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Shang Qinghua knew from the moment he woke up that it was going to be a day. And not- just the kind of days he usually had, when he had to deal with the usual bullshit of fulfilling a scum villain’s role. No, this kind of day could only follow the most weird-ass dream he’d ever had, which was mostly weird in how intensely detailed and realistic it was.

But no sooner did he have breakfast than a stack of paperwork was thrown at his head, and such matters were put aside to deal with the normal parts of the day.

His name was Shang Bei, actually. He wasn’t supposed to know he would be given the name Shang Qinghua, but given the bullshit of fate and all, it was a given. He was seventeen, barely past the worst of puberty hell, head disciple of An Ding Peak, as demanded by the skybox that had controlled his life from literal day one. What was it like, having to cry and throw tantrums on command, one might ask? He never wanted to answer!!

More recently, he was also the spy for a young ice demon prince, which was just great to pile on top of his other work. Shang Qinghua was starting to get the idea that this life was a punishment for everything in his past life, something about dying of a thousand papercuts? He was halfway sure that a certain anti-fan had cursed him into this purgatory, dying of paperwork in his own creation.

So- it was already a day, and then it became an absolute day when his master sent him scurrying across the rainbow bridge to deal with some new disciple’s paperwork bullshit. Because apparently paperwork was always the afterthought for these kinds of things, just like An Ding Peak was the afterthought for any measure of pity, when they had specific enrollment periods meant for taking in new disciples then and not outside of those times!!!

The rainbow bridge had seen a lot of Shang Qinghua’s most OOC rants at this point, and didn’t blink at another of them. Literally everything about the novelty of living on the fancy cultivation mountain he once made up had worn off from day one. There were zero perks to being the literal creator of this place, none at all! Shang Qinghua cursed Peerless Cucumber right back in his heart and hoped he found himself transmigrated into some shitty fate, too!!

… He thought that, and then showed up to Qiong Ding Peak. He stepped off the bridge to a familiar older teen with a gentle smile on his face, now known as Yue Qi, but to be known later in life as Yue Qingyuan, tragic simp supreme.

And beside him, there was a lanky teen about his own age, gaze hooded under a cloud of perpetual anger and what little visible skin around his face bandaged. Sure signs of a cultivation novice, let alone one that didn’t eat well until recently, but his skinny frame was still held in a position of fight me.

He was definitely Shen Qingqiu, also. Shang Qinghua was. He was pretty confident about that fact?? That this was Shen Jiu, future Shen Qingqiu, also known as the guy who was the ultimate enemy-to-lover before Shang Qinghua scrapped his role into hidden tragedy character instead. As in the character so carefully crafted to match his ultimate protagonist son, so lovingly riddled with pain and misunderstandings, up until Shang Qinghua’s computer crashed and he ended up with the human stick thing.

… Okay!! So it was going to be one of those fucking days, huh!!!

“What are you staring at?” Shen Qingqiu snapped then, and Shang Qinghua realized he was gawking like an idiot. He half-expected some bullshit OOC warning to show up?? The System said he could unlock OOC eventually, but it said that, like, ten years ago, so he wasn’t holding his breath.

“Nothing!!” he answered quickly, clearing his throat. “Nothing, um-“ Shit, shit, shit, this was Shen Qingqiu, so that meant the new disciple paperwork was for him, right?? “I mean, um- this one is- Shang Bei,” he introduced in a quick stumble, scooting through the gate. “Head disciple of An Ding Peak. Yue-shixiong,” he added belatedly, clearing his throat. He technically was supposed to greet him first, but reminders of fate were flustering him!!

“Shang-shidi,” Yue Qingyuan answered, still smiling politely. “This one appreciates Shang-shidi taking the time from his duties to attend to such matters.” What appreciation, this was just another duty stacked on top of his other duties! “Xiao- um, Shen-shidi was recently accepted at Qing Jing Peak,” Yue Qingyuan continued smoothly, despite the brief hiccup of Shen Qingqiu’s glare trying to bore his actual brains out. “Since he is a bit shy, this shixiong hoped he could accompany him for this matter.”

… He didn’t look shy, Yue Qingyuan.

“Um,” Shang Qinghua attempted anyway, uncomfortable. He was painfully aware that Yue Qingyuan was just there to try to lie for Shen Qingqiu, when Shen Qingqiu could lie circles around him and do so with much more grace. “That’s- not actually allowed, Yue-shixiong,” he put forward cautiously. Couldn’t he just handle this matter in a straightforward way? “All admittance paperwork has to be done by the new disciple in question and submitted directly-“

“Please, Shang-shidi, this head disciple knows the rules,” Yue Qingyuan interjected smoothly. And he did! He had sure gotten the hang of subtly reminding people that he was head disciple of Qiong Ding Peak, and therefore would have a head above literally everyone in the future. “He was hoping an exception could be made for Shen-shidi’s sake.”

… The thing was, Shang Qinghua didn’t get many creator perks, okay? The novelty of his own creation literally coming to life wore off a long time ago. Knowing what his characters were like and their futures ahead of time was just depressing. Realizing how a situation could be made better for someone was almost always blocked off by the System, who refused to let him make even the tiniest concessions that would turn into much bigger changes down the line. It was about to start screaming at any second about him even thinking of getting between this 79 bullshit.

But Shen Qingqiu was still glaring holes in the side of Yue Qingyuan’s head, Shang Qinghua was overworked on normal days and today was a day, and he didn’t get any privileges except what he dove for and snatched up before it could be taken away.

“No,” he answered. Yue Qingyuan’s smile slipped. “My master has rules for reasons, and not even Yue-shixiong is allowed to go around them,” Shang Qinghua informed him loftily, like this wasn’t the guy who could make his life even more miserable than it already was. “Of course this Shang Bei respects his shixiong’s position among the sect. But paperwork is this shidi’s jurisdiction, and even a righteous sect runs on properly-done paperwork.”

Because he could make Yue Qingyuan’s life a living hell if he wanted! And also if allowed. But also if he wanted!!

Yue Qingyuan stared at him as if judging whether he should back off or jump straight to more biting wordplay. The joke was on him!! Shang Qinghua had just met the future Mobei Jun, Yue Qingyuan’s biting wordplay had nothing on the brat that was literally biting.

“I don’t want him there anyway,” Shen Qingqiu finally growled, breaking Yue Qingyuan from his stare. The tragic simp gave his Xiao Jiu a tragic look, but only received a sneer for his efforts. “What’s the matter, afraid I’ll say something dangerous?” he added mockingly.

… Oh, yeah, that was also a reason for Yue Qingyuan to be there. Too bad!

“Since Shen-shixiong agrees, it seems we can move on,” Shang Qinghua announced quickly, pouncing on the chance. “This shidi has many other duties to attend to as well. Here, let’s-“ No, not somewhere private, this was way too soon after Shen Qingqiu had burned down Qiu Manor and also after Wu Jianzi, Shang Qinghua definitely registered as a threat to his androphobia- “There’s usually a training session happening on Qiong Ding, let’s make some background noise for the matter,” he offered cheerfully, scooting to lead the way. “And this shidi doesn’t get to see other peaks often, so it’s fine!”

“If it’s not a private setting,” Yue Qingyuan began, brow furrowing slightly.

“No!!” Shang Qinghua called back firmly, and set off. Please follow, Shen Qingqiu!

Actually, it was only his advance hearing that told him Shen Qingqiu eventually followed. Damn, he walked quietly.

Fortunately, there were plenty of people wandering around Qiong Ding Peak, and plenty disciples also training. Shang Qinghua settled on a nice bench that was distant from the groups and supervising masters, but hopefully not so far that Shen Qingqiu felt he was actually alone with him. He leaned around Shen Qingqiu to see if Yue Qingyuan had followed, then exhaled.

“Ah- sorry about the drama, shixiong,” he offered sincerely, patting the bench in welcome. Shen Qingqiu stared at his hand, but carefully sat down. “Yue-shixiong isn’t a bad guy or anything, but rank politics start pretty early between head disciples,” Shang Qinghua rambled. It was fine, this was stuff that Shen Qingqiu had to know eventually! “And I get it, posturing to make sure everyone knows he’s the future sect leader and all, given that no one pushes him out anytime soon-“ He lit incense for any such fools who might try. “-but not only are there boundaries, he’s literally the worst liar when it comes to this stuff. As future peak lord of An Ding, I should get a little more respect!”

“… What makes you think he would come to lie?” Shen Qingqiu asked, low. Shang Qinghua kind of wanted to shrink back because yikes, but.

… Ugh, Qing Jing Peak.

“Shixiong, listen,” he sighed. “You haven’t already been to Qing Jing Peak, right? I mean, to meet Yin-shibo?”

“Why?” Shen Qingqiu demanded, bristling.

“Qing Jing’s literally the worst,” Shang Qinghua answered honestly. “I mean. Not in terms of rank, they’re second only to Qiong Ding. But they’re actually the worst when it comes to a hotbed of two-faced snakes.” Which was why he wished Yue Qingyuan would think about the consequences of his actions!!! “And every single one of them come from noble or wealthy families that enter disciples on recommendations,” Shang Qinghua sighed. “Shixiong will stick out like a sore thumb, okay? I’m not saying it to be mean, there’s nothing wrong with not being a spoiled brat. But the assholes of Qing Jing can smell their own kind.” Wait, ah, that was funny wordplay. Still got it!!

“… What did- Yue Qi’s paperwork say?” Shen Qingqiu asked in a mutter.

“Oh, some bullshit about being the son of a decently-wealthy Borderlands merchant,” Shang Qinghua replied vaguely, pulling out his inkstone. “I had to lose the paperwork when none of the names actually existed, I think he didn’t realize that the sect leader actually checks these things for head disciples. So, um. Now he’s actually the bastard son of a northern lord’s house who doesn’t care enough about his affairs to check if that’s a thing or not.” He winced. “Please don’t tell him that,” he added abruptly. “He might actually fight me for that.” Yue Qingyuan had wanted a noble background, something honest and splendid! Shang Qinghua had to rip that up while crying blood because of such bullshit!!

… Well, he was actually supposed to blackmail his way into being An Ding’s head disciple with that. He sure lost a shitload of points for literally no gratitude.

“He’ll live,” Shen Qingqiu grumbled, expression dark. “What gives me away?”

“For one, no one with a wealthy background would look so half-starved, Shixiong,” Shang Qinghua had to point out. “For another, your cultivation level isn’t high enough at your age to heal you quickly. If rich kids have designs on being recommended to a cultivation sect, they’re either admitted early or fed just about every heavenly treasure their parents can buy to make up the difference. Also, look.” He held up a hand, the back shown to Shen Qingqiu. “Cuticles!”

“… What?” Shen Qingqiu asked.

“Your fingernails,” Shang Qinghua explained. “Different classes have different signs on their hands. You’ll get a lot of hand-scrutiny on Qing Jing, it’s a thing. You’ll also need to already be somewhat proficient in the Four Arts if you’re going to say you have the kind of background where you learned that since birth. You need to know the right tea ceremonies, hairstyles, expression control, formal speaking, and of course a decent cover story with explicit knowledge of the economics of the region-“ Shang Qinghua paused. He considered. “… Wait,” he realized. “Wait, this is- bullshit? Who’s the asshole who put you on Qing Jing Peak??”

… Oh, wait. That was him.

“The asshole who made up names and didn’t think that would be a problem, obviously,” Shen Qingqiu snapped back. Oh, right.

“… Yeah, that- that sounds like Yue-shixiong,” Shang Qinghua had to admit, weary. “He’s not malicious, he’s just. He’s…” Ahh, whatever, he could just say it, right? “He’s just really stupid about a lot of stuff at the inconvenience of everyone around him.” Shen Qingqiu- snickered. Wait, did he think that was funny??

… Shen Qingqiu, it was too early to be this sadistic towards your Qi-ge.

“Shang… shidi,” Shen Qingqiu then said, hesitantly testing out the address. Also, whoa!! A shidi from Shen Qingqiu that wasn’t sarcastic!!! “Is it- too late to just… change the peak I’m going to?” Not necessarily too late, just obviously so not allowed.

… Right?

“I mean. Technically yes and- no?” Shang Qinghua attempted. Wait, where were the screaming alarms? The point deductions?? Surely he would get the hammer for even trying to continue this discussion- “Disciples actually switch around peaks a lot,” he put forward. “Yue-shixiong started on Wan Jian Peak, but things, uh- happened. Didn’t work out. Sect Leader Bai took him in as a student after that.” Shen Qingqiu’s brow furrowed slightly, but he didn’t comment. “But- But maybe you can do that!” Shang Qinghua put forward quickly, feeling slightly manic?? Holy shit, no alarms were going off?! Was this actually allowed right now??? “Go to a different peak than Qing Jing, I mean! Qing Jing is so overrated, both in reputation and rank! And I’m not just saying that because I’m at An Ding. Of course the Four Arts are nice, but there’s better peaks than watching a bunch of nasty little lords and ladies gossip about which fan is exposing which scandal! Like-“ Okay, not Wan Jian, sorry Wei Qingwei, but your master is honestly a dick- “Well, after Qing Jing and Wan Jian, An Ding is next in rank if that’s the important part,” he explained. “I’m head disciple there, but our specialties are arrays and paperwork. Like, so much paperwork. If you hate papercuts, maybe it’s not for you.”

“Afraid I’ll take your spot?” Shen Qingqiu asked dryly. Shang Qinghua was close to tears.

“No one wants my spot, Shixiong,” he managed. “I don’t want my spot. I can’t get away from it and no one would take it if I tried.” Shen Qingqiu, already budding into his sadism, snickered again!! Ahh, it was fine. Whatever. “Xian Shu isn’t an option, it’s the girls-only peak,” Shang Qinghua made himself continue, clearing his throat. “After that is Bai Zhan and Qian Cao, which- those are pretty decent places? Bai Zhan’s focus is on external force and combat prowess, though, so you’d be in for a lot of bruises. Qian Cao is our medical peak, so their specialties involve healing, of course, but also has a lot of missions involving herb-hunting and ingredient-gathering. Ku Xing is the ascetic peak, which means men only.” Not an option! “Then there’s Zui Xian, their focus is on wine. Which sounds like a weird thing to say out loud, but actually they have some interesting brews that are said to be good for higher realm cultivation-“

“Are all of these options, or are you just listing?” Shen Qingqiu cut him off. Shang Qinghua blinked.

“Well, Xian Shu isn’t an option,” he repeated. “Women only?” He considered, then ran over a few scenarios. “But- sure. I don’t recommend Wan Jian, though,” he added. “That’s why I didn’t mention it. It’s nothing wrong with their prestige or their specialty, but the current peak lord is, um. Shixiong should stay away from him.” Shen Qingqiu cocked his head slightly, then nodded once.

“Then what would Shidi recommend?” he asked.

“Shidi can’t recommend without knowing what Shixiong wants,” Shang Qinghua put forward quickly. Shen Qingqiu, you obviously had enough of that bullshit happening! “Is the rank important? The specialty? Do you want to strive for a higher position later or do you just want to focus on cultivation?” He cocked his head. “… I could probably get you into Xian Shu if I really tried,” he realized thoughtfully. “Shixiong’s face is more than pretty enough to pass for a girl…” Shen Qingqiu coughed loudly, and Shang Qinghua almost jumped out of his skin.

Right, no creeping on the androphobic abuse victim!!!

“Um, sorry, that- I didn’t mean anything by that!!” he blabbered quickly, scooting a bit back. “Sorry! Sorry, sorry, that- my mouth just says things sometimes and it really shouldn’t-“

“I just,” Shen Qingqiu interrupted, and hesitated. He shifted in place, scowling aside at the others. “… I just- want someplace that won’t hurt to be in,” he muttered. “That’s all.”

… Oh, ow. Massive creator guilt. Right in the feelings.

“Okay,” Shang Qinghua answered, instead of crying. He felt it was very self-controlled of him to do so. “Then…” Qiong Ding and Wan Jian were out, no Yue Qingyuan drama, and definitely no Wan Jian peak lord. An Ding was drowning in paperwork, Bai Zhan was the very definition of hurt especially with Liu Qingge there, and Ku Xing was obviously a major no. Xian Shu might be a hassle if he had to upkeep the cross-dressing. So that left- medical? Wine? Agriculture? Medical might be too much physical contact for Shen Qingqiu, even if he’d be good at the scholarly part. And dealing with all the aphrodisiacs might be seriously pushing it. Wine? Didn’t really match his personality. He wouldn’t be fond of people with lowered inhibitions, anyway.

It'd be neat if he did go to Shu Wan, if only because the idea of Shen Qingqiu working in a field was totally fascinating. Probably too exotic of an idea, though. Jing Yan? Shen Qingqiu could definitely make it work at the talisman peak, he was still talented even if he wasn’t the protagonist, but Jing Yan had been used in a side plot about their innate hatred for demons and maybe that was way too dangerous for future events.

It wasn’t until he got to the last peak that he wanted to smack his forehead. Sure, Yan Xie didn’t have the greatest reputation, they were pretty eclipsed by Qing Jing in politics and specialty alike, but they had a nice, safe background of being distant from sect politics and most importantly-

Shang Qinghua was absolutely certain that even if he couldn’t get Shen Qingqiu real therapy, the next best thing did exist in this world!

Animal therapy!!!

“Okay!!” he burst out, and Shen Qingqiu jumped. “Oh, sorry,” Shang Qinghua added quickly. “But- okay! I think I know the perfect peak! Hey, you want to go see? It’s Yan Xie Peak, have you heard of them?”

“No,” Shen Qingqiu answered.

“Okay, okay, come on! You should check out the place,” Shang Qinghua insisted, collecting his half-unpacked supplies. “It’s the beast master peak, it’s not the best place for ambition given the reputation,” he acknowledged. “But you can change out later if you want. But!! Everything I know about the place is that they’re friendly, mixed-class, and actually really decent in cultivation with mixed paths.” Shen Qingqiu stood up, following him.

“What’s their reputation?” he asked cautiously.

“Not great, it’s considered something of a melting pot because the peak doesn’t really discriminate backgrounds or even levels of talent,” Shang Qinghua admitted. “Even though they’ve produced some super high-quality disciples in the past.” Also a sexy beast tamer wife that may have secretly also had demon blood in her, but that was not the point. “And there’s a lot of beasts around, which a lot of righteous cultivators tend to look down on. Which is a shame, there’s a lot of variety in monsters and a lot of potential in actually mastering them.” Shang Qinghua was actually rather proud of, if nothing else, his ecosystem development. Not even Peerless Cucumber himself hated the monsters, except the occasional whining about how the names were obviously spit out of a generator.

Some of them were, but that was also not the point.

“Beasts?” Shen Qingqiu repeated.

“Have you been around monsters before?” Shang Qinghua asked casually, even though he knew the answer. Shen Qingqiu would surely be much more chill if he actually petted something soft and fluffy.

“To kill them,” Shen Qingqiu answered flatly.

“Well, they do that, too, but the main focus is not killing them. Listen,” Shang Qinghua added, pausing to turn around with a hopeful grin. “It’s okay if you don’t want to! I have backup recommendations. But please come check out the peak before deciding?” He gave his best puppy eyes. He- had puppy eyes, right? The last time he tried this on Mobei Jun, he got beaten up.

Shen Qingqiu didn’t beat him up, but he did scowl harder and harder until he eventually glared somewhere else, flushed with anger. Shang Qinghua concluded that he did not have puppy eyes. Ahh, a tragedy.

“Fine,” Shen Qingqiu mumbled. Task failed successfully!!

Shang Qinghua did pause before leaving the gate to make sure no wild Qi-ge was following them. Once finished, he began a powerwalk onto the rainbow bridge, and Shen Qingqiu followed with a light frown. Shang Qinghua checked, and realized he kept looking down at the translucent rainbow they were walking on.

“Do you like the bridge?” he realized. “It’s kind of corny, right?” Shen Qingqiu frowned at him instead.

“Corny,” he echoed.

“Heavenly peaks, connected by a faint rainbow bridge, always shrouded in mist and all,” Shang Qinghua echoed. He’d gotten metaphorically railed in his very first Cucumber Rant.

“… I like it,” Shen Qingqiu answered, quiet.

Shang Qinghua almost tripped off the rainbow bridge.

“O-Oh, that- that’s nice!!” he exclaimed, barely regaining his balance or dignity. “That’s, ah- that’s good! That Shixiong likes it! So let’s- Let’s keep going, then!!” He powerwalked towards safety, being anywhere other than this conversation!

Fortunately, Yan Xie Peak wasn’t particularly picky about people coming and going, given that no one with half a brain would be sneaking around the peak that was taming literal monsters. Shang Qinghua didn’t really want to try explaining why he wasn’t slaving away at his usual paperwork, nor why he was dragging around the disciple that was supposed to be going to Qing Jing already.

It was- kind of super nice to see Shen Qingqiu’s eyes widen at the golden leaves of twisting gingko trees. He’d only written up the aesthetics of the peak for a couple scenes, but the hazy mist that lined the forest floor combined with the sun filtering through the gold leaves was an aesthetic if he said so himself. The ground vegetation was allowed to overgrow alongside the streams that ran through the peak, bright uncoordinated colors that ran in and out of the shade of the wild-grown trees.

Qing Jing Peak was also pretty! He wrote it that way. It was just nice that other parts were appreciated, too.

“You’re lucky, autumn is the best time to see this place,” Shang Qinghua commented, unable to help grinning. Shen Qingqiu looked impressed! Like, really and genuinely impressed!! Take that, Peerless Hater!! “The other seasons are pretty, too!” he added quickly. “It’s just that- autumn is the best season.” He cleared his throat, looking forward. “Um. I don’t know many of the disciples here, but I’ve met Jing-shishu before,” he explained. “You don’t have to say anything about possibly coming here, but you can just meet her.”

“Her?” Shen Qingqiu echoed sharply, looking surprised for some reason?

“Sure, there’s women peak lords,” Shang Qinghua agreed. “Aside from Xian Shu, the obvious one, I mean. She’s pretty neat! And a tiny bit scary. But a neat sort of scary.” He nodded to himself. Surely she’d like Shen Qingqiu for being the same way, right? Shen Qingqiu had been a total badass in his youth! Also extremely sad and vicious. But also a badass.

Come on, it wasn’t fair that he got so much hate. He was a literal assassin guised as a spoiled lord who had previous scenes where he threw off the guise and straight up knife’d the bad guys!! Shang Qinghua really loved those scenes even if only he knew they existed and never actually wrote them!!

Ugh, unfair.

In any case, they passed by a handful of disciples before one of them pointed out where their peak lord was. Shen Qingqiu followed as quietly as ever, tilting his gaze aside to take in the scenery. His eyes were actually clear and- dare he say- gentle, reflecting the golden autumn in pale green irises. He’d thought of cold jade eyes that matched Qing Jing Peak in color and beauty, but.

Clear green with dappled gold like fire, that was. That was a thing. Wow.

This poor recycled Shen Qingqiu, his beauty still reflected his original role.

“Ahem,” Jing Xinqiang announced, and Shang Qinghua almost died again. From getting caught staring at Shen Qingqiu’s eyes like a creep!!!

“J-J-Jing-shishu!!” he burst out, definitely not staring at Shen Qingqiu when the other teen turned to see. “Hello! I mean.” He cleared his throat quickly, then bowed. Sect manners, sect manners! No screaming about OOC!! “This Shang Bei greets Shishu,” he greeted her politely.

“As mousy as ever, Xiao Shang,” Jing Xinqiang replied, amused. “It’s been a while since I heard you squeak.” Shang Qinghua coughed. Wow, okay, zero coolness points for him in front of Shen Qingqiu. That was fine.

“Um, Jing-shishu, I was just showing a new shixiong around the peaks,” he offered. “Since Yan Xie is in its golden prime, it was a good opportunity to bring him here.” He looked to Shen Qingqiu. Shen Qingqiu was still taking in the likes of Jing Xinqiang, who was tall but built with the arms and shoulders of the gods. Sadly, that was exactly why she didn’t really show up in the actual story, he was aware of who his readers were. The sea green and gold accents of Yan Xie robes were also very fetching, he thought! Traditionally, masters wore embroidery of famous monster stories along the hems in the form of their various animals. Jing Xinqiang favored the qilin walking among clouds most times.

“This Shen Jiu greets Shishu,” Shen Qingqiu greeted stiffly, bowing as Shang Qinghua had.

“Welcome to Yan Xie, Shizhi,” Jing Xinqiang replied. “Xiao Shang never has a moment to spare, you must be quite the shixiong to find so many at once.” Shang Qinghua coughed louder!! “Of which peak does this Shizhi come from?”

“… Qing Jing Peak, Shishu,” Shen Qingqiu answered after hesitating. Jing Xinqiang stared down at Shen Qingqiu. She turned her stare to Shang Qinghua.

“Who, exactly, is trying to murder your shixiong?” she asked bluntly. “Qing Jing? Qing Jing??”

“It wasn’t me!” Shang Qinghua denied quickly. “No one was- it’s not attempted murder, just-“

“The children,” Jing Xinqiang said, “beat each other until their bones shatter.”

“… This one won’t say bad things against his seniors,” Shang Qinghua managed. Jing Xinqiang patted him on the head in comfort.

“What you do not say is just as loud, Xiao Shang.” Oof. “Shizhi, have you already bowed before Yin-shixiong?” Shen Qingqiu shifted, but shook his head.

“No, Shishu. I was- This one was to do so after finishing his paperwork.”

“Xiao Shang brought you here to make a different offer, then,” she concluded. She put a hand forward, and Shen Qingqiu shifted uncomfortably. Jing Xinqiang paused to look down at him peculiarly, then turned her palm up. “Allow this master your hand, Shizhi. I will check your spiritual root.”

“… It’s no good,” Shen Qingqiu answered, hesitant.

“Then allow this master to see for herself.” Shen Qingqiu remained still for a moment, then glanced over. Shang Qinghua gave what he hoped was a suitably encouraging smile. Shen Qingqiu looked back to the hand, then quietly put his hand in hers. Jing Xinqiang turned his thin wrist gently, examining carefully. Her gaze remained intently concentrating for a long moment, then she nodded.

“Damaged and bad are two different things,” she concluded, letting his hand go. “Damaged can be adjusted to with time, even healed. Bad is lifelong.” She considered him. “Come here,” she ordered, waving. Shen Qingqiu hesitated even as she began to stalk away, so Shang Qinghua gave him another smile and followed first. After a moment, Shen Qingqiu followed.

Jing Xinqiang led them around one of her halls to the back, where the sounds of wildlife were especially persistent. Shen Qingqiu lagged somewhat, and after getting a sideways look, Shang Qinghua lagged as well. Shen Qingqiu didn’t say anything even as distance was made between them and the peak lord, who merely continued as if not noticing. She stopped in a small clearing, then her qi flared out in a brief pulse. Shen Qingqiu shivered in surprise.

He stiffened when a tall, long-legged beast stepped out of the misty forest with nary a sound, a single long horn curved up from its delicate brow. Shang Qinghua didn’t make every monster something original or from a generator, the normal wuxia monsters were just- vastly outnumbered and all. But didn’t that make them more rare and precious?? In any case, the xiezhi of Yan Xie Peak belonged to the current peak lord as her companion, and when the next peak lord was appointed, would seem to disappear into the wilderness, disgusted by the man’s growing cruelty. Which was, of course, related to the future sexy wife with demon blood who was also hated by her cruel shizun, but secretly supported by the intelligent xiezhi that helped her escape the sect’s destruction.

… Shang Qinghua put a lot of thought into side plots, okay, he just already had a character count in the millions, and no one seemed to care about him exploring the nature of a xiezhi’s aversion to evil and what that meant for characters who started out good and twisted out of jealousy or anger. Or at least he’d gotten some pretty cold responses to the xiezhi trying to kill Luo Binghe on sight, and no one wanted to continue that subplot where his protagonist examined himself and his past actions to that point. So- secretly corrupted xiezhi it had been instead!

With that being said, the xiezhi was apparently broken pretty early, because it really, really liked Shang Qinghua.

“Shen Jiu, do you know why no one dares intrude upon Yan Xie Peak in secret?” Jing Xinqiang asked aloud, while Shen Jiu was staring at the tall deer-wolf beast with wide eyes.

“Um,” Shang Qinghua put forward. “Shishu is asking rhetorically. No one would mess with Baobao.”

… He had no comments about the name.

Baobao, who spotted him, gave a snort in its elegance and strode forward. Shang Qinghua was immediately given a fat lick from chin to hairline, and could only splutter about it. Jing Xinqiang gave a huff of laughter.

“Yes, indeed. Do you know of the nature of a xiezhi, Shen Jiu?”

“… I do,” Shen Qingqiu answered, terse.

“Nooo, Baobao- my hair,” Shang Qinghua despaired, trying fruitlessly to get the creature to stop nipping at his bun. “My hair! Mercy!!”

“No mercy for Xiao Shang, Baobao.”

“No!!” Jing Xinqiang laughed like a bully, but reached up and pushed Baobao away by the nose. Baobao snorted loudly, but backed away while Shang Qinghua felt at the damage. “Shishu,” he whined.

“Grooming is a sign of affection, of course.” She laughed again, then turned her companion’s head aside. “Now, Baobao, you may harass Xiao Shang later until he remembers to visit you more. For now, meet his Shen Jiu.” Baobao grunted, but stalked forward. Shang Qinghua wasn’t particularly worried? For one, he knew most of all that Shen Qingqiu was not evil, especially at this low point in his life. He was sad and hurt, vicious and angry, but-

But even if he was technically destined to be a scum villain, so was Shang Qinghua! And Baobao liked him for whatever reason. There was literally no reason for the xiezhi to dislike Shen Qingqiu.

Naturally, Baobao gave Shen Qingqiu a sniff, then his long, curled tail wagged faintly. Shen Qingqiu didn’t seem to notice, because he bristled all over like an upset cat when Baobao pulled his head back, only to find that large head coming back down in a hard lean.

Ah, wait.

“Ah- Baobao, not too hard, he’s injured!” Shang Qinghua yelped, scurrying forward. “Bao-bao at least support a little of your own weight, just a little!!” Baobao snorted loudly at such nonsense, but bent his front legs to halfway support. Shen Qingqiu staggered somewhat, eyes huge as the tall beast continued to give its awkward version of a hug. “Shixiong, don’t be offended, this is how Baobao greets his favorite people,” Shang Qinghua managed, attempting to wrestle the beast’s fluffy neck into a less smothering position. “He knocked me flat on my back when we first met and did not care about my crying.”

“Xiao Shang was wailing about being eaten,” Jing Xinqiang reminded him, still giving him zero coolness points!! She only grinned when Shang Qinghua gave her a devastated expression, still finding his despair funny.

But he really thought the xiezhi would preemptively eat the scum villain, okay!!!

“… Heavy,” Shen Qingqiu finally wheezed. He staggered someone to one knee, and Shang Qinghua thought that was totally fine, no more pushing physical boundaries with his wounded scum villain, please!! He hefted himself under Baobao’s chin and braced his head off of Shen Qingqiu entirely. Baobao grunted unhappily, tongue instead coming out to lick at Shen Qingqiu’s poor nose.

“Baobao, learn boundaries, boundaries!!” Shang Qinghua wheezed. Jing Xinqiang could stop laughing and help out, please?! Shen Qingqiu scrambled to freedom quickly, standing and dusting himself off. He scrubbed at his nose.

“Shen Jiu, I’m afraid that the mighty Baobao has spoken,” Jing Xinqiang lamented. “And he will not let yet another of his favorites wander off to another peak. You must stay.”

“Shishu,” Shang Qinghua managed, arms shaking slightly. Baobao had transitioned to trying to flatten him instead. “Shishu, I promised Shixiong choices, free will!!”

“Aiya, how troublesome,” Jing Xinqiang lamented. “Fine! This master will offer a choice, then. You will either join this peak now or be relentlessly pursued as a disciple in the future. Come now, Shen Jiu, you have arrived at this sect in our peak’s golden autumn, and were brought to Baobao by the most adorable disciple of the entire sect-“

“Shishu!!” Shang Qinghua wailed.

“-Hush, Xiao Shang. It is fate. And even if it is not fate, it is much better than Qing Jing Peak. Shen Jiu, what can I entice you with? Xiao Shang has been so very resistant, please do not follow in his footsteps.” Shen Qingqiu made a faint sound in his throat, then quickly closed his mouth. He held the front of his robes tightly, visibly unsteady from Baobao’s assault. His eyes darted around the trees, to Baobao, to Shang Qinghua, who was being crushed into an early death.

“… I don’t- want to go to Qing Jing,” he admitted finally. “… Do I have to share a room with someone else?” Jing Xinqiang tilted her head slightly.

“Not if you don’t want to,” she answered. “There are exceptions.” Shen Qingqiu’s knuckles were starting to turn white, and Shang Qinghua was still struggling, but realized-

Shen Qingqiu wanted this. This was a thing he really, genuinely wanted, even if he was scared to accept.

Shang Qinghua had a brief moment of terror. What if Shen Qingqiu wanted to accept, but couldn’t? What if the System had allowed him this much because it knew that nothing would change the outcome? What if all he did was show Shen Qingqiu what could have been, forced the System to step in, and would leave him with that bitter regret on top of everything else in his life??

Before he could really freak out, though, Shen Qingqiu said “If- Master Jing will have me, this Shen Jiu would ask to be accepted.”

Shang Qinghua was so relieved he collapsed entirely to Baobao’s weight. Baobao grunted. Shang Qinghua spat out fur for a moment before bursting upright.

“YES!!!” he exploded, raising his fists high. He paused. Shen Qingqiu and Jing Xinqiang were both staring at him. OOC!! “… I mean- um!” he managed, jerking his hands down. “I’m not being weird.” Baobao gave a loud snort, standing up behind him. “I just, uh- S-So! I should do that paperwork,” he babbled quickly, patting himself down. “So that Shixiong can get to his bows!”

“Your shidi, now,” Jing Xinqiang reminded him patiently. Her eyes gleamed. “Unless Xiao Shang has changed his mind-“

“Shishu I told you I’d literally die.”

“Hmm. Fine.”

“H-Here, um, Shidi! Let’s do the paperwork really fast.” Shang Qinghua waved Baobao away from harassing his hair again, scuttling over to a nearby bench. He gave Jing Xinqiang a beseeching look. “Um, Shishu…”

“Yes, yes, this master knows the rules,” Jing Xinqiang laughed, giving a wave. “I will wait inside, then. Come, Baobao.” Baobao grunted and followed her from the clearing. Shang Qinghua supposed this technically counted as being alone with Shen Qingqiu, but fortunately, Shen Qingqiu didn’t look too bristly and cornered. He looked after his new peak lord with quiet uncertainty, then sat on the bench as well. Shang Qinghua got out his writing supplies again, pleased.

“Why are there rules about this that even the peak lords obey?” Shen Qingqiu abruptly asked.

“Technically speaking, no one’s supposed to carry their bloodline and family into a righteous sect,” Shang Qinghua chatted, happy to fill in Yan Xie Peak at the top of his new paper. “To separate immortal masters from worldly matters and all those fancy lies. But these papers are still kept in confidence except from the peak lords, and can only be pulled by other masters for security concerns. It’s just- also a given that if you lie too much about your past when you said something else on your paperwork, An Ding Peak will make a stink about it.” He shrugged a little, then turned the paper around. “Write your name here, first.” Shen Qingqiu accepted the brush with a slight nod. His writing definitely wouldn’t have passed muster on Qing Jing. Shang Qinghua was desperately relieved, and still halfway expecting something to happen?

“… Should I still lie?” Shen Qingqiu then asked. Shang Qinghua cocked his head, considering.

“If you do want to go to somewhere like Qing Jing or even Qiong Ding in the future, it would help you,” he decided. “I know a lot of families that a cover story would work for, I can even get you a public acknowledgment if I have enough time.” Plenty of noble families would love to be blackmailed into having an immortal cultivator as their fake family! “But- you don’t have to,” Shang Qinghua admitted. “Even if you do change your mind about Yan Xie. It’d be harder and come with plenty of stink from other disciples who have more ego than brains, but-“ He offered a sheepish smile. “But, um, I think it’s- compelling, honestly?”

“Compelling?” Shen Qingqiu repeated.

“If you end up becoming a really prominent cultivator in the future, think about it!” Shang Qinghua agreed. “Rising from a high platform isn’t nearly as impressive a tale as rising from the ground. In the Jiangshi, your reputation will be your reflection. People love a story of, say, an orphan child who was found in the river and becomes an emperor, rather than of someone born rich who has their cultivation handed to them on a silver platter.” Ahhh, if only he’d been able to expose those parts of his Shen Qingqiu to his readers. Surely they wouldn’t have been so harsh on him.

“… Is it really- impressive?” Shen Qingqiu asked, quiet.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Shang Qinghua agreed. “People are cruel regardless of class, but they can be so much worse in ways that sheltered people will never understand. Overcoming true obstacles to reach the heavens, taking wounds that should have meant death, lifelong scars on someone that lived to old age-“ Shang Qinghua nodded sagely. “I think it’s impressive. It’s something to be proud of, to be that strong. Those whose lives are never in danger can’t imagine the strength of survivors.”

… Wait, that was a good line. Ahh, shit, should he write it down? He didn’t have any paper except the form!!

“… I don’t have parents,” Shen Qingqiu then said, breaking Shang Qinghua from his sad thoughts. Shang Qinghua blinked. Shen Qingqiu met his stare intently, then turned his gaze down to the paper pointedly. Shang Qinghua set his brush to work obediently. “I grew up as a slave,” Shen Qingqiu told him. “My name is- my place in line.”

Shang Qinghua didn’t think he was that convincing, but? But Shen Qingqiu really just- told him the real and honest truth?? Slavery wasn’t actually legal in this world, so when Shen Qingqiu said he killed Qiu Jianlao with a dead voice, Shang Qinghua commented that anyone treating people worse than animals more than deserved it. Shen Qingqiu said that the Qiu family was dead. He fell quiet, and Shang Qinghua answered, with equal honesty, good fucking riddance.

“My last master was Wu Yanzi,” Shen Qingqiu said, a faint tremor in his voice, so Shang Qinghua didn’t look up from his work. “I- killed him, too.”

“Wu Yanzi’s an infamous name in the sects,” Shang Qinghua explained. “You killed a criminal everyone wanted dead, I’m assuming for crossing a line. That it was your own teacher was regrettable, no one wants to be the student that has to put down their evil master.” He shook his head to himself. “But it was inevitable that someone like that would eventually turn on you, too,” he reasoned. “Shidi saved the lives of all of his future victims, himself included.” He wrote down Wu Yanzi having tricked Shen Qingqiu into being his disciple, only to fall when his evilness was exposed. It wasn’t actually a lie, and not entirely an embellishment. Shen Qingqiu couldn’t have known the man’s reputation, he really only saw someone willing to help him.

“… He- tried to kill- Yue Qi,” Shen Qingqiu agreed, quiet.

“So then you’ll have his testimony as well that your former master was a bastard,” Shang Qinghua concluded in satisfaction. He added Yue Qingyuan’s name to his paper. “If anyone does force a check on these papers, his testimony will be called forward.”

“What if he lies?” Shen Qingqiu asked, and genuinely feared that of Yue Qingyuan, the one person who cared the most about him in this world. Shang Qinghua felt creator guilt to an uncomfortable degree, then more than a little fury.

“He won’t,” he answered firmly. “He wouldn’t dare.” Shen Qingqiu fell quiet. “But- that leads into you entering the sect, so that’s all the background I need of this,” Shang Qinghua concluded, relaxing somewhat as he signed his own name. “I’ll seal this and bring it back to the records hall. If you worry about it later, please let me know.” He dried off the ink with a quick flash of spiritual energy, then folded the paper carefully. Once the seal was in place, he tucked it away with his writing supplies, then beamed. “And now your bows!” he proclaimed. “Shidi, Shidi, don’t worry! Jing-shishu is only a little bit of a bully, but she has a good nature about it. You’ll like it here.” He would! He better fucking should!!! If anyone on this Yan Xie Peak jeopardized that, Shang Qinghua was going to go full scum villain on their asses.

Shen Qingqiu turned his gaze away in a manner that was close to bashful, the poor thing.

He had to leave Shen Qingqiu at the doorstep of his new master, but Shen Qingqiu gave a tiny, hesitant wave and Shang Qinghua couldn’t help beaming about it. Jing Xinqiang reminded him to visit soon or else, and Baobao grunted in equal threat. Shang Qinghua may have possibly squeaked about it before scuttling back to work.

Sure, he was immediately drowning in work because he hadn’t been keeping up with the day’s deadlines. He was well aware that Yue Qingyuan might actually hunt him for sport when he realized his attempts to care for Xiao Jiu were demolished. Even Qing Jing’s peak lord might get pretty pissy about that appointment that was never kept.

But the System hadn’t even screamed at all about him changing shit, which was really weird but also the best thing ever, and he accepted his good fortune! It was about time he got some perks.

… But seriously, what a weird dream he had to lead up to a day like this! Some weird future Luo Binghe rampaging through his mind and battling some morphic form of the System itself, only to win, then disappear with a cheerful have fun, Airplane-shishu.

Haha, classic overworked brain shenanigans.

-

Shen Jiu rose from his ninth bow towards his new master, and for a moment, all was quiet. Jing Xinqiang looked down at him for a brief moment, then smiled gently. She picked up the wine that was poured for her and took it in a single shot. She exhaled softly, lowering the cup.

“Shen Jiu, welcome to Yan Xie Peak,” she concluded, setting the cup aside. “We will arrange everything soon, your room, your robes, your manuals. For now…” Her gaze softened. “Do you know what an advantage is of being a master of beasts, Shen Jiu?” Shen Jiu could think of a great deal of advantages based on the massive mythical beast that was still lingering nearby, gaze flickering to ‘Baobao’ before going forward. “Body language is our specialty, Shen Jiu,” Jing Xinqiang told him, quieter. “That also applies to humans.”

“… This disciple does not understand,” Shen Jiu finally answered, not sure how else to.

“Those who hurt you, Shen Jiu,” Jing Xinqiang elaborated, voice low. “Those who put fear in every one of your movements and pain in your eyes. This master wants to know- did they walk free?” He felt his fingers dig into his knees. Somewhere, Shang Bei had made off with a sealed paper with all of his truths, all of his most despicable actions. At any time, a master could demand answers.

He shouldn’t have.

… He- If he-

No, it. It would be… okay? He’d tried to start this miserable life over twice now, and this third time- maybe, maybe this third time would actually work out. He had to think it was possible. He had to, or else-

Or else, what had he killed any of them for? He might as well have let them finish the job.

Were they walking free?

“No, Shizun,” he answered, not looking up. “I- killed them.”

Good fucking riddance.

“… Very well,” Jing Xinqiang murmured. “Then I will not ask further. Rise.” Shen Jiu picked himself up, feeling unsteady. His third master now, shouldn’t he be used to it? A hand moved towards him and he flinched reflexively, then stopped himself. But- there was no connection. The hand was offered palm-up, and sitting in her palm was a small, simple jade token. He took it quickly, before she could comment on the flinch. “Our peak’s specialty is also in using body language to tame and befriend certain beasts, forming a mutual relationship of trust and benefit,” she continued, leading him to Baobao. “It’s an exercise in failure. Not every beast master is compatible with every beast, not every beast accepts such terms. But success is more than worth the failures.” She reached up, and Baobao lowered its head easily, leaning into the gentle touch. “Are you willing to fail and try regardless, Shen Jiu?” she asked.

He was still alive, wasn’t he?

“Yes, Shizun,” he answered.

“Will you treat your friends with care and a gentle touch?”

“I,” Shen Jiu started. He fell quiet for a moment, watching her so easily touch a beast of legend that, by all accounts, should have gored him open on sight. It couldn’t have looked at him and seen something worth preserving, right?

But it loved Shang Bei, the bright-eyed, chatty disciple with unreserved emotion and kindness. Offering him choices, honesty, personal space, respect- respect even after writing down all he had done- all things he never received from Qi-ge, who almost damned him to yet another master he wasn’t fit for. If Shang Bei was Baobao’s standard of some indiscernible goodness, then maybe…

… Well, maybe.

“Is it difficult?” Jing Xinqiang asked at his silence. She didn’t sound angry or scornful, at least.

“… I’ve only ever killed, Shizun,” he told her finally. “I don’t- know if I can do anything else.” The tall woman hummed in answer.

“A fair point,” she decided. “Then come here and begin to learn. This will be your first lesson.” Shen Jiu swallowed hard, but carefully walked forward. “Baobao, gently,” Jing Xinqiang added, when the beast eyed Shen Jiu with obvious interest. “Gently, now.” Baobao grunted, but lowered its head. “Start small,” Jing Xinqiang told him. “Offer a hand.”

“What if it’s bitten?” Shen Jiu tried, hand flexing subconsciously.

“Beasts are honest, Shen Jiu,” she told him. “They bite when they are threatened, and they flee when they are frightened. You must be honest towards them, or never make that connection. You are not being threatened. You will not bite him.” Her voice softened. “You will not threaten him, then, and he will not bite you. See how his pupils are at normal size, and his breathing is regular. He stands in this relatively small space but does not back up to a wall or corner. He does not fear you.”

Did Shang Bei fear him? He hadn’t thought to check his eyes and breathing.

… Why would he smile so brightly at him, then?

Shen Jiu awkwardly lifted a hand, and watched dark eyes immediately follow the movement. This monster should have killed him, but as his hand approached, shaking, the beast only- leaned.

It was gentle, and soft. He could feel Baobao’s breaths running gently through its nose, a subtle warmth of powerful qi. He felt something like disbelief, gingerly running his thumb over the soft velvet fur.

It was soft, it- it was- gentle?

“How does that feel?” Jing Xinqiang asked him. Baobao grunted, a rumbling sound that vibrated through his hand. It tickled.

“… It doesn’t hurt,” Shen Jiu comprehended. It was warm and soft and gentle, and it didn’t hurt, it didn’t- “It doesn’t hurt,” he repeated unsteadily.

He’d asked for the one thing he was sure he could never have, could never ask from someone else.

Shang Bei really gave it to him.

“It’s not supposed to hurt,” his new master agreed quietly. “Let’s make pain the abnormal, Shen Jiu.” The feeling in his chest was almost like a new kind of pain, almost enough to spoil this. He let his hand run up the length of Baobao’s nose and his fingers tangled in the longer, thicker mane around its horn.

Soft.

His breathing shuddered, and he tried very hard to scrub away any tears before they fell. He failed. There was a hand touching him, and it was just as gentle and soft and it didn’t hurt.

“Y-Yes-“ He felt Baobao leaned into his hand, and tears were spilling past his hand and onto the wooden floors. He shuddered. “Yes, S-Shizun,” he managed to choke out.

With just a taste of this, he realized he never wanted to hurt again.

-

It actually took Yue Qingyuan a whole week to get around to realizing his precious Xiao Jiu was missing, and Shang Qinghua was not feeling generous with the revelation. Didn’t he know that a whole week was more than enough time to ruin someone’s life?? That Shen Qingqiu would only need one night in the dorms at Qing Jing to feed his paranoia and androphobia? That within two days the entire peak would know that Shen Qingqiu was a starved lowborn trying to be something he wasn’t? That by the end of an entire week, he’d already be in the throes of a social hierarchy where he would be thrown to the bottom and beaten to absolute shit?!

So, yeah, he wasn’t in a great mood when Yue Qingyuan came gliding into An Ding Peak and asked to meet with him. Because his shidi was a fucking coward, he outright brought Yue Qingyuan to Shang Qinghua even while he was busy at work.

That shidi then made himself scarce before Shang Qinghua could finish glaring in accusation. The joke was on him!! Shang Qinghua would not forget this just because he took off.

“Shang-shidi,” Yue Qingyuan greeted, stiffer than usual.

“Yue-shixiong,” Shang Qinghua answered. “This is an awkward time to offer me help with my work.” Yue Qingyuan’s smile thinned.

“Where is Xiao Jiu?” he asked outright. Shang Qinghua gave him a flat expression. Seriously, no more biting wordplay already? Yue Qingyuan, bring more patience to these matters!

“This shidi is certain he does not know anyone by such a name,” he observed. And also very sure that Shen Qingqiu wouldn’t, either!!

“Shen. Jiu,” Yue Qingyuan elaborated, smile reduced to nothing but tension. “I have been to Qing Jing Peak this morning. Shen Jiu did not arrive as Yin-shishu had expected.”

“Oh, Shen Jiu,” Shang Qinghua recalled, stretched his hands over his head. “Right, that disciple. He decided Qing Jing Peak wasn’t for him.”

“When did Shen Jiu decide that?” Yue Qingyuan demanded. Shang Qinghua leaned back in his chair somewhat.

“When I told him it wasn’t for him,” he answered merrily. Yue Qingyuan stilled. “I don’t know who recommended him to Qing Jing in the first place,” Shang Qinghua lied boldly, finding his mood improving. “Anyone with eyes could see he didn’t belong there. So I recommended a different peak, and he accepted this shixiong’s recommendation.” And he went back to check on the second day, the fifth day, and would check again soon just for good measure!!

Shen Qingqiu was actually taking to Yan Xie Peak like a duck to water. Busy with lessons, but- it was obvious that the usual anger was falling away in patches, leaving clearer eyes and quiet spots of calm. He said his room was fine, that none of the disciples were giving him problems. He even sounded like he meant it, too.

He said thank you, Shixiong with real, genuine words and Shang Qinghua almost cried again.

“Which peak was that?” Yue Qingyuan demanded. Ugh.

“This shidi doesn’t understand why Yue-shixiong is so interested in another disciple’s affairs,” Shang Qinghua answered, another bold yet enjoyable lie. “An Ding prides itself on maintaining confidentiality with necessary.”

“We were friends outside the sect,” Yue Qingyuan answered tersely.

“When does the son of a Borderlands merchant have the chance to meet a Jianghu noble’s bastard son?” Shang Qinghua returned.

“… Life- takes one in many directions.”

“All over the map, so it seems,” Shang Qinghua agreed flatly. “Yue-shixiong, your position is commendable and lofty. This shidi has seen his shixiong work hard. But do not presume that such a position will get this shixiong everything he desires with a gentle word and blatant lie. From what this shidi has seen, Shen-shidi did not actually seem to consider Yue-shixiong a friend in any capacity. Do you have a prepared lie to explain that hostility?” Yue Qingyuan only stared at him, barely withholding frustration. Shang Qinghua turned away. “Yue-shixiong must excuse his shidi, but he is very busy,” he grumped. “His work does not allow for nearly so much leisure as his shixiong seems to have.” Yue Qingyuan loitered for a few minutes, then when Shang Qinghua pointedly continued his work, turned and left.

The next day, Shang Qinghua dumped half of his work on a very specific shidi, then went to Yan Xie again. Not for any particular reason. If problems were going to happen, they definitely would have happened by now. He wasn’t even going to see Shen Qingqiu, really- just relieving some stress by blowing off work and taking a walk on a pretty peak.

Shen Qingqiu turned out to be in a lecture, anyway. Shang Qinghua took a quick, teeny tiny peek. He was just- sitting with other disciples, dressed in flattering sea green, quietly paying attention to his lessons and taking notes. Most of his injuries were healing at a regular pace, which meant nothing was making any further problems with his cultivation. No one was snickering behind his back or even really paying attention to him.

… Nothing had happened to change fate back to how it should be.

He quickly stopped staring before anyone could accuse him of creeping, and stepped away. He then squealed when a big, furry lump flattened him to the ground.

“Got you, Xiao Shang,” Jing Xinqiang teased, standing nearby.

“Shishu!!” Shang Qinghua wailed. Jing Xinqiang laughed at his misery, only crouching down and patting his head. Baobao grunted on top of him. Shang Qinghua felt his face color when he realized she was probably there for a while. “I-I wasn’t staring at anyone, I’m not spying!” he denied quickly.

“Oh, yes, of course not,” the peak lord soothed, pure mischief twinkling in her eyes. “Xiao Shang’s perfectly innocent intentions towards his shidi are unquestionable.” Shang Qinghua spluttered uncontrollably, going red fast.

“Shishu that’s not what’s happening?! It’s-!” He scrambled mentally for a real reason. “I-I was just- checking!” he insisted quickly. “It’s. I got- an unhappy visit lately.” Which was true! Jing Xinqiang paused, cocking her head.

“Unhappy visit?” she echoed. Shang Qinghua squirmed a bit, but Baobao continued to be wretchedly heavy.

“… Yue- Yue Qi,” he finally admitted. “He couldn’t find Shen-shidi on Qing Jing, so he- came to ask. I didn’t tell him which peak Shen-shidi was on!” he added quickly. Jing Xinqiang’s scowl only lessened slightly.

“What does Zhangmen-shixiong’s head disciple want from my Shen Jiu?” she demanded.

“He said that they were friends outside of the sect,” Shang Qinghua dodged. Her eyes narrowed, and he winced. “… B-But the way Shen-shidi acts around him isn’t very friendly,” he managed. “Yue-shixiong- I, um. I can’t tell Shishu the details, it’s confidential! But- Yue-shixiong definitely is the one who tried to help Shen-shidi by entering him into the sect.”

“Into Qing Jing?” she demanded incredulously.

“… I didn’t say he was good at helping.”

“And even so, he went to seek Shen Jiu,” Jing Xinqiang concluded.

“I just… w-wanted to make sure he didn’t- change anything,” Shang Qinghua admitted, too honest for his own taste. “He was trying to interfere in Shen-shidi’s paperwork, too. If- Jing-shishu, t-there’s not any way to change Shidi’s peak without his permission now, right?”

“Not even Zhangmen-shixiong has the right to interfere without cause,” she agreed firmly. “His head disciple oversteps.” She looked up. “Shen Jiu, is Yue Qi a friend of yours?” she asked bluntly. Shang Qinghua spluttered, squirming in an attempt to see.

When did Shen Qingqiu come out of the lecture hall to stand right there!!

“No, Shizun,” Shen Qingqiu answered sharply, anger clouding his eyes. “… Is he bothering Shixiong?”

“No,” Shang Qinghua answered quickly.

“Yes,” Jing Xinqiang corrected him. “The boy is overstepping his authority. Xiao Shang was worried about you being taken away against your will.” Well, he was, but those things didn’t have to be said out loud?? “He cannot, as I was just explaining,” Jing Xinqiang continued. “If he harasses you, inform your master. She will take care of such matters.” Some of the anger softened, and Shen Qingqiu nodded after a moment.

“Yes, Shizun.” He shifted. “What about Shixiong?”

“Shixiong’s fine!” Shang Qinghua exclaimed quickly. It probably wasn’t very convincing while he was flat on the ground beneath a huge beast. “Yue-shixiong is annoying and nothing more. He’s too flaccid to do anything to me.” Jing Xinqiang coughed loudly.

“The word is placid, Xiao Shang.”

“Oh, is it?” Shang Qinghua returned blandly. She gave his cheek such a pinch for that! Shen Qingqiu snickered in the background.

Worth it.

Of course, that wasn’t the end of anything. Yue Qingyuan, rather than minding his own business or just doing his own damn searching, started to make himself shockingly persistent at An Ding Peak. It- did come to the point where Shang Qinghua’s own master, Shi Xinze, pulled him aside and asked very seriously if he was going to need rescuing from Yue Qingyuan. Shang Qinghua really didn’t know what Yue Qingyuan was trying to accomplish, but that didn’t mean he thought an actual rescue mission was in order?

… Seriously, there were only twelve peaks total. Could the head disciple not just walk to each one in order and say hey where’s my shidi like a normal person?? Literally no one was stopping him.

But no, it was just Shang Qinghua who was bothered every few days, while Yue Qingyuan fake-smiled and asked again where his precious Xiao Jiu was, and was always unhappy with the answer like he really thought it would change. He then dithered around, prodding at Shang Qinghua’s buttons like he still thought he was just another two-bit disciple who cared about his word game, then eventually stomped off when his patience ran out.

Shang Qinghua didn’t remember writing a fucking idiot, but here they were!!

… With that being said, a month after Shen Qingqiu showed up, Shang Qinghua had to admit that something was- wrong??

He hadn’t been bothered by the System. At all.

In general, Shang Qinghua didn’t bother the System, and the System bothered him literally whenever it wanted. They had a long-term relationship like this. The complete and total silence was downright weird?? So for the first time since far too long ago, he laid in bed for the evening and bothered the System first.

And there was just- nothing.

…

…

… Nothing worth freaking out about, he was sure.

Anyway, he went back to not bothering the System, and instead casually went for a midnight walk instead of sleeping that night.

The next day, Shen Qingqiu showed up to An Ding.

“U-Um, Shixiong…”

“The next shidi to not grow a pair and tell Yue Qi to roll his own damn self off the rainbow bridge will, in fact, be on errant tax duty,” Shang Qinghua answered. “I will resort to blackmail. I will resort to framing for blackmail. I will have you traipsing so far over the countryside and dealing with so many wild human beings-!”

“Pfft,” Shen Qingqiu snickered, and Shang Qinghua quite nearly knocked his entire table over. Instead of doing that, he collapsed in a heap on the floor.

… Zero coolness points for Shixiong, as usual.

“Ah- Shidi!” he burst out regardless, bolting upright. Shen Qingqiu! Standing on An Ding Peak!! “Shen-shidi, you’re here!” he exclaimed, then paused. “I mean. You know that! Being the one that came here, ah. Ahahaha, I- didn’t sleep last night, that- that’s why my words aren’t working.” He cleared his throat. “What- can I do for Shidi?”

“Nothing if you’re too busy,” Shen Qingqiu replied blandly, shrugging a little. “I just wasn’t sure when Shixiong would visit again.”

“Not busy! Barely busy at all,” Shang Qinghua lied boldly.

“W-What?” his An Ding shidi tried. “Da-shixiong, but we’re in the middle of tax accounts which is the busiest time of the entire year-?”

“Shh, shh, shhh,” Shang Qinghua soothed, clapping a hand over the disciple’s mouth. “You’re right, I forgot how desperately busy my shidi was. I hate to keep you from your work. Here, share these.” He grabbed a stack of papers and handed them over. “Good luck with your business, shidi,” Shang Qinghua encouraged, and bustled him out the door. “Have fun!”

“S-Shixiong-?!” Shang Qinghua closed the door. He turned around, beaming.

“I’m suddenly way less busy than I was a minute ago,” he explained cheerfully. “What’s up?” Shen Qingqiu’s mouth twitched vigorously. He cleared his throat, then reached behind himself and pulled off the small wicker basket he was carrying around. He set it down carefully, then opened the lid.

A tiny head poked out, a green-scaled snake with what seemed to be tiny rubies budding on its head above black eyes. The tiny head gave a great and mighty yawn, then more tiny heads popped out, and Shang Qinghua could scream?!

From cuteness!!!

“Shidi shidi shidi shidi-!!” he gasped, instantly on his hands and knees and crawling up to the basket. “Shidi!!” he repeated excitedly. “No way no way, are those Ruby Fanged Jade Snakes?! Baby Ruby Fanged Jade Snakes?!” He gingerly extended a finger, and one immediately bit him! Well, it was too young to actually develop the trademark ruby fangs that literally incinerated threats, so it was more like it was gumming on the end of his finger. “Awww,” he gushed.

“Don’t let them bite, Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu huffed, gently prying off the baby snake.

“It’s like getting bitten by noodles,” Shang Qinghua gushed. “Tiny noodles who will someday be scary enough to bite my face off, but not today.” He paused then. “Oh! Wait, why do you have the baby noodles?” he realized.

“Wu-shixiong found a nest of newly-hatched snakes, and brought them to the peak,” Shen Qingqiu explained, plucking up a noodle that was attempting to escape. “Shizun said it was training to care for them.”

“So cute,” Shang Qinghua gushed, letting another noodle slip into his palm. It curled between his fingers with obvious curiosity, and he couldn’t resist patting its little gem-studded head. “Are you going to try training them?” he realized.

“Shizun said that snakes are difficult to train and they might not take,” Shen Qingqiu admitted, considering the babies. “… I’ll try.”

“They’ll definitely be sticky if you can feed them flame qi,” Shang Qinghua reasoned. “Normally adults in the wild help them develop their fangs and horns by cultivating flame qi and passing it on to them. Especially powerful ones can reach immortality of their own.” Shen Qingqiu stared.

“They… really?”

“Snake demon tribes in the Borderlands tame snakes of their own typically, but they tend to have an advantage in that they can speak the language and all,” Shang Qinghua chatted. “Ruby Fanged Jade Snakes are considered pretty exotic to have on hand for them, but it’s still definitely possible! Flame qi can be harder to come by, though,” he acknowledged, cocking his head. “Unless…” He snapped his fingers. “Oh! Houyi’s Endless Lament!!” He tucked the noodle back in the basket, then hopped up. “Shixiong, I totally know a place where we can get some flame qi for you! It’s actually really close by,” he babbled excitedly. “Here, come on, let’s go! It’s a quick sword ride.”

“That- What?” Shen Qingqiu tried. “I mean. Is that- allowed?”

“It’s fine if you go with me,” Shang Qinghua reasoned, packing away the little babies. He paused. “Oh, but if you don’t want to share a flying sword, we could also walk,” he added quickly. “It’ll take a little longer, but-“

“No, it’s- it’s fine,” Shen Qingqiu cut him off, collecting his basket. “… It’s fine,” he repeated.

… Really?? Neat.

“Then a quick trip it is!” Shang Qinghua cheered. “Don’t worry, Shidi, I’ll definitely make it worth your while! And for the noodles,” he added. Shen Qingqiu’s mouth twitched again.

“They’re not food, Shixiong,” he managed.

“Shidi is such a caring shidi, bringing me lunch,” Shang Qinghua chatted. “If only the noodles weren’t too cute to eat.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“Thank you!” Of course, Shang Qinghua took zero responsibility, because Shen Qingqiu was the one carrying around a basket of adorable baby snakes. “We should also pick up some Cold Spring water,” he added thoughtfully, leading Shen Qingqiu outside. “Cultivating flame qi by itself is always risky, but it could also help your spiritual root, Shidi. Like Shishu said, a damaged root is different from a bad one- strengthening elemental roots could help a lot.”

“It- could?” Shen Qingqiu managed.

“Sure, it’s helped in plenty of cases.” Not all of Luo Binghe’s wives got a great start, after all. Or- most of them didn’t. “There’s also artifacts and the like, but you develop a dependency on the object and being separated can damage your cultivation further. Uh.” He paused again, blinking. “Wait, I have to tell you- cultivating flame qi is permanent and commitment is forever,” he added quickly. “Do you want to cultivate flame qi for the little baby snakes? I forgot to ask that really important question.” Shen Qingqiu cocked his head slightly when Shang Qinghua looked at him. He looked down to his basket.

“If Shixiong thinks it’ll work,” he finally answered. “I want to try.”

“Shixiong definitely knows what he’s talking about!” Shang Qinghua promised. His one and only creator perk, in fact!!

He didn’t get to go hunting for his own treasures very often, he was actually supposed to keep his own damn cultivation in line with his character. But since the System was on its weird silent mode, he was going to take advantage! And definitely not think about what he would do if it was anything other than a silent mode, if he really, actually-

No, no, not thinking about that. Back to reality.

Shen Qingqiu was quiet on the sword flight, holding onto his arms in a stiff, but polite grab. Shang Qinghua didn’t mind terribly, instead swooping a bit over some smaller forests before reaching the right one. He lowered them to the ground and Shen Qingqiu hopped off first. He looked around the small clearing, frowning somewhat.

“What- are we even looking for in the first place?” he finally asked.

“It’s a flower,” Shang Qinghua explained, sheathing his sword. “It’s bright red and yellow, six petals, glows in the dark. It’s not very big, and it looks a little like it’s crying?”

“Crying?” Shen Qingqiu echoed, watching him poke around the trees. One of them had a knot shaped like a bird rising. He leaned his shoulder against the bark, then squirmed a bit.

“Um, yeah, crying,” he agreed absently. “It’s called Houyi’s Endless Lament because of the ancient legend of Houyi and the suns, do you know that story?”

“No.”

“Houyi was a famous archer back in ancient times, when it’s said that several suns used to race across the sky every day and basically set the world ablaze,” Shang Qinghua babbled, shifting his hip aside and squirming against the tree. “The suns were caused by jinwu, who abandoned their benevolent nature and began to cause mischief. Houyi was a legendary archer who saved the world by shooting down most of the crows, except for one. Flowers like Houyi’s Endless Lament are said to be the tears he shed over the slaughter even though it was for the greater good, but-“ He grunted, turned himself around, then applied pressure from his other side.

“Do I- want to know what you’re doing?” Shen Qingqiu attempted.

“-But the truth is that they’re actually the scattered feathers of the jinwu remains, which is why they overflow with endless flame qi,” Shang Qinghua continued. “They’re technically divine-level panacea if you know how to use them right, which is why it’s a lot better to use it with Cold Spring water or something to counter the effects.” He paused. “… I’m trying to mimic a maiden’s willowy figure falling against this tree,” he added.

“What,” Shen Qingqiu said.

“Jinwu have a specific type in women,” Shang Qinghua managed. He squirmed again. “I’m not- exactly their type.”

“… Just- hold this,” Shen Qingqiu sighed, holding out the basket. “I’ll try.” Shang Qinghua rolled off the bark and accepted the basket. He watched as Shen Qingqiu stared at the tree’s bizarre knot, then closed his eyes, turned around, and swooned back against the bark.

The bark opened immediately, and Shen Qingqiu yelped as he fell through. Shang Qinghua quickly scurried after him.

“Ah- Shidi!!” he called, following into the tunnel opening. “Are you okay??” Shen Qingqiu quickly picked himself up, hissing softly.

“Don’t- tell anyone I did that,” he snapped, rubbing at his head.

“My lips are sealed,” Shang Qinghua promised. “But that did the trick!”

“Why was that the trick?!”

“That,” Shang Qinghua started, and felt himself redden. He cleared his throat loudly and decided to not explain his questionable choices in a different life. “A-Anyway! This should lead to the hidden garden,” he managed, handing the snakes back. “The flower should be in the back with the water.” Shen Qingqiu sighed, but followed him. Shang Qinghua pulled a light orb from his sleeve to light the way.

“How did you even know about this place, anyway?” Shen Qingqiu asked.

“Oh, you know, I read,” Shang Qinghua replied vaguely.

“Why not just use the flower yourself?”

“Um, I actually have specific reasons to not be a beacon of flame qi, funnily enough. It’s especially potent against ice qi.” Even if he was allowed, he did not need a reason for Mobei Jun to kill him early?

Fortunately, they reached the little underground garden before Shen Qingqiu could finish asking questions, and Shang Qinghua dimmed his light. The small field of flowers grew in the perfect shape of a fallen crow, a single massive arrow sticking out of the ground. Shen Qingqiu sucked in a sharp breath, then carefully walked forward. He crouched down beside the surrounding spring to inspect the little flowers, blazing with light and literally dripping with golden spiritual energy.

“… Do you- like it?” Shang Qinghua realized, shifting in place.

“They’re beautiful,” Shen Qingqiu breathed, eyes clear and wide, reflecting golden light perfectly. Shang Qinghua’s poor writer’s heart gave a flutter! Suck it, haters!!! “Is it- really okay to just…?” He reached out a hand, then very delicately touched one of the petals. Golden light dripped off his fingertips.

“If it’s you,” Shang Qinghua reasoned. Shen Qingqiu paused, looking back. Shang Qinghua jolted. “Um!!” he managed. “I mean- it’s for a good cause! Feeding children. The gods can’t get mad about that.” Shen Qingqiu snorted softly, glancing at his basket. It quivered with eager baby noodles inside. “You only really need one anyway, so go ahead and take your pick! I’ll bottle up some of the water.”

“Can these be grown outside of here?” Shen Qingqiu wondered. Shang Qinghua paused, considering.

“… There’s no rules against that,” he realized. “In that case, dig up a few! Just, uh. Don’t keep them anywhere near flammables, and also away from direct sunlight. Oh! And- And definitely don’t share them with other disciples who might be tempted to put them in their mouth? They’ll die. Without fail.”

“… Maybe I should only take the one, then.”

“I mean, they’re also pretty, so.”

“Just the one,” Shen Qingqiu repeated, and went to pick his choice. Shang Qinghua shrugged, but set to his own task.

After collecting quite a bit of Cold Spring water, then some extra for good measure, then just a few more bottles because he thought Mobei Jun could use them, Shang Qinghua finished up. Shen Qingqiu held his choice flower in his palms, looking briefly uncertain about what to do with it. The golden qi dripped lightly on his skin and dissipated.

“Is it fine to carry around?” he asked hesitantly.

“It should be fine,” Shang Qinghua reasoned. “Besides, it’s safer to do weird cultivation stuff with masters around and all. Jing-shishu is a badass with internal force, so she can definitely help out.” Shen Qingqiu blinked, but started following him out. He carefully tucked the flower in his robes.

“She doesn’t look like an internal force specialty,” he put forward.

“Shishu’s amazing muscles are just a show of how amazing she is,” Shang Qinghua reasoned. He grinned. “And it’s neat, right? You expect a beastmaster to be this big, beefy brawler because they’re always wrestling bears or whatever people think. And then-!” He clapped his hands together. “Baobao.” Shen Qingqiu gave a startled snrk. “And also Shishu’s mid-range spells and qi force,” Shang Qinghua added. “I heard she actually used to be head disciple of Bai Zhan back in her generation before going to Yan Xie. Anyone who’s seen her shoulders believes it.”

“I believe it,” Shen Qingqiu acknowledged. “… Shizun does wrestle bears, though.”

Shang Qinghua tripped as they left the tunnel.

It was a quick ride back, during which Shen Qingqiu explained the bear-wrestling incident in greater detail. Shang Qinghua had not thought about all of the logistics of a beast taming peak when he thought of it, but supposed there had to be someone willing to suplex an angry mother bear around? Go figure.

He flew them both to Yan Xie Peak’s gate, and Shen Qingqiu seemed to be in a good mood after everything. Shang Qinghua still couldn’t believe he was getting away with this, but not about to acknowledge the circumstances too hard. Shen Qingqiu briefly opened the basket to check on the noodles, then closed it when they were obviously keen on finding the nearby source of flame qi.

“They’re still the cutest noodles ever and I hope it works,” Shang Qinghua managed. Shen Qingqiu hummed vaguely, considering his basket.

“… Me, too,” he answered. He was quiet for a moment longer, then looked up. “Shixiong,” he said. “Do you… think that-?”

“Xiao Jiu!!” Shen Qingqiu’s expression went flat in disdainful anger, and Shang Qinghua muffled a groan.

“Great,” he muttered. “Just what I need to- hey-!!” He yelped as he was grabbed up and thrown aside! Like a doll!! Just because people were taller, they kept thinking they could just manhandle him like this, huh?!

“Xiao Jiu,” Yue Qingyuan burst out, taking his spot. “Where have you be-?”

Even while awkwardly crawling out of a thorny bush, Shang Qinghua saw the punch coming. Or to be specific, the punch to the fucking throat.

Haha, sucked to be Qi-ge!!

“What the hell is wrong with you?!” Shen Qingqiu snarled, utter fury across his expression, sharpening green eyes to cold jade. “You impulsive, unthinking idiot!!” Yue Qingyuan wheezed somewhat, clutching at his throat. He looked at Shen Qingqiu with a tragic and wounded expression. “What are you doing, just shoving people around!” Shen Qingqiu demanded furiously. “Is this how the head disciple of a righteous sect conducts itself?!” Ooh, ow, ooh. Right in the Qi-ge feelings.

“Xiao- Shen,” Yue Qingyuan corrected himself quickly, flinching when Shen Qingqiu’s eyes blazed further. “S-Shen-shidi, I just-“ He wheezed again. “Where- W-Where have you been?” he tried. “Every- Every time I come to An Ding, I couldn’t find you.” Shang Qinghua blinked once. Twice.

It clicked!!

“That’s why you keep bothering me?!” he burst out, pointing. “It never occurred to you that he was on a different peak this entire time?!” Yue Qingyuan turned his head sharply, shocked! Shocked and confused!! Somehow having been completely and wholly convinced that any other peak was completely impossible!!!

Shang Qinghua, he would repeat for the record, did not write such a fucking dumbass into his book. Unintelligent villains, yes. But this??

“A different… peak?” Yue Qingyuan repeated. Shang Qinghua clutched at his head and barely didn’t tear out his own hair.

“I outright told you that I recommended a different peak, and you jumped straight to he’s hiding somewhere on AN DING?!” he exploded. “AN DING!! Why the fuck would I recommend anyone go to An Ding, Yue Qi?! It’s a paperwork peak where the higher your position the more paperwork you do until you’re the master of the bloodless paper cuts!! It never occurred to you in your entire life that you didn’t see Shen Jiu there because he just WASN’T THERE?!” Yue Qingyuan opened his mouth. “And- You know what, and!!” Shang Qinghua continued fiercely, spitting in fury. “Even if that wasn’t the case! Even if I just snuck him into An Ding and made him my poor paperwork shidi, the fact that you never found him would obviously be the product of he didn’t want to be found?! This isn’t some cutesy case of a lost dog trying to find an owner that abandoned it, okay?! You’re acting like some creepy suitor that doesn’t know how to take no for an answer!” Yue Qingyuan flinched.

“That- That is not-!”

“Of course I didn’t tell you where he was, do you even have the ability to realize the consequences of your own actions?!” Yue Qingyuan’s expression flashed with anger, and he took a step forward.

“You-!”

“That’s enough!!” Shen Qingqiu barked, stepping between them. He handed the basket to Shang Qinghua, who continued spitting incredulously. This EQ in the negative range?! He wasn’t responsible for it!!! “Yue Qi, I don’t know what the hell you want with me, but that’s no excuse to harass Shixiong!” he snapped. Yue Qingyuan took a step back instead.

“But he- Shen-shidi, I just-“

“You just what, wanted to make sure I’d go rot on the hell that was Qing Jing Peak?!” Shen Qingqiu demanded. “Wanted to throw me into the peak that only accepts noble born and see how fun it would be when I struggled?!”

“That was not- I was going to help you!” Yue Qingyuan insisted pitifully. “T-That’s why I said I would help you with your paperwork! Shang Bei was supposed to only take your background and lineage so you could go straight to Qing Jing without problems-“

“Hey, what, without problems!!” Shang Qinghua squawked. “Yue Qi!! What was going to happen to Shidi when he showed up claiming to come from a nice family and he didn’t already have a foundation for the Four Arts?!” Yue Qingyuan stopped. “What the fuck would happen when he was supposed to come from wealth and his cultivation wasn’t caught up to theirs, and he was obviously underfed half of his life?? Did you- Did you actually think that would be overlooked?! When you spend so much time fussing over every single braid in your hair and layer you wear and word you say, you really thought no one would notice?!” Yue Qingyuan’s mouth remained fallen open, eyes huge. Shen Qingqiu sneered in front of him.

“Or he just didn’t care,” he concluded flatly. Yue Qingyuan flinched.

“That wasn’t- I- I-I didn’t mean to-!” Wait, wait, wait???

Conversational opportunity to fix some 79 bullshit!!!

“This is so like you, Yue-shixiong!!” Shang Qinghua huffed. “Just like that time you just had to find the biggest sword on Wan Jian, and ended up almost dead for two years!”

… A little on the nose, but- passable, right?

“… What?!” Shen Qingqiu snapped, turning.

“That-“ Yue Qingyuan interrupted, eyes widening in panic? Panic?! Sit your ass down while your creator fixes your problems!!

“Yue-shixiong started in Wan Jian, and for almost a year, he was doing extremely well,” Shang Qinghua tattled. “But when he went to get his named sword, he bit off way more than he could chew. He went into a qi deviation that was so insane he was locked in the Spirit Caves for a whole year, then after somehow surviving that, spent almost another year in a coma because he tied his sword to his actual soul.”

“Shang Bei!!” Yue Qingyuan barked. “That- How do you even-?!”

“Yue Qi, shut up!!!” Shen Qingqiu snarled. It actually scared off some birds nearby. And Shang Qinghua, just a little bit.

“… Yeah, An Ding handles paperwork for literally everyone, Yue-shixiong,” Shang Qinghua had to point out. “That’s why we have so many confidentiality rules. But also? You have a literal record of doing something stupid and impulsive and not thinking it through. I get it, Tian-shibo was a jerk who was going to let you die. But you don’t get that you were picked out as a liar from day one, and you just happened to go to the peak where they weren’t allowed to pick on you for being born poor, so they made up any other excuse instead. Shidi was going to go to the peak where they make their own rules.”

“… You,” Shen Qingqiu finally managed, shoulders shaking faintly. “You- You-“ He lifted his head, and oh shit, oh shit, he was pissed- “You were never going to tell me any of this,” he hissed, spiritual energy starting to crackle over his skin. “Were you, Yue Qi?!”

… Wait, yeah, that was true, but-

“I,” Yue Qingyuan attempted, unsteady. “I-I didn’t- I couldn’t begin to apologize for leaving you there-“

“And you were just going to let me think it was on purpose?!” Shen Qingqiu shouted, and oh shit, the crackling qi was getting really out of hand, this teen was already prone to qi deviations-

“H-Hey- Shidi!” Shang Qinghua attempted. “Shen Jiu-!”

“WHAT?!” Shen Qingqiu roared, whirling around. Oh fuck oh shit wow his eyes were red!!! But then he froze in place and didn’t actually bite Shang Qinghua’s head off, focusing on his face for a moment. Shang Qinghua was- not that dumb, okay? He could easily see the don’t touch all over his scum villain.

… But he just- really wanted things to go better than this, while he still had the chance.

“It’s not that I don’t think he deserves being screamed at,” he admitted, setting the basket aside carefully. “But Shidi’s internal state isn’t good right now, and it’s better to take care of that even if Yue-shixiong gets away for now. Here, Shidi?” He’d seen Jing Xinqiang do this before, right?? How to approach really scary and angry animals??? He extended a hand forward at mid-level, palm up, keeping his shoulders relaxed. “Let this Shixiong help,” he coaxed, voice much steadier than he thought it should be.

By the grace of the heavens Yue Qingyuan did not open his fat mouth, instead freezing in fear when he realized what was going on. But his eyes nearly popped right out of his skull when Shen Qingqiu raised one shaking hand, then set it in Shang Qinghua’s. Shang Qinghua turned it carefully, his own heart hammering before he gently began to push his own qi inside. His cultivation wasn’t the greatest, but it was still stronger than Shen Qingqiu’s. Which- would be a problem after he cultivated flame qi?

Ugh, he should really work on that later.

“Hey,” Shang Qinghua added, leveling Yue Qingyuan with a good, nasty stare to remind him of the situation. “Be useful and get Jing-shishu so she can help. You are obviously not helping right now.” Yue Qingyuan actually whimpered in the back of his throat, but then turned and bolted off into the trees, so. Okay! “… We can bitch about him later, Shidi,” Shang Qinghua sighed, and Shen Qingqiu shuddered violently, slowly easing down to one knee. “It’s okay, it’s okay,” Shang Qinghua promised, quieter. “These things happen, it’s part of the cultivation bullshit.”

“S… Sorry,” Shen Qingqiu choked, his other hand shakily clasping at Shang Qinghua. “I-I…”

“It’s okay,” Shang Qinghua promised. Seriously, it was?? “I mean, who wouldn’t bite when their wounds were jabbed at?” he reasoned. “If Shidi wasn’t in danger, I’d be more than happy to sit back and cheer him on. Ah- no, don’t hold it back-“ He grimaced, then abruptly pushed forcefully on Shen Qingqiu’s sternum. He immediately coughed out a splat of blood, sucking in a gasp of fresh air for it. He leaned forward hard into Shang Qinghua, clutching at his shoulder instead. “… But if Shidi does bite, be gentle on his fragile Shixiong?” Shang Qinghua blathered. Shen Qingqiu coughed again, everything settling back down even as his grip tightened.

“… You’re- ridiculous,” he wheezed.

“Thank you,” Shang Qinghua chirped. He liked to think he was a little bit interesting as a person, right? “I’ll check Shidi from the back,” he explained, snaking his arm around. Shen Qingqiu nodded slightly, and Shang Qinghua worked with somewhat better access to his meridians. He exhaled in quiet relief after a moment. “Okay,” he said. “Okay, the worst of it passed. I’ll give Shidi an extra snack for not biting.” Shen Qingqiu muffled a sound in his shoulder.

“Shixiong,” he groaned.

“Teasing is a shixiong privilege and this shixiong refuses to let it go,” Shang Qinghua proclaimed, channeling further qi into him. Just to be safe. “We’re lucky with the timing, the flame qi should help with this. It’s not Shidi’s fault for having scars.” Shen Qingqiu fell quiet with that, but he was actually sort of relaxing into this awkward embrace?? Shang Qinghua didn’t dare ask him to move!

He didn’t even really hear Jing Xinqiang approach, but she sure moved fast to crouch beside them without a word. Her expression was tight in stress as she immediately clapped a hand over Shang Qinghua’s, her comparatively massive qi going over every inch of his work and further yet. Shen Qingqiu stirred, turning his head slightly.

“Shizun?” he mumbled.

“Yes, Shen Jiu, it’s Shizun,” she answered gently, exhaling softly. “Xiao Shang, how bad was it?”

“Nothing major, Shishu,” Shang Qinghua answered dutifully. “It spoke more to the force of the trigger than the condition.” Her eyes narrowed, and she nodded once. She withdrew her spiritual energy, then gently petted Shen Qingqiu’s hair.

“M’fine, Shizun,” Shen Qingqiu managed, the exhaustion obviously kicking in. Qi deviations were a hell of a crash, Shang Qinghua knew that from experience.

“You’ll still receive a check-up after your nap,” Jing Xinqiang answered firmly. “Where are your snakes?”

“Just right here, Shishu,” Shang Qinghua provided. “A whole basket of noodles.” Jing Xinqiang snorted softly, but collected the noodles. “I’ll help you walk, Shidi,” Shang Qinghua added, quieter. “Just until you get to bed.” Shen Qingqiu nodded in acceptance, though he held onto Shang Qinghua’s shoulder a few moments longer before letting go.

They’d only just gotten into position to start the trek back when Yue Qingyuan caught back up, puffing from effort and tears in his eyes. He gave a great cry of pain. “Xiao Jiu!!” he called. “Are you-“

“What the hell are you serious!!” Shang Qinghua screeched, and shifted to give the teen a good kick in the middle for his stupidity. Yue Qingyuan staggered back. “Will you go to someone else and give them a qi deviation, huh?! Learn about some fucking timing!!”

“B-B-But- But-!!”

“For pity’s sake,” Jing Xinqiang groaned, walking forward. She again proved her badassery by collecting the nuisance by the back of his robes, holding him off the ground slightly. “Shizhi, we will talk while you leave my mountain,” she ordered firmly. “Xiao Shang, I’ll also send for Qian Cao, see that Shen Jiu goes to bed.” Shang Qinghua exhaled in relief, accepting the basket he was given.

“Yes, Shishu,” he agreed. Yue Qingyuan was taken away with that, and Shang Qinghua huffed to himself about it. Shen Qingqiu glowered after him, then instead grumbled at the ground.

“… He is stupid,” he muttered.

“I swear he’s really good at looking like he knows what he’s doing,” Shang Qinghua attempted, starting the careful walk back. “But also, he’s a disaster when he loses his composure. Um, that’s kind of literal, given the extremely powerful sword tethered to his soul? You think he’d be better about that.”

“Tch.” Shen Qingqiu leaned a little more on him, and their walk was faster as a result. Shang Qinghua tried to not feel like he was blessed by the heavens for having a bashful butterfly settle on him. He failed!

They passed a few disciples that expressed concern for their shidi, which put Shang Qinghua’s mood back to a good place pretty easily. An entire peak who gave a shit about Shen Qingqiu!! He’d actually throw a tantrum to rival Luo fucking Binghe if the System took that away from him. He cheerfully waved them off with light excuses.

Once in Shen Qingqiu’s dorm room, he eased the poor teen to sit on his bed. He set the basket down in the wide cage that had obviously been made for the little noodles, setting them free. “Once the healer clears Shidi, he should be free to cultivate the Endless Lament,” he chatted. “I’ll borrow Shishu’s halls to write out the processing instructions.”

“Have- paper,” Shen Qingqiu muttered, blearily removing his boots and outer robes already. “Shixiong can use it.” Roundabout permission to hang out? He accepted!!

He was also pretty sure he knew who was going to come later, anyway, and he wanted to find an excuse to be in the area.

“Thank you, thank you,” Shang Qinghua accepted, settling at the desk. Based on the work already set out, it seemed that Shen Qingqiu was practicing his calligraphy? And also some advanced characters, based on the books stacked nearby. He tucked the work away for later and set out a new paper, grinding out some ink. Shen Qingqiu rolled himself into bed and seemed to fall asleep fast, breathing slow and deep.

Shang Qinghua was pretty sure that Shen Qingqiu- was really just sleeping well in the sect like this. He hadn’t heard anything about visits to nearby brothels to start up that habit. Which was good for his reputation and all. Hopefully, reducing his dangers of qi deviation would also help his relations with his future martial siblings.

Though- Shen Qingqiu technically didn’t have to be the next peak lord of any peak? He might not even want to. Though it was just a fact that he was more talented than most other disciples of the entire sect, which might be a problem if Jing Xinqiang didn’t hold on tightly enough in the future. Yan Xie Peak getting its star disciples poached by literally every other peak was a thing, given how Yan Xie was technically the lowest ranked peak. Qiong Ding, Wan Jian, and Bai Zhan were particular menaces in the field.

With that being said, Jing Xinqiang had ended up having to go to Yan Xie because of her bond with Baobao as a younger disciple. If Shen Qingqiu could successfully tame his little baby snakes, surely there would be no grounds to steal him away!

He was surprised at how much he remembered about this obscure process for the flower, also? Sure, he technically grew up in this world and had a lot of the general knowledge expected of him, but he didn’t think he was usually able to recall one wife plot out of the literal hundreds that existed. His recollection of his own book had been hazy as a child, given the undeveloped brain and all, and remained obscured as he grew.

Or so he thought, but.

… Did the System- The System didn’t actually suppress a lot of his memories to better keep him from interfering, right?

Such terrifying thoughts were interrupted, fortunately, by Shen Qingqiu’s door opening. Unfortunately, the older disciple that opened the door immediately beelined for Shen Qingqiu’s sleeping figure.

It must be said that Shang Qinghua thought good things of the future Mu Qingfang, he really did! But Mu Qingfang was also a little too good at his job, which involved a lot of wrangling with cultivators who very much did not want to get checkups. Mu Qingfang was able to pin down Liu Qingge on his best days, which was impressive!

But also, he and Shen Qingqiu were destined to have a massively strained relationship because Mu Qingfang grabbed first and asked never.

Shang Qinghua may have possibly knocked his chair over in his efforts to tackle Mu Qingfang from reaching the bed.

“Wha- Shang-shixiong-??”

“Mu-shidi you need to respect people’s boundaries!!” Shang Qinghua hissed out, finding himself in an intense wrestling competition that he really didn’t sign up for!! “Do not grab Shidi without asking and definitely not while he’s sleeping?!”

“That- I wasn’t going to wake him up-“

“Mu-shidi that’s worse, worse!!!” He had to use a burst of qi to get the man in an armlock. Mu Qingfang spluttered, startled. “Some people find it very creepy to think that someone’s been touching them while they were sleeping!” Shang Qinghua spluttered. “I know you’re just trying to help but please don’t put him in a second qi deviation?!”

“… What,” Shen Qingqiu managed. Both of them paused. Shen Qingqiu apparently woke up to the commotion regardless, somewhat frazzled and sitting upright in bed. He appeared appropriately baffled by the two head disciples having a wrestling match in his doorway.

“… Um,” Shang Qinghua said. “Shidi, this is- Mu Mingfei, head disciple of Qian Cao Peak,” he introduced, like this wasn’t weird. “Mu-shidi, this is Shen Jiu. Please don’t do your grabbing thing.”

“Grabbing- Grabbing thing?” Shen Qingqiu echoed, still looking half-asleep.

“Mu-shidi means only the best intentions but his best intentions are very grabby,” Shang Qinghua managed, and finally let go. Mu Qingfang tumbled somewhat, then hurried to bolt upright. He blinked hugely at Shang Qinghua, then at Shen Qingqiu.

“I- This shixiong wasn’t going to wake Shen-shidi,” he repeated. Shen Qingqiu, hearing that someone was intending to touch him in his sleep, looked appropriately appalled and uncomfortable. “… Oh,” Mu Qingfang finally realized. “Is that- Shizun said I could be too forward, but-“

“Yes, Mu-shidi, that is. That’s forward,” Shang Qinghua agreed. “That’s really, really forward.”

“… Oh,” Mu Qingfang repeated. He cleared his throat, visibly shifting to embarrassed. “I-I see. Please… excuse this Mu Mingfei’s conduct.” He bowed carefully. “He did not- realize.”

“… It’s- fine,” Shen Qingqiu muttered. “Just- I don’t like- people touching me.”

“Oh, I- I apologize,” Mu Qingfang repeated, genuinely remorseful. “I wondered why Shang-shixiong suddenly tackled me like that…” Shang Qinghua coughed.

“I’m almost done with your notes, Shidi, then you can go back to your nap and all,” he promised quickly. “Um, just remind Mu-shidi to be gentle! He means well, he’s just used to wrestling Bai Zhan disciples with a sword in their stomach or something.”

“That’s,” Mu Qingfang managed, strangled. “S-Shixiong, I know you think you’re joking, but…” Oops. “Here, ah, Shen-shidi. I do need to check your meridians. May I please- have your hand?” Shang Qinghua was satisfied with the outcome, so made his way back to the desk. He did- peek a couple of times to make sure Shen Qingqiu wasn’t too uncomfortable, but overall, the checkup seemed to go well?

Once he finished up his notes, he tidied up the little desk and unloaded the bottles of Cold Spring water. Mu Qingfang seemed to be finishing as well, satisfied.

“Shen-shidi only needs more rest for now, but otherwise has escaped true damage from the qi deviation,” he concluded. “If this shixiong may say so, his shidi is also doing an impressive job of healing his root. Damage is rarely fixed this early with such efficiency.” Shang Qinghua brightened.

“Naturally, it speaks of Shidi’s talent,” he boasted. That was his scum villain!! Talent and tenacity more than worthy of the protagonist himself! “Ah- we’ll leave you to nap,” he added, when Shen Qingqiu just blinked sleepily. “Come on, Mu-shidi.”

“Apologies again for disturbing Shen-shidi,” Mu Qingfang added sincerely, but collected his own things and followed Shang Qinghua. Shang Qinghua gave a quick wave before closing the door. They walked out of the dorm building together, and Mu Qingfang looked back thoughtfully. “He seems- troubled,” he finally admitted.

“Everyone has troubles,” Shang Qinghua dodged.

“Yes, that… I suppose so.” Mu Qingfang looked at him instead. “But I’ve never seen Shang-shixiong take so much trouble himself for someone.” Shang Qinghua coughed.

“W-Well. Perhaps- some just need a bit of extra troubling, is all.” Mu Qingfang, a failure in most subtleties, just gave him a look of this shidi doesn’t buy your bullshit. Fortunately, Shang Qinghua was a master of not seeing what he didn’t want to see. “A-Anyway,” he managed. “Um. Mu-shidi, a favor? If Yue-shixiong is sniffing around for Shen-shidi’s condition, could Mu-shidi- be as vague as possible?”

“Patient confidentiality is very serious on Qian Cao Peak, Shixiong,” Mu Qingfang reminded him. Shang Qinghua shrugged a little.

“Confidentiality is very serious on An Ding Peak as well,” he reasoned. “It makes Yue-shixiong no less persistent. Shen-shidi hasn’t given his permission for Yue-shixiong to know anything he doesn’t need to know.”

“… I understand. I’ll be wary, then.”

“Thank you.” Shang Qinghua exhaled. He then paused in his walking, and sagged. “… Ah,” he realized. “I- took the afternoon for myself in the middle of tax collection.” The peak might be on fire when he went back. Metaphorical or literal, he was going to be burned!!

Mu Qingfang patted his back in sympathy, then handed him some incense for stress. The fact that he carried it around like that was more than telling.

-

Flame qi was not unlike the fire of Qiu Manor, intensely scorching and all-consuming.

“Pause,” Jing Xinqiang ordered, and Shen Jiu opened his eyes with a soft gasp. He exhaled raggedly, then coughed. Another jar was pressed into his hands, and he drank obediently. The freezing chill of Cold Spring water immediately gave him a sense of relief, and he felt some of his haze clear up. “… I must admit, this potency is truly beyond what I expected,” his teacher sighed, looking at the growing pile of empty jars. “I thought Xiao Shang was only being overly cautious.”

“Mm,” Shen Qingqiu managed, finishing off the jar. He had to pause to let the water run its course, then he would be back to trying to swallow the flame qi piece by piece. When Shang Bei wrote don’t worry about dilution, the intensity is more than effective- Shen Jiu had taken his blasé attitude about the whole matter at face value.

The look on Jing Xinqiang’s face when she first held the unprocessed flower suggested that was the wrong attitude to take. Apparently, when Shang Bei used the words divine-level treasure as an offhand comment, he meant actual divine-level treasure that any righteous sect would pay a king’s ransom to obtain. Apparently, Houyi’s Endless Lament had been thought to go extinct from the cultivation world centuries ago, back when a literal sect war was fought over the last discovery.

… So, Shen Jiu said that they found a stray one and absolutely no others. Jing Xinqiang said that was for the best, and didn’t ask further.

He did- sometimes get the idea that Shang Bei knew too much. Not just that he was well-connected within the sect as he’d assumed, either. The way Shang Bei first openly gawked at him when they met, Shen Jiu could swear the teen was staring in recognition. The strange, but perfectly appropriate behavior he expressed around Shen Jiu- not reaching out to touch him, when he didn’t seem to hesitate to pat anyone else or clap his hand over their mouths, not walking behind him and always giving him options to not be alone with a stranger. His complete lack of reactions about Shen Jiu’s past, his comments on Qiu Jianluo and the family, the cold good fucking riddance like he’d met them and he knew, and yet he couldn’t possibly-

That strange outburst in the middle of the argument, where he just happened to tell all the secrets that Yue Qi had been holding back, everything that hurt Shen Jiu the worst. It wasn’t possible that he knew. He shouldn’t know what Shen Jiu needed to hear.

… He shouldn’t know about these divine-level treasures and these rare snakes that even Jing Xinqiang had to research, either. But more importantly, did Shen Jiu feel uncomfortable with the idea that Shang Bei knew too much about him?

Not- as much as he thought he would. As he should, probably. But Yue Qi would have never, ever told him, would have let him just rot away in the betrayal, and for what? For what?? So he never had to admit he, the head disciple of the sect leader himself, never made a mistake? So that the perfectly-prepared image of Yue Qi never had to be tainted with his shitty past as just another number in the slave line?

Or- maybe it was the fact that he never did intend to go back anyway, but had at least the scrap of decency to not make his problems the excuse. Either way, Shen Jiu wasn’t worth the explanation, wasn’t worth doing things like asking to see what he wanted in this righteous sect, wasn’t enough to bother with checking whether his new peak was going to be a classist piece of shit or even if Shen Jiu had the ability to fit in.

… Not to Yue Qi, at least, he wasn’t worth any of that.

“I’ve spoken to Zhangmen-shixiong,” Jing Xinqiang abruptly said, drawing him from his thoughts. He could feel the icy qi slowly being consumed again, he would have to start meditating soon. “Yue Qi is not acting appropriately towards you as a fellow disciple, and he will have restrictions on being here or on An Ding.” Shen Jiu exhaled softly.

“T-Thank you, Shizun,” he managed. Yue Qi wasn’t exactly a threat, but that didn’t mean Shen Jiu wanted to see him- ever. It still hurt beyond measure. “What did he- say to you?” he wondered, uncertain. She sniffed.

“That he was your friend and meant you no harm, and that Xiao Shang had aggressively come between you two.” Aggressive like a shield came between flesh and a sword, more of. Shen Jiu sighed quietly, rubbing at his face.

“I don’t understand him,” he admitted. “He treats me warmly, and then gets me in problems over and over, but then backs off and acts like I don’t mean anything. Then suddenly no one else is allowed to actually help me?”

“Do you want to understand him?” his teacher asked.

“No,” Shen Jiu answered, with prejudice. Why should he stoop himself to such levels of emotional stupidity? He had enough on his plate with his own problems. Jing Xinqiang chuckled, amused.

“Then you do not have to,” she reasoned simply. “We can choose who we try to understand. Some animals can be dismissed as not worth the effort. Do you mind that Xiao Shang guards you from him?”

“I didn’t- realize it would be such a problem for him,” Shen Jiu admitted, hesitant. “… But I don’t mind.” That disciple from Qian Cao had almost ruined his day even further, Shen Jiu was well aware that he’d pitch a fit to some stranger grabbing him awake in bed. It had been hard adjusting to sleeping in the sect, especially because he had been staying in the medical ward at first, then in Yue Qi’s dorms. He- really hadn’t slept at all, in fact.

But then he had a private room, a quiet place to sleep and study as he pleased, incense that a hallmaster gave him to help him sleep through nightmares. And for that moment, he had Shang Bei who literally tackled someone to keep them off him while he slept.

Quite frankly, Shang Bei didn’t come off as the kind of person who resorted to violence. He was squirmy and downright mousy, in a squeaky, but innocent sort of way. He didn’t put his hand on his sword like he ever thought of threatening someone, didn’t warn before his temper took over and he kicked Yue Qi so hard that even Shen Jiu winced. He wrestled the Qian Cao disciple to the ground like Jing Xinqiang wrestled that bear.

… Obviously, Shen Jiu didn’t mind Shang Bei’s help. He couldn’t explain what the teen found so interesting about him that he was coming around so often and literally dropped his own work to help out in such massive ways, but he didn’t mind it. He wouldn’t mind if Shang Bei never got tired of checking on him, and he wouldn’t mind if it didn’t have to be because Shen Jiu needed help, but instead-

He wouldn’t mind being the one to help Shang Bei.

“Ah- oh dear, Shen Jiu, you cannot think about your adorable shixiong this long,” Jing Xinqiang lamented. “Remember that you have ingested an extremely powerful flame qi elixir.” Shen Jiu felt his face go red long before the heat finished settling in.

“Shizun!!” She was the one who brought him up first!!!

… In any case, it ended up taking two days for him to fully take in the flame qi. Jing Xinqiang insisted that was extremely impressive of him, but Shen Jiu was much more impressed with the intensity of one flower. The fact that there had been dozens in that strange, secret place made him understand why it ended in a sect war. Apparently, finding elemental qi was actually extremely fortuitous.

He did not understand Shang Bei, who offered to take some extra in case he wanted to grow them like little household flowers.

But- Shang Bei also continued to be right about the flame qi, because the baby snakes in his room were extremely affectionate once he started to gently offer trickles of qi. Pulling all of them out of his clothes was something of a chore the first time.

For however much Shang Bei knew that he shouldn’t, Shen Jiu decided it was completely fine. What was more important was that Shang Bei treated him kindly, told him what he needed to know, and worked hard to never do anything in halves.

Shen Jiu wouldn’t dishonor him by doing anything less in return.

-

Nothing changed for Shen Qingqiu in the months to follow.

… Well, that wasn’t exactly true. Shen Qingqiu started to change, slowly but surely. The vicious, wounded hurt in his stance and his eyes bled away like poison from a wound, and it was clear that the animal therapy was extremely effective. And also the whole safe space and supportive master and friendly martial siblings and all. Shang Qinghua kept checking, of course he would check regularly, it just happened to be that Shen Qingqiu was pleasant company when he checked and that was a nice bonus.

And when Shen Qingqiu could, he also came to check on Shang Qinghua?? Just because??? Shang Qinghua didn’t think he did anything that needed checking on, but he never said no to a visit that didn’t demand anything except some company! Maybe also some pats on tiny noodle heads.

Though the noodles sure did grow fast. Ahh, the joys of children.

He didn’t- fully relax, outside of the check-ups. Despite the System’s strange silence, he couldn’t feel comfortable pushing his limits. He’d gotten some nasty punishments throughout the years, and felt not unlike a dog conditioned to never wander past its yard. The fence was open? Obviously a trap!! Though he was probably past the metaphorical fence at this point, given everything? He’d gotten back into his cultivation, actually dared to find a few nice treasures for himself, and slacked somewhat in all that pain-in-the-ass hard work he had to maintain to keep his position as head disciple. Because someone’s annoying past self just couldn’t go through with blackmail like a nice, normal scum villain.

… Though weirdly enough, his master was actually praising him sometimes for pushing off his work to others? What a strange man.

There was also the monthly Peak Lord Conference, during which all the head disciples went and stood around and either exchanged gossip, thinly-veiled hostile wordplay, or just sulked off to the side and refused to interact with human people.

Liu Qingge wasn’t handling his new position very well, on a related note.

Wei Qingwei’s predecessor was still around, as was the disciple who was supposed to eventually be replaced by Shen Qingqiu. He was a little like the fully-grown scum villain of Shang Qinghua’s books, except that his sneers were as pitiful as his character development. Shang Qinghua tended to ignore him.

Though the first time they had this little meeting after he snuck off Shen Jiu to Yan Xie, Yue Qingyuan had made a fuss harassing him without explicitly stating what he wanted in front of the others. The first time they had their meeting after Jing Xinqiang interfered, Yue Qingyuan was grabbed by the shoulder by Bai Xinsha, reminded of something in a low, harsh tone, and joined Liu Qingge in his sulking corner for the meeting instead. Mu Qingfang gave him an uncomfortable expression which suggested that Qian Cao had also been added to Yue Qingyuan’s no-fly list. Jing Xinqiang’s current head disciple, based purely on seniority, also gave him a narrow-eyed expression before pointedly continuing his conversation with Qi Qingqi.

… So, overall, just another day of sect politics.

Meetings continued without much incident, and Shang Qinghua tried to not have a heart attack every time he pushed his boundaries. He tried to not have a heart attack whenever he thought he might not have boundaries anymore. He also tried to not have a heart attack when he saw Shen Qingqiu again, and a little noodle head poked out of his collar and let Shang Qinghua boop it on the nose.

He totally failed on that last one.

But, to the surprise of anyone who wasn’t Shang Qinghua, Shen Qingqiu made his way to the position of head disciple just a year after first joining the sect. Shang Qinghua listened to the rumors floating around about the lowborn disciple on the lowest-ranked peak of the sect who manifested elemental qi and had unprecedented control of his internal force. There was even talk about him getting poached by another peak before Shang Qinghua, cheerfully joining in on the conversation, boasted that such matters were impossible, Shen Qingqiu also was the master of the extraordinarily rare Ruby-Fanged Jade Snake.

… He may have contributed to gossip a little, but he didn’t get any validation for his precious scum villain in his past life, okay!!

He was possibly a little too extra gleeful about showing up to the next peak lord meeting, given how he arrived ahead of his own peak lord. Shi Xinze arrived somewhat behind him, and gave him an expression of amusement.

But the joke was on him!! Jing Xinqiang arrived soon herself, followed by a perfectly-composed Shen Qingqiu, who acknowledged Shang Qinghua with a tiny turn of his lips and a small, almost bashful wave.

He then quickly poked a snake head back in his sleeve, much to Shang Qinghua’s everlasting joy.

“Jing-shimei, and here this master was wondering what caused my head disciple to drag his shizun like a dog pulling a sled,” Shi Xinze lamented. Shang Qinghua did not scream, nor actually kick his master in the shin, but had the awful feeling that it was seen based on how Shi Xinze laughed at him.

The cruelty.

“Shall this master express how early her new head disciple was prepared for this meeting in return?” Jing Xinqiang returned, eyes glittering.

“Shizun!!” Shen Qingqiu hissed. Yeah, not fair! Shen Qingqiu was just naturally a perfectionist and would be nervous about seeing Yue Qingyuan, right?? He could be a little early.

Shang Qinghua also had legitimate reasons to be excited. Entirely reasonable.

“Anyway Shizun and Shishu shouldn’t tarry!” he exclaimed quickly, scuttling over to Shen Qingqiu’s side. “H-Here, Shidi, I’ll show you where we usually gather.”

“So helpful,” Shi Xinze observed. Shang Qinghua stuck out his tongue behind Shen Qingqiu’s back like a five-year-old, and he wasn’t sorry about it. Sadly, his master only laughed again as Shen Qingqiu was herded away.

“Anyway,” Shang Qinghua huffed, cheeks flushed. “How are the spicy noodles?”

“Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu huffed back. “… Extra spicy,” he acknowledged. “Chun’s fangs are also coming in.”

“Neat!” Shang Qinghua realized. “That’s three now? You must be a proud MamaJiu.”

“Shixiong.” Shen Qingqiu gave a little laugh despite his scolding. “I’d be more proud if the teething wasn’t destroying their cage.”

“Oh, right.”

“It’s good for training anyway, so it’s fine.”

“Well, that’s true.” Shang Qinghua personally didn’t like the idea of having to teach half-grown magical snakes not to set everything on fire, but Shen Qingqiu really seemed pleased about it, so it was fine. “I still love every single one of those spicy noodles,” he concluded. Shen Qingqiu snickered to himself, only to fall quiet as they entered the lecture hall that was their usual meeting spot. Upon a brand new person entering their usual place, let alone one obviously destined to once be an elegant love interest beyond compare, those that had arrived already paused in their chatter to stare. Even Liu Qingge looked up from his sulking corner.

“… Oh!!” Mu Qingfang abruptly realized, blank confusion melting away. “Shen-shidi.” Shen Qingqiu nodded slightly in answer.

“Mu-shixiong,” he answered politely, walking further in.

“New Shidi, my shidi, all of our shidi,” Shang Qinghua cheerfully summarized to the others. “Shen Jiu.” Other disciples gave scattered, but polite greetings. “We don’t really do anything official, except officially socialize during these times,” Shang Qinghua chatted. “Or not, if we’re feeling, uh. Shy.” He probably wasn’t subtle enough, because Shen Qingqiu immediately side-eyed Liu Qingge in his sulking.

“He’s not shy, just antisocial,” Qi Qingqi stated outright.

“Come on, Qi-shimei, we can be nice to Liu-shidi,” Shang Qinghua tried. “He’s just not a big fan of gossip.”

“I am right here and listening,” Liu Qingge snapped at the wall.

“See? He totally hates when people talk behind each other’s backs,” Shang Qinghua agreed. Shen Qingqiu choked on a startled laugh, coughing into his hand. Qi Qingqi walked forward, cocking her head as she assessed Shen Qingqiu.

“Hi,” she finally greeted. “Qi Limao. Xian Shu Peak.”

“Shen Jiu, Yan Xie,” Shen Qingqiu answered. “By choice,” he added immediately, and she appeared amused.

“Sounds like you’ve become familiar with the gossip,” she acknowledged. “I like Jing-shishu, though.”

“Everyone likes Jing-shishu,” Shang Qinghua reasoned. “I think that’s her thing, being universally likeable.”

“Sure, Shang-shixiong.”

“What? She’s a beast master, isn’t she?”

“Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu huffed, lips pulling upward. “Stop that, you’re ridiculous.” Even if he could barely hold back laughing at Shang Qinghua half the time, Shang Qinghua kind of thrived on his role of class clown. His Shen Qingqiu! Smiling and laughing!!

Such a pretty, bashful smile. It was no wonder his protagonist was once destined to fall madly in love with every fleeting, precious glimpse of happiness.

“Oh,” Qi Qingqi said, blinking hugely. “Oh.” Shang Qinghua broke from his thoughts to give her a curious look. She just kept blinking like she’d been blinded by some sudden divine revelation? Weird.

Before he could ask if it was some literal divine revelation, one couldn’t be too careful in this genre after all, the chatter all stopped again. It was a familiar tension that filled the hall as a very specific person entered the room.

Which was- unfortunate, but. Yue Qingyuan had not been doing himself favors when it came to bonding with his martial siblings. He was supposed to be considered a gentle, polite head disciple that would become a gentle, polite sect leader, but also whip out a sword and completely wipe the floor. With his fairly passive stance, he earned enough respect in his position. Even if he didn’t try to really foster relations, it was acknowledged that he was inoffensive and worthy of his top dog position, and everyone settled around that. With- inward, burning complaints about the whole 79 bullshit they had to watch happening, but from the outside, they’d consider Shen Qingqiu the one in the wrong universally, and garner quiet sympathy for the sect leader that seemed to be extending brotherly love towards someone who didn’t deserve such treatment.

… Somehow, that had changed. A lot. Without- really changing too much, but the effects were pretty noticeable. Yue Qingyuan was on the no-fly list for three peaks now, and he was getting pretty bad-tempered about it to the point where it was veering on offensive. Liu Qingge at least made his grouchiness his own damn problem and kept to his corner. Yue Qingyuan, grouchy with a growing tinge of outright resentment, was turning his biting wordplay into some way out of left field comments that just barely didn’t break his imposed limits on interactions.

It was kind of a major yikes all around, but. Shang Qinghua genuinely didn’t know how to fix it? Shen Qingqiu said he didn’t want to reconcile with Yue Qingyuan. What was Shang Qinghua going to do, beg him to do it anyway?? Ugh, but it was fine, right? Every generation had those individuals that made a room so uncomfortably tense and awkward. It used to be Shen Qingqiu’s destiny, but alas! Animal therapy and free will had made him a very approachable person. Crying shame.

Yes, Shang Qinghua played favorites with his creations. No, he wasn’t at all ashamed of it. Some characters were the ones he daydreamed through days about, dropping them in scenarios and dressing them in different features to test them out, imagining opinions and favorites they had that weren’t technically relevant to the story at all, but made them that much more special. Others were just names and roles to be fulfilled, and how they turned out was just as much a surprise to Shang Qinghua as anyone else.

Which was, increasingly, Yue Qingyuan. This negative EQ level was really starting to get on his nerves.

More so when, instead of reading the fucking room or learning a single lesson after a year, Yue Qingyuan gasped-

“Xiao Jiu!”

… Seriously, Shang Qinghua didn’t make him like this. He didn’t.

He slapped a hand over his face at the sheer stupidity and felt like an aggrieved parent nonetheless.

“Xiao Jiu,” Qi Qingqi repeated in an incredulous mutter. Shen Qingqiu growled under his breath, then turned on his heel.

“Yue Qi!” he snapped back. “I believe that you were given explicit orders, even if you never listen to me, to not talk to me.” Yue Qingyuan flinched somewhat when Shang Qinghua looked back in exhaustion.

“But-“ He then scuttled three steps back, because a snake- Gan, by the looks of the slightly-curved budding horns- lurched out of Shen Qingqiu’s collar and braced on his shoulder to hiss loudly. The flash of its little ruby fangs glimmered with growing qi. “-S-Shidi?!” Yue Qingyuan yelped, shocked.

“Gan,” Shen Qingqiu sighed, visibly considering whether to scold his snake for threatening his future sect leader. He then shrugged slightly, then turned away from Yue Qingyuan and eased the snake’s head back where it came from. Qi Qingqi’s mouth fell open as she watched the long body slither out of sight, Shen Qingqiu’s loose robes squirming faintly.

“… Question,” she finally said. “Is that actually comfortable?”

“They’re not very squirmy usually,” Shen Qingqiu agreed. Her expression spasmed.

“How many snakes are you carrying??” Shen Qingqiu hummed idly, then looked away.

“… Anyway,” he said. “That was Gan, he knows better than to bite.” Shang Qinghua burst into laughter at the look on Qi Qingqi’s face. Mu Qingfang was dumbstruck for a moment before he finally scuttled over from Ku Xing’s head disciple, spitting because Ruby-Fanged Jade Snake!! Ahh, right, there was an emergency supply of their horns for making some intense anti-frost elixirs. But Mu Qingfang at least had the sense to express interest in the living counterparts, and Shen Qingqiu answered his questions with all the dutiful knowledge of someone that really could have been head of a scholar peak if he tried.

And was willing to lose his will to live and all.

Speaking of, the rest of the group finally filed in, including Shen Qingqiu’s replacement. He gave the newcomer a sideways sneer that said he was already updated on all the gossip of Shen Qingqiu’s lowborn status, ignored Shen Qingqiu’s puzzled frown in return, and went to go find a place where he could look at such mere mortals with appropriate disdain.

“Ignore Zhang-shixiong,” Qi Qingqi huffed, watching him go. “He’s from Qing Jing, they’re all like that. If you don’t approach them with a purse of money and a long-standing pedigree like a well-bred animal, you’re dirt to them. Flavors of dirt depending on your finances.”

“Meh, like the insignificant existence has room to judge,” Shang Qinghua snorted. Not even a name, hardly a mention! “Though their peak is pretty,” he had to add. “If a plague ever takes the place and clears out all the malice, we should visit sometime, Shidi!”

“So, never,” Shen Qingqiu realized.

“Plagues are real, it could happen.”

“Generations have prayed for that plague and it obviously never did,” Qi Qingqi huffed.

“Could it be anything other than a plague?” Mu Qingfang interjected. “I-I realize it’s a joke, but it’s still a terrifying thought…”

“Sex pollen,” Shang Qinghua said. Qi Qingqi burst into cackling laughter at the look of traumatized horror on Mu Qingfang’s face. Shen Qingqiu turned and barely muffled his laughter into his own arm.

Having sulked off once he was ignored, Yue Qingyuan glared from his corner like a sick, resentful ghost. Even Zhang Lei gave him a wide berth for it.

Shang Qinghua would have thought that Yue Qingyuan would learn to be happy that Shen Qingqiu was obviously doing well, getting along with his martial siblings and laughing in public, but whatever.

The meeting went pretty well, in any case. To make up for his sins, Shang Qinghua held Tong’s attention for Mu Qingfang to cautiously pat his back. His eyes sparkled in awe, the poor thing. Qi Qingqi also gave a gentle pat.

“I’m going to say a thing I never say to men,” she decided. “I like your snake.” Shen Qingqiu quivered in restrained laughter.

“Shixiong prefers to call them spicy noodles,” he tattled.

“They were just noodles until the flame fangs came in,” Shang Qinghua reasoned. Qi Qingqi snickered quietly.

It was a good start to herald the future, overall. Shen Qingqiu ignored Yue Qingyuan, Yue Qingyuan was forced to ignore all of them, and that wouldn’t be a problem for years to come when Yue Qingyuan became the sect leader himself. So, it was fine!

… Right, yeah, he just also felt the need to push through with a lot more cultivation efforts lately. Like, maybe a pretty intense amount. It also resulted in a lot of him bullying his shidimei into taking his workload, but he probably wouldn’t actually get punished for not making peak lord, right? Given how much of everything else he screwed up, he was sure it was fine.

(Shi Xinze, who watched his head disciple rise to his position through a manic and deeply concerning work ethic, now watched the young man realize there was more to life than paperwork and structure a new system of task organization and management he called bureaucracy. Its efficiency was actually close to matching that of Shang Bei’s work twofold, and there was room for improvement yet.

He wondered if it was worth pushing for a marriage between two head disciples before his generation’s upcoming ascension. Then again, with Bai Xinsha’s growing concern about his own head disciple, it seemed their ascension was going to get pushed back again.

But that was fine. There was nothing wrong with delaying such matters in the immortal realm.)

-

The thing was, Shang Qinghua didn’t write out bullshit like exact dates in his book. Things that, if one were to use his writing as a guidebook to, say, getting transmigrated into a scum villain’s role, would have been incredibly helpful before the only measuring stick for his timeline, which was Luo Binghe himself.

Luo Binghe didn’t exist. Shang Qinghua was fairly confident he hadn’t done anything to really affect him or his birth or anything related to the matter. He knew he headcanoned that Luo Binghe was born shortly after the previous generation ascended, which was only a side note to an old outline involving his parents that also never went through, but otherwise had no warning for these things! The Xin generation would ascend whenever they felt like ascending, and his guess was as good as any other head disciple’s guess.

So the years passed, and Shang Qinghua didn’t think much of it. He was too busy pushing his boundaries more and more, somehow getting commendations for being a spectacular head disciple on top of it, and also just- sort of busying himself with this weird new Cang Qiong dynamic he’d created. Which mostly involved a lot of exploring on how Shen Qingqiu himself developed as a person, when he was given things like free choice and emotional support and all.

Shen Qingqiu was thriving, though. Not without problems, but- not with those unfair, overwhelming obstacles that used to plague his life like a scripted tragedy, which was an uncomfortable thought for a guilty writer. Fate, for whatever reason that it was giving Shang Qinghua the silent treatment, was also letting Shen Qingqiu just exist in this wretched world without kicking him in the ribs over it.

Which was what somehow created problems, though he couldn’t exactly explain it.

Of course, on the side of being head disciple and drowning in papercuts and also pestering Shen Qingqiu’s fascinatingly pleasant life, Shang Qinghua still had the part where he was actually a traitor to humankind and colluded with demons. Not that he did anything so far that made him a specific traitor to his sect, and frankly, Huan Hua Palace deserved every bit of harassment he could rig up for them.

But- the reality of this world was that there was good and evil and zero middle ground. Shang Qinghua had made it that way deliberately, omitting things like unorthodox cultivation or humans that could handle demonic cultivation, or even demons that could handle righteous cultivation. The lack of blending not only gave his protagonist some OP credit, but it was also supposed to be this clever thing where he touched on the gray morality of a protagonist that made some really shitty revenge choices, a scum villain that had horrible, but explainable reasons for his own choices, an awkward middle ground that went against everything of the setting. The disastrous effects of blending the human and demon realms, the lofty and expensive honor of the immortal sects versus the supposed murderous impulses and violences of volatile demon clans-

It was all a thing, and it was going to bite his ass without failure. Shang Qinghua was damned as a traitor to his race and righteous cultivation’s stance was do not tolerate. Which- sucked, for a number of reasons, and most important of all-

Mobei Jun, now Bing Gen, genuinely wouldn’t survive if it wasn’t for Shang Qinghua. It was canonically his only reason that he didn’t snap his neck decades before he was scheduled to do so. Which wasn’t- unfair, Shang Qinghua had a specific kind of person in mind when he wrote his own role. A boring, unimpressive human cultivator from a normal background, with normal prospects, whose ambition turned him to traitorous acts that got him in further and further trouble until literally everyone was glad to be rid of him. Shang Qinghua could only hope someone would actually mourn him this time around.

But in any case, not wanting to be a traitor to mankind didn’t mean he wanted Mobei Jun to die. His uncle was an asshole even by demon standards, and Mobei Jun hadn’t done anything to deserve him, the shitholes at Huan Hua that took advantage of his situation, or anything that would come crawling out of the woodworks in the future. It meant that a collection of Shang Qinghua’s nights over the years were dedicated towards some unscheduled shenanigans. Ever since Mobei Jun picked up his own portal cultivation, that even included some adventures in the demon realm.

On the bright side, improving his own cultivation meant he could actually handle those adventures with some measure of dignity.

On the downside, improving his cultivation meant that Mobei Jun hit harder. He- really didn’t know what the problem was?? The younger teen would look at him, comment that he was improving greatly in his strength like it was a compliment, then pounce on him like a fucking tiger.

Hiding those injuries from Shen Qingqiu was getting much harder. There was one point where he had to outright disappear from the peak for almost a full week because he had nothing to explain why he had five long, parallel scratches cutting across his face with traces of ice qi still frosting the edges.

The peak hadn’t exactly been on fire after that, but there was a particularly irate Shen Qingqiu and his spicy noodles loitering around while some shimei tried to explain that occasional disappearances were just Shang Qinghua’s thing.

(“He always comes back with bruises and cuts and sometimes even broken bones-“

“Okay, wow, that’s an exaggeration! Anyway, Shidi, it’s no big deal, ahahaha-“

“S-Shidi, are your sleeves hissing?”)

… In hindsight, maybe he should have realized that being friends with Shen Qingqiu, wildly intelligent and clever, would lead to a situation like this.

Shang Qinghua had grown a bit past the awkward teenager, but apparently still counted as travel-sized to certain ice demons. He was in his twenties, and yeah, okay, the bigger Mobei Jun was getting, the harder he hit. Shang Qinghua was reasonably sure at this point that the teen wasn’t trying to kill him, but he was also reasonably sure that the ice demon thought he was a lot sturdier than he really was. Attempts to get him to stop led to some magnificent sulking fits. Mobei Jun even said, in the most pouty teenage angst voice he ever heard, that Shang Qinghua could actually hit back.

… In the past, Shang Qinghua would have actually cried at the very idea. But given that he was allowed to improve his cultivation, and increasingly warm to the idea that he didn’t have to wait around to get his neck snapped, he finally tried to hit back. Like really, really hard.

Mobei Jun liked that. A lot.

Shang Qinghua made this creature, but that didn’t mean he understood it.

Well, beating the shit out of Mobei Jun only meant that he wasn’t the only one who went home in bruises, but also, weirdly, vastly increased the ice demon’s trust in him. Maybe he thought of it like some kind of- of sparring-bonding? Maybe this was a thing for certain people?? Maybe if Shang Qinghua jumped on Liu Qingge and beat the shit out of him, Liu Qingge would consider it a friendship proposal and beat the shit out of him in return???

Either way, Mobei Jun still had problems with his shitty uncle, Shang Qinghua got a little more embroiled in the power conflict than he really would have liked, but also didn’t actually want to leave him high and dry. There were- a lot of cousins to parse through when it came to pulling a kingdom together.

And sometimes there were also just- times where Mobei Jun was tired and feeling shitty, and Shang Qinghua had been rambling and made the offer impulsively, and now his private room was a guest house for an ice demon who dropped in whenever he felt like it. Which, thankfully, wasn’t often at all. Shang Qinghua had to keep tidy whenever he could and also kept cooling talismans around, but he didn’t think it was too much of a problem.

Except- Except.

As it turned out, Ruby-Fanged Jade Snakes got really tetchy about ice qi in large quantities.

Which meant that while he was trying to hide in his room and pretend he was performing just another disappearing act, nursing his latest bruises that were way too hand-shaped, both he and Mobei Jun nearly jumped out of their skin when someone knocked loudly on his door.

“Shixiong?” Mobei Jun bristled from his bed, demonic ice qi building up in the room. Shang Qinghua came close to panic about it, hissing to be quiet and don’t do anything. Neither of them were in a state for escaping his littlest shidi, let alone Shen Qingqiu. “Shixiong, is that you in there?” Shen Qingqiu asked, sharper. There was a faint hsss, and Shang Qinghua realized the problem entirely too late.

The door started to open, and Shang Qinghua scrambled to grab it with his hand. He opened it just enough to show a sliver of his face, and hoped it wasn’t the bruised side.

“Shidi!” he greeted brightly, entire body running on panic. “S-Shidi, what- what a surprise! To see you! Ahahaha, I’m- not decent.”

“… Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu said, viciously intense, “why is there a handprint on your throat?”

Oh, well. Shit?

“… Okay,” Shang Qinghua managed, after going concerning blank for a moment. “Um. Is there- anyone else around? Right now?”

“Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu warned.

“Shit,” Shang Qinghua managed, and slammed the door shut. He made a wild gesture reminding Mobei Jun to stay right there, then opened the door again before it could be broken or even burned down. Shen Qingqiu’s temper was not to be trifled with. He made just enough of an opening to squirm out, only to muffle a yelp when he had to brush his cracked ribs against his doorway. Shen Qingqiu took a step back, eyes going wide.

Which was- probably fair? Shang Qinghua had barely had time to patch up the worst of his wounds, not change out of the torn and bloodstained robes. But he just now had an idea of how bad it looked until Shen Qingqiu actually looked close to freaking out.

“… What,” he finally choked out, and his expression turned into an icy viciousness that really put chills down Shang Qinghua’s spine. Shen Qingqiu, you’re a flame cultivator?! “Who. Did. This?” he snarled.

(Another realm away and nursing his own injuries, an ice demon shivered violently.)

“Shidi I can explain but I really, really don’t want to explain where anyone else can see me like this,” Shang Qinghua got out in a rush, glancing around furtively. “L-Let me just-“ He turned and quickly set up wards on the door, then a second layer for good measure. It was probably more than he should spend given his drained reserves. “The door is locked, okay?” he informed the door. “It will let me know the second someone tries to open it, so it should not be opened unless under serious circumstances.”

“Is there someone else in there?” Shen Qingqiu realized.

“Um, nope, just telling the empty room to stay put,” Shang Qinghua replied quickly, and powerwalked into the trees. Which was painful, thanks for asking. Cracked ribs and all.

Actually, it hurt a lot more than he wanted to, because as soon as they were a good distance from the buildings, Shen Qingqiu touched his shoulder and the surprised jerk made him muffle a shout of pain. He staggered for a moment and Shen Qingqiu ripped his hand back, eyes wide again.

“You’re- That- I should at least- Why haven’t you already gone to Qian Cao?!” he demanded, hovering between worry and vicious anger. “D-Do you have any idea what condition you’re in-?!”

“No, I can’t,” Shang Qinghua wheezed, bracing against a tree. “S-Shit. I can’t- n-not like this. B-But, you know-“ He gave a painful laugh, then coughed. “S-Should’a seen the other guy,” he managed.

“Give me one good fucking reason to not drag you to Qian Cao myself, Shang Bei, or so help me-!!” Shang Qinghua muffled a groan, but pulled down the ruined parts of his travel robes. Shen Qingqiu fell into a painful, intense silence.

There was ice qi, unique and recognizable, and then there was demonic ice qi, which lingered for hours and hurt like a bitch. The gouges that claws had taken out of him were nothing compared to the pain of his actual flesh being frozen over around the area, and no amount of improved cultivation could really stand against the kinds of injuries he was getting these days.

Which- sucked, because not only did he have to deal with this weird thing with Yue Qingyuan, he also somehow made everything to do with Linguang Jun worse. But these problems, at least, he was allowed to hit back.

“… A- demon?” Shen Qingqiu realized faintly.

“I can’t- can’t explain why I got in a fight with ice demons,” Shang Qinghua managed, his hand shaking faintly as he pressed down on the wound. The moment his spiritual energy started to work against the ice, the pain increased tenfold and he had to bite his own arm to hide the scream in his throat. But it was, unfortunately, even less painful than dealing with the dead tissue later on.

“Stop- Stop it!!” Shen Qingqiu snapped, grabbing his hand. Shang Qinghua hadn’t realized he was shaking so badly until he was easily dropped to his knees with that. Ow.

“Have to- Have to melt it,” he stammered. “Or it gets worse later. I don’t-“ He gave a shaky, hysterical laugh. “Shidi, we’re both going to be so unhappy if I have to cut out my own flesh later,” he wheezed. “Should’ve erased gangrene from this world, it’s not fair that normal p-problems can just- ah- ahhh,” he gasped, face leaning into the bark.

“Sorry!” Shen Qingqiu managed, voice trembling. “I-I didn’t mean-“

“No no no no please don’t- don’t stop, that- that.” He had to blink away tears, and they were of pure relief. “It didn’t hurt,” he choked out. “It was warm.” Shen Qingqiu was quiet for a beat, then replaced his hand over the wound. Shang Qinghua- might have choked back a sob about the warmth of the spiritual energy that flooded through his body, heating up bones that were brittle and rattling, searing feeling that overwhelming the stinging numbness.

… So apparently, a righteous cultivator’s flame qi perfectly neutralized demonic ice qi. Who would have guessed it!

“Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu insisted, and Shang Qinghua realized his face was mushed into a tree, and he was absolute jelly about it. Ahh, who cared? Not him! “Shixiong, who did this to you?”

“Dick… Dickhole,” Shang Qinghua mumbled, loose and floaty. The relief was actually unreal. Could he book another appointment for this weekend, please? “Shithead… uncle.”

“Uncle?!”

“Not my uncle, he’s…” Shang Qinghua was pulled back the other way, and melted into Shen Qingqiu’s arms. Ahh, so nice, so warm. “Mm. Shidi,” he sighed, tired and very comfortable. “Shidi, please don’t kill me,” he asked politely. “I knew someone was gonna find out eventually, I just. I can’t just leave him. He needs- help. I should- I need to get back, he’s hurt-“

“I’ll go, I-“

“No, no, no, Shidi can’t help,” Shang Qinghua managed, attempting to pull his head together. “Flame qi kills ice demons. Really fast.”

“Ice-?” Shen Qingqiu’s expression changed. His grip tightened on Shang Qinghua. “… Shit,” he whispered. Shang Qinghua buried his face in Shen Qingqiu’s shoulder, mumbling that his services certainly earned all five stars. Ten out of ten, would recommend to literally everyone. “… Come on, Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu sighed, brushing stray hairs out of Shang Qinghua’s eyes. “I don’t have to use my qi for healing.”

“Oh. R-Really?”

“There’s things like medicine, it’s fine.”

“Oh, right,” Shang Qinghua managed, blinking blearily as he was pulled up to his feet. “Medicine. I know a really nice grass root that can cure all broken bones and strengthen them three-fold, Shidi,” he blabbed, letting Shen Qingqiu walk him back. “But- But also, it’s an aphrodisiac. And it’s the fuck or die kind. I don’t- I don’t know why people like fuck or die so much, okay? What’s wrong with- with fuck or mild discomfort, or fuck or sleep it off. And I did- I did that plenty, but nooo, these miracle plants that do good things should be fuck or die-“

“Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu sighed. “We’re trying to be discreet, please stop saying fuck or die.”

“Oh, right.”

Shen Qingqiu brought him back to his room? Shang Qinghua was really, really tired and wanted a nap, he was bleeding sluggishly from a lot of places, but he remembered to knock on the door.

“Heeeyyy I brought my shidi back, but it’s okay,” Shang Qinghua managed loosely. “Shidi said he wasn’t gonna use his qi on you. Please don’t stab him, okay, thanks.” He clumsily undid his wards, then opened the door and stumbled inside. Despite his most soothing assurances, Mobei Jun was already bristling with forming ice, growling at Shen Qingqiu as he entered.

“Put. Him. Down,” he snarled.

“Keep your voice down, do you want to get us all killed?” Shen Qingqiu hissed back, closing the door tightly. He placed a privacy ward up for good measure, which was very thoughtful. Should have been done before, in hindsight. “No- I’m not letting you grab him when he’s already been fucked up by ice qi!” Shen Qingqiu snapped. “Put the ice away, will you? You’ll just make it worse!” Shang Qinghua mumbled in Shen Qingqiu’s shoulder, not sure what he was saying either. But he then found himself being eased down on his own bed, and grabbed a pillow to hug it. Ahh, very nice. A little chilly, but nice.

“Shiii-diii,” he whined, when Shen Qingqiu went towards Mobei Jun.

“Stop snarling, you can either trust me now or trust me never, because you’ll get yourself exposed in the middle of a righteous sect and we’ll all get killed,” Shen Qingqiu warned. Shang Qinghua rolled slightly to see, and Shen Qingqiu was- pulling out bandages? “Did you freeze your injuries?”

“Don’t touch me.”

“I have snakes in my robes. The snakes are full of flame qi. They will cause a lot of pain if you don’t shut up and let me treat you.”

“… Tch.”

Ahh, the joys of watching two total tsundere characters interact.

Shang Qinghua ended up dozing for a bit before bolting upright with a snort. And also a yell, because cracked ribs. Mobei Jun and Shen Qingqiu were interacting?!

“I’m awake!!” he burst out, and Shen Qingqiu paused, glancing over with dead eyes. Mobei Jun’s expression was equally flat while he watched the righteous cultivator finish wrapping his ribs. His furniture was no longer frozen over. Light was now in his room.

… What happened???

“Uh,” he said.

“You also have cracked ribs, Shixiong, don’t move around like that,” Shen Qingqiu scolded. Shang Qinghua blinked down at himself. He’d become undressed at some point, and was bandaged and healed in a lot of places?

… Did he- casually confess to colluding with demons to Shen Qingqiu?!?! No, wait-

Shen Qingqiu was helping treat Mobei Jun!!!

“… There are two people in the same room that shouldn’t be in the same room,” he comprehended, instead of just screaming. “Uh.”

“Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu sighed at him. “I massacred an entire household and apprenticed under an assassin. You really thought I’d have a problem with you being nice to a demon in comparison?” Shang Qinghua considered this deeply.

“… It’s possible that my brain functions are not functioning,” he acknowledged. “Um. Sorry, Shidi.”

“You could’ve picked one less grouchy.”

“He has- his own reasons.” Shang Qinghua coughed as Mobei Jun stared harder. Sorry, but please just say what you want with words! Shang Qinghua couldn’t read minds, okay!! “Do you, um, mind knowing the situation? Shidi can claim plausible deniability, I did actually mean it when I said this wasn’t something I could hide forever.”

“Tell me if you want, not if I want,” Shen Qingqiu replied, finishing his work. “Because your friend doesn’t exactly talk much.” No, he really didn’t.

“… It’s- a really long story, but-“ Shang Qinghua sighed, shifting to sit back more comfortably. “This is- um Bing Gen, he’s from the Mobei Clan of the north.” Shen Qingqiu frowned at the teenager he was next to.

“As in Mobei Jun?” he realized. “Lord of the North? He’s related?”

“… He’s next in line for the title,” Shang Qinghua admitted. Shen Qingqiu stared. “Again, a super long story, but his uncle is a dickhole who’s using a lot of political schemes to kill him, including turning a lot of his father’s court against him and is probably also responsible for killing his father but we don’t have enough proof about it-“

“Shang Bei,” Mobei Jun muttered.

“-I know, it’s not comfortable to talk about this stuff, I’m sorry,” Shang Qinghua managed. “But Shidi helped, didn’t he?” Mobei Jun had the distinct air of sulking, but turned his pout to the floor. “… Which sucks because formal challenges for the throne are a tradition in the demon realm, but Linguang Jun can’t actually measure up to a real Mobei Jun and everyone knows it,” Shang Qinghua managed. “There might- might have been a really, really horrible murder plot. It’s hard to find out. Before, he was just- maliciously careless. He threw Bing Gen into the human realm and Huan Hua- got their hands on him. For a while.” Shen Qingqiu’s eyes tightened. “That’s how we met,” Shang Qinghua admitted, fidgeting with his blanket. “They were just- hunting him down for fucking sport, because they got bored of the cage thing, and it-“ He cut himself off, then shook his head. “I promised I’d help him, and it- snowballed from there,” he continued instead. “Linguang Jun isn’t universally supported as a proxy leader, but that doesn’t mean there’s anyone who’s really on Bing Gen’s side. His asshole uncle is fucking up the entire kingdom because he loves stirring the pot and letting other people take the fall for it, there’s still an actual murder, and maybe Linguang Jun can’t actually compare to the former Mobei Jun but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t still hit really, really hard. This was.” He winced, briefly touching his throat for a moment before sagging in place. “This one was bad,” he admitted to Mobei Jun. “That was bad.”

“… Mm,” Mobei Jun acknowledged, quiet.

“… We still fucked his shit up,” Shang Qinghua added, lest his shidi think him too pathetic for words. “We just- didn’t expect the backup. Would’ve fucked up their shit a lot more if they didn’t run off.”

“Cowards,” Mobei Jun muttered.

“We kinda already knew that of your cousin, though.”

“Cowards,” Mobei Jun repeated, with disdain. Fair.

“So- this,” Shen Qingqiu sighed, gesturing vaguely. “This is what you’re doing whenever you just- disappear?”

“Mostly,” Shang Qinghua admitted. “… There’s also the times where, um. I can’t explain- other injuries.”

“Other injuries?” Shang Qinghua looked at Mobei Jun. Mobei Jun looked away.

“… Not the face,” he acknowledged, sulky.

“Yeah,” Shang Qinghua agreed. “Not the face.” Mobei Jun pouted harder. Shen Qingqiu held a hand over his eyes, which was probably fair. “Look, it’s fun and all- don’t look so upset about it! It’s fine to have some bouts, and I wouldn’t mind the face if I didn’t have to return to a righteous sect with frosty claw marks-“

“Not the face,” Mobei Jun repeated, louder, and Shang Qinghua barely didn’t roll his eyes. His ice demon was also kind of a brat sometimes.

“Anyway,” he sighed. “This is also, believe it or not, the safest place for him to sleep.”

“How do you sneak in an ice demon?” Shen Qingqiu asked bizarrely.

“Oh, he makes portals.”

“… If that’s all.”

“It is pretty neat, right?” Shang Qinghua agreed, brightening. “Portals!!” He then shivered faintly. He wouldn’t have really thought about it if Shen Qingqiu didn’t walk over immediately, grumbling about him squirming too much before flame qi was channeled into his wrist. Shang Qinghua melted into it almost instantly. He was much more cheered when a familiar little head popped out of Shen Qingqiu’s sleeve and decided to change perches, coiling up comfortably on Shang Qinghua’s stomach. Mobei Jun watched with wide eyes.

“Flame Fang,” he hissed.

“You thought I was joking about the snakes,” Shen Qingqiu huffed back. Mobei Jun gave him a truly bizarre look.

“There isn’t a snake demon mad enough to carry Flame Fangs in their clothes like pets,” he accused.

“They love their mother,” Shang Qinghua soothed, happily petting Bao’s little head. Mobei Jun stared at the snake in his lap. He stared at Shen Qingqiu, reassessing him as a person.

“… When I am lord, you will be repaid this boon,” he decided.

“And I wouldn’t be if I didn’t have the snakes?” Shen Qingqiu asked him.

“No. It would be too embarrassing if you had no merits.” Shang Qinghua coughed. Shen Qingqiu snorted.

“Grouchy, but honest,” he acknowledged to Shang Qinghua.

“He means well,” Shang Qinghua agreed.

… Probably?

Mobei Jun, viciously stubborn all the way, refused to actually pass out until Shen Qingqiu left the room. Shen Qingqiu, viciously stubborn exactly the same way, refused to leave the room until Shang Qinghua took a long nap. Shang Qinghua woke up and spluttered incredibly at the two of them, and Shen Qingqiu had the nerve to smirk about it before getting chased out. Mobei Jun didn’t last to the count of ten once he was gone. Shang Qinghua couldn’t believe.

With that being said, he really hoped this would work out? Not that he remotely believed this was survivable in the long-term, but he did hope that his house of cards gained a little extra support, maybe?

“It’s not that I don’t like being a righteous cultivator or anything like that,” he admitted to Shen Qingqiu, after Mobei Jun sulked off into a portal and Shang Qinghua officially made his reappearance. “It’s just…” He considered the snake head he was petting, Hua’s eyes practically glittering at him. “… This world doesn’t think in shades of grey,” he sighed. “You’re either good or evil. Either a human or a demon. Either righteous or a traitor.” He felt somewhat tired. “I know I’m a lousy righteous cultivator, my version of upright is way too bendy. It’s just- kind of depressing to think I’ll get banished or executed if anyone finds out I couldn’t just let some kid die.” He paused. “And then got way more involved in demon politics than initially planned,” he acknowledged. “Speaking of, Shidi, yikes. I thought Mobei Jun used to beat me up just because he wanted to, but actually? I think that’s some weird form of greeting. I- am kind of dying to try it on Liu Cheng.” Shen Qingqiu snorted loudly.

“Please do, and make sure I’m there to watch,” he requested.

“Given how we’re likely to be peak lords together, someone should do something,” Shang Qinghua grumbled. “There’s lost causes, and then there’s- whatever Liu-shidi’s thing is. Is he shy? Pouty??”

“He could get replaced.”

“Nah, he won’t.” Shang Qinghua did have legitimate reasons to try to get through to Liu Qingge in particular. For one, his scum villain’s life hinged on the man’s qi deviation!!!

“… Do you think Yue Qi will ever get replaced?” Shen Qingqiu then asked. Shang Qinghua felt his expression turn to displeasure and despair alike.

“No,” he answered. “No one comes close to his level of strength.” Except Liu Qingge, who would rather be shot in the foot than be sect leader. Hell, he was probably still sulking about being head disciple.

“That’s what determines sect leader?” Shen Qingqiu asked incredulously. “Brute strength?”

“Well, brute strength to be sure is, like, the biggest thing,” Shang Qinghua acknowledged. “There’s also personality, organization, public merits, diplomacy, and, yanno, the ability to get along with other people.”

“… So brute strength,” Shen Qingqiu repeated, and Shang Qinghua gave a startled laugh. He sobered somewhat, sighing out.

“He used to be- better,” he admitted. Shen Qingqiu stared at him incredulously. “Not exactly a warm and charming da-shixiong,” Shang Qinghua added. “But- genial, I guess. He eventually figured out how to do appearances, and worked insanely hard in cultivation and night hunts. It did get him a lot of public merits, but his personality in general was-“ He waved his hand. “Flaccid.” Shen Qingqiu snorted. “He was just- generic, upright righteous cultivator that strangers wouldn’t be able to guess had any real people thoughts or some incredible levels of pettiness. He was inoffensive, and you could live with him.” Shang Qinghua pressed his mouth flat. “Which goes against him now. Not being offended by him is very different from being on his side.” He grimaced. “… I get that Sect Leader Bai is trying to figure out whether to straighten him up or just outright replace him,” he admitted. “But there’s no one else on Qiong Ding with the same talent or ambition. There’s no one in the sect who can do what Yue Qi’s been viciously working towards, it was always really in the bag for him.”

“… Tch,” Shen Qingqiu grumbled.

“Yeah,” Shang Qinghua agreed. “… But hey, if Shidi ever gets tired of the sect, I know a future demon lord,” he then added cheerfully. “And yeah, fighting is a weird ritual in the area, but we can tag-team and make a sport of it.” Shen Qingqiu was quiet for a moment, then abruptly- blushed? Blushed??

… Did his shidi think dirty thoughts at the word ‘ritual’ or something??

Ah, whatever. It was such a pretty blush.

Fortunately, Shang Qinghua healed pretty quickly- insanely fast compared to his self-treatment spiel. He hadn’t even considered flame qi as such a magical treatment, or Shen Qingqiu might have had some incredibly awkward midnight visits years ago. Now he even got a threat of Shen Qingqiu burying him under the mountain if he wasn’t consulted on future injuries! Shang Qinghua was in a great mood for weeks afterward.

Once again, the peak lord meeting rolled around, and so did the usual head disciple meeting. These days, the entire fated cast was present, with Zhang Lei being the exception. But he was doing his absolute best to fill in for Shen Qingqiu’s scum villain reign, that effort shouldn’t be fully discounted. Between him and Yue Qingyuan, Shang Qinghua created a mental corner of not his problem while he made everyone else his problem. Future bonding and all, appropriate sect connections, friends for Shen Qingqiu so everyone could know his scum villain as the best version of himself.

Little things.

Which was all well and fine, just another social visit, except that Zhang Lei got pissy about whatever Wei Qingwei said to him, given the man’s less than tactile nature, and he stomped off from his usual corner. Shang Qinghua wasn’t watching him.

Liu Qingge then started cussing loudly, his ritualistic sulking interrupted by a walking classist douchebag, and Yue fucking Qingyuan decided this was the moment he wanted to be everyone’s big brother and interfered.

Shang Qinghua didn’t write his negative EQ value, but yeah, okay, he wrote in the man’s piss-poor mediation skills. The fact that he was destined to be the absolute worst help for Shen Qingqiu’s reputation in the future was Shang Qinghua’s fault.

“Fuck me,” he concluded out loud, watching everything instantly become ten times worse. Zhang Lei decided to take Yue Qingyuan’s side instead. Yue Qingyuan, wearing his inability to critically think like a badge, immediately accepted his help. Liu Qingge, caught between an elitist asshole and a resentful moron, lost his temper.

Was Shang Qinghua surprised at the wall that was shattered? No. No, he was not. He was surprised the hall lasted this many years.

He was a little surprised at how much panic that immediately set off? Like, shit, this was nothing compared to a deranged demon lord turning the mountain into a hellscape. This was nothing compared to Linguang Jun’s ambush just a couple weeks back. Were his martial siblings okay?

Anyway.

“Shidi,” he asked. Shen Qingqiu nodded quickly, and Shang Qinghua walked forward, ignoring the blazing levels of spiritual energy that all three were posturing at each other, like a trio of peacocks. Shen Qingqiu stopped behind Zhang Lei, and Shang Qinghua stopped behind Yue Qingyuan.

Snakes lashed out and bound Zhang Lei tight, and his sneering words suddenly failed him with a startled shriek. Apparently, Zhang Lei didn’t like snakes! Yue Qingyuan barely had time to look before Shang Qinghua grabbed him by the back of his robes and flung him. Just yeeted him from the situation because he was not helping.

Liu Qingge cursed that much louder.

“What the fuck are you interfering for, Shang Bei?!” he snapped. Which, rude?? Shen Qingqiu also interfered! “Mind your own damned business, I can look after myself-!!”

Shang Qinghua sucker-punched him in the sternum, and he was not even remotely sorry.

He wasn’t surprised, but who did these people think had to deal with broken buildings, huh?!

“You breaking the buildings is my business,” he snapped back, while Liu Qingge wheezed in surprise, staggering a step back.

“S-Shang-shixiong?!” Mu Qingfang yelped.

“Ooh. Wow, what?”

“D-Did he just…?”

“You- You!!” Liu Qingge accused, pointing. Shang Qinghua grinned viciously, and for a moment, he wasn’t even scared of the War God.

“Hey, Liu-shidi,” he called. He set one foot back, lowering in a stance. “Fight me,” he barked, a courtesy warning, and lunged at Liu Qingge with his very best ice demon greeting.

Fighting Liu Qingge was actually a lot like fighting Mobei Jun. Liu Qingge was a lot less bite-y, but he was extremely adaptable to just about any situation, being that they weren’t using swords, not afraid to take a hit and not afraid to dish it out tenfold. But he also didn’t have claws or ice, so Shang Qinghua wasn’t particularly bothered by his hits like he probably should have been, and he returned what he was given the same way. He focused on technique when it helped him, then that raw animal instinct that came from hanging around a guy who literally pounced like a wild animal looking to play around, then his own qi in some brute strength because he worked for his cultivation and he wanted to use it sometimes!! And not just in situations where he had to go running around the demon realm, okay!!!

Incidentally, he may have overdone his cultivation just a tiny little bit, because he then- broke the ground. With his fist. Liu Qingge had rolled out of the way at once, and Shang Qinghua stared at the broken tiles around him. The whole world held its breath for a moment.

“… Do you know how much PAPERWORK this is?!” he then exploded, his qi roaring with fury only a paper-pusher could truly understand. “I HAVE TO COUNT EACH INDIVIDUAL TILE TO GET REPLACED, GODDAMMIT.”

“YOU’RE THE ONE WHO BROKE THEM,” Liu Qingge shouted back.

“LEARN TO HOLD STILL AND TAKE YOUR FUCKING PUNCHES, LIU-SHIDI.” Liu Qingge actually made a sound a little like a yelp as Shang Qinghua lunged at him, fully intending to make sure Liu Qingge did such a thing. He opened his hands in the same way Mobei Jun attacked, qi searing through air instead of claws, able to grab and slam his opponent and pounce. Yeah, he was burning through spiritual energy with some recklessness, but also- also-

He was- sort of having fun?

… Sometimes being a cultivator was actually pretty cool.

Liu Qingge’s recklessness eventually caught up to him first, and he went down on his back hard and couldn’t dodge the follow-up. He braced to take the next hit, tense, and Shang Qinghua stopped his hand right above his face. He panted quietly, qi still burning around his open hand, then let it dissipate.

“… Heh,” he managed, jittery with something like nerves, something like unbridled delight. “I won.” Liu Qingge exhaled in a whoosh, melting somewhat into his shaped divot. Just so many tiles to replace.

“Shit,” Liu Qingge wheezed, then gave a bark of hoarse laughter. “Shit! Aren’t you head disciple of the paperwork peak?”

“What, Liu-shidi never fought a storm of last-minute paperwork in tax season? It’s incredible.” Shang Qinghua laughed at himself because no one else would, but stood up straight and offered a hand. Liu Qingge accepted, and actually did yelp when Shang Qinghua had to yank him right out of the ground. Ahh, poor future War God. Hopefully, he’d forget this before actually getting OP. “Anyway, are we feeling better now?” Shang Qinghua continued cheerfully, dusting off his poor shidi. “This shixiong knows his own shixiong duo can be utter assholes, but let’s not break walls about it~”

“You broke more than I did-“

“Shhh, Liu-shidi,” Shang Qinghua soothed, holding a finger against his blabbing mouth. “No more wall-breaking.” Liu Qingge spluttered. “Now where did Yue-shixiong land, I didn’t actually see-“ He turned around, then paused.

… Why, uh, was every single peak lord actually standing nearby instead of being in their meeting? Sure, yeah, the other head disciples were also standing around and watching, but why were they watching that intensely?? He was pretty sure Shen Qingqiu had asked to watch Shang Qinghua fight Liu Qingge! There was no need to stare at him like that for complying!!

And Qiong Ding disciples, go mind your own business!!!

“… What?” he asked instead of ranting. Bai Xinsha in particular looked super intense?? He then looked over to Shi Xinze. Shi Xinze raised one eyebrow back, obviously asking the same question. He just also looked pretty smug about it.

“Shang Bei!!” Yue Qingyuan abruptly barked, and stomped his way over from- from a Yue-Qingyuan-sized hole in the meeting hall?

… Did Shang Qinghua fling him right through the wall into the peak lord meeting?!

“Oh, shit,” he comprehended, staring past Yue Qingyuan. “I didn’t know I threw that hard-?” Yue Qingyuan then got in his face, which was awesome. Qi-ge still didn’t know a thing about personal space, ah.

“This shixiong challenges you,” Yue Qingyuan snapped, all bristly and furious with tension for no apparent reason. Well, maybe except for the part where he was flung through a wall.

… But seriously, why? Shang Qinghua expressed his interest in a fight one time, and he already had that fight?!

“Uh, not interested,” he answered, baffled and annoyed.

“Why not?” Yue Qingyuan demanded, even angrier.

“This shidi just isn’t interested,” Shang Qinghua denied. “He already had fun with Liu-shidi, Yue-shixiong isn’t counted as a playmate.” Liu Qingge, still standing right there, spluttered louder. Yue Qingyuan’s expression went dark and really fucking resentful, and Shang Qinghua didn’t know why.

“Shang-shizhi,” Bai Xinsha then called, and Shang Qinghua looked with a start. His sect leader gave a little nod. “Give my disciple what he is asking for,” he requested, no- that was definitely an order? To what, give Yue Qingyuan the beating his face was begging to receive?? When Yue Qingyuan was already OP???

… Ugh. Whatever, Shang Qinghua had gotten beat up before. He could do it on orders.

“Yes, Bai-shibo,” he answered, and didn’t sigh out loud. He turned around, caught Yue Qingyuan’s hand not on his blank spiritual sword, but on Xuan Su’s handle, and spluttered furiously before stomping his foot. “What- no!!” he barked. “If you draw that fucking sword I will actually fuck your shit up, you absolute fucking masochist-!”

“Shut up!!” Yue Qingyuan shouted, lunging a step forward. Shang Qinghua had met much scarier, and also picked a fight with them. He glared right back.

“Draw it, and watch me spill secrets,” he snarled. Belated blackmail! Yue Qingyuan froze, shoulders actually shaking somewhat, but then let go. Shang Qinghua peered at him viciously, then turned to the staring Qiong Ding disciples. “This Shang Bei could use a blank sword!” he barked. There was a lot more gawking than helping, but then one disciple finally scurried forward, fumbling to remove the sheath and all. Shang Qinghua ignored it to just take the pointy bit he needed, thanks, and waved him aside. Swords, he could use swords.

He had to fight some really big side plot devices to get his treasures over the years, after all.

“Everything you’ve done to Xiao Jiu in the past,” Yue Qingyuan then told him, drawing his own blank sword, “I’ll repay it today, Shang Bei.”

“This doesn’t look like you dropping into a kowtow and thanking me sincerely,” Shang Qinghua observed flatly. Yue Qingyuan’s eyes flashed, and he lunged-

-pretty tamely?

Shang Qinghua met his strike in a forward clash, a little confused? Yue Qingyuan, this angry countenance and weak assault weren’t matching in tone!!

“You sabotaged my shidi and expect gratitude?!” Yue Qingyuan demanded furiously, whirling into another stance that Shang Qinghua blocked with increasing bafflement. “You threw him on Yan Xie Peak!!”

“Hey!” Shang Qinghua spluttered. “Nothing’s actually wrong with Yan Xie, it’s honestly one of the best peaks in terms of quality and extremely useful for support-“

“You told everyone about his past!!” Yue Qingyuan shouted, a flurry of strikes that Shang Qinghua deflected instead of directly blocking, certain this was a trap of some kind. “Everything he had to suffer through, you threw in his face!!”

“Oh grow the fuck up, did you spend so long eating elitist bullshit that you’re shitting it out the same way?!” Shang Qinghua demanded back. He caught the elbow heading for his head and blocked the follow-up feint. “There’s no sin in being born poor, Yue Qi!” he snapped. “There’s no inherent honor in being born wealthy! I think that earning everything you have in life is really impressive, okay?!” He shoved Yue Qingyuan’s sword back, impatient from waiting too long. He lunged to follow up in forms of his own, and Yue Qingyuan staggered from his forward blow. “And I admired you for it, too, even if you were such a shitty liar about it!!” Shang Qinghua continued in a snarl. “You were living proof that hard work and ambition actually counted for something in this shitty world! And you threw it all away on what, regret?! Jealousy?! Sulking around like this sick, pathetic ghost because you couldn’t comprehend that you were hurting someone you cared about!!!” He broke off his form with a hard twist and slammed the flat of his blade into Yue Qingyuan’s belated arm block, which actually sent him flying into yet another wall.

Fucking walls.

Yue Qingyuan eventually came scrambling out of the debris, coughing and clutching at his arm. He quickly brought up his sword again, expression twisted in pain and fury.

“As if you could know what was best for Xiao Jiu!!” he snarled.

“I don’t know what’s best for Shidi, who taught you to be this arrogant?!” Shang Qinghua shouted back. “But I know what he wants, and he wants you to stop calling him that shitty name!!” He lunged in a forward strike again, and Yue Qingyuan almost crumpled in his block before shifting his feet, his arm shaking faintly. The other one seemed to be broken. “Slave Qi,” Shang Qinghua hissed. Yue Qingyuan’s face was uncomprehending at first, then went white. “What’s the matter, you don’t like reminders of those days?” Shang Qinghua demanded in a low, vicious tone. “You don’t like what your master used to scream at you for getting in trouble before your precious Xiao Jiu used to jump in to save your ass? Don’t like the reminder that he never would have gone to the Qiu family in the first place if you hadn’t picked a fight with their young master?”

“You,” Yue Qingyuan choked.

“You don’t like to be reminded of the fact that when you went into Wan Jian Peak’s caves, you went for the most powerful sword you could find and just dreamed of using it to shatter your Xiao Jiu’s shackles, right?!” Shang Qinghua snarled. “That you’d learned enough of how the world worked to realize you couldn’t save him unless you were willing to slaughter them yourself, and you were willing. And all that impatience and bloodlust and desperation- it backfired on you like an explosion.” Yue Qingyuan staggered to one knee under his sword, eyes huge and face pale as a sheet. “I don’t blame you for having regrets, you fucking idiot,” Shang Qinghua accused harshly. “But did you pull that sword because you had to be the only one who saved Shen Jiu, or did you do it because you wanted him to be free?! Did you bring him to this sect because you wanted to see him thrive, or did you do it so you could hurt him with every time you called him Slave Jiu, every single time you refuse to listen to his own words, every time you reach out and don’t even see him flinch?! Why couldn’t you just tell him that you messed up instead of letting him believe that you abandoned him on purpose!!! The things you don’t say are a lot louder than what little you do, Yue Qi!!”

In his frustration, Shang Qinghua brought the sword back up like it was a hammer instead, turned it to the flat side, and brought it down really fucking hard. Yue Qingyuan attempted to block it stubbornly, even using his broken arm to brace, an extra pulse of spiritual energy.

Both blank swords shattered, but the pure concussive force backlashed on Yue Qingyuan much more than on Shang Qinghua. Shang Qinghua’s face felt a breeze. Yue Qingyuan’s entire body was blown right back into the courtyard, along with all the shattered fragments. He wheezed after his rough landing, coughing while a myriad of new shard wounds began bleeding sluggishly. His wide eyes turned to the useless broken handle in his grasp, then rolled back.

… Oh.

Come to think of it, Shang Qinghua won that fight, too. Like, not just by shredding him verbally, but- but actually winning? With his cultivation and sword work?? Huh???

“… Oh, shit,” he comprehended, staring at the unconscious future sect leader. Who he just beat in a fair fight. “Did I- overdo it?”

Bai Xinsha walked forward, considering his head disciple, then Shang Qinghua. Shang Qinghua began to sweat. He slowly leaned over and set his own broken handle on the ground. He coughed.

“… Sorry?” he attempted.

Bai Xinsha grinned.

“Mu-shizhi, come see to my head disciple,” he called aside. Mu Qingfang started, but quickly hurried forward. Shang Qinghua attempted to edge away. He was caught by the shoulder, and squeaked. “Shang Bei,” Bai Xinsha continued, amused. “Let’s talk, shall we?”

“Uhhh,” Shang Qinghua tried, and was all but dragged into the meeting hall. The one he already broke a hole through with Yue Qingyuan. He was mortified that the peak lords all turned and followed after.

… He was in so much trouble, wasn’t he?

-

There was silence in the courtyard of Qiong Ding Peak after the peak lords had left. Along with Shang Bei, who went from viciously confident to mousy as soon as his head caught up. Shen Jiu was amused. As always, his highly-competent shixiong had no ability to judge himself by actual standards.

“… What are the odds that Shang-shixiong has a clue as to what he just did?” Qi Limao asked conversationally, folding her arms. Mu Mingfei continued working on the head disciple that was collapsed on the ground. It didn’t take a genius to figure out he’d given his all in that fight, and that it hadn’t been nearly enough.

“What he just did?” Liu Cheng echoed.

“What, are you talking to us now?” Qi Limao huffed. Liu Cheng shuffled his feet. Shen Jiu snorted.

“They’re not odds worth betting on, Qi-shijie,” he answered. “Shixiong is brilliant and dumb.”

“Just- tell me what he did,” Liu Cheng insisted, louder.

“Stupid,” Zhang Lei answered loudly, rolling his eyes to the heavens. “He just beat who was supposed to be our future sect leader in a formal challenge. If his merits and abilities hold out, he’ll be considered for the position instead.”

“… So,” Liu Cheng realized, dejected, “he can’t just take my position at Bai Zhan?”

“No, Liu-shidi,” Qi Limao replied in a huff. “You’re still stuck with it.” Liu Cheng sighed, kicked a pebble, and sulked.

Shen Jiu couldn’t believe his weird martial siblings at times. But if nothing else, today proved there was a little justice still in the world.

-

Shang Qinghua stood in the middle of the meeting hall. And he was hallucinating. Badly.

Bai Xinsha watched him to gauge his reaction. His reaction to his hallucinations, because Shang Qinghua actually didn’t hear a word of what he really said.

“… Apologies, Bai-shibo, this Shang Bei didn’t hear properly, and must ask his shibo to say that again,” he concluded seriously. Bai Xinsha’s mouth twitched vigorously.

“And what did this shizhi think he heard?” he returned. Shang Qinghua grimaced.

“That- um. That this disciple was being asked- to replace Yue-shixiong as sect leader?” His voice wavered despite himself.

“Yes, Shang Bei,” Bai Xinsha agreed. “That is exactly what I said.”

… They were mutually hallucinating? What did this man think he said??

“He always reacts like this to praise, Zhangmen-shixiong, I’m afraid you’ll have to use more words,” Shi Xinze put forward.

“Ah, I see. Shang Bei,” Bai Xinsha sighed, smiling. “You are, in fact, the strongest disciple of the entire sect.”

…?!?!?!

“You are also diligent in your work, vastly efficient in organization, and have a firm, but friendly and professional approach to your martial siblings,” Bai Xinsha continued. “With exception to Shen Jiu, of course.” Jing Xinqiang gave a snrk aside. Shang Qinghua didn’t know what he did to deserve it. “You were actually recommended as a replacement candidate a few times already, but you always refused to show your hand at martial prowess and prove Shi Xinze’s unending praise. Believe it or not, there are actually very good reasons for the sect leader to be strongest among other peak lords. No one has even tried to challenge Yue Qi in years. He’s very strong.”

“But,” Shang Qinghua had to point out. “But- w-wasn’t he going easy on me? Or something??”

“No.”

“But there was no way that was everything he had, even without Xuan Su-??”

“Shang Bei, when is the last time you sparred any other disciple of the sect?” Bai Xinsha asked patiently. Shang Qinghua opened his mouth. He used to have to spar a lot when he first started out, because a lot of older disciples of An Ding were major dickheads at the time.

… Which was over a decade ago?

“… There was Liu-shidi,” he tried anyway.

“Yes, my disciple,” Liang Xinwei agreed. “And you won.”

“That was also ten minutes ago and obviously relevant to the point I was making,” Bai Xinsha added in exasperation. “Shang Bei, how can you judge your strength compared to others if you don’t actually participate in spars? No, sparring is not just a method of aggressively trying to kick someone’s ass for being an idiot.” Someone coughed to the side. “It’s also a measurement of strength compared to others of your level. I understand you’ve been working very hard to improve your cultivation with Shen Jiu. Shen Jiu participates in spars among the sect. He is very, very strong.”

“Shidi is a total genius and the best snake mom,” Shang Qinghua agreed immediately, purely out of habit. He paused. “Wait, why am I being considered over Shidi??” he realized in horror. Jing Xinqiang muffled a laugh in her hand.

“Xiao Shang, my Shen Jiu is magnificent in many areas,” she acknowledged. “But sociability is still not his strongest suit.” Shang Qinghua stared at her in shock. He loved talking to Shen Qingqiu?? “You are the exception to his good moods, not the rule,” she added pointedly.

Ouch. Poor Shen Qingqiu.

Wait. Even if he was decently strong, and maybe Yue Qingyuan’s cultivation got fucked up somewhere along the line, and Liu Qingge was just having an off day or something- there were still other concerns about this!!

“Wait but I’m An Ding Peak’s head disciple!!” he burst out.

“Qiong Ding has not always been the head peak,” Bai Xinsha reasoned. “Succession prefers following after each sect leader, but it has been changed in the past, and can change again in the future. An Ding has been the head peak before, as has Qing Jing, Wan Jian, even Bai Zhan.”

“Even Bai Zhan?” Liang Xinwei muttered.

“Those were brutal times, to be sure,” Yan Xingong agreed solemnly, making a show of sympathy.

“Hey.”

“Now, then, do you have other protests?” Bai Xinsha asked. “Shang Bei, do not put your sect leader in the very undesirable position of giving his head disciple power over all of his martial siblings.” Shang Qinghua, who had watched Yue Qingyuan make literally everyone uncomfortable for years now, winced at the thought.

Shen Qingqiu in particular- would suffer. Shang Qinghua did not work his ass off changing how the world worked just to watch him suffer.

But.

“… Shibo, can I- ask you something in private?” he finally dared.

“If this is about marriage,” Bai Xinsha began, and Shang Qinghua spluttered.

“Wha- no?!”

“Oh, it isn’t?” He looked disappointed?! “That’s too bad.” A lot of peak lords were exchanging similar looks??? “Very well, let us step aside. We will continue this meeting tomorrow, when the hole has been patched,” the sect leader added in amusement. Shang Qinghua spluttered louder, especially when Shi Xinze snorted in good humor. “Come along, Shizhi.” Bai Xinsha led him out of the meeting hall, and Shang Qinghua found that the head disciples were still hanging around in the courtyard. Yue Qingyuan had also woken up, and his expression was eerily blank while everyone but Mu Qingfang gave him a wide berth.

Everyone else was also- really watching Shang Qinghua intensely. He wasn’t able to figure out how to respond to that before Bai Xinsha put a hand on his shoulder, then led him away from the courtyard and further up the peak.

His house was a humble little thing at the highest point of the peak, same as the other peak lords. Shang Qinghua supposed this would really be his only time ever seeing the place, seeing how Yue Qingyuan would have it next. He looked around curiously as Bai Xinsha began to prepare tea.

“Did you know, Shizhi,” he abruptly said. “There are instances of those of the heavenly realm descending to our mortal realm?” Shang Qinghua blinked.

Yeah, obviously? He wrote those instances!

“Yes, Shibo,” he answered anyway. Bai Xinsha hummed, turning around and setting the tray on the table. He gestured, and Shang Qinghua took his seat.

“Interesting,” he murmured. “Even I could not answer that question so confidently, you know.” Shang Qinghua froze. He restarted, clearing his throat.

“W-Well. I- read a lot,” he dodged.

“More books than all of Qing Jing can find, it seems,” Bai Xinsha agreed patiently, pouring tea. “Books of Houyi’s Endless Lament, a legendary flower of centuries past, the Sanctifying Feathers of Teal Jade, said to be guarded by a scorned love mutated into a divine being, of Thunder Tears Fruit, which was only supposed to fruit once in five hundred years- I am well aware that this Shizhi reads quite a bit. Shall I continue?” Shang Qinghua cupped at his tea and sank down in his seat.

… Maybe he wasn’t very good at being subtle?

“I can- explain?” he tried.

“Can you?” Bai Xinsha returned.

“… No,” Shang Qinghua managed. Bai Xinsha appeared amused, at least, and merely sipped at his tea. Shang Qinghua fidgeted with his teacup. “… But it- wasn’t supposed to be like this,” he finally added, quieter.

“Is it better, or worse?” the sect leader returned. Shang Qinghua thought of golden autumn in clear green eyes, Shen Qingqiu’s most gentle and bashful smiles.

“… A lot better, I guess,” he admitted. He gingerly took a sip himself, then exhaled softly. “I don’t believe in the inherent evil of demons, Bai-shibo,” he addressed bluntly. “I think righteous cultivators can be the worst hypocrites of all. I think being born to certain parents shouldn’t haunt someone for the rest of their life and that morality has a grey zone.” Bai Xinsha stared at him for a moment. He looked down at his tea.

“… I had second thoughts about Yue Qi- long before his strange obsession with Shen Jiu,” he then said. “When I brought him to this house and had tea the same way, discussing what it meant to be a righteous cultivator, I realized that perhaps I had made a mistake. I hoped it could be made better with guidance.” Shang Qinghua barely withheld a grimace at his tea. Yue Qingyuan had become- otherwise occupied since then. “Do you know what Yue Qi told his shizun?”

“… Anything he thought his shizun also believed so he wouldn’t lose his new place in life,” Shang Qinghua answered, weary. He sipped at his tea again. “There’s worlds where a middle ground is possible, you know,” he added conversationally. “Even the standard.”

“Oh?”

“They’re a lot less cruel,” Shang Qinghua acknowledged, and sighed quietly. “… I know there’s- very few options to replace Yue Qi, but are you sure?” he tried instead.

“Yes, Shang Bei. I am quite sure.”

“Ugh. Fine.” Shang Qinghua gave him a grievous expression. “But please give this shizhi some wine,” he asked pitifully. “He needs something a lot stronger to motivate the mortal husk.”

Instead of releasing him from such a wretched worldly duty for his sass, Bai Xinsha burst into laughter, then stood up and went straight to his room to fetch wine.

So. Somehow, Shang Qinghua walked back to the courtyard with his sect leader, where the peak lords had gone home, but only most of the head disciples left.

“Yue Qi,” Bai Xinsha called. “We’ll speak in private.” Yue Qingyuan remained eerily silent as he moved from his new sulking spot, not sparing anyone a glance. Shang Qinghua waited until he was out of sight, then made a beeline for Shen Qingqiu. He gave his shidi his most pitiful, abused, and wretched expression yet.

“I can smell the wine from here,” Shen Qingqiu deadpanned.

“Oops,” Shang Qinghua admitted, checking his breath. It had been good wine. Strong, too. “… It was still pretty weird,” he had to acknowledge. “I didn’t- see that coming?”

“Do you actually want to do this?” Shen Qingqiu asked, frowning.

“I never got to pick much in my life at all,” Shang Qinghua sighed, wistful. But? “… I told him I was a bad righteous cultivator, and he said that was fine,” he added, fidgeting with his sword. “Maybe it can… be better than it is?”

“If it’s Shixiong, it’s possible,” Shen Qingqiu reasoned simply.

“Oh, ah, S-Shidi!” Shang Qinghua exclaimed, feeling his face got hot immediately, because- because Shen Qingqiu, how dare you say that so seriously!! So unironically!!! “Ahahaha, w-well, um- Shidi’s c-confidence is- is, um. Ah, w-what was I even saying? Shidi is too confident in someone who completely forgot what he was saying-“

“… We’re going to be eating this dogfood for the rest of our lives, aren’t we?” Wei Xin realized, grievous.

“Open wide, Wei-shixiong,” Qi Limao replied wearily. “Trust me, they have plenty more to spare.”

-

Of course, there was a shitstorm about the most controversial decision of centuries, changing the future sect leader from Yue Qingyuan to Shang Qinghua. A raging, embroiling storm that-

“Stop that, no one thinks so highly of Yue Qi except you,” Shi Xinze huffed, giving him a smack with a scroll. “For the life of me, I still don’t understand that.” Shang Qinghua rubbed at his head on principle, then gave his teacher a wounded look.

“But- there’s some complaints, right?”

“Do you want there to be complaints?”

“… M-Maybe?”

“Too bad. There’s none.”

“Oh,” Shang Qinghua said, and apparently that was the end of it.

… Actually, no one had seemed to complain, at least in the week since the decision was made public. Mostly he got a lot of his peak disciples expressing congratulations and pure excitement. He even was told bullshit about finally all your hard work is being appreciated, Shixiong!!

His hard work of pushing that work onto everyone else, huh?!

But no matter how he looked for it, and he did search, the sect was actually pretty content about the change, poor Yue Qingyuan was being swept away into a trash bin in their hearts, or had apparently already been there before. He was starting to get the impression that everyone was uncomfortable around the man these days, even people other than peak lords and head disciples. He was also getting the impression that everyone else thought he looked up to Yue Qingyuan? That his doubts about being the next sect leader were attributed to some misplaced respect and admiration?! He had no idea how that suddenly became a thing.

… With that being said, Shang Qinghua might not respect and admire Yue Qingyuan, but he didn’t hate him, no matter how stupid he could be. For all of his tragic simp’s stupidly unintelligent decisions, Shang Qinghua, at least in some manner, understood him better than anyone else could. His painful and deeply unhealthy fixation on Shen Qingqiu wasn’t born out of anything wrong or creepy, it was just a bad combination of guilt, failure, and what was apparently an emotional intelligence ledger well into the red. His relationships weren’t exactly healthy and normal even if everything was how it was supposed to be, Shang Qinghua was aware of that. But he’d been able to soothe himself with the idea that, even if Shen Qingqiu hated him- for reasons completely different than what he assumed- at least he was able to be a good big brother and help him out.

But, well. Shang Qinghua took all of that from him, for Shen Qingqiu’s sake. Because Yue Qingyuan was not fucking helping. But he wouldn’t hear that from Shen Qingqiu’s own mouth, Shen Qingqiu didn’t want to help him or forgive him, and Shang Qinghua could very well be seen as the instigator of all of this bullshit. Which meant that Yue Qingyuan wouldn’t listen to him, either, and he’d tried. He’d really tried, okay!! It came to a point a few years ago where Bai Xinsha pulled him aside and said stop trying, it’s not working.

All of that came to the point where, just a couple weeks after being announced as the next sect leader, Yue Qingyuan finally, finally wanted to talk. Shang Qinghua all but leaped out the door at the chance, except that Shi Xinze was also there when Yue Qingyuan showed up, and grabbed him midair before dragging him backwards and away from the blank-faced disciple.

“Yue Qi,” Shi Xinze addressed coolly. “I believe you are not to confront my disciple, and those rules have not changed.”

“… Shizun gave this one permission to do so, Shi-shishu,” Yue Qingyuan answered, muted.

“Did he.”

“So it’s fine, right??” Shang Qinghua attempted, and his input was ignored!!

“Shishu is free to check,” Yue Qingyuan agreed quietly. “This one- wishes to speak with Shang Bei of his own accord, however.” Shang Qinghua was actually dying to clear the air, and it had nothing to do with any respect or admiration, really, he just really wanted to get along!

(And maybe if he was being honest with himself, he still wanted to think that the tragedies he wrote out didn’t have to be his reality. That a narrative for people he wrote as doomed to fail didn’t have to be that way, and if he could fix this-

-There would be hope for other people, too.

Even he hated the ending of his own story.)

“… Leave your swords here,” Shi Xinze ordered. Yue Qingyuan’s eyes tightened somewhat. But he unstrapped his swords and handed them over. Shi Xinze let go of Shang Qinghua to take them, which felt a little like overkill, because Shang Qinghua wasn’t really in the mood for fighting?

But when his teacher turned around, Shang Qinghua held out his sword as well. Shi Xinze stared at it, then at him.

He sighed loudly and grievously, and Shang Qinghua didn’t know what he did to deserve it.

“My disciple is a good man, Yue Qi, and thinks the best of others,” he said sharply. “Do not think I’ve lived through two generations of schemers to not know a problem when I see one. I voted to remove you from the sect entirely.” He then reached out and pushed Shang Qinghua’s sword back into his arms? Then he left the hall out the back, door slamming shut pointedly. Shang Qinghua stared after him incomprehensibly.

…????

“How did you know?” Shang Qinghua turned back around. Yue Qingyuan stepped inside, then closed the door behind himself. His brow was pulled down in something like frustration. “… I thought- Shen Jiu told you about back then,” he finally said. “But he didn’t know that- that it was me who picked that fight first with young master Qiu. Or what caused my qi deviation. And I know- Tian-shishu. He told everyone he did what he did to help me. Back then when you told X- Shen Jiu, you told him he did it to kill me.” Yue Qingyuan’s hands clenched at his side. “No one believed me when I said it, not even Shizun,” he managed. “How do you know?” Shang Qinghua opened his mouth, then slowly closed it. He sighed to himself, then set his sword by the door instead.

“Let me make us some tea,” he answered, and returned to his desk. He collected his paperwork in a neat pile to set aside, then found his tea stash. When he glanced over, Yue Qingyuan was staring at his sword for a few moments, then finally walked further into the hall.

After making tea, Shang Qinghua poured some for Yue Qingyuan. He considered the quiet hall around them, then sat down at the table. He set the cup forward.

“Yue Qingyuan,” he answered. Yue Qi had begun to take the cup, then paused.

“… Excuse me?” he asked.

“We’ll be the Qing generation, that’ll be the name your shizun picks for you,” Shang Qinghua replied. “Yue Qingyuan.” Yue Qingyuan blinked. “I can’t tell you everything, just- on principle,” Shang Qinghua sighed, picking up his own tea. “You really fucked a lot up, Yue Qi. But I’ll tell you what I was trying to prevent. And when you get your courtesy name, you can decide if you want to believe me or not. Is that fair?” Yue Qingyuan was quiet for a long moment, then nodded once.

“Mm.”

“Qing Jing Peak’s Shen Qingqiu,” Shang Qinghua recited. “With cold jade eyes and a sneer only just hidden behind his fans. Peerless beauty among his generation, and unmatched hatred for every one of his martial siblings. In particular, his only shixiong and sect leader, Yue Qingyuan, he hated most of all.” Yue Qingyuan’s grip on his teacup spasmed. “He was a dignified scholar on the outside, but those close knew him as a cruel man and lech,” Shang Qinghua continued. “He was open in his regular visits to local brothels, known for his vicious retaliation against perceived wrongs. He punished his disciples with whips and beatings, the likes any other shizun would balk at. He was even said to be responsible for another peak lord’s murder, and anyone who knew him agreed immediately that he would have done it and had.” Yue Qingyuan finally stood up sharply, his teacup rattling faintly.

“What- is this?” he demanded. “What are you talking about?! Shen- Shen Jiu would never-!”

“I’m talking about fate, Yue Qi!” Shang Qinghua snapped back, standing up the same way. “Don’t you tell me what he isn’t capable of! What anyone would be capable of after what was done to them!! Didn’t you even think for a moment that being sold as a slave was so much worse than being one at all?!” Yue Qingyuan flinched back. Shang Qinghua made his tone calm down. He finally got to have a talk, he couldn’t chase him off yet. “… What happens to people when you hurt them, Yue Qi?” he asked instead. “And you don’t stop? You just- hurt them and hurt them and keep hurting them, and you teach them that there’s nothing good in the world, that every action invites pain, good or evil, and the only person they have to rely on is themselves? What happens when they try to start their lives over, and someone new comes along to take advantage? When they demand to be called shizun even though their teaching is pure sabotage, and they always have a knife poised at their disciple’s throat? And that person is trying- he's just trying to live, and he thought he left that pain behind, and this whole new person decided to make it hurt again?”

“What are you-?”

“And then,” Shang Qinghua continued harshly. “Then, what happens when he finds the only person he outright called family, and finds that they’re not dead?” Yue Qingyuan stilled. “Of course he thought you were dead, why wouldn’t he?” Shang Qinghua demanded. “You were a half-starved kid and just as desperate as any brat who goes running to a sect to solve their problems. Did he think you abandoned him? Of course not!! He thought you were dead before you’d do that!” He gave Yue Qingyuan a stern look. “What would you rather he believe, then?” he asked. “If you had the ability to know what he was thinking back then? When he asked you where you’d been, did you want to tell him you made a mistake and thought he was dead? Or did you want to tell him that you ran away and never looked back? When you said I’m sorry, what do you think he heard?” Yue Qingyuan’s hands shook at his sides, then clenched into fists.

“… But he knows now anyway,” he finally said. “He still hates me.”

“You hurt him because you didn’t tell him,” Shang Qinghua reminded him with forced patience. “When he said stop calling me Xiao Jiu, you ignored him. When he flinched from being touched, you kept touching him. When the only thing he ever needed to know was that someone, anyone even tried to help him- you said I’m sorry, and you stopped talking.” Shang Qinghua exhaled in a harsh sigh. “Damn it, Yue Qi, I get that you were excited he was alive and you wanted so desperately for things to be better for him like it was for you,” he managed. “But things weren’t better. He killed someone he cared about to save your life and all you could muster up was I’m sorry??” Yue Qingyuan flinched hard, paling. After a moment, he sat back down again, mouth trembling. Shang Qinghua sat down the same way. “Let’s go back to how it was supposed to be, how you wanted it to be,” he continued. “Starting from the day you recommended him to Qing Jing Peak. You call me there, and you sit in while we go over Shen Jiu’s past. You lie, and horribly. Making up names, by the way? That doesn’t work. There’s records of people that actually exist. I had to rewrite your papers because of that.”

“W-What?”

“Later,” Shang Qinghua sighed. “A different thing. But this, you lie, and you walk Shen Jiu over to Qing Jing Peak. You’re so happy that he’s alive and with you that you keep calling him Xiao Jiu and touching him, and you don’t comprehend that he hates that name and that touches hurt, even the ones from you. You present him to Yin-shibo like he’s the greatest disciple the sect ever had, and you’re not wrong, is the thing! But you’re showing a half-starved, lowborn kid who’s scared and hurt and angry to the same kind of people that hurt him in the first place. Other disciples harass him at night when he’s already developed a fear of sleeping around men. They sabotage his attempts to learn, to cultivate. They drag him into the bamboo forest and beat the shit out of him for getting snarly. And you show up the next week, all smiles and joy, and what do you think he says? Do you think he’ll ask you for help?”

“… No,” Yue Qingyuan realized, voice trembling. “N-No, he- never would. Even before.”

“He hurts,” Shang Qinghua continued. “He hurts and hurts and damn it, he still pushes through. He’s hurt and all of this is festering in hatred and fury, and he claws his way through the ranks of Qing Jing Peak. He learns to play their games, how to talk like a snob, how to look down on others and never show weakness. He learns to hide his hurt but not his anger, and years later, he becomes head disciple by raw talent and spite. You know just as well as he would that hard work doesn’t come nearly as easy to others, right?” He gave a hard smile. “And he meets other head disciples, and what does he expect? All he knows of them is what he knows of you, smiling as you congratulate him for his position, uncertain martial siblings who know what Qing Jing is like. Anyone at the top has to be the worst of them all, right? Shen Jiu does his best to make sure they think so. That he’s too mean, too cruel, too vicious to be hurt, and he cuts them with his words and thinly-veiled threats like they’re just other disciples of Qing Jing Peak, and it’s fine if they hate him because then he knows it, because everyone else he cared for has hurt him when his back was turned.”

“Please,” Yue Qingyuan whispered.

“And nothing changes,” Shang Qinghua told him. “Nothing gets better. He’s learned his lessons and he’s done asking for help. He breathes hate like air and will never let anyone see the hurt buried beneath, especially not you. It comes out as words, at first. He’s given disciples of his own. He calls them every name under the heavens and every insult he can think of. He still can’t sleep on this peak because his martial siblings used to take advantage of his weaknesses. He sleeps in brothels because they’re the only people who won’t hurt him as long as he pays them enough, and his sect hates him that much more for it. They call him lecherous and cruel and a nasty, lowly beast of a human being, and he bares his fangs right back.” Shang Qinghua had to grip at the table. “And then- he takes in one more disciple,” he managed. “It’s a boy who’s a lot like he used to be. In every way, Shen Jiu sees who he used to be, with one exception. There’s hurt all over the kid’s face and there’s hope that this is it, this is his chance to start over. This is the shizun that’s going to care about him, love him, take his worthless life and make it mean something.” Yue Qingyuan muffled a painful sound behind his hand, closing his eyes tightly. Tears leaked out regardless. “… He kills that boy, Yue Qi,” Shang Qinghua finished quietly. “It takes years to get to that end, but it happens. With him, he kills the last of himself, and his last thought is good fucking riddance.” He picked up his tea again. “That’s,” he asked, “what you wanted for him, right?”

Yue Qingyuan sobbed quietly, and Shang Qinghua didn’t feel great about it. He wasn’t really sure how much this could fix, anyway. Yue Qingyuan might just go right back to clumsily trying to make things better and make it so much worse, except-

Well, he wasn’t in charge anymore. Actually, Shang Qinghua had the ability to tell him no.

“… What- What can I do to fix this?” Yue Qingyuan asked shakily, when he was somewhat calmed. “What can- H-He doesn’t…”

“You fucked up,” Shang Qinghua reminded him, weary. “Yue Qi, I can’t just wave a hand and make Shen Jiu forgive you. He probably never will, and you know what? He doesn’t have to. You had the best of intentions when you stabbed him in the heart, but that doesn’t make it any better.” Yue Qingyuan shuddered. “I know you still love him like family,” Shang Qinghua added, gentler. “But- sometimes, the best way to help someone is to just stop hurting them. The best way you can help is to just back off. Listen when he says shut up. Take a hint when he flinches from your touch. Say that you didn’t mean to do something, that you messed up, all the things that you didn’t do- just do those things, okay? It means being patient and observant and acknowledging that maybe you won’t ever get your reward. Sometimes we break things and they can’t be fixed.” Yue Qingyuan looked down miserably. “Yeah, I put him on Yan Xie,” Shang Qinghua admitted. “I know they’re the lowest rank in the peak, but damn it, they’re friendly. There’s a mix of people from nice families and people from horrible families, so no one gives any shit about where someone was born or any of that. Jing-shishu is kind and never thinks badly of either animals or people for being scared and hurt, and doesn’t touch when she knows she’ll get bitten. He was allowed to work on his own studies at his own pace, sleep in a room that was only for him, and tell the truth about his past if he wanted to. He cares about the people around him and is unbearably cute with his little snake babies, and I- don’t know anything about his future anymore, okay? But how I know him now- I wouldn’t trade him for all the certainty in the world. Would you?” Yue Qingyuan swallowed hard.

“No,” he managed. “N-No, I…” He sniffled quietly. “… I did- just want him to be happy,” he admitted painfully. “I- He is happy now, i-isn’t he?”

“I think so,” Shang Qinghua answered. “I hope so.”

“… What- What am I supposed to do then?” Yue Qingyuan asked him, lost. Which, yeah, Shang Qinghua did kind of take away his fate and purpose for life, didn’t he?

“You’re going to have to learn to live with the idea of just being a decent peak lord, to start,” he sighed. “Make some friends for once, Yue Qi.”

“The sect hates me,” Yue Qingyuan answered.

“Because you creep them out,” Shang Qinghua replied, without mercy. “It’s weird when someone can’t go through a single day without thinking and talking about one person who wants nothing to do with them.” Yue Qingyuan stared at him unfathomably, and Shang Qinghua felt pain. “… Get a dog,” he added.

“I don’t need a dog?” Yue Qingyuan tried. “No one uses dogs. Spiritual trackers are enough.”

“Get- No, that- Get a dog to pet it, Yue Qi. Get a small, cute animal who depends on your care and loves you unconditionally and makes you think about other things.” Shang Qinghua firmly believed in the power of animal therapy. “Not a person,” he added. “An animal. Find something else to dote on and be gentle with. It helps.” Yue Qingyuan looked skeptical at best. “… If you don’t get a dog by the time I’m sect leader I will go apeshit on you,” Shang Qinghua had to add.

“… Does it- have to be a dog?” Yue Qingyuan asked finally.

“I mean, they’re more affectionate. If you like cats better, get one of those.” Shang Qinghua considered. “… But don’t you dare get a cat and name it Xiao Jiu, Yue Qi,” he threatened.

Yue Qingyuan winced.

It was still definitely a work-in-progress, but that was better than the awful stalemate that Shang Qinghua used to live with. Yue Qingyuan finished off his tea quietly, burdened with the task of getting a life. Shang Qinghua began to clean up, only to pause when Yue Qingyuan asked-

“Why only change things for him?” Shang Qinghua paused. “Shi- xiong,” Yue Qingyuan addressed, clearing his throat. “He always did seem to know much more than he should. When I told you- that my parents were from the Borderlands, you… you knew everything then, didn’t you?”

“… Knowing things doesn’t mean I’m allowed to use that knowledge,” Shang Qinghua finally answered. “I had- shackles on my actions. Shang Bei also has a fate, you know. I was supposed to see it through to its own grisly end.”

“Why then?” Yue Qingyuan persisted. Shang Qinghua gave a little shrug.

“I woke up that day and my shackles were gone,” he answered honestly. “It was sudden and I still don’t know why. I didn’t think I could make changes even then, but- I used to always try. I used to always get punishments for trying, too. Then it was all gone and I could do something.” He looked back. “I wish I could have changed things for you, too,” he admitted. “You deserved a lot better than Tian Xinrong.” Yue Qingyuan flinched slightly, startled. “It wasn’t anything you did to make him hate you, you were just a bad liar and he’s a prick. I did change your paperwork, though,” he added, exasperated. “With real names. You’re the bastard son of a northern noble, but his wife wanted you gone and threw you out. I told Bai-shibo it was a sensitive topic and you wouldn’t want to talk about it.”

“…”

“… What? It’s not glamorous, but it went through just fine. The guy’s known for his affairs, you wouldn’t be the only one or even the last one.”

“N-No, it’s just… some of Shizun’s comments about fathers suddenly- make sense.”

“Ah.”

Shang Qinghua walked Yue Qingyuan to the door. He was surprised, yet immediately delighted to open the door and Shen Qingqiu was right there. He was scowling fiercely as he waited impatiently.

“Oh- Shidi!” Shang Qinghua cheered. He then paused when the rest of the situation caught up. “Oh, uh- sorry, Shidi, I have-“

“Yue Qi, I heard,” Shen Qingqiu muttered. Yue Qingyuan shuffled awkwardly into view, then cleared his throat. He appeared stuck in place, staring at Shen Qingqiu with wide eyes, before Shang Qinghua cleared his throat loudly and made a path to leave. Yue Qingyuan winced, but mumbled a goodbye and made himself scarce. Hopefully, he’d find his swords soon, too.

“I think that went well,” Shang Qinghua said after him. “… Not great, but- well?”

“Shi-shibo thought he was going to hurt you.” Seriously???

“He’s dumb sometimes, but he wouldn’t do that,” Shang Qinghua whined. “Is that why he got his swords taken away? Huh!” He shook his head to himself. “Shizun just worries too much.”

“He obviously doesn’t worry enough, Shixiong.” Pointed and probably true, but ouch. Shang Qinghua could only give a sheepish smile, scratching at a particularly large scar from demonic ice that Shen Qingqiu had seen. He turned away.

“A-Anyway, how about some tea?” he chatted. “We can just-“ A hand grabbed him by the back of his robes and yanked him back, then he was- attacked?? Grabbed???

… Oh! Shen Qingqiu just happened to hug like an octopus. Not that Shang Qinghua was really complaining. He turned and accepted gratefully! Hugging moods were extremely rare in his shidi. It was funny how the snakes wriggled about it, too.

“Is this one a hug for something, or just for hugs?” he wondered quietly, melting into the natural warmth of a flame cultivator.

“… It’s just a hug, Shixiong, don’t overthink it,” Shen Qingqiu answered.

“Okay.” Shang Qinghua hardly needed permission to not overthink. “Shidi gives the best hugs anyway.” Shen Qingqiu almost felt like he was shivering for a moment, but then tightened his grip.

No, Shang Qinghua thought he wouldn’t trade this for anything.

Eventually, news of the change spread past the borders of the sect, and suddenly Shang Qinghua was a lot busier than usual. His official debut of being the sect leader’s successor happened to be at the next Immortal Alliance Conference. Shang Qinghua usually skipped out on those by excuse of being too weak, and then when his teacher started to give him looks about his improving cultivation, instead cited that he was too busy with paperwork. Which was- mostly true.

But now he wished he went to these things, because he obviously didn’t know he was going to get scrutinized as a future sect leader, when even in his own sect his cultivation was a shock. And- honestly, a shock to Shang Qinghua as well. In his defense, he had been doing a lot of fighting, his only measuring stick happened to be a lot of ice demons and their various allies.

Incidentally, when he informed Mobei Jun of his new position, he got a lot of sulking in response. But then again, he made the creature, but he did not understand him half as well.

So- Shang Qinghua showed up to the conference part instead, with zero basis in the cultivation world for his strength, and the first thing Shi Xinze did was hand him a fan. A fan!!

“… Shizun,” Shang Qinghua realized. “Are you saying- I’m too expressive?”

“I was trying to be subtle,” his teacher replied. “But yes.” Shang Qinghua was appalled. The fan was firmly lifted up for him. “Now remember, everyone is friendly until they hate you,” the man continued. “Bai-shixiong will be watching. Our emergency plan is for Liang-shidi to start screaming.”

“What, that, why-?”

“It’s something he’s done before, he can do it again. Don’t worry until you hear that. Or something breaking.”

“Shizun,” Shang Qinghua realized. “The longer I’m here, the more I worry about all of you.” Shi Xinze hushed him, pointedly raised the fan up to his face again, then shooed him off to the meeting part.

Aside from all the peak lords and prominent elders of various righteous sects showing up to these things, with their very best disciples in tow, of course, there was also the part where all the prominent righteous sects stood around and talked about how they ruled the world. Or, well, it would be that way in a more harmonious wuxia novel. In this case, it was more of a dick-measuring contest.

Fortunately, there were only four major sects to worry about in the dick-measuring contest, with Cang Qiong being one of them. Historically, Cang Qiong Mountain was also the biggest dick.

Unfortunately, Shang Qinghua, as previously stated, never got his dick measured.

He got three pairs of eyes watching him like wolves as soon as Bai Xinsha led him forward, before he was even introduced formally.

“Esteemed masters,” Bai Xinsha addressed politely, while Shang Qinghua put his fan to good use. As a fan, because he was definitely overheating. “This is my shizhi, and decided sect leader of his generation, Shang Bei. Shang Bei, this is Lao Gongzhu, master of Huan Hua Palace. Zhao Hua Monastery’s master, Wu Wang. Tian Yi Overlook’s master, Xiang Ru.”

… Yeah, if they didn’t hate Shang Qinghua now, they were going to really hate him in the future.

But with all of that being said, Shang Qinghua knew exactly what kind of world this was, knew exactly how he’d designed sect relations, and damn well knew what kind of people these particular sect leaders were.

So he snapped his fan shut, smiled, and bowed only just enough to convey respect, but not deference.

“This Shang Bei greets Master Wu Wang, Master Xiang Ru, Master Lao Gongzhu,” he answered in return, then straightened. “Compared to this little flower, the masters before him have blossomed fruit for many years. He is honored to be welcomed.”

Honored his ass. These people were a lech, an angry old conservatist, and yet another flaccid toad who’d rather be around much smaller frogs in his own pond.

All of them petty and insignificant compared to the narrative.

“Well-spoken,” Xiang Ru acknowledged, grudging.

“Bai Xinsha, such a cute little flower indeed,” Lao Gongzhu huffed. “This one supposes there must be some merit to his fellow master’s choice. What happened to that disciple of yours?”

“My disciple is fine, but simply not seen as fit for the role,” Bai Xinsha answered.

“Tch!” Wu Wang tapped his staff on the ground. “Then why bother with such a disciple at all? At least he had merits, this so-called flower wears the colors of your paperwork peak. An entire peak for clinging to mortal ties! It speaks boldly of the future of Cang Qiong.”

“This Shang Bei knows well of Zhao Hua’s preference for solitude and gazes towards the heavens, Master Wu Wang,” Shang Qinghua replied smoothly. “And yes, this disciple is indeed from An Ding Peak. In the future, he will continue to be responsible for the food and shelter and dress of his shidimei and disciples alike. Master Wu Wang, this one is sure, is equally grateful for his own shidimei that provide him with such fine silk of Baian Gong, a luxury which his own beloved Cang Qiong has dismissed the expense to afford in favor of more mortal pursuits.” Wu Wang’s face went more and more red as Shang Qinghua gave him a lamenting expression. “Forgiving our much larger sect to Zhao Hua, but much more of our expense is focused on food and shelter for our future generations and their training supplies than the delicate scent of Jinhua incense, imported from Dongying.” The staff came back down with a louder crack.

“That- You-!!”

“Such delicate thin skin must be afforded for, of course,” Lao Gongzhu proclaimed, overjoyed with all of the new information he just learned. “Isn’t that right, Wu Wang?” Wu Wang spluttered furiously, face going purple. “Remarkably, a disciple of Cang Qiong has such refined tastes to recognize so easily,” Lao Gongzhu continued lightly.

“Remarkably, this cute little flower has some knowledge in his life’s work,” Shang Qinghua agreed in deadpan. Lao Gongzhu’s generous smile went stiff. Shang Qinghua then smiled. “But as always, Cang Qiong will let the merits of its disciples speak for itself in these happy occasions,” he concluded serenely, opening his fan again. “This Shang Bei may yet to show fruit so publicly, but.” He creased his eyes over the top of his fan. “As looks deceive in the Jianghu, so too can reputation. Isn’t that right, esteemed masters~?”

After thoroughly grinding his heel into their dicks, the mini-meeting broke. Bai Xinsha quietly walked with him back to the larger gathering of sects, then cleared his throat.

“Shizhi,” he managed. “It is one thing to be surprised that you are strong, but please tell your shibo that you at least knew you were capable of talking like that.” Shang Qinghua barely withheld a wince. Definitely too scum villain, he was sure.

“T-This disciple just prefers to not- be so mean to his sectmates,” he admitted.

“Mean,” Bai Xinsha repeated. “Mean!! This disciple should speak up much louder to such people and meaner!”

“… Oh.” Well, then again, this poor man had dealt with the likes of them for years. Maybe he really, really wanted to be mean, too. “Yes, Shibo.”

… So anyway, Shang Qinghua went full Mean Girls on the sects, with careful exception here and there. He still didn’t have a single real merit to offer, but he absolutely scared the shit out of them with how much he knew about their problems.

He leaned a little bit into Bai Xinsha’s bizarre assumption that he was some kind of heavenly being with divine knowledge, if only to keep things consistent. And honestly, it was probably less disastrous than explaining the whole author of the book you live in thing.

He- really didn’t want to explain that. To anyone.

Ever.

He also spent some time looking for some Important People, namely, Su Xiyan. She was technically Lao Gongzhu’s successor, but that was bullshit and she was more his arm candy. But he couldn’t find her anywhere, which was-

It was fine. Su Xiyan was due to have her affair with Tianlang Jun for some years before the Xin generation ascended, and part of that affair was her skipping this kind of bullshit. Shang Qinghua would just have to see her another time, was all!

In any case, Cang Qiong Mountain yet again dominated the competition. Even if Shang Qinghua had literally nothing to do with that, he fanned himself and smiled over in the direction of certain people, and thrived on how pissy they got about it.

“Shi-shidi, your disciple said he just didn’t want to be mean to his fellow sectmates,” Bai Xinsha complained.

“This master cannot be blamed for every show of his disciple’s competence.”

“He can, and he will.”

“Shizun, Shibo,” Shang Qinghua managed, glancing back. “This disciple is right here.”

“We know,” they answered.

… Shang Qinghua sometimes wondered what his life would be like if he still had no real free will. Sure, he’d be in a spiral of despair and growing numbness to the problems he was unable to fix and only watch, and would keep wondering if being reborn like this was truly a curse meant to drive him to insanity, but also, maybe he could also live in ignorance that the masters around him were some truly weird human beings.

Who could say?

-

Yue Qingyuan took almost a year to finally obey Shang Qinghua’s orders to get a pet. Or, well, come across the angriest, nastiest little stray cat that Shang Qinghua had ever seen before, remember there was an order in the first place, and decide that was how he wanted to go about it.

He showed up to the next head disciple meeting with claw marks all over his hands and face, and also looked way too pleased with himself. Shang Qinghua went to investigate.

“I’m pretty sure I told you to get one for affection,” he tried.

“Xiao Ying climbs on me when I hold very still,” Yue Qingyuan reasoned. “And purrs. It’s just- everything else that she doesn’t like. But I think she at least knows I’m taking care of her, right?”

… Okay, Yue Qingyuan. Not gonna examine that any further than necessary.

“Let me get this straight,” Wei Qingwei attempted when Shang Qinghua returned. “You had to beat the shit out of him to make him stop bothering Shen-shidi, and then you told him to get a cat?”

“I actually told him to get a dog, but he wanted a cat,” Shang Qinghua defended. “What’s so weird about that? Lots of people calm down when they pet cute animals.”

“… Shixiong, no,” Qi Qingqi managed.

“Wha- no?”

“No. That- You pushed the man out from being the next sect leader, and now you’re what, meeting him in private places and drinking his tea?” Shang Qinghua stared at the group and tried to figure out what was upsetting them. He was, unfortunately, supposed to be their sect leader now, which meant things like- like emotional support and bullshit like that. Well aware he’d made a world wildly absent of such bullshit, it only made his job that much harder.

“… Does- Qi-shimei want to be invited to tea?” he tried. “I’m not actually meeting him for tea except that one time, but if Qi-shimei wants, I can- offer tea to other martial siblings?” Come to think of it, that had been a raging complaint against Yue Qingyuan as a sect leader, hadn’t it? His blatant favoritism. “Let’s start having tea together,” he realized, patting himself down until he found his schedule planner. “What’s a good time for individual schedules?”

“… Why is he like this,” Qi Qingqi asked of Shen Qingqiu, weary.

“He thinks Qi-shijie is envious and wants to show he’s not playing favorites,” Shen Qingqiu answered.

“Okay, but why is he like this.”

“I translate, I don’t explain.”

“… Shidi, Shimei,” Shang Qinghua said. “I’m- right here?”

“… Um,” Mu Qingfang said, raising a hand slightly. “I’d like to have tea, Shixiong.”

Everyone happily agreed to tea in the end, except for Zhang Lei. Shang Qinghua told him to either give him a time for tea or to prepare to be ruthlessly harassed in front of his martial siblings.

Zhang Lei agreed to tea grudgingly.

“We can spar after tea, right?” Liu Qingge added.

“We can spar before tea and drink healing tea afterward,” Shang Qinghua replied, and Liu Qingge appeared pleased.

It wasn’t that Shang Qinghua wasn’t busy. They were all busy, in fact. The peak lords were making that official transition towards retirement, which meant their current head disciples were getting saddled with what work they’d been holding back to the point of being proxy peak lords. It also meant that Shang Qinghua was doing proxy sect leader bullshit, running around between peaks twice as much as he used to, and was getting referred to for a lot of nonsense problems.

With that being said, he was utterly determined to not actually die drowning in paperwork, and so relentlessly abused his newfound power to make other people do his work. He aggressively worked in a number of basic tasks that could be handled by other peaks before reaching An Ding, spread his bureaucratic branches to stabilize some positions, and made his problems everyone’s problems. Using some of that newfound free time to have tea with his martial siblings was really just common sense at that point, if only to make sure they didn’t conspire to yeet him off the fucking mountain.

(Upon being asked to have regular social chats with their mousy, cheerful new sect leader, anyone who expressed even the lightest complaints about taking on more paperwork felt guilty. Shang Bei was always working hard, and there was a general belief on An Ding Peak that he only improved his cultivation to practice inedia and work without sleeping, seeing how he never seemed to use his power for anything else.

And even if they didn’t consider him hard-working, caring, and genuine, there was always the terrifying snake master that used to go around the sect with his bad temper and only show a gentle side when it came to Shang Bei. Shen Jiu had mellowed out over the years, to everyone’s relief, but still could only be caught in a truly social mood when Shang Bei was present.

Given the situation with Yue Qi’s blatant creepy behavior over the years and Shen Jiu’s aversion to being within arm’s reach of anyone he didn’t trust intimately, rumors that he’d once been a slave in the Jianghu and subject to the worst of human cruelty, no one actually resented him for it.)

Shang Qinghua, completely unaware of the many assumptions that formed his reputation among the sect, scheduled in tea with Shen Qingqiu first, and possibly left open spaces where he could, unofficially, go and have tea with Shen Qingqiu again if the first time didn’t work out. Or maybe if he just felt like it.

… Shen Qingqiu made good tea, there was nothing wrong with wanting more of it.

Time seemed to pass quickly, as it were. Shang Qinghua did take some missions out of the sect if only to prove he wasn’t entirely a lazy asshole, but any fighting was usually pretty dull and any investigating hardly required an above-average IQ to solve. He didn’t know why a number of disciples would go on similar missions and come back with tears of failure, but eventually concluded that as the creator who made the average IQ unspeakably tragic, he couldn’t actually scold them for it, so instead took efforts to raise their IQ manually. Or just- go and fix it himself.

He took down a Thousand-Horned Acid Drake that had been reported as a much weaker version of a poison drake, and only then began to wonder if maybe, maybe, the problem was that he was actually too strong.

… But that sounded super fake, so he moved on with his life.

On the other side of future sect leader shenanigans, there was also his thing with the demon realm. And Shen Qingqiu!! Actually joined up for political bullshit!! Which turned out to be the scariest thing ever for their enemies. Apparently, Flame Fangs, as ice demons nicknamed the Ruby-Fanged Jade Snakes, were considered a terrifying menace akin to the boogeyman, and maybe it was funny when Mobei Jun had one mousy little human following him around, but it was not funny when he came back with a second human with terror snakes in his sleeves.

Shang Qinghua could somewhat understand the terror, but also, even if the snakes were now twice as long as he was tall and had fangs the length of his hand that could incinerate entire walls, he was pretty sure they were still precious and adorable babies. He still went into fits of joyful agony when he caught Shen Qingqiu giving them cuddles.

And so, with flaming terror on their side against ice demon politics, Mobei Jun secured his place among his court, and finally took the proper name Shang Qinghua knew him as. Shang Qinghua was genuinely overjoyed, and brought him a Cryosis Root elixir to celebrate at the ritual.

The ritual was only briefly interrupted by a crazed and defeated Linguang Jun, also some bullshit about him trying to destroy the whole palace, and Shang Qinghua beat the shit out of him with prejudice. He then happily continued the ritual so that the day wouldn’t be spoiled by such bullshit, casually grinding his heel into the botched array that had apparently been secretly placed in the throne room over several months.

Once the ritual finished, he beamed at Shen Qingqiu in delight. Shen Qingqiu’s mouth quirked upward, and he nodded back serenely.

It had been two years since Shang Qinghua was given his position by then. Even in matters of belated retirement, the cultivation world moved as slowly as ever. But then it was coming up faster and faster, and he knew it was going to be soon when Shi Xinsha pulled him aside and called him-

“Shang Qinghua.” Shang Qinghua had always thought of it as his name, ever since he realized his role in this world. But suddenly it was there and it was real, and he didn’t know how, but the System was gone- really just gone- and he-

And if he was really, really free of it, free to do whatever he wanted, and now he finally heard that name-

“Ah, Qinghua,” Shi Xinze sighed, and Shang Qinghua was supposed to be a sect leader someday, except it wasn’t just someday, it was-

-soon.

Too soon.

“S-Shizun,” he blubbered, quivering in place. “Shizun, b-but- but I-!” He scrubbed at his face for a moment, but it hardly helped. “… But I’ll- miss you,” he choked out. His teacher huffed with a soft laugh at his problems, but pulled him into a hug.

“Silly child,” he murmured back. “It’s not forever. This teacher only leaves where he knows his student can follow someday.” He patted Shang Qinghua’s head. “I’ll miss you, too.” Shang Qinghua sniffled loudly, tightening his grip. “Besides,” Shi Xinze added. “I hear that if one is bored with upper realms, they can return.” Shang Qinghua gave a faint laugh of his own.

“You’re not- wrong,” he acknowledged. Speaking of. “… Shizun,” he added, quieter. “If you happen to meet a frail-looking woman with a large pair of wings, just- walk the other way, no matter what she says.”

“… That sounds- specific?”

“She’s- not supposed to be there, but she snuck in and no one knows how to get her out,” Shang Qinghua admitted, aggrieved. Why did he ever make any danger to ascended cultivators, huh?? “Just know that she’ll eat anything that gets too close and just go the other way.”

“I feel as if I probably shouldn’t hear this,” Shi Xinze muttered.

“It’s- probably fine. If Shizun sees wings…”

“Yes, yes. Shizun will go the other way.”

“No matter what she says.”

“No matter what she says,” his teacher repeated dutifully. “Do I want to know how you know her?”

“… No, that- definitely not.”

“Hmm, very well.”

“… And- Shizun?” Shang Qinghua added quietly. “… At first I came here because I had to, but I stayed because I really wanted to.” Shi Xinze was quiet for a moment, then squeezed him that much tighter.

“Qinghua,” he repeated, strained. “Don’t make your teacher want to stay this badly. Shame on you.” Shang Qinghua laughed again, burying his face in his shoulder.

“Yes, Shizun.”

-

Shen Jiu was quiet for a while, still kneeling before his teacher. Jing Xinqiang was quiet as well, then touched his head.

“Shen Jiu, is it not to your liking?” she murmured.

“… I like it,” Shen Jiu admitted, quiet. “That’s… why I had to think about it.” She watched him quietly, but he found his lips curving upward despite himself. And he thought-

Do you like it?

“Autumn is really the best season, Shizun,” he told her.

“… Yes, Qingqiu. It truly is.”

-

Ascension for master cultivators was a private thing, especially when it was a group activity. Goodbyes were said on the lower peaks, and they waited for the lights of the heavens to fade away from the highest point of the mountain.

Shang Qinghua was officially a sect leader, three years after being told to get used to the idea.

He was not used to the idea.

“Zhangmen-shixiong,” Zhang Lei addressed- no, wait, this not-so-insignificant existence had a courtesy name now, he should actually use it? Zhang Qingshu, lord of Qing Jing Peak. Addressing Shang Qinghua as Zhangmen-shixiong. Wild. “Are you going to cry?” Someone reached out and gave him a smack. “Ow. Brute,” he hissed.

“I’ll only cry in public when I want something desperately,” Shang Qinghua assured them, turning around. His eyes were dry, as promised. “Let’s get BBQ,” he announced.

“… What?” Mu Qingfang tried.

“What’s… bee-bee-qiu,” Liu Qingge repeated suspiciously.

“Oh, right. Doesn’t exist,” Shang Qinghua acknowledged in a mutter. “… Fuck it! New sect tradition. Shui-shimei, I need your spice stores and a lot of meat. And tofu,” he added. “For Kang-shidi.”

“Y-Yes? This is- food?”

“We also need wine. Lots of wine.” Shang Qinghua clapped his hands together. “I’ll cook, let’s hope I remember how!” His fellow peak lords appeared uncertain at best. That was too bad!!!

After properly desecrating the sanctity of a righteous sect’s lofty image with a quick firepit, Shang Qinghua proceeded to barbeque up the best Korean spread he’d ever had. In this life. It was possible he just remembered Korean barbeque wrong and this wish-fulfillment was a lie, but at least he was happy.

Fortunately, so was everyone else.

“What is this,” Wei Qingwei cried, pouring more sauce over his rice bowl. He took another bite. “What is this,” he garbled.

“Shit,” Shen Qingqiu agreed, letting Chang snap up another bite. “This is good.” Shang Qinghua set more thinly-grilled slices into his own bowl, then settled down with a great sigh. He poured some wine for himself and watched peak lords enjoy meat and alcohol, as even Kang Qingxiu had abandoned his tofu early on. Shang Qinghua would rib him for that later.

“It’s a tradition, where I come from,” Shang Qinghua told Shen Qingqiu. “When you start working with a new group of people, you start off by going for BBQ. I always wanted to do it.” Shen Qingqiu hummed idly, pondering his wine. Zhang Qingshu and Rong Qingsheng began a heated discussion over who was entitled to the last drops of a sauce bowl. Shui Qingyu wisely set forward a new bowl without a word. “… Do you like it?” Shang Qinghua wondered. Shen Qingqiu chuckled.

“Every time you ask me that, Shixiong, the answer’s always the same,” he replied. “I like this. A lot.” He looked over. “Other opinions might matter, too,” he added.

“Shidi’s is obviously the most important,” Shang Qinghua replied. He froze for a moment, then realized that wine was an indulgence and he had indulged enough, and quickly emptied the last of his cup into the jar again. He cleared his throat loudly, still flushed from the firepit. “Anyway!!” he added vigorously. “Aha. S-So, um- how’s Baobao doing?”

“Taking his babysitting duties a little too seriously, but I think he’s alright. He’s always- really understood Shizun,” Shen Qingqiu added, thoughtful. “If they had a sad parting, neither of them let anyone see it.”

“He probably knows he can ascend himself if he wants,” Shang Qinghua admitted. Shen Qingqiu stopped mid-sip. “But his kind is a guardian type, so he probably decided to adopt the peak instead.”

“… Animals- can ascend?” Shen Qingqiu managed.

“Oh, any of them can with effort,” Shang Qinghua agreed in babble. “Divine ones need a lot less effort. Yue Qingyuan can even take his cats if he really tried.” They both considered the peak lord who was already carefully wrapping packages to take home. Three sets, now. “… I definitely mis-stepped somewhere, but I’m afraid to try fixing it again,” Shang Qinghua added in a mutter.

“It’s- probably for the best,” Shen Qingqiu muttered back. “He seems happy enough.”

“… If he brings back any more cats too soon, I’m going to put a limit on his numbers.”

“Afraid he’s going to take over the sect with his cat army?”

“More afraid of what will happen to his state of mind.”

Despite the round of hangovers he caused, Shang Qinghua thought he did pretty well for himself on his start as sect leader. After that, however, he had to get a bit more serious.

And he- regretted it. Deeply.

He showed up at the little house at the top of Yan Xie Peak in the middle of the night, knocking quietly because he was aware he was freaking out, knocking frantically because he was freaking out. There was a thunk inside, then a muffled groan.

“Who is it?”

“Shidi,” Shang Qinghua choked out. There was a brief silence before the door slid open immediately, revealing Shen Qingqiu only half-dressed.

Shang Qinghua was probably a sight for the poor thing, a paper crumpled in his hand, white as a sheet. It was still his first week as sect leader and he thought he was still waiting, except he was wrong, he wasn’t waiting, he-

He fucked up, he fucked up, he fucked up-

“Shit- Shixiong!” Shen Qingqiu repeated sharply, and warm, warm hands grabbed at his own. Shang Qinghua shuddered violently, then swallowed the bile in the back of his throat.

“I fucked up,” he repeated. “I really fucked up.”

“Come in,” Shen Qingqiu insisted, but Shang Qinghua shook his head fiercely.

“I can’t- I need to fix this,” he managed. “I didn’t see her but I didn’t think- I didn’t know, I swear- I swear, Shidi, I didn’t- I really didn’t know-!!” Shen Qingqiu pried the paper out of his grip, looking at what was still legible.

“Subjugation at Bailu Mountain?” he read.

“I should have known,” Shang Qinghua burst out. “Because I fucked up Yue Qi, they- they ascended years after they were supposed to, and so it already- He’s already been under Bailu Mountain for eight years, and Su Xiyan is dead and she was already dead three years ago when I didn’t see her, and I didn’t even think-!”

“Shixiong!!” Shen Qingqiu barked. Shang Qinghua shut up, but only for a moment. He held a hand over his eyes, shaking.

“I didn’t know,” he repeated. “I didn’t know, t-that it was already- that any chance I had to fix it-“ He felt his other hand receive that much more warmth, and squeezed back. “… I know I made him to suffer, but that doesn’t mean I wanted real suffering,” he managed, incoherent. “I thought I could change it, I really thought- I-If I was there, if I could stop her from drinking poison, if I could castrate the fucker that came between them-!!”

“Shixiong, just- tell me a name,” Shen Qingqiu insisted. “Tell me who we need to find.”

… Why did Shang Qinghua come here? It was a reflex he didn’t know he had, to see Shen Qingqiu first. Shang Qinghua used to run off on his own all the time.

In theory, Shen Qingqiu was the last person he should ask for this.

“Luo Binghe,” he answered anyway. “He’s- t-the son of Tianlang Jun and Su Xiyan. Half-heavenly demon, he’s-“ He gave a quiet, hysterical laugh. “I made him the most important person in the world, and I let his mother die,” he managed. “I let his father rot for falling in love. I let Lao Gongzhu destroy his parents, and the woman that found him in the river already died by now, and he’s- he’s just- alone.”

Five years before he was ever told he would be sect leader, while Bai Xinsha was still trying to find a replacement for Yue Qingyuan, he was called to a small, secret alliance between righteous sects to subjugate a demon lord. Not so long after, Su Xiyan died at the riverside, and his protagonist drifted away quietly.

When he was seven, the washerwoman that loved him died.

Luo Binghe was eight years old now, and the worst of his fate had only just begun.

“I’ll get dressed,” Shen Qingqiu told him, quiet. “Can you make it back to An Ding first?” Shang Qinghua thought he probably could. He still wasn’t sure how he got here. “Leave instructions and say you’re going on an emergency mission for a few days. I’ll do the same, and we’ll meet at An Ding. We’ll find him.” His warm hand cupped Shang Qinghua’s cheek for a moment, and he thought he could feel something other than stomach-turning guilt. “It’s not your fault for missing a step,” Shen Qingqiu added, quiet and firm. “Saving him later is better than never.”

Presumably, Shang Qinghua made it back to his peak. He was quiet even in his panic, and managed to properly prepare. He wondered again why he ran off to Shen Qingqiu, then wondered why he wouldn’t. He was barely finishing up a quick letter for his- disciples, not shidimei- when Shen Qingqiu showed up.

Why had Shang Qinghua gone for him? He couldn’t say why, but- but rather than the brand new peak lord robes, in sea green and gold, Shen Qingqiu’s favored embroidery of a carp ascending a waterfall, he was wearing appropriate travel robes and his sword bound in cloth, hair pulled back practically. There was no doubt that his snakes were there and probably still fast asleep, but would still be ready if Shen Qingqiu needed.

Shen Qingqiu was here in the dead of night, like he’d gone traipsing all over the demon realm for a power struggle he shouldn’t care about, like he kept the worst of Shang Qinghua’s secrets. He was everything Shang Qinghua wished he could give his scum villain, and not at all a scum villain.

And he was still beautiful.

“Come on, Shixiong,” Shen Qingqiu insisted, taking his hand. “Where do we start?”

… Shang Qinghua wondered when he started wanting to keep this man for himself instead.

“Luo An City,” he made himself answer, clearing his throat. “It’s- the southern edge of Huan Hua territory.” Shen Qingqiu nodded once, tugging him away without any further questions. Shang Qinghua swallowed a lump in his throat and drew his sword.

They left the sect in silence, and Shen Qingqiu didn’t ask. Shang Qinghua wanted to answer anyway.

“His parents really did love each other,” he began, hesitant. “That’s why I wanted to- change things.”

“… I’ve heard of Tianlang Jun,” Shen Qingqiu commented. “Lord of the South.”

“He’s technically the most powerful being in the world,” Shang Qinghua sighed. “He also just- really liked humans for art and music and food. Used to, at least. He would wander the human realm as he pleased, up until he met Su Xiyan.” Shen Qingqiu tilted his head slightly. “She was Lao Gongzhu’s head disciple, the one who he pretended he kept around as a successor but she was just his lech target.”

“Tch. Figures,” Shen Qingqiu muttered darkly.

“They had a funny romance, her and the demon lord,” Shang Qinghua added with a laugh. “The reason the old pervert never got his hands on her was the same reason that Tianlang Jun fell head over heels. He basically abandoned his kingdom for her. He really- really loved her. He was about to find out she was pregnant when Lao Gongzhu found out first.” His smile went brittle. “He always- manages to find out who’s in the way of what he wants. He rallied the righteous sects against a bullshit invasion of an all-powerful demon lord, said his innocent disciple was being targeted. He imprisoned Su Xiyan before she was supposed to meet Tianlang Jun again, and said she could only go free if she drank a poison to kill the baby. After, of course, Tianlang Jun was ambushed and imprisoned beneath Bailu Mountain. Su Xiyan drank the poison, and ran, and she.” He cleared his throat. “She used her cultivation to keep it away from their son. When she ran out, she used her life force. When she gave birth, she put him in a basket in the river, and died before he was even out of sight.”

“… Luo Binghe,” Shen Qingqiu repeated. “Named bluntly.” Well, Shang Qinghua didn’t claim to have great naming skills. “What’s supposed to happen to him, Shixiong?”

“Just- a lot of bullshit,” Shang Qinghua answered, not looking at him. “After his adopted mother died, he went out in the streets. He’s got- a unique look because of his demon heritage, even if it’s mostly covered by the seal. It prevents him from making friends or earning pity. It’s really only the insane genetics that help him survive. T-Technically, I guess we could wait. Ah, he’s supposed to come to Cang Qiong in the future.” Shen Qingqiu paused mid-flight. Shang Qinghua paused ahead of him. “To Qing Jing Peak, specifically,” he admitted, pained. “It wasn’t an offer made out of kindness, but he- didn’t know better. He really thought it was all going to be a new start for his life, y-you know?”

“… I do know,” Shen Qingqiu answered, quiet. He then cleared his throat and started forward again before Shang Qinghua could look back. “What does he look like? Small, I assume.” Shang Qinghua gave a startled laugh.

“Tiny,” he agreed. “Dark brown, curly hair, black eyes, hides a fake jade pendant in his robes. It’s from his adopted mother, he will bite if you touch it.”

“Hm.” Shen Qingqiu nodded slightly. “Biting among street children is less distinct than Shixiong seems to think.”

“Aha, true, true.”

“Curly hair, though. That is- not common.” Shen Qingqiu frowned. “If someone is more familiar with demon features, they might recognize him as a mixed breed. He’ll be avoiding other children in that case.”

“Yeah, that. They don’t like him.”

“He won’t like us, either.”

“… No, most likely not. He’s smart enough to know people can lie, at least.” Shang Qinghua sighed. “Sorry if he does bite, Shidi,” he added.

“I’m around enough animals to know what will bite me, Shixiong.” Shen Qingqiu shook his head. “Some of them, you let them have it.”

-

Luo Binghe was alone.

There were people everywhere. They hated him, they always hated him. Even before Mother died, they sneered and spat. It was mostly him they hated, he’d seen enough of how nice they could be to each other. How other children were offered hands to cling to and treats to eat, how the same men could turn away from beating him and embrace family with a smile, greet others with warm words. Because they were not him, Luo Binghe, who was alone in this world.

He was alone, and tired, and hungry, and cold. He wanted to go home. He wanted his mother.

He’d buried his mother with his own hands.

It all hurt so much that sometimes- it just didn’t hurt. That was usually when he needed something more than ever. Today was one of those days. He felt dull and tired and didn’t know what he needed this time, but thought he’d make his way until he found something. Maybe it was clean water, maybe it was food. It was usually food, he thought.

He wanted to beg, but people hated him, and even when they hated and pitied him, anything they gave was stolen by others around him. He couldn’t even join their protection, because they hated him, too. He wanted to steal, he wanted to eat, but he still couldn’t move his leg right from the day before, and he couldn’t move at all when he was beaten. At least for a little while.

This was all normal, and so Luo Binghe was very alarmed when a hand reached into his hiding place between some stalls, then pulled him out by the scruff of his tattered robes. He began to scream before he remembered no one would come for him, instead squirming as hard as he could, grabbing at the arm. As always, adults were too big, too strong-

“-stop squirming, I’m not trying to hurt you, I just need to check-“

-and this one was going through his robes, trailing along the string around his neck, and Luo Binghe realized what he was going for like others had done, and this time he really did scream and bite.

“… Ah.”

Something was- wrong?

Adults were strong, but their hands had soft spots and Luo Binghe wasn’t that weak. He’d tasted blood before. This hand felt like he was biting into stone. Nothing gave way with his teeth digging in. The sleeves of the robes he grabbed at were clean, so clean he could see trails from his own filthy fingers.

His pendant was pulled out anyway, and then let go to stay around his neck.

“He really did bite me,” a man’s voice muttered, and Luo Binghe saw him.

With beauty like that, he was a cultivator. A powerful being above humans and demons alike, who even the cruelest humans bowed beneath and other children cowered away. Who were strong and immortal and Luo Binghe was biting one.

This cultivator, with narrow green eyes and a dignified frown on his face, with dark hair pulled back in a simple style that somehow made him prettier, flexed his unhurt hand pointedly. Luo Binghe immediately opened his mouth, gasping. He tried very hard to say something like an apology, to also beg forgiveness and please put me down, and instead retched and puked watery bile on the immortal cultivator’s shoes.

Ah, so that was what he needed today.

And now he was definitely going to die.

Luo Binghe coughed harshly, gasping and shaking all over before it was just- warm? He felt his shaking limbs all melt at once, and didn’t care if they never came back. Clean robes were holding him close, and it didn’t hurt, it didn’t hurt and it was warm and he- he was-?

“Shh, carefully, not all at once,” the cultivator murmured, pulling the waterskin from his lips. “Breathe before you have more.” Luo Binghe gasped unsteadily, unable to understand. Why didn’t it hurt?

Why didn’t this cultivator hate him?

“I found him, Shixiong,” the cultivator told- a piece of paper? “He’s alive, but ill. I’ll wait at our meeting point.” Luo Binghe gave a stuttered gasp when the paper glowed and changed, shifting to a ghostly little bird. It flew off from the cultivator’s hand and into the sky.

“W-What- a bird!” he croaked out, squinting against the sun to see. He heard that cultivators could make magic, but it was real! It was real and right in front of him!!

“Not magic,” the cultivator answered. “A talisman.” He was walking, Luo Binghe realized. Where to, he really didn’t care. “Luo Binghe,” the man continued, and Luo Binghe looked up with a start.

“Y-You- You- k-know my name?” he stammered.

“Mm. We’ve been looking for you.” The man gave his pendant a gentle tap with a long finger. “Your mother washed clothes by the Luo, where you were found. Your family only recently learned of her death.” Family?

Family?

“… Family,” Luo Binghe repeated, numb. “A-Aren’t you- lying?” The cultivator stopped walking, then stared at him. Luo Binghe wanted to flinch, but made sure he didn’t, because he didn’t want to feel something that wouldn’t last, he didn’t want-

If this was real, no, he couldn’t think it was real-

It couldn’t be real because he was Luo Binghe and he was alone and everyone hated him. And the only person that didn’t hate him died because of him.

And he wanted-

He cringed under the hand that touched his head. It was still in response, then finally just- petted him. The messy, filthy hair that everyone hated.

“Just like how I used to be indeed,” the cultivator muttered to himself, and kept walking.

He was taken outside of the city to a little teahouse, where the cultivator approached a very nervous-looking owner that bowed at once. How strange, to see from this vantage point. He could see the bald spot.

“Your mildest herbal tea, osmanthus cakes, and clean cloths with a water bucket,” the cultivator ordered. The owner peeked upward, opening his mouth. His expression stiffened when he spotted Luo Binghe- “And there will be silver and the promise to not slander this place out of business should you hold your tongue,” the cultivator added sharply, a cold light in green eyes. The old man snapped his mouth shut, pale as a sheet, then bowed again before crawling away. “Tch,” the cultivator muttered after him. “Beast.” He did look like a crawling animal from this point. It was no wonder cultivators stood so high.

In comparison, Luo Binghe was gently set down on a chair, and given more water to drink with strict instructions to sip. He was petted again gently, then the cultivator frowned after where the old man had gone.

“I should make sure he’s not poisoning our tea,” he muttered. “Binghe, hold this.” Luo Binghe held out his hands obediently, only to squeak when the cultivator reached into his sleeve and pulled out a snake. A very pale green snake with black eyes and bright red- horns?? It was long and huge, and the cultivator put it in his lap.

“… S-Snake?” Luo Binghe processed.

“Her name is Hua,” the cultivator replied. “She likes being pet on the head. Hua, guard.” He stalked away with that. Luo Binghe was frozen in place by the snake.

Hua stuck out her tongue at his face and it tickled. He spluttered quietly, startled, then realized Hua was so long that she was spilling all over the place. He didn’t really want to handle a cultivator’s sleeve snake (???) with his dirty hands, but he also didn’t want her to just- fall. He gingerly collected as much of the snake as possible, and when Hua was completely okay with the treatment, cautiously gave her a pat on the head.

He got more face-tickles for it, so- so maybe it was fine?

There was then a shriek in the distance. A high-pitched scream that seemed to get louder and louder, or possibly- closer? Luo Binghe petted Hua again and looked around, and then-

Then a cultivator dropped out of the sky right beside the teashop, and bolted at him.

“LUO!! BING!! HE!!!”

There was a loud noise, and Luo Binghe was frozen in a reflexive flinch. There was a long silence before he slowly peeked. He then almost jumped out of his skin again, because the cultivator was right there on his knees beside Luo Binghe, quivering and shaking in place and his eyes brimming with tears, and he-

He looked so, so, so happy to see Luo Binghe, smiling so widely like that it had to sting, eyes shining with unshed tears and joy, and he-

“You’re here, you’re here,” the stranger babbled, with brown hair pinned back in a bun, honey-gold eyes that actually glimmered right now. “It really is you! I knew Shidi was so much better at finding than me- ah! Hua, are you on guard duty?” the cultivator chattered at the snake, and gave her a pat on the head. “Who’s a beautiful noodle with excellent people skills? This Hua is!” He also got a face-tickling, and laughed. “Ah! Binghe,” he addressed, beaming hugely again. “I’m so glad to see you, I- I’m really glad you’re alright.” He gave a shaky laugh, briefly wiping at his face. “Shit, I really thought- We didn’t find you for days, I almost thought you were-“ He reached out and touched without reserve, and it was-

It was like the way those mothers held the hands of children, all gentle and soft at once. It was like the warmth and cheer given to all those people who weren’t Luo Binghe, except it was given to him, it had to be for him, this person knew his name and his face-

He touched Luo Binghe’s filthy, hollow cheek with his clean hands, and it was gentle and kind.

“It’s okay,” the cultivator insisted, and Luo Binghe only then realized he was shaking, that his vision was blurring, and he didn’t want to cry, but he couldn’t stop- “Ah- It’s okay, shh, shh, Binghe,” the man’s warm voice soothed, and Luo Binghe sobbed that much harder. He felt himself being picked up, snake and all, and both of them were hugged, and he felt warm and safe and like this was really family, like he really wasn’t alone-

And for all that hurt him before, as he bawled into an immortal cultivator’s shoulder, this didn’t hurt. It didn’t hurt, it didn’t hurt.

“It’s a hug, Binghe, it’s not supposed to hurt,” the man replied, rubbing at his back. “Shhh… Oh-! Shidi, there you are. Out terrorizing the locals?”

“I don’t know what Shixiong is talking about.”

“Sure, sure~” The man laughed around Luo Binghe, tightening his grip slightly. “Shidi, it’s really him,” he managed. “And he’s tiny!!”

“He’s eight, Shixiong, and underfed.”

“Right, right. It’s just- given his parents, he’s got a lot of growing to do. Are those cakes?”

“And tea. He needs something before we bring him to Mu-shixiong, he was puking acid.”

“Ah, I see. Here, Binghe, let’s get something in your tummy.” The man shifted around Luo Binghe, then peeled him out of his safe hug to instead settle him in his lap. Luo Binghe sniffled loudly, now even worse of a mess, but the man holding him used something cool and wet to dab at his face. “Here you are,” the man murmured. “Blow your nose. Ah, good job.” Hua seemed to have transitioned to curling over the cultivator’s shoulders, and looked down on Luo Binghe from above. When he peeked at her, he got another tickle. “Awww, cute.”

“Slow down a bit for the boy, Shixiong,” the green-eyed cultivator huffed, pouring three cups of tea. “Don’t think I didn’t hear your landing.” The honey-eyed cultivator coughed.

“… Anyway,” he said. “Here, Binghe, careful sips. It’s good for you, but it’s a bit bitter.” Luo Binghe obediently clutched at the cup, sniffling some more. It was bitter, but nothing like the homemade tea that Mother used to make for him out of wild leaves. The smell was gentle. “This master is Shang Qinghua,” the honey-eyed cultivator told him warmly, petting his head as if to reward him. “The master of adorable noodle snakes is Shen Qingqiu. I’m sure Binghe has guessed, but we’re cultivators.” Luo Binghe nodded quietly, peeking. Shang Qinghua was still smiling hugely at him, still so happy. Shen Qingqiu looked about the same as ever, but his green eyes softened when Luo Binghe peeked. He gave a light nod to acknowledge him, and Luo Binghe almost cried again. He tried to quietly put the tea down, and almost immediately found himself given a cute little cake. “You might not feel hungry right now, but Binghe still needs food,” Shang Qinghua insisted. “Nibble slowly, take breaks to let it settle.”

The cake was soft and sweet. There was a sticky paste inside, and Luo Binghe had to be reminded to slow down. He almost didn’t care if he did die, surely this was the happiest he’d ever be in his life.

He dared to peek again during his break, and his stomach wasn’t happy, but the rest of him was. The tea was warm and his cakes were sweet, and strong arms were holding him like he wasn’t hated.

“I… Is this i-immortal cultivator- really Binghe’s f-family?” Luo Binghe wondered. Shang Qinghua blinked once, then smiled.

“Yes, Binghe, we’re family,” he promised. “I’m your, ah, godfather, you can say.” Luo Binghe blinked. His what? “I didn’t- know about your parents’ death until recently,” Shang Qinghua added, quieter. “I’m so sorry, Binghe. I’m so sorry I took so long to find you.” He hugged Luo Binghe gently. “I’m so sorry we couldn’t help Yan Huan, either,” he murmured. “I’m sorry.”

… Luo Binghe didn’t think there was anyone who knew his mother’s name apart from him. She was just the washerwoman, the whore, the old beggar. She was that miser who took in a beast and mixed-breed, unlucky enough to die-

And her name still existed on an immortal master’s tongue, even after she died. Because she was Luo Binghe’s mother, no matter where he’d come from.

Whatever a godfather was, he wanted to keep this one forever.

“Ah, it’s cute when you smile like that,” Shang Qinghua murmured, petting him more. “But make sure you’re still eating, Binghe. We have a bit of a trip to take to see a good healer.” Luo Binghe sniffled a bit, but nodded quietly. He continued nibbling on the soft little cakes. “Shidi, isn’t he cute?” Shang Qinghua asked happily. Shen Qingqiu sipped at his tea, a gentle smile softening his sharp features.

“Yes, yes, Shixiong,” he answered soothingly. “Very cute.” His gaze wasn’t on Luo Binghe, not entirely. Rather he watched Shang Qinghua in that same gentle, loving way that Luo Binghe had seen men look at their wives. Yet even then, they rarely looked so soft about it.

… Did that make Shen Qingqiu his- ‘godmother’? Second godfather? It explained why he was so gentle with Luo Binghe and shared his sleeve snake. Luo Binghe wondered if he had siblings? Or maybe Hua was his sister? Or ‘godsister’??

Well, whatever the words were, Luo Binghe thought he liked all of them.

After feeding him tea and cakes and washing his hands and face with gentle scrubbing, Luo Binghe was bundled up in Shang Qinghua’s arms again, and couldn’t help a quiet gasp when the cultivator’s sword flew up and floated in front of him. Shang Qinghua then stood on it! To fly!!!

“Ahhh his eyes are so sparkly why’s he so cute,” Shang Qinghua babbled.

“Shixiong, if you’re not going to watch where you’re flying, then I’ll hold him.”

“Ah, ah, Shidi is already demanding his turn for hugs…” Shang Qinghua gave Luo Binghe a snuggle, a snuggle!! Luo Binghe couldn’t help a giggle about it, and Shang Qinghua squealed. Because he thought Luo Binghe was cute!!!

Luo Binghe wanted to stay awake for the flying part, but when they were in the sky, Shang Qinghua had to hug him close because it was cold, and he soon found himself handed over to Shen Qingqiu anyway. Shen Qingqiu’s hug was a bit looser, but much warmer. Shang Qinghua petted him before returning to fly. Shen Qingqiu gave him that same softer look when Luo Binghe peeked, and flying was so neat and yet- yet he was tired suddenly, overwhelmingly so, and all he could do was curl up in Shen Qingqiu’s arms.

“… H-Hey, Shidi.”

“Hm.”

“I… really wish I’d taken the time to invent cameras, s-suddenly. So I could take a picture and keep it forever.”

“… You’re ridiculous, Shixiong.”

“Aha, probably.”

-

Luo Binghe was little and tiny and a small, precious bean, and Shang Qinghua was going to die.

Specifically, of paperwork.

“Shixiong, I- understand that you are reluctant to leave so soon,” Mu Qingfang told him, weary. “But please don’t cry so loudly, I have sleeping patients.”

“Mu-shidi there’s so many papers,” Shang Qinghua whispered, in agony.

“Yes, Shixiong. Our sect leader was gone for almost a week.”

“I know, I know I did this. But also- why me.”

“Shixiong, please.”

“Shixiong, leave the healer alone so he can treat Binghe,” Shen Qingqiu huffed, shaking his head. The poor tiny, precious bean was fighting to stay awake. Shang Qinghua knew from experience that healing with flame qi was insanely relaxing, and was impressed he was still awake at all. He sat nearby with all the papers he had to catch up on, and yet-

Ahhh, but how could he tear his eyes away from such a precious scene, huh?!

“… S-Sect leader, please?” one of the nearby disciples added. Shang Qinghua remembered he was sect leader, unfortunately, and sighed in anguish before returning to his work. He stared at the papers for a moment before reminding himself that the sooner this was finished, the sooner!! He could stare!! At his protagonist!!!

Attending disciples from multiple peaks leaned back in horror at the flurry of paper pushing that immediately followed. Rumors of the new sect leader’s work ethic were somehow understated.

Luo Binghe was fast asleep when he peeked again, snuggled against Shen Qingqiu’s side. Shang Qinghua might have gawked stupidly until Mu Qingfang cleared his throat pointedly, and Shang Qinghua reluctantly returned to his frenzy. Fortunately, it was mostly mundane stuff he could probably literally handle in his sleep.

Hmm, come to think of it, didn’t finding his little protagonist mean he should start worrying about upcoming Plot things?

… That felt like a later freak-out, actually. It was fine.

Luo Binghe stirred for some medicine afterwards and then a warm bath, and Shang Qinghua knelt beside him in his little tub and washed his hair over and over. Sure, he technically owned an entire mountain of cultivation disciples and at least a handful of Qian Cao disciples had offered to do it instead, but alas!! There was only one adorable Luo Binghe in this world, and Shang Qinghua demanded guardian privileges.

Which also reminded him, in fact, that he was pretty sure he was now the protagonist’s guardian? But what else was he going to do, drop off his actual creation at an orphanage or hand him over to some stranger? He might be a designated scum villain, but not even original goods would do that!! Probably.

He had wanted to save his parents to avert tragedy, and also to give Luo Binghe the home and family he really deserved. He’d really thought that Su Xiyan and Tianlang Jun could have been decent parents if they were given the chance. He’d wanted to give them that chance.

… Well, it wasn’t like his meddling always turned out for the best anyway. He knew he’d caused deaths that shouldn’t have happened before, it would probably happen again, too.

“Shixiong- does very well with children?” Mu Qingfang commented, watching him rinse out the boy’s hair. Luo Binghe was already nodding off again, ah. So tiny, so sad, so cute.

“I used to have siblings around this age,” Shang Qinghua answered absently, shifting so the kid could lean back against him. “I was really still a kid myself, but I liked to play with them.”

“… Used to, Shixiong?”

“Oh, um.” Shang Qinghua paused for a moment. He cleared his throat, but the only ones around were Luo Binghe, half-asleep, Shen Qingqiu who supervised quietly, and Mu Qingfang. “Nothing- bad happened to them,” he added quickly. “They grew up just fine, I- assume. I was just- thrown out of the family and all.”

And after his mother had ended their relationship by telling her newly-divorced ex this is your problem now, and the new wife didn’t want a bad influence around her kids, after his father wouldn’t stop sighing at him behind his back until he finally just-

Well. It was a literal lifetime ago. Someone once said the words abandonment issues to him, and he really hated how that sometimes floated back up to the surface. Not forming real attachments should have felt safer, not-

Lonely.

“Here, Binghe,” he murmured, softening reflexively for such wide, starry black eyes that peeked up at him. “I know you’re tired, so let’s finish up, ah?” Luo Binghe nodded quickly, eager to please. Shang Qinghua made sure to express he was pleased as he helped the kid out of the tub, bundling him up and helping untangle his hair. Luo Binghe sat down on a little stool, watching as his leg was outstretched to tend to what Mu Qingfang identified as a near-fracture. It looked like a big, ugly bruise on the outside, likely where someone stepped on him.

Luo Binghe yawned so hard he squeaked. Shang Qinghua only didn’t die then and there because he was still holding a jar of medicine.

“Alright, alright, let’s get this little Bing-pup to bed,” he managed, shaking with the noble effort of not screaming his head off. “Binghe will stay with healers around until he’s healthier,” he added, carrying the kid to bed. “So it’s important for this Binghe to ask for anything he needs, and sleep as much as he wants.” He sat down on the side of the bed first to begin the momentous task of undoing many tangles in the poor thing’s hair, but luckily his many washes and brief applications of grease helped. Shen Qingqiu quietly stepped forward to offer one of his own ribbons for use, and Shang Qinghua beamed in delight. He tamed as much hair as he could in a loose braid, and Luo Binghe already seemed dead asleep by then. Shang Qinghua turned and tucked him into bed.

Luo Binghe abruptly woke up just to cling to his hand. Shang Qinghua paused, then lowered himself again.

“I won’t go away forever, Binghe,” he promised quietly. “I have to take care of some things, but I’ll always come back. Mu-shidi and his disciples will all be very gentle with Binghe if he wakes up before then.” Luo Binghe’s mouth quivered somewhat, and he nodded quietly. He reluctantly let go, and Shang Qinghua petted him gently before standing up. It wasn’t that he didn’t sort of want to promise he’d sit at the kid’s bedside for eternity, but-

Well, he was unfortunately aware of the problems involved with being a clingy little fuck. Sorry, Luo Binghe! You have to learn that the same mountain is enough sometimes!

… He doubled back after a moment just to fetch another pillow, the softer kind, and tucked it in beside Luo Binghe.

“See if hugging something soft will help,” he added in a conspiratory whisper. Luo Binghe’s eyes widened, then glimmered like the most pitiful seal eyes he’d ever seen. He snuggled against the pillow, then seemed to immediately pass out.

Cute!!!!

Mu Qingfang led them out of the private room, then quietly closed the door. He picked up the paper of notes he’d made.

“I- don’t understand how this boy is alive,” he started out with, anguished.

“Plot armor,” Shang Qinghua answered, weary. Mu Qingfang blinked. Shang Qinghua cleared his throat. “His, uh- parentage,” he amended quickly. “He has a stronger healing factor than most, he bounces back fast.”

“Oh, that- I see. That’s good, then, there will be- quite a bit of bouncing back.” Mu Qingfang’s forehead creased. “I’ll adjust his diet plan, in that case. Shixiong, and…” The healer shifted in place. “You seem to know his family, but Binghe was the only one you brought back?”

“… He’s- the son of a cultivator disciple of our generation, but her reputation declined just before her death,” Shang Qinghua explained, sighing. “It’ll be better for Binghe if her name isn’t spread. I’m afraid his father- went mad after her death. He’s imprisoned right now, and there’s not much hope that he’d want to know Binghe.” Mu Qingfang winced.

“I-I see.”

“There’s a cousin, I… think?” Shang Qinghua paused. Zhuzhi Lang was technically supposed to survive. But also, that was in a battle against the righteous sects with Yue Qingyuan. Against Bai Xinsha, there was no way to tell how that fight had gone, and most of the records didn’t belong to Cang Qiong Mountain in the first place. “… He’s probably dead,” he acknowledged.

“Then- no family?” Mu Qingfang concluded hesitantly. Shang Qinghua sighed.

“I count,” he admitted. “Technically. Not by blood ties, but he doesn’t have anyone else right now. The woman that adopted him died a year ago, he’s been on the streets since.” Mu Qingfang winced that much more. Ahh, the poor thing. “Ah, just be gentle with him, no grabbing,” Shang Qinghua reminded him, lighter. “It’s been a while since I tackled Mu-shidi, hasn’t it?” Mu Qingfang coughed.

“I’m glad that Shixiong seems to remember that- more fondly than I do.”

“What, you didn’t appreciate my technique?”

“I was very scared, Shixiong.” Shang Qinghua snickered. Mu Qingfang shook his head to himself. “Speaking of, Shen-shidi, is everything alright? You’ve been very quiet.”

“Lost in thought,” Shen Qingqiu replied vaguely. He looked back to the door. “… You should bring him to Yan Xie, Shixiong,” he concluded. “If you become too busy. Baobao is happy to watch anyone he’s given.”

“I see Shidi is still trying to reach his turn~”

“Shidi is not. He’s not good with children.”

“He was just fine with Binghe.”

“Binghe bit me.”

“Oh, well. We kind of expected that.” Shang Qinghua smiled a little. “But he loved Hua and loved you giving him a ride,” he added. “Shidi should give himself more credit, he’s much more loveable than he seems to think.” Shen Qingqiu stared at Shang Qinghua, then turned to stare intensely at a wall. His cheeks went pink and he was being bashful, and Shang Qinghua could actually die from how cute he was, too.

Even all grown up, his precious non-scum villain was just too much for his heart to handle.

“… I am going to- do something. With my other patients,” Mu Qingfang concluded, a touch too loud for how they were still right next to the door. “I’ll have disciples checking on him regularly, Shixiong. I know you still have much to do- more so to handle what to do with Binghe. Shixiong is- very much skilled in childcare, from what I’ve seen, but Qian Cao also has materials if there is a scenario beyond Shixiong’s scope of knowledge.”

“When has there been anything beyond his scope of knowledge?” Shen Qingqiu muttered back.

“Nothing yet,” Mu Qingfang sighed. “But it doesn’t hurt to prepare for such a day.”

“Hey,” Shang Qinghua attempted, strangely flattered and weirdly insulted. “I’m capable of not knowing things? O-Obviously??” His shidi pair exchanged an expression of outright disbelief, and refused to acknowledge his words.

Ah, this was what he got for fostering good relations among the peak lords. Outright mutiny against their sect leader.

Mu Qingfang left first, and Shang Qinghua lingered for a moment, staring at the door. Where did he even start with this? With basic needs? With handling the insanity of a righteous sect peak lord adopting a half-demon? With covering up the inevitably-known?

… He was already- not exactly a servant of Mobei Jun, not after everything. More of a friend. He wanted to stay friends, too.

He did want to change things.

“Shixiong never talks much about where he comes from,” Shen Qingqiu abruptly said, and Shang Qinghua startled from his thoughts. He blinked over, then smiled faintly.

“Ah, it’s. It’s nothing special, Shidi,” he admitted. “Just a normal, boring life until I came here.”

“Your family threw you out,” Shen Qingqiu reminded him, and Shang Qinghua paused. He considered himself for a long moment, then shrugged it away. Shen Qingqiu already probably heard too much to not realize something was very off, he was just- nice enough to not make it a problem.

“Before- I was Shang Bei,” he acknowledged, quieter. “My parents separated. My mother was free of me, she-“ He laughed a bit. “She said so to my face, great thing to tell a kid, you know? That I was my dad’s problem now. He married and they had kids, and I loved them, I really did, but- you know. When something becomes your unwanted problem, you get rid of it sooner or later.”

“Why,” Shen Qingqiu demanded, so genuinely and fiercely upset, and Shang Qinghua really just-

“My parents were prestigious and powerful and dignified,” he huffed. “And I just- didn’t want the kind of life they did. I wanted to create things, my own things. And I was- something unacceptable, something I should have kept quiet, if I had the sense to. And I didn’t.” He rubbed at the hidden scars on his wrist, one of many bite marks that hadn’t healed fully. “So I had to make my own way. I never saw any of them again.”

… How depressing, actually. His parents would be notified of his death, and they wouldn’t bother with a funeral or even burning some paper. It would only be good fucking riddance from them. His siblings probably didn’t even remember him by then. He was just the weirdo who told them long, bad stories and sang horribly off-key songs while helping them get ready for the day.

“But- that was a long time ago,” he huffed, shaking it away. “It’s fine, Shidi, it’s been ages. I had parents here, too,” he began, and paused. “… Who also ended up throwing me out, but- that one was definitely my fault. They thought I was possessed.” They weren’t wrong, either? Go figure.

“… Shixiong.”

“Yeah?”

“Stop… trying to make it better. It’s not.”

“Oh.” Shang Qinghua cleared his throat. “Then- back to pretending it never happened?”

“If Shixiong really wants that,” Shen Qingqiu answered. “… But he’s also- allowed to ask for hugs if he wants.” Shang Qinghua blinked.

“H-He is?” he managed, stupefied.

“Mm.” Shen Qingqiu gave a little shrug as if it wasn’t the biggest deal ever. “It’s fine if it’s Shixiong.” Shang Qinghua quivered in brief, overwhelming excitement, then scooted closer and closer. Shen Qingqiu huffed loudly and rolled his eyes, but opened his arms.

Shang Qinghua hugged him immediately.

“… I will do my absolute best to not abuse this privilege,” he managed. Shen Qingqiu patted him gently.

“I know, Shixiong.” Shang Qinghua could feel the snakes squirm a bit, then a head poked out to tickle his ear. He giggled, burying his face in Shen Qingqiu’s shoulder. “They’d be drowning in tears of blood if they actually knew what they were doing,” the man then muttered darkly.

“Awww, Shidi,” Shang Qinghua gushed, unable to help a squeeze. “You say the sweetest things.”

Sure, maybe he had things like abandonment issues and bullshit insecurity and all that, and he’d been projecting the fuck out of throwing his protagonist into an endless hellscape where he had to either survive or let the world eat him alive. And yeah, living for all those years as a literal slave of fate had been slightly traumatizing.

But what he had now, after making choices for himself, reaching out where he could- this, he decided, was more than worth keeping.

-

Luo Binghe was dreaming. It was the only possible explanation for anything, let alone everything.

“Soft and fluffy, soft and fluffy~”

“Zhangmen-shixiong, please.”

“Oh, right, is everyone here?”

“Even if they weren’t, the rest of us can only take so much. Please be a sect leader.”

“Ouch!” Luo Binghe’s hair, which had been tied into a tail that morning, only to be excessively petted by his godfather, was reluctantly released. He didn’t know why the immortal master liked his hair so much, but he wasn’t at all complaining. The cultivator then gently lifted him off his lap to hold him in the air, presenting him to the entire room of immortal cultivators, all of them dressed as if they were very important people, including Shang Qinghua. “This is Binghe!” Shang Qinghua proclaimed to the room, sounding very proud. “Luo Binghe. Shidi and I found him, and by laws of finders, I am now the keeper! Also I knew his parents,” Shang Qinghua added, returning Luo Binghe into a cuddle. “I was going through Bai-shibo’s paperwork when I caught a mention of their situation, which is what led to my, um. Sudden absence. Sorry.”

“Then that incredibly lengthy list of instructions could have been signed off as a family emergency, Shixiong?” a sharp-eyed woman concluded, quirking one elegant eyebrow.

“Ahahaha. I wasn’t- thinking very straight. But look!! A Binghe!!!”

“Yes, Zhangmen-shixiong. We all see you harassing the poor child.”

“Wow, rude!!” Shang Qinghua laughed anyway, so it seemed to be friendly? Luo Binghe wasn’t sure where to look or if he was allowed, but after some peeking found Shen Qingqiu. Shen Qingqiu’s lips turned up with that same gentle look, and Luo Binghe couldn’t help a shy smile.

“Shen- Shen Qingqiu!!” another cultivator then spluttered, nearly jumping out of his chair.

“You only requested to not see,” Shen Qingqiu drawled back.

“Crawling over my foot is also forbidden, damn it!!”

“Ah, Zhang-shixiong, remember that the more you’re afraid of the snakes, the funnier that Shen-shidi finds it.”

“As funny as it would be to harass Zhang-shixiong in the middle of a meeting, Qingyu-shimei, that one was an accident.”

“Ah… Wait, then why is your snake-?” Luo Binghe squealed in delight when a snake head popped up in front of him, eyes going big and shiny. He immediately reached out for a cuddle, and Hua accepted happily.

“… H-Hey, Shang-shixiong? Is it- really okay that Luo Binghe plays with the mythical predator?”

“What? Why not?”

“Well, I don’t know, it’s just that the boy is prey-sized and the snake breathes fire.”

“It has been so many years since the spicy noodles ate anything they weren’t supposed to eat. Isn’t that right, Shidi?”

“Hardly worth mentioning how long ago it was.”

“Exactly!”

“It was last week.”

“Wha- Shidi!!”

After a lot of talking about things that completely went over Luo Binghe’s head, that’s how very important they were, Shang Qinghua cuddled both him and Hua, then stood away from the fancy table to instead chat with various masters. Luo Binghe blushed when many of them were made to agree that he was too adorable to withstand. Mu Qingfang, the healer that had been checking on him so much, smiled and petted him as well.

“Yes, alright, fine, his eyes are big and sparkly and he looks like a cuddly little doll,” the sharp-eyed woman huffed. “Are you satisfied now, Shixiong?”

“Very,” Shang Qinghua answered, smug. He also rubbed between Hua’s curved horns, and Luo Binghe mimicked him. Hua pushed against his hand, apparently pleased. “Good, good, Binghe,” Shang Qinghua praised, looking down. “Observe and act accordingly. Shidi will be so proud of you.”

“… Shixiong, on a more serious note,” the woman added. “I’m aware you know, as there’s nothing you don’t know, but…” She gave Luo Binghe’s head a gentle pat. “How well did you know his parents, exactly?” Shang Qinghua hummed, looking more serious himself.

“Enough to know it’s too prominent to hide long-term,” he answered.

“… It could be a problem.”

“It could. But… it could also be a good opportunity.” Shang Qinghua’s mouth turned in a faint smirk. “I’ve had a different opportunity brewing for a long time. A very, very dangerous one. I was hoping to be a bit- settled, but things changed recently.”

“How dangerous, exactly?”

“The Lord of the North.” The woman went still. Other cultivators turned to stare similarly.

“… That- Z-Zhangmen-shixiong?” Mu Qingfang attempted, voice cracking. “What- did I just hear? Lord of the North? The Lord of the North, Mobei Jun? You know him?” Luo Binghe concluded this lord was a very important person, if even immortal masters looked so shocked about him.

“It’s actually a funny story, if I ever told the embarrassing parts,” Shang Qinghua laughed. “But- yes. I was barely head disciple at the time, and ended up saving a kid’s life. That kid’s grown up quite a bit since.” His godfather shifted in place, looking more serious. “I did want to wait longer than my first month to say this, I know all of my shidimei have been busy and hard at work,” he added. “But this is what I first talked about with Bai-shibo when he asked me about this position. Not specifically of Mobei Jun, but how I make distinctions between good and evil, righteous and monsters. I met a boy abandoned by a cruel uncle to a crueler fate, and we’ve retained a friendship over the years. I’ve asked him before about that friendship being more open and peace being more than tangible. I wanted to wait, but, well-“ He sighed a bit. “I think it’s a bit obvious why it shouldn’t wait.”

“… Righteous cultivators hate demons, Shang Qinghua,” another cultivator said, quiet.

“Do you?” Shang Qinghua asked calmly. “Or does Qingshu-shidi only believe what he was told?”

“… I’ve- seen otherwise,” another man finally said, sullen. “From what I’ve- been told.”

“Shizun- used to keep treatment stocks in case of mixed heritage,” Mu Qingfang blurted out.

“If you can really make peace, Shixiong, that- are you sure, though?”

“Very sure. Enough peace to handle even the likes of Huan Hua.”

“Wait,” someone in the back complained. “Was Jing Yan Peak the only peak who actually hated demons in this whole sect?”

“Oh, right, those secret array projects. Sorry, Chang-shidi, you’re going to need to throw those out.”

“How did you-? No, you know what? Forget I asked. It’s fine, they were- uncomfortable, anyway.”

“… Shixiong, you- absolutely knew about all those times where all of us did something like this and just didn’t say anything, didn’t you?”

“Who can say~”

Luo Binghe didn’t understand everything about this strange dream, which might possibly be a whole new life, but he knew the most important parts.

Shang Qinghua, who was strong and kind and smiled like the sun at him, who brushed out his hair and cuddled him and called him precious and so loveable and I’m actually going to get diabetes and I didn’t even think that existed here- was an important person. No, more than that, he was an important person to important people, when he wasn’t wandering around a city and picking up pitiful, filthy and unwanted children. He usually dressed in soft browns and pale yellow that matched his honey-like eyes, with simple, but elegant designs that trailed down the sides, and wore his hair with a guan that was equally simple but glittered in sunlight.

He was Sect Leader Shang, on this massive mountain expanse with many lords who answered to him, with hundreds of cultivation disciples that watched him with shining eyes. He was everything, everything that Luo Binghe shouldn’t be near, shouldn’t be remotely related to, because everyone hated Luo Binghe, and yet-

Yet Shang Qinghua didn’t. He promised he didn’t, several times- as if he somehow knew that Luo Binghe kept wondering. He gave Luo Binghe everything he wanted and needed, and seemed to somehow be at his happiest when Luo Binghe was happy. Luo Binghe found himself in the position of wanting to be happy for someone’s happiness. It was incredible.

And now this incredible sect leader, this immortal cultivator, this man built like the sun and heavens, was showing Luo Binghe to all these important lords and saying he was important, he was Sect Leader Shang’s family, and he was staying.

He was staying.

Shen Qingqiu, too, wasn’t just the pretty cultivator who looked at Shang Qinghua with that gentle and loving way. He was also a lord, though not sect leader. Shang Qinghua said that his peak was that for monsters and beasts of all kinds, and that Shen Qingqiu was a great master of making friends with them. Even the beautiful and snuggly Hua was supposed to be very scary to other people, but to Shen Qingqiu, she and her siblings were family.

Shang Qinghua then laughed and said his own peak was boring in comparison, he did paperwork, to which Shen Qingqiu gave him a dry look and reminded him that he was the one who gave everyone food, houses, clothes, supplies.

Luo Binghe understood it that as the sect leader, Shang Qinghua was also the one who took care of all his lords and hundreds of disciples. All at once. He couldn’t even imagine trying to run a household so large. Taking care of his one little self had been so hard since Mother died, but Shang Qinghua made it seem so easy. He probably did so with the same loving care that he gave Luo Binghe.

Of course everyone loved him. Who didn’t love the sun and its warmth?

After Mu Qingfang praised him for eating well and taking enough naps, Shang Qinghua picked him up and took him to another part of the mountain range. There, Luo Binghe had been given a room of his very own- in Shang Qinghua’s own house! Like a family!! He was surprised to learn that Shen Qingqiu didn’t also live there, but apparently a lord had to live on his own territory. Luo Binghe was given many sets of clothes, toys, inksticks and a stone to learn to write, books with beautiful pictures in them and-

And a little shrine set in the larger part of the house, with two tablets and prepared incense. Shang Qinghua taught him how to pray and respect the two tablets, whose names he read out. One was his mother, the beautiful, worn woman who pulled him out of the river and loved him when no one else would.

The other was for Su Xiyan, who killed herself with poison so that Luo Binghe could live, and set him in the river so that he wouldn’t be found by anyone who was searching for her.

There wasn’t a tablet for his father. Shang Qinghua said he was alive, but dangerous.

After his introduction to the peak lords, Luo Binghe returned to that cozy room that was for him and his family, and he realized that Shang Qinghua prayed to the tablets, too. He didn’t think Shang Qinghua had known Yan Huan personally, but he said he knew Su Xiyan. Did he miss her?

He always looked sad when he prayed.

One such time was interrupted by a knock on the door. Shang Qinghua looked up, curious, then gave Luo Binghe a gentle pat before standing. Luo Binghe peeked to watch him open the door to one of the peak lords. He was especially tall, dressed in black and white robes, and Luo Binghe remembered him more because he tended to stand away from the other peak lords, and they weren’t very comfortable around him.

“Oh, Yue-shidi,” Shang Qinghua greeted. “Is everything alright?”

“Apologies for the surprise visit, Shixiong,” the master replied politely. He had a face that was hard to read, as he didn’t seem to express himself very often. A bit like Shen Qingqiu, but Shen Qingqiu had a sharp gaze that seemed a bit angry, yet it always softened up around Shang Qinghua. This man looked past Shang Qinghua to Luo Binghe, and his smile was as blank as his eyes.

… It was a little weird.

“I know it’s a bit early for tea, but if Shixiong has time?” the cultivator asked, looking to Shang Qinghua instead.

“I have a little time, that’s fine,” Shang Qinghua agreed easily, letting him inside. “Mandatory tea doesn’t mean there can’t be other tea between.” Luo Binghe stood up to watch Shang Qinghua go to the kitchen, then quickly pattered after him. He was rewarded with yet another affectionate pat on the head, and also a bag of melon seeds to help carry. He dutifully carried it to the table, where the cultivator was waiting. The man stared down at him with a blank expression. Luo Binghe stared back, uncertain.

Shang Qinghua returned soon with tea, and the cultivator quickly put his smile back on. He politely accepted the tea he was given. Shang Qinghua pulled out a chair for Luo Binghe, picking him up and setting him on the cushion he’d bought so Luo Binghe could sit taller. He was also given tea, and tried to sip at it with even a fraction of the elegance Shang Qinghua had. Shang Qinghua smiled at him anyway for trying, eyes bright.

“So cute,” he whispered loudly. “… Oh! Binghe, do you remember Yue Qingyuan? He’s the peak lord of Qiong Ding Peak,” he explained. “They manage our training standards and public affairs.” It sounded as important as any other important person that Shang Qinghua took care of. “Yue-shidi, we’ll have to drop in on a training session sometime so Binghe can be properly impressed!” Shang Qinghua chattered.

“Anytime that Shixiong pleases,” Yue Qingyuan answered, and his smile actually looked real for a moment. It disappeared quickly. “But- apologies, this is just…” He turned his gaze down to his tea, and even the blank smile disappeared. “… something I could not get out of my head. It is…” He fell quiet again, as if not sure how to say the right words. Shang Qinghua tilted his head slightly.

“… Is it about Bai-shibo?” he asked, quieter. Yue Qingyuan nodded silently. “About our different answers to his question?” Shang Qinghua added. Yue Qingyuan’s head snapped up, eyes wide.

“How- ah.” He smiled, but this one was more of a grimace. “Forgive me. It’s silly to ask.”

“Not really,” Shang Qinghua replied. “But to be fair, Yue-shidi was saying what he thought needed to be said. I was really trying to scare him away with honesty.” He collected some melon seeds for himself. “Do you want to tell me what you really think now, Shidi?” he added. “It might make you feel better.”

“… Shixiong is already well-aware that this one hates humans much more than he’s ever had cause to hate demons,” Yue Qingyuan answered, quiet.

“I know,” Shang Qinghua agreed. “But- sometimes a performative hate can lead to the real thing, even without a reason. You hear something day in and day out, and you can’t help but think there must be truth to it. It’s hard, a lot harder than most people think. Shidi has seen the worst of people and knows the truth about their capabilities.” He offered some seeds. Yue Qingyuan accepted, his shoulders falling somewhat. He sighed softly.

“… I worry,” he admitted.

“You’re allowed to worry,” Shang Qinghua said. “I’d prefer you worry.” That drew up another smile, more gentle and sad than anything before. “There’s another angle to my friendship with Mobei Jun, you know,” Shang Qinghua added. “I saved his life, but it wasn’t from monsters. Huan Hua Palace.” Yue Qingyuan straightened at once.

“Huan Hua?” he echoed sharply.

“He’d already been imprisoned in their Water Dungeon for a few weeks beforehand,” Shang Qinghua agreed, grim. “They let him out for a fox hunt.” Yue Qingyuan’s expression went dark, scary dark. Luo Binghe had seen that kind of anger before, and never in a good way.

“… Then Shixiong is assured of where Lao Gongzhu will stand, but also Mobei Jun,” the cultivator concluded.

“I am.” Shang Qinghua popped in a seed to chew on. Yue Qingyuan considered him, then sipped at his tea carefully. He exhaled.

“… If I had been rejected as a disciple of this sect, my second plan was to go to the Borderlands,” he said. “I was- prepared for whatever that took.”

“An interesting idea, I admit,” Shang Qinghua mused. “I don’t know if it would work, demons have their own ideas about humans. Even with sowers outlawed and most of the realm under various factions, opinions can vary strongly. But- and I mean this in a good way- I don’t doubt you would have found success as a disciple if given a chance there instead.” His smile was kind and warm. “But- I have a good feeling about this, even if it’s new territory for me,” he added. “It’s not a kind world, but there’s potential for better. The mountain is strong, and so are we. The likes of Huan Hua can’t hold a candle to that.” His kind smile went crooked, a piercing light behind his honey eyes. “And if they tried, well. I know the likes of their games a little too well.”

“… Thank you, Shang-shixiong.” Yue Qingyuan’s smile was less sad than before, and didn’t look so painful. He actually seemed happy. “Please- let me know what I can do to help.”

“Of course. For now, though, we’ll stay on the same track as before. I need to settle things with Mobei Jun, he has an entire kingdom to run. And of course I have a little Binghe now!” Shang Qinghua brightened, then reached out and patted Luo Binghe again. Luo Binghe smiled shyly in his tea. “He still needs to take it easy for his health, but we’re starting on some lessons already.”

“I don’t know how Shixiong finds time for everything he does.”

“Ahahaha, that- Y-You know, neither do I.”

After a bit more tea, Yue Qingyuan was sent off. He seemed a little happier than before, at least. Luo Binghe watched him, then looked to Shang Qinghua.

“… What’s a foxhunt?” he asked quietly. Shang Qinghua blinked in surprise, then grimaced.

“How normal hunters hunt foxes is by using a group to wear down the fox they’re hunting, because it’s hard to catch,” he explained, closing the door. “There’s also usually hunting dogs. But- for cultivators, the term is used for a night hunt that’s turned into a game for the hunters. A very, very bad game. When cultivators fight, it’s to protect people, to settle lost souls, to defeat what can’t be soothed peacefully.” Shang Qinghua looked that much more grim. “Foxhunts aren’t meant to end, it’s hurting the prey just enough to make them run away, then giving them a little space to keep going. Hurting them more, chasing them out of hiding places, forcing them to run until their bodies give out. It’s only about causing pain and enjoying it.” Luo Binghe knew very well about people who caused pain to enjoy it. He understood the dark anger on Yue Qingyuan’s face, and nodded quietly.

“Is Yue Qingyuan- sad?” he wondered, following Shang Qinghua to help clean up.

“A lot of times,” Shang Qinghua agreed absently, handing him little cups to carry back. “People were really cruel to him when he was Binghe’s age, and he made some mistakes with his own family. It’s a kind of sad that doesn’t fully go away.” Luo Binghe had never heard of immortal cultivators being hated children, too. Weren’t they born with the heavens smiling on them, as people always said? “He’s trying really hard to be better, though,” Shang Qinghua added positively. “He’s not at all a bad person, he just stumbles. Who doesn’t stumble?”

Luo Binghe knew that Shang Qinghua was kind and caring, but he liked the moments when he learned it all over again. He liked to think that even if he made a mistake, Shang Qinghua wouldn’t stop caring about him, wouldn’t stop reaching out with a smile.

It was all an impossible dream, but maybe, maybe he’d never have to wake up.

“Ah, well, but that was weirdly-timed with the rest of my evening plans,” Shang Qinghua muttered as they left the kitchen. “Binghe, there’s another guest coming over, Mobei Jun. He’ll just make a portal and appear, but don’t be scared, okay? He’s my friend.” Luo Binghe nodded obediently. He was aware that Shang Qinghua made friends with very important people who did neat things.

Rather than tea, Shang Qinghua set up something in cold cups and little treats he set on the table. He was just finishing up when a black hole appeared in the wall, yet on the other side wasn’t the outside that Luo Binghe knew, it was something cold.

And the one who stepped through that hole wasn’t human. Luo Binghe suddenly realized why so many powerful cultivators were so surprised to hear Mobei Jun’s name.

Mobei Jun was massive and terrifying, pale skin with a blue tint, cold eyes that looked unspeakably scary. The hand that closed the portal behind him was tipped with claws, and his ears were pointed. He was a demon, and an important demon based on his swirling, elaborate cape and very fancy robes.

The important demon did a doubletake at Luo Binghe.

“… You reproduced,” he stated, voice gruff and growly.

“What,” Shang Qinghua said. “Mobei, what?? Do you actually think we look that much alike??” Mobei Jun stared at Luo Binghe long enough for him to feel chilly, then stared at Shang Qinghua.

“Why else do you have a tiny one in your house?” he grumbled.

“I mean, he’s mine now, but that doesn’t mean I’m the one who produced him.”

“Hmmm.”

“Ah, don’t sulk, it’s fine! This is Luo Binghe, he’s very tiny right now and fragile, but he’s a great kid. Binghe, this is Mobei Jun, Lord of the North.”

“Not sulking,” Mobei Jun muttered, sulky. He peered at Luo Binghe with what seemed like very mean eyes, then folded his arms. “… This lord should have been informed so he could bring appropriate presents for a tiny one,” he growled.

“He’ll love you even if you’re late on the welcoming gifts, Mobei,” Shang Qinghua replied, laughter in his voice. “It was just this week, you’re not late to know. Besides, I’m hoping we’ll be seeing each other a lot more after this.” He held out one of the cups, grinning in cheerful invitation. “Guess which righteous sect leader just told his sect he wanted to forge an alliance with the Northern Kingdom?” he asked happily.

“… We are already in alliance, Qinghua.”

“Well, yeah, but publicly. Officially.”

“… Mm.” Mobei Jun accepted his cup. His gaze hardly softened at all, but it did soften, and maybe he wasn’t so mean after all. “Qinghua keeps his word, as always,” he added, quieter.

“Qinghua tries,” Shang Qinghua laughed. He handed Luo Binghe a cup of something different. “Sorry, Bing-pup, but you’re a little too young for the spirits. Have some juice instead. And come on, Mobei, come sit down. We can make this a social visit, too~”

Luo Binghe did not always understand what Shang Qinghua was doing or what he was talking about. But the important parts, he understood. He loved Luo Binghe, intended to always love him, and also loved the people he took care of. He reached out to humans who made mistakes and demons who he was supposed to hate as monsters, softened their hearts, and gave them treats and happiness in turn.

This was either a dream, or Luo Binghe was among the heavens themselves.

-

If there was anything to be said about handling demons instead of humans, they got shit done fast.

This was also clearly to the shock of the humans in question, being Cang Qiong Mountain. They lined up behind Shang Qinghua as Mobei Jun and his own retinue finished stepping outside of the portals he’d conjured. For a moment, a royal demon and his court stood in the midst of An Ding Peak, boldly open an unchallenged. Righteous cultivators stood in front of him and didn’t draw their swords.

Shang Qinghua barely withheld a shit-eating grin as he stepped forward, and Mobei Jun did the same. Mobei Jun smirked, obviously sensing his humor, but met his arm clasp halfway.

“Sect leader,” he greeted, gruff.

“Junshang,” Shang Qinghua returned, cheerful. And, because they were already taking concessions for Mobei Jun, being that he asked the ice demon to come to An Ding Peak on a warm spring evening, he acquiesced to some of Mobei Jun’s own needs as well. To remind the court why fucking with this human was a very bad idea.

Demonic ice qi clawed at his arm with howling winds from the explosion of energy, and Shang Qinghua’s own spiritual energy both seared through the offended arm and emboldened his strength that much more. He couldn’t help a wide grin as they struggled in locked greeting for a moment before Mobei Jun snarled viciously, then thrust his other hand forward claws-first. Shang Qinghua met it in a block, spun around, and lifted the demon lord over his head and slammed him on his back. A loud crack echoed through the peak.

“… Ack,” Shang Qinghua realized, letting go to pick at his cheek. “Splinters. What’d I say about the face?” he whined, and Mobei Jun snorted loudly, picking himself up.

“Qinghua has not repeated himself of late, perhaps it was forgotten.”

“As if!” Shang Qinghua couldn’t help a laugh anyway. He shook off the ice still encasing his arm, grinning all the brighter. “It’s been a while,” he admitted, flicking away the icy shrapnel. “We’ll do it properly next time.” Mobei Jun’s eyes brightened.

“Mm. Good.”

“Anyway, anyway,” Shang Qinghua chattered, waving at the court members who were appropriately cowed. One of them outright flinched. Good! “Here, Mobei, come meet everyone properly this time. Any additional fights will be approved later,” he added significantly, and Liu Qingge’s mouth closed into a sulk. Mobei Jun followed him to the line of staring peak lords. “Mobei Jun, Cang Qiong Mountain,” Shang Qinghua introduced, absurdly pleased to be here. “Shidimei, the Lord of the North. And his court,” he added, glancing back. “I’ve met them before. Haven’t we~?” The court was very uncomfortable and giving off very submissive body language at once.

“Qingqiu,” Mobei Jun greeted, curt.

“Mobei,” Shen Qingqiu returned.

“… No, I’m not surprised,” Qi Qingqi concluded out loud. “About Shen Qingqiu, I mean. Zhangmen-shixiong, you said you knew Mobei Jun, but you’ve spent time in his court?”

“Oh, a bit.”

“Qinghua assisted this one against the political machinations of a treacherous backstabber and murderer, and spent many years bringing this lord to his throne,” Mobei Jun elaborated flatly. “Qingqiu also assisted with his Flame Fangs. Do not understate the influence of your sect leader among the Northern Realm.”

“… You know, a bit,” Shang Qinghua repeated. “In my defense, that was a really shitty uncle.”

“This lord agrees to the forms of alliance that Qinghua has put forward years ago, and will now speak openly of it,” Mobei Jun continued briskly. “Cang Qiong Mountain will be our allies and Qinghua considered equal to this lord as a diplomat, his peak lords equal to generals. Disciples will be guarded if so necessary, and territory established. Wars will be negotiated on individual basis. If a subordinate or lesser noble of this lord’s territory acts out, this one will respond with prejudice. If a subordinate of Qinghua acts out, Qinghua will be asked to handle such matters.” He looked to Shang Qinghua. “I have said all of the appropriate matters,” he concluded. “Now where is the tiny one.”

“There’s usually tea before we open up to negotiation, and that’s usually a two-way conversation, you know.”

“We already discussed this and I don’t like tea. I brought gifts for the tiny one.”

“Aiya, aiya, fine! Only because I want to see Binghe, too~ Be right back!!” Shang Qinghua quickly bolted for where Luo Binghe was on standby.

“… Flame Fangs, Mobei Jun?” Wei Qingwei asked. “Shen-shidi’s snakes, you mean?”

“Very few snake demons are powerful enough to tame and command such beasts,” Mobei Jun agreed shortly. “And none are so mad as to carry them around in their clothes.” He looked. “Qingqiu has appropriate merits for one associated with Qinghua.”

“… I don’t suppose Shen-shidi also told you about the xiezhi he takes care of, did he?”

“He has a what.”

“We cohabitate, Mobei.”

“Back with bun!!” Shang Qinghua cheered, holding up his adorable little prize for all to see. Luo Binghe blushed under the attention. “Binghe, look! Mobei absolutely had to see you again~”

“Qinghua there is a xiezhi on your mountain,” Mobei Jun barked, looming over Shang Qinghua with intensity. Shang Qinghua blinked.

“Oh, Baobao? Yeah, he’s been here a while. Want to meet him?” he offered. He hadn’t seen Mobei Jun look so excited in a while. Mobei Jun doubled his intensity. “Shidi?” Shang Qinghua wondered. Shen Qingqiu shrugged, then sent out an absent flare of fiery qi that Mobei Jun braced against. Shang Qinghua set Luo Binghe down, and Luo Binghe immediately clung to his leg. Ahh, so cute.

“Is this… fine, Shixiong?” Zhang Qingshu put forward, terse. Shang Qinghua blinked back.

“Why wouldn’t it be fine?” he wondered. “Baobao isn’t confined to Yan Xie Peak. Actually, he used to wander around a lot back when he first followed Jing-shishu home-“

Baobao, ever a sucker for an entrance, glided out of the sky and landed with style. Shang Qinghua could only shake his head to himself as Luo Binghe gasped loudly, eyes wide. Baobao grunted as he went to Shen Qingqiu immediately, nuzzling at the side of his head.

“Alright, that- stop that, show some dignity,” Shen Qingqiu huffed, pushing away his nose. “Go to Xiao Shang now.”

“Hey, wait-!!” Shang Qinghua was immediately set upon by a massive single-horned creature, and could only splutter as he was given the cuddles of a lifetime. “Baobao!!” he wailed. “Baobao I’m a sect leader you can’t keep doing this?!”

It took- effort to wrestle the xiezhi off. Shang Qinghua would probably be forever bullied by him, no matter what.

“Baobao,” he huffed, unable to help rubbing his nose. “Your priorities are all over the place! Look at this poor Binghe!!” He picked up the kid still clinging to his leg. “Look at what you completely missed in your cuddle quest! A Binghe!!” Baobao gave a happy trill in the back of his throat, then licked Luo Binghe from chin to hairline. Shang Qinghua laughed, pulling him away. “Ah-! Baobao, hey!” he exclaimed, trying to hold away the poor kid. “Baobao, show some respect to the Binghe! Nooo, Baobao-!!”

“… Qingqiu,” Mobei Jun said, with severity. “How many years has Qinghua had the favor of a xiezhi and did not mention it?”

“Many years, obviously,” Shen Qingqiu answered, arms folded. “How are you surprised? You knew he was like this.”

“… Um, Shen-shidi?” Shui Qingyu put forward. “When- When were the rest of us going to know that you had a xiezhi?”

“He was my shizun’s.”

“Your shizun had a qilin.”

“No, she just liked to wear qilin imagery. Baobao’s always been a xiezhi.”

“… What’s the difference between a qilin and a xiezhi?” Kang Qingxiu muttered aside. “Looks the same, doesn’t it?”

Shang Qinghua eventually settled Baobao, though Luo Binghe had half of his face washed off by such aggressive licking. He giggled quietly in Shang Qinghua’s shoulder about it while Baobao finally went to meet the actual guest. Baobao grunted at Mobei Jun, who bowed.

“Esteemed xiezhi,” he greeted severely.

Baobao licked his long, elegant hair into a cowlick. Mobei Jun’s court gasped in awe.

“… This lord is honored,” Mobei Jun answered.

“Ah- Careful, Mobei, he might chew your hair a little,” Shang Qinghua added.

“Mm.”

“Baobao, let my friend keep his hair intact, ah? Here, Mobei, he likes his nose being pet. Right here is the best spot. Binghe, you can help pet Baobao, too.”

Before leaving, Mobei Jun not only fixed the cowlick, but also unloaded a gilded chest of toys and some hairpieces. Luo Binghe was appropriately awed and impressed, much to Mobei Jun’s obvious smugness.

The whole thing actually went- well? Shang Qinghua had thought it would go well, but even he didn’t expect the levels of well they achieved?? Actually, all of the peak lords expressed some measure of friendliness towards Mobei Jun even after he left, though Shang Qinghua had to repeatedly explain that contextual violence in the demon realm was a thing. To be fair, it was also a thing for cultivators, it was just usually less brawling and more elegant sword forms. Brawling was much more efficient for gaining demon respect, sword forms were efficient for killing.

Mobei Jun also got some serious points in his own palace, because while Shang Qinghua was aware that many demons honored similar divine beasts that cultivators did, he was a little numbed to the shock and awe of Baobao. He completely forgot about the part where other people weren’t, he was actually a super rare myth and it was a really big deal, and Baobao’s habit of ‘blessing’ people he liked had made a lot of Mobei Jun supporters very, very happy.

The fact that Baobao lived with the human sect that Mobei Jun was allying them with? Full score.

Go figure!

“Shixiong.” Shang Qinghua looked quickly from the dissipating portals. The other peak lords were talking among themselves, and the atmosphere was- good. Even little Luo Binghe could obviously tell that things were going right, giggling while he was gently harassed by Baobao.

Shen Qingqiu’s green eyes were soft, golden sunset flecking them like flames, the same shades of gold as the carp ascending his sea-green robes. Shang Qinghua suddenly felt sort of- breathless? Huh.

He thought about a golden autumn from a lifetime ago, and didn’t know how to look away.

“… Do you- like it?” he asked, stupid and incoherent. Shen Qingqiu smiled.

“I always will, Shixiong,” he answered. “Do you?” Did he like- what? The meeting? What he’d done with the sect, with this world?

… Yeah, he thought he liked it. Actually, maybe he wouldn’t trade this for anything.

“I like it,” he managed, and couldn’t help a sheepish smile. “Maybe… too much?”

“Or maybe not enough,” Shen Qingqiu murmured. Hmm, that was vague and mysterious and definitely not subtext for what he hoped it was. Maybe?

… Well, he thought he was willing to find out where things went no matter what.

It was a great start, of course, but Shang Qinghua was aware there would be- bumps in the road. He was just barely a sect leader, and now he had until the Immortal Alliance Conference next year to figure out everything. He had a sect to run, a world to shock, a protagonist to raise.

He thought about where he’d started all those years ago, waking up from a weird dream and feeling like just one more papercut could kill him. Now, the challenge ahead felt almost- exciting. Shen Qingqiu’s unbreaking gaze was even more so.

He’d made this world with potential, once. Now he wanted to see how far that would go.