shen for his hospitality. If he has more questions about Shen Yuan he may ask this Xun Fu. However, some things are best discovered by getting to know him.”

“Of course,” Shen Qingqiu says, and he gestures in farewell. Mo Yaoting and Xun Fu are nearly to the door when Shen Qingqiu considers something. He checks the position of the sun outside, pursing his lips and adds, “Mo Yaoting, a moment.”

He steps to his desk and, pulling out a new calligraphy brush to leave in the stand, he carefully writes out a message. He holds the message out for a moment, sending a burst of gentle qi over the parchment before carefully rolling it up and handing it to his disciple.

“Take this to Qiong Ding Peak, it is time sensitive, so if you meet one of your fellow disciples hand it to them to take,” Shen Qingqiu says. Mo Yaoting bows to him, before he and Xun Fu take their leave. Shen Qingqiu stands in the middle of his room for a few moments, and mentally combs through the conversation he just had.

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

For the first time in a long time, Shen Yuan feels warm and safe. His head rests on the chest of his closest friend in the world, and Luo Binghe’s heartbeat soothes some nameless part of him better than any lullaby. When he wakes he is drowsy, feeling a little lazy and like there is nothing in this world to hold any urgency to. For a moment, there is just the comfort of being somewhere that he doesn’t need to be afraid. It is very tempting to let the drag of sleep take him once more, and he turns to snuggle closer to Luo Binghe.

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe’s voice must have been what roused him before. He has the tone of someone who has repeated himself. Shen Yuan presses closer to his chest, but he can’t quite effectively pretend that he doesn’t hear. “A-Yuan, you have to get up so you aren’t late to dinner with your uncle.”

Right. Fucking Shen Qingqiu. Shen Yuan sighs heavily, pushing himself up and rubbing his eyes to try and wake up. Luo Binghe, the dear that he is, sets about heping Shen Yuan fix his hair. A good thing too, he hasn’t really properly tended to it since his bath and it is an absolute mess. He yawns, setting about pulling out some of his nicer robes from the qiankun pouch he has.

Nothing overly fancy, he doesn’t have that much. But Xun Fu has always been the type to spoil when given the opportunity to do so and Shn Qingqiu seems like the kind of bitch that would say something if he showed up in the same outfit he wore earlier in the day.

After a frankly ridiculous amount of time getting dressed, Shen Yuan is looking presentable enough to have dinner with the scum villain. He helps Luo Binghe with his hair before the two of them have to part, though Binghe protests the slightest bit. Shen Yuan insists—it might partially be because he is indulging himself more than Binghe.

Still.

“There, perfect as always,” Shen Yuan says with no small amount of pride in his voice. He pats Binghe’s shoulders, and can’t resist pinching his friend’s cheek affectionately when he realizes that Binghe’s turning a little pink. “It’s true!”

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says with a barely restrained laugh. “Stop fussing.”

“Fussing, who’s fussing?” Shen Yuan responds, resisting the urge to fix more of Binghe’s hair. The curls are cute. “Now—Binghe listen, if Ming Fan is mean you must tell me. I mean it, I’ll find out somehow.”

Luo Binghe looks a bit puzzled at that—understandable. Ming Fan had been very friendly earlier. He doesn’t know if Shen Qingqiu has gotten to him while they were napping away though! It’s very reasonable that he’s making sure that Binghe knows to tell him.

“If he’s mean to this Binghe, what will A-Yuan do?” Luo Binghe asks, sounding curious.

“Never you mind,” Shen Yuan pats Luo Binghe on top of his head. There is a knock at the door, and Shen Yuan slides it open to see that Ming Fan is standing on the other side with two more boys around his age—and one girl that is just a little older than them.

The cute hairstyle—the bright brown, lychee eyes with a dimpled smile. This could only be the protagonist’s first wife, his childhood friend and first love—Ning Yingying! Her face lights up the second she sees the both of them, her delight clear.

“It’s true! Two new shidi!” She claps her hands together, “This shijie is Ning Yingying! It’s nice to meet you A-Shen, A-Luo!”

“Xiao-shimei heard that Luo Binghe would be eating with us and insisted on joining,” Ming Fan says with a wry smile. “She’s your only shijie that Shizun has picked himself. These are two of your shixiong he has chosen as well. He Mengyao and Gong Yang.”

First he gestures to a round-faced boy with a belly to match. Said boy has a wide-eyed, nervous bearing that makes Shen Yuan wonder doubtfully whether he as part of the original group that bullied Luo Binghe. He must be though, if he’s hanging around with Ming Fan. The second boy has a pretty face for a boy—though nowhere near as pretty as Luo Binghe of course. He looks more like the “bully” type, if only because he has a crafty expression that makes Shen Yuan think he might be cooking something devious up.

The other two boys offer their hellos, and Ning Yingying clasps her hands around Shen Yuan’s hand and beams at him in open excitement.

“You really do look just like Shizun!” Ning Yingying says cheerfully. “You’re so, so , cute A-Shen, you’re like a teeny little version of him.”

Bewildered, Shen Yuan can feel his face heating up under her looks. The other boys are snickering a little, and Luo Binghe frowns. Ming Fan waves the two of them off immediately, frowning.

“Xiao-shimei, we can’t make Shen-shidi late for his dinner with Shizun,” Ming Fan says. Ning Yingying frowns, but she drops Shen Yuan’s hands to take Luo Binghe’s free hand in hers. She tugs him along, and Ming Fan frowns a little. “Don’t drag him all over, you’ll overwhelm him…”

“Boo! You’re no fun! He’s no fun A-Luo, don’t worry about him,” Ning Yingying says, booping Luo Binghe on the nose. Shen Yuan feels strange about that, he’s usually the only one that close to Luo Binghe.

Well, it makes sense that she’ll be his friend so quickly. After all, she’s his first real love interest. Still, he can’t help but feel a little sour at the idea that he’s being replaced already. 

To his surprise, Luo Binghe gently breaks free of Ning Yingying’s grip and rushes over to give Shen Yuan a hug. Shen Yuan squeaks, rocking back on his heel and patting Luo Binghe’s back. He can’t help but relax at that—ah! The protagonist is still sticky.

“Don’t worry, you’ll do great,” Shen Yuan soothes him. Luo Binghe huffs, and pulls away. After that, the group walks down the hallway and they’re gone.

Shen Yuan sighs, and makes his way out of the dorms and to the winding path. He has to admit, as he walks through Qing Jing Peak’s bamboo forests, it is a peaceful wander through the area. The rustle of wind through the bamboo, the soft chattering of birds as they retire for the evening, the darkening skies—it’s all very picturesque. 

It doesn’t take long to find the Bamboo House. It looks peaceful where it stands at the top of the path, and though Shen Yuan feels a bit tired he can’t help but admire it a little bit. If he has to eat dinner with the scum villain, the least he can do is geek out about stuff like the area he is in! As he passes by the Quiet Pond he finds himself at the door to the home and suddenly realizes he’s nervous.

It isn’t like he wants the man to like him. Anyone would be nervous eating with a villain.

After he knocks the door opens up and he finds his uncle is sitting at the table already. Shen Yuan’s mouth waters—food is piled onto the table and the fragrance is so delicious it’s all Shen Yuan can do not to drift in like a cartoon character or something. Instead, he walks in cautiously, sitting politely on his cushion and clearing his throat.

“Greeting Jiujiu,” Shen Yuan says. Chanting, Be polite, be polite, be polite. Over and over in his head again. Shen Qingqiu looks up at him, and gestures to the food before him. Shen Yuan pauses, wondering if this is a trap.

Shen Qingqiu only has a bowl of what looks like plain white rice, and that is it. No garnish. No nothing. He knows that the man can probably practice inedia, but that seems so miserable. Why have such a delicious spread if that’s all he’s going to eat? Shen Yuan narrows his eyes.

“I spoke with Xun Fu,” Shen Qingqiu says, ton dismissive. “He suggested you were a fan of food. I am not poisoning my nephew mere hours after meeting him.”

“You spoke with Fu-ge?” Shen Yuan asks, going ahead and loading his plate with food. He pours one out for his guardian in his heart. That can’t have been a great conversation. “I thought Mu-shishu was saying that he didn’t want him to have more visitors for the rest of the day?”

“Xun Fu checked himself out of his care,” Shen Qingqiu says. Shen Yuan starts, eyes widening. “I have sent him away to rest, don’t panic.”

“I wasn’t panicking,” Shen Yuan says sullenly. He pulls forward some fish that is seasoned with some pine nuts and digs in. As he digs in he has no excuse to talk, so he is grateful for the quiet. It is less awkward than he thought it would be, and the tension bleeds out of Shen Yuan.

“Is it as good as the food your friend cooks?” Shen Qingqiu eventually questions, tone carefully neutral.

“Oh—no nowhere close, Binghe is a rare talent,” Shen Yuan boasts. “Nobody can cook as well as he can. He could make anything delicious.”

“...I see,” Shen Qingqiu responds slowly. Shen Yuan winces.

“His mother taught us both to cook, but I’m no good at it,” Shen Yuan can’t help but blurt. Why is he rambling like this? He suddenly wants to fill the quiet, “But this food is really good! I didn’t expect it to be…”

In the book, Qing Jing Peak’s food had been described as bland. Shen Yuan sourly wonders if that was more because of the fact that Binghe had to scrounge to even eat than the actual food, but Shen Qingqiu surprisingly shoots that theory in the foot. Thankfully.

“This master requested some of the cooks from Qiong Ding Peak to cook dinner,” Shen Qingqiu says, looking away.

“Why?” Shen Yuan asks, surprised despite himself.

“It is the first time my nephew is on this peak, should we not celebrate the matter?” Shen Qingqiu’s eyes meet his. Shen Yuan suddenly notes the man’s rigid posture. His face is perfectly fine, but he is holding himself stiffly. Is it possible that… is Shen Qingqiu nervous?

…Surely not.

“Thank you, jiujiu,” Shen Yuan says, and he finds that he means it. He appreciates the effort. He wonders if he is imagining the amusement in Shen Qingqiu’s eyes, but is too busy eating his food. Despite himself, he feels his heart softening.

Maybe this won’t be so bad. If Shen Yuan can redeem Ming Fan, maybe he can redeem Shen Qingqiu? True, the man was a terror even before Binghe joined the peak, but it was heavily suggested that the worst of his behavior was aimed at Luo Binghe. He thinks of what Cui Yanmei said before, and takes a thoughtful bite.

Not unreasonable, hm?

“Jiujiu,” Shen Yuan says slowly, looking up at his uncle. Shen Qingqiu blinks and he continues, “I… thank you. For the meal. And for listening to me earlier today.”

An olive branch. He doesn’t know if this will work, but maybe he can make the ending of the story better for people other than Binghe. If he’s at the right part of the timeline, then Liu Qingge hasn’t died so if he reaches out to Shen Qingqiu maybe he can stop that? And Xun Fu has to live here too, the more miserable Shen Qingqiu is the more miserable everyone is.

“Do you want something from this master or are you being genuine?” Shen Qingqiu asks dryly.

“I’m being genuine! Rude!” Shen Yua snaps, glaring at the man. Shen Qingqiu takes a bite of his plain-ass, boring rice, and Shen Yuan realizes that the scum villain’s lips are quirked up in a slight smile.

Don’t get attached, he’s awful, he tries to warn himself. But Shen Qingqiu makes him feel nostalgic for something he cannot name. Maybe his brothers. His da-ge was kind of like Shen Qingqiu, actually—minus the rampant bullying and child abuse obviously. But strict, cold and distant. People often mistook what he was really like.

“You’ve been crafty since we’ve met,” Shen Qingqiu says mildly. “Don’t think I didn’t notice you giving me those big eyes to try to get what you wanted out of me.”

“What, do you want me to reason with you?” Shen Yuan grumbles.

“Yes,” Shen Qingqiu says flatly. He looks up at Shen Yuan. “Give me a good reason for your choices. Your shigu was a good example earlier, in fact. Arguments to back up your case.”

“You… want me to debate you,” Shen Yuan says, he feels a headache coming on. Still, he bursts into laughter. “Jiujiu you have a weird way of getting to know people.”

“This master has gotten to know plenty of people,” Shen Qingqiu says mildly, but his eyes have narrowed. Shen Yuan snorts, yeah. Like Yue Qingyuan? He doesn’t say as much allowed, his eyes bright as he eats his dinner. Shen Qingqiu hums thoughtfully. “You really would like to have courses with your shigu?”

“Yes!” Shen Yuan says, wincing when Shen Qingqiu raises an eyebrow at him. “I mean—if I can. I just would like to, if I can. I know a lot already.”

“Mn,” Shen Qingqiu says thoughtfully. “Show this master that beastiary of yours when you have the time to do so. I will determine if you can manage it along with the courses I will be assigning you.”

That—that was way easier than he expected! Shen Yuan can feel his excitement perking up, and he pulls his books out of his qiankun pouch. Nothing his father has made, only his own sketchbooks and writings. He scrambles around the table to sit next to Shen Qingqiu, and sets the books on the table.

“This is the first one—my calligraphy was awful, this second one I’m reworking to be better able to read,” Shen Yuan says excitedly. He opens the second and changes the page, “I have a page on Plum Blossom Bear Hounds—Fu-ge and I ran into one that was lost because it had transported out of the forest they live in. Did you know the flowers on their backs bloom when they make their portals? They’re also super intelligent, and mostly herbivores despite their appearances. They prefer the taste of the fruit they live near, and the nectar from the blossoms too.”

“You have talent in art,” Shen Qingqiu says mildly. “The calligraphy leaves much to be desired, but is legible.”

“I’m ten, but sure I’ll work on perfecting it,” Shen Yuan rolls his eyes.

“Yes, you will,” Shen Qingqiu responds.

“Wh—wait you’re serious!?” Shen Yuan can’t help his dismay.

“You did not think you were joining the peak of strategy and four arts to just doodle?” Shen Qingqiu asks, raising a brow.

“Wh—doodle!?” Shen Yuan asks.

Shen Qingqiu taps the page, “Tell me more about the creatures you have seen on your journey with Xun Fu.”

Oh—well. 

Shen Yuan might be annoyed, but who is he to pass up the opportunity to talk about the really cool creatures in this new world of his? So he flips through his favorite pages, and Shen Qingqiu listens and asks him a surprising number of questions. Sometimes he’s an asshole and points out how bad something is written, but most of the time he seems mostly interested. 

It’s… it’s almost nice.

Okay. Fine. He’ll save Shen Qingqiu too. If he can.

Chapter Text

The refectory is filled with an overwhelming amount of chatter. For a moment, Luo Binghe cannot help but balk at the doorway for a moment. The three boys at the head of their group walk in, already lost in their easy chatter and rapport with one another. Ning Yingying though, pauses with Luo Binghe and flashes him a bright smile.

“Are you scared?” She asks, and the three boys turn to look back at them.

“Ah—no shijie,” Luo Binghe says softly, taking a hesitant step inside. Scared isn’t the right word for what he is feeling as he looks around the room. He sees that several people’s heads turn in his direction. The weight of their stares is heavy, but he makes sure his posture is impeccable. “I’ve just never really been around this many peers before.”

“Shizun is very discerning with the disciples that he chooses personally,” Ming Fan says with a puffed out chest. “Ah! No offense of course, Luo-shidi. Th-that is just to say that some of these disciples are from the previous Peak Lord’s choices and some are outer disciples like Luo-shidi.”

“There aren’t any rules for sitting with or without other disciples though,” Gong Yang says with a grin and pats Luo Binghe’s back. For such a slender, delicate looking boy, his hand is a little heavy and Luo Binghe almost stumbles when he does.

As Gong Yang speaks, Luo Binghe and the rest find themselves in line. Luo Binghe is uncomfortably aware of the looks from the other people in the room, and Gong Yang snickers at little. He Mengyao shifts from one foot to the other, seeming to be just as—if not more than—anxious as Luo Binghe about the looks. It’s Ming Fan who steps out of their group and claps his hands together.

“Hey!” Ming Fan barks, and several of the older students roll their eyes. Others still do obediently look at the boy. “Pay attention to your dinner! Leave Luo- shidi alone!”

He places emphasis on the “Luo” in his name, and this seems to greatly dampen the curiosity of the people around them. Chatter and the sounds of chopsticks in bowls resumes, and Luo Binghe feels himself relaxing. He Mengyao heaves a troubled sounding sigh, and shoots Luo Binghe a crooked smile.

“Everyone has been talking about you and Shen-shidi since word got out when the two of you arrived this morning,” He Mengyao explains. “They don’t think you’re boring, but everyone knows that Shen-shidi looks just like Shizun so…”

“Naturally they’re curious,” Ming Fan sniffs, as if he is above such curiosity himself. Luo Binghe doesn’t want to point out that he himself had been curious about Shen Yuan when they’d arrived as well. “All sorts of inane rumors were flying about earlier, and now they’ve discovered our Shizun’s illustrious nephew is joining the Peak late. It is outside of the norm, but they will check themselves soon enough.”

Gong Yang shudders lightly, “They better—if Shizun catches them givin’ weird looks…”

Ming Fan places a few bowls on his tray—the dinner seems to be very, simple and bland fare. This is fine for Luo Binghe, but he privately hopes that Shen Yuan has better food to eat. His best friend has always been picky when it comes to flavor.

“Is your shizun very strict?” Luo Binghe asks as he loads up his own plate, making sure not to take more than is polite. He remembers that Cui Yanmei had mentioned something like that when they were getting things for their rooms before. Gong Yang and He Mengyao share a look with one another. Ming Fan’s chest puffs out and he looks a little indignant.

“Super strict, with most people!” Ning Yingying says brightly as she sits down at their table. The boys all follow suit.

“He’s not terrible!” Ming Fan protests, “He merely does not suffer fools!”

“Most… um, most of the stories are exaggeration or rumor,” He Mengyao says quietly, wringing his hands. “But Luo-shidi should know to be on his best behavior around Shizun regardless of whether he is an outer disciple or not. He’ll punish anyone on the Peak if they break the rules, and he’s very protective of the shijie and shimei on the mountain too. If you want to be with girl you’ll have to make sure to politely ask him for permission to properly court her, or you might disappear in the middle of the night.”

“You’re making him sound like some kind of monster that eats children,” Ming Fan groans. He sits up straight and holds a finger up. “Listen here, Luo-shidi. Shizun can come across as impatient, mean and very stern. He cares very much about appearances and about propriety.”

“I see,” Luo Binghe says softly, wondering if he should be worried for his friend or not. Shen Yuan can tend to be mindful and say what he wants, regardless of who he speaks with. He tries to put his nerves for that aside.

“But! Shizun is the best,” Ming Fan says proudly. “He’s the most elegant and most intelligent Peak Lord. He has high standards for his Peak, because we are the scholars of the sect and strategists. There will be very little room for error, should we ever be on a battlefield or during a Night Hunt. For that reason, even if he is strict and puts a lot of pressure on us it is actually really quite useful.”

As Ming Fan speaks, Gong Yang rolls his eyes and shakes his head. Ming Fan doesn’t notice, and Luo Binghe hides his smile by taking a bite of his food. It is apparent that, regardless of whatever rumor or reputation Shen Qingqiu has on Qing Jing Peak, Ming Fan truly admires him. 

“He is very protective of us though,” Ning Yingying says, pointing first to herself and then gesturing toward a group of shijie that are sitting together a few tables away. “Outer disciple or not, Shizun looks after the young ladies here.Shao-shijie told this Yingying that a few years ago a young man had been caught peeping in the lady’s bath. Shizun was so angry that they thought he would kill him—Yue-shibo had to intervene to make sure that Shizun wasn’t the one who had the punishment whip that day. Ah—he did get kicked off the Peak though.”

“That’s the worst he does usually, is kick people off the Peak,” Gong Yang says with a sigh. “Cui-shijie says that since he became Peak Lord he’s dismissed more than twenty young lords from the Peak for some reason or another. When asked, he simply says that; ‘This master will not allow infection to fester upon this Qing Jing Peak’.”

As he quotes Shen Qingqiu he adopts a surprisingly regal bearing that is actually accurate to the cold man that Luo Binghe met earlier. Ming Fan looks utterly scandalized at this, but He Mengyao chokes on his food when he laughs. Ning Yingying kicks her feet back and forth under the table and smiles at Luo Binghe.

“Shizun can be very nice though! He has tea with this Yingying at least once every week. She’s sure that he will dote on Shen-shidi,” Ning Yingying giggles. “If anyone wants to court him they’ll have to politely ask Shizun too.”

Luo Binghe feels his stomach flip at the idea of someone trying to court his A-Yuan, for some reason it makes him uncomfortable. They’re too young to be thinking of such things, surely. He focuses on his food, trying not to lend too much credence to what Ning Yingying says. At least she seems certain that Shen Yuan will be well loved under Shen Qingqiu’s care.

A-Yuan deserves to be treated well.

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By the time that dinner finally wraps up with Shen Qingqiu, Shen Yuan is feeling exhausted and ready to fall asleep on his feet. He hardly even remembers Shen Qingqiu dismissing him for the evening, telling him to get rest and to meet him for dinner again the next night. Is this going to become a thing? Nightly dinners with the scum villain!?

Well… this one hadn’t gone terribly at least. Shen Qingqiu is a surprisingly good listener, and he had engaged with what Shen Yuan had talked about with more than passing interest. In fact, he’d written down a list of some books that he felt Shen Yuan might enjoy—provided his reading level was high enough (and it almost certainly was)--from the library on the Peak. Shen Yuan won’t lie, he’s excited to peruse the shelves in there.

Maybe he won’t get to join Chu Qingru’s peak entirely, but this surely is promising for him getting to attend some classes there or at least visit every now and then right?! He’ll need something to do when Luo Binghe’s attention is inevitably snagged away by Ning Yingying. 

He tries to ignore the bitter feeling in his chest at that thought. Or to dwell on the fact that he would need to have something to do off the peak, preferably away from the two of them.

The walk through the peak is quiet and Shen Yuan lets the gentle breeze of the evening lull him into a peaceful state. It occurs to him, not for the first time that day, that it hasn’t even been a full twenty-four hours since he and Binghe fought for Xun Fu’s life. That, merely that morning, they had been climbing those stairs and some dark thing in Shen Yuan’s heart had been sure his guardian was going to die.

Shen Yuan’s chest squeezes and he takes a deep breath around the tightness in his throat. Why does he keep getting the urge to cry now that everything is over? Just because he’s had time to process everything doesn’t mean he needs to bawl about it or something! Come on Shen Yuan, you’re better than that surely!?

He suddenly wishes he could change shape and run through the bamboo. Maybe he could even climb some of the trees and rocks in this area! It would be easy to melt into the shadows here, to stalk quietly through Qing Jing Peak and truly become one with the nature of it. It’s strange, he has used the amulet off and on since he came to this world. He’s never quite liked doing so, but it’s never been more than that passive discomfort.

Now, Shen Yuan realizes that he itches just under his skin. He suddenly feels as though the robes he wears are filled with coarse hair instead of the comfortable material he has dressed into. Like he is wrapped head to foot and can’t escape.

He has the mental image of a cat wrapped tightly in a towel, like a burrito, and snorts at himself. It doesn’t quite serve to dispel his discomfort, nor the growing dread in his chest. It’s the first night, this is going to be the rest of his life for a while. At least until they can leave Cang Qiong Sect.

And how long will that be? When Luo Binghe’s seal breaks? Will it break when it did in the original novel!? Even then, that’s almost eight years from now! Shen Yuan finds himself freezing on the path, his chest unbearably tight and the urge to flee crashing through him. He feels trapped. He is trapped. He’ll be stuck with this amulet on for at least seven years, if not more—surely it will be more?

System, Shen Yuan thinks, trying to focus on something else. Anything but the energy that seems to be trapped inside of him like a pressure pot with too much steam. The System chimes cheerily in his head and he continues, If we could not avoid the Song-ayi dying or joining the sect… are there other plot points that cannot be avoided?

【 Answering User - many plot points may be avoided with enough points to avoid being returned to your original world or depending on the choices that are caused in the world. There are, however, defined plot points that may not be dodged! These can be included as the following: “Thwarting a Rigged Competition: Peril During the Demonic Invasion at Cang Qiong”, “Once a Nightmare, Always a Dream: The Dream Demon Meng Mo”, “Ice Blades and Clashing Fangs: Descent into the Endless Abyss” and “The Cycle that Binds: The Legendary Blade Xin Mo” are all unavoidable and must be completed without massive point deductions. 】

Shen Yuan stands rigid, reading over the text on the window as he pieces together what can’t be dodged by the story. The demon invasion by Sha Hualing—and judging from the title Binghe has to fight in the subsequent competition—which leads to the second which is the meeting of Meng Mo by Luo Binghe. The Abyss is the one following—and the fact that it isn’t skippable makes Shen Yuan feel as if his dinner has turned to cement in his belly—and after that is obviously Binghe obtaining Xin Mo. Which means that if he fails the Abyss quest he also fails the Xin Mo one, obviously. Which is a deduction of points for both of them.

He reads the titles of the quests. None seem to include a requirement of Shen Qingqiu being dismembered, and they don’t seem to include whether or not Cang Qiong Mountain will be wholesale destroyed either. 

【 Friendly reminder to User to bear in mind that other quests may be added as the story evolves and changes! Unskippable plot points may be added due to that. 】

Shen Yuan feels a surge of fury at the words. He snarls like an angry animal, a bitter laugh lodges in his throat, “What. The. Fuck? Are you fucking serious?”

【 This System would not deign to lie to you User! 】

“If that’s the case, then how come Song-ayi couldn’t be saved?” Shen Yuan snarls at it. He wishes he had his tail out. His claws. He wants to tear that window to pieces. “The story evolved so that she was too healthy to die of illness. Why does it not go that way as well? Why can’t the story change so that the unskippable parts are removed?”

【 … 】

【 … 】

【 … 】

【 … 】

Shen Yuan watches as those three dots appear. Over and over again, as if someone is writing a lengthy text reply. Every moment that passes leaves Shen Yuan’s chest feeling like it’s burning with rage, and the fucking amulet feels smothering on his neck. 

【 Errors and anomalies may occur if the plot changes to the degree that plot points may no longer be able to occur. This System apologizes User! ( •̯́ ^ •̯̀) Don’t be angry with this System... 】

“Fuck you,” Shen Yuan spits.

【 ｡°(°.◜ᯅ◝°)°｡】

Unable to bear even looking at the screen anymore, Shen Yuan closes it out. He walks down the path seething, feeling like everything in him is in turmoil. Thankfully, the dorms seem quiet when he gets there and when he pushes the door open into their room, Luo Binghe is already sitting on the bed in his sleeping robes.

“A-Yuan—what’s the matter?” Luo Binghe asks, surprised as Shen Yuan rushes into the room. Shen Yuan’s breath hitches, and he—he’d known, in some way, that the Anomaly was caused by the fact that she didn’t get sick enough to die. He’d known that but somehow hearing the full confirmation—coupled with the System’s unfairness—leaves Shen Yuan breathless. “A-Yuan? Did dinner go badly?”

Luo Binghe is on his feet and crossing the room so when Shen Yuan moves to his friend they meet in the middle. Luo Binghe rocks back a little to catch them, and Shen Yuan winds his arms around his friend’s waist and buries his face against his shoulder. Then, to his humiliation, he bursts into tears. He hates that he keeps doing this. Binghe’s the one that deserves to be grieving! Shen Yuan’s guardian made it out of all this! 

But Binghe will have to go to the Abyss. Shen Yuan has decided that he likes Shen Qingqiu, and somehow—even if Shen Yuan tries to save him—his uncle is going to push his best friend into hell. He sobs, clinging tightly to Luo Binghe and feeling a little bad that his friend seems to be panicking. Luo Binghe hugs him back, trying to soothe him.

“A-Yuan, we can leave,” Luo Binghe says gently, leaning back to look at Shen Yuan’s face. Shen Yuan can see the concern in those bright eyes, and he feels guilty again. Look at him, relying on this poor boy when he knows better than to give into emotion like this. He wipes his eyes with a watery laugh and Binghe says, “What did he do?”

“Hm? Oh, Jiujiu—it was fine, the dinner was fine,” Shen Yuan says. He is guided to his bed—or is it Binghe’s, they hadn’t picked—and Luo Binghe begins to help him get ready for bed. Shen Yuan lets him, probably a little selfishly. It helps alleviate some of his distress, and the strange feeling of the amulet. “It’s just been a lot. I shouldn’t be crying. I just feel trapped by the amulet, and I’m glad Xun Fu is okay and…”

Shen Yuan trails off, eyes guiltily meeting Luo Binghe’s. Binghe’s eyes begin to water himself, and he sits next to Shen Yuan on the bed and sighs softly.

“I miss her too,” Luo Binghe whispers, because he’s the protagonist and Shen Yuan’s best friend. Of course he picked up on what Shen Yuan wasn’t saying. He leans against Shen Yuan, “I bet she’ll be proud when we burn some letters with the joss money. We’ll tell her everything that’s happened. I wish she could respond though.”

“I’m sorry,” Shen Yuan whispers, and he means it. With his whole heart.

“A-Yuan has nothing to apologize for,” Luo Binghe whispers back.

The two of them stay that way for a while, just sitting side by side in the dark. Shen Yuan swallows, and buries his face in his hands. He won’t cry anymore. He needs to stop fucking crying. His eyes need to stop watering and he needs to get a grip.

“Can we share the bed tonight?” Luo Binghe asks, voice small.

“Of course!” Shen Yuan drops his hands. Maybe, in his past life, he would be embarrassed by such a thing. But in this life, Binghe is his closest friend—and they’ve been sharing a bed since the inn after Song Jia died anyway. He finishes getting ready for bed, and forces his gloomy mood down. “How was Binghe’s dinner?”

“It was good,” Luo Binghe says, taking the change in subject well. He leans back in the bed, before fetching a comb to run through Shen Yuan’s hair again. Shen Yuan doesn’t protest, letting his friend do so and closing his eyes as they undertake the nighttime routine. “Ning-shijie is very nice, but the other three are too. I think I like He-shixiong the best though, he’s a little less troublesome than Gong-shixiong and Ming-shixiong only really talked about Peak Lord Shen.”

Shen Yuan snorts, as if he finds that funny, “You didn’t like Ning-shijie best?”

“She was… a lot,” Luo Binghe says with a laugh. “But I do like her, I think A-Yuan will like her too. A-Yuan said your dinner was fine?”

“Mn, it was tense at first,” Shen Yuan says. “But I think he’s trying. The food was way more delicious than I expected! He asked some of the cooks from Qiong Ding Peak to make dinner—ah, nowhere near as good as Binghe’s cooking though.”

“A-Yuan says that about everything he eats,” Luo Binghe says, but the pride on his face is unmistakable. Shen Yuan greatly prefers that to the sadness that he’d put there before.

“Well, Binghe is the best at everything,” Shen Yuan says, and grins when his friend’s cheeks get a little pink. He can’t help himself, and pinches them between his fingers. Luo Binghe makes a noise about it, and pulls Shen Yuan into the bed. He tucks the blankets around Shen Yuan so that his hands are trapped. No! Real life purrito! He tries to look as distinguished as one can wrapped up tight in a cocoon of a blanket, “Fine. I wanted to sleep anyway.”

Luo Binghe laughs quietly, covering his mouth to try not to disturb their neighbors. Shen Yuan wriggles his arms free and hauls Luo Binghe into the covers. He pats his head firmly after doing so and adjusting the blankets.

“There, goodnight Binghe,” Shen Yuan says decisively.

“Goodnight A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says with a soft laugh.

Shen Yuan settles into the bed, his eyes drifting closed. The stress of the day is a little less heavy, with Luo Binghe’s weight at his side. As Shen Yuan drifts off he comes to a few decisions—even if they are sleepy decisions.

He can still try to save Shen Qingqiu. He’ll save up enough points to skip both the Abyss quest and the Xin Mo quest. If he can’t and Luo Binghe has to go into the Abyss then… then Shen Yuan will figure that out. Maybe he can follow him. He’s no Heavenly Demon, but surely if he trains alongside Luo Binghe he would at least not be a burden there? Maybe he can help his friend get through—maybe it would help make sure he didn’t blacken nearly as much.

No matter what, he’d protect Luo Binghe. If he does so by getting Shen Qingqiu to be more chill, or if he has to face literal hell—he won’t let Binghe do this alone. Not when he’s been there for Shen Yuan at every turn so far.

Chapter Text

It is quiet on Qing Jing Peak, but not so much so that it makes it uncomfortable to sleep. The soft rustle of wind soothes Luo Binghe in his slumber and if it did not then the warmth of Shen Yuan next to him absolutely would. It is a peaceful night, almost entirely undisturbed after the two boys go to bed. There is only one moment of note through the whole night, when Luo Binghe slightly rouses from his slumber.

“A-Yuan?” Luo Binghe mumbles, aware of his friend grumbling and the sound of something clattering hard against the wall on the opposite side of the room. It must bounce off and across the floor. He thinks that Shen Yuan may have thrown something, but he can’t for the life of him make it out in the dark.. “What was that?”

“Nothin’,” Shen Yuan grumbles, the syllables of the word are hard to make out—as if he talks in his sleep. Luo Binghe tugs his friend into his arms and soothes him by hugging him.

“Shh,” Binghe says softly, and Shen Yuan huffs as if something has incensed him. Whatever person he’s angry at in his dreams, Luo Binghe knows he’ll handle it just fine. Soon, Shen Yuan settles back into sleep and Luo Binghe drifts off to the sound of drowsy purring.

He’ll consider, in the morning, that he should have realized that was unusual.

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Luo Binghe likes to be up at dawn. He and his mother used to watch the sunrise some mornings, as she prepared for the day of hard work and her eyes focused on the lightening horizon. Luo Binghe can remember the small smile on her face as she told him, “It is one of my little pleasures, to be able to greet the day.”

That is why, even given some time of leisure, Luo Binghe rises from his slumber when the sky has begun to change color outside. Luo Binghe has a moment of confusion—Shen Yuan is the opposite of him and his mother in every respect. His friend struggled to get up early in the morning, unless there was food to entreat him with, and even then didn’t seem happy about it. Without food, Shen Yuan would wake if he had to, but would walk around in a cloud of gloom for the majority of the morning.

But Luo Binghe can tell that the bed he is in does not have another person in it. He gets up with a brow furrowed in confusion, standing up to see if his friend has wandered out of the room. He puts a hand down to push his way out of the bed and his palm is pressed against the warm and furry body of something else. There is a loud meow of protest, and Luo Binghe jumps out of the bed and turns to see—

A cat—well sort of. Cub would be a more accurate word, with its size being larger than the average housecat but undeniably young. Luo Binghe’s mouth drops open in surprise—he recognizes that pattern of black and white with faint spotting. The demon mark on the cat’s brow, glowing a faint green that matches the vibrant green eyes that are staring at him, the little saber fangs just barely poking out of the mouth. This is definitely Shen Yuan’s beast form—except, much, much smaller than what he was as he pulled the stretcher.

“A-Yuan?” Luo Binghe asks, “Wh—why are you? Wait! Isn’t this dangerous?”

The little cub’s eyes stretch wide and he leaps to his paws and lets out a plaintive noise. Poor Shen Yuan is puffed up like a startled kitten, and he spins in short circles as though trying to look at himself. He stops, stares up at Binghe and opens his mouth with a loud, “Meeeaaaaah!”

“Okay okay! Shh!” Luo Binghe urges—it seems that, in Shen Yuan’s sleep he was managing to suppress his demonic qi. But as his panic rises, Luo Binghe is becoming aware of wisps of it steadily growing stronger. “A-Yuan, you have to calm down—”

Luo Binghe remembers last night—the sound of something being thrown across the room. Had Shen Yuan taken off the amulet in the night? Why!? Luo Binghe hurries to find it, aware that he can hear the stirrings of their martial siblings in the room next door. If someone catches Shen Yuan like this, he can’t bear the thought.

There! Under the bed! Luo Binghe lunges for the amulet and scoops it up. Then, he turns and quickly places it around the cub’s neck. Shen Yuan jerks back at first but then obediently stands still as the amulet grows a bright green.

Shen Yuan does change shape—but not back into a person. Instead, he shrinks even smaller than his cub self. Until he’s a kitten that has just started to enter that gangly phase, weaned but still young. The spotting has disappeared, as has the demon mark and saber fangs, but he’s still not human. Which is still a problem, but…

The two of them stay still and silent for a long moment, until the rustling from the rooms nearby goes away. He settles back down and stares at his friend. Shen Yuan, in his kitten body, seems utterly miserable. His head is hanging and his ears drooped.

“A-Yuan, what happened? ” Luo Binghe says, the little kitten version of his friend mews at him in the saddest way a cat can meow. Luo Binghe’s heart hurts for him, and Luo Binghe gently strokes his friend’s head and back. “It’s okay, we’ll figure this out. Is this because you threw the amulet off last night?”

“Mao,” says Shen Yuan, in a tone that can almost be described as guilty.

“We have time to figure out what to do,” Luo Binghe says. “Stay here, we’ll go find Shizun and talk to him. He’ll know what to do, surely?”

Shen Yuan looks dubious about that. Then, his ears perk up and flick to aim toward the door. Luo Binghe has just enough time to step between his friend and the doorway before it is thrown open. Cui Yanmei stands there, her brow furrowed with concern, “Ah—Luo-shidi. This shijie thought that she sensed some demonic qi…”

It seems it had been too much to hope that nobody picked up on the spiking signature. Luo Binghe watches as Cui Yanmei steps into the room. Her eyes do a sweep of the dorm, and Luo Binghe glances over his shoulder. Shen Yuan is nowhere in sight, but he isn’t sure where his friend has disappeared to.

“Where’s Shen-shidi?” Cui Yanmei asks.

“A-Yuan wanted to get up early to go see Shizun—ah, that is, his Xun Fu,” Luo Binghe responds quickly. It is, after all, where the two of them are going to go. Cui Yanmei raises a brow and looks as if she wants to say something but seems to think better of it. She shakes her head and sighs.

“Maybe we’re just jumpy,” Cui Yanmei mutters to herself. Without really saying goodbye, she heads out the door. Luo Binghe can spot a couple of older disciples that she says, “False alarm I guess.”

“You sure one of them didn’t hide some dangerous artifact?” One of the disciples, a girl, says dubiously. She looks over at Luo Binghe with narrowed eyes of mistrust.

“We would have noticed before this morning surely,” Cui Yanmei huffs. “Leave the kids alone. Come on, Xu-Laoshi is giving us a test this morning because of Wei-shidi’s wagging tongue yesterday. I don’t know about you all, but I want the time to warm up beforehand.”

This seems to spur the rest of the disciples into leaving the hall. Luo Binghe watches as they leave before he quietly closes the door behind him. He looks around the room nervously, “A-Yuan?”

“Mah!” Shen Yuan’s muffled meow sounds from under the blanket. One of the lumps moves until a little black and white head pokes out. Shen Yuan’s fur is ruffled from his hiding spot, but it’s probably better that he wasn’t found. Luo Binghe sighs with relief, walking over to pick him up. Shen Yuan allows this without fuss.

“Okay, I think the shijie and shixiong out there are going to class early, so it’s a good time to leave,” Luo Binghe says. He hurries to get dressed and put his hair up. When he’s done, he scoops Shen Yuan up and gently tucks him into the outer robe. Shen Yuan’s green eyes squint at him, an expression that can’t be said to be thrilled by this. “I’m sorry A-Yuan, you’ll gather too much attention like this.”

Shen Yuan sniffs, but squirms until he is settled in a comfortably warm lump against Luo Binghe’s chest. Luo Binghe heads out the door and manages to make sure that it’s shut behind them quietly. The walk down the hall is stressful. Luo Binghe can hear the stirrings of the other disciples that are getting up, and the soft snores of the ones that are still resting.

By the time the two of them get outside, Luo Binghe’s nerves are decidedly frayed. This is why he jumps so much when he hears, “Whatcha doing out so early A-Luo?”

Ning Yingying is standing by the door, her eyes wide and warm. He Mengyao stands with her, his own eyes seem anxious by comparison. He Mengyao has what appears to be a broom and a bucket in his hands, as if he is off to do some work. Ning Yingying has what looks like a warm mantou in her own hands.

Before he can work up a good excuse, Shen Yuan’s head pops out of his robe with his little nose twitching. Green eyes zero in on the mantou, and Luo Binghe has to catch his friend by hugging him close to keep him from jumping at the food. It is, of course, too late to stop either He Mengyao or Ning Yingying from spotting him though.

“Aw! Kitty!” Ning Yingying coos, “And with such a pretty collar too! This Yingying didn’t realize A-Luo and A-Shen had a pet!”

Shen Yuan is still extremely focused on the food, letting out a plaintive meow as though he’s never eaten a thing in his life. Luo Binghe doesn’t know if he should laugh or cry—Shen Yuan has struggled with his instincts in the past, but this is just silly. He doesn’t want to hurt Shen Yuan, but his friend is squirming with single-minded feline determination.

“You shouldn’t force cats to be held,” He Mengyao says, “Let the poor thing go.”

“I—I can’t, he’ll get lost,” Luo Binghe says.

“Is he hungry? Here,” Ning Yingying tears off a piece of mantou and holds it out to Shen Yuan. The kitten version of his friend lunges for the food, paws coming up to snatch it and a satisfied growl ebbing out of his throat as he snarfs it down. Ning Yingying laughs in delight, “Oh, we can get him some more food to eat!”

“That’s probably a good idea,” Luo Binghe says with relief, “I need to get him to my Shizun.”

“Oh, master Xu yes?” He Mengyao says, “He’s been set up in one of the staff houses. We can take you there after breakfast if you like?”

“I should really go now,” Luo Binghe says with a nervous laugh. Ning Yingying is tearing off more pieces of mantou to feed to Shen Yuan, who takes it in his paws before pulling it to his mouth every time. Ning Yingying is clearly delighted with this unusual behavior. 

“Come on A-Luo, your poor kitty is so hungry,” Ning Yingying says. Shen Yuan looks up at him with bright green eyes as Ning Yingying adds, “What’s his name?”

“...Yuyu,” Luo Binghe says.

“AW, Xiao-Yuyu that’s so cute,” Ning Yingying chuckles, tickling Shen Yuan under the chin. He bats playfully at her fingers, and she laughs as she gives him another piece of mantou that he chomps down without hesitation.”I’m sure Shizun will let you both keep him, but have you asked?”

“He’s more my Shizun’s pet than my own,” Luo Binghe says, he’s a little relieved that he has always been good at lying if he needs to be. He’d not really had to use such a skill for something like this, but he manages to jog a few steps away. Shen Yuan lets out a protesting mew, but Luo Binghe says, “Thank you, He-shixiong! I’ll go look for my Shizun now!”

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It takes a while for Xun Fu to open the door after Luo Binghe knocks. The moment he does, Luo Binghe feels a bit guilty for bothering him. Though he is no longer on Qian Cao Peak, his shizun’s face shows his exhaustion from the past few days. Even so, Xun Fu takes one look at Shen Yuan in Luo Binghe’s arms and heaves a world weary sigh before sliding the door open.

The abode that Xun Fu as been given is simple but tasteful. Xun Fu uses a cane that he seems to have been given from Qian Cao’s peaklord, limping over to where his things lie in a heap. Or what the two of them could manage to carry along with him. Thankfully, qiankun pouches help, but there’s only so much they could pull along.

“Good morning Xiao-Binghe, Xiao-Yuan,” Xun Fu says with a slight smile when he turns around. “Would Xiao-Binghe be willing to cook some breakfast for us while I look over what Xiao-Yuan has done to himself?”

Luo Binghe feels immediate relief. Despite everything, Xun Fu is still confident and here for them. Tired and recovering is better than the alternative. Luo Binghe dutifully hands Shen Yuan over to Xun Fu, and he hears his shizun giving Shen Yuan a very gentle scolding as he makes his way to the kitchen.

A little bigger than the home that his mother and him had—there is plenty of space for food. He sets about getting some congee—this with some fish in it—and some mantou for them as well. By the time he exits the kitchen he feels much calmer, though Xun Fu is sitting and examining the amulet with a thoughtful expression. Shen Yuan is still a cat.

“He threw the amulet last night,” Luo Binghe says softly. Shen Yuan shoots him a look so scandalized that he immediately feels badly for tattling. “I’m sorry A-Yuan.”

“I was out for most of it, but he transformed before this didn’t he?” Xun Fu says, eyes lifting from the amulet with a sigh. Shen Yuan hops away to stick his nose into Luo Binghe’s bowl. Luo Binghe pushes his friend’s head away and sets his own bowl of congee—with deboned fish to ensure he doesn’t choke—down instead.

“He had to, to make sure we could move you,” Luo Binghe can’t help but defend Shen Yuan. “We were scared.”

“I’m not angry,” Xun Fu soothes gently, looking down at the two of them. “It just complicates things. The more demonic power A-Yuan unlocks, the harder it is going to be for the amulet to keep him hidden. The good news is that it doesn’t seem to be damaged, and that I recognize what’s going on.”

“So he’s not stuck like this?” Luo Binghe can’t help the relief in his voice.

“Not forever, no,” Xun Fu chuckles. “Breakfast will help, and if he slept that should too. Xiao-Yuan, you’ve exhausted yourself. Your father would have this happen too, though it took more than just being tired.”

“We went on a nighthunt, your mother and father and I,” Xun Fu smiles wistfully as he sits back to eat. “A Black-Opal Clawed Lion Panther I believe. Qiang-Jun decided that he wanted to show off, and he had decided to shift to fight the thing. Ah, I see from your expression that you get why that was foolish, Xiao-Yuan. The Black-Opal Clawed Lion Panther has a special venom that is effective against most demons and cultivators—something he himself should have been aware of, considering your bloodline’s closeness to demons like that.”

“Is A-Yuan also venomous?” Luo Binghe asks in wonder, staring at Shen Yuan.

“Mn, they have venomous fangs,” Xun Fu gently boops Shen Yuan on the nose. Shen Yuan’s whiskers twitch and he sneezes. “Though, certainly not in the form he’s in now. If we took off the amulet though, he could. Qiang-Jun said that as a cub and child he shouldn’t be deadly, but as an adult it will be far worse. As it is now, it would probably only really hurt someone who was already very sick or weak.”

Shen Yuan is puffed up, not out of pride but alarm. He looks at Binghe and Luo Binghe can’t help but say what he thinks his friend wants, “Why didn’t you warn him of this?”

“It is an issue in his beast form, but not in his usual demon one as far as I know,” Xun Fu points out mildly. Which Shen Yuan was supposed to wait to do. Luo Binghe can’t say that he or Shen Yuan regret things, but he can see now how it has had an effect on things. At least Shen Yuan didn’t bite Xun Fu! That would have been terrible.

“After your father fought the Black Opal-clawed Lion Tiger, he ended up fainting and turning into a smaller version of his beast form. About the size of a dog or so,” Xun Fu laughed. “He was so embarrassed, and your mother had been more panicked than I’d ever seen her. She always kept her cool, but when Qiang-Jun did something she’d rush right in to rescue him from his situation.”

Xun Fu’s fond smile grows a little sad at that. He sighs, gently scratching under Shen Yuan’s chin.

“A few hours rest and a meal or two, and he was right as rain,” Xun Fu says. He reaches over and brushes the tips of his fingers against a talisman. It takes a couple of tries from him, before it flickers to life and then he pulls off the amulet from Shen Yuan’s neck. “Though, we should take this off. No worries, I’ve warded this home. No demonic energy will escape while he’s here. Qiang-Jun talked a lot about how he’d deal with this when it happened to you—he was sure you might be more susceptible. Suppressing the qi might make it worse in this case though.”

“So he’ll be fine in a few hours?” Luo Binghe can’t help his relief.

“Yes, though—Xiao-Yuan, if you felt strange before the change you need to remember it. Should you feel that way again, come here and take the amulet off,” Xun Fu says softly. “You’ll always be safe here.”

The cub form of Shen Yuan makes a purring noise, bumping his head under Xun Fu’s chin before closing his eyes. For a while, the two of them stay like that. Luo Binghe eats his food dutifully, trying to hide his smile. Now that he knows that Shen Yuan is okay, he will let himself appreciate the fact that his friend is adorable right now.

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As far as being stuck in an animal form goes, Shen Yuan actually doesn’t feel too bad. It’s far better than the painful, stifled feeling of being under the amulet’s enchantment anyway. Either way, knowing he can eventually be normal again helps to keep the worry at bay. While Luo Binghe and Xun Fu—mostly Luo Binghe honestly—unpack Xun Fu’s things, Shen Yuan explores the home that Xun Fu has been given.

He sniffs at the nooks and crannies. No scent of mice reaches him, and some little animal part of him is disappointed but the more human part of his brain is very relieved that he won’t be instinct driven to catch and eat rodents. No thank you!

Eventually he finds a high place to jump to—one that has a lovely little sunbeam filtering through for him. He curls up and ends up taking a very nice catnap right in the middle of it. The sound of Luo Binghe and Xun Fu chatting together is the backdrop to the little snooze he takes. They curl into his dreams comfortably, and Shen Yuan thinks that he loves this peace, even if being on Qing Jing brings to question many things.

It is very lovely, right up until his tiny perch becomes much too tiny for him. One moment, he’s enjoying the warmth of the sun in his dark fur and the next he’s flailing and falling to the ground with a squawk of alarm. Well, at least he’s not an animal anymore.

“A-Yuan, are you okay?” Luo Binghe asks, alarmed.

“Yeah,” Shen Yuan mutters, embarrassed. He gets up and flattens his ears against his hair and dusts his inner robes off. Right, he’d changed while he’d been sleeping. He groans, how is he going to get back to the dorms like this!?

“I’ve still got some of your things, don’t panic,” Xun Fu says, his voice is warm. Luo Binghe retrieves his qiankun pouch, and Xun Fu slowly sits on his cushion with a tired sigh, “Here, go put something on.”

Dutifully, Shen Yuan does so. When he gets back, Luo Binghe has vanished into the kitchen to make them something for lunch. Shen Yuan sits down next to Xun Fu and takes the amulet when he does in hand. He turns it over in his hand.

“Maybe it was the… the turning into a cat thing,” Shen Yuan says hesitantly, “But I don’t like how it makes me feel. I… it’s really okay to come here? And just be me?”

“Of course,” Xun Fu says softly. “Oh—Xiao-Yuan. Come here.”

Shen Yuan realizes he’s shaking, and he finds himself being pulled into a warm hug. He sinks into it for a moment, closing his eyes. He realizes he feels like crying. Again. Dammit. He sighs, hugging Xun Fu.

“This has been the worst few days,” Shen Yuan grumbles, and Xun Fu puffs a laugh. Shen Yuan’s tail lashes behind him, but slowly he relaxes until the urge to cry seems to fade away from him. Xun Fu leans back to check his face.

“If you ever need me, you can come here,” Xun Fu says. Luo Binghe enters the room and sets a tray of food down. Xun Fu huffs, patting the seat next to him. “Xiao-Luo, this goes for you as well. Never be afraid to enter my home, as long as it is considered mine it is also yours. It’d be no home without you.”

That’s right—regardless of where they are. Whether it be Qing Jing or the wilds or where Luo Binghe grew up. Home is wherever the three of them are together. Shen Yuan sees Luo Binghe shoot him a smile, and he sends one back. 

Things, he thinks, are going to be okay.

Chapter Text

As far as homes go, Cang Qiong Sect does not make a terrible one. For all of Shen Yuan’s concerns upon discovering the System was drawing him to that towering mountain peak, he and Luo Binghe settle in nicely. Whether it’s because Luo Binghe is an outer disciple or because Shen Yuan is there to act as a buffer for Shen Qingqiu, the bullying is nowhere near as bad as it was in PIDW. Oh, over the years there are a few bad actors that rear their ugly little faces, but Shen Yuan manages to keep some of the more prominent names—like Ming Fan—off of the ol’ cannon-fodder list. He’d be lying if he said it wasn’t a point of pride.

It is the height of Spring and Shen Yuan’s fifteenth birthday is a mere season away. As it were, he’s lying on his back in the cool grass where the bamboo casts a perfect amount of shade to keep the sun off of him for a while. His small circle of friends sprawls out around him like lazy slugs—a sight that would drive his uncle into a qi deviation if they were discovered. Shen Yuan likes the sun, truthfully, but when it is as hot as this Spring is—well. He’ll take the shade over baking in the sun like a piece of jerky, thank you very much.

“It isn’t even Summer yet,” Gong Yang—who has grown into a reedy and awkward sort of appearance in the last years, despite his pretty face—is lying in the grass nearby and squirming uncomfortably. His wriggling nudges him into Luo Binghe, who grimaces and scoots away. Gong Yang pays it very little mind, “We’re on top of a mountain , why is it so hot ?”

“If Gong-shixiong stayed still he might not feel so hot,” Luo Binghe says with a roll of his eyes.

Luo Binghe has aged much nicer than Gong Yang—the lack of malnutrition in his life has done him well, and even though he’s still only just taller than Shen Yuan he seems to be growing like a weed. Shen Yuan is trying not to be bitter about it, or the fact that he is starting to think he might have the diminutive height he carried with him in his previous life.

Which, like, really? Fine—fine, at least he still has cultivation and cool demon powers. Who needs to be tall anyway? Sure, fine, he’s short compared to all his friends his age. And the smattering of freckles that have darkened after a few years of cultivation training across his nose tend to give him an appearance that is more “cute” than “attractive”... Ugh. He’s just waiting for his fucking growthspurt okay!? He’s not even fifteen yet in this body! Give him a break!

As for his other friends—Ning Yingying looks bright and girlish still. Even though she’s physically older than him, the more she grows the more he’s reminded of his mei-mei. It makes a small ache start in his chest when he thinks about it too long—so he doesn’t! Hey! Whatever works right!? There’s no reason to dig too deeply into things that he can’t change after all!

He Mengyao has gone from plump to broad and tall—he looks like he plays contact sports and eats them for breakfast. The irony being that he tends to shy away from combat in a way that the other eager disciples don’t. None of the group teases him for it—but the others… well. It’s fine. They’ll just close ranks around their gentle-giant of a friend.

Ming Fan, the poor thing, is probably the most unfortunate case of teenager-dom though. It isn’t that he’s an ugly boy or anything, and Ming Fan is not a bad person—thanks to the fact that Shen Yuan intervened before he could be—but he’s all gangly limbs and has a bit of a plain face. Nothing so pretty as Gong Yang, and nowhere near as beautiful as Luo Binghe is shaping up to be.

Ah, not that Shen Yuan would ever say so to his face! Unless he did something to deserve it. It’s just in the back pocket, y’know? In case his intervention wears off in effectiveness. You gotta keep all your doors open after all.

“Maybe a beast is taking the sun and dragging it closer to Qing Jing Peak,” Ning Yingying says with a sigh. She stretches her hands up toward the sky, “Like a phoenix!”

“Ning-shijie, phoenixes don’t drag the sun around,” Shen Yuan can’t help but point out.

“This Yingying wasn’t being serious, ” Ning Yingying scoffs. “...but surely there’s some kind of beast that could make the mountain hotter. Right?”

“That’s true, there are several that this disciple can think of off the top of his head,” Shen Yuan says, sitting up abruptly. Ning Yingying bursts into a fit of giggles. There is a chorus of groans from every boy that is not Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan ignores them, because it’s not his fault that Ning Yingying and Binghe are the only two people here who have any taste, “They, of course, wouldn’t be able to get close to the Peak with all the wards on the mountain. Well, not without drawing a significant amount of attention. One of them is the Giant Firebreathing Mollusk, a surprisingly fast, five-meter tall snail that has plates of metal-like armor as a shell. They typically live near active volcanoes, but every so often will come out of hibernation to find their previous home no longer, well, active. Their hibernation can last for centuries, and they tend to be so deep within the earth that they are rarely seen. However, when they wake like this they will travel about, looking for a new, more suitable home. Unfortunately the heat they cause is so intense that entire forests have burned down if they are unchecked. However, their shells are incredibly useful for forging and many great spiritual weapons have been created from them. One such blade, Jinke, has a golden luster thought to absorb the light of the sun itself. The weapon was lost in the hands of a Demon Tribe that has stolen the weapon’s name. They covet the sunlight, as the demon realm doesn’t have the natural light of ours. As such, the sword is kept in the land of their leader, where it remains in a heavily guarded labyrinth filled with the aforementioned Giant Firebreathing Mollusks. Oh, and then there’s—”

“Heaven’s blessings Xiao-shimei,” He Mengyao says with a good-natured laugh, “You’ve gone and done it now.”

“Shh,” Luo Binghe scolds his elder martial brother.

“Nooo, Yuan-shidi please,” Gong Yang whines, “We’re here so that we don’t have to think.”

“Tss—!” Ming Fan says, sitting up suddenly from the grass, “Do you hear that?”

There is a heartbeat of quiet where they all catch the sound of distant footsteps on the path that winds through the bamboo. Each of them scrambles to their feet in moments, Shen Yuan reaches over to pick out strands of grass from Luo Binghe’s hair. His friend returns the favor, eyes dancing with amused mirth before all of the youths have turned to face the emerging figure of Xu Teng-Mei. She gives them all an unimpressed look, her eyes narrowing over their ragtag group.

“When this one sent her students off, the intent was for them to practice their sword forms,” Xu Tung-Mei lets her look drift from person to person, before unerringly landing on Shen Yuan. It remains there long enough for Shen Yuan to feel unjustly called out—sure this was his idea, but everyone else agreed to it! He’s technically one of the youngest in the group even! It’s not his fault that everyone agreed to laze about for the rest of the day!

Out loud he says, “This disciple greets Xu-laoshi, we were just resting to build the appropriate energy for our practices of course.”

“Mn,” Xu Tung-Mei responds, doubt clear even in that bare syllable. She adjusts her stance folding her hands into her sleeves and letting her unimpressed expression settle into something sterner. “Then, since you are all well-rested, you will all spar under the supervision of this one.”

Each of them exchange glances. Xu Tung-Mei turns and begins to walk away—the order is implicitly clear, of course. They all trail after her, grimacing as they step from the shade of the bamboo onto the stone steps. Xu Tung-Mei leads them up to the flatter training grounds, where others of their class already are working through their forms. She snaps her fingers—a loud, crisp noise that has the disciples that were practicing step aside to flank the edges of the grounds. Curious eyes land on the six of them, and Shen Yuan can see He Mengyao wilt under the attention almost immediately.

Luo Binghe, though, stands with his shoulders squared and his chin tilted somewhat proudly. He doesn’t balk under the attention in the slightest, instead standing in a way that makes Shen Yuan immediately think of champions entering a gladiator’s ring. This, of course, is nothing so dramatic as that. Xu Tung-Mei lets her eyes rove over the group before her, before pointing out Ning Yingying and Shen Yuan. Gong Yang is set up against Ming Fan, and He Mengyao against Luo Binghe.

“For every incorrectly performed form, you will run ten laps,” Xu Tung-Mei says, and that causes Gong Yang to groan in open dismay. She snaps her gaze to the boy and adds, “On top of the twelve you will already be running after your spars. Begin.”

Shen Yuan draws his practice blade in the same motion that he blocks the move that Ning Yingying springs on him after Xu Tung-Mei’s word. It immediately puts him in a defensive position. Ning Yingying in the books was described as childish and—frankly—not terribly impressive cultivation-wise. But she’s still older than Shen Yuan, and more experienced with her practice blade than Shen Yuan is himself.

He’s known her enough at this point to also know that underestimating her because of words on a page isn’t very smart. He lets himself be backed up across the field, carefully aware of the other fighters around them. Then, he knocks her blade up with a clang that makes his ears ring. She brings it down to block before he can get a proper jab in, but it allows him to switch up the dynamic of the spar.

Shen Yuan drops to his knees, rolling to avoid the sweep of Ning Yingying’s blade. He grabs a handful of grass as he does, and it’s only a sharp, “ Only sword-forms in this fight Disciple Shen!” that keeps him from sending a burst of qi into them to block her sight. Adapts fluidly, acting as if he wasn’t even going to do that in the first place as he darts from the tip of Ning Yingying’s sword and sweeps under her guard.

The flat of his blade strikes her in the side, but she dances away after the contact in a swirl of ribbons and skirts. Shen Yuan clumsily brings his sword up to block another jab from her, and winces when it makes the bones in his forearms ache with the hit. He has to change his grip to keep from dropping the blade, something that costs him precious time.

Ning Yingying’s blade crashed into Shen Yuan’s lower back, the flat of it of course, but still hard enough to bruise. Shen Yuan lets the motion knock him forward, dropping into another roll and using his own blade to knock Ning Yingying from her feet. She trips with a yelp, going down hard enough to cause a sharp inhale from the other disciples around them. Shen Yuan isn’t about to show her any mercy though—hey this is just a spar! He isn’t killing her or anything!

Besides, the fight made his blood sing and the amulet on his neck seemed to burn hot against his skin. He found himself on his feet with the tip of his practice sword pointed at her throat. Shen Yuan feels a bead of sweat making its way down the side of his face and he grinned down at Ning Yingying with wild satisfaction. “Yield?”

“A-Yuan that was mean!” Ning Yingying responds, pushing the sword away to rub her shins. Shen Yuan huffs at her, crouching down and subsequently getting in range for a bop on top of his head. “That hurt!”

“You hurt me too!” Shen Yuan shot back, but as the excitement of the spar wore off he felt a spike of concern. Really, did he have to get that carried away!? Ning Yingying is going to be Luo Binghe’s first wife after all! Here he is, knocking her around like she’s just one of the boys! Shen Yuan winces and says, “Are you okay though?”

“Pff, as if you could actually hurt me that bad,” Ning Yingying says, batting his nervous hands away. She stands up after rubbing her shins for a second, and Shen Yuan does as well. Ming Fan and Gong Yang are still sparring, but it looks as though Luo Binghe and He Mengyao have been done for some time. Shen Yuan winces as Luo Binghe’s eyes meet his.

Aaah! Was the protagonist watching that entire time!? Maybe he should have let Ning Yingying win…

【 +50 Protagonist Satisfaction Points! 】

“A-Yuan was incredible!” Luo Binghe chirps immediately, making Shen Yuan’s stomach flip. Oh! Not upset then. In fact, Binghe’s eyes are bright and warm, and Shen Yuan can’t help but smile. Ah, he should still probably make Ning Yingying look good though right?

Definitely right! Binghe, don’t pay attention to your boring old friend! These are the foundational steps toward him wooing her into his harem after all! Which is how things are meant to be. Shen Yuan can’t keep distracting Binghe from her at this point.

Not that he is distracting him like that , but it’s time to start growing up Binghe!

“Naw. Did you see how Ning-shijie fought though?” Shen Yuan says breathlessly, “I practically got lucky!”

“It didn’t seem like that to me,” Luo Binghe says, eyes still glowing with praise and focused on Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan huffs, silly boy! Still, he can’t help but preen under that starry gaze, and despite the heat he nudges his friend with his shoulder. Ning Yingying rolls her eyes and exchanges a look with He Mengyao who shrugs at her as if the two of them are sharing some secret.

“Binghe won his spar?” Shen Yuan asks, even though it’s obvious. Of course Binghe won. His friend nods, curls bouncing in a way that makes Shen Yuan’s hand itch to pat them. He gives into the urge, gently doing so on top of his head. Even though sweat beads at Binghe’s forehead, his curls aren’t grossly wet or anything. “Good!”

At that moment, Ming Fan manages to gain the upperhand on Gong Yang. With the spars all finished the group of them reconvene. Ming Fan casts an annoyed look at Luo Binghe, but still holds his chin high, “This one won his spar as well.”

“Ah—good job Ming-shixiong,” Shen Yuan says, dropping his head from Luo Binghe’s hair to give his older friend a smile. Ming Fan must be very warm, because his face goes a little red at that and he turns around. 

“Very well done,” Xu Tung-Mei says, walking with her hands behind her back. She looks over the six of them with a critical eye. “Now. Disciples He and Gong, you have thirty-two laps to run. Disciples Ning, Ming and Shen all will run twenty-two. Disciple Luo, congratulations, you may run twelve.”

Oh. Right. This is technically a punishment. Shen Yuan bites back his sigh and, with the rest of the group, obediently heads to begin their laps around the mountain.

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Shen Yuan hates running. He hates running and he hates mountains and right now he hates Xu Tung-Mei. She is his mortal enemy, he has never loathed a teacher more than he loathes her in this moment. As he makes his way to where the baths lie, feeling hot and sticky and filthy, he imagines himself biting her like a feral little cat. It might be a little vindictive, but it does soothe some of his ire.

“I wish we had a cool pool to swim in,” Shen Yuan grumbles to himself. There’s the Quiet Pool, but he isn’t looking for ice cold at the moment. He longingly thinks of the public pool that had been part of his apartment complex in his original world. He never swam in it himself, far too easy to get an infection or sick, but the idea of the tempting cool water feels perfect for this afternoon. 

“Aren’t cats supposed to not like water?” Luo Binghe asks with a soft laugh. His friend, being the truest of his companions, had actually run the laps that Shen Yuan had with him. Shen Yuan would complain, but the solidarity was much appreciated.

“Not this cat,” Shen Yuan gripes, and the two of them split up to undress and then sink into the baths. They’re joined by their older martial brothers after a while.

As much as Shen Yuan longs to really soak and relax, he can’t. He has to meet up with Shen Qingqiu for dinner shortly, and the longer he takes to do that the longer poor Xun Fu will have to spend time with his uncle alone. Shen Yuan has to rescue the poor man before that happens, it’s only the right thing to do.

It’s not like he looks forward to these dinners now or anything.

Shen Yuan cleans himself quickly and pauses only long enough to let Luo Binghe oil his hair when his friend makes a complaint that he isn’t doing so. Then, he uses qi to dry it out as he walks up toward the Bamboo House. He doesn’t bother knocking, if only because it seems to annoy his uncle when he doesn’t.

“You’re late,” Shen Qingqiu says coolly from where he sits at the table. Xun Fu sits nearby, and flashes Shen Yuan a warm smile. “This master heard that Xu Tung-Mei had to have you and your little minions run laps this afternoon.”

“Jiujiu, even if you don’t have them this disciple does have friends. Not minions,” Shen Yuan snarks at him.

“Yet the majority of that circle would jump off this mountain at your request,” Shen Qingqiu responds immediately. “Ning Yingying is the only one of a discerning personality among the lot of them. You’ve even got Ming Fan wrapped around your finger.”

Shen Yuan blinks, confused, “I’m not that popular Jiujiu.”

“Your lack of perception on these matters still baffles this master,” comes Shen Qingqiu’s response. His tone is dry as ever, and he rolls his eyes to give Xun Fu a narrowed-eyed look. Xun Fu defensively puts his hands up at that.

“Ah—that’s just his personality, Shen Qingqiu, I didn’t teach him that,” Xun Fu says.

He isn’t going to get used to the easy peace that Xun Fu treats Shen Qingqiu with. No matter how irritable his uncle is, Xun Fu never seems to judge him or allow it to really push him away. It isn’t like they’re best friends, at least Shen Yuan doesn’t think the two of them are. But Shen Qingqiu doesn’t chase Xun Fu out, and if his uncle has to be talked down, Shen Yuan would probably pick Xun Fu before most anyone else in the sect. 

“I don’t lack perception, you’re just making things up,” Shen Yuan snaps, taking the time to refill the tea of the two adults before he sits down at the table. He finds that he has a plate ready for him already. He digs in with a happy hum despite the fact that it isn’t as good as Luo Binghe’s.

“We have a mission,” Shen Qingqiu says slowly, as Shen Yuan eats. Shen Yuan glances up and slurps up his noodles. Shen Qingqiu curls his lip and smacks his fan against the top of Shen Yuan’s head firmly. Not enough to hurt though, “Be polite, you’re not a beast.”

“Yes Jiujiu,” Shen Yuan says, playing at being somewhat contrite. Still, he can’t help his curiosity being piqued. A mission? “What is the mission?”

“A Nighthunt—Xun Fu and this master will be allowing Ming Fan and several of you disciples to take the lead. This is to allow you the opportunity to learn how to work in the field before doing so completely alone,” Shen Qingqiu sips at his tea as Xun Fu eats his own food. Shen Qingqiu never eats much, subsisting mostly on inedia himself. His gray eyes are sharp as he meets Shen Yuan’s, “This will be your first official Nighthunt under Cang Qiong Sect.”

“Since Fu-ge is coming, does that mean that—” Shen Yuan starts.

“Yes, yes, your little beast is going to join the hunt as well,” Shen Qingqiu says with a roll of his eyes.

“Not a beast,” Xun Fu and Shen Yuan say at the same time, the former with a sigh. Shen Qingqiu waves Xun Fu off, but doesn’t even bother with Shen Yuan. Ugh. He has managed to keep Binghe from the ire of Shen Qingqiu. Certainly his uncle hasn’t mistreated Binghe as badly as the book. But there’s something about Binghe that bothers Shen Qingqiu, and for all his uncle’s attempts to not actively antagonize him he very obviously does not like him.

Shen Yuan wonders if it’s the narrative itself that has hooked into Shen Qingqiu. It’s obvious to him that it serves as some driving force in this world—though he isn’t sure how to ask the System. Something about the idea of that makes Shen Yuan’s skin crawl.

“What are we hunting?” Shen Yuan asks curiously. The perks of being the Peak Lord’s nephew means that he gets to ask questions like this. Little sneak peeks into what the disciples are doing. Shen Qingqiu gestures at a rolled up scroll nearby. Making sure that his hands are clean, Shen Yuan pulls the missive over and looks it over. Unfortunately it isn’t anything he recognizes from the book, but that’s not too surprising at this point. It seems that young women are disappearing from the streets of Shuang Hu City, which lies in Cang Qiong Sect’s territory. These young women then turn up as gruesome corpses with no skin later. Aptly, the thing hunting them had been labeled as “the Skinner Demon”.

“Like Shen Qingqiu said,” Xun Fu says softly, “We’ll be with you all as supervisors. But this is your chance to work out how to solve cases like these, and track the creatures that may be causing it. It isn’t a demon that should be too much trouble for your group.”

“Even a year ago you could have handled this,” Shen Qingqiu sniffs. “This master would like for Disciple Shen to help organize this hunt. You may rely on Ming Fan, of course, but it will be up to you to organize your fellow disciples and relegate duties among you.”

“Huh? Me?” Shen Yuan asks, surprised.

“As this master noted before, Shen Yuan’s fellow disciples listen to just about every word that falls from his mouth as if it were holy text,” Shen Qingqiu stands in a graceful motion as he speaks. “Who better to lead such a group than the one they already tend to bend their ears too.”

“They don’t—wouldn’t Ming-shixiong be better for this?” Shen Yuan sputters out. He’s still just fourteen! And not his first disciple besides that! Still, Shen Qingqiu only glides over to where his desk is. He rolls up another scroll and sets it aside. “When you finish your dinner, take this to An Ding’s Peak Lord and arrange us our carriages and horses for the journey. We will not be going by sword.”

Shen Yuan gapes at his uncle, but before he can protest Shen Qingqiu is sitting back down.

“Now, Xun Fu was telling me about his current treatments with Mu-shidi?” Shen Qingqiu asks, firmly closing the subject before Shen Yuan can launch into protests over it. Xun Fu gives him a glance, but pretty willingly goes along with the change in topic.

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Shen Yuan and Xun Fu walk side by side from the Bamboo House. Shen Yuan has adjusted his pace so that he can stay next to Xun Fu as they do walk, his brow furrowing as he thinks. It isn’t like Shen Yuan expects Shen Qingqiu to pick the actual best disciple of the group to lead the mission, but him!? Why not Ming Fan—or honestly even Gong Yang. Hell, even Ning Yingying and He Mengyao have more experience despite not really being combat focused. In fact, Ming Fan, Gong Yang and He Mengyao are all going to get their actual spiritual swords this year! Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan have a bit to go before that yet.

“You’ll do great, Xiao-Yuan,” Xun Fu says to him, breaking Shen Yuan out of his panicking spiral. He claps him on the back, “Qingqiu is right, you have a way of pulling your friends together in a way that simply works. He wouldn’t give you something to do if he thought you would fail.”

“Wouldn’t he?” Shen Yuan relies mutinously—it isn’t fair to his uncle in the slightest. Shen Qingqiu hasn’t been a kind man, but he has done everything in his power to show Shen Yuan that he is important to him. “I just don’t get why he’d pick me .”

“That’s part of the reason why, Xiao-Yuan,” Xun Fu says, absolutely nonsensically. Shen Yuan opens his mouth but doesn’t have much time to speak when Xun Fu pauses to ruffle his hair with his free hand. Shen Yuan grunts, trying to fix the ponytail now that Xun Fu has messed it up. “Go along and deliver that message. I’m dog tired after today and will be going to bed, but if you need to stay at my house just remember to knock before entering.”

Shen Yuan gives Xun Fu a small smile at that and waves goodbye. The two of them part ways, and Shen Yuan spends a few moments to watch his guardian make his way laboriously down the steps. The dry weather is usually better for Xun Fu’s pain than the rainier ones, but he leans heavily on his cane as he walks away in a manner that betrays that he’s hurting. Shen Yuan makes a mental note to mention it to Mu Qingfang when he sees him next. He knows how easy it is to write off pain when you hurt all the time, and he’ll gladly be a hypocrite if it means fussing over Xun Fu.

After that, he turns to make his way down the stairs. They are nowhere near as intimidating as they had been when he had first joined the sect. The nightmare of dragging Xun Fu up them still comes back, sometimes, but he pushes that from his mind as he jogs down the steps with practiced ease. An Ding Peak isn’t necessarily a short trip, but he should be there before it’s too late and back in time to get a decent amount of sleep.

If Jiujiu wants to leave for the Shuang Hu City and make it there in a timely manner, he will want us to leave in the morning. Likely just after dawn, which means that the disciples and I will need to get up before then, Shen Yuan thinks. It sounds as if he wants this to focus on the disciples that he has chosen himself, plus Binghe. So besides my friends that means also Xia-shimei and Yan-shidi. I’ll make sure those two help pack and haul things mostly. No fighting whatsoever, but they can help and shadow unless Jiujiu says otherwise.

The two youngest of Shen Qingqiu’s disciples had not had names in the novel. It had been mentioned in PIDW that another girl joined the mountain because Ning Yingying had a brief arc of feeling replaced—in reality, she was more than happy to have Xia Dandan join her in the female dorms. Qi-shigu had not been happy about another girl going to Qing Jing though. Shen Yuan is fairly sure that if she was allowed to go to war with her own sect she absolutely would have launched a physical attack against Qing Jing Peak at this point.

As it is, only Bai Zhan does foolish things like that.

This leaves most of the work to the older of us. Obviously Binghe and I are included in that, Shen Yuan thinks with a sigh. Though I probably will be busy organizing things, they’re going to expect me to be ahead of the curve with some of this. I could talk to Chu-shigu before we leave, maybe she’s heard of a demon that does this kind of thing…

By the time that Shen Yuan reaches An Ding Peak, his head is spinning with all the details of the mission before him. He feels a nervousness that he hasn’t felt before heavy on his shoulders. Sure, it isn’t like Xun Fu or Shen Qingqiu will let any of them die, but he still doesn’t want to humiliate himself by crashing and burning!

He’s so caught up in that that it only occurs to him when he is standing at the door of the Leisure House that this is going to be the first time he’ll have to meet up with Shang Qinghua. He feels an immediate disgust—Shang Qinghua is a traitor to Cang Qiong Sect. A villain that didn’t even earn enough to get an onscreen death but killed far too many disciples at the Immortal Alliance Conference.

Because of him, Shen Yuan is going to have to figure out how to save both his uncle and see if Binghe can somehow get into the Abyss. He has to take a deep breath before locking away his distaste. He can’t spoil the fact that he knows this. Shang Qinghua is absolutely the type to kill a disciple that stumbles on his plans anyway.

So he puts it away and he knocks.

There comes the sound of an inelegant yelp from the other side of the door. The sound of stumbling follows shortly after, as well as a loud thump and a groan. Then, in a low mutter that Shen Yuan immediately knows he’s not meant to hear, he hears a muttered, “What cannon-fodder has come to bother this lowly Peak Lord now of all times?”

Before those words fully register, the door slides open and Shen Yuan finds himself face to face with the most exhausted looking man he’s seen with the bare minimum cultivation level required of a Peak Lord. He has dark circles under his eyes, his warm brown hair is mussed up despite the attempt to wrangle it into something presentable. But Shen Yuan barely notices, because his brain has finally digested what he just heard and he shoves his way into the Leisure House and slams the door behind him.

“Wh—whoa whoa!” Shang Qinghua exclaims, “Listen here shizhi, you—”

Shen Yuan cuts him off, looking him dead in the eye, “Proud Immortal Demon Way.”

Shang Qinghua’s mouth drops open, and Shen Yuan knows in that moment he was right. Shen Yuan isn’t the only one! Shang Qinghua is a fellow transmigrator!

Chapter Text

Shang Qinghua’s head is—honestly—reeling. Look, you can’t blame him for something like that! He’s been here since he was a baby, transmigrated after an ill-fated electrical issue. It’s been ages since he’s joined the world of Proud Immortal Demon Way! He hasn’t ever expected to hear that name spoken to him out loud, on account of the fact that he was (reasonably, he thinks) under the impression that he was the only person transmigrated here.

It takes enough time for his brain to process that this has happened for the kid in front of him to have his expression flatten as though he thinks Shang Qinghua is an idiot. Which, unfair! He’s just a little surprised, okay! Wait—he hopes this kid transmigrated as a baby too because otherwise he isn’t sure how to process the idea that a literal child has read the raunchy het porn in his webnovel.

“Wait wait,” Shang Qinghua says, grabbing the boy by the back of his robes. This earns him a rather undignified squawk where the kid’s voice cracks. Shang Qinghua pays it little mind as he hauls his fellow transmigrator into his warded room, turning to stare at him. “You’re a reader! A transmigrator too!”

“That was the suggestion—let me go,” the boy grumbles, shoving away Shang Qinghua’s hand and dusting himself off. The way the kid tries to look dignified but comes across as mostly pissed reminds him strongly of a young Shen Qingqiu—wait! This is that weird kid that showed up late with the protagonist isn’t it!?

“Little bro, you have no idea how confused I was when the protagonist didn’t show up at the ceremony to join the sect! I was gonna have a heart attack!” Shang Qinghua says, “That was you back then too right? Wait, how old were you before you transmigrated? You weren’t… you know.”

“I wasn’t—I’m not actually a kid,” the boy seethes in a manner that makes him very much seem like a kid. Shang Qinghua nods knowingly though.

“I transmigrated into a baby when I first showed up! I get where you’re coming from,” Shang Qinghua says, all but flopping down next to his table and grabbing a trusty bowl of melon seeds. He tosses some into his mouth, “What was your user? It’s been ages but if you were active I might remember you.”

A pause, then, “Peerles Cucumber.”

Shang Qinghua’s mouth opens and he has to stop himself from laughing. Still, he can’t help his grin of delight at that, “Oh man! My ultimate anti-fan in the flesh!”

He realizes the second that the words are out of his mouth that maybe he should have kept some of that to himself. Cucumber’s eyes seem to sharpen as he stares at Shang Qinghua, and even though he knows—pitiful cultivation or not—that he can probably kick a fourteen-year-old’s ass, he can’t help the cold sweat he breaks into. He tosses some more melon seeds in his mouth to soothe himself, which is why he ends up choking when Cucumber launches himself at him.

“ You’re Airplane!? Y-you! Great Master —you fucking bastard! Plot holes by the hundreds! Characters never fleshed out! Potential not just waited but fucking gutted and left to rot in the street! Not to mention the terrible amounts of horribly written porn!” Cucumber yells, smacking the top of his head like a particularly incensed cat. Shang Qinghua has to pick the kid up by the back of the robes and hold him at arm’s length to get him to stop. Cucumber pauses, looking at him through narrowed eyes.

“Bro you’re really small,” Shang Qinghua can’t help but say. The boy in his one handed grip starts to squirm and Shang Qinghua yelps when the kid manages to grab onto the arm he’s holding him out on. Then—like a feral little animal or some shit—he fucking snaps at him like he is going to bite. Shang Qinghua hastily drops him before that can happen, “Bro! I knew you would get heated in the comments but chill!”

“I’m not small,” Cucumber grumbles. Shang Qinghua decides not to point out that he himself is not a tall man, and he was able to lift Cucumber-bro off the ground like he was a little kitten. A feral kitten that bites.

“Right right!” Shang Qinghua says with a nervous laugh. He holds his hands up in front of himself defensively as Cucumber looks at him through narrowed eyes for a few moments. Then, as if he hadn’t just attacked him like an animal, Cucumber simply sits down at the table primly.

“Fine, I suppose it can be useful that you’re the one here,” Cucumber says, and Shang Qinghua again thinks of the boy’s in-world uncle. He’s a little curious about how Cucumber feels about that— considering all the cries for castration he led in the comments section. Wisely, he decides to keep his mouth shut.

“Bro you can’t believe how excited I am to meet another transmigrator though,” Shang Qinghua says, “You’re related to Shen Qingqiu right? I cut his sister from the plot because I didn’t think she really fit, since she was married and all that but she must be your mom right?”

“I—you just cut her because she was married!?” Cucumber sputters, his voice breaking again. Ah, puberty. Solidarity to his little bro for that.

“Happily married,” Shang Qinghua corrects. “I figured everyone would want Binghe to lay her if she was around, because older sister of the villain. You know, I fucked your sister—except I didn’t really have that much interest in Shen Qingqiu’s backstory overall so… yeah. Cut her, along with a ton of other stuff bro.”

“...Don’t. Don’t ever say that about her or Binghe ever again,” Cucumber says, his eyebrow twitching before he buries his face in his hands. “I already am cursed to think of your terrible porn, don’t make me confront things like that.”

“Hey! A lot of people paid good money for what I wrote!” Shang Qinghua says. Including you! He adds to himself silently. He doesn’t say that bit out loud though, if only to avoid another situation where the kid throws himself at him. “Though! Wait, her husband was supposed to be a demon…”

“I’m half-demon,” Cucumber says flatly. “Didn’t you write a kid into the story?”

“Er—not one that lived,” Shang Qinghua admits. “It was going to be kinda tragic see! Binghe would have looked into things, thinking that maybe there was someone like him out there, only to find out that the child had died in the womb. The System probably intervened when you transmigrated and made it so you lived bro! Lucky, you’ve basically got an OC template…”

“That can’t be right,” Cucumber interjects, “I didn’t transmigrate until this body was seven. Maybe you did something in the world that fixed that. Like a butterfly effect.”

Shang Qinghua blinks, furrowing his brow as he scratches at the side of his head. That is strange, he hasn’t really done enough to make something like that change in the world. If he remembers correctly—and he’s pretty sure he does—the little baby Shen’s two spiritual systems clashed violently in the womb. It was going to illustrate how bad ass it was that Luo Binghe even existed! And how alone he was.

Hello, System? Question for you. Shang Qinghua thinks.

【 User 001. What question do you have for this System?】

The absolutely dry monotone of his System can’t really have emotion, but Shang Qinghua has always suspected that his System hates him personally. Just a hunch, you know? But he doesn’t address that right now, instead thinking, Did I help Cucumber-bro’s character not die? I mean like—was that kid going to be around before Cucumber-bro showed up?

There is, for a moment, silence as the System seems to calculate this.

【 User 002’s status as transmigrator has altered the survival of one (1) character since his transmigration. Near alterations to other major character deaths that impact the storyline were averted. User 001 has prevented zero (0) deaths of the characters in his novel thus far. 】

So his theory doesn’t really fit, why’d the kid live? Shang Qinghua thinks.

【 User may tell User 002 this, if he is alright with losing 1,000 B-Points. 】

“A thousand!?” Shang Qinghua squeaks, making Cucumber look up from where he’s been eyeing Shang Qinghua’s melon seeds. Shang Qinghua claps his hands over his mouth and Cucumber-bro raises an eyebrow at him.

“Are you talking to your System?” Cucumber asks him. Shang Qinghua shakes his head, pauses then nods when Cucumber looks at him like he’s got no brain. “What is it threatening you?”

“Yeah bro! With a huge B-Point loss!” Shang Qinghua blurts, “Don’t make me say more, I really can’t afford it you know!?”

The last thing he wants is to trigger another punishment protocol! No thank you! He’ll keep his mouth shut. System, don’t worry! His System doesn’t really say anything, but he does notice that there is a red warning window in the corner of his eye.

“Cucumber-bro, have mercy, don’t ask me more questions,” Shang Qinghua warbles at the other transmigrator. Cucumber’s expression smooths out and he shrugs as he looks away. “You can ask about other stuff! I’m pretty sure, just—you know. Your backstory is off-limits for now.”

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Shen Yuan blinks at Shang Qinghua in surprise. His backstory specifically? Why? It just makes him want to ask a thousand more questions, but at the pathetic whine from his fellow transmigrator, Shen Yuan doesn’t quite have the heart to press it. He notices Shang Qinghua flop forward and the man whines, “System, don’t take points! I didn’t even say anything!”

“It’s fine,” Shen Yuan says. He can’t understand why he feels so bitter, but it settles in his chest anyway. It’s not like this character’s backstory is completely out of his grasp! He was just curious about the viewpoint of the hack author. “It’s not like it really matters.”

“I’m really sorry bro,” Shang Qinghua says to him.

“Like I said, it doesn’t matter,” Shen Yuan responds, waving him off. “Anyway, I can’t stay long. I was coming over to give you information about a mission my jiujiu is taking us on. He wants you to get these things ready.”

“Wh—bro it’s almost time for me to go to bed!” Shang Qinghua complains, though Shen Yuan doesn’t know if that’s the truth so much as him wanting to laze around. Shen Yuan passes the scroll over to him and Shang Qinghua groans, “All by dawn tomorrow!? Bro!”

“You can always write a response refusing Jiujiu’s request or delaying it so you have more time,” Shen Yuan says with a smile. Shang Qinghua shudders at that.

“No! No, it’s fine,” Shang Qinghua says with a heavy sigh. “I’ll get right on that.”

“...we should meet up again,” Shen Yuan says, as Shang Qinghua writes up a response to Shen Qingqiu’s request and passes it over to him. He says it confidently - he needs to talk to someone who is from his world more than once. Especially the damn author!

“Pfff, of course Cucumber-bro! I’ll come up with ways to get you here, or you can swing by. Just, you know. Don’t forget to knock, wouldn’t want you running into my King unawares! Though, I dunno how he’d feel about you being half-demon…” Shang Qinghua trails off thoughtfully.

“No thanks, I’d rather not incriminate myself,” Shen Yuan responds flatly. He’ll ask Shang Qinghua what his System is going to require of him later. For now, he needs to get back to Qing Jing Peak. He doesn’t pay much attention to Shang Qinghua after that, merely waving farewell before opening the door and leaving the Leisure House.

He makes it back to the Peak with no trouble, and it’s only barely dark when he pulls Ming Fan aside to ask for help letting everyone else know about the mission. Ming Fan is eager enough to please to take that over without complaint at all. Which leaves Shen Yuan the ability to take a bath and then walk into his dorm feeling asleep on his feet. He flops onto his bed with a grumble, and Luo Binghe looks up from where he’s working on some sort of homework. 

“A-Yuan!” Binghe smiles, “This Binghe was wondering why you were so late.”

“Mmf,” Shen Yuan responds. Luo Binghe only softly laughs at him, getting up and sitting on the bed next to him. He gently rubs She Yuan’s back, and Shen Yuan hums softly and closes his eyes. “We have a mission tomorrow.”

“We do?” Luo Binghe responds, excitement in his voice that makes Shen Yuan smile. Aw, he can’t stay tired when Binghe sounds so excited. Well, he can, but he can work up the energy to support his friend’s excitement.

“Mn, a nighthunt. Jiujiu wants me to be in charge,” Shen Yuan says, and he can’t help but let his confusion slip into his tone when he says this. Sure, Shen Qingqiu explained why but he still doesn’t quite understand his uncle’s logic.

“That makes sense, A-Yuan is good at motivating others,” Luo Binghe says thoughtfully. There’s a gleam to his eye, as if he is thinking of something specific, but Shen Yuan can’t imagine what. His friend smiles at him, “A-Yuan will do very well, he’ll see!”

It isn’t until Luo Binghe says the words that Shen Yuan realizes that he has been nervous about it. He can’t help but smile at his friend and he reaches out to pat him on the head. Luo Binghe leans into the touch like a puppy, and Shen Yuan can’t stop the soft laugh that escapes him. Luo Binghe’s eyes seem to shine brighter for a moment, and Shen Yuan bats him away with a huff.

“Alright, alright,” Shen Yuan scolds, “We need to go to bed. Binghe can finish whatever he was working on when we’re back from the mission, surely.”

“Of course, A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe responds. His friend finishes getting ready for bed, and then the two of them are settled down and ready for sleep.

As Shen Yuan listens to the breaths of Luo Binghe even out, he finds himself thinking again of his conversation with Shang Qinghua. About the boy who was supposed to come before him—he’s trying not to think about the fact that he stole the boy’s life. That the kid found a world where he didn’t die, and yet Shen Yuan still stole his place in the world.

His stomach twists, and he turns to press his face into the pillow. It’s fine, he’ll be fine. This isn’t new, and it’s not like Shen Yuan picked who he replaced in this world. Even telling himself this, he can’t help that the sleep he drifts into is uneasy, and filled with questions that Airplane can’t answer for him.

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They wake before dawn and Shen Yuan doesn’t quite feel rested, but he buries it and his nervousness. He gets his hair up in a neat ponytail with Binghe’s help (per usual) and in return tames his friend’s curly locks. Then, the two of them make their way quickly to where An Ding disciples are already preparing their carriage for travel.

Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe help, just to make sure things are running on time by the time his uncle and Xun Fu make it to them. After that, Shen Yuan makes sure there are enough horses for every disciple—his uncle and Xun Fu will be riding in a carriage and the rest of them will be on horseback.

He’s not the biggest fan of riding horses. It was something he had to do in his previous life as a child, but that didn’t last long when he was diagnosed and ill all the time. Not only that, but something about him—possibly his scent—makes most horses shy away from him. Thankfully, the ones at Cang Qiong Sect are specifically trained to not spook when faced with demons or other entities that they’d be expected to go on a night hunt to take out.

“Shen Yuan,” Shen Qingqiu says, making Shen Yuan’s head snap up. His uncle is standing near the carriage that Xun Fu is painstakingly clamoring into. He winces in sympathy for his guardian, it seems he’s having a flare-up of some kind. He reminds himself to make sure Binghe knows so they can brew him some of the tea that Mu Qingfang had prescribed. “We will be leaving for Shuang Hu City soon. Is everything in order?”

Shen Yuan opens his mouth to say that he’ll double check when he feels a tap on his shoulder. Luo Binghe grins at him and nods, and Shen Yuan feels a rush of fondness for him. Thanks Binghe! He can always count on his white-lotus best friend to help pick up his slack.

“Yes, Shizun,” Shen Yuan says, aware of the fact that he should be treating his uncle with respect and deference in “public”. As much public as his friend group is. Shen Qingqiu is the kind of guy to get snippy about such things, after all. His uncle nods at him, before stepping into the carriage after Xun Fu. When Shen Qingqiu has he adds in a low voice to Binghe, “Thanks.”

“Of course, A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe chirps at him, and Shen Yuan huffs. The white-lotus protagonist truly is something special. Ah, he feels a little nostalgic. He definitely has to do all he can to preserve this in him.

Not just for Luo Binghe’s sake either.

Shen Yuan mounts his horse—thanks to a well-placed bit of fence and maybe more than one try—and tamps down his nervousness as the animal shifts under him. The animal quiets though, and Shen Yuan breathes a soft sigh of relief. He did not want to start this day getting thrown off of a jumpy horse.

“Luo-shidi, is this your first time riding a horse?” He Mengyao asks, making Shen Yuan glance over where Luo Binghe is preparing to get on his own horse. Luo Binghe nods, and Shen Yuan feels like he should have probably realized that. Or at least noticed his friend was nervous, “Do you need help up?”

“I don’t think so,” Binghe responds, glancing at Shen Yuan and giving him a wan smile. Shen Yuan watches as Binghe… literally flawlessly gets up into the saddle. Come on! Sure it’s been ages but this is Binghe’s first ever horse ride! Aw, whatever, there’s no point in fretting.

“A-Luo! You’re a natural,” Ning Yingying says cheerily. 

“Is this really your first time?” Ming Fan asks, narrowing his eyes from his own horse. He waves off Luo Binghe’s answer with a huff, “No, nevermind.”

“Be nice shixiong,” Shen Yuan reminds him.

“Ah! I am shidi, don’t worry,” Ming Fan sputters. “I was just making sure Luo-shidi wasn’t showing off is all…”

“Oh?” Shen Yuan asks, and Ming Fan looks appropriately cowed. He feels a bit bad, Ming Fan isn’t actively bullying Binghe or anything. But he just gets so competitive with him! Ming Fan gently urges his mare forward, and Shen Yuan follows after on his own horse with a sigh.

For the first time since he was told that he was in charge of this, Shen Yuan feels a small spark of excitement. Maybe this won’t be so bad. And hey! It does say something that Shen Qingqiu trusts him to do this! Ming Fan isn’t even angry that he’s the one leading the group—though, if the look that Gong Yang gives him is anything to go by he definitely has made at least one of his martial siblings jealous. Still! This could be good. Great even!

And he gets to see Binghe on a real night hunt too!

Chapter Text

Shuang Hu City’s marketplace is so tightly packed that Shen Yuan is grateful that their clients had the foresight to arrange for the group’s horses—and thus carriage—to be taken away by some of their people. He can’t imagine trying to ride a horse through this part of the street, where the market stalls are so close that Shen Yuan imagines that there are more than a few arguments about who owns what when it comes to the sale of some items. As it is now, the disciples walk through the city itself with their heads on a swivel. The calls of merchants, enticing scents of food and perfumes and the chatter of the people around them is a far cry from the serenity of Qing Jing Peak. Shen Yuan had almost forgotten what it’s like to be surrounded by city life—even this is quite tame compared to his first life.

He feels an unexpected homesickness for the bustle of a modern, busy street. He wonders how his friends would react to that sort of sight, were it offered to them. He doesn’t think even Shen Qingqiu’s looming figure would keep them from darting off to see all they could. As it is, they walk through Shuang Hu City, which exists in a time—and world—far from the city that Shen Yuan grew up in. Even so, the pull on the young teenagers making their way through the market is strong enough that Shen Qingqiu practically radiates an air of sternness that speaks as clearly as any painted sign: embarrass him and his Peak, and suffer his wrath.

“Shizun!” Ning Yingying calls out, rushing over to grab at the hem of Shen Qingqiu’s sleeve in a manner that even Shen Yuan himself wouldn’t dare do at his most shameless. His uncle’s eyes do not narrow at the young girl though, and he only turns his phoenix eyes on her as she speaks, “Can this Yingying play in the market later? Maybe Shizun can come with!”

“Perhaps,” Shen Qingqiu says, neither outright denying or acquiescing to Ning Yingying’s request. The boys of their group all exchange glances and Shen Yuan tries not to roll his eyes. It’s not Ning Yingying’s fault that Shen Qingqiu is willing to spoil her—still, if any of the four of them had tried that they’d likely have Shen Qingqiu’s fan denting their very skulls! “I bet A-Yuan would want to go!”

“Hey! Don’t drag me into this,” Shen Yuan says to her sternly. “This disciple would like to remind his shijie that we’re here on a night hunt.”

“When we catch the demon we can play, Xiao-shimei,” Ming Fan cajoles her when Ning Yingying’s eyes look a touch too hurt at Shen Yuan’s words. Shen Yuan winces—he hadn’t meant to be grumpy with her or anything.

“We just can’t forget we’re on a hunt,” Shen Yuan says, feeling terribly like a stick in the mud. He can’t keep himself from trying to justify his earlier tone though. He lowers his voice as he adds, “Something is killing women here, shijie. It’s probably not safe to be out and—hm.”

Shen Yuan trails off, glancing around at the busy market with a furrowed brow. For a city with a supposed serial murderer—and likely not a human one at that—Shuang Hu City is… very calm. He doesn’t see any people looking about nervously. The streets are filled with moving common people and there seems to be no real disruption throughout the day. The victims have all been young women, from what he remembers of the missive he read through. Not just murdered but skinned alive—people were calling it the “Skinner Demon”. 

So why on earth was there so little worry?

“Disciple Shen is correct,” Shen Qingqiu says loftily, “Once you have sorted the affairs with this demon perhaps this master will allow his disciples some leisure. If it has been earned.”

Ning Yingying furrows her brows in thought and says, “Maybe we can go to the market but use it for the hunt—this Yingying thinks talking to some people may help!”

“Usually, this shixiong would agree but…” He Mengyao trails off, looking around at the swaths of people around them. Shen Yuan can’t tell if He Mengyao has picked up on the same thing he himself had, or if he’s just anxious about talking with strangers. His friend’s round face is scrunched tightly with an expression of nervousness that makes him look a little pitiful. Shen Yuan reaches over to pat him on the shoulder.

“It is unusual that so few people seem unsettled,” Luo Binghe says, as though finishing He Mengyao’s sentence. Shen Yuan perks up—of course the protagonist caught on! He can’t help that, after He Mengyao’s shoulder pat, his hand diverts course to Luo Binghe’s fluffy hair. His friend beams at him in open pride.

“Binghe’s right, this disciple was thinking much the same,” Shen Yuan says. “Even looking closer, there’s nobody that seems to be on edge—at least, not significantly. No significant presence of anyone but us, really. They aren’t even really looking our way.”

“That is odd,” Ming Fan mutters, “We’re from Cang Qiong Sect—being this close, surely Shuang Hu City should be well aware of our robes. Nobody seems surprised or even interested in paying close attention though. Most people who are concerned about such a thing would be.”

“It’s because of who the victims are,” Ning Yingying says, her voice unusually soft and somber.

“Ning-shimei is right,” Gong Yang adds on, his expression is tight as he clenches his fists. His eyes are narrowed in anger, and his shoulders are stiff with it. “They don’t care because the victims don’t really matter to them.”

“Because the victims are women?” He Mengyao protests, his voice tight with alarm.

“It’s not that they’re women,” Ning Yingying says, reaching for the scroll that Shen Yuan had been given before. Shen Yuan passes it over without complaint, and watches as his shijie unrolls the scroll. She points at some of the script, her expression sad, “It’s about the kind of women that they are. Look, the missive here says that two of the victims were found near the Warm Red Pavilion nearby. It’s likely that… that they don’t care because they worked in the brothel.”

A quiet falls over the group, and Shen Yuan feels deeply uncomfortable. How did such a serious thing make its way into PIDW? It isn’t as though Shen Yuan hasn’t heard about this kind of thing—it is an unfortunate truth here, and was one in his previous world too. But it’s an uncomfortable truth. The idea that women working in such a job would be seen as less than people just because of who they are.

Women in PIDW are meant to fall over themselves for Luo Binghe! Not be sobering reminders of how shittily sex workers are treated! He tries to remember if any of the ladies at the Warm Red Pavilion were wives picked up by Binghe—he knows that more than a handful were brothel women that Luo Binghe had paid the debts of in the book so that he could take them into his harem. He isn’t sure the names of the establishments that they went to though.

Not that it matters right now, of course! Binghe is much too young to be picking up wives from brothels.

“How dare they?!” Gong Yang spits out through grit teeth, “Look how carefree they are—like their lives don’t even matter!”

“Gong-shixiong,” Luo Binghe coaxes their friend gently. “We care. We’ll find what’s doing this and keep the rest of them safe.”

Gong Yang doesn’t seem any calmer for Luo Binghe’s words, but he doesn’t say anything further. Merely glares straight ahead, his jaw set in determination. Shen Yuan wonders what that’s all about, but isn’t sure how to pry into his friend’s business. When Shen Yuan looks up toward his uncle and Xun Fu, he notices that Shen Qingqiu is watching Gong Yang with his face behind his fan. He seems to be considering the other boy, his eyes not quite narrowed but seemingly focused in thought. When he notices Shen Yuan looking at him, he snaps his fan shut.

“We will be late if we dally further,” Shen Qingqiu points out coolly. “Hurry along.”

They hurry along.

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Chen Manor is ostentatious and whatever incense he uses keeps making poor He Mengyao sneeze. It’s the least uncomfortable thing about Chen Manor though—at the very top of that list. Old Master Chen sits with a young concubine draped on his lap like she’s a particularly shameless accessory. Shen Yuan doesn’t need to glance up at his uncle to his right to know that Shen Qingqiu’s lip is likely curled with disdain behind his fan.

“My poor little Die-er could be in danger!” Old Master Chen is saying—a sentiment that is punctuated by the concubine shrinking into the older man’s chest with a whimper. Old Master Chen rubs her shoulder as though to calm her, his eyes wide and filled with beseeching worry. “You’ll help, surely? I can’t bear it if any more concubines were to fall victim to the creature!”

“We are here, are we not?” Shen Qingqiu responds, his distaste obvious in his tone. He waves the lord of the house off imperiously, “If Xun Fu and I could be shown to our chambers we would appreciate it. The disciples will be handling this case, answer their questions to the best of your abilities.”

“Th—but surely this isn’t a job just for children!” Old Master Chen protests.

“These are Cang Qiong Sect’s next generation,” Xun Fu says gently, before Shen Qingqiu can deliver another truly scathing remark. Shen Yuan thanks his guardian internally as the man continues, “Peak Master Shen and I are here to ensure that they won’t fail enough to be a danger to any other potential victims.”

“They will not fail,” Shen Qingqiu says, his tone sharp. It is not out of confidence but almost a warning. Shen Yuan resists the urge to shudder as his uncle casts an absolutely unimpressed look at Old Master Chen. 

After that, Old Master Chen waves forward a few of his servants and watches as the two adults leave the room as they are escorted out. He turns back to the group of young teenagers before him, doubt clear on his features as he looks over each and every one of them. Shen Yuan can’t help but think of how he must see them, and he feels a surge of protectiveness for himself and his martial siblings.

“You said that two of your concubines had fallen victim to this Skinner Demon,” Ming Fan speaks up after a moment of uncomfortable silence, “When did this last happen?”

“Ah—Rong-er was killed a little over a week ago now,” Old Master Chen says, his voice thick with misery. Die-er lets out a wailing noise as though remembering the freshness of her fellow concubine’s end. Ning Yingying and Luo Binghe exchange glances, clearly wishing to comfort the girl but unwilling to approach while she is so shamelessly sat on Old Master Chen’s lap. “It was about two days ago that Die-er discovered the—the corpse of Xiang-er…”

“Where did the miss find her?” Luo Binghe asks. Die-er wipes the fat teardrops from her eyes with a sniff.

“Just in the inner wall of the courtyard,” Die-er says, dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief that Old Master Chen gently presses into her palms.

“Which side?” Luo Binghe asks, tipping his head to one side.

“The South-Western side, just past the communal housing,” Die-er sniffs. “Die-er can show the young master where this was if he would like?”

“We would like to see where she was found, thank you,” Ming Fan interjects, “And if Old Master Chen could direct these disciples to where Rong-er and Xiang-er have been laid to rest…”

“Ah—yes of course. The servants can arrange that, though Xiang-er remains with the coroner for now. You’d best approach Ling-er for such things, as the youngest concubine and closest to her in the household, she is in charge of her funeral rites.”

“The missive said there were nine total victims,” Gong Yang says lowly, “Why did the Old Master wait until now to reach out for aid?”

There is a dangerous quiet to Gong Yang’s voice, that anger from the street before not quite veiled behind his tone. Shen Yuan turns toward his friend and gently touches his shoulder. He gives Gong Yang the smallest shake of his head, and Gong Yang frowns but doesn’t push further. He doesn’t back down either though, staring up at Old Master Chen with teenaged defiance written all over his face.

“This Old Master hardly sees how that is important—if any of the young cultivators wish to verify such information they will have to ask after those victims from those close to them,” Old Master Chen says, waving the attitude of Gong Yang off like it is a bothersome fly. Shen Yuan catches Gong Yang by the elbow, and his friend shoots him a look that suggests he’d very much like for Shen Yuan to let him go so that he can hit that old man.

“This Yingying thought it would be your job to look after everyone in this city,” Ning Yingying says, making Old Master Chen’s lips turn down in a frown. Ning Yingying sends him a bright smile though, and Shen Yuan can’t be sure if she is actually oblivious or just playing at it. “Since he’s so influential to Shuang Hu City! Was he perhaps distracted lately?”

Yeah, probably with his concubines, Shen Yuan thinks, gently squeezing Gong Yang’s arm. He doesn’t let go of his friend until Gong Yang relaxes.

“It’s a very busy time of the year!” Old Master Chen blusters, his face patchy red with embarrassment.

“Of course,” He Mengyao gently cajoles, trying to talk down the man from a potential crash out before they can get anywhere proper. “Would the Old Master kindly let these disciples know where they might look for more information on the other victims?”

“A scroll has been written with the locations of the last found corpses and their names,” Old Master Chen says coolly, “You’ll find that in the hands of my wife’s serving lady. Now, it is this one’s intent to ensure that his Die-er remain safe. Which young cultivator wished to escort her to where poor Xiang-er was found?”

Ming Fan stepped forward, and after a moment’s hesitation He Mengyao joined him. The two of them stopped to speak with Shen Yuan before leaving entirely, Ming Fan speaking quietly to him; “Shen-shidi, we’ll look into the victims of the manor here and head to the coroner’s as well.”

“Good plan,” Shen Yuan hums, “Gong Yang, did you want to go to the Warm Red Pavillion to ask after the victims there?”

Gong Yang starts, as if he’s not been terribly obvious this whole time. He glances at Shen Yuan as though trying to read a deeper meaning in his words but eventually nods. Really, Shen Yuan isn’t suggesting anything untoward about his martial brother! It’s just obvious to him that this is important to Gong Yang, and he thinks it’d be better if someone who cared about the victims was sent. Ah—maybe Yingying should instead though… Hm. Maybe Binghe would be a better fit though. Yingying can say a little too much at times, and Shen Yuan isn’t sure that she’ll avoid whatever temper that Gong Yang is in today.

“Then Binghe can go with you, Gong-shixiong,” Shen Yuan says, and he thinks he catches a look of dismay from his friend. He almost laughs, poor White Lotus! It’s okay Binghe, the ladies won’t do anything to corrupt you at this stage in your life! “Ning-shijie and I can try the market.”

The group briefly goes over their options before truly splitting up—making sure that they know the names of who they are asking after, of the directions that they are going in, and a plan to meet up to later inform Shen Qingqiu of what information they find. Shen Yuan feels confident that they have divvied up their duties well enough, and that they will make real progress with the case this way. Even so, as the group starts to split off he feels a hand gently catch his sleeve.

“Will A-Yuan be okay without this Binghe?” Luo Binghe asks, his eyes looking particularly pathetic. Shen Yuan huffs and pats his friend’s hair.

“What do you mean, will I be okay?” Shen Yuan rolls his eyes, “Will Binghe be okay without this Yuan?”

“No,” Luo Binghe says in a watery voice. Shen Yuan bursts into laughter, but Luo Binghe doesn’t truly look less pathetic even after Shen Yuan laughs at what must be a silly joke. Shen Yuan pats his friend on the back.

“Please look after Gong-shixiong for me,” Shen Yuan says. He does need the White Lotus’s cooler head in this situation. “Something’s going on with him about all this.”

“Of course, A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, glancing over at Gong Yang who is talking quietly with Die-er. His expression seems to be getting colder and colder as he does, and Luo Binghe sighs. “I’d better go, I’m not sure what she’s saying to him but it isn’t helping.”

“See you,” Shen Yuan says, and Luo Binghe flashes him a smile before heading off with Gong Yang. By the time that Shen Yuan gets back to where Ning Yingying waits for him, He Mengyao and Ming Fan have gone off to their assigned duties. Ning Yingying flashes him a smile.

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Three of the nine victims were found in the marketplace at some point or another. Shen Yuan learns from the lady at a perfume store—one that makes him glad that the amulet suppresses a large portion of his powerful sense of smell as a demon—that each of the women are all young. Most under the age of twenty-two, if not largely in their teens. Typically of marriageable age, but every single one of them someone that they consider enough of a beauty as to remark upon it when discussing the murder.

“There does seem to be a consistent decrease in the amount of time in the cool-down period,” Shen Yuan sighs as he and Ning Yingying walk up the street. He has a bun that he picked up from a nearby street vendor and is nibbling on to avoid getting grumpy as the two of them work. Ning Yingying has tanghulu that she munches on cheerfully, despite the situation.

“Does A-Yuan think that maybe there’s a reason for that?” Ning Yingying asks. Shen Yuan hums thoughtfully.

“Even if it were a normal human killer, such a thing isn’t uncommon,” Shen Yuan says. He never liked the True Crime thing, but his Er-ge had been a man obsessed with that stuff. Shen Yuan had just found it depressing as fuck—would Airplane have known enough about serial killer psychology to think of things like cooldown periods? Or would the blanks of this world filled that in? He knows for a fact that there are things here that Airplane had to have no hand in after all. Maybe the world just naturally fills in in some ways, regardless of Airplane’s knowledge on the material.

He highly doubts this being a human though, certainly not a normal one. Not with the way the corpses were skinned.

“Gong-shixiong will be relieved that it truly has seemed to move to the manor now though,” Ning Yingying cheerily points out.

“It’s not the concubines or ladies in the manor at fault for the deaths of the women at the brothel though,” Shen Yuan says quietly. He furrows his brow, “I thought that Gong Yang was a young master, why is he so worked up about this stuff?”

It’s meant to be a rhetorical question, but really he ought to have known better than to voice it around Ning Yingying. He loves his friend, truly he does—she is not the kind of person to keep a secret or something to herself though. He realizes the instant that he says the words that he shouldn’t have, but it’s too late.

“Did A-Yuan not know? Gong-shixiong’s mother works at Warm Red Pavilion,” Ning Yingying points out mildly. Shen Yuan trips over his feet but she continues blithely, “His father claimed him into the Gong family a couple of years before he joined Cang Qiong Sect, but the older shixiongjie from the other peaks talk about it sometimes! They say it’s why he looks the way he does!”

Shen Yuan winces—Gong Yang is an undeniably pretty boy. The kind of boy that would end up in a boyband of some sort in Shen Yuan’s world. He doesn’t think that their older martial siblings mean that in a complimentary way in the slightest though. He remembers the way Gong Yang had eyed him when he asked him to go to the Warm Red Pavillion. Shen Yuan will have to ensure that his friend doesn’t think little of him.

“Ning-shijie,” Shen Yuan sighs, “You really shouldn’t just say secrets like that without asking Gong-shixiong first.”

“Hm? Why would it be a secret?” Ning Yingying asks—and Shen Yuan laughs despite himself, bopping her on the head lightly. She does seem genuinely confused, but Shen Yuan doesn’t think she’s being dumb. Just a little naive. He pats her on the head, “A-Yuan, stop laughing at Yingying!”

“Impossible, Ning-shijie will just have to put up with it,” Shen Yuan teases her. She pouts at him and he laughs again, avoiding her elbow before she can jab it into his ribs. He has to hop back again as she chases him, and he snickers, “Don’t get mad shijie!”

“Stop laughing!” Ning Yingying demands, but her voice is also bubbling with laughter. Shen Yuan takes another step back—and runs directly into someone just when Ning Yingying’s elbow drives into his stomach.

“Oof!” Shen Yuan gasps, bending over and ignoring Ning Yingying’s sputtering laugh. Slender hands curl over his shoulders as whoever he bumped into grips onto him tightly—almost painfully. He turns his head to look over his shoulder, bewildered at himself that he managed to run into someone. Even playing around, Shen Yuan is very aware of is surroundings thanks to the training that they’ve been doing. It’s a huge part of learning to be a cultivator—after all, spiritual blasts and swords don’t have eyes. It’s important to know what surrounds you all the time, regardless of if your focus is on an opponent or just a case.

“Oh! Die-er!” Ning Yingying says in recognition. Die-er’s face is next to Shen Yuan’s as she leans over him—she is only a bit taller than him, not that much older than Ning Yingying herself. Shen Yuan feels like the hair on the back of his neck is rising as she takes a deep breath near him. Ning Yingying’s friendly tone immediately drops as she says, “Let my shidi go.”

“I’m only playing,” Die-er says with a sharp smile, her eyes flicking to Shen Yuan’s face. A too wide grin stretches her cheeks, “I didn’t expect to find someone stumbling into my territory, and with so many cultivators around too. I almost didn’t smell you, with all the incense around us at the manor, little demon.”

Shen Yuan’s brain grinds to a halt, he reaches for the practice blade that he has at his side. He doesn’t have the chance to draw it, before Die-er blows a powder into his face. He hears a shout from Ning Yingying as he stumbles and his knees buckle beneath him. Then, he feels Ning Yingying crash on top of him , driving the wind from his body as they collapse to the market street. Someone lets out a startled scream nearby.

Shen Yuan’s vision tunnels before he can think too hard on that, and then he’s swallowed by darkness.

Chapter Text

Shen Qingqiu quietly reads through the paperwork that he has brought along regarding the night hunt as he settles into the quiet of his quarters. He can hear Xun Fu shuffling in his own room a few feet away—not due to poor insulation, it is hard to defeat the hearing of a cultivator without talismans to do so—but other than that and the distant bustle of Shuang Hu City, there is something approximating peace. It doesn’t sink into him, instead it coils about the shoulders like a serpent—a heavy, cold weight that has him longing to leave the room in a rush to head toward the Pavilion.

When Shen Qingqiu had first received the missive, he hadn’t even read it yet. It was placed in the pile for Ming Fan—as his first disciple—to do. He will never do that in regard to the city again, if he had known that the Warm Red Pavilion was at the center of these attacks he would have arranged this much sooner. Even now, the anxiety and dread he felt curls into righteous fury. How dare some filthy demon prey on his people? On the one place he feels safe?

When the disciples find it—and they inevitably will—Shen Qingqiu will ensure that it suffers for every woman it harmed. The missive did not deliver names, he will discover them himself later. When it has gone quiet and the disciples—and Xun Fu—have slipped into slumber, Shen Qingqiu will slip away and he will hold those that usually hold him.

He will ask them why they did not send for him directly, even though he knows the answer.

The brush in his grasp snaps in half, and ink spatters against the parchment of the form he was ostensibly filling out. Shen Qingqiu stares at the dark stain, taking the seething rage that wants to choke the life from him to push down. He can be angry later, for now he will be cold and calculated. At least the damn thing has moved on to the rich and stupid—though, he’d rather men like Lord Chen be the victims, than the young women that he collects like rings to adorn his fat fingers.

Shen Qingqiu’s lip curls in disgust but a polite knock on the door jars him from his thoughts. He uses a burst of spiritual qi to dry the mess of ink and parchment before folding it up into his qiankun pouch. As if nothing has happened at all, he glides to the door and opens it to find Xun Fu standing on the other side with his bright eyes looking quite subdued. Shen Qingqiu says nothing to him, merely turns away as Xun Fu enters the room with a polite bow.

“Master Shen will be pleased to know that the disciples seem to be making good time,” Xun Fu says. Though his voice is warm with affection related to the children, he does not fully bask in it—perhaps it is difficult to, with the number of dead that keep cropping up.

Shen Qingqiu does not find Xun Fu nearly so offensive as Yue Qingyuan when it comes to his… optimism. Even so, the man’s inability to place aside his affection for just about every person he meets makes Shen Qingqiu want to smack him upside the head. Xun Fu seems to like nearly everyone that he meets, Shen Qingqiu can think of nothing nearly so exhausting as being like that.

Even so, Xun Fu’s voice has a clear note of distaste as he adds, “This cultivator hasn’t seen the wife consort of Lord Chen, but his concubines are young. Performative.”

“So Xun Fu does have eyes,” Shen Qingqiu says in a quiet, wry tone.

“Will Master Shen allow this cultivator something?” Xun Fu asks after a brief pause of quiet. Shen Qingqiu waves a hand to suggest that the man pose his request. Xun Fu bows his head, “This Xun Fu would like to check the concubines—and if permitted—Lady Chen for a spiritual base. Should they provide a decent one, he may ask to see if some may like to join his discipleship on the mountain.”

Shen Qingqiu… did not expect that.

It immediately occurs to him that he perhaps should have. Xun Fu is soft-hearted, and in a manner that rarely seems fully practical. He takes on little beast children and raises the son of his shimei like he is his own boy. Xun Fu lifts his head slightly, eyes glimmering as he meets Shen Qingqiu’s. Shen Qingqiu snorts, and smacks the man upside the head—not at all gently—with his fan.

“They aren’t of ideal age to cultivate,” Shen Qingqiu says, and those words taste like ash in his mouth. He remembers hearing something similar when he was a boy, “But do whatever you like. If you wish to add to your disciples it is not something this Shen will stand in the way of.”

He does not mention that it will be hard to keep Lord Chen from throwing a fit, because it is not important. If Xun Fu wishes to give these young women a chance out—a better opportunity for their futures—then he may bring them to his Peak. After all, Yue Qingyuan will not say no when Shen Qingqiu pushes for their additions to the sect. Practically, Xun Fu is fortunate that the peak he remains on is Shen Qingqiu’s. The man seem, at least, to understand this. He bows to Shen Qingqiu again before pausing at the door, whatever the man dithers about to say though he must decide against. He leaves Shen Qingqiu to his thoughts a moment later, and Shen Qingqiu waits to hear his uneven steps retreat.

Then, he exhales in a long sigh and rubs the headache from his temples.

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Ming Fan’s fingers are cold, even as the talisman parchment pinched between them ignites in a sickly green flame. He can feel He Mengyao shifting from foot to foot behind him as he leans over the stiff corpse in the mortuary. It is covered with white linen but it was clearly applied recently after the corpse had been discovered. Blood has seeped through it in patches, brown and black in the darkness.

If Shizun were here, he’d tell them they needed to look at the corpse for themselves. Ming Fan really does not want to. The mere idea makes his skin crawl and his stomach churn uncomfortably. Even so, he needs to ensure that the common people did not miss something that would be obvious to the eyes of a cultivator. So he squares his shoulder with a deep breath and—

“Wait!” He Mengyao almost whines out the word, and Ming Fan shoots his friend a venomous glare. He Mengyao still brings out a nightpearl from his robes, holding it aloft and lighting the room around them with the pale, orange glow of his spiritual energy.

Oh. Fair.

With a nod, the two boys grab one corner of the linen each, and slowly they pull it back. It is not a pleasant experience—the metallic smell of blood is still heavy in the air but the unmistakable stink of a corpse left to sit is as well. It is thick, cloying, and Ming Fan imagines it as a film he can feel on his skin. It makes bile rise up in the back of his throat, even before the horrifying visage of the Skinner Demon’s last victim comes into view.

“Heavens above,” He can’t help but croak out.. 

The corpse is indeed skinless—but the exposed muscle has sat out long enough to look more brown than red. For some reason, Ming Fan expected bright colors. A kind of violent vibrancy in the face of death.What greets him, his mind immediately supplies, is meat left to sit out for too long. The muscles of the abdomen seem to bulge, and Ming Fan imagines it uncomfortably looks like it has recently gorged itself on a large meal. It is slimy, it has been leaking —not blood though. Something dark leaks from the corner of the corpse’s mouth, from the nostrils of her nose. It is black and the foulest thing that Ming Fan has smelled in his entire life. His stomach heaves, and for a second he thinks he will embarrass himself before he manages to wrestle his nausea under firm control.

 There is an innate wrongness to it though—a wrongness beyond the slow and natural decay of a body. The corpse looks to Ming Fan like something that should not sleep but does. Like something that will rise up and wrap skinless hands around the throat and choke and choke. 

He Mengyao leans in so close that his nose almost brushes the corpse’s, his eyes narrowed as he looks her over. He eyes the length of her jaw, around her eyes and mouth—he lifts her hand as if he does not care about the rot sinking into his skin. Ming Fan scolds him immediately, and his friend releases her hand. Ming Fan presses a kerchief in his hands, wiping them off hastily. He Mengyao’s expression is distant as he seems to be thinking, letting Ming Fan clean his large hands without complaint.

“The skinning wasn’t done with claw or tool—or not a physical one in any case,” He Mengyao shudders slightly at the thought. “This disciple can see the traces of demonic qi, but otherwise the skinning is too… perfect.”

“Then definitely just the demon itself, and not someone who has summoned one to sate bloodlust,” Ming Fan says with a sigh. Perhaps he should be relieved, demonic cultivators are extremely dangerous and unpredictable at the best of times. It is possible that a summoner did not involve himself in the carnage at all, he supposes, but that simply flies in the face of how such cultivators tend to work in cases like this. There have been a number of cases where a demonic cultivator gave into their bloodthirst and summoned spirits to aid them in doing so. Rarely did they ever keep their hands out of it. They wanted carnage, they wanted suffering and death. Such cases were typically far… messier.

For a skinned corpse, this one is surprisingly neat. Far neater than anything a human can do alone - though Ming Fan could have known that merely with the talisman he brought along.

“Shizun says that resentful energy in corpses like this can poison you, remember?” he scolds He Mengyao. “This first disciple doesn’t want to have to tell Shizun why your hand fell off just because you decided to touch it. Circulate your qi to make sure it’s purified.”

“Sorry shixiong,” He Mengyao says, but he’s clearly retreated into his head. He sighs and shakes it, “We should find Shen-shidi. He’ll know what kinds of demons would do things like this. It’s like the Skinner Demon was trying to… to keep the skin for itself. Like it wanted to use it for something, not just do it to make the victim suffer.”

Ming Fan feels a chill trace down his spine.

“Let’s use a purification talisman on the corpse,” Ming Fan says faintly. “Then we’ll track down Yuan-shidi and ask if he knows of any creatures that do things like this.”

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The incense is so thick from the Warm Red Pavilion that Luo Binghe thinks he may be able to taste it. The moment that he and Gong Yang step in he is aware of how young he himself is for this. He’s not really of an age to partake in these services, and though he doesn’t feel uncomfortable being here. The air is warm and filled with the gentle notes of a pipa—a young woman dances on the stage with precise steps that draw the eye. Gong Yang wrings his hand in frenetic nervousness that Luo Binghe recognizes from his own childhood.

It isn’t a look he’s used to seeing on Gong Yang, to be honest. His friend is hot-headed and confident. Borderline arrogant, honestly. He does not seem arrogant now, he keeps shooting looks over his shoulder at Luo Binghe. As though he wishes that Binghe would just leave him to do this portion of the case all on his own.

Of course Luo Binghe has heard the stories. As an outer disciple, he has more chores than his friends tend to and is the only one under Xun Fu’s tutorship besides. This means that when Binghe is around other disciples that aren’t his friends, he can sometimes tend to blend into the background. Especially on other peaks, it isn’t as though an outer disciple like Binghe has made a name for himself on Qing Jing Peak. So he’s heard the stories about Gong Yang’s background. About how his father plucked him out of the mud and set him on top of Qing Jing Peak—about how Gong Yang’s father had lost all his sons so that the weight of honor was suddenly on his shoulders instead.

Luo Binghe doesn’t know for sure how he feels about his father—but he knows that his friend is afraid of bringing Luo Binghe here. Binghe would be offended, but he knows what it’s like to worry about this. He thinks of taking his arrogant, hot-headed friend to meet his A-Niang and the humble home she shared with him and A-Yuan…

No… no he understands why Gong Yang worries. So he doesn’t take offense. He merely stands a little behind Gong Yang and tips his head to the side in a way that he knows makes him look cute and curious. Gong Yang seems to guess that it is a purposeful motion and his friend rolls his eyes at him. It seems to help bleed the tension from his shoulders at least. Binghe watches as Gong Yang steps into the Warm Red Pavilion like a boy coming home after a day of playing with his friends.

“Yang-er!” It is the young dancer—maybe the same age as Gong Yang himself—that spots him first. The result is the Madame lifting her head to narrow her eyes at the girl, but she barely notices as she leaps over some of the seating to throw her arms around him. He squeaks as he steps backward, and Luo Binghe files the noise away as ammunition against his friend later. “Look at you! You’ve grown so much, and you look so dignified! Madame! It’s Yang-er!”

“I can see him,” the Madame says, eyes tracing over the boys. “I didn’t realize it was Qing Jing Peak he had joined.”

Binghe didn’t expect that, he’ll admit. Though Cang Qiong Sect is recognizable by all in the area—and many even further—knowing each individual Peak is not always common knowledge. Gong Yang ducks his head a little bashfully, and he nods. Luo Binghe doesn’t think he’s ever seen Gong Yang looking bashful before.

“Wait! How is A-Jiu then!?” The young dancer clutches Gong Yang’s neck and spins him around. He has to steady them to keep them from falling.

“He—I can’t call him that,” Gong Yang says, flustered. “I don’t think he even recognizes me, before Master Gong picked this disciple up I was so little that—”

“And who is this pretty little boy? Your boyfriend?” Says the dancer, and Luo Binghe and Gong Yang make exaggerated retching noises at the same time. They both gasp in mock offense that are almost harmonized and burst into laughter. Gong Yang ruffles Luo Binghe’s hair. The dancer rolls her eyes at them, realizing this route of teasing is not going to work.

“I’m not a dog person,” Gong Yang says, rudely. Luo Binghe shoves him and Gong Yang shoves him back, grinning from ear to ear. He looks much more like himself now, and Luo Binghe is glad that he seems to have appropriately given Gong Yang the time to feel comfortable where they are.

“Don’t swear in my Pavilion,” the Madame scolds. “This Madame assumes you are here for something more than just a visit?”

“Yes,” Luo Binghe says politely, straightening and bowing very politely. The Madame’s eyes twinkle with open amusement when Luo Binghe straightens his posture once more. “You know Gong-shixiong, this disciple is Luo Binghe. These disciples seek to stop the demon that has been preying on the young women of Shuang Hu City.”

Binghe is aware that it is very quiet. Even though he is speaking conversationally he knows that every patron and worker hears his words. Even the pipa has fallen quiet, leaving the words to very clearly ring out. A darker atmosphere seems to descend on them. The Madame eyes the two boys, sizing them up.

“Lan-er, go ensure Jinjing-er can take guests,” the Madame says. “In the meantime, the two of you come with me.”

The dancer hurries off, her steps light and bounding like a deer’s. Luo Binghe watches her go with faint amusement. The Madame sweeps past them with a grace and pride that Luo Binghe finds admirable. She puts him in mind of a dragon curling her scaled body around what she has sworn to protect—noble, and utterly devoted to her calling.

“Madame,” Gong Yang says as the two boys fall in step behind her, “Who…”

“Your mother can tell you,” the Madame says. “It comes better from her than from people like this Madame. Do you know if your Shizun intends to stop by?”

That surprises Luo Binghe. He glances at Gong Yang, who doesn’t seem surprised by the insinuation. Luo Binghe has heard rumor, of course, that Shen Qingqiu is a lecherer, but to be on a first name basis at a brothel is not something he’s expected. He doesn’t draw attention to that though, or to his curiosity. He tries to carefully tuck it away as he listens to the conversation.

“This disciple isn’t sure—but he thinks that he would,” Gong Yang says softly. “His nephew is here as well, perhaps the Madame can meet him and this Gong’s other friends after we have solved the case?”

There is a faint edge of hope in his voice, and shyness.

“Ah—Yuan-er?” the Madame says, lips curling in a smile. “This Madame believes that everyone would enjoy that. Your Shizun speaks highly of him.”

Luo Binghe is trying to decide whether he finds the idea of Shen Yuan being surrounded by the ladies and workers of the Pavilion funny or if he is so jealous at the idea of it that he’ll die. On the one hand, Shen Yuan would absolutely be flustered and his face would be so red it’d be adorable—on the other, that is an awful lot of people that Shen Yuan would be getting attention from…

“Here,” the Madame says, gesturing to a door that the dancer is just stepping out of. She turns to them and her eyes lock on Binghe, then Gong Yang, “If you find this thing and have to kill it, make it hurt.”

“Yes Madame,” Gong Yang says, the picture of obedience. Binghe nods at her as well, and then Gong Yang glances at Luo Binghe. The Madame walks away, and Gong Yang says softly, “If you’re rude to my mother, I’ll kick your ass Luo Binghe.”

“I won’t be rude, but you probably couldn’t kick my ass,” Luo Binghe says back.

Gong Yang seems torn between the idea of making good on his threat right here in the hallway or opening the door. He slides the door open though, and Luo Binghe doesn’t say anything about the way that his hands shake. He also doesn’t say anything about the way that Gong Yang’s eyes tear up.

“A-Niang,” Gong Yang’s voice cracks, and a woman who is still beautiful stands from where she is seated to wrap him in her arms. Gong Yang hugs onto her tightly, and he chokes out, “I—when I saw the mission I was so afraid…”

“I’m okay, Yang-er. Look how much taller you’ve gotten,” she soothes. Luo Binghe’s heart aches like someone has reached into his chest and squeezed it between claws. Jealousy sours in Luo Binghe’s chest, and he suddenly longs painfully to be in the arms of a woman who will never see him grow up. He swallows, looking away.

Sometimes, the pain of losing his mother is a thing that flares up in reminder that something precious is missing from his life. Right now, it feels particularly sharp and leaves his chest feeling hollow and bitter. He stares at his feet as Gong Yang and his mother reunite, trying hard not to think about how he’ll never have the same thing with his own mother ever again.

The two of them are ushered to sit as Gong Yang’s mother pours them tea, she smiles up at Luo Binghe. Her eyes are a little red around the corners, and though she is a little older she is still a beautiful person. The tilt of her mouth and her eyes are like Gong Yang’s, but softer. She hold her head in a proud way—the tilt to her jaw is so familiar that Luo Binghe almost laughs despite the vinegar he’s been drinking. 

“It is a pleasure to meet the young master accompanying my Yang-er,” Gong Yang’s mother says with a grin that verges on a smirk, and Gong Yang snorts. She smacks him on top of the head but there is positively no bite to it. “This one is Yu Jinjing.”

She does not offer for Binghe to call her Jinjing-er—perhaps she feels it would be strange to do so, with her son sitting right there and older than him. Luo Binghe is absolutely okay with this, and bows politely to her, “This one is Luo Binghe, Gong Yang’s shidi.”

“It is a pleasure to meet Luo-gongzi,” Yu Jinjing says, lifting her chin. What she says next sobers any friendliness that has permeated the room. “Four of our women were taken by the Skinner Demon. Su Suchen, Lian Hua, Han Jie and Lu Rong.”

“Su-jie and Rong-jie?” Gong Yang says softly, the pain in his tone so frankly obvious that Luo Binghe nudges him with a shoulder. Gong Yang looks over at him but does not move when Luo Binghe leans against him like a dog trying to provide comfort. “What happened?”

“Su Suchen was the first to disappear,” Yu Jinjing murmurs, her fingertips gently tracing patterns hidden on the tea table. Luo Binghe gets the feeling that usually she is a player of music—the pipa or the guqin. Her fingers have callouses, and she moves them precisely, as though pantomiming a song. Luo Binghe can just about hear the notes of it as she sighs, “She had been meeting up with the young merchant man who had wanted to buy up her debts—just outside of the city itself. She found a terrible pile of skinned corpses in the deep grasses, and came running back to the city after that. That was the start of everything.”

“There were previous victims?” Gong Yang says under his breath, glancing at Luo Binghe.

“That must be when it got into the city,” Luo Binghe sighs as he thinks. Clearly, something attached to Su Suchen when she had stumbled upon that gory scene. He imagines that the poor woman had probably been terrified. “It’s killed before then.”

“A-Niang, how many corpses did she discover? Do they know who the victims were?” Gong Yang asks, leaning forward.

“Three total,” Yu Jinjing says, glancing up at the two of them. Her fingers still gently move, her brows furrowing, “The man who runs the mortuary says two were elderly—but the other was a young woman. They thought that perhaps it was an older couple moving to the city. But Su Suchen refused to speak of it after—she just wanted to move on, it seemed.”

At this, her brow furrows. Gong Yang’s does too, and he turns to Luo Binghe. “Su-jie grew up near the borderlands, anything related with demons scared her stiff. When I was little, she heard a bad ghost story and wouldn’t talk or calm down until Shizun came down from the mountain to visit. He checked the whole place, and only then would she talk again. It’s like when she was scared she became certain that something would steal her voice… to… to be like that is…”

“It was strange, but perhaps she felt she saw the worst that she could ever see,” Yu Jinjing says grimly. “That is what we all thought, but every girl acted strangely. Not so strange as Yu Jinjing, but enough to frighten us out of our wits. We weren’t even terribly surprised when Rong-er disappeared. She hadn’t been that odd for herself, but something was different and we were all so afraid… That was when it seemed to leave the Pavilion.”

They exchange a few more questions back and forth—asking about the changes in behavior. Nothing stands out the way Su Suchen’s did, most of it seems to boil down to the unsettling feeling that something felt off. Like taking a step up the stairs and missing the top one. Like something is wrong but nothing looks wrong at a glance.

But there is something more alarming than that.

As Luo Binghe and Gong Yang leave the Warm Red Pavilion—after a teary goodbye and watching Gong Yang get swarmed by several people cooing proudly over him—they both are silent in thought. Luo Binghe breaks the quiet with a concerned, “The ones who discovered the corpses—many of them ended up being the next victim.”

“Mn,” Gong Yang says, crossing his arms over his chest and tilting his head. “And there’s something strange about the elderly merchants coming into town—this one wishes we had known, so we could ask An Ding to look into where they came from…”

“Heyyy!” A shout breaks into their words, and they look up to see Ming Fan and He Mengyao heading their way. He Mengyao stops to rest his hands on his knees as he breathes a little heavily after running over. “Have you two seen Ning-shimei and Shen-shidi? They were going to the market right?”

Luo Binghe glances over at the bustling market street, trying to pick out his two friends but unable to see either of them. He feels a small spike of nervous worry, but Gong Yang doesn’t seem to be of the same mind when it comes to this.

“Maybe Shen-shidi found a book store and got distracted,” Gong Yang chuckles softly, and He Mengyao frowns. Binghe does too, not sure how he might be able to press further. He suddenly feels unbalanced without Shen Yuan here, and the lack of Ning Yingying makes it all the more strange.

They quickly share their information between one another, and Luo Binghe’s nervousness starts to rise. Some pieces are starting to fall together, and he isn’t liking the picture that they are beginning to form. It isn’t him who speaks up though, it’s Ming Fan who gravely says.

“There’s something wrong about this,” Ming Fan says quietly. “A demon that skins its victims. Victims who, several times, are the ones who discovered the previous victim…”

“Skins its victims precisely,” He Mengyao adds. “With intent. Not to cause pain and torture.”

“As if it plans to use the skin,” Luo Binghe says, and chills race down his spine. He sees the faces of his friends grow pale. “The victims—some of them seemed off and wrong. Especially Su Suchen, who the demon had only just encountered. As if it didn’t know how to act like her.”

“The elderly couple is the only outlier, two corpses at once—all the other victims were young, beautiful women,” Ming Fan says quickly. “It’s—it takes the skin of its victims. It’s becoming them. The elderly couple’s skin didn’t work for it.”

“The manor!” He Mengyao grits out, “We have to go to the manor now.”

“What about Xiao-shimei and Shen-shidi!?” Ming Fan protests before Luo Binghe can.

“If I were a demon that stole skin to become someone else,” Gong Yang says softly, “I’d take the skin of someone powerful and stronger than my other victims. The skin hasn’t been lasting long enough for it. It needs someone who is young and has spiritual energy.”

Horror ripples through the group of them, Luo Binghe wants to scream. Before they can burst into panic entirely, the final nail in the coffin approaches as an old merchant man who grumpily taps He Mengyao—being the tallest and broadest of the group—on the shoulder. He Mengyao turns, brows furrowing as he says, “You! Young cultivators, this humble one understands you think yourself very awe-inspiring when you do your little tricks, but the stunt you pulled with that strange woman outside of my shop drove away business! Now everyone’s too afraid to go near my shop, saying that demon will kidnap them all because of your weird spiritual hullabaloo!”

“What happened sir?” He Mengyao manages to work in. The old man sneers.

“Sir! Sir he says! PAH! I know how people like you feel ‘bout us commonfolk! Doing your strange tricks, you think you can get attention! Your two little friends were talking with that woman from Chen Manor earlier and pulled this horrifying disappearing act is what happened! They scared off the rest of my customers, nobody wants to—hey!”

Luo Binghe runs—not to the market, but the manor. He has a horrible feeling, and the others are hot on his heels.

“It’s Die-er!” He yells over his shoulder, “The concubine! She’s the demon in disguise, and if she attacked Shen-shidi and Ning-shijie—”

“Then they’ll be there,” Ming Fan swears, pulling his sword out. Luo Binghe is jealously aware that he has not learned how to fly on his own yet, but He Mengyao picks him up under one arm before stepping onto his own. Then, the three of them are zipping like arrows through the dark. Toward where Chen Manor lies.

A-Yuan, Luo Binghe thinks desperately. Please be safe!

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

The air smells of rot. That’s the first thing that Shen Yuan thinks, as he finds his brain hauling itself to consciousness. There is a wild stink that lies underneath it—no, weaves within it. As if the rot-smell is part of what makes it as a whole. Shen Yuan groans and can hear a sound like nails scraping against chalkboard. It sets his teeth on edge, and he flattens his ears against his skull in protest.

Flattens his ears against his skull.

Shen Yuan snaps fully awake, head jolting up so quickly that it thunks into the pillar that he’s been tied to. His breath freezes in his lungs as he realizes with a jolt that he can see far too clearly in the room, that even with his spiritual powers suppressed by the ropes around him he can taste the demonic qi in the air like it is smoke. His own demonic qi spikes and writhes in him to meet it, eager and posturing. It takes a moment for him to tamp the feeling down fiercely, to bury it under the panic.

He hears sobbing nearby.

Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, Shen Yuan thinks. He turns his head, and can see Ning Yingying to his right. She’s tied to the same pillar as him, her head bowed and she is trembling and whimpering with fear. Shen Yuan doesn’t know what to say—he has a thousand questions. Has she seen? If she’s seen, does—what is she going to—well. Look, okay. As far as people discovering him goes, maybe that’s not the worst. She does marry Binghe later—he ignores the strange pang in his chest at that thought—and it isn’t as though she hates demons so venomously. She’s even closer to Binghe in this universe than she was before, he’d argue! They know each other as people much better! So, really, Shen Yuan is like the training wheels half-demon for her to get used to! He can be a training wheel demon! That’s… that’s fine!

Except that in the book, Ning Yingying doesn’t find out that Luo Binghe is half-demon until he miraculously returns from the dead. And she understandably is happy to see him (no, he will not think of what she does when she is happy to see him, that is gross) and willing to overlook little things like being a demon. And also she isn’t in love with Shen Yuan.

Also she’s awful. Just awful at keeping secrets.

But she’s also afraid right now, and fuck is she going to hate Shen Yuan? Be afraid of him? He clears his throat and her head snaps up. Her wide, tearful eyes meet his and she lets out another sob, “A-Yuan!”

The relief in her voice helps to quiet his anxiety, if not fully soothe it.

“Is—uh, is Ning-shijie okay?” Shen Yuan asks, trying not to squirm too much as he tests the bonds that they’re in. They’ve been tied together, which means that even if Shen Yuan might be strong enough to break the Immortal Binding Cables himself—being part demon—he might hurt her by crushing her in the process. Damn.

“No,” Ning Yingying whimpers with a sob. She clarifies, “Yingying isn’t hurt, but scared. Is A-Yuan alright?”

“Physically, yes,” Shen Yuan says. His hands are bound much tighter than hers. The Skinner Demon seems to have decided to be wary of his claws. Still, he tentatively reaches out to curl his tail around her wrist. She jumps a little, but sniffles again and doesn’t pull away. “It’s… um. It’s alright, Ning-shijie.”

“How long has A-Yuan…” Ning Yingying trails off, looking over her shoulder. Shen Yuan’s right ear twitches and he sighs as he looks up at the ceiling while thinking.

【 +5 C-Points! 】

“Since birth,” Shen Yuan says.

“Is Shizun also…?” Ning Yingying asks leadingly. For a moment, Shen Yuan doesn’t understand what she is insinuating. When it clicks he can’t help but laugh despite himself, almost doubling over.

“PFFF, no! Hahaha! He is like a cat though, isn’t he?” Shen Yuan grins, “And a little like a demon too—no, my dad was a demon. I’m only half-demon, my mother fell in love with him when she met him at a village that had hired her to kill a beast. The beast was my father, it turned out. He was trying to draw out a different beast in hibernation…”

Shen Yuan trails off.

Where… had he heard that?

The story is one that has the ring of something Xun Fu might have told him, if Shen Yuan ever bothered to ask. He had been told about her meeting him on a nighthunt, but nothing in detail. His head suddenly feels like it hurts, like there’s something that was plucked out from it and a hole was left behind.

System, does this body have memories left from before I transmigrated? Shen Yuan asks it. There is a pause, as if the System is loading its answer or processing the question longer than usual.

【 Answering User! There are no memories from before the User transmigrated! Other experiences with memory may be the result of anomaly, prize, shop payment or punishment. Would user like to access S̵̛̼͖̣͌̀͊͝R̸̢̙͚͙͓͌̎̃͜X̶̖̰̐̈̑0̶̢̳̉̂̔͋0̸͖̼̺̤̦̿͗́͐1̷̡̤͍̝͎̳̈́̀͛Q̸̻̟̮̫̍̂J̶̧̦̓ͅ.̸̧͚̹̏̇̑̋̕͠B̴̧̮͖̜͒̓͑I̸̗̯̚Ņ̷̨̪̝͛̈́̌̈͝? 】

Shen Yuan narrows his eyes, about to press the System further for what that means when the scraping sound falls silent. He stays very still suddenly, eyes snapping up as the form of Die-er approaches in the darkness. She seems to have foregone the idea of hiding her identity after the stunt in the marketplace. Or maybe she just realizes that Shen Yuan is able to smell her now. She holds one hand lazily aloft, the nails long and sharpened with demonic qi that makes them seem to shiver. In the other hand she twirls something around her finger, and tosses it up in the air to catch it. Shen Yuan growls low in his throat, his amulet.

“I forget how noseblind humans are, and then you come along,” Die-er says, openly amused. “This amulet works a treat, I wouldn’t have guessed you for a demon at all if it weren’t for your scent boy. But humans can’t smell, so I suppose that whoever made this for you wasn’t concerned about that sort of thing.”

“So you sniffed me out,” Shen Yuan says, tail curling a little firmer around Ning Yingying’s wrist. She glances at him and he shoots a look at her out of the corner of his eye, and he wills with all her heart that she understands his very slight nod in Die-er’s direction. “What, you’re going to steal it?”

“Is it stealing if the one who used to own it is dead?” Die-er asks, and Shen Yuan rolls his eyes. Yes it’s still stealing! Why do you think they call it grave robbing!? Still, he says nothing, simply watches as she turns away and holds the amulet up. “It is a thing of beauty though. Who would have thought that a cultivator would come up with something like this—and clearly it works. Look at you, living right under the noses of the powerful Cang Qiong Mountain Sect!”

“Give that back!” Ning Yingying demands, making Die-er’s head swivel in her direction. Good. She narrows her eyes at the girl, and Shen Yuan focuses on carefully cycling his demonic qi. It isn’t sluggish, but it feels strange when the regular cultivation has been stoppered up.

“He won’t be needing it, silly girl!” Die-er snarls, “Soon it will be put to much better use! What is this halfblood doing, playing at being a righteous cultivator with demonic qi in his body!? Pretending to be a good cultivator!? No, this one will put this amulet to better use. First, I kill and skin you, then I kill the boy—I’d steal his body. He is a pretty little thing, and I’d love to have a man’s body again… but they’ll notice a young male’s corpse out of nowhere. So you get the honors, girl. ”

…Excuse me, Skinner Demon!? Just tell your whole plan to the girl!? Shen Yuan can’t believe the IQ of this demon! Shen Yuan’s temples are throbbing, but he focuses on the fact that his qi is roiling in him now. He glances toward Die-er, but she’s still focused on Ning Yingying.

“That’s horrible!” Ning Yingying gasps, “You’ll infiltrate the sect!”

“Exactly! Just as your little friend has done. None will know what I am, and a young cultivator’s skin should last a lot longer. Until I can safely go on a hunt where ‘you’ will disappear and I will take the next one’s place,” Die-er laughs darkly. Ning Yingying brings her arms up to cross over her chest with her brows furrowed.

“But we’re both pretty popular, our friends are going to notice if I’m acting strangely,” Ning Yingying says with a furrowed brow. Shen Yuan, in the meanwhile, slips through the ropes in his smaller cat form. It is them falling lax that let Ning Yingying cross her arms. To Shen Yuan’s dubious astonishment, the Skinner Demon doesn’t seem to have even noticed.

Shen Yuan wonders where Yingying and his practice sword is. He pads around in a quiet circle, letting his paws grow in size by a massive amount as he changes into his larger form. The darkness seems to quiet the very steps of his paws. He melts into them like they are liquid, turning his glowing green eyes on Die-er and Ning Yingying who are still in conversation. He tunes back into it to find that… Ning Yingyingg is giving the Skinner Demon advice on how to better act like her?

“Mm, no this Yingying would be much more devastated about A-Yuan dying. It’d be like losing my little brother, you’d have to cry a whole lot more than just three weeks,” Ning Yingying is saying. “Maybe even for a whole year. Crying every day, otherwise everyone’s going to realize you aren’t this emotional disciple.”

“This is exhausting, surely you don’t like the demon that much,” Die-er snaps.

“Oh no! You’ll understand when you get back to Qing Jing, everyone loves A-Yuan. The whole mountain will be crying!” Ning Yingying says, holding her hands up in a placating gesture. She waves them and then gestures for Die-er to lean closer to her and whispers, “Even Shizun!”

“That man doesn’t—wait,” Die-er’s voice drops several degrees. Shen Yuan bunches his legs under him, wiggling his haunches slightly as he shifts his weight from paw to paw. “How are you—?”

Ning Yingying punches her in the jaw, spiritual energy coalescing around her fist as she throws off the last of the Immortal Binding Cables. Die-er’s head snaps back and her balance reels. She snarls, claws slashing up toward Ning Yingying’s face, but that is about the time that Shen Yuan barrels into her from behind.

It must be said, that the weight of a massive predator springing at you and hitting you in the small of your back is painful to feel crash into you. It should also probably be said that, being a demon, Shen Yuan is far stronger than your average big cat. He feels bones snap under his paws, to say nothing of the way that Die-er’s used skin shreds under his massive claws. 

Die-er shrieks, twisting to fight him. Shen Yuan pins her to the floor though as Ning Yingying rushes over to gather her sword in one hand as Shen Yuan bites the Skinner Demon’s shoulder.

He feels like he has bitten into rancid steak. It is the foulest tasting thing that Shen Yuan has ever had in his mouth ever. He spits it out immediately, bouncing away and shaking his head to swipe his tongue around his mouth. A low, disgusted yowl bubbles out of his chest and Ning Yingying laughs.

Tastes like shit! He wants to yell, but he’s in his animal form and hasn’t figured talking out just yet for it. He lets out a loud, territorial yowl, tail thumping on the ground and then him and Yingying are jumping toward the demon again.

Shen Yuan doesn’t go for bites anymore. Instead, he darts in to lash out with claws while Ning Yingying distracts with her blade. When the Skinner Demon turns on him, Ning Yingying punishes it for the lack of attention on her. It is not a fast fight—or it doesn’t feel fast. But, eventually, the Skinner Demon begins to flag. Her claws are slick with blood from where she has managed to get small cuts on either Shen Yuan or Ning Yingying, but they haven’t been seriously hurt yet.

But Shen Yuan can tell that their prey is weakening. The black ichor on her claws makes their trembling obvious. She’s breathing heavily as she darts back and forth between them. They dance around the room, using the pillars as cover and jumping around them. Shen Yuan and Ning Yingying fight side-by-side, and part of Shen Yuan thrills at this.

Maybe in this version, Ning Yingying won’t be relegated to damsel after all! If she learns how to be as crafty as this! It’s a lot cooler if she can fight her own way out of these situations, if she can’t avoid them wholesale! Shen Yuan and Ning Yingying share a glance, and then, Shen Yuan leaps up. Ignoring the foul taste, he locks his jaws around the Skinner Demon’s neck. Before she can plunge her vicious claws into his side, Ning Yingying drives the blade of her sword in a graceful arc. Shen Yuan lets the Skinner Demon go, the blade does not even brush his whiskers but he feels the breeze of it ruffle them as the Skinner Demon’s head is almost elegantly removed from her shoulders.

【 Side-characterization improvement! +50 B-Points for badass Ning Yingying! 】

It flies in a less than elegant way though, and thumps to the ground. Ning Yingying flicks out a talisman, plastering it to the Skinner Demon’s chest. In a burst of orange flame the room lights up. Shen Yuan immediately shifts to his humanoid form, leaping to stand on his feet with a shout of triumph.

“We did it!” Ning Yingying shouts with glee, and Shen Yuan—despite being several inches shorter—picks her up and spins her around. He slips in the blood on the floor, and they both fall with a loud crash that drives Ning Yingying’s elbow into his gut. Shen Yuan bursts into laughter though.

“You did it! Meimei, you looked so cool!” Shen Yuan can’t help but crow, and Ning Yingying blinks at him in confusion but is still laughing and smiling.

“Meimei? I’m older than you silly!” Ning Yingying says. Shen Yuan feels a drop in his chest at that, like he’s tripped suddenly. He brushes it aside with a nervous laugh, but sits up. Ning Yingying laughs, not pressing the issue as she ruffles Shen Yuan’s ears. “These are so cute, A-Yuan!”

“Pff! They’re not cute! Did you see me? I’m a deadly predator,” Shen Yuan says, and Ning Yingying raises her brows and scratches him behind the ear. Shen Yuan tries—he really does try okay!?—not to enjoy it. However, he finds his eyes half-closing, and a purr rumbles out of his chest despite himself.

【 +10 C-Points! 】

Shut up System, it’s not that cute!

“Does Shizun know?” Ning Yingying asks suddenly. Shen Yuan’s purr dies, and he leans back. He shakes his head, looking away. “You should tell him A-Yuan! He likes cats, I bet—”

“I can’t. You can’t—Ning-shijie, you mustn’t tell him,” Shen Yuan says. “It could get me killed. He will kill me.”

“He—he wouldn’t kill you A-Yuan,” Ning Yingying says, sounding surprised. “Don’t you know that by now?”

“I need to find the amulet,” Shen Yuan says, standing up. “I think we’re in the manor, and I don’t want people stumbling into me looking like this.”

Ning Yingying doesn’t say anything else about things after that. She does help him look for the amulet though, and Shen Yuan does feel a little bad about killing the bubbly, excited atmosphere between the two of them. But he knows he isn’t wrong. He knows exactly how Shen Qingqiu would feel about a demon being revealed as living on his Peak.

And the fates are not written to let him survive the results.

Chapter Text

When Luo Binghe throws the door to the spare chambers in Chen Manor, he isn’t sure what it is he is expecting to see. His heart feels like it’s in his throat though, every muscle coiled with the need to spring into action—so when the door opens and both Ning Yingying and Shen Yuan are merely standing together over what appears to be a dead body, he isn’t sure where to put all the extra energy. It is swept into the relief that he feels as both of his friends turn to look at him with twin expressions of surprise. Luo Binghe surges forward, throwing his arms around Shen Yuan’s waist and he knows a second later that he put too much energy behind it when he feels them tip. They both crash to the ground and Ning Yingying bursts into giggling laughter.

“Oof! Binghe!” Shen Yuan squawks out in protest, squinting up at his friend—Luo Binghe’s panic doesn’t quite settle as he looks him over. He’s covered in small scratches and places where it seems that he has been pricked or cut by something terribly sharp. 

“You’re both okay!” He Mengyao says, and Luo Binghe nods enthusiastically at the words. His friends all spill into the room after Luo Binghe. They take time to look Ning Yingying over and Luo Binghe slowly feels his panic beginning to dissipate as Shen Yuan pushes to get him off. 

Reluctantly he does so, but the second that Shen Yuan and he are both onto their feet he squishes himself to his best friend’s side. Shen Yuan sighs in a manner that may be meant to come off as put upon, but just sounds fond. He ruffles Luo Binghe’s curls.

“Of course we’re okay,” Ning Yingying says, as if it’s obvious that there was never any danger they’d be in in the first place. She does sound mildly annoyed, and she points with  the tip of her sword toward the corpse that Luo Binghe had noticed before. He lifts his chin enough to rest it on top of Shen Yuan’s shoulder and look.

“Corpse” is a generous word for what remains of Die-er. Though he can tell it is her, as he had guessed at the market before, it looks more like what just remains is mostly the skin is what remains. The body itself on the inside seems to have deteriorated rapidly after the demon’s death—though he can’t say that the skin hasn’t deteriorated either. There are talismans pressed against it though, those that purify.

“We were just looking around for remaining bits of demonic qi that may have escaped,” Shen Yuan says, shifting his weight with a huff. “Binghe, you’re so sticky I can’t move if you’re pressed up against me like this!”

“Yes, let him go Luo-shidi,” Ming Fan says, affecting something stern in his tone. Luo Binghe glares over at him and clings a little tighter to Shen Yuan instead of letting him go. Shen Yuan laughs nervously.

“I really am okay Binghe! Ning Yingying is too,” Shen Yuan says, and Luo Binghe meets Shen Yuan’s eyes. Shen Yuan starts with surprise and reaches up to Luo Binghe’s face to wipe at the tears that Luo Binghe can feel rapidly spilling over. “H-hey, you don’t have to cry! It’s okay, it’s okay!”

“It did take you though, didn’t it?” Gong Yang says, he lifts up some rolled up Immortal Binding rope giving the two of them a grave look. “How did you get out of these?”

“A-Yuan is smaller than the demon expected,” Ning Yingying says cheerfully. Shen Yuan’s face goes a little red and he opens his mouth to protest but she continues, “He managed to wriggle out while I distracted the Skinner Demon while talking to her. After that, we both fought and subdued her.”

“Ning Yingying managed to slay her,” Shen Yuan corrects.

“We worked together,” Ning Yingying firmly states. “If you all want to help us check just to make sure nothing slipped away we can report it to Shizun and let him know the job is done!”

“It would have been good to tell Old Master Chen about Die-er before we slayed it,” He Mengyao sighs forlornly. “She moved your hands though if she attacked you.”

“This shixiong is sorry to his shimei and shidi,” Ming Fan says with a swallow. “While you handily defeated the creature it should never have been left to the two of you own your own.”

“Why are you apologizing?” Shen Yuan huffs, “I’m the one who had everyone split up so that we could get clues. If anything I should apologize to Ning-shijie for the trouble that she ended up in. What’s done is done though, c’mon Binghe. Help me look for anything the Skinner demon left over okay?”

Shen Yuan’s voice becomes gentle and encouraging at the end of his words. Luo Binghe nods after a moment, letting Shen Yuan wipe away more of his tears. He really isn’t sure what he would have done if something terrible had happened to Shen Yuan. The idea makes his stomach twist with anxiety and fear. He can’t bear the idea of being apart from his friend now.

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Shen Qingqiu doesn’t quite expect the crisp knock on his door—after having spoke to Xun Fu, his next expectation is that Shen Yuan will reporting to him. When he opens the door it is not his nephew—or indeed any of the disciples—that greets him. It is instead one of the staff, a young woman who stands with her eyes askance and bowing when the door opens, “The young masters and lady of your sect have completed their mission and wished to summon you, Master Shen.”

His eyes narrow at that—perhaps some teachers would merely be impressed at the speed that his disciples have completed the mission. Shen Qingqiu is not quite sure if he isn’t entirely impressed, but he isn’t pleased that they haven’t spoken with him before facing the demon. When he steps into the hallway and finds Xun Fu standing nearby he meets the man’s eyes and knows that he feels similarly.

Shen Qingqiu says nothing to him as he walks past, but Xun Fu merely falls into step slightly behind and to his right. The two of them head into the main hall that way to find Old Master Chen red-faced and talking with Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan, for his part, looks irritated and has what appears to be minor wounds from the fight that he was recently in. Ning Yingying does as well. The others look entirely unharmed.

“But you couldn’t even save her?” Old Master Chen is saying, hands wringing and eyes wide with a mixture of anger and possible sorrow. “Why did Die-er have to die as well!?”

“As this disciple has been saying,” Shen Yuan says, with the tone of someone who has repeated something several times over. “Die-er had sadly passed more than a week ago at this point. Old Master Chen is understandably upset, but no person has come to harm since this Cang Qiong Sect has been under your roof.”

“You!” Old Master Chen says, spotting Shen Qingqiu with Xun Fu a moment later. He rushes over to the two of them, his hands wringing over themselves. Shen Qingqiu lifts his hand to better hide the instinctual sneer that curls over his lip, “They let Die-er be killed!”

Shen Qingqiu cuts his gaze over to his nephew, who looks more than a little irritated. He meets Shen Qingqiu’s eyes for a moment, “Allow this master the chance to speak with his Peak’s disciples.”

With that, he abandons Xun Fu to cajole and try to get the old man to calm down. He steps over to his disciples and stares down at them with pointed coldness. The beast—Xun Fu’s disciple—is holding onto Shen Yuan’s sleeve the way a child might cling to their mother. Shen Qingqiu narrows his eyes at the boy for his clinging behavior, but Shen Yuan does not shake him off.

“Explain,” Shen Qingqiu says coldly.

“These disciples successfully deciphered that the Skinner Demon was a creature that not only skinned its victims unnaturally but also wore that skin to pose as them,” He Mengyao says after Shen Yuan nods at him. “Including Die-er, there were three additional victims not mentioned in the account of the creature to our sect, Shizun.”

“An elderly couple is the other,” Gong Yang says softly, his head bowed. “They had been buried before the others and were involved in the first infiltration of the Warm Red Pavilion. The ladies there had mentioned concerns related to some of the behavior of the victims, especially the first victim.”

“This disciple and A-Yuan had been attacked while gathering our information at the market,” Ning Yingying chimes in. Though Shen Yuan winces at the words, she seems almost excited by them. Her eyes are bright and proud when she looks up at Shen Qingqiu, and Shen Qingqiu finds himself having to fight the urge to smile at the girl. “But A-Yuan and I outsmarted the demon. Apologies to Shizun for not reporting to him first, but in order to escape harm the demon forced our hand.”

“I see,” Shen Qingqiu says, looking over to Luo Binghe and Ming Fan, both of whom have been nodding along. Luo Binghe’s fingers tighten on Shen Yuan’s sleeve as Shen Qingqiu looks over at them. It explains the beast’s clingy behavior. Shen Qingqiu curls his lip before he can quite stop himself. “And after?”

A held breath seems to exhale between the six disciples at the question. Shen Qingqiu inwardly wants to roll his eyes at them. If he were angry enough to punish them for their behavior he would certainly not do so in front of a client. He isn’t that short tempered. Even so, he won’t let his stern image go. It is better suited to the situation that they know that he think they should not have allowed two of their number to be captured in the first place.

“What remains of Old Master Chen’s concubine has been prepared to be taken for proper burial and rites to put her to rest, but these disciples also ensured she no longer has demonic energy clinging to her remains. These disciples ensured that any remaining wisps of demonic qi did not remain in the room,” Ming Fan says. “Shen-shidi has captured a few remnants in his qiankun pouch with the intent to bring them back to the sect for further dispersing or study.”

“Chu-shigu will want to see it,” Shen Yuan says to Shen Qingqiu. “Is it okay if I take the remnants to her when we get home?”

“It isn’t as though this master has any need to keep it,” Shen Qingqiu sniffs. He doesn’t quite understand his nephew’s excitement over things such as demonic creatures, but he knows that it is important to him enough to not bother getting in the way too much. At least he’s managed to keep his martial sister from poaching his own nephew from his Peak with their strange arrangement. Shen Yuan seems happy by the assent though, grinning up at him in a way that makes Shen Qingqiu feel an unexpected rush of fondness. “You and Disciple Ning both need to clean up and make sure to speak with Master Xun to ensure that your injuries are not serious.”

“Yes Shizun!” Both children chime at him dutifully. Shen Qingqiu allows himself a moment to look between the two of them in an expression that isn’t quite pride, before he turns to rejoin Xun Fu at a defeated Old Master Chen’s side.

“It seems that the demon has been defeated,” Shen Qingqiu says. “Your concubine, sadly, had died before our arrival. What you held today was merely a demon pretending to be her.”

The old man’s face goes a little paler and then a little greener following after. He hangs his head after a moment with a heavy, world weary sigh, “Oh poor Die-er, to be disrespected in such a horrible way.”

“You must ensure that every previous victim is not only given the usual rites, but also additionally pray for their souls and provide offerings as apology to their spirits. Otherwise, there is a chance that they will rest uneasily knowing that their loved ones were fooled by someone wearing their skin,” Xun Fu says sternly from where he is standing. “This master, with permission from Peak Lord Shen, will write out a prayer suited to laying such spirits to rest. It is likely that most do not blame the living for this, but if you wish to avoid future hauntings completely this will be the best method to prevent it from happening.”

“O-of course,” Old Master Chen says, his face pale again, as if he can sense his two concubines watching them from the afterlife. Shen Qingqiu doesn’t say anything to refute Xun Fu as the other man steps away to write out whatever prayer he suggests. He merely stands looking at Old Master Chen. “Apologies for this Master’s reaction previous. If there’s anything the lord cultivators desire for finishing the case so quickly and ensuring the future safety of the Chen family?”

“There are a few of the Chen household that hold the potential for cultivation,” Shen Qingqiu says slowly. “This master’s colleague expressed some interest in taking them under his teachings. Allow us to do so, and we shall overlook the slight of you being impolite to this master’s nephew.”

“Nephew? Ah—that explains the resemblance,” Old Master Chen says with a reedy little laugh. Shen Qingqiu does not respond. He merely stares Old Master Chen down, eyes like ice. Old Master Chen snaps his mouth shut and then nods, “Yes. Yes of course they may take their days to study. It is an honor to be chosen for Cang Qiong Sect.”

“Good,” Shen Qingqiu’s smile is not the warm one that Xun Fu offered before. He snaps his fan open, satisfied. “We shall leave in the morning after we have taken our rest. Thanking Old Master Chen for his continued hospitality. Shen Yuan—come, we will have tea.”

“Ah! Yes Shizun!” Shen Yuan says, and only then does he seemingly manage to get free of Luo Binghe. Shen Qingqiu ignores the placating, “I’ll see you tonight Binghe—keep an eye on Ning-shijie for me? I want to make sure she isn’t just pretending not to be shaken up by everything.”

At this, Shen Qingqiu does roll his eyes. His nephew can be so bright, and yet such a fool—the blatant attempt to get the two to spend time together would bother Shen Qingqiu more if he thought that the little beast wasn’t obsessed with Shen Yuan. But when he looks back, the other boy’s eyes linger on his nephew in a way that sets Shen Qingqiu’s teeth on edge.

Stop looking at my nephew like that, he thinks at the greedy child. He knows eyes like that all too well. He’d seen those eyes in the face of his tormentor. He’d seen those eyes reflected back at him in the mirror in the mornings where he wants to sink his teeth into the soft parts of the world and not let go. They want more than they deserve. Shen Yuan is blind to them, and Shen Qingqiu hates that.

“Shizun?” Shen Yuan asks, and Shen Qingqiu realizes he’s been glaring. He turns on his heels and stalks away without a word. Shen Yuan follows after him obediently, not pushing him any further. Xun Fu will join them, likely after he has written the prayer and checked Ning Yingying over for Shen Qingqiu. Until then, Shen Qingqiu has his nephew to himself.

Shen Qingqiu opens his door and gestures to where the tea set is imperiously. He settles himself onto the cushion next to the tea table and watches as his nephew gathers the tea set up and hurries off to make his uncle tea. While he does this, Shen Qingqiu allows himself to settle.

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One of the worst things about being the nephew of Shen Qingqiu is that when he is a man who is difficult to read. Over the years, Shen Yuan has gotten a little better at seeing through the barbed wire his uncle has wrapped around himself. But days like this it’s hard to know what he’s thinking. If he’s very upset about Shen Yuan allowing Ning Yingying to get captured by the Skinner Demon he’ll find out before the end of tea though.

Shen Yuan sighs, setting the tea up and pouring a cup for his uncle out. He serves his own tea after, sitting down politely in front of Shen Qingqiu with his hands curled around the warm cup politely. Silence settles between them, and Shen Yuan clears his throat. Shen Qingqiu takes a sip of his tea, not quite hiding the way his nose wrinkles slightly before he sets the cup back down. Shen Yuan takes his own sip and agrees wholeheartedly—Shen Yuan may not be the best at making tea. Or anything involving cooking. He can make very simple meals, he lived part-time with Binghe and Song Jia after all. Still, it is a far cry from more than just passable.

“This master is unsure whether to praise his nephew or scold him,” Shen Qingqiu finally says with a sigh. “But you have escaped unscathed, so scolding does not seem quite apt for the moment.”

“So praise?” Shen Yuan says with a small smile. Shen Qingqiu narrows his eyes at him.

“...Well done.” Shen Qingqiu says after a moment’s pause, and Shen Yuan perks up despite himself. He really had thought this was going to be a disaster—look! Shen Qingqiu is super protective of Ning Yingying. She’s like the only disciple that he even seems to like in the slightest!

“Ning-shijie is the one who slayed the demon,” Shen Yuan says, even though he knows Ning Yingying will likely tell Shen Qingqiu in detail what happened later. Hopefully an edited version of things, if she remembers to do so. He isn’t going to let himself be too nervous about that, otherwise he’ll end up working himself into a fit. When he gets a chance he’ll let Xun Fu know that he’s been compromised.

“Did you fight it together?” Shen Qingqiu asks, raising one brow.

“Yes, but she killed it,” Shen Yuan will be stubborn about this. He knows that his friend says they worked together, but really she is the one who got the killing blow! It was a cool moment, he is going to hype his friend up. “She had such good form too, jiujiu! She looked so cool.”

Shen Qingqiu shook his head, “You solved it capably, but what did you learn?”

“Mm, larger groups may be better for our skill level,” Shen Yuan replies after a moment’s pause. “If we were all in the same age group as Ming-shixiong, maybe it would have been okay to go off in groups of two. I could have changed up the groups a bit better for that. Perhaps Ming Fan and I as a pair, and He Mengyao with Ning Yingying. Or, again, larger groups—splitting into three versus two. Even so, the Skinner Demon was going to be pushed into doing some sort of action. She knew we were close to discovering her, and if it had not been at that time it would have been another.”

Shen Qingqiu nods along as Shen Yuan talks, “The method was not ineffective, and you and Ning Yingying escaped without serious harm. More caution is apt for the future though.”

Shen Yuan notices a small smile on Shen Qingqiu’ slips at the words, and Shen Yuan’s heart warms. He can’t help but straighten in his seat, and then he bows his head to Shen Qingqiu, “Thank you jiujiu?”

“For what?” Shen Qingqiu huffs, “I merely speak the truth. You did well, that is all.”

He says it as if it isn’t the kind of thing that he rarely ever does! Shen Qingqiu is not a man that praises freely, especially for something that could have ended this close to disaster. Shen Yuan is practically glowing with the praise given to him, and he grins up at his uncle despite himself. Shen Qingqiu lifts his fan, but Shen Yuan thinks that his uncle might be smiling too. It makes Shen Yuan proud of their little group.

A knock at the door interrupts them, and Shen Qingqiu waves for Shen Yuan to get it. He hurries to do so, finding that Xun Fu is standing on the other end. His guardian gives him a small smile, “They said you were spending some time with your uncle.”

“Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan says, he only bows because it isn’t technically proper to hug him. Plus, Xun Fu still seems stiff when he walks in with his cane. He gestures for Shen Yuan to sit and joins him at a slower descent to the cushion, “Is Fu-ge in a lot of pain today?”

“Merely stiff,” Xun Fu says to him, waving him off gently. “Let me get a good look at you.”

“I’m fine Fu-ge, they’re just scratches,” Shen Yuan says as he sits. He lets Xun Fu look him over anyway, ignoring the stuttering bursts of qi that his guardian sends out to check his injuries. Shen Qingqiu watches attentively as he does, and Shen Yuan feels a little embarrassed. “Ning-shijie was fine too, right?”

“She was,” Xun Fu says, he swipes some blood from under Shen Yuan’s chin. Shen Yuan hadn’t had very long to clean his face up after he had bitten the Skinner Demon—most of their time had been spent crawling around for his amulet. Thank goodness they had found it before Binghe and everyone else burst in! He must have missed that bit, and Xun Fu frowns slightly at it.

“Well so am I!” Shen Yuan says with a huff, he gently brushes Xun Fu’s hands away. “I even got praised by Shen Qingqiu.”

“It was not praise,” Shen Qingqiu says, “And if you’d been hurt you certainly would not have gotten it.”

“It was definitely praise,” Shen Yuan says smugly, and Xun Fu huffs a laugh before roughly ruffling his hair.

“Just as long as you didn’t purposefully use yourself as bait,” Xun Fu says with a sigh. “That’s all that I can ask for at this point.”

“Hey! I wouldn’t do that,” Shen Yuan says—not with Ning Yingying in any case. And only if he was super sure he could handle what was being faced all alone! He’s not an idiot. Xun Fu gives him a doubtful look and shakes his head.

Shen Qingqiu sets something on the table, making Shen Yuan look up. It seems to be… a bag of gold? He blinks, grabbing it and looking inside with surprise before looking back up, “Jiujiu?”

“Tomorrow, you may all spend some time at the market,” Shen Qingqiu says, “As a reward for solving the case so quickly. You will have until this master has completed some personal business on his own. So you may all wish to rise early to do so. He will be visiting a friend in the city.”

A friend in the city? Shen Yuan blinks, but doesn’t press. He doesn’t think his uncle would explain further if this is how cagey he’s going to be explaining in the first place. Still, he holds the gold to his chest and pats it gently.

“Why the gold though?” He asks softly.

“Your personal allowance,” Shen Qingqiu says. “Now, off to bed with the both of you. This master wants to rest.”

Oh. Oh wow. Shen Yuan blinks at the pouch and then back up at Shen Qingqiu. He—he really is proud isn’t he? Or, at least, that’s what he’s settled on. Shen Yuan gets to his feet and bows to his uncle and Xun Fu. As Shen Yuan walks by though, he can’t help himself. He crouches and even if he might get smacked for it, he hugs Shen Qingqiu.

It must startled Shen Qingqiu, his uncle stiffens up with surprise before he slowly relaxes. She Yuan catches Shen Qingqiu shooting a look at Xun Fu, who simply nods in something like encouragement. He’d almost laugh if he weren’t genuinely trying not to ruin the moment. Instead, he squeezes his uncle and Shen Qingqiu gives him the slightest squeeze back.

“Go to bed,” Shen Qingqiu says, somewhat crisply.

“Goodnight Jiujiu, goodnight Fu-ge,” Shen Yuan says, releasing Shen Qingqiu. He bows to both his elders one more time before he turns and hurries out the door. He feels like he’s made some incredible progress today. Shen Qingqiu is actually, definitely proud of him! 

He’s surprised by how good that feels.

Chapter Text

By the time that Shen Yuan is finally able to get into the room that he, Gong Yang, He Mengyao and Ming Fan are sharing it is late enough that most of his friends are asleep. He thinks that it’s all of them, to be honest. After he’d finished with his uncle he had taken a somewhat indulgent amount of time in the bath to soak and let the exhaustion of the day melt away. So he fully expected that he’d curl up in his bed and only really see anyone the next morning.

Really, at this point he should know better than to underestimate Luo Binghe.

It’s as he’s getting into his own bed that he feels a gentle touch on his wrist. Binghe is so quiet that Shen Yuan hadn’t even noticed him. He bites back a yelp, whipping his head around to stare wide-eyed at Luo Binghe. His friend is mere inches from his face, and Shen Yuan has to lean back to make the way his heart flutters stop. He laughs nervously, but softly, “Binghe, I thought you would be asleep.”

He speaks quietly, aware of the sleeping noises of the rest of the boys. Ning Yingying has a room all to herself but the five of them are all sharing for obvious reasons. Shen Yuan can’t read Luo Binghe’s expression well in the dark—not with the amulet on anyway—but he’s pretty sure his friend pouts, “A-Yuan took so long. This Binghe wanted to talk before bed.”

Shen Yuan almost tells his friend that they can talk tomorrow—really he is quite tired after everything that happened and they still have a big day ahead of them. Even so, he has to admit that he wants to talk to Binghe too. He looks up at the other boys for a moment, before he lifts his blanket in invitation. Luo Binghe brightens, under the blanket with Shen Yuan so that the can lie closer together. All the better to whisper. There are, obviously, some things that Shen Yuan can’t talk about like this, but it’s better than nothing right?

“This Binghe was scared,” Luo Binghe admits, scooting so close that his forehead touches Shen Yuan’s. Shen Yuan huffs at his friend, reaching up to smooth his fluffy curls. Really, he should have it braided before bed but Shen Yuan can’t do much about that with the room as dark as it is. “When A-Yuan and Ning-shijie had disappeared, this… he was afraid it would be too late.”

“We had it handled,” Shen Yuan tries to soothe him, but his nonchalance doesn’t seem to help in the slightest. He gently taps Luo Binghe’s cheek with his knuckles, and Luo Binghe hugs Shen Yuan close. Shen Yuan squeaks as he’s held tightly, Binghe’s face pressed against his shoulder. “Binghe, I’m okay. I promise… ah, there…”

He hesitates, looking up at the sleeping forms of his friends. With a restrained sigh he squirms and Luo Binghe obediently lets him go. Shen Yuan gets to his feet, reaching down to pull Binghe up from the ground and lead him out of the room. Binghe’s hand is sleep warm in his own, but Shen Yuan doesn’t want to leave it sit for Binghe until tomorrow. It’ll be a whole thing if he does. So he tugs him around the corner into a hallway far enough away from the door to ensure they aren’t eavesdropped on.

“Something did happen, while we were captured,” Shen Yuan says. Then hastily adds, “Nothing horrible! Nothing horrible, just… new, I guess. The demon knew what I was—I guess she could smell it on me or something. It didn’t get blocked by the amulet, so… she took the amulet while we were tied up.”

Luo Binghe sucks in a breath, his expression looking very serious as he grabs Shen Yuan by the shoulders, “Did she see?”

“Yeah—don’t look so grave! It’s okay she… we talked about it,” Shen Yuan says. He knows that in a way it’s better that Ning Yingying is the one who found out. She’s horrible at keeping secrets, sure, but she married Luo Binghe in the original novel! Clearly she can get passed the whole demon thing! He winces at the wide-eyed look his friend gives him, “She knows she can’t say anything to anyone. We can have her speak with Fu-ge later, he’ll make sure she knows how important it is too.”

“Do you trust her?” Luo Binghe asks, and that surprises him. This is your first wife Binghe! Around this time in the book you’re supposed to bring her into your dreamscape because you trust her the most out of everyone on the mountain! Shen Yuan stares at him a moment as though surprised.

“Of course I do!” Shen Yuan exclaims, loud enough to wince and for both of them to look up and down the hallway. He sighs and lowers his voice, “Ning-shijie saw the ears and tail and also saw me transform to get out of the binds and fight. She hasn’t gone running to Jiujiu and hasn’t said anything to anyone else.”

Luo Binghe furrows his brow, looking torn for a moment. He’s thinking so hard that Shen Yuan can practically see the ideas chasing each other in his dark eyes. Shen Yuan reaches up and gently pokes him in the forehead.

“Do you trust her?” Shen Yuan asks, repeating Luo Binghe’s question. Binghe blinks in surprise then seems to seriously consider the question posed to him.

“It isn’t distrust entirely,” Luo Binghe finally replies slowly. “If this were a simple secret pertaining to this disciple then maybe this Binghe wouldn’t mind. However, this is a matter of utmost importance. A-Yuan, we have been training to be cultivators for a long time. It has been told to us, over and over again, that demons are to be destroyed. This Binghe knows that that is wrong, and maybe Ning-shijie does as well, but does she know how delicate this is really?”

“I told her it was dangerous,” Shen Yuan says.

“It isn’t just dangerous A-Yuan, for you it is potentially life or death,” Luo Binghe says. He takes Shen Yuan’s hand in his own, tracing his fingers over Shen Yuan’s palm and says softly, “This Binghe knows that what they teach about demons can be wrong. A-Yuan is good. He is not a monster and has not hidden in the sect to do nefarious things, but some may not see it that way. This Binghe bites back every protest when he hears those things, but he hates it. Will Ning-shijie be able to do that too? To understand that she cannot defend such a thing so obviously without drawing suspicion?”

Shen Yuan sighs but he can’t help but feel a bit fond. Ah, that protagonist brain can run Binghe around in circles sometimes. He really is clever though! These are things that, admittedly, Shen Yuan hadn’t thought of in detail. Largely so that he wouldn’t make himself panic over things he couldn’t really take back or change.

“There’s not much to do about it now though, ah?” Shen Yuan asks softly, rubbing his thumb over the backs of Luo Binghe’s fingers. “I trust Ning-shijie to care about me, hopefully that will be enough. And like I said, we’ll take her to talk to Fu-ge too, so that he can impress the seriousness of it on her…”

Shen Yuan trails off, thinking of her pleading with him to tell Shen Qingqiu. He thinks of hugging his uncle, scum villain of Proud Immortal Demon Way, and suddenly his throat feels tight. He knows—he knows what will happen if he says anything. He’s read that part of the novel, it is the final nail in Shen Qingqiu’s coffin. Shen Yuan frowns as he stares at their hands.

“Ah, is A-Yuan worried now?” Luo Binghe says, sounding mollified and apologetic. “This Binghe is sorry, he didn’t want to stress A-Yuan out. What has been done is done, we can only go forward and keep an eye on things, no?”

“Right, right,” Shen Yuan sighs. “Come on, I’m exhausted and I want to go to bed.”

“...Can this Binghe share with A-Yuan tonight?” Luo Binghe says. Shen Yuan hesitates—they sleep together all the time, but their friends are all in the same room. Won’t they think that’s weird? No wait—it isn’t weird, so there’s no reason to think it’s weird at all! He’s overthinking things, clearly.

“Pff, of course,” Shen Yuan huffs.

With that, the two of them quietly return to the room. Shen Yuan scoots under his blankets and holds them up for Binghe again. His friend squirms inside, and cuddles up to Shen Yuan. They’re probably getting too old to keep doing this, but Shen Yuan can’t bring himself to put his foot down to say no. Not when Binghe is so warm, and not when he feels so safe and secure as he drifts off right next to him.

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The day prior, Shen Yuan had been sure that the marketplace was unusually busy. As the disciples and their teachers make their way through it mid-morning he realizes that not even a quarter of the vendors or people were out at the time. Shuang Hu city is not huge, but it is large enough that having what seems like every resident out on the street is almost overwhelming. Shen Yuan is fine, obviously, having grown up in a modern city himself. He can’t help but notice that He Mengyao and Ning Yingying both seem to balk at the activity. Even Xun Fu seems a little perturbed—more the type to appreciate roughing it than anything else.

Then, like breaking out of a stupor, Ning Yingying bounds into the crowd with a pleased laugh. Shen Qingqiu says, just loud enough for her to hear, “This master will meet with his disciples in a shi. Should one be late, expect to find your own method to return to Qing Jing Peak. The same will occur if you do anything to shame this master or your sect while we are here.”

“Yes Shizun,” the remaining disciples say. Ning Yingying’s own reply comes slightly delayed, but Shen Qingqiu seems satisfied enough.

Gong Yang leans over and whispers, “He really will leave even you behind Shen-shidi.”

“Without hesitation,” Shen Qingqiu deadpans, eyes zeroing in on them. He curls his lip a little, “So behave.”

Shen Yuan isn’t sure whether to laugh or cry—what a chaperone his uncle is. Just telling a bunch of young teenagers to meet up or get fucked over and stuck. Shen Qingqiu wouldn’t just leave one of his kids behind on a field trip, he’d do it on purpose. Xun Fu does chuckle, shaking his head and only giving Shen Qingqiu a wry smile when Shen Yuan’s uncle glares at him. Shen Qingqiu huffs, turning on his heel with a calm wave of his fan.

“This master has acquaintances to speak with,” Shen Qingqiu loftily says. This is his only farewell, as he immediately departs. Shen Yuan is curious about where he’s going, but Xun Fu seems to spot the gleam in his eye and gently shakes his head.

“Leave him be, and have fun with your friends,” Xun Fu says. Alright alright! Shen Yuan can take a hint, go play with the kids “his age” he gets it. He hurries along, catching up with Gong Yang, Luo Binghe and Ming Fan.

“Where’s He-shixiong?” Shen Yuan asks. Gong Yang and Ming Fan look up as though they’ve only just noticed that the other boy is missing. Luo Binghe, however, points in the direction that Ning Yingying headed.

“He said he wanted to see what Ning-shijie was going to look at,” Luo Binghe says in response. Shen Yuan raises his eyebrows and looks over his shoulder to try and spot the two. He can see He Mengyao speaking with Ning Yingying, who is looking up at him with a furrowed brow. Her eyes brighten and she claps her hands before grabbing him by the hand and tugging him into some cosmetics store.

Hey-hey-hey! Binghe shouldn’t you care a little more about this!? What does He Mengyao think he’s doing!? Is he trying to make a move on Ning Yingying? Shen Yuan grabs Luo Binghe by the arm and drags him after them. Not on his watch! Not that Ning Yingying and Binghe are… anything right now besides friends. Still! They’re meant to be first loves for one another, Ning Yingying can’t fall for another guy in the meantime!

“You guys too?” Gong Yang says with amusement.

“Don’t make a ruckus!” Ming Fan adds immediately, frowning at Luo Binghe even though Binghe has honestly been the most chill part of this equation. Shen Yuan thinks he catches his friend rolling his eyes at that, and Ming Fan adds. “Don’t do anything to embarrass us!”

“We won’t, we won’t!” Shen Yuan assures him, and then pulls Luo Binghe into the cosmetics shop. Immediately he sneezes, eyes watering. The smells of perfumes are so strong in here that Shen Yuan can’t help it. He ducks his head to avoid the eyes of other patrons, and tugs Binghe along after him.

“Is there a reason A-Yuan wants to be here?” Luo Binghe asks him, a hint of amusement in his voice.

“We have to make sure that He-shixiong doesn’t have designs on Ning Yingying!” Shen Yuan hisses. Luo Binghe shoots him an awkward look before he clears his throat.

“A-Yuan, I don’t think that Ning-shijie is He-shixiong’s type,” he says after a long moment. “Do you remember when he wouldn’t stop talking about Mu-shishu?”

“Huh? When he was talking about the kind of eye and mouth shape he had? What does that have to do with anything?” Shen Yuan asks, looking back at Luo Binghe in bewilderment. Luo Binghe shakes his head and opens his mouth to say something when Shen Yuan spots both of their targets. He nabs his friend and pulls them behind a bunch of stacked fabric and fine silks.

“This color would be really stunning!” Ning Yingying says, holding up some rouge and smiling. “Does He Mengyao want to see?”

See make-up that Ning Yingying is putting on!? Shen Yuan almost gapes at the gall! And what’s with not using his address as her martial brother huh!? Sure it’s his full name but… He cuts off his mental tirade to watch.

He Mengyao shyly takes the cosmetic, turning it over. Whatever he says in response is so soft that Shen Yuan almost doesn’t hear it. Ning Yingying only pats his arm.

“This Ning-shimei will support every shijie he has,” Ning Yingying says with special emphasis. He Mengyao’s full cheeks look a little redder than usual. “But if He Mengyao is too shy and wants to wait, this Yingying will not rush things or tell anyone! Come! Maybe we can commission a hanfu for when you get the courage?”

“Thanking Ning-shimei for her support, but this one isn’t sure about being ready for that yet,” He Mengyao softly says, allowing her to tug him along in the store. Shen Yuan can’t help but ponder over the words.

See, if He Mengyao were here to buy cosmetics for Ning Yingying, then surely she would be choosing stuff for herself and know it. She wouldn’t be helping some “shijie”—Shen Yuan can’t begin to guess which one she referred to—she’d be helping herself otherwise. Maybe Shen Yuan misread the situation…

“Maybe…” Shen Yuan mumbles, looking up and catching the bright look of realization on Luo Binghe’s face. He meets Shen Yuan’s eyes and Shen Yuan says, “Binghe, I don’t think He-shixiong likes Ning Yingying at all.”

Luo Binghe nods at him seriously, “This Binghe doesn’t either.”

“I think that He-shixiong has a crush on a different shijie from our sect!” Shen Yuan declares. Luo Binghe trips on absolutely nothing, making Shen Yuan have to nab his friend to keep him from making a scene. He furrows his brow, “Binghe are you okay?”

“Fine! Fine, this one is fine A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, his lips are twitching and if Shen Yuan didn’t know any better he’d think his friend was laughing at him for some reason. He shrugs, and then sneezes again. Luo Binghe shoots a look over Shen Yuan’s shoulder and says, “Let’s leave shijie to her shopping, A-Yuan. We can look for other places to go.”

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Luo Binghe is relieved when he and Shen Yuan find themselves in a local bookstore. The small building had caught his friend’s eye almost the instant they left the cosmetics shop. Luo Binghe doesn’t want to intrude on He Mengyao’s secret anymore than they already mistakenly had, and since Shen Yuan doesn’t seem to have understood what was going on he won’t clear it up. Besides, it’s only a suspicion and the sort of thing that He Mengyao will have to bring up with time.

He hopes, however, that his friend will feel safe enough to do so given that time.

Now though, he watches Shen Yuan light up as he looks over the spines of several books set up on shelves. The little shop is crowded with other people, but Shen Yuan doesn’t seem to notice even when they jostle him. He’s so focused on the task at hand that Luo Binghe thinks he could walk out and Shen Yuan wouldn’t even notice for some time.

Luo Binghe has trouble keeping his eyes off of Shen Yuan—especially after the Skinner Demon incident. Every evil they had faced before had been together, he had been beside himself with terror at the idea of never seeing Shen Yuan ever again. At the idea of never telling him…

His heart stutters in his chest. He—lately he’s been thinking a lot more about Shen Yuan in a way that maybe a friend shouldn’t. Or maybe a friend should? Luo Binghe is closest to Shen Yuan, after all—is it so wrong to imagine them kissing? To think that maybe, under falling plum blossoms, Luo Binghe might see him in red?

Ah—is that too much? He’s only fourteen, but…

Shen Yuan is one of the few constants in his life. Luo Binghe can’t bear to imagine the thought of losing him. He almost did lose him. He knows Shen Yuan says they had everything handled, even if the secret was outed to Ning Yingying. But Luo Binghe knows that it would have been so easy for that to not be true. For them to have walked in that door and found nothing but blood and remains.

“Binghe, look!” Shen Yuan says, startling Luo Binghe from his anxious spiral. He blinks at his friend, to see Shen Yuan holding up a large book. “This is a published journal of a woman who lived with a flock of Blood Feathered Wyverns for a decade as one of their own! Ah, I can afford it for sure… but if I want to buy these other three… ah—I can’t really buy the other books I wanted to look at anyway.”

This is punctuated with a longing look at—at several books with yellow bindings. Luo Binghe stares for a moment, and is positively certain Shen Yuan is unaware that he’s talking to himself out loud. His friend has one of the thinnest faces he knows, and if he realized Binghe overheard him talking about wanting a yellow book…

Feeling flustered, suddenly, Luo Binghe urges his friend over to the counter. Shen Yuan blinks with surprise, “Oh, sure we can be done. I’ve got enough to keep me busy for a while anyway.”

“Mmhmm!” Luo Binghe says, and is relieved when they check out and leave the shop. Does Shen Yuan really read those kinds of books? How? When? Where? The two of them live together, if he’s reading them then Luo Binghe certainly hasn’t found him doing so.

But then, hadn’t he just thought about how thin his friend’s face is?

“Ah! Binghe, look!” Shen Yuan says, pointing out their friends down the street. They’re all crowded around a vendor—He Mengyao and Ning Yingying had joined back up with the other two in the time that they were in the store. Shen Yuan runs over, and Luo Binghe allows himself to bask in the friendly greetings of (most) of his friends.

“Of course you went to a book store, you’re going to have a library bigger than Qing Jing’s official one someday,” Gong Yang says with a laugh, peeking at what Shen Yuan picked out. “Monster stuff, monster stuff—oh hey, is that a book on legendary weapons!? Can I read that with you Shen-shidi!?”

“At least let me read them first!” Shen Yuan laughs, but he doesn’t say no to Gong Yang’s eager eyes. Luo Binghe tries to swallow the sour jealousy that he feels—it’s easier when Shen Yuan beams at him and adds, “Binghe should join us in reading it. It’ll be useful!”

“Can this one join?” Ming Fan asks and Luo Binghe rolls his eyes. Ming Fan scowls at him, he scowls back—this is mostly in good fun, he thinks.

“Of course, why wouldn’t you?” Shen Yuan pauses, “He-shixiong and Ning-shijie can join in as well!”

He Mengyao smiles at that, straightening up into a standing position. Ning Yingying is still leaning over the stand in front of them, and smiles brightly.

“That sounds fun—A-Luo, A-Yuan, come here and look at these sword tassels!” Ning Yingying says. Shen Yuan walks over, clearly curious, and Luo Binghe follows after his friend as well.

The tassels are all finely made, each with beautiful vibrant colors that show how exquisite they are. Luo Binghe immediately notices one with a small jade cat carved into it. He can’t help but pick it up, and turn it over in his hand.

He was given an allowance by Xun Fu as well, but hasn’t spent any of it himself. The green of the tassel reminds him of Shen Yuan, and the little cat sells the deal. He gently rubs his thumb over the cat, and nudges Shen Yuan before showing him. Shen Yuan blinks at it then laughs, clearly delighted by the little carving. Luo Binghe’s heart aches with fondness as his friend takes the tassel and turns it over in his hands.

“A-Luo, that’s a great idea!” Ning Yingying says, clapping her hands. “We should all choose tassels for one another. Then we can all be tied together in some way!”

“Wouldn’t that just tie us to the person we picked out the tassel for?” Ming Fan points out, but he reaches over to pick up a black tassel with an orchid charm at the end of it. He hands that over to Gong Yang, who grins at him and picks up a tassel that is purple to pass to Ming Fan. This one has a small charm of a bat carved delicately at the end. He looks it over and seems pleased with it despite his earlier words.

“Oh hush,” Ning Yingying says, looking over the tassels before picking out a blue one with a crane carved out of jade at the end to hand to He Mengyao. He Mengyao takes it and runs a finger over the delicate arch of the bird’s neck and wings, before handing Ning Yingying a golden tassel with a peony at the end. She smiles brightly, hugging He Mengyao, “Aw!”

Shen Yuan catches Luo Binghe’s attention by holding out a vibrant red tassel to him. Luo Binghe’s heart skips a beat, and he notices that the end has a lotus charm on it. Shen Yuan grins at him, gently resting it in Luo Binghe’s palms and patting him on the head. Luo Binghe feels strangely breathless and light-headed.

He knows everyone has just done this for one another, but… he looks at that tassel and curls his fingers around it. This is special to him.

“Thank you, A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says softly.

The group all pays for their tassels, much to the delight of the merchant. Gong Yang cuts in when it seems like he might be getting a bit too excited about the price, but soon each teenager walks away with their new souvenir in hand. Luo Binghe stares at his, feeling like his heart is so full it could burst. He knows that when he is able to choose his blade it will look beautiful on it.

“It was Binghe’s idea,” Shen Yuan is saying, startling Luo Binghe out of his thoughts. He looks up to realize that Xun Fu has joined their group and is looking curiously at the tassel. He ruffles Shen Yuan’s hair and spots Luo Binghe watching them. He smiles at him, and Luo Binghe hurries over to his Shizun.

“A-Yuan picked a good one out though,” Luo Binghe insists, holding it up proudly.

“It suits you both,” Xun Fu says, ruffling Binghe’s hair as well.

“Did Fu-ge do anything interesting?” Shen Yuan asks as Luo Binghe ducks out of his master’s grip with a laugh. Xun Fu makes a half-hearted lunge for Luo Binghe, as if he plans to grab him in the middle of the market, but stops to answer Shen Yuan’s question.

“Mn, I obtained a cultivation manual I’m wanting to try out,” Xun Fu says, looking it over as he turns it in his hands. “I’ll go into a brief seclusion after we get back, if Sect Leader Yue is willing to allow this one to do so.”

“He will have little reason to refuse, since this master will also be asking to go into seclusion,” Shen Qingqiu’s cold, dry voice breaks through the conversation. Luo Binghe doesn’t miss the way the man’s cold gaze lingers on him for a moment before flitting away. He doesn’t take it personally.

Shen Qingqiu reminds Luo Binghe of a stray cat to Shen Yuan’s housecat. He never says as much out loud—anymore anyway—but the two are terribly similar in ways. If Shen Qingqiu were more antagonistic, perhaps Luo Binghe would be bitter, but as it is he rarely deals with the man himself beyond cold glares. That he is more than willing to handle to keep up the peace.

“You’ll both be going into seclusion?” Shen Yuan asks, looking from one to the other with a furrowed brow. He seems to be considering something, but ends up rubbing his temples with a sigh after a few moments.

“Is Disciple Shen alright?” Shen Qingqiu asks, tone as cold and distant as ever.

“En, just a bit of a headache,” Shen Yuan says with a sigh.

“Speak with Mu Qingfang if it has not improved by the time we return home,” Shen Qingqiu says. He gestures for the disciples to follow him, and without a word walks away. Luo Binghe watches his friends—all direct disciples of Shen Qingqiu—fall into line with him easily. Xun Fu stands at his shoulder watching them go.

“He’s an odd man, but he does care,” Xun Fu remarks with a soft laugh. “They’re similar in a way, in that regard.”

Luo Binghe is puzzled by that. Shen Yuan is warm and affectionate outwardly. He touches freely, gives so many hugs and headpats that Luo Binghe sometimes feels like he’s going insane. He regards the two of them though, considering.

Still... Xun Fu is, honestly, probably right.

Chapter Text

The moment that they return to Qing Jing Peak, Shen Qingqiu decides to grit his teeth and head up to Qiong Ding Peak. For a moment, he considers asking Xun Fu to join him—after all, he is also asking for permission for the other man’s seclusion as well—but he decides against it just as quickly. Like hell will he allow the discomfort he feels in ascending these steps to be read as weakness. Shen Qingqiu does not need Xun Fu with him to face his own Sect Leader.

But he is loath to do so—Shen Qingqiu can already feel tension lying across his shoulders as he steps from the stairs onto the paved path. Qiong Ding Peak is one of Shen Qingqiu’s least favorite places in the sect. It is a bustling place, filled to the brim with people Shen Qingqiu wouldn’t trust not to stab him in the back. He watches the disciples scurrying to and fro with narrowed eyes, saying nothing when one of them splits off to summon the sect leader.

The other matter is that Qiong Ding simply does not match Shen Qingqiu’s tastes. It oozes a kind of opulence that feels fake—Shen Qingqiu wonders, sometimes, if the builders of these halls would have ever guessed that a former street rat would own them. Despite the bitter taste in his mouth, the idea gives him a sharp stab of satisfaction. He doesn’t let himself dwell on it though, that treads dangerously close to something he does not want to address.

Yue Qingyuan greets him by the time he reaches the door to his manor. He has that infuriating smile on his face—his eyes are too bright with excitement. Like just seeing Shen Qingqiu acknowledge his existence in this small way has given him immeasurable joy.

If you’re so happy to see me, why did you leave me there for so long? Shen Qingqiu thinks bitterly. He grits his teeth and instead gives a clipped, “This master and a member of his Peak would like to enter the Ling Xi caves for seclusion.”

Yue Qingyuan has not denied Shen Qingqiu a thing since he has entered the sect. Shen Qingqiu is not the kind of man that has not taken full advantage of that—they both know this. So there is a small part of him that can’t help but snag onto the fact that Yue Qingyuan’s expression tightens for the briefest of moments.

“Of course you may enter,” Yue Qingyuan says, though he has that pinch around the corners of his eyes that tells Shen Qingqiu that he very much does not want this at all. Shen Qingqiu hates that he doesn’t say that, that he doesn’t speak his mind. Damn him.

“Thanking Zhangmen-shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu says stiffly. He turns on his heel, intending to leave but Yue Qingyuan, the bastard, only matches his strides.

“Does Xi—Shen-shidi wish to join his shixiong for tea? This one heard that Xiao-Jiu’s disciples did well on their mission off the mountain,” Yue Qingyuan says.

“Do not call me that,” Shen Qingqiu snaps, the tension in his shoulders makes him feel like an animal poised to strike. He loathes this pretense more than anything between them. The idea that Yue Qingyuan sees Shen Qingqiu as anything but a manifestation of his guilt is utterly laughable to him. He will not sit there and drink tea while a grown man looks at him as if he is the embodiment of regret. He whirls, snarling at his Sect Leader, “And what does that mean? Did you expect that this master’s disciples would not be able to handle themselves?”

“No, of course not,” Yue Qingyuan’s expression is one of hurt at the accusation. Shen Qingqiu hates it. How dare he. “This one merely wanted to congratulate—”

“This master does not need congratulations for his disciples being competent,” Shen Qingqiu hisses at him through grit teeth. “It is the bare minimum expected of them. I will not have my peak humiliating our sect.”

He thinks he hears his name called—but he doesn’t turn to look back at Yue Qingyuan again. Instead he heads down the stairs, ignoring the way disciples look at him, at the way they flee as though facing a demonic beast. He has half a mind to spin around and tell Yue Qingyuan to do a better job of teaching his disciples to show respect. He ignores this urge.

It isn’t until he is halfway home that he realizes he had forgotten to mention he would be promoting Xun Fu to hallmaster.

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Shen Qingqiu seems to be in a foul mood—that’s the first thing that Xun Fu notices when the Peak Lord in question shows up with narrowed eyes. Xun Fu is in the middle of getting cultivation manuals for the three young women who had followed them from the Chen household. Somehow he’s ended up with more disciples to teach, and he isn’t sure how to feel about it, but it is better than letting them stay there. Perhaps this life will suit these young girls better than the life of a concubine.

Or at the very least teach them ways to protect themselves.

He can tell that Shen Qingqiu isn’t in the mood for Xun Fu to put off speaking with them though. So he turns to Luo Binghe, patting him on the back, “Give your shimei a tour and introduce them to the hallmasters for me, alright?”

“Of course, Shizun,” Luo Binghe replies, only the briefest flash of dismay crossing his features. Xun Fu almost laughs—he knows Binghe is itching to go find Shen Yuan. Some things never change. But his disciple is a diligent young man, and he turns to the young women and the group heads away chattering.

“Thanking Peak Lord Shen for his patience,” Xun Fu says mildly, not reacting to the outright sneer the words earn him. Shen Qingqiu turns on his heel and sweeps away. His want for Xun Fu to follow is clearly implied, “Is there something this one can do?”

“Prepare for the Ling Xi Caves. This master obtained permission to enter seclusion,” Shen Qingqiu snaps. Ah, that explains it. There are few things that make Shen Qingqiu more irritable than speaking with Yue Qingyuan. Xun Fu isn’t sure what the bad blood between the two of them is, only that it rankles Shen Qingqiu enough to throw him into a rage.

“Mn, this one can do that. However, let us have tea first,” Xun Fu hurries his pace so that he’s walking next to Shen Qingqiu instead of behind him. The man’s eyes snap to him, narrowing dangerously. Xun Fu ignores this, despite the fact that most would call him foolish for doing so.

Shen Qingqiu is not a popular man. He is not a friendly man, but he loves Shen Yuan and is trying to be a good uncle to him. That means something to Xun Fu, and he has known his fair share of unfriendly people in the past. Shen Qingqiu doesn’t need to be friendly if he doesn’t want to be.

Xun Fu is here for Shen Yuan, by extension that means he is here for Shen Qingqiu as well. Many think he is mad for it, but he’s grown to care for this bristling man over the years. In ways, Shen Qingqiu seems determined to keep the rest of the world locked away—only letting a special few in to tread on his heart, should they dare.

So Xun Fu dares.

“We should not waste time,” Shen Qingqiu grits out.

“It is not a waste,” Xun Fu responds immediately. “You should enter the caves calm and centered.” Then, to sweeten the deal he adds, “Shen Yuan would want to speak with you before we enter cultivation anyway. We can invite him to tea with us.”

“Fine,” Shen Qingqiu says, with a roll of his eyes. “But you will be providing the tea. The one we had last month with Chu Qingru-shimei.” 

“Of course, Peak Lord Shen,” Xun Fu says to him.

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Shen Yuan’s hands are cupped around the tea that his uncle and Xun Fu had offered to him. He’d been pulled from his courses in order to visit his uncle, and look! He isn’t complaining! At least this isn’t the day that he goes over to Xun Shou Peak. They have recently found an injured female Giant Axe-nosed Chameleon—super rare! The males are much more commonly discovered, as they tend to be larger and less prone to using the magical camouflage that the females do. 

He’s been itching to go see it since getting back to the mountain, but he’ll take a tea break with his family over a class on the edicts of Huan Hua Palace any day. He sips at the delicate tea, pleased that the flavor today is sweet and flavorful. White tea is probably one of his favorites for that reason.

“Tonight, hallmaster Xun Fu and I will be entering seclusion,” Shen Qingqiu says, causing both Shen Yuan and Xun Fu’s heads to pop up. Xun Fu’s brow furrows in the way it does when he’s surprised by something or confused—or both. “Shen Yuan will be expected to look after the Peak in this master’s absence.”

Shen Yuan wishes his uncle wouldn’t do that—he probably does it on purpose though. Throwing out two things at once that two different people want to address, which means that they have to rush to do it. Shen Yuan is a heartbeat too late to speak up, because Xun Fu says with puzzled confusion, “Hallmaster?”

“It is time you take the title, mn?” Shen Qingqiu says, as if this is merely obvious. He sips his tea with the poise expected of a Peak Lord. Shen Yuan watches Xun Fu’s eyes widen and he wonders if his guardian will protest. “We will have the ceremony to do so when we’ve returned from seclusion.”

“I don’t need a promotion, Shen Qingqiu,” Xun Fu says, his tone is gentle and soft.

“It is not simply a promotion. This master merely wants you to pull your weight,” Shen Qingqiu snips back. Tsundere! You’re being so tsundere uncle! People are going to get the wrong idea, if you run around acting like that! Shen Yuan chuckles nervously.

“Why would jiujiu want this disciple in charge? Wouldn’t Ming Fan be better for that?” After all, Ming Fan is Shen Qingqiu’s first disciple. Head disciple in everything but name at this point right? But Shen Qingqiu only fixes his eyes on Shen Yuan.

“No, he would not be,” Shen Qingqiu responds, as if this is obvious.

Well. Shen Yuan and Xun Fu share helpless glances. Clearly, Shen Qingqiu is not in the mood for any kind of disagreement or argument today. Shen Yuan restrains a sigh. Oh well, it’s not as if he isn’t able to take a little responsibility on for his uncle. Ah… it’ll be harder to get extra time to look at the Giant Axe-nosed Chameleon though…

“How have Shen Yuan’s studies been today?” Shen Qingqiu asks after a beat of silence. Shen Yuan looks up with a surprised blink.

“Ah, they have been going well jiujiu,” Shen Yuan says. He gently traces his finger over the side of his tea cup. “This disciple has begun to work on an original piece for my guqin final. He also has plans to visit Xun Shou Peak tomorrow afternoon to see if some of the songs may have a positive impact on the beasts there. And to study the Giant Axe-nosed Chameleon they have found…”

“So long as he does not neglect his duties or other studies,” Shen Qingqiu says, as if Shen Yuan was asking permission and not just explaining what he is going to do. Shen Yuan lets it slide though, Shen Qingqiu seems to feel a bit better if he thinks he’s in control of things. “This master had heard Shen Yuan was having some trouble with his current piece for painting.”

“Ah—yes, this disciple still hasn’t settled on a subject,” Shen Yuan says with a hint of embarrassment. More like he’s been procrastinating it. Shen Qingqiu’s eyes meet his and Shen Yuan catches the briefest flash of amusement in it.

“Do not waste too much of your time, or else you will turn in a poor result,” Shen Qingqiu points out.

“Yes, don’t procrastinate,” Xun Fu adds in sternly.

“Of course, this disciple will do no such thing,” Shen Yuan dutifully replies. The picture of a good little disciple who definitely isn’t planning on binge-reading some of the books he’d picked up in the market the other day. Shen Qingqiu hums in response, a soft pleased sound that makes Shen Yuan feel an unexpected burst of fondness for him.

The rest of the time it takes for them to finish their tea is filled with conversation like this. It is idle and peaceful, and Shen Yuan finds that he treasures the moments like these. It has become important to him, somehow, to be able to have a moment with his uncle and his guardian. To be able to make sure that he gets to hear Shen Qingqiu’s stern advice and reserved praise. When had that happened? When had the scum villain become so important to him?

He knew, long ago, that he wanted to save Shen Qingqiu from his fate. That maybe he could make things better for him and the rest of the students if he just tried to make a connection. He knows things are better for Binghe, and he thinks everyone else is happy too—but that’s not the only reason Shen Yuan wants to save Shen Qingqiu.

He’s somehow grown to love this uncle of his.

Maybe that’s why, as they begin to wrap things up, it occurs to Shen Yuan what exactly the upcoming plot point is. Shen Yuan freezes as he’s helping to clear the table, something that catches Shen Qingqiu’s attention because his uncle arches an eyebrow at him.

“Are you okay?” Xun Fu asks, resting a hand on Shen Yuan’s shoulder. Shen Yuan jolts with surprise, and turns his head to face his guardian then back to Shen Qingqiu.

“Y-yeah, of course,” Shen Yuan chokes out. This is an important off-screen plotpoint, how could he forget?! This is the part where Shen Qingqiu kills Liu Qingge, the biggest nail in his coffin when Luo Binghe drags his reputation through the mud in the novel.

He’ll do all he can to try to prevent that from happening in the first place, but—but…

“Jiujiu,” Shen Yuan says, and Shen Qingqiu looks over at him. “Don’t…don’t forget that jiujiu is a good person, okay?”

Shen Qingqiu blinks as if the words have startled him. He supposes they probably have, where did they come from, after all? Still, Shen Yuan blurts them out, desperate for his uncle to understand. To remember it.

Don’t kill him, he thinks to Shen Qingqiu desperately. Please jiujiu, you’re better than that. I know you are.

He can’t say this out loud though, so he only rushes to give Xun Fu a hug. He squeezes his guardian around the waist before pausing to bow in front of Shen Qingqiu and then give him hs own hug.

“This disciple doesn’t want to miss guqin class!” He says, before either adult can call him on his suddenly strange behavior. “I’ll be waiting for you when you come out of seclusion!”

With that, unable to bear the idea of meeting Shen Qingqiu’s eyes at that moment, he flees.

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The Ling Xi Caves are beautiful, but they are damp enough to make the joints on his bad side ache. Ever since Xun Fu’s fateful injury all those years ago it seems like they have worked themselves up in such weather or areas. Thankfully, deep in meditation it is not something noticeable or terribly distracting.

He would have asked Mu Qingfang for some medicinal herbs, but cultivation in areas such as these is best practiced with inedia. He subsists on the qi itself in the air as he builds what little cultivation he can. He doesn’t know that he’ll be able to break through his bottleneck this time around—not without risk for serious qi deviation. He must take it slower than other cultivators, and there are levels of cultivation that he may never reach.

Even the smallest improvements can be the difference between life and death though. So Xun Fu sits in his own section of the caves. He breathes, he cycles his qi the best that he can. On one side, his meridians are fine. Untouched by whatever dark curse the beast that had bitten him had.

The other though, snags. It is not blocked so much as the pathways have been made splintered and jagged. It does not flow right. It can be painful, especially if he forces it. But he is able to teach himself to weave around the jagged edges of his meridians on that side. Xun Fu will make do.

He and Shen Qingqiu had split up when they entered the caves. Xun Fu isn’t entirely certain where the Peak Lord is in the cave system at all—Ling Xi caves is vast enough that he thinks that the entirety of the hallmasters of Qing Jing Peak could cultivate in seclusion at the same time without sharing an area. Xun Fu is fairly certain another is in the caves as well, he remembers the brief flicker of qi when he’d been going to his own cave.

It matters not, in meditation, Xun Fu loses time. He is only barely aware of the world outside of the qi circulating in and around him.

And then a scream shatters the quiet atmosphere. Xun Fu jolts from his meditation, the flow of qi still buzzing in the air around him. He stays quiet for a moment, wondering if what he had heard was merely a trick of the caves itself. The wind or—

Another scream echoes through the caves, and Xun Fu stands. His hand drops to the blade at his side as he walks forward into the darkness.

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Shen Qingqiu has never gotten along with Liu Qingge.

Liu Qingge, you see, stands for too many of the things that have personally injured Shen Qingqiu in the past. A beautiful, noble-blooded young lord who thinks of violence first and foremost. Shen Qingqiu has known his ilk intimately, and there are few things he finds more unpleasant than having to spend any time with him at all. The few missions they spent together were tense, and involved accusations more often than not. Liu Qingge did not trust Shen Qingqiu, he saw Shen Qingqiu as something that would inevitably bite.

And Shen Qingqiu knew how men like Liu Qingge dealt with threats.

Even so, Shen Qingqiu knows that the brute is not the type to outright attack a sect member unprovoked. Even Shen Qingqiu himself. He knows this, but it’s hard to convince himself of it as Cheng Luan sings through the air with the intent to kill him. It’s hard to convince himself that Liu Qingge is not another man entirely, as he bears down on Shen Qingqiu with bullheaded aggressiveness. With the intent to hurt—to kill.

Fear pulses in Shen Qingqiu’s veins in a way that makes him feel ill and furious all at once. He spins around and barely knocks Cheng Luan aside as a shower of sparks lights up the cave around them. Shen Qingqiu hates the rabbit-fast pace of his heart right now. He hates the way that brief light makes his brain flash to a different place entirely. To a room with plush carpet, with a different man with a similar face.

He’s qi deviating, Shen Qingqiu thinks to himself, trying to find a measure of calm. If Liu Qingge were really attacking him in his right mind, Shen Qingqiu would simply be dead already. He hates to admit that, but it’s true—he feels it every time Xiu Ya blocks Cheng Luan from a deadly blow. He sees it in how fast Liu Qingge moves, like a wild animal.

Liu Qingge screams at him again, a hoarse and feral sound. Shen Qingqiu feints right and then runs to the left. He sends a spiritual blast crashing into the side of Liu Qingge’s head as he does—the man takes it head on and just shakes it as though briefly dazed. It would knock anyone else unconscious. Liu Qingge spins too quickly, Cheng Luan sinking deep into the stone mere cun from Shen Qingqiu’s head. His breath catches in his throat—inopportune, as the next moment he feels Liu Qingge’s fist slam into his stomach.

A familiar pain explodes through him, Shen Qingqiu crashes into the stone. Liu Qingge is on him, Cheng Luan forgotten in the wall. The man is raining blows down like a feral beast, and Shen Qingqiu’s heart is tight with a terror he hasn’t felt in years.

He feels trapped.

He feels small.

Shen Qingqiu thinks of a blade on the wall. Of blood pouring down, down, down into the carpet. Of the smell of fire and smoke, of the wide-eyed terror of the women he let go. Of the men that fell to each slash of his stolen blade.

His head buzzes with the memories, like they’re vibrating through his skull. He itches to fight back, a kind of panic that he swore would never descend on him again. Shen Qingqiu charges a massive influx of spiritual energy into his palms. He is not helpless. There is a sword on the wall behind the desk.

Before he can slam his hands into the chest of the man who has him pinned, Liu Qingge’s weight vanishes suddenly. His shidi snarls as he’s thrown off, like a wild animal that has been knocked from his quarry. The spiritual blast intended for Liu Qingge crashes into the ceiling, making the whole cave tremble around them.

“Shen Qingqiu!” Xun Fu yells, “Are you alright!?”

Xun Fu? Shen Qingqiu blinks in bewildered surprise, and then Xun Fu is forced to dodge Liu Qingge’s frenzied attempts to attack him. Shen Qingqiu snaps out of it, surging forward with grit teeth and seething fury roiling through him.

“He’s qi deviating,” Shen Qingqiu spits out, refusing to answer Xun Fu’s question. The man doesn’t comment on it, with two of them here to distract Liu Qingge, the fight has turned to their favor. Liu Qingge is, as mentioned, not in his right mind. He can’t think to fight them, relying on blind instinct in his deviation.

“Stun him for me,” Xun Fu says, and Shen Qingqiu thinks back to that blast he’d intended to hit Liu Qingge with before. The one that he sent into the ceiling—he knows with certainty if that blast had hit, then Liu Qingge would be a dead man. Shen Qingqiu can’t decide if Xun Fu is loyal or stupid that he trusts Shen Qingqiu not to do so this time.

Anyone else stumbling on this scene would think he had taken advantage of the deviation to try to kill Liu Qingge.

Shen Qingqiu doesn’t say this aloud though. Just like he doesn’t answer the man’s question—doesn’t draw attention to his shaking hands and labored breaths. To the taste of blood in his own mouth. Shen Qingqiu is not a child in a locked office with his tormentor anymore. He is a Peak Lord. He has his friend here to help him fight.

He sends a blast of spiritual energy at Liu Qingge’s feet this time. It knocks them from underneath him, sending him crashing to the ground with a snarl. Xun Fu is on top of him in the next moment, pinning him and sending a burst of qi through him. For a moment, Shen Qingqiu worries that the man’s qi has stuttered again and that he’ll be thrown off.

Then, slowly, Liu Qingge stops struggling. The rapid breathing in the room doesn’t fade, not really. Shen Qingqiu slows his own breathing down, trying to shove down the earlier sickly terror that hit him. Trying to push away memories that threaten to choke him like a tide. He thinks of the way the bloody hilt of his sword felt in his hand. He thinks of a boot in his gut. He thinks of being pinned to the carpet, a mouth next to his ear as—

Stop thinking about it, Shen Qingqiu thinks to himself sternly. He is trembling like a badly frightened child. He leans against the wall, his legs want to give out. He feels like something is crawling up his spine. Stop thinking about it. Stop thinking about it. Stop thinking about it.

Slowly, his heartbeat slows. The cave is almost silent except for three people’s breathing. Then, the quiet is broken by a grunted, “Let me up.”

“Ah!” Xun Fu says, scrambling to his feet. He staggers as his bad leg gives. Shen Qingqiu is too far away to catch the other man, and though his face doesn’t change as Xun Fu crashes into the ground he feels his fingers twitch. Even though he’s just fallen, Xun Fu merely grimaces and says, “Sorry—ah. Sorry Peak Lord Liu, are you feeling alright?”

Liu Qingge also does not answer Xun Fu’s question. He merely sits up and locks eyes with Shen Qingqiu. Shen Qingqiu draws himself to his normal height, and sneers, “Done making an embarrassment of yourself shidi?”

“Why are you in here?” Liu Qingge asks, eyes darting from Shen Qingqiu to Xun Fu.

This—this oaf. Shen Qingqiu seethes inwardly at this. He and Xun Fu effectively saved Liu Qingge’s life. He almost got killed sticking his neck out for this stupid shidi of his. And yet, here he is. Looking at them as if he has been caught in some terrible plot.

As if Shen Qingqiu has planned something nefarious that he can’t trust.

“Saving your life, shidi, ” Shen Qingqiu snaps, “You qi deviated, like the utter buffoon that you are. If it weren’t for Xun Fu and I, you probably would have torn yourself to pieces.”

Liu Qingge looks to Xun Fu, “You’re Xun Fu?”

“Yes. I wish we could have met under better circumstances,” Xun Fu says, glancing over at Shen Qingqiu expectantly. As if he wants him to introduce Liu Qingge to him. He almost laughs at the other man for it.

Instead, he turns on his heel.

“Next time you do that, this one won’t even bother,” Shen Qingqiu sneers. Liu Qingge does not respond at all, and Xun Fu only says his name in concern. Shen Qingqiu doesn’t bother looking back. He needs to be somewhere else. Somewhere alone.

Not in this cave, where he almost killed his shidi in a blind panic.

Chapter Text

Liu Qingge is confused.

It isn’t just coming out of a qi deviation that has done that—though that certainly hasn’t helped matters in the slightest—but his utter bewilderment at just how he has been brought out of it. Every bone in his body seems to ache—even his gums and his teeth—but he doesn’t show it as he sits up slowly to adjust his position on the floor of the Ling Xi caves. For a long while, Liu Qingge stares after where his shixiong walked out of the cave.

Everything he knows about Shen Qingqiu says that the man should have taken his moment of vulnerability for the weakness it was and used it in some way. Is that why he helped him? Maybe he intends to blackmail Liu Qinggein someway—his eyes narrow at the thought. That certainly seems more in line with what happened.

He remembers flashes of his deviation—an expression of naked terror on the face of Shen Qingqiu as Liu Qingge madly fought through his qi deviation. He shakes it off though, furrowing his brow and casting a look at the further oddity. The man who was part of Shen Qingqiu’s peak.

Liu Qingge is not the type that has ever had much patience for gossip and rumor. He spends most of his days away from the sect simply because such matters are tedious to him. He’d rather be active in his hunting of demons to know he is helping with his own two hands than dealing with the inner politics of the sect. Even so, Cang Qiong sect has always had its rumors and even when you are away from it as often as Liu Qingge you can’t help but hear about it. He remembers the name Xun Fu—the man who apparently brought Shen Qingqiu his nephew for care.

Who Shen Qingqiu, who looked down on just about everyone, allowed to live on his peak.

Looking Xun Fu over, he doesn’t seem like the sot that belongs on the scholarly peak. Certainly he isn’t delicate looking by any means—though, Liu Qingge knows well enough how deceiving looks can be. He furrows his brow as he stares at the man, trying to puzzle him out. If he’s one of Shen Qingqiu’s peak members—especially if he’s close to the infuriating Peak Lord’s nephew—then surely he is aware of the bad blood between Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge. They don’t exactly make it a secret that, when they have the misfortune of meeting up, the two of them leave angry.

“Why are you still here?” Liu Qingge settles bluntly on after a few moments of silence. Xun Fu’s head pops up from where he’s been looking at his fingers. Liu Qingge’s eyes narrow at what seems to be a wry smile in the darkness.

“Ah—sorry Peak Lord Liu,” Xun Fu says, sounding genuinely apologetic. He holds out his hand toward where Liu Qingge sits, “I won’t be able to get up for quite some time. I… overdid it a bit when trying to make sure you snapped out of that deviation.”

Liu Qingge narrows his eyes—if it weren’t for the darkness of the caves he may have missed it but he realizes he can see tiny sparks of qi dancing around Xun Fu’s fingertips. The man’s hand tenses and spasms as they do, as though they cause him pain. Liu Qingge frowns. Did this man cause himself pain to help him? Why?

All so, what? Shen Qingqiu will have Liu Qingge in his debt?

It feels tame for the perception of Shen Qingqiu that Liu Qingge has built over the years. The man has always been the type to kick you in the teeth when you’re down. He has no illusions as to just how satisfying Shen Qingqiu would find doing such a thing to him would be. He’d expect something more like a permanent crippling of his cultivation.

Not a rescue. Not one of his peak being hurt.

“If it was going to hurt you, why did you help?” Liu Qingge asks bluntly. Xun Fu’s brows raise slightly, and he catches a fleeting expression of amusement on the man’s face. Liu Qingge gestures to the man, “I’ll smooth your qi out, come here.”

“You just had a qi deviation, Peak Lord Liu,” Xun Fu says with that same amusement. Liu Qingge scowls at him but decides that the offer is enough in and of itself. He’ll pay the man back at a later date.

And Shen Qingqiu as well.

The idea makes Liu Qingge want to storm out of the caves and off the mountain. He grits his teeth, but says nothing as he stares into the darkness around them. He should meditate to soothe his meridians after the deviation, but he can’t stop thinking about what just happened. Or the other man sharing the space with him now.

“You should go see Peak Lord Mu,” Xun Fu says, startling Liu Qingge out of his whirling thoughts. Liu Qingge turns to look at him in the darkness, brow furrowing. “You just had a qi deviation, Peak Lord Liu.”

“I know my limits,” Liu Qingge says simply, closing his eyes to at least attempt meditation. 

“You’re not at all worried you’ve damaged your meridians?” Xun Fu asks.

He knows that they’re damaged, but he’s familiar enough with his brute-force method of cultivation to know he can patch it up the right way. Mu Qingfang has long since acquiesced to the fact that Liu Qingge is not the type to show up at his door for a qi deviation like what he just had. He cycles his qi though, before cracking an eye open and saying simply, “I’m fine. Be quiet.”

Xun Fu, for some reason, laughs at that.

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It takes what may be several hours for Xun Fu’s meridians to stop feeling like they’re burning him alive on his injured side. When the pain finally, slowly dulls he can’t help his sigh of relief. It breaks the quiet of the meditation that Liu Qingge sank into before. He wishes the man would get himself checked out, but Xun Fu supposes he can’t push too hard when he himself won’t follow that advice either.

“Peak Lord Liu?” Xun Fu asks quietly. Liu Qingge grunts at him to show he’s heard him. “Apologies for the interruption, would you mind giving me my cane?”

There is a pause where he wonders if Liu Qingge heard him after all, when the other man stands and walks to where Xun Fu’s bamboo cane lies on the stone ground. When he returns to Xun Fu with it in hand, his expression is complicated and confused. Xun Fu isn’t sure what has befuddled him so much. Were they meant to let him just qi deviate alone over here until he died?

He decides not to ask that, actually, somewhat worried about what the answer might be.

“Thanking Peak Lord Liu,” Xun Fu says. He startles when Liu Qingge bends down and helps him to his feet. The man is clearly trying to help, so Xun Fu bites back the pained noise that wants to leak out of his throat at that. His leg almost buckles beneath him—he hadn’t mentally prepared himself for going from hurting and sitting to hurting and standing. For a moment the shift takes his breath away. “Ah.”

“There,” Liu Qingge says. He looks Xun Fu over and his brow furrows again. “You’re hurting again.”

“No! No no, I’m fine,” Xun Fu waves him off with a nervous laugh. Liu Qingge’s brow, if at all possible, seems to furrow even more. Xun Fu’s next laugh is more genuine. What a puzzled man—Xun Fu is starting to think he may be less inclined to socialization than Shen Qingqiu is. He pats him on the shoulder, ignoring the soreness in his side. “Take care of yourself Peak Lord Liu.”

Liu Qingge gives him a somewhat jerky nod, and Xun Fu will take that as a promise to keep an eye on himself. He turns and makes his painstaking way out of the cave, glad that he had thought to bring the cane with him when he first entered the caves at all. At least he didn’t have to ask to be carried over to Shen Qingqiu.

It takes a while, with his qi flickering and sparking the way it painfully does—a feeling that makes him feel nauseous when it goes on for too long—but he manages to figure out the direction that the other man went. Xun Fu knows that Shen Qingqiu has likely had time to calm down after the encounter, but he still wants to check up on him before continuing back to his own part of the cave. So he limps through the darkness until he reaches the mouth of Qingqiu’s own cave.

It is not a pleasant place that Shen Qingqiu has chosen to set up.

Dried blood seems to have stained the walls so thoroughly that he isn’t sure they could ever be cleaned. Gouges rend the stone in impossibly wide arcs—whoever deviated in here, it was far worse than what Liu Qingge had gone through. With a far larger weapon. Xun Fu is distracted for a moment as he looks over the old marks.

“Is there a reason that Xun Fu is interrupting this master’s meditation?” Shen Qingqiu’s cold voice cuts through the air and Xun Fu turns to look at him. Shen Qingqiu is seated on a stone, surrounded on all sides by those echoes of pain. It isn’t as if they don’t exist to the man, it seems almost as though Shen Qingqiu is bolstered by these marks. Xun Fu wants to ask after it, but isn’t sure how to find the words.

“I was worried about you,” he says instead. Shen Qingqiu’s eyes snap open and he glares at him, but Xun Fu knows Shen Qingqiu well enough to know what he is upset about. He only grins at him, “You know me, I worry.”

“More fool you,” Shen Qingqiu sniffs, “This master is fine. He wasn’t injured in that brute’s tantrum.”

“He seemed very confused about everything,” Xun Fu says, and he doesn’t quite hide his amusement. Shen Qingqiu’s eyes cut to him, assessing him as Xun Fu huffs. “You’d think nobody had ever done a decent thing for him before.”

“This master expects that he thought this one would cripple his cultivation,” Shen Qingqiu says coolly. Xun Fu’s smile fades and he blinks at Shen Qingqiu. The man’s face is as difficult to read as ever as he continues, “He thinks the worst of this master. Maybe he thought this master would kill him.”

“Peak Lord Shen wouldn’t do such a thing,” Xun Fu says. Something about that strikes a nerve that he did not expect it to. Shen Qingqiu’s eyes snap to his and narrow dangerously. Xun Fu ignores it, and firmly says. “You wouldn’t.”

“Most would not agree,” Shen Qingqiu responds, and his voice is painfully bitter. The Peak Lord turns around so that he is facing that scarred and brutalized wall. “This master is fine, go back to your cultivation, Xun Fu.”

Xun Fu could take the dismissal as it is. He could leave and cultivate on his own. Instead, he hobbles his way to Shen Qingqiu’s rock. He sinks to the ground next to it, so that his back is to it. Were Shen Qingqiu on the ground, they would be back to back.

“That was a dismissal, Xun Fu,” Shen Qingqiu grinds out.

“I’m ignoring that order because you’re just trying to frighten me off,” Xun Fu points out directly. Shen Qingqiu makes a noise not unlike the one his nephew does when he’s particularly offended.  Xun Fu has to bite back his smile as he adds, “Take pity on me, Shen Qingqiu. I’m in pain and don’t wish to walk back to where I was until it fades.”

“Then stop talking and meditate,” Shen Qingqiu snaps. But he doesn’t attempt to chase Xun Fu off after that, and the two of them cultivate in peaceful silence.

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Try as he might, Luo Binghe struggles to stay wary of Ning Yingying’s knowledge about Shen Yuan. It is true that he still feels some type of way about it—being the only one of their generation that really knew his friend—but something clearly outweighs it. Which is the knowledge that Shen Yuan has that a friend of his does not immediately see him as a monster—someone in the sect was raised to do so, but finding out the truth has not changed her view of him.

Honestly, if anything, Ning Yingying has been almost more protective of Shen Yuan than she had been before. Maybe the weight of the secret has helped her to grow a little, it is honestly hard to say since it has only been a few months since everything happened. Even so, Luo Binghe can’t help but be a little relieved himself.

There is another person who loves Shen Yuan for who he is. What kind of friend would Luo Binghe be if he only stewed in jealousy over such a thing? It wasn’t easy, for sure, but it clearly meant a lot to Shen Yuan and to Ning Yingying as well.

Plus, it meant that he had back-up on certain arguments that he was never able to gain headway with before.

“A-Luo is right A-Shen!” Ning Yingying is saying as the three of them sit in their meadow. It is a chilly day, since the weather has started to turn. Leaves of trees on other peaks have begun to turn color. The bamboo is as green as ever, but the chill in the air heralds the fall in an undeniable way. “Even if A-Luo isn’t cooking, A-Yuan still needs to eat. His demon side gets so grumpy otherwise.”

“It’s not like I forget to do it for fun,” Shen Yuan sighs in protest. “I just don’t think about it when it unless someone reminds me!”

“You almost bit Gong-shixiong,” Ning Yingying says firmly.

“I wouldn’t have eaten him! He was just being annoying!” Shen Yuan squawks.

Was there ever a concern that Shen Yuan would eat Gong Yang? Luo Binghe furrows his brow and leans back so that his back presses to Shen Yuan’s solidly. “This Binghe can try to cook more for A-Yuan.”

“With all the chores the Hallmasters have been dumping on you?” Shen Yuan says, waving him off. “No no, Binghe needn’t trouble himself for this one!”

“At least when Shizun and Master Xun come back they’ll make sure he’s eating at least dinner,” Ning Yingying sighs.

“Hey! I can make sure to eat okay? I just need to figure out a way to set a reminder,” Shen Yuan says before grumbling under his breath. Luo Binghe doesn’t quite catch it, but he looks over his friend’s shoulder in time to catch the fact that he’s playing with his fingers the way he does when nervous. 

“Let this Binghe do it for you,” Luo Binghe says to him. Shen Yuan opens his mouth to deny him and Binghe leans more against his friend, “A-Yuaaaan.”

“Binghe,” Shen Yuan says flatly.

“Let him do it, A-Shen. A-Luo’s favorite thing is to cook for you anyway,” she says, and Luo Binghe feels his face warm up. Shen Yuan, thankfully, doesn’t notice. Ning Yingying clearly does, her eyes dance with mischief and Luo Binghe shakes his head at her.

“Binghe doesn’t like just cooking for me,” Shen Yuan says. Luo Binghe privately disagrees with his friend. He enjoys cooking in general—but his favorite person to cook for is absolutely Shen Yuan. 

Shen Yuan has the best reactions, and lights up every time Luo Binghe brings him food. He is sure that his thin-build is a result of being a demon, as he has met no other person who adores eating Binghe’s cooking in the way that Shen Yuan does. Even their Shizun doesn’t like Luo Binghe’s food that much. It is a delight that Luo Binghe will never get enough of to cook for Shen Yuan in particular.

Luo Binghe thinks that he is really isn’t a very subtle person in his affections. He’s always been the clingy sort—he knows all too well how little he has had and what he must do to hold onto it after all. He will cling to his Shizun and cling to his friend, but he has grown more and more sure that it isn’t just friendship he wants with Shen Yuan. It’s… hard to address. Every time he thinks about it too much—about maybe what it would be like to cook for Shen Yuan every day for the rest of their lives—he gets a fluttery feeling in his stomach. His chest feels a little tight with his affection sometimes. Like something inside of him wants to claw its way out, just to make sure that Shen Yuan knows and will always be loved and protected.

Sometimes it scares him, the depth of that feeling is so intense.

“There you are!” A voice breaks over the group of them, and they all look up with surprise. It’s relaxation hours on the peak right now, so for once they haven’t ducked any chores or anything. Even so, Cui Yanmei strides toward the three of them with her brow furrowed and jaw set. “This one has been looking all over for you three!”

Cui Yanmei, after having aged up, has started to assist with teaching duties with the hallmasters. Mostly, she works with the calligraphy and poetry classes—though Luo Binghe suspects she’d prefer helping Xu-laoshi with sword forms instead. The young woman doesn’t typically have reason to chase the disciples that are their age group though.

That is, at least, a little cleared up when a young girl peeks around Cui Yanmei’s leg at them. Luo Binghe doesn’t often go with his friend to the beast peak, but he has been able to enough times to recognize the little child even if she hadn’t been wearing the indigo robes associated with it. Luo Binghe can’t recall her name off the top of his head. Her eyes are wide and somewhat tearful as she runs from the shelter of Cui Yanmei’s leg to jump into Shen Yuan’s arms before he has a chance to stand. Luo Binghe feels his friend fall back against him and helps to steady him under the surprise weight.

“Oof! Cao-shimei?” Shen Yuan says, and it clicks. Cao Huian, that is her name. She clings to Shen Yuan when he goes over to visit, mostly because Shen Yuan indulges the young girl and allows her to do so. Shen Yuan gently smooths her hair down, “What’s wrong?”

“She came rushing over from Xun Shou Peak begging for you Shen-shidi,” Cui Yanmei says with a sigh. “She started to cry when we said you were off somewhere with your friends. Honestly, what is she doing throwing tantrums at this age?”

“She’s new to the sect and misses home,” Shen Yuan says softly, helping to wipe Cao Huian’s tears. The little girl looks up at him, her lip wobbling as she tries to stop crying. Shen Yuan continues to fuss over her, softly saying. “Isn’t that right Cao-shimei?”

“Did something happen, Cao-shimei?” Luo Binghe asks. The ten-year-old turns wide eyes on him, but only hugs Shen Yuan tighter. Cao Huian has never outright expressed dislike of Luo Binghe, but he’s reasonably certain that the only person she clings to like this is Shen Yuan. The child opens her mouth as if to answer, and then bursts into a fresh set of tears.

“Aw, poor shimei!” Ning Yingying coos at her. “This one is Ning Yingying, it’s okay. A-Shen will help, and we can help too!”

“Thank you Cui-shijie,” Shen Yuan says to their older sect-sibling. The young woman arches a brow at him but Luo Binghe doesn’t miss her fond exasperation before she wipes it off of her face. “We’ll look after Cao-shimei and take her home when she’s calmed down okay?”

“Right, I’ve sent someone to let Chu-shishu know where she’s at just in case anyway,” Cui Yanmei responds. She looks at the young girl one more time, her expression briefly concerned before she seems to decide that she won’t be able to help any more than she has. “Do not forget that you’re expected to copy down Guan Ju for calligraphy class next week!”

“Of course Shijie,” the three of them say, and Cui Yanmei seems to take that as her having done her duty. She walks away, leaving the three older kids with a young girl with tearstained cheeks.

The little girl spends the better part of a shichen weeping into Shen Yuan’s robes. Shen Yuan rubs her back and soothes her with soft words the whole time. As she does, Luo Binghe tries to parse if the child is saying anything. Nothing comes out between the sobs though. All through it, Shen Yuan does not complain or lose patience. He simply holds onto her and calmly talks to her in a cajoling tone. Luo Binghe feels an unexpected burst of intense fondness for him in this moment.

As Cao Huian cries, Ning Yingying gathers some bamboo leaves together. She starts to hum some song under her breath as she starts to make little tears and folds in the leaves. With gentle hands, she creates a tiny rabbit out of the leaves. She gently taps Cao Huian’s shoulder, and the girl peeks over and sniffs when she sees the little figure.

“Would shimei like this?” Ning Yingying says. Cao Huian stares up at her and then up at Shen Yuan before grabbing the small rabbit gently in her hand. She handles it very carefully and Ning Yingying nods, “Good! It’s very fragile, Cao-shimei, so be careful with it.”

“Thank you shijie,” Cao Huian says softly. She wipes her eyes with her free hand and takes in a stuttering breath. “Thank you Shen-shixiong.”

“Of course,” Shen Yuan says to her gently. “Does shimei want to tell this shixiong what happened?”

Cao Huian’s lower lip wobbles, as if she is going to burst into tears all over again. Still, she manages not to as she says in a soft, wet little voice, “Xiao Fu-Fu escaped from his enclosure. Shizun says he’ll have—have—have…”

Her courage seems to falter, her face scrunching up in pain. Shen Yuan’s brow furrows in concern.

“Xiao Fu-fu?” Luo Binghe asks Shen Yuan. He doesn’t go up on the peak as often as his friend, and has honestly not been there in the last several months or so.

“Ah—the Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit they found a few months ago,” Shen Yuan says, he stands up and stoops to lift Cao Huian into his arms like she’s a toddler. The girl does not protest, and it doesn’t seem to bother Shen Yuan in the slightest as he holds her. “Cao Huian’s favorite beast on the peak by far. Do they know how Xiao Fu-fu got out?”

“This disciple doesn’t know,” Cao Huian hiccups. “This disciple tried to find him before the others but—but—”

“If he’s too far down the mountain then Cao-shimei couldn’t follow alone,” Shen Yuan says with a soft sigh. The girl nods, bursting into a fresh bout of tears.

“Maybe we can find it before the beast peak does?” Luo Binghe says after a moment’s pause.

“Oh! With A-Shen we’ll find it in no time! If we can subdue it peacefully, surely they won’t have to kill it?” Ning Yingying says, immediately backing Luo Binghe’s idea.

Cao Huian’s eyes widen and she stares up at Shen Yuan with bright hope, “Can we?”

“...This shixiong may have an idea of how to,” Shen Yuan says after a pause. Cao Huian sobs and throws her arms around Shen Yuan’s neck. Shen Yuan squawks in surprise, but Luo Binghe is there to make sure that his friend isn’t thrown so off balance that he falls.

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Shen Yuan’s hands are eventually freed up as the four of them walk through the thick wooded areas of the mountain. Cao Huian has accepted the helping hand of Ning Yingying, allowing Shen Yuan the opportunity to move through the forest and keep his eyes open for any sign of the creature.

Truthfully, if Chu-shishu is also looking for the creature, there is no guarantee her and Xun Shou’s disciples won’t find it first. He understands their concern, if such a beast is left wandering around then there is a chance that someone could get hurt. Not only that, but it could lose face for Chu-shishu at all if someone does get injured by the escaped beast. He’s sure his martial aunt is beside herself with upset.

What he doesn’t quite understand is how the beast got out. There are few places more secure than Xun Shou Peak in the sect. It smells of something done on purpose, and Shen Yuan has a bad feeling that he knows who may have done so.

Little Cao Huian is not a popular child among the peak. She is looked after well, but she acts much younger than she is and Shen Yuan knows that the other kids tease her for it. Knowing the child’s attachment to the Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit, it is almost certainly one of her bullies that let the creature out. Shen Yuan has no doubt that Chu Qingru will have figured out as much herself, but what his martial aunt will do with the information is beyond Shen Yuan.

The Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit, as its name might suggest, prefers higher elevations. The mountain is perfect for it. But it is also an elusive creature that is more of an ambush predator than anything else. It will likely not be happy with the number of people on the peak and away from the enclosure that it considers its home.

Shen Yuan knows that his shishu and the rest of Xun Shou Peak will know this. They’ll likely expect the beast to be in the forest around Qiong Ding Peak, since that’s the highest elevation. Shen Yuan is hoping he’ll have an edge that they don’t have though.

“Ah, Ning-shijie, do you mind looking over there with Cao-shimei?” Shen Yuan asks, very unsubtly trying to signal to get the girl looking away. Ning Yingying blinks at him for a moment, but then nods and gently tugs the girl into the bushes.

Shen Yuan ducks around his friend and takes a deep breath before he removes his amulet.

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, his tone heavy with worry.

“Just for a moment Binghe,” Shen Yuan says softly, feeling his tail unfurl behind him and his ears perk up. What he is really after is the scent of the lush forest around them heightening. Shen Yuan crouches down close to the ground, letting his mouth drop open so that he can taste the smell of the mountain around them.

Cang Qiong mountain is a living, thriving thing. Even if it is largely devoid of more interesting beasts—apart from Xun Shou Peak of course—there still are other more mundane and undangerous creatures living in the thriving wilds around it. Small mice and rodents that scurry in the undergrowth, delicate footed deer and a variety of birds. Insects, reptiles, mammals, birds—even fish, if they’re close enough to any of the many springs or streams that wind through the mountain.

But underneath all that, under the life that the woods are used to, Shen Yuan parses important scents out of it. The first is a foreign, cold scent that Shen Yuan cannot name as a regular beast. It has a type of wildness to it unlike the forest around them. This, he is sure, is the scent of the Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit.

The second scent is the smell of blood.

Shen Yuan’s heart leaps into his throat, and he makes sure that he has a good idea of their direction. Then, shoving his amulet over his head, he starts to run through the forest with a call of, “This way!”

That smothering, unpleasant shiver of qi that pushes his demonic nature away makes Shen Yuan almost stumble in his run. He doesn’t though, only finds his hand snatched up by Luo Binghe as he darts through the forested area. Shen Yuan squeezes his friend’s hand in his, but he’s keeping his attention to what he can see now that he knows where to look. A spatter of dark, starry liquid on a leaf here. The scrabbling marks of a creature in pain there.

Shen Yuan bursts into a clearing that allows him an uninterrupted view of the sky. The sun has truly begun to set, oranges and golds and red painting the sky above. In the center of the clearing, wild-eyed with animal panic, is a beast that is frozen and staring at him. Ning Yingying and Cao Huian burst out of the trees in the next moment—and it’s then that Shen Yuan realizes that Luo Binghe has had a hold of his hand this entire time.

For some reason, Shen Yuan’s stomach feels like it flips a little at that. Weird! He gently pulls his hand away from Luo Binghe’s and catches Ning Yingying by the shoulder before she approaches too quickly.

“Xiao Fu-fu!” Cao Huian cries out in palpable relief, but Shen Yuan doesn’t let the girl approach.

The beast is, indeed, Xiao Fu-fu. The Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit is a large beast with the upper body of a wolf but hindquarters more resembling a rabbit. The important part, though, is that the head of the animal is undeniably a predator, regardless of the long ears that are flat against its head. Xiao Fu-fu has his teeth bared at them in undeniable warning.

“Cao-shimei, stay back,” Shen Yuan says softly. An injured beast—even one that can be considered somewhat tame—is unpredictable at the best of times. And Xiao Fu-fu is absolutely injured. Even though the beast’s pelt is black, it is easy to see the blood because of the nature of it. A Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit bleeds what look like stars themselves—tiny and glimmering amidst the dark black of the rest of its blood. Shen Yuan slowly creeps forward, ignoring Luo Binghe’s grab for his sleeve.

Xiao Fu-fu bares his teeth, bunching his powerful hindlegs underneath it. Shen Yuan stops approaching, holding his hands up in front of himself before reaching to his side for his practice blade. He carefully undoes it from his belt and then tosses it aside. Xiao Fu-fu’s ears perk up, clearly curious by this move. The Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit is an intelligent beast, Shen Yuan is hoping he can soothe it enough to recognize a friend.

“Cao-shimei,” Shen Yuan says quietly, when Xiao Fu-fu does nothing to approach or flee. He holds a hand out behind him, but doesn’t take his eyes off the beast, “Come here, but very slowly okay?”

The only way he knows that the child listens to him is the steady crunching of undergrowth under her boots. Xiao Fu-fu stands stock-still, its dark eyes fixed on Shen Yuan and then drifting to the girl behind him. Xiao Fu-fu lets out a low whine, lowering itself to the ground.

Shen Yuan lets out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding as the beast creeps slowly forward, eyes on Shen Yuan. Then, seemingly deciding that the less familiar Shen Yuan is not as scary as his need for the human he knows, Xiao Fu-fu rushes forward with a whimper and Cao Huian kneels in time to wrap her arms around the beast’s broad snout. She’s laughably small, but Shen Yuan relaxes with the knowledge that it doesn’t seem like this will escalate into a fight.

“We should get him back to the Peak, but he’ll see us as Cao Huian’s pack and thus not a threat to him,” Shen Yuan says with confidence. “As long as we don’t show her any aggression we’ll be fine.”

“A-Yuan, what would you have done if it didn’t recognize Cao-shimei?” Luo Binghe asks.

“She wouldn’t have been hurt—I would have gotten between him and her before such a thing,” Shen Yuan says. Luo Binghe stares at him in open dismay, “It’s fine! I was pretty sure that Xiao Fu-fu would recognize her and be drawn to her because she’s always taking care of him. He sees her as pack, so she’s safer than the rest of the peak. Plus, we didn’t rush in to attack him.”

“Please don’t put yourself between demons and other people, A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says, sounding somewhat tearful. Aiyah! Binghe! No need to cry about something that didn’t even happen! Shen Yuan attempts to cajole his friend the best he can.

“What could have hurt him?” Ning Yingying asks, and Shen Yuan’s brow furrows.

“This one doesn’t know—anything big enough or dangerous enough should have definitely set off any wards,” Shen Yuan says quietly. He kneels next to Xiao Fu-fu, who does growl lightly since Shen Yuan is on his injured side. However, Cao Huian calms the beast in the next moment by stroking his head tenderly. Shen Yuan eyes the wound in the beast’s side.

A long, deep gash—like a blade.

Disgust washes through him. Shen Yuan’s earlier convictions all the more obvious. He has to talk to Chu Qingru about this.

Chapter Text

Xun Shou Peak has always felt a little bit like a second home to Shen Yuan. It isn’t as peaceful as Qing Jing Peak by any stretch of the imagination, but the cool creatures are by far enough reason to overlook that. Besides, Shen Yuan doesn’t mind a little hustle and bustle. He grew up in Shanghai after all! There’s little more out there that is as busy as his homeworld, and by comparison Xun Shou Peak is…

Well. “Tame” wouldn’t be the right word. It’s more akin to the atmosphere of a particularly lively and hands-on zoo. You don’t walk onto the beast peak with the expectation that you won’t be involved in creature care in some way after you’ve been there at least once. Shen Yuan remembers even Yue Qingyuan one day standing with a bewildered expression while holding a Water Breathing Squirrel Turtle in his arms.

Shen Yuan is not going to address what a rip off that particular creature is. 

As they step onto the peak now, it is a different kind of hectic that greets them. Ning Yingying had managed to cajole Xiao Fu-fu into her arms—he’d been entirely unwilling to be carried by either Luo Binghe or Shen Yuan. Despite carrying an armful of a relatively large mammal, Ning Yingying doesn’t seem at all bothered by the added weight as she looks around. Cao Huian is holding onto her sleeve at the elbow closest to Xiao Fu-fu’s head, the poor beast is staring at her a little pitifully as they step onto the peak proper.

A disciple nearby spots them, their mouth drops open and then they hurry off to presumably tell Chu Qingru or another adult. Cao Huian seems to gain a little more confidence as she steps on the peak, and looks up at Ning Yingying with big eyes, “Shijie, this way.”

“Thank you Cao-shimei,” Ning Yingying says in response. Cao Huian lets go of her sleeve so she can lead the way to Xiao Fu-fu’s enclosure, and Shen Yuan follows after the two of them.

“A-Yuan,” Luo Binghe says to him, quiet enough that Shen Yuan doesn’t think even Ning Yingying can hear him. Shen Yuan glances at his friend, and Luo Binghe does the slightest nod in a direction and Shen Yuan shifts his gaze subtly that way.

Three girls and one boy stand a little further away—older than Shen Yuan or Binghe. One is older even than Ming Fan, he’s pretty sure. They’re taller than the two of them, let alone Cao Huian and Ning Yingying.

They do not look happy at this turn of events. One of them catches Shen Yuan’s eye and he tries to recall her name as she squares her shoulders and stalks toward the two of them. Shen Yuan turns to face her fully and Luo Binghe does as well.

“This one didn’t realize Shen-shidi was part of the search,” the girl says—Ye Ling, that’s her name. She isn’t anything extraordinary—a no-name character that wouldn’t even get a few sentences in PIDW let alone end up in Binghe’s harem. Which means that, ultimately, she’s cannon-fodder like the rest of them. Just off-screen cannon-fodder since she’s a girl and not important to Binghe in any way.

Which means he doesn’t need to worry about offending the future protagonist by not coddling her! In other words, his claws can be unsheathed for this interaction completely.

“Cao-shimei was worried about Xiao Fu-fu,” Shen Yuan says to her, tone clipped and cold the way that his uncle speaks when angry. He can tell it is still effective, despite Ye Ling being a head taller than him. “It seems that she was told that Xiao Fu-fu would be killed when found.”

“The Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit is meant to be killed,” Ye Ling says. She pulls up her sleeve and says, with a sneer, “It bit this Ling while out of its enclosure.”

There are very strict rules to keeping the creatures on Xun Shou Peak. Most of the creatures are demonic in nature after all, and to have any of them in the sect means regulations have to be in place. These are fairly reasonable—creatures that escape enclosures and attack unprovoked are killed. 

Unprovoked being the key word.

“Did it?” Shen Yuan says, glancing at the girl’s arm where it is bandaged. “Couldn’t have been more than a warning nip, if you’re not on Qian Cao.”

The Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit can have a nasty bite when it wants to. Xiao Fu-fu is not fed live prey on the peak since it can rile up most demonic beasts in a terrible way. However, it is a predator after all. They tend to do so after delivering a bite that causes the calcium in bones to effectively start to grow jutting, jagged spears. New bone growths that pierce through muscle and skin until the Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit can feast. It is a brutal, painful way to die and typically a slow death as well, since the Star Piecing Wolf Rabbit is an endurance hunter. It just has to wait until its prey is overtaken by the bone spears after all.

High level cultivators can nullify the effects by cycling their qi in a way that hinders the demonic qi from its purpose. However, at this age she would need to have someone doing that for her. She’s still training, thus nowhere near a high enough level to stop the bone from starting to warp painfully.

“Don’t act like you know more than us,” Ye Ling snaps, and Shen Yuan rolls his eyes. He doesn’t know more than many of the disciples on Xun Shou Peak. He will absolutely guess that he knows more than Ye Ling—who is here by virtue of being the daughter of one of the hallmasters. 

“If you say so shijie, but if it bit you enough to cause pain you should really be with Mu-shishu,” Shen Yuan says to her. “Before you lose the ability to move without pain.”

Ye Ling opens her mouth to say something more, when one of the other girls comes up and shoves Shen Yuan. He squawks with surprise, honestly not expecting an aggressive approach to this stand-off and the only reason he doesn’t fall is because Binghe catches him. What is this, Bai Zhan Peak?! And girl, you’re sixteen years old! What are you doing shoving middle schoolers around huh!?

“Get off of our Peak,” she snarls at him. Shen Yuan doesn’t feel the slightest bit guilty that he doesn’t recall her name. Which means she’s even more cannon-fodder than Ye Ling. Her other friends are closing in on them, “Everyone knows you’re just Shen Qingqiu’s dirty secret!”

Shen Yuan freezes with surprise—surprise at the gall but also surprise because it actually makes his heart lurch and his hands clench into fists. He glares at the girl venomously, and utters a quiet, “What did you just say?”

“We know the rumors,” Ye Ling sneers, smelling blood in the water. “That your mother was a prostitute and that you’re not Shen-shibo’s nephew at all. Everyone knows he dallies in the whorehouses down the mountain—you’re nothing but a mistake that he was forced to rectify before his reputation was totally ruined. Not that bringing you here helped any. Look at you.”

Luo Binghe snaps at that moment—Shen Yuan had been so focused on the girl that he only realizes that his friend had been tensing up like a coiled spring when he lunges at her. His fist meets her stomach in a brutal punch making her double over. Then, the whole group of them is on both Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe.

Shen Yuan jolts as a fist careens for his face. He jerks away but doesn’t manage to move fast enough to avoid a kick to the small of his back. Thankfully, he doesn’t get knocked off his feet and instead resorts to spinning around and slamming his elbow into that person’s sternum. She goes down like a sack of bricks.

Luo Binghe knocks another of the kids down to his left, right as Shen Yuan catches a fist upside his head. It’s a glancing, clumsy blow. This is not a fight of finesse. It really would be a brawl the likes of which are better suited to Bai Zhan Peak, but Bai Zhan might have more control honestly. 

Shen Yuan turns and pounces on the back of a girl who is trying to get up behind Luo Binghe. He kicks her in the back of the knee as she yelps and while she collapses beneath him he doesn’t even mind when he gets a boot between the ribs. The kick is hard though, hard enough to knock him off of her so that he’s forced to try to roll to his feet.

Then, something cuts through the brawl that makes his blood freeze in his veins. The soft hiss of metal leaving a sheathe. Shen Yuan stills as a blade is pointed directly at his throat, and Luo Binghe makes a strangled noise of panic nearby. He can see his friend pinned by the boy and the only girl who seems to not be knocked down at the moment. Shen Yuan looks up and meets Ye Ling’s furious gaze. She’s seething with anger.

“Did Shijie know,” Shen Yuan says breathlessly, “That it’s a relatively easy matter to see which spiritual blade cut a creature? You attacked Xiao Fu-fu, you knew he wouldn’t really hurt you if he bit you. He’s too tame, too friendly with the disciples. So you hurt him and he gave you a warning nip after you let him out. You hoped that him being killed would hide any previous wounds on him right? All for what, shijie? To bully a little girl?”

“You’re awfully bold, for someone at the end of a sword,” Ye Ling says.

“What, are you going to murder me?” Shen Yuan snaps in response. Ye Ling’s eyes narrow at him, but he’s not as afraid as he is annoyed. “Don’t be stupid.”

“Unfortunately, it is too late for that,” the flat tone of Chu Qingru cuts through the tension so effectively that Shen Yuan is afraid that Ye Ling is going to drop the sword on his throat. Ye Ling jolts up, her eyes going wide as Chu Qingru approaches the group and she hurriedly pulls the sword away and sheathes it. Her eyes don’t quite meet those of the students standing before her, but it only serves to make it look as if they aren’t worth her time.

“Shizun!” Ye Ling says tearfully, “Shen-shidi and his friend attacked us out of nowhere!”

Chu Qingru glances at Luo Binghe and then Shen Yuan. Then she looks over the group and says flatly, “They attacked a group that outnumbered them on their own peak, yet none of your other peakmates decided to assist?”

Shen Yuan realizes that there are disciples staring in shock at the group. He tries not to feel a little stung that nobody jumped in to help Luo Binghe or himself, but at least they didn’t join Ye Ling’s group in the beatdown he supposes. He wipes at the blood on his spit lip and glances over at Chu Qingru.

“We will consult Wei Qingwei regarding the sword and whether it has cut the Star Piercing Wolf Rabbit,” Chu Qingru says. “You will, however, give it to me. Now.”

“But—but Shizun,” Ye Ling says, her eyes filling with tears.

“This is the obvious outcome of your folly. Now Ye Ling,” Chu Qingru says, placing emphasis on the word in a manner she rarely ever does. Ye Ling winces and hands the sword over. Chu Qingru watches her coldly as she takes the weapon, “All of you involved in the fight will be mucking the stalls and running forty laps every morning. Except for Ye Ling. You will be reporting to your father and asking him to arrange accommodations for you out of the sect.”

“Wh—what!?” Ye Ling shouts, “You can’t! Shizun, you can’t banish me from the sect!”

“You pulled a deadly weapon on your martial sibling and held it to his throat—this was not a spar, this was a fight. If you pull a weapon like that during a fight, it is with an intent that this master finds abhorrently distasteful,” Chu Qingru says coldly. “Even if you haven’t attacked the Star Piercing Rabbit Wolf you are not allowed on this peak, and this Peak Lord would be surprised if Zhangmen-shixiong allowed you to stay after learning of this incident.”

It goes without saying that it may have been better for Ye Ling if she’d pulled her sword on someone else—that it was Shen Yuan she drew on is especially bad for her. Yue Qingyuan is famously indulgent of Shen Yuan’s uncle, who is fiercely protective of Shen Yuan himself. She must be going through a similar train of thought, her face reddening first and then growing pale.

“Shizun, please!” Ye Ling begs.

“This Chu thinks she is rather lenient,” Chu Qingru says coldly. “There are worse punishments than leaving our sect.”

This is undeniably true. All things considered, this is leniency. Chu Qingru could have her taken before Yue Qingyuan to mete out punishment instead—considering how he favors Shen Yuan’s uncle he doesn’t think the man would be nearly as kind. Ye Ling freezes as she seems to consider this and stares up at Chu Qingru for a few more moments. Then, with a sob she turns on her heel and runs away. Presumably toward where her father is on the mountain. When some of her friends move to follow Chu Qingru clears her throat and points off toward the stairs.

“No, run your laps,” she says. The disciples don’t complain, hurrying down the stairs. The girl that Shen Yuan kicked in the back of the knee limps a little as she goes, and he savagely hopes that she’s not just doing it for show. After they leave, Chu Qingru heaves a tired sigh, “Are Shen-shizhi and Luo-shizhi alright?”

Shen Yuan feels like he’s going to have several bruises when he gets up tomorrow and he knows he’s probably got a black eye along with his lip being split somewhere along the way. Even so, he clears his throat and says, “This one is okay.”

“This disciple is alright as well,” Luo Binghe says, though his friend sounds anxious and worried. Shen Yuan feels exhausted after this whole thing.

“This master hears you peacefully captured Xiao Fu-fu and returned him to the peak?” Chu Qingru says. Something about the way that she says “Xiao Fu-fu” so seriously makes Shen Yuan have to bite back the urge to smile. He looks up at his shishu and offers her a wobbly little smile. 

“Yes Chu-shishu,” Shen Yuan says. “Ning-shijie took Cao-shimei to put him back in the enclosure, but he was wounded. This Shen suspects that Ye-shi—that Ye Ling may have maliciously engineered the situation.”

“Why do such a thing?” Chu Qingru asks.

Shen Yuan shakes his head, “This one cannot say for certain, but he thinks she… was simply wanting to be cruel to Cao-shimei.”

Chu Qingru stares in the direction of Xiao Fu-fu’s enclosure. Her expression is hard to read, and she starts to run her fingers anxiously through her wild hair after a moment with a heavy sigh. 

“This master will do what she can to ensure this does not happen again,” Chu Qingru finally says, tugging gently at her hair and briefly looking Shen Yuan in the face. Her eyes don’t linger, instead flitting away to where Ning Yingying and Cao-shimei have re-entered the scene.

“Shen-shidi, A-Luo!” Ning Yingying exclaims before Shen Yuan can think of the right way to tell his martial aunt this in a delicate way. She hurries over to them with a concerned noise, “What happened!?”

“Some of Cao-shimei’s bullies got a little angry with us,” Luo Binghe says to her. “We’re okay.”

“Okay!? Look at you both!” Ning Yingying exclaims.

“Binghe is right shijie, it’s okay,” Shen Yuan soothes.

“Thanking disciples Luo, Ning and Shen for their time,” Chu Qingru says quietly. She gently touches Shen Yuan on top of his head with one finger, but that seems to be all she can bear. “This master would enjoy spending time with the three of them, but sadly it is growing late. You should go back to Qing Jing.”

For a moment she hesitates, looking them over more closely before nodding and gesturing with her hands in a shooing motion.

“Yes shishu,” the three of them intone, before scurrying on their way to do just that.

The three of them are quiet as they start their walk down the stairs. Shen Yuan lapses into quiet thinking. Why is he even so bothered by that!? Even if Shen Qingqiu was his father, it’d be fine and kids would still be stupid kids just shooting off their mouths.

But he knows that half of the issue is the idea that they might be using him against Shen Qingqiu in the future. That Shen Yuan may become kindling for the fire started under his uncle’s reputation. They see his mother as someone dirty or lesser, they see his uncle as that too. He knows Shen Qingqiu isn’t popular, hell he knows why he isn’t. But that’s what that was about. It’s about the fact that, despite Shen Yuan never really doing anything to make waves or bother people on Xun Shou Peak, there are people who hate him. It’s about—

“A-Yuan?” Luo Binghe’s voice startles Shen Yuan out of his spiraling thoughts. “Are you okay?”

“I—yeah,” Shen Yuan says, voice tight.

“Those disciples,” Luo Binghe says, his own voice has a dark edge of anger that surprises Shen Yuan, “This Binghe will make them regret what they said today.”

Whoa protagonist! You’re still in your White Lotus phase!

“It’s really alright Binghe,” Shen Yuan says with a forced laugh. He assumes that Binghe thinks he’s upset about the insinuation that Shen Yuan isn’t a good disciple for the peak. He can’t really explain that the real reason he’s upset is that he hates the idea that Binghe may be able to use this very same rumor to turn people against Shen Qingqiu.

His Binghe wouldn’t do that—but the blackened protagonist…

“They suggested you were worthless,” Luo Binghe almost spits. He turns furious eyes up to Ning Yingying’s wide ones. “This Binghe will never forgive them.”

Shen Yuan huffs despite himself. Binghe, it’s far too early for you to be making dark promises like this! Instead, he reaches up to gently pat the top of his friend’s fluffy head.

“I’ll just stay away from Xun Shou Peak for a bit,” Shen Yuan says, though it pains him to do so. Luo Binghe’s brows furrow as he looks ready to protest. Shen Yuan suddenly desperately wants to talk to someone who will understand why he was really upset about that rumor though. Not chase his tail in a disagreement with Binghe, “But Binghe can do what he wishes. Ah! I just remembered, I meant to go ask Shang-shishu some questions about the next library shipment.”

“We can come with you tomorrow if you want A-Shen,” Ning Yingying chimes, smiling brightly at him. Shen Yuan quickly waves her off.

“No no, I want to make sure to catch him before he’s too busy and the evening is probably the best time for that,” Shen Yuan says. Luo Binghe is turning slightly toward him, as though intending to follow so Shen Yuan adds hastily, “Binghe and Ning-shijie should go back now! I’ll be fine and catch up later.”

Before Binghe can protest, Shen Yuan turns and starts a jog down the stairs to the next rainbow bridge. He thinks he might hear his name, but he ignores it in favor of shoving his hands in his pockets and hurrying along.

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By the time Shen Yuan reaches An Ding Peak, the first stars are starting to peek through the darkness above him. The hustle and bustle of An Ding is much less chaotic at this time. He sees huddled groups of sleepy disciples walking in groups to-and-fro. Finishing their personal business before the end of the day for them, he assumes. Technically he won’t make it back to his own peak before curfew, but he’ll just get Airplane to write him a note.

He doesn’t knock when he gets to the Leisure House—there are lit lanterns so Airplane can’t be far. Still, he realizes quickly that Shang Qinghua isn’t present at the moment. Shen Yuan grumbles under his breath at the realization but still picks up the hack author’s teapot from nearby. He’s not as good at preparing tea as Binghe, but it’ll be passable enough for Airplane.

He heads into the side chambers that serve as a kitchenette—it takes an absurd amount of maneuvering. There’s a veritable maze of paperwork and Shen Yuan has to try not to knock stacks over as he makes his way through it. He tries to think as he sets the tea to brewing though.

Shen Yuan is reasonably certain that the rumor spewed at him before is not just on Xun Shou Peak. That is a problem, he doesn’t want to be a weapon used against his uncle in any way. This doesn’t even factor in what would happen with said rumors if it is ever revealed that Shen Yuan is half-demon. What a headache.

Airplane might have ideas though. Or at least he can bounce them off of his fellow transmigrator without tiptoeing around the matter. That alone is a huge relief. Maybe he can talk to him about the incoming demon invasion too! Shen Yuan isn’t quite sure how that is going to play out.

【 Reminding user! Luo Binghe must fight in the invasion arc to best satisfy readers! 10,000 B-Points will be deducted if he does not! 】

Thanks for the reminder, Shen Yuan thinks sarcastically. He pauses. System, how many points does this one have?

【 Answering user! He has 200 B-Points, 4,000 C-points and 10,000 Satisfaction Points! Keep up the good work! 】

Hold on! I have way, way more than 200 B-Points for sure! Shen Yuan protests. It’s been years! I haven’t done that badly!

【 User’s B-Points were on loan due to previous purchase. B-Points that user earned went to pay off the loan that this generous System provided! 】

Shen Yuan slams his hands on the countertop, pointing at that screen. “Listen here you little shit—I have never, never purchased anything from your stupid store that would put me in that much debt—hold on. If you can have loans can I not do so again and avoid the Endless Abyss plotline?”

【 Incorrect. A one-time loan was issued to the user to prevent account termination, user is unable to request any further loans. 】

“That’s bullshit! I haven’t—” Shen Yuan cuts himself off when a sudden, intense chill sweeps through the Leisure House. Mist curls in front of his mouth, and he feels the hair on the back of his neck prickle and raise. He spins on his heel, and comes face to face with a massive, hulking man.

Not just a man, but a demon. If the icy chill wasn’t key enough, the pale blue eyes and massive frame would seal the deal. This is Mobei-Jun, the very demon that Shang Qinghua works for. The future right-hand man of a fully realized Luo Binghe.

For a tense moment the two of them stare at one another without moving. Then, without even the slightest flicker of emotion, Mobei-Jun steps toward Shen Yuan with a purpose that makes his stomach drop.

Aw fuck.

Chapter Text

There is a second of complete silence before all hell breaks loose.

Shen Yuan moves first—a dart for the window, the wild animal instinct to run, run, run from an animal much more deadly than himself. Before he manages it though, he is snagged by the collar of his robes by a massive hand. A chill races up his spine, and he reaches into his sleeve to pull out a talisman at the same moment that the chain of Shen Yuan’s amulet snaps as Mobei-Jun forcefully pulls it from his neck.

Something in Shen Yuan snaps with the sound of that.

It’s like his demonic features come out in a rush of fury—like all the shit that he has put up with the entire day suddenly reaches a fever pitch inside of him. The fact that a girl tried to kill an innocent animal to be cruel to a child she didn’t understand. That all those kids jumped him. That his uncle’s reputation is being smeared because Shen Yuan fucking exists in this world. That he had a fucking blade held to his throat. And through it all, he has been helpless. Backed into a corner where he couldn’t even scratch in warning to protect himself.

Some part of him registers that this is unreasonable, and an unusual reaction for him to the situation. Mobei-Jun certainly isn’t the cause of this, for one thing, and for another—well. Frankly. It’s stupid to attack him like this. He can’t win against Mobei-Jun. He doesn’t care. It barely reaches him through the haze of sudden feverish anger though. It’s worse than anything he’s felt before, curdles in his gut like venom and suddenly he wants to sink his claws and teeth into whatever he can.

The only thing he can do that to is Mobei-Jun. He twists in the man’s grip, claws sinking into his hand and a loud caterwaul tearing out of his throat with such force that it hurts to scream it. Mobei-Jun doesn’t even grunt—doesn’t even budge under the onslaught of Shen Yuan’s sudden, unbelievable tide of outrage. Those cold blue eyes merely flick to him briefly, as if he is an afterthought.

It just makes Shen Yuan angrier. Makes him sink his teeth into the meat of Mobei-Jun’s hand and bite until he tastes chilling iron—the blood in his mouth is so cold it hurts but he only growls as he tries to shred the hand he’s clinging to. He isn’t even sure if Mobei-Jun is holding him up anymore, only that he’s fighting, tearing into the demon like his life depends on it.

His life does depend on it right?

Maybe it doesn’t—maybe it’s the opposite. He just knows that all that is in him is the intense need to do something with this explosion of anger. He can’t let it fester in himself, can’t spit it out in a tirade. The only way to fix it, really fix it, is to tear into something like an animal. A beast.

“M-my King!” Shang Qinghua’s shrill voice makes Shen Yuan’s head snap up. The man is standing, pale-faced in the doorway to his kitchen. “Th—wh—Cucu—-shizhi? What are you doing!?”

For a wild moment, Shen Yuan tenses, uncertain if he should consider his fellow transmigrator an ally in this situation or not. Is he going to need to fight him too? It is a moment too long, a moment that causes a pause in his frenzy, and Mobei-Jun uses it with brutal efficiency. He twists Shen Yuan down easily, slamming him to the floor and pinning him with one hand like he’s nothing. Rage boils through Shen Yuan, he tries to twist around to bite the other demon, but Mobei-Jun has him effectively pinned now. He can’t move.

“This is the half-demon you mentioned in your report,” Mobei-Jun says. Shen Yuan barely registers the words, he’s too busy sinking claws into the floor and trying to claw his way from under Mobei-Jun’s grip. His claws scream with pain as he tears at it.

“Y-yes my King! But he’s—ah, he shouldn’t—he isn’t a problem,” Shang Qinghua is babbling. He lets out a high, anxious laugh and adds, “He usually isn’t like this.”

Shen Yuan hisses, another loud, garbled caterwaul tearing out of his throat. He sees Shang Qinghua flinch at the noise out of the corner of his eye, but is too focused on trying to twist his body around to bite Mobei-Jun again to pay attention.

“Fix it then,” Mobei-Jun says. 

Shen Yuan isn’t sure what Shang Qinghua’s response to the words is at first. Only that the other transmigrator is suddenly crouched in front of him and slapping a talisman right between Shen Yuan’s eyes. Then, before he can snap at Shang Qinghua’s fingers for the sin of touching him in his incensed state, a spark of qi sends a jolt through his body. It’s not quite painful, not really. It feels a little like what he imagines it might be like if you could just infuse an energy drink into your body or something.

Then, the opposite occurs. Shen Yuan feels his brain come to a grinding halt and—for the first time since the amulet had been torn from his neck—he falls completely still under Mobei-Jun’s hand. His heart is still racing, and his ears are buzzing in a strange way, but his mind is clear and—

Holy fucking shit.

Did he just attack Mobei-Jun as if he could one v one him in Shang Qinghua’s fucking leisure house!? What the fuck!? Shen Yuan is suddenly acutely aware of how futile that frenzied attack of his had been. Mobei-Jun could kill him with barely a hint of effort.

“My King, please don’t kill him,” Shang Qinghua simpers, as if reading Shen Yuan’s mind. Shen Yuan tries to glance at the protagonist’s future right-hand man. Mobei-Jun’s face is difficult to see from his position on the floor. He’s not sure it would do much to help if he could see him though. “He really isn’t a problem, I promise.”

Mobei-Jun does not reply with words, instead he slowly lifts his hand off of Shen Yuan’s back. Shen Yuan scrambles to his feet and instinctively darts for the safest place in the room—or at least what clearly his stupid cat-brain thinks is safe. Which is behind Shang Qinghua. His face burns with the realization, especially when he hears the other transmigrator snicker at him.

This is serious, you stupid hack author!

“Thanking my King,” Shang Qinghua says after clearing his throat.

For a long moment, silence stretches between the three of them. Shang Qinghua shifts anxiously from one foot to the other, and Shen Yuan twitches his ears. He glances up at him, so he misses when Mobei-Jun finally speaks, “How often do you wear this?”

For a moment, Shen Yuan thinks he must be speaking with Shang Qinghua for some reason. Then he snaps his attention to the demon prince to see that he is holding the amulet aloft once more, his eyes narrowed. It’s difficult to say what his expression means, but it’s the most that Shen Yuan has seen on his face since meeting him. 

“This one has to wear it, or they’ll figure out what he is,” Shen Yuan says carefully, narrowing his own eyes.

“They” would, of course, be the cultivators on this mountain. Mobei-Jun’s eyes lock on Shen Yuan’s, and Shen Yuan can’t help but look away after only a few seconds. Too intense! This guy is way too serious, how does Airplane get through a conversation with this guy without being torn to pieces!?

“How often do you wear this?” Mobei-Jun repeats his earlier question, clearly not finding Shen Yuan’s explanation satisfactory.

“I—this one wears it pretty much all the time,” he says with a shrug. The demon prince’s eyes narrow at him, and he adds, “This one removes it when he can, but only for short periods of time.”

“You should destroy it,” Mobei-Jun says. Shen Yuan makes a panicked noise and lunges from behind Shang Qinghua to reach for it. Mobei-Jun only raises it out of his reach, “It caused your deviation a moment ago. It is unbalancing your demonic qi. It will get worse.”

“I need it, or I’ll be dead meat here!” Shen Yuan says. Mobei-Jun drops the amulet and Shen Yuan catches it between his palms, and feels something settle within him. The chain is still broken though, he gives Mobei-Jun a glare, despite himself.

“My King, shizhi’s parents made the amulet specifically for him though,” Shang Qinghua explains. Shen Yuan backs quickly away from the ice demon as Airplane distracts him with his words. “Plus, his mother was known for being particularly good at arrays and talismans. Surely she wouldn’t mess something like that up?”

“It would be harmless, if it was not used every day,” Mobei-Jun simply says. He steps toward Shen Yuan, who clutches the amulet close to his chest and frowns up at the massive man. Ridiculously tall, really. Why does the guy need to be the size of a skyscraper, Airplane!? “Look closely at it. There are cracks forming.”

Shen Yuan blinks, and looks at the amulet. Admittedly, he doesn’t do so often. He wears it so much that it just feels commonplace around his neck. He doesn’t really have a reason to pull it off and look at it all the time.

Mobei-Jun isn’t lying though. Looking closely, he can see very faint cracks through the finer parts of the amulet. One spreads from the corner of one of the little cat’s eyes. He very gently runs the pad of his thumb over it, the crack is so small the texture doesn’t have any difference to it. But it is there, undeniably. His failsafe is starting to deteriorate.

It isn’t quite panic that grips him, or even really worry—a strange, aching sorrow sinks into his chest. He swallows thickly, suddenly feeling like his throat is going to close up. He hugs the amulet to his chest, trying to fight the sudden heavy feeling that makes it feel hard to breathe with a deep breath.

When had this little thing become so precious to him?

“Learn to hide your qi without the amulet, or it will be destroyed the more disregulated your qi becomes. Your next frenzy will be worse,” Mobei-Jun says bluntly, eyes cold.

“Maybe my King could teach him!” Shang Qinghua says suddenly, and Shen Yuan snaps his eyes to Shang Qinghua with open disbelief on his face. He isn’t sure if Mobei-Jun can emote enough to show a similar expression, but Shang Qinghua acts as if he does. “My King, it would be perfect! This way, you can ensure that shizhi here has no reason to sabotage our plans—he’ll be invested by his tie to you!”

…What the ever loving fuck Airplane!? What kind of shady thinking is that!? Indebt this literal child to your so-called-king (who is actually a prince by the way) so that he won’t unveil your plans!? As if Shen Yuan was going to spoil that plotpoint in the first place! The System would have killed him for it!

“Demon training is different than what humans do,” Mobei-Jun says, but it is not a no and Shang Qinghua presses that.

“Right, right, and isn’t that exactly the problem? We lowly humans have coddled him too much, and now his nature is being suppressed improperly and breaking through! If he goes feral and kills someone on the peaks, everyone will be on guard and looking at all of the peaks too closely. It’s much too risky, my King, we must find him a teacher ourselves,” Shang Qinghua says so rapidly that Shen Yuan isn’t sure if much of what he said has any punctuation. Breathe Airplane! Also, he doesn’t need a demon teacher! He barely has enough free time as it is.

“One week, every month,” Mobei-Jun says, startling Shen Yuan. He thinks Airplane might also be surprised, actually. If the way that the man has gone completely still is anything to go by that is. “You will be here, I will take you to the North. You will train. It will not be easy.”

“I—I can’t just disappear for a week every month! My uncle will notice, and I have other classes and—” Shen Yuan is cut off by those cold, blue eyes focusing on him. He closes his mouth, and nods. He is tangentially aware that Shang Qinghua is also nodding in tandem with him. “Right—ah. Right. Okay.”

“Get out,” Mobei-Jun says, and Shen Yuan decides not to push his luck any more than he already has. He hurries to the door, reaching up to pull his ribbon out of his hair to serve as a new way to keep the amulet on. He has to use his teeth to pull it through, but he puts it back on and feels that familiar itch settle over his skin.

He casts one look over his shoulder to see Mobei-Jun and Shang Qinghua looking at him. Shang Qinghua looks nervous again, but gestures for Shen Yuan to leave. Mobei-Jun does nothing but stare. Shen Yuan opens the door and shuts it behind him. The Peak is properly dark, and as he leans against the door he finds himself reeling.

What? The fuck just happened?

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It’s late by the time he finally gets back up Qing Jing Peak. Everything in him aches in a way that reminds him of the flu and being ill. He hasn’t been properly sick since coming to this world, but he supposes he did just have a qi deviation just now. Which he’s still trying to process himself.

Shang Qinghua had mentioned him being a liability—said that Shen Yuan might attack someone and hurt them. Surely Shen Yuan wouldn’t actually do that… right?

【 Answering User: Qi deviations have a variety of presentations from harmless to deadly. A type that is not uncommon is aggression or violence—this type of deviation may be more common with User due to User’s demonic qi! Be sure to practice your cultivation safely to avoid hazards to yourself or characters around you! 】

Shen Yuan rubs his temples with an exhausted sigh. Fantastic. Great. Now he has to worry about going feral and killing an innocent bystander. Or worse, one of his friends. The idea makes his stomach swoop uncomfortably. He really is too tired to be thinking about this kind of thing. All he wants to do is go to sleep.

This has been an awful, awful day. He wonders if Binghe is still asleep. He hopes not, even though he doesn’t know how much he can talk to his friend about… everything today. He can’t really spoil the plot of the book, but the idea of going back to their dorm to find that Binghe isn’t awake makes his chest hurt.

“A-Yuan?” As if to defy the mere thought, it is Binghe’s voice that startles Shen Yuan out of the idea. Luo Binghe steps forward, and Shen Yuan wonders how long his friend had been there. He hadn’t even noticed him, usually he has better senses than that. “Are you okay?”

No, Shen Yuan thinks, but he knows he can’t say that. If he says it, Binghe will ask, and he can’t very well explain that can he? So he opens his mouth to lie and nothing comes out but a shaky exhale.

“I just had a qi deviation,” Shen Yuan ends up croaking, because it’s the only thing that he can pull out of that situation he was just in. Luo Binghe jolts forward with a sound of alarm, gently grabbing his wrist and feeding a tentative tendril of qi into his meridians. Shen Yuan’s shoulders relax almost immediately as he feels as though he has stepped into warm sunlight. “I’m okay Binghe just—just tired.”

“Did A-Yuan go to see Mu-shishu?” Luo Binghe asks fretfully.

Shen Yuan shakes his head and softly says, “It was the demonic part.”

For some reason his voice breaks and he can’t explain why. It isn’t that he dislikes what he is—that would be silly. He can turn into a dope cat monster, what isn’t cool about shit like that? He’s the only other half-demon that Binghe can know! But…

But the closest thing to not being in control of himself that he got before tonight was when he’d get hungry or a harmless instinct would distract him. Nothing like the feral anger that swept through him before. Nothing at all like that. That scares him.

“Did—do we need to go?” Luo Binghe asks, and his fingers are still gentle despite the serious look on Shen Yuan’s face. “This one can leave a message for Shizun to find us later, but if we need to leave now then we will go.”

“Wh—oh, no. It’s fine, nobody’s chasing me out or going to try to kill me,” Shen Yuan gives Binghe a strained smile. “We don’t have to leave.”

“Is A-Yuan sure?” Luo Binghe says softly, “This one won’t hesitate, we can leave if A-Yuan needs to.”

Suddenly, Shen Yuan is aware that Binghe would leave for him. He’d leave Cang Qiong Sect entirely, all for Shen Yuan. The sect where he is making a name for himself, fulfilling a dream left to him by the woman that raised him. A dream fostered by Xun Fu even. A dream that Binghe is thriving in. 

A watery laugh gusts out of him, and he can’t help but to take Luo Binghe’s face between his hands. His friend falls very still, as if even breathing is something he is nervous to do, but Shen Yuan doesn’t let go. Just squishes his cheeks gently between his hands and stares at his dearest friend with a warmth that he can’t help.

“Binghe, we can’t run away,” Shen Yuan says fondly. Luo Binghe’s eyes are wide and warm, and Shen Yuan’s heart feels unbearably full of affection for the young boy. He doesn’t know what he’d do without him. “I want to stay here with my uncle a little longer at least.”

“Only a little longer?” Luo Binghe says breathlessly, and one of his hands gently covers Shen Yuan’s. His friend leans into Shen Yuan’s palm, like a dog relishing in a good pet. “When we’re older, will A-Yuan run away with this Binghe?”

When they’re older, Binghe will have bigger and better things to do. When they’re older, Binghe will probably want to kill Shen Qingqiu, and Shen Yuan doesn’t know how he is going to deal with that. His friend will be an emperor, and Shen Yuan will be the childhood friend who Luo Binghe hopefully still views in a positive light, but he won’t be in the main part of the story. He’ll take a step back as soon as Binghe starts to gather his harem properly, after all.

Inexplicably, his chest hurts again.

“If Binghe still wants to run away when we’re older then sure,” Shen Yuan huffs at him. Luo Binghe’s fingers gently squeeze around Shen Yuan’s hand, and for a reason that Shen Yuan can’t define, he suddenly feels a little flustered. He’s about to drop his hands, when a sharp voice cuts through the moment.

“Trysts past curfew, do you plan to shame Qing Jing Peak?” The bright light of a night pearl makes Shen Yuan wince and he yanks his hands away from Luo Binghe as if burned. He catches that Luo Binghe’s expression darkens a bit, but is too busy turning to face an amused Cui Yanmei. Though her tone might be reproachful, her eyes look delighted more than anything. Shen Yuan sputters at the accusation, “You two are meant to be in bed, what in heavens are you doing meeting up out here after hours? Wait, don’t you both room together?”

“Tr—tryst!? Huh?” Shen Yuan sputters, surprised at her choice of words. Cui Yanmei what books have you been reading lately!? Shen Yuan and Luo Binghe are two young men, very young men actually. Luo Binghe wouldn’t even have any real sort of romantic experience until after the invasion, and he wouldn’t kiss Ning Yingying until he was sixteen and why on earth does his stomach hurt? Aaah!

“A-Yuan had a delivery to make to An Ding,” Luo Binghe explains before Shen Yuan can manage to organize the words. “This disciple wanted to wait for him before he returned.”

“Does disciple Shen have a note?” Cui Yanmei asks, arching a brow at him. Her eyes are still gleaming with amusement. Shen Yuan doesn’t know why she looks like that—like she has discovered some particularly delightful secret out. “Nevermind, nevermind. This one won’t bother the two of you anymore. But get to bed, the both of you. If Mo Yaoting finds the two of you instead he’ll make sure every hallmaster knows before dawn and your uncle will make sure you can’t room together.”

Why wouldn’t they be able to room together? Surely Shen Qingqiu wouldn’t be that unreasonable for Shen Yuan breaking curfew. He has grown to know his uncle fairly well at this point, and even if he doesn’t like Binghe he wouldn’t do such a thing to Shen Yuan… right? Not for just breaking curfew anyway…

The threat seems real enough to Binghe though, because his friend is tugging him along with haste after that. Luo Binghe’s face is so serious, his brows creased with concern, that Shen Yuan bursts into laughter despite himself. It isn’t quiet, and Luo Binghe gives him an alarmed look so Shen Yuan is forced to smother it behind his palm.

“Binghe is that worried?” Shen Yuan asks, amused, “Surely Cui-shijie was just kidding.”

“Mo-shixiong is very self-serving,” Luo Binghe tells him, very uncharitably. Poor Mo Yaoting… probably deserves it though. He’s a little materialistic after all. Shen Yuan huffs a laugh despite himself, but he’s quieter this time.

“Jiujiu wouldn’t dare,” Shen Yuan says. “Besides, nothing can defeat Binghe’s stickiness. Even if we didn’t room together, this one would wake up to find Binghe squeezed into bed with him anyway.”

They’re really too old to be doing that anymore, but Shen Yuan doesn’t have the heart to kick Binghe out. Back in his previous life, his sister would often squeeze her way into Shen Yuan’s bed too. Shen Yuan had kicked her out once, being a teenager who wanted some free time to himself (and truthfully better sleep). Then he’d overheard his housekeeping staff gossiping about his mei-mei having a nightmare. 

Shen Yuan felt so terrible that he let her cuddle up with him until she was five or so. Binghe was much older than five, of course, but he had grown up sharing a space with Song Jia. As two people with relatively little to their name, much of Binghe’s childhood had been spent sharing a bed with his mother. Shen Yuan himself had sometimes squeezed in with them, the three squished together for warmth. It was much better with Xun Fu’s funds to help them, but winters were still cold after all.

How could Shen Yuan expect Binghe to get over that so quickly? And besides, what if he had nightmares like Shen Yuan’s mei-mei? What if he woke up afraid that he had been left alone again?

So Shen Yuan kept convincing himself that he’d kick Binghe from his bed the next night. For sure.

Besides, Shen Yuan is grateful for that tonight. He doesn’t want to be left alone with his thoughts for too long. He likes the slumber party vibe that the two of them have going on in their dorms. It makes things easier and more relaxed. Perfectly normal Cui Yanmei!

By the time the two of them reach the dorms, Shen Yuan has finally managed to at least calm the laughter that had shaken him at Luo Binghe’s seemingly very real concern. When they get in the room though, Binghe grabs Shen Yuan’s face in his hands and furrows his brow very seriously for a moment.

Shen Yuan, for his part, dutifully stays still.

“You’re bruising,” Luo Binghe tells him gently. Shen Yuan blinks. Ah, probably—is it from his fight with Mobei-Jun or with the kids on Xun Shou Peak? Binghe seems to have come to his own conclusion. Really, if he had a few more extra bruises he got off lucky in that frenzied situation with Mobei-Jun. He’d been more than gentle with him, by demon standards anyway.

“It doesn’t hurt,” Shen Yuan says, reaching up to pat Luo Binghe’s curls in a soothing manner. His friend relaxes, and Shen Yuan adds, “Honestly Binghe, I just want to sleep.”

“Let this one do A-Yuan’s hair,” Luo Binghe says, “Then we can.”

“Only if I can do Binghe’s hair,” Shen Yuan responds a little stubbornly. His friend smiles at him, and that fond warmth settles in Shen Yuan’s chest again. He nudges Luo Binghe with his shoulder, and his friend nudges him back. Shen Yuan says softly, “Binghe?”

“Hm?”

“Thank you for waiting for me,” Shen Yuan quietly says.

“A-Yuan, this Binghe will always wait for you should you need him to,” Luo Binghe responds, and his eyes are so serious when he says that. Shen Yuan’s lips quirk in a smile, and he pats Binghe’s head again despite himself. That fond, aching warmth is back in his chest again.

“Binghe is so good to me,” Shen Yuan says. It won’t always be that way. After all, not only will Binghe be thrown into the Abyss in a few years, he’ll have all kinds of flowers to devote all of his attention to. He won’t have much time for a friend or two. But Shen Yuan will soak in the warm sunlight of his friend’s attention until then. Even if he might be a bit greedy for doing so.

Chapter Text

Mobei-Jun is at the Leisure House until very late that night. The lantern has needed to be relit at some point, but Shang Qinghua’s nervous rambling has not ceased so he patiently listens to the cultivator. The man is radiating nervous energy in a way that he hasn’t in a very long time. Mobei-Jun thinks he may understand why, of course. He is growing more confident in reading his little human than he had been at the very beginning. Especially considering how his goals have changed over the years.

It would be a lie to say that Mobei-Jun is not still wary of some sign of betrayal, or that Shang Qinghua doesn’t continue to confound him at every turn. But the man is cunning and capable, and has thus far remained a steadfast staple at Mobei-Jun’s side. He has had chances to turn on him, and yet he has not yet done so. That is far more than he expected of a cultivator, and more even than he may expect of a demon that caught his attention.

Shang Qinghua has more than caught his attention.

Mobei-Jun isn’t entirely certain when his feelings had shifted—when his overtures of threat had instead become the traditional displays of a demon proving he was strong enough to take care of a mate. He has even offered up challenges to place at Shang Qinghua’s feet for himself, largely leaving aspects of their plans of the Immortal Alliance Conference in the man’s capable hands. Though he heard him grumble and complain, Shang Qinghua has risen to the occasion and is pulling every twist and turn with aplomb. It will go without a hitch, Mobei-Jun has complete confidence.

Yet he doesn’t offer Mobei-Jun his own challenges in return.

Mobei-Jun doesn’t understand why not. He’s proven over and over again that he is able to handle whatever Shang Qinghua may throw his way, may gesture him to. Sometimes, he longs to break the tentative dance in order to ask Shang Qinghua what he must do to earn his favor. But Mobei-Jun will be a patient man in this. Shang Qinghua deserves to be courted the proper way, the way that his mother taught him.

Besides, it seems that he has finally, finally been given a challenge from the other man.

It is an unusual one, of course. Not many demons, especially demonic nobility, would spend their time and energy teaching the offspring of another Clan or bloodline. Truthfully, Mobei-Jun knows very little about the Anfen Clan, only that their son Qiang-Jun had disappeared and was killed. This, he assumes, must be the father of the half-demon child. The fact that the Anfen Clan has neither attempted to kidnap the boy, nor have him killed makes the status of them difficult to know. After all, their territory lies nowhere near Mobei-Jun’s and thus he does not bother with their particular politics.

What he can guess is that they must also be dead and that the boy’s inheritance likely lies somewhere in their lands for him to absorb. Mobei-Jun himself must do the same from his father at some point. To aid an orphaned child to claim his birthrate may be a noble task, but many demons would see fit to simply kill the boy and take the lands left empty for themselves.

Mobei-Jun has no need for the jungle lands that the Anfen Clan lay in though. He has no need to be involved at all, except that this is the challenge that Shang Qinghua has posed to him. In a way, it does make sense. Any children that he and Mobei-Jun have will be half-demon as well. He will need to be familiar with the ways their demonic qi and spiritual qi must be balanced. To forge one without the other is to build a shaky foundation; it is a practical test, even though unusual in a traditional sense. But it is not unheard of.

Demons struggle to reproduce, and half-demons—especially ones with a parent that has a spiritual base—can be very fragile to those unfamiliar with the need for balance in their youth. There are many stories of a child leaning one way or the other and self-destructing at a young age, or losing their mind and becoming little more than a beast. If Qinghua wants to ever rear young with Mobei-Jun—a necessity due to Mobei-Jun needing to produce an heir—then he will need to understand this balance. Helping this “Shen Yuan” obtain that will be a fantastic way to prove this.

As always, his Shang Qinghua may approach things in a manner that seems unusual on the surface but is truly very clever. Mobei-Jun appraises the man thoughtfully, but must not be doing it as subtly as he thinks. Shang Qinghua’s face reflects his nervousness at the look, and Mobei-Jun lets his eyes flick away. It is best not to call out the challenge, or Shang Qinghua may feel the need to abandon this one and look for another.

Considering how long it took to arrange this one, he would rather not push his future mate to do that. No, he will take this one with grace.

He must not hide it well enough though, as Shang Qinghua clears his throat and nervously says, “My King… ah, you… why did you agree to…?”

“It is a good opportunity,” Mobei-Jun answers calmly, not wanting to push the other man. Seeing through a challenge so openly can be considered a grave insult, and Mobei-Jun will not do that to his little human. Not after he worked so hard to place an effective one at his feet. “Qinghua, this Mobei will collect the boy from this Leisure House in a week. Let him know.”

In the meantime, he will send researchers out to find what they can about the fate of the Anfen Clan to the West. If there is any chance of success, he must gather all the information available to him. He stands smoothly, and adds, “If Qinghua should find that his Sect Leader is leaving this mountain for a time, he must summon this King to him.”

Mobei-Jun is not a king yet, but Shang Qinghua has called him this since they met. Mobei-Jun will embody that King for the man. Shang Qinghua calls him that as though it is already Mobei-Jun’s, and he will carry the title with pride and honor.

“Ah! Oh, of—of course,” Shang Qinghua says, wringing his hands.

“This Mobei-Jun has a debt to pay to a young demon saintess. He will allow her entry into the sect and exit, but no more,” Mobei-Jun pauses as he looks Shang Qinghua over. “You will be collected before the attack and remain at this King’s side.”

Away from harm.

“Oh! Sure my King! This one will be around to attend your every need!” Shang Qinghua says enthusiastically. Mobei-Jun nods to him, and taps him fiercely atop the head to show that he believes in Qinghua’s strength. Though the man makes an alarmed little squeak, Mobei-Jun knows he remains unhurt since he does not really stagger. He nods at the man he has been courting, and will continue to court, regardless of how long it takes. Then, with a flicker of shadows one of his portals opens up. He steps through, glancing over his shoulder to see Shang Qinghua scurrying about while attempting to catch papers that have flown around the room.

⋆⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂ ⋆ ᓚᘏᗢ ⋆ ⠄⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⋆

Shen Yuan crashes into the ground as if Mobei-Jun’s intent is to make sure every few feet has a little Shen Yuan shaped imprint for him to look upon. He’s ready to question your design choices, Mobei-Jun! Why have you decided that effective training is to throw Shen Yuan around like a fucking shot put!? This isn’t the Olympics and Shen Yuan isn’t an object besides!

What he is is sore as hell, and somehow still alive. This is the fifth time he’s met with Mobei-Jun, and he’s become extremely clear on a few things since this “training” has all started.

First, Mobei-Jun is apparently the kind of guy who thinks “teaching” someone means just sparring with them. Which, fine. It’s very straightforward and a little bullheaded—he can hear his Uncle raving about Liu-shishu being a “brute” underneath the ringing in his ears, he swears—but that can be effective. The problem is that, apart from not killing him, Mobei-Jun does not hold back in the slightest. Shen Yuan winces as he pushes himself to his feet, his tail bristling and lashing at the air, ears flat against his skull.

Second, he isn’t training in the Northern Desert but some lush field in the mortal realm. He tried not to be disappointed the first time he saw this a few weeks ago, but allows himself to be bitter about it now. At least in the biting cold he’d probably be so frozen he wouldn’t feel any pain. Speaking of that, a spray of frigid air sweeps through the air toward him in a billowed cloud. He growls, slashing out with demonic qi with one hand to disturb the sight hazard. A slight shift in the air above his head is all the warning he has before he’s throwing himself to the right to avoid being fucking speared through!

“Fuck!” Shen Yuan snarls, dragging himself away as ice blades come crashing down at him. He is forced to dodge more than block, his demonic qi nowhere near potent enough to shatter the ice and keep it from injuring him. The ones he does shatter break into pieces that pierce through his robes and into the meat of his arm.

The air tastes of warm blood, and a wild thrum beats in Shen Yuan’s heart.

Third, Mobei-Jun was absolutely correct in that his control has been fraying. As punishing as these fights have been, they have given him a metric for how much he can take before he loses his absolute shit and turns into little more than a feral monster. He feels close to it now, the dark flavor of demonic qi sparking in the air around him almost like a physical thing. He feels too warm, and knows that dark fur has begun to sprout along his spine, along the backs of his arms and hands.

He’s not fully shifted, but he’s becoming less human and that isn’t on purpose.

Control, control, Shen Yuan thinks to himself, trying to cycle the demonic qi that churns within him. But it’s like trying to force a torrent through a funnel. It just seems to make more of a mess than anything to begin with. He realizes he’s come to a standstill when the next ice blade slices through his shoulder, and then he’s being pinned under the heavy weight of his demonic mentor.

Shen Yuan’s temper snaps, and he loses himself to frenzy. It gets worse every time it happens, Shen Yuan doesn’t even know himself—there are flashes of things in the instinct. The desire to fight, bite, kill, attack—but then equally howling in him is the animalistic drive to run, flee, hide, being hunted, hide!

Eventually, he can’t move under the pressure on him. The demonic qi roiling around Shen Yuan pops like a bubble and he feels lightheaded. Mobei-Jun lets him up immediately, and Shen Yuan staggers to his feet and fights the urge to throw himself back into the fight. He wrestles it down, turning to give Mobei-Jun a baleful glare.

Usually, at this part of the “lesson”, Mobei-Jun will disappear and leave Shang Qinghua to freak out about how he’s going to explain the state of Shen Yuan to the sect. This has become routine, after all. However, Mobei-Jun does not leave this time. Instead, the man strides forward.

“You’re not using your qi correctly,” Mobei-Jun says.

“Well excuse me for not being able to fucking wrangle the spirit of a rabid wildcat!” Shen Yuan snaps back at him.

Mobei-Jun frowns at him, icy eyes narrowing at Shen Yuan in an expression of open irritation. Shen Yuan feels like he’s about to go feral again, because the man isn’t saying anything else. Who asked this guy to teach him!? OH RIGHT, AIRPLANE DID! Shen Yuan is going to bite, bite, bite—

He yelps as he is suddenly lifted up by the scruff. Some instinct in him wants to tuck his back legs up and to dangle there helplessly. He fights it, swiping at Mobei-Jun’s hand only to have his own hand engulfed by the ice demon’s cold grip. It is crushing, and he hisses, but Mobei-Jun does not let him pull away.

“Not your demonic qi, the other,” Mobei-Jun says. “You’re training to be a cultivator.”

“I thought we were here to train my demonic side!” Shen Yuan snaps, finding his patience wearing thin.

“You are learning control,” Mobei-Jun replies to him simply. It is the most that the man has ever said to him in the entire time that he has been training him. He drops Shen Yuan with both hands, and Shen Yuan barely lands on his feet. He winces as his leg screams at him in pain. The ice demon watches him impassively for a moment, opens a portal, and then just—fucking leaves him there.

“What the fuck does that mean!?” Shen Yuan yells, throwing his hands up in the air and ignoring the strain on his bruised body that the motion causes him. The burst of it still leaves him feeling dizzy, and he tilts backwards so that he can flop into the grass with a groan. As he stays still, he’s slowly becoming aware that he feels as though he has bruises on his bruises and cuts over his cuts. Every bit of his body aches, and his meridians feel like they’ve been filled with burning razorwire.

“Bro, that was pretty cool for a little bit there!” Shang Qinghua says, after there has been silence for a while. The first time Mobei-Jun had fucked off into nowhere, Shen Yuan had had a little feral tantrum for three hours and Shang Qinghua had had to hover in the air on his sword to avoid being mauled. Shen Yuan doesn’t begrudge him the caution anymore after that. He grunts in response, pressing the heels of his hands into his eyes with a sigh. “And my King said he’d make sure you made more progress, what’d he say to you?”

“That I wasn’t using my spiritual qi,” Shen Yuan says flatly. 

“Makes sense, you’ve been pretty feral in these fights—but hey! You handled yourself pretty well this time,” Shang Qinghua says cheerily. He plops next to Shen Yuan in the grass, munching on melon seeds. 

“This whole thing is meant to control my demonic side!” Shen Yuan snaps. He sits up and ignores the fact that his vision swims .”I train my spiritual qi just fine, what’s the fucking point of bringing it into the mix!? Luo Binghe hardly ever used his spiritual qi in the Abyss!”

“Well, yeah but Luo Binghe didn’t have the best control over his systems,” Shang Qinghua points out. “He didn’t have much of a choice for balance, his spiritual qi wasn’t just poorly built up but had been actively damaged in the webnovel, y’know? Luo Binghe didn’t have a choice until he got out of the Abyss and was forced to balance himself for Xin Mo.”

“So what, he wants me to balance myself?” Shen Yuan snorts. That—okay. Admittedly it’d be very cool to use both spiritual and demonic qi in battle at the same time. He crosses his legs and stares at his clawed fingers. He’s still slightly hybrid from his earlier fight, so the palms of hands and the tips of his fingers seem to have rough pads. He clenches his fists and takes a deep breath.

In PIDW, Luo Binghe was forced to meditate often with Xin Mo. So Shen Yuan at least knows you can meditate with demonic qi as well. It was different though. True, Luo Binghe had learned how to cycle both kinds of qi later—after he claimed Xin Mo—but that was usually… ah. During…

Shen Yuan’s face heats up. 

Look! Luo Binghe is his best friend now! It’s perfectly normal to think it’s weird to think about his best buddy and the extremely detailed papapa scenes a certain degenerate wrote! Shen Yuan doesn’t want to think about all of the quivering flowers that dripped with dew or pulsing pillars, thank you very much! 

Bury it deep! Bury it under a thousand different memories! Better yet, burn the thoughts and then bury them!

【 Would User like to permanently delete— 】

“Bro, my King thinks that if you manage to obtain a relative balance between your energies that you’ll be able to start hiding your signature and shit on your own,” Shang Qinghua says. He nods very seriously, “He’s beating your ass to test how you fight in combat so he can see how you let them out together—which you don’t. At all.”

“Well why didn’t he just say so,” Shen Yuan says mutinously.

“I mean, you know. In these kinds of novels, half of the training is figuring that shit out!” Shang Qinghua points out. “But you’re my fellow transmigrator bro, so I’ll give you wisdom as your martial uncle and elder to help you along.”

A thump as Shen Yuan lashes his tail sounds behind them. He narrows his eyes, “Right, because I wouldn’t have figured it out on my own.”

“I mean, probably not! You keep cycling around this weird spiral of irritation—you did that a lot when you commented actually. You clearly liked Proud Immortal Demon Way, but you’d just get hung up on all these details that annoyed you,” Shang Qinghua says.

【 User, please make a decision. [YES] [NO] 】

Shen Yuan blinks, and holds up a finger at Shang Qinghua as he asks, “System, what are you wanting me to make a decision on?”

【 Repeating System inquiry: Would user like to permanently delete chosen memories [PROUD IMMORTAL DEMON WAY: SEX SCENES AND DESCRIPTIONS] from his memory for the cost of 2,000 B-Points? 】

“The fu—no! I don’t want you fucking around in my head!” Shen Yuan snaps.

“What, what’d it want?” Shang Qinghua asks.

“It thinks I’d trust it to erase my memories for a ridiculous number of B-Points,” Shen Yuan responds, gesturing at the window even though his friend cannot see it. Shang Qinghua shifts from one foot to the other, his expression shifting to one of nervousness. “I didn’t even know it could do that. Don’t you fucking dare System, you hear me?”

【 User doesn’t have to be so wary of this System! It is much better at the erasing of memories now that it knows what it is doing (｡•́︿•̀｡) 】

“Bro… are you…are you sure you came into this world when you did and that you weren’t born into it?” Shang Qinghua asks. He throws his hands up and squawks immediately after, “Wh—that’s so many points! You doubled it! System, don’t take so much from me, his own System was talking to him about it!”

“What—it’s punishing you?” Shen Yuan asks. Shang Qinghua tearfully nods at him, which is when Shen Yuan decides that it must not be that big of an issue. Otherwise, Shang Qinghua would be running for the hills away from him. “Explain what you mean by that question then.”

“Bro! It’s going to deduct like, a thousand points! Do you know how stingy my System is?!” Shang Qinghua blubbers.

“System, can you make Shang Qinghua’s System lift whatever restrictions it has so that he can talk to me plainly?” Shen Yuan snaps.

【 Allow this System a moment to communicate with User 001’s System! 】

There is a bolt of cyan blue that hits Shang Qinghua between the eyes. The Peak Lord yelps, falling backwards with flailing limbs. Then, he falls very still. For a horrifying moment, Shen Yuan worries that he’s somehow killed Airplane. As much as he chases his shishu around, he doesn’t actually want him dead. Then, the man jumps to his feet and rubs at his head fiercely, as though trying to shake the two Systems out of his skull.

“Okay! Okay enough!” Shang Qinghua squawks out, sounding frenzied. A spark of green and blue energy races along Shang Qinghua’s arms and arcs into a bolt of lightning. It crashes into a nearby tree, but Shang Qinghua doesn’t even notice. “Go back to Cucumber-bro!”

The cyan blue sparks and shoots back to Shen Yuan. He feels every hair on his tail stand on end as it enters him, and Shang Qinghua’s shoulders relax but he still clutches his head between his hands.

“Bro, your System is terrifying,” Shang Qinghua says with a shudder.

【 Hello User 002! After communicating with System 1.0, we have determined that both users may spend 500 B-Points to allow restrictions to be lifted off of User 001 for the purposes of open communication! ദ്ദി( ˶^ᗜ^˶ ) If User would like, he may substitute 500 B-Points with 1,000 C-Points or 5,000 Satisfaction Points! 】

“Why not just tell me yourself for free?” Shen Yuan grumbles, but he waves his hand. “I’ve got plenty of Satisfaction points, use those.”

“That’s still so many points—ah!” Shang Qinghua squeaks when Shen Yuan glares at him. “I’ll use them! I’ll use them!”

【 Congratulations! Congratulations! Congratulations! Good things must be said three times! You have unlocked [OPEN AND HONEST COMMUNICATION] with User 001! You may both share information with one another without worry of a Punishment Protocol or loss of points! As a bonus, User’s 002 and 001 will also be able to [INSTANT MESSAGE] with one another as part of this communication package. This will take three days to download, during which time the System will be offline. Do you wish to download [INSTANT MESSENGER] into both Systems? [YES] [NO] 】

Shen Yuan squints at the screen, but eventually chooses the “yes” option. It flickers green before a loading bar begins to load. Shang Qinghua yelps in dismay next to him, “Cucumber-bro! You should have asked, all of my notes are in my System and I have to organize this meeting with Tian Yi Overlook that is happening this evening!”

“Sorry,” Shen Yuan says, looking over at Shang Qinghua. “What did you mean by that question before—whether I was sure I transmigrated as a child?”

“Well,” Shang Qinghua says, looking rather nervous. He fidgets as he sits down in the grass again, and picks up one of his melon seeds but doesn’t eat it. Instead, he rubs it between his fingers and furrows his brow, “When I first wrote the series, your character wasn’t even supposed to, you know, come to term. Like, look. Demons have a hard time reproducing anyway, and half-demons are super rare for more than just demons not having cultivator lovers. People break rules like that all the time. Especially super powerful people! Even if it’s considered super taboo on the jianghu side of things, demons don’t care as long as the partner is strong and their children are powerful! And when demons and cultivators have babies that do live, they’re super powerful because they have both bloodlines and both meridians. Y’know?”

Shen Yuan blinks as he listens, leaning back… None of this worldbuilding was in the novel! Goddammit Airplane, this kind of thing was interesting! It explained why nobody cared that so many of Luo Binghe’s wives were human and many were cultivators in their own right! The only ones that were ever targeted were only ever targeted once, unless they seemed “weak”—it explains why poor Ning Yingying kept ending up in such obnoxious situations! It wasn’t just to drag her out into the spotlight for some good ol’ fashioned childhood friend papapa—don’t think about it, don’t think about it, don’t think about it—but also because she was an easy target! Demons would, of course, think of her as being weak since she didn’t defend herself the way that some of the other cultivator wives—like Liu Mingyan—did.

The idea that poor Ning Yingying was facing a test that she kept failing feels sour in Shen Yuan’s mouth. After all, his friend is more than competent right now. He wouldn’t class her as weak! He’ll have to keep making sure that his Shizun doesn’t try coddling her too much. He thinks he’s steered that away with saying she’s the perfect sparring partner for him, but maybe he should be more firm about it. Ning Yingying shouldn’t have to be constantly kidnapped by people who decide she’s weak!

What he says aloud is, “So what, I’m supposed to have been already dead?”

“That was the plan for your character.” Shang Qinghua nods, “But also, it was gonna highlight how odd it was that Luo Binghe didn’t have any children, y’know? Like, did the kids just keep dying before coming to term and he didn’t realize because the wives wouldn’t tell him out of shame? Or was he completely impotent?”

Shen Yuan’s heart hurts. He thinks of Luo Binghe, who helps Shen Yuan with the little ones sometimes and thinks about him never having a kid to raise and love. But then, that didn’t really seem like something the blackened version of the protagonist would want. Binghe may want a family now, and entertain ideas of it, but the protagonist had never… really thought as much.

“I axed it, mostly because Bing-ge didn’t really need a bunch of kids trailing after him and nobody asked why he didn’t have any heirs. I entertained a one shot, but realized he’d be a shitty father so…” Shang Qinghua trails off, seemingly only just noticing that Shen Yuan is glaring at him with his ears pressed flat back. He holds his hands up and yelps, “I didn’t write it!”

“Binghe wouldn’t be a shitty dad,” Shen Yuan grits out.

Shang Qinghua looks a little helpless at these words. But Shen Yuan continues to glare at the man. He can’t—he won’t even consider that. Not after everything Song Jia had done—not after all the love she showed him. The idea that Luo Binghe would not honor her memory in some way while raising his own child makes Shen Yuan’s heart ache fiercely.

“Well… maybe not now, considering how things have been going,” Shang Qinghua says slowly. “Depending, you know, on how he handles everything in the future. He’s got a lot more positivity in his childhood though, and it sounds like he lived a lot better of a life with the Washerwoman!”

“Song Jia,” Shen Yuan snaps. “That was her name.”

“...okay bro,” Shang Qinghua says slowly. “Do you want me to continue? With what we were talking about?”

He talks like he’s walking through a minefield. Shen Yuan’s tail twitches, and he looks away after a moment. He says nothing else, but when he doesn’t deny him, Shang Qinghua cautiously continues.

“The other thing I thought was weird—the thing my System wouldn’t let me tell you—was that, well. My memory was really different from how you had it back then,” Shang Qinghua says. “Look, you definitely have kid brain, even though you remember everything. I remember that too! The difference is, I didn’t remember everything.”

“What the hell do you mean ‘kid brain’?” Shen Yuan asks.

“You know, you’re a kid? You act your age, you interact with the world like your age, you have the emotional capacity of your age—you’re not like some weirdly emotionally stable child. Do you know how freaky a kid who acted completely like an adult would be? You’re super not creepy like that bro,” Shang Qinghua says. He holds his hands out, palms facing Shen Yuan. “Hence, kid brain!”

Shen Yuan wants to protest, but he instead narrows his eyes.

“You didn’t remember everything?” Shen Yuan says slowly.

“Yeah, I mean. I had the broader strokes of things, but it was like my brain wouldn’t catch up to it until I was old enough to really chew on it? Like, as a kid I knew I wrote this story and that I had another life before, but I didn’t have the finer details of it. I didn’t know it was a stallion novel or anything. I just knew that I was going to join a cultivation sect someday, and that I was going to have to do some bad things to it,” Shang Qinghua’s brow furrows. He gets a bit of a far away look in his eyes as he adds softly, “I remembered my family from my previous life, but it was like my memories were blurrier the older I would have been in them, but clearer when I was younger. So everything was more in line with me and the age that I was at the time. I just, you know, thought it was weird that you knew everything you did when you ran into me.”

“That can be explained away by the fact that I was transmigrated into more than a baby though,” Shen Yuan points out after a pause to digest that info. Something about what he is saying makes the skin on the back of his neck crawl though, and he finds himself hugging his knees to his chest. “So what is your theory, that I was born here after all and just… forgot?”

Shen Yuan doesn’t want to think about the question by the System earlier that very day. He doesn’t want to think about the debt that he had been in without even realizing it. From a large purchase in the past. What had he bought? Did his young child self purposefully delete his memories of his life? Why?

He thinks of Xun Fu when he had a terrible fever, murmuring his mother’s name in his sleep. Shen Yuan reaches into his robes to pull out the amulet, and rubs his thumb over the surface of it. His heart is hammering in his chest.

“I think you did more than forget bro,” Shang Qinghua says. “I think… I don’t know how or why, I think it helped you remember but forget at the same time.”

Shen Yuan’s stomach swoops, his eyes snap up. “It doesn’t do trades, it barters with points.”

“True,” Shang Qinghua says with a sigh. Shen Yuan doesn’t feel relief though, he instead drops his eyes to the amulet and swallows around a lump in his throat.

“Do… do you think it might… it might take memories away as collateral?” Shen Yuan asks hoarsely. He feels a chill race down his spine, and meets Shang Qinghua’s eyes with his own as he helplessly says, “As part of a loan?”

“...Oh bro,” Shang Qinghua breathes. The Peak Lord's eyes are wide with a sympathy that Shen Yuan can't bear to look at. “I already said it before, but your System is fucking terrifying.”