Chapter Text
A war struck the cultivation realm; the new emperor of the demon realm had gone to Cang Qiong Peak. The sect leader was away on business when the demons had begun attacking and invading, killing every disciple and disciple they could. With the sect leader and Bai Zhan peak lord not here, only a scholarly peak lord was left with the other martial siblings of his to defend for several months to wait the arrival of the Xuan Su sword. But in the end, Shen Qingqiu was defeated by the emperor, his once disciple, Luo Binghe.
Shen Qingqiu’s eyes widened, the familiar crimson eyes curved in some sort of sick amusement at the reaction. With a smirk, Xin Mo struck the middle of the peak lord’s chest, straight to the spiritual core. Crows cawed when the blood dripped from the corners of his mouth, coughing up blood. The blade immediately retracted by its wielder who said, “first meet and also... farewell.” The peak lord’s body was caught before pushed down to the battlefield’s ground, the bleeding already spreading red on his white and green robes.
Luo Binghe had left soon after, leaving a lone Shen Qingqiu to stare at the sky, unable to accept he’d be killed by his long-since blackened disciple. After the death of Cang Qiong, the fire filled the sky for ten days, the Qing Jing peak lord had disappeared. The sun raged as the battle continued for days before Cang Qiong surrendered and the demons had gone back. The bodies lay scattered, demons, disciples and elders, all in piles ready to be burnt.
-
The light gleamed, the faint yellow hitting the fair skin of Xie Qingyu, the red wedding robes with embroidered golden outlines of clouds folded at the wide sleeves as he clasped his hands in his lap. The complicated look on his face was undeniable waiting for his doom. This was not the real Xie Qingyu, in fact, this was the Qing Jing peak lord in disguise, Shen Qingqiu. His long inky black hair pulled on the bedsheet where he sat at the edge, waiting for his new ‘husband.’ The bangs framed his feminine, soft face, his thin eyebrows pinched together with contemplation. His green eyes were sharp but still soft, his face less like the proud peak lord he once was, instead he looked like a male boytoy.
The door opened, in came an old female servant with another male servant came in, the wrinkly hands holding folded silk while the youthful ones holding tray with a bowl of soup with black circular balls and clear broth.
“His majesty has gifted you the ‘double dragon playing with beads’ embroidered on silk by the imperial embroider.”
The old lady said with a motherly smile on her face. The silk in her hands was exceptional in quality, the gold shining with the white background showing the dragons on it.
The youth beside her placed the tray on the bedside, his eyes lowered as he stood back and took the bowl, holding it out for Xie Qingyu. “This is a nourishing soup for the body, please drink it.”
Just then, another figure lunged inside, slapping the bowl out of the youth’s hands. The old servant gasped lightly, the youth pursed his lips into a thin line. The man stood up, trembling. His tousled unruly hair covered his left eye, some of his bangs covered a corner of his right.
“This is a soup with human eyeballs,” he began, pointing at the spilling balls. “All the eyes of assassins who failed the assassination, so many eyes...”
“Human skin!”
He then took the silk robes from the aged hands, his fingers dug deep into the material, slight rips appearing. “The clothes were made from human skin, pulled from the assassin’s body.”
His face lowered, a manic smile appearing on his face. “It’s my turn next, then you! Hahaha”
Xie Qingyu’s eyes lowered at the lunatic, his face undeterred by anything that was occurring at the moment.
“Eyeballs good! Lots of eyeballs! What are you doing stupidly? Who can afford the good deeds of the emperor?”
The lunatic continued on, picking one of the balls with widened eyes. The green eyes watched, judging the man before gazing back to his hands.
“Pull this madman out!”
The old lady cried to the youth who did exactly that. He grabbed and then pulled the arms of the lunatic with great difficulty out of the door.
“Don’t look into his eyes! He will see through everything about you!”
The lunatic called once more before there was silence. The old lady had gone too, taking the bowl from the floor, shutting the door behind her. Now it was silence enveloping the disguised peak lord.
With a sigh, he stood up, lighting incense with the flames of silver candelabras on the dressing table. His eyelashes lowered, remembering the process of the full model body shape change that Mu Qingfang had done on him. Now looking through the mirror, he could not see himself anymore. He looked at his soft hands; these two hands once held a long sword and taught and disciplined many disciples.
I have experienced even the most terrible things... what else can...
The wind blew wild outside, hitting the windows open. The strong gust immediately turned out all the lights, blowing Xie Qingyu’s hair in the direction of its trajectory. The wedding robes billowed with distress while he thought of those warnings.
What else can shake my heart?
The wind blew crazier each minute till a figure clad in black robes dashed into the room, standing in front of Xie Qingyu. He grabbed the jaw of the latter, pulling his gaze up into the crimson eyes that had defeated him once.
He came! How did he get in? How did I not feel his movements!?
His black hair flowed past his shoulders in silken waves, catching the faintest glimmers of light like ink rippling in water. Every strand moved with an almost sentient grace, as if the air itself bent to his will. Red eyes, deep and unreadable, pierced through darkness like twin embers — eyes that had seen too much, felt too deeply, and still refused to close.
At the center of his forehead, a crimson mark burned faintly, pulsing with dormant power, a reminder of the bloodline that he had been shunned for. The zuiyan that gave Shen Qingqiu an immediate urge to shove him away. His robes, dark with golden accents, hung flawlessly over his tall, lean frame, restrained for too long now set free, much like the man himself. Around his neck, a thin red cord lay nestled against pale skin.
A smirk present on his hauntingly beautiful face.
“What a beautiful man.”
He mused, eyes trailing with a predatory glint at the man who he would have never known was the peak lord. Xie Qingyu looked soft and submissive but inside his mind was already making ideas.
Last year, I was unguarded by him. The sword is deadly. Before dying like a whisper, he became a lingering monster in my dreams
A hand grabbed Xie Qingyu’s waist, bringing his body closer to the demon’s, their faces only a few inches away.
Little beast, I won’t lose to you again!