Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Truthfully, Shen Yuan cared very, very little about the ups and downs of the Jianghu. Oh, he's a cultivator to be sure, but all that he is, has been, and will ever be, is part of the painfully mortal world. His work lies in the poorly raked back roads between towns where those with pockets made of mouths without stomachs scream and beg and whine for more, more, more. He's a righteous cultivator by technicality, really. He likes to document the flora and fauna of their world, yes. But, in truth, the only things Shen Yuan slayed with any regularity were men. Besides, when you already knew the entire Jianghu was doomed to be razed to the ground by the might of the one true heavenly demon emperor, it's better for everyone to just stay out of the way. Hmm? Mighty sects? Immortal masters? Why, Shen Yuan doesn't know what you're talking about! You're spewing bull! He's fine over here in his dingy corner, okay!? Being an NPC was preferable, okay!?

He's long since accepted his role in this world and, he hopes, his contributions to it are good in the ways that matter. He's even built a decent rapport with a few traveling merchants. It's at one of their stalls in a minor trade village off the Luo river that things go pear shaped.

It all starts very normal. Welcome, travelling master, how have the roads been treating you? Very well, fine sir, and have they been treating you well? Oh yes! And on and on, blah blah. Shen Yuan had long memorized the perfect, humble-yet-lofty cultivator greeting script. He uses it on everyone shamelessly and it has yet to fail.

"I must say, laoshi, I'm surprised to see you this far north!" The merchant says, very rudely breaking the script. "Shouldn't you be making your way to Huan Hua palace?"

At such a blatant name-drop Shen Yuan felt at least 10 red flags trigger and start waving wildly in his brain. What a convenient merchant! "Oh? Why would I be going there?" He deploys his ultimate social tactic: flicking open a delicate fan to up his mysterious master vibes. It also comes with the bonus skill of keeping any stray panic from disturbing his face.

The merchant leans over his inventory, far too excited to dump the required exposition. "Haven't you heard? The Xiu Ya sword was accused of horrible misdeeds to his sect and the total destruction of the Qiu line! The trial is to be held in ten days time. All of the cultivators from the biggest sects to the most obscure rogues are going to Huan Hua to see it for themselves."

Ah, what a convenient parcel of information delivered so efficiently. Truly, applause all around for such unparalleled NPC work! Shen Yuan had to put his focus on that or else his brain would surely stop working. His scalp is already going numb. "Is that so?" He says. "I appreciate the information."

He floats through the rest of his transaction and only once he's back on the road and a good three li from anyone else, Shen Yuan turns and punches the nearest tree into splinters.

So. They were at the trial already, huh? And apparently the scum villain was taking the credit for burning the Qius to the ground, huh? As if he was there! As if Shen Yuan hadn't spent the past twenty five years holding onto his single consolation for a shit childhood, huh? For twenty five years he's been laughing to himself for beating the scum villain to the punch on that front and now said piece of scum has the balls to try and take all the credit, huh?! Castration wasn't enough at this point! Author! Get! On! That! Neutering!

Because Shen Yuan had been the one to burn that hell on earth to ashes. He knew damn well that Shen Qingqiu was nowhere to be seen. He would've noticed if there was some snobby, noble prick also called Shen visiting the manor because he probably would've had to serve the bastard! Forget his scalp, his whole body was going numb from the force of his anger. His blood bubbles in his veins and he has to pour all of his focus and experience into avoiding a qi deviation on the spot. He can't have one evil piece of shit Shen ruining things for the rest of them!

He sinks against the new stump he'd made and tries to breathe. It's harder than normal. His lungs burn and he catches the faintest whiff of smoke in the air. It's not really there, he knows. He's walked enough shaken children through these episodes to think through them himself. It's easier to think around the emotion rather than confront it head on.

Logically, walking into Huan Hua would be a stupid move. The kind that could throw him directly into the speeding bullet train of the actual plot, and worse, the stampeding path of one Post-Abyss Luo Binghe.

But he refuses to let his one moment of justice—true justice—be steamrolled over and credited to the scum villain. He can't let his brother's memory be tainted like that. No way. The wold steadies in front of his eyes, perhaps recognizing his resolve? Or maybe he's just getting better at avoiding qi deviations? Whatever. He's grateful all the same.

As soon as he got back to his camp he tore down and immediately changed course for Huan Hua Palace. Spite pushes his legs to go faster and his spiritual energy to flow stronger. He refuses to wait a single second longer.

And, privately, he has to wonder: if Shen Qingqiu had no hand in destroying the Qius—and Shen Yuan knows he didn't—then what else could be be innocent of? It's an uncomfortable question. So he pretends he never asked it in the first place and scuffs the tracks into mental obscurity. Ultimately, it didn't matter. Not so long as he got his justice.

He has a few loose ends to tie up—namely making sure his most recent disciple doesn't try to follow him into this giant mess at Huan Hua—but then there is not a single thing in the world that could keep him from making a straight shot to the trial grounds.

The day of the trial comes like all the others for Shen Qingqiu. Cold, mostly. The churning acid of Huan Hua's water prison generates a humid breeze. It makes him sweat around his bindings which then only chilled him further. That he hadn't yet lost any fingers or toes is nothing short of a miracle. He knows someone will be coming to get him soon. He's not sure what he's expecting, really. Spears, armour, far too many small little men posturing in their boots to feel better about themselves, sure. Luo Binghe, though...is a surprise.

The beast smiles in a facsimile of politeness. "Shizun, it's time." A small station of guards in shining golden plate stand behind him. Naturally, only half of them brandish spears, though the rest thumb the hilts of their swords rather obviously.

If he were a smaller man, Shen Qingqiu might take this time to poke and prod and wheedle at the monster slathered in gold standing proudly in the room. As it is, he has already said all he ever intends to to Luo Binghe. He rolls to his feet, ignoring the burning stretch of his skin going taught. Minor acidic wounds that would close themselves up once the cables were gone. They wouldn't be an issue for much longer, so there's no use in paying them any attention now.

He knows his robes are filthy, but he refuses to feel the grime. Standing as tall as he ever did on Qing Jing, Shen Qingqiu walks right past the open blister masquerading as a human.

"Shizun, don't you have any final words for your disciple before we face the public court?" The blister says, following too close to Shen Qingqiu's heels as always. "Anything you'd like to say in private?"

The guards scatter like insects when Shen Qingqiu brushes past them. The floor is slick, pocked unnaturally from the excavation of these caves. It makes his bare feet ache as stray pebbles dig into his oozing burns. He comes to a stop just in the main hallway from his cell and turns an expectant eyebrow to the useless mob. Blank, dumb eyes stare back at him. Do they expect him to navigate Huan Hua's maze array on his own? It seems all it takes is empty posturing to get one's way in Huan Hua. No wonder, then, Luo Binghe has made such a comfortable home here.

Luo Binghe closes the cell with some careful attention to the rock face outside of it. "So impatient," he murmurs, clearly meaning to be heard even by un-enhanced ears. "Apologies to Shizun. This lowly one is your escort."

Shen Qingqiu looks over at the gathered mass of guards.

"They're curious," Luo Binghe answers the silent question, "it's not every day such an esteemed master is brought low."

"What a shame, then, for they are only an audience to one low creature, and it has yet to wear a face anywhere approaching an esteemed master." Shen Qingqiu says, mild as fresh tofu. It seems he still has more words for the open wound after all.

Despite his own spiritual veins being under tight lock and key, he could still feel a sharp pressure stab through the air of the cave. Flexing. How crude. It seems the little beast hadn't even managed to learn any tricks at all. Just more brute strength. Exactly what they needed in this over-muscled world. Scoffing, Shen Qingqiu turns to the only open patch of hall left to him and starts walking.

Footsteps clatter loudly in his wake, the guard quite literally tripping over themselves to keep up. Luo Binghe comes back to his side on silent feet. Smiling as warm as spoiled fruit on a summer's day. "Shizun is so wise," he says. "This lowly one must be impatient, too." Then, pitching his voice low, "all this unworthy one wants is two words from his Shizun. Just that, and this one will ensure all charges are dropped."

He simply can't help it. It's such an absurd lie there's no other way to respond to it. Shen Qingqiu throws back his head and laughs. Long and deep, scraping up every awful ache or pain up and out of himself along the way. He hasn't laughed so thoroughly since the fire. Since Shi-di.

The guards are bristling and palming their hilts with even more vigour but all Shen Qingqiu can be bothered with is the sight of Luo Binghe's clenched jaw. His laughter leaves him in a sigh. "How amusing. To think a mongrel would ever be content with so little. No, no, this master is well aware of what you're after, beast." The wretch had tried to keep it quiet even now, but Shen Qingqiu refuses to let the beast's shame go unheard. "Bone and blood from countless conquests that will never slake your thirst. You'll still be gnawing on dirt and wishing you were full. Nothing in this world will ever be enough, let alone two empty words from a master you despise. You, Luo Binghe, are beyond any hope of affection. That's just the kind of wretched animal you are."

No one stops him, so Shen Qingqiu keeps walking. Without shoes, it's no wonder the slick ground jerks out from underneath him. Arms bound tight behind him, he braces for impact, and is yanked short by a hand with too-sharp nails closing around his shoulder.

Luo Binghe, still smiling, has a death grip around his arm. "Careful, Shizun. We wouldn't want anyone to fall."

Shen Qingqiu tugs at his arm but there is no give in the beast's grip. He's pulled, bodily, back the other way down the hall. He chuckles to himself. There you go, wretch, keep on gnawing.

"This way, Shizun. The trial is about to begin. It would be shameful to be late."

Dying, Shen Yuan discovers, is very similar to laying down flat after a long day on your feet. An immediate release followed by bone-deep ache. He doesn't remember exactly how he died, he just remembers an indignation so great it took over his entire body. Can someone get so mad they die? He thinks so. He also thinks that's a pretty dumb way to go. It's extremely uncool to flip your lid so hard you lose it completely. And speaking of uncool…

His skin—does he have that? Is he a ghost? Probably not if he can feel skin—is burning. Thick stripes of pain that tingle unpleasantly everywhere on his body. Someone's talking, maybe. Their voice sharp and insistent.

In his gut, Shen Yuan knows he should be obeying whatever's being hissed at him. If he could make any sense out of the sounds pounding in his ears, he would! But all he hears is anger underscored with desperate worry.

He falls back into nothingness.

When Shen Yuan breaks through the gentle hold of unconsciousness for real, it's to the sound of two hushed voices this time. The sharp one is back, but there's a softer one too.

"If he's dead, he's dead. We could at least get ourselves out of this by dividing him up. I've heard of some demonic cultivators in town."

"Xiao Jiu…we can't do that. Not to Xiao Shi."

"And why not? You think he'd enjoy knowing he gets to be useless forever, rotting in the frozen ground?"

"Please, I-"

"And who's going to dig a grave for him in the middle of winter, huh? We'd be lucky not to break our fingers over it. And if we fail, what then? We just dump him somewhere else like garbage? No."

Shen Yuan wants it on record that he does not want his body left out on the curb for pickup, thank you! Forcing himself to move, he feels his hand twitch harshly into the warm press of another. His mouth is drier than old leather and his voice just as cracked. "Don't…mn. Don' chop me up." He groans.

The deeper, kind voice gasps. The hand he'd bumped into tightens into a vice around his own.

"Shi-er? Are you there?" The sharp voice.

"Xiao Shi…!" The kind voice.

With a point to make—is his name something…Shi? He'll have to figure it out later—he coughs and continues. "How'd you like it." He mumbles. "Dead an' chopped you up."

The kind voice is muttering something, pulling old papers up tighter around the smallest of them in a bid for warmth.

The hand still holding his starts to move—gentle caresses over his knuckles. "I would like it very much if I were to die and you sold pieces of me away to keep yourself safe. In that way, it's still me keeping you warm and fed, so it's fine."

"That's weird," Shen Shi tries to wail, ending up more like a high pitched gasp.

"That's life," sharp voice says. He sounds like he's got his nose up in the air. And also he sounds like he's a kid.

Now that he could spare the mental power to consider it, so had Shen Shi. Wait—when he'd died had he transmigrated or something into a kid?

Right on queue, a blue screen invades the backs of his closed eyelids. [Welcome User 02! (˶˃ ᵕ ˂˶) .ᐟ.ᐟ Bound role: Orphaned Street-Urchin Shen Shi.]

Yes! Hell yes! A brand new start in a new world! Even if the circumstances of being a street rat were...not great, surely he's going to get all sorts of cool abilities and quests! Eagerly awaiting any kind of extra information to help him with his transmigration experience, Shen Shi pokes at the System in his mind. Helloooooo! This humble transmigrator wants the details!

[Warning: Central power source <Luo Binghe> not found! Entering low power mode. 𐔌՞. .՞𐦯 ]

[Do your best User 02! This system apologizes for the inconvenience.]

The shock physically jolts his limbs, and both of his companions start talking louder in his ears. He can't really hear them though. Not over the spine-tingling knowledge that he'd been dumped into Proud Immortal Demon's Way. And apparently he didn't get anything useful to go off of other than his name!

Wait.

How common was the family name Shen here? It was fairly common back in his old world but in PIDW there had only been a handful of named characters from a few different Shen lines. Could he be the child version of that fucking asshole Shen Qingqiu!?

The idea of such an unfairness is just too much to stand. Which is why Shen Shi jerks up all the way to sitting with a wild gasp of air. His eyes finally un-glue themselves and he gets his first real look at the world of PIDW.

…

. . .

Uh, System? Are you sure you got the right world?

What greets him is an alleyway, dark in the night and covered with snow, frost, and various types of waste. He's on an old pallet and covered in scraps of paper. What looks like a couple imperial decrees and an advertisement for "Hot, Fresh Scallion Cakes!" Which...admittedly do look pretty tasty. Is this the life of an orphaned street urchin? Huddling under trash in the middle of winter? Geez, he was going to have to do some serious grinding to up these starting stats.

Sitting attentively at his side are two young boys. It's a bit hard to make out details in the moonlight, but their general shapes are clear. They both look half-starved, old bruises standing out sharply on their skin. One is a little bigger in the shoulders with a square face, while the other looks so waifish it's a wonder he doesn't get blown into the sky with every gust of wind. Shen Shi doesn't get much more time to look at them before the larger of the two throws his arms wide and tugs Shen Shi into a bear hug.

The arms, though thin and trembling, are warm where they splay across his back. They feel so safe, Shen Shi hates that he'd ever been out of their grasp. His eyes start burning and he's got the sudden urge to burrow into this hug like a desperate worm. It’s crazy what being de-aged does to someone. One warm hug and your nose starts dripping all on its own.

"Xiao Shi...we thought we'd lost you! We were so worried." Ah! The kind voice! So that must mean the other member of their trio is Xiao Jiu.

With how much they were both fussing and talking about him, Shen Shi could safely assume he's the youngest of their group. He wiggles about in the hug so he can shoot his best glare at Xiao Jiu. "Jiu-ge wanted to cut me into pieces." He says.

Just as imagined, Xiao Jiu has his nose in the air. He huffs sharply and his breath turns into a cloud as it leaves him. "It's called being practical. One of us has to be." He says, seeming to have already put all his points in the nagging older brother category. Xiao Jiu leans over to pinch at Shen Shi's cheeks. "Shi-er wouldn't be so close to death all the time if he were a little more practical."

Is Shen Shi also sickly in this world? First he's dumped in a shit-tier starting location, with a shit-tier system, and now he's also still got his same shit-tier health to deal with? Refund! He's demanding a refund!

Feeling extremely annoyed, Shen Shi huffs and ducks his head under Kind-ge's chin. It's been a while since he was the youngest, but he'll never forget all the right buttons to push to get his way. "I'm hot," he whines. "Hot and thirsty. And it's late. Can we go back to sleep now?"

Kind-ge melts immediately. He shuffles them around so Shen Shi is curled up in his lap and he can keep his back to the alley wall. "Of course, Xiao Shi. Xiao Jiu? Let's all stick together tonight."

Xiao Jiu opens his mouth to refuse, so Shen Shi deploys his ultimate tactic. He launches out one boney hand and snags the hem of Xiao Jiu's rough-spun robe. "Jiu-ge, please?"

Xiao Jiu sighs very loudly, but shuffles over all the same. Kind-ge makes space in his lap and Shen Shi and Xiao Jiu fold together like a perfectly matched set. If he just goes along with it, Shen Shi's body instinctively knows where to put itself to line up with the other boy.

Do they sleep like this often, he wonders? Kind-ge with his back to the wall, the other two curled up tight around his middle to share warmth? On queue, Kind-ge dips his head and rests it right between their scalps. His long arms hold them both so firmly.

"Wake me up when it's my turn." Xiao Jiu says. After a very heavy silence where Kind-ge was clearly making no such promise, the other boy continues, "Qi-ge you're useless to us if you're tired too. So just wake me up when it's my turn."

"I'll try," Qi-ge says. It's still not a promise.

Shen Shi quickly figures out that Qi-ge (or Yue Qi as he eventually discovered) does his best to steer away from promises. He's the sort to do something or not do something based only on his own opinions even if his most beloved person in the whole world was pushing him for a certain outcome. Despite his kind face and kinder voice, he's definitely the "gege knows best" type. Shen Shi found out the hard way when even after all his whining and pleading that he could do it himself, Qi-ge still insisted on braiding back his hair every morning.

Shen Jiu, on the other hand, is so sharp and cutting people flinch away from him before he's even done anything! He's crazy devoted, and all Shen Shi has to do is get a little misty eyed before Shen Jiu is chomping at the bit to set things right. Though his methods of "setting things right" are pretty intimidating. He keeps finding various stab-y objects from who knew where and brandishes them shamelessly every time an older teen gets too close to Shen Shi. It's sweet. Until he actually draws blood over it.

On the third day with them, Shen Shi's figured out their routine and habits pretty well. They all split up in the morning to cover as much of the city as possible, meet back at noon to check in, and then split back up before reconvening for what dinner they can pull together. He's not great at the actual begging part of being an orphan beggar, but he's still pitiful enough to scrape a few scraps of copper together.

He's also recently figured out he and Shen Jiu are twins. Every few days, the three of them go to the banks of the nearby stream to clean up as much as they can. Shen Shi had just about jumped out of his skin when Shen Jiu's face stared back at him in the water. Siblings, he can figure out. But a twin?

He wonders, often, if the missing holes in his memory will bother Shen Jiu. They haven't come up yet, but they also haven't been together all that long. Will twin telepathy totally fail him and out him as something...else? Shen Shi tries not to think about it too much. Hopefully muscle memory will keep working in his favour.

Despite their whole operation hinging on the three of them splitting up to beg more efficiently, Qi-ge and Jiu-ge keep watching him like he's about to keel over dead any second. Which, to be fair, the original goods probably did just that. He's still got some kind of cough rattling his chest at night, but, really! This is pretty small potatoes geges! It could be a lot worse! They continue to make up a lot of convenient excuses to beg nearby, and he reluctantly gets used to it.

The fourth night, Shen Jiu gets them a spot behind one of the brothels, close enough they can leech heat out from the walls. They all huddle in close again and it makes something old and ugly in Shen Shi's heart go soft. Maybe it's just some left over pieces of the original child he'd taken the place of, but...he thinks he might really, deeply love them.

The fifth night, Yue Qi has hot mushrooms for them to eat and Shen Shi has to turn away to hide his tears as hot food falls into his belly. He wishes he could go back across space and time and strangle himself for ever taking it for granted as Shen Yuan.

The eighth night, Shen Shi stumbles into some other rough looking kids and finds out he and his brothers actually belong to someone. A man, Nan Rong, who is entirely empty behind the eyes. All of his kids-for-sale get rounded up on the ninth day and when his grey eyes pass over them, Shen Shi can't feel any ounce of recognition there. As if they're just breathing sacks of silver for him to push around on a table. Which, in a very morbid way, is the truth.

He takes Li Ba and San Liu away with a smile that morning and Shen Shi doesn't see them out on the streets again. He pulls Shen Jiu and Yue Qi into a huddle that night and refuses to let either go until he passes out in the early dawn. He's barely known them more than a week, but the idea of being separated from the only two people who'd care if he died is enough to haunt him. Both at night, and during the day. He doesn't have a system to help him figure this out, but he has them. If he had to fumble his way through this completely alone...he doesn't want to think about it.

It's almost a relief when Shen Jiu stabs a horse that was about to trample Yue Qi and both twins are offered up for sale. Qiu Jianluo, the offended young lord, likes a matched set, apparently. And Shen Shi is glad to keep a hold of his brother's hand as their fragile world is ripped up by the roots.

He tries to avoid the look on Yue Qi's face when they're pulled apart. Shen Shi closes his eyes and does his best smile. "We'll be okay, Qi-ge."

Shen Jiu scowls, his grip on his twin's hand going tighter. "Don't you dare cry, Qi-ge. Get a grip."

They're led to the end of the entourage where a cart full of grain is waiting for them but they can still hear Yue Qi as he calls, "I'll find you! Both of you! I promise!"

They're out of the town within half a shichen. The road is long and their spots wedged into the sacks of grain does little to help soothe the rocking and shaking of the wheels.

"Are we going to be okay?" Shen Shi asks, long after its gotten dark. There's been no sign of stopping yet. He feels a little bad for lying right to Qi-ge's face with his false confidence, but he didn't want their last memory of each other to be of them both crying. How embarrassing would that be?

"Yes," Shen Jiu says, "no matter what. I'll make sure of it."

What a cool line. Shen Shi almost believes him. "Okay," he says instead, "I will, too. Together, or not at all, okay?"

Shen Jiu's jaw works silently, clearly against agreeing. But something in him relaxes and he sinks into Shen Shi's side with a barely audible sigh. "Okay. Together, or not at all."

Chapter Text

Huan Hua is...really too obvious.

He'd known on some level what Huan Hua looked like, both from his memories of maps and fan-art of the place, but also from more recent testimonies. Still, Shen Yuan wasn't sure why anyone needed that much gold.

The walls of every courtyard, every slat of every fence, every roof tile and guardian, and even the central paths are all gilded and polished to a near-mirror finish. This place reeks of everything Shen Yuan hates about the cultivation world on the whole. How much more obvious could it be that they were easily corruptible with shady practices? They're fucking rich! So much money just, around, for the sole reason of looking impressive. He feels dirty simply looking at it. With how big the grounds sprawl out and how much he's forced to see of them, he ends up feeling quite gross. He's still in his travelling clothes. Rougher robes in mostly black with green accents where he could afford them. His hair is washed and he doesn't think he smells like anything, but it's kind of hard to tell. On reflex, he brings out his fan and ducks under its cover.

Even worse than the gross display of wealth are the throngs of cultivators pushing their way inside the main gates. It's genuinely the most people Shen Yuan has ever seen in once place outside of the capital. Some of the Huan Hua disciples are out along the paths, helpfully guiding guests to the right place.

For once, a merchant wasn't exaggerating at all. It really looks like every single cultivator across the entire Jianghu would be here for the trial of the Scum Villain, Shen Qingqiu. Shen Yuan has to swallow around his nerves. Just because he has a bit more of an audience than he expected doesn't mean he can back down from his mission now! He'll just have to keep an eye on the exits. Just in case someone gets the bright idea to hold a double trial.

He's being practical. He tries to feel proud of it.

Shen Yuan falls in with the rest of the faceless cultivator crowd. Eventually, he's pushed into a grand atrium. Just like everything else, it's gilded from floor to ceiling. Though, it looks like the pillars pushing around the room are carved from black jade for some contrast. The walls are covered in beautiful, swooping murals depicting justice and famous stories of honourable cultivators. Most of the room is dedicated to tiers of low platforms for the audience to sit and gawk. The centre of the atrium has been lifted up two levels above everything else. Two sets of stairs run up opposite sides of the central platform. A few sumptuous cushions have been left out, but it's otherwise kept barren. There's a small dais up there with a convenient metal ring for attaching a length of chain or rope.

They really, really want to make this a spectacle. Shen Yuan wouldn't be surprised if the whole atrium was built solely for this one trial. He's deliciously glad that Shen Qingqiu is going to be ripped to shreds like this. Truly, this is even better than what he'd imagined for the trial grounds back when he'd originally read PIDW.

He sneaks closer to the stairs. He'll have to be ready to make his dramatic objection and it'd be better for everyone if he didn't have to climb over five rows of cultivators to get there. As he settles into his new spot, he looks up, just by chance, and stops dead.

Settling in not even two seats away is what must be the Cang Qiong Mountain Sect delegation. Being the largest cultivation sect in the Jianghu, their uniforms are extremely recognizable. And the person standing tallest among the crowd of what must be Peak Lords and Senior Disciples is the Sect Leader.

He has a square face, broad shoulders. Long arms that have settled perfectly at his sides. He's staring up at the dais and it's unassuming metal ring. He looks hollow, with a kind smile.

Someone jostles Shen Yuan's elbow and he realizes he hasn't taken a breath back in. He forces it, stuttering, and can't bring himself to look away. The room is meant to be huge, right? A gigantic, opulent atrium dedicated to the shaming and ridicule of one, horrible man! It's supposed to be enormous! So then why is Shen Yuan being crushed in so tight? Why are the walls so close and the air so thin? If it's supposed to be this big, open space then why can't his eyes move away from Sect Leader of Cang Qiong Mountain Sect Yue Qingyuan-!

No. No, no no no. Because if that's Yue Qingyuan and Yue Qingyuan is the spitting image of Shen Yuan's Qi-ge then the scum villain Yue Qingyuan constantly bends over backwards for, Shen Qingqiu, must be-

Yue Qingyuan is staring back.

Shen Yuan startles, badly. He rips his fan up in front of his face but the damage has already been done. He knows it has because he can hear the startled gasp—and it's low, fuck his voice dropped way too far!—and then almost a whisper, "Xiao Jiu?"

Wrong one! Wrong one! Shen Yuan wants to wail it out loud but he is swiftly having to recalculate his plan with this new knowledge. He was already planning on objecting and that sure hasn't changed but- but now- His vision is swimming in and out at this point and would it really kill someone to crack a window or something!?

"No," Yue Qingyuan breathes, "it can't be. Shen Sh-?"

He's thankfully interrupted by the central doors being pushed open and a whole parade of golden fools lead their way up onto the central platform. Among them, a few stand out. The Old Palace Master, Shen Yuan recognizes. Some young women, one of whom is veiled and must be Liu Mingyan, another with ribbons, and—his lip curls behind his fan—Qiu Haitang. Behind them is none other than the protagonist himself, resplendent in black and gold, leading along Shen Qingqiu.

Shen Qingqiu, who has Shen Yuan's face.

Shen Qingqiu, who is now being served up literally on a golden platter for the entire cultivation world to rip apart.

He doesn't need to think things through much more than that. A heavy calm rests against his shoulders and pulls his spine straight. His fingers move smoothly—with a grace he usually has to fake—and shut his fan in one gentle motion. He knows well the feeling of his face losing all expression. He knows he wears none now. All of his indignation, his righteous fury, has been sharply redirected.

Alright, Shen Yuan thinks. Huan Hua wants a spectacle? Fine. They'll get their fucking spectacle.

Five months into their servitude at the Qiu estate, and Shen Shi is tired. When he's not running back and forth across the complex with messages for this maid or this uncle, or dodging swats in the kitchen from servants complaining about him getting underfoot, or hunched in the bushes clawing weeds out of the earth; he's stuck with one of the Qiu siblings. He rarely gets to see Shen Jiu. They're always just missing each other as they try desperately to stay on top of the ridiculous chores and tasks heaped on their shoulders. Go refill the water, go chop wood, go dredge the pond, go scrub doors and windows and floors, go, go, go.

Shen Shi collapses onto the woven mat he and his brother share in the servant's quarters. The maids pretend not to see him, and the stable boys start snickering to themselves. Shen Shi knows he's a mess. Qiu Haitang had insisted on making his hair "pretty" today. She was so confident, saying she'd seen her maids do it all the time, how hard could it be? His knotted mass of hair still sitting slumped off to one side of his head speaks for itself.

Qiu Jianluo had said that everyone should get the chance to appreciate his sister's hard work. He set Shen Shi to sweep the main paths of the estate, then twice more when he thought he'd finished. Shen Shi's neck is still burning from the pressure of all those eyes tracking after him, snickering behind beautifully kept nails and delicately painted fans.

He wraps his arms around his body and curls up tight. He really shouldn't be feeling so nauseous. Nothing had even happened today! He hadn't even been hit once! One of the stable boys whispers something that sounds sharp, and another round of giggles goes off. Rot digs its fingers into Shen Shi's stomach and twists it until its knuckles pop. He kind of wants to cry. But he's never been good at covering up the sounds of his upset, and he knows if he starts sniffling and hiccuping it'll only fuel the laughter more.

A hand brushes his shoulder and he flinches. "It's me," Shen Jiu says, a beat too late.

Shen Shi forces himself to uncurl, turning on his side to greet his twin. "Jiu-ge, welcome back."

Shen Jiu is already kneeling on the floor, squinting at the mess of Shen Shi's hair. "What happened?" He asks.

"Nothing," comes the answer.

"Do you think I've gone blind?"

Shen Shi huffs and pushes himself up to his knees. "Do you think I have? I should be the one asking you what happened." Because his twin brother had his hands clasped tight together again—to stop them from shaking. Harsh red welts are raised in so many stripes on his wrists they look like bracelets. Shen Shi knows that's not the only place they are, even if he can't see the rest.

Predictably, Shen Jiu bristles. "Nothing original, I can assure you. So it's fine."

"Just because it's happened before doesn't make it fine." Shen Shi says.

"It's fine," Shen Jiu says, firmer. His face is two shades paler and looking green in the dim light. "Don't ask me about it."

They've been having similar arguments every night since they were sold to this place. In a minimizing competition, they'd be tied for first place! But something's changed recently, and instead of just dancing around it, now Shen Jiu shuts all conversation about his days down. Shen Shi's heard that a pain shared is a pain halved. But he thinks he and his brother have the same fear. After spending the entire day forced to be vulnerable, to then go back to their very public mat and have to willingly to roll over and show their belly? It's too much. Even for a brother. That's the worst part of it. Worse than the humiliation—the biting words, the stinging hits, the horrible isolation—is the growing wall between them.

Shen Shi tries to soften his expression. He can't relax too much or else he'll be crying before he can stop it. Instead of the comforting smile he wants, he's closer to grimacing. "Okay," he says, "I won't ask. But can I help?"

His twin eyes him up, probably judging for sincerity. Shen Jiu offers up one wrist and Shen Shi shudders with relief. He takes his twin's wrist carefully, keeping it as straight and steady as he can. In theory, even if neither of them had any kind of training in cultivating their qi, they still had it. Stimulating its natural pathways in the body should still help with injuries like this. It's with gentle fingers that Shen Shi starts slowly tracing out those pathways against his brother's arm. Shen Jiu hisses in pain. He catches his lip and scrunches his eyes closed, forcing himself not to flinch.

Even if it's for a good reason, Shen Shi hates to see Shen Jiu's face so twisted. He'd done this a few times before for his brother, it hasn't gotten easier yet. He can't speed the massage up, though. He'd been lectured enough by physical therapists in his old world. He knew that rushing it wouldn't help anything. He just has to take a deep breath and keep going. The motions are very repetitive. It's easy to slip into a trance, becoming just as relaxing for him as he hopes it is for Shen Jiu.

Shen Shi passes his thumb over the centre of his brother's wrist and a small brush of warmth is there to greet him. It's warmer than Shen Jiu's skin. Frowning, Shen Shi pushes at it as he rolls his hand through the next part of the massage. That warmth follows in his wake, flowing almost like water. If he closes his eyes he can just about feel out where it's made its home. The pool in Shen Jiu's wrist is cut off from the rest of the flow further up his arm. If it follows Shen Shi's fingers, though...couldn't he reconnect it?

As soon as he gets the warm stream back in contact with its source, Shen Jiu jolts in his grip and his eyes fly open.

His twin is staring at him with very wide eyes, he has a feeling they're a perfect mirror of shock. They crane their necks in unison and their jaws drop. Where the red welts used to be, now Shen Jiu's wrist is a mess of mottled, days old looking bruises.

Holy shit! Is he secretly a healer class!? Shen Shi grabs his brother's hand, eyes practically sparkling. "Jiu-ge! Did you see that?" He whispers.

Shen Jiu is still staring at his wrist. Turning it this way and that as if it would suddenly change back under the right lighting. He looks up sharply. "Shi-di, do the other one."

"Right!"

Now that he knows what he's feeling for, kind of, Shen Jiu's other wrist goes much faster. Shen Shi scrunches his nose and tunes everything else out until he can safely guide his brother's...qi? It's his qi, right? Whatever! He reconnects the energy and helps it flow as best he can. Shen Jiu's wrists are still bruised when Shen Shi opens his eyes, but that's worlds better than they were before.

"Where did you learn this?" Shen Jiu asks, idly rubbing his fingers over his arms.

"I dunno, I just...figured it out?" It sounds really lame, but that's the truth! Shen Shi perks up as a realization hits him. "Jiu-ge! Do you know what this means? I can help heal us both at night! Before you know it I'll be wiping even giant gashes away and-!"

Shen Jiu claps his hand hard over his twin's jaw. "Keep it down," he murmurs. "We can't have anyone else knowing about this. If they know, they'll use it against us. We need to be smart. Use it only when necessary."

Shen Shi rolls his eyes and bats the hand away. "I know, I know. I'll be careful. But don't you think Qi-ge's going to be so excited when he finds us and I can show it to him?" When Shen Jiu doesn't immediately respond, Shen Shi frowns. His twin is scowling at the far wall, his shoulders hunched, looking almost pained? "Jiu-ge? You know he's coming back, right? He promised."

"I know that," Shen Jiu says. If anything he hunches further. "But if he takes too long then...what's going to be left waiting for him?"

Slowly, Shen Shi reaches out to take both of his brother's hands. He squeezes them between his own, trying to push all of the certainty of hope in his heart across the feeble bridge of skin that separates the twins from each other. "We will." He says.

A hairline crack runs through Shen Jiu's angry mask. His hands are shaking again where Shen Shi is holding them. It takes him a few moments to gather himself back together, and then it's truly his Jiu-ge who's sitting there. A soft little smile reserved only for his brother. "Let me help you with that mess on your head."

Shen Shi takes the opportunity to indulge in a little whining. "Can't I just cut it all off? No one would care! It'd be way faster too."

"I would care," Shen Jiu says. "Now turn around and stop complaining."

Grumbling, Shen Shi goes along with it.

It must take hours, but Shen Jiu is patient and picks at knots with a steady focus. They can't avoid some painful tugging, but it's never done maliciously. The moon is high in the sky by the time they're done. They collapse together as one. Each tucked in close to the other, their own blanket of arms and legs settling into place.

"Together," Shen Shi whispers right on the edge of sleep.

"Or not at all," Shen Jiu answers.

They allowed Shen Qingqiu to get changed out of the torn, acid-bitten robes he'd been wearing for the past month. It wouldn't do to have the prisoner they'd been torturing actually look tortured on the stand. As much as he despises Huan Hua, he can grudgingly respect their awareness of their own image.

He fell back into his usual morning routine as a Peak Lord, tuning out as much as he could. The robes they gave him were nowhere near his own collection on Qing Jing in terms of quality or style. But they were warm. He had socks again. His toes still itch uncomfortably in his shoes—so unused to being at a normal temperature that his very skin is rebelling against him. The whole outfit is very simple. Without even offering a ribbon to tie his hair. No oil to get rid of knots. No true soap to wash with or bandages for his wounds. He still looks regal as a Peak Lord should just—less.

He makes only one request: for a fan.

He is denied.

That's fine. He's made better out of worse. He keeps his head high as they pull him along towards the trial grounds. The immortal binding cable still wrapped around his wrists chafes horribly, but he can hide the red splotches with his sleeves. Luo Binghe watches Shen Qingqiu arrange himself and says nothing. He supposes they're both waiting for their appropriate moment on stage.

Several others are gathered up to join the procession. Ning Yingying among them. She can't bring herself to look his way. Every time her eyes get close to brushing the hem of his robe, she turns her whole body away.

Liu Mingyan standing next to her has no such problem. She glares fiercely while keeping one hand on Ning Yingying's shoulder.

He does hope both women are prepared to secure their survival out there in the court room. Shen Qingqiu doesn't particularly mind if either or both curse his name and drag him through the mud. Not if it means they themselves are pulled higher for their efforts. He could never begrudge Ning Yingying anything, after all. He will simply be happy if she's used everything he's taught her to create her perfect future.

Though, his opinions sour much faster when he notes the Old Palace Master standing at the head of their merry band. Shen Qingqiu's never liked the man. Being wildly accused and then thrown in the Water Prison by said man has done nothing to change that opinion. The Old Palace Master is standing far too close to Qiu Haitang for Shen Qingqiu's liking.

While he can't say he particularly favours his fiancee-by-technicality, he doesn't like seeing her here. He wishes she'd moved on from that shared chapter of their lives—if only so he could rest easily knowing there was one more person out in the world who remembered Shen Shi with fondness. She's here now, though. Her arms are curled tight over her chest as she mumbles something to the Old Palace Master.

There's no time to try to decipher it, the signal goes up and the trial is finally about to begin. Their silly parade of involved parties pass through opulent golden doors into a grand atrium filled completely with hungry spectators. Shen Qingqiu casts his memory back and—this is new, isn't it? He idly wonders if he should be flattered.

He's pulled up onto a central platform and then further onto a raised dais, secured to a ring bolted to the floor. Shen Qingqiu sits as the highest point of the entire trial grounds and can't stop the morbid smirk from appearing on his face. He really should be flattered, he supposes. Look how high of a pedestal Huan Hua wants to put him on. Honestly, teenaged disciples were less obvious with their obsessions.

All but the Old Palace Master take a seat around his dais, and Shen Qingqiu wants this whole farce to just be finished already. The dramatics were entertaining for a brief moment, but this cannot seriously be their entire plan for a trial.

He's proven wrong when the Old Palace Master spreads his hands wide and begins speaking. "Esteemed guests, Huan Hua palace eagerly welcomes you to our grounds. We have long been honoured with hosting such grand events, but none more prolific than the trial you have all gathered here for today. It is with a heavy heart I must announce that Shen Qingqiu, Peak Lord of Qing Jing, the Xiu Ya sword of Cang Qiong Mountain Sect, has been accused of a great many evils.

"This court endeavours to provide an unbiased space for victims and witnesses to air their grievances; to be heard and judged by the innumerable Masters gathered here today."

The Old Palace Master continues rambling, as old men are wont to do, so Shen Qingqiu decides to take advantage of his high perch to scan the faces around the atrium. Zhao Hua Temple and Tian Yi Overlook make a good showing, not to mention all of the golden Huan Hua members in attendance. Far too many wandering cultivators are freckled throughout the crowd, only a few of which Shen Qingqiu recognizes from the past few Immortal Alliance Conferences.

He saves the worst for last and finally turns his gaze to where his sect siblings are seated. Only Qi Qingqi has the courage to meet his gaze. He scowls down at them. At the very least, that weak spined mess they called Sect Leader should be watching closely. Especially after all the fuss he'd kicked up at Jinlan City over Shen Qingqiu's arrest in the first place. But instead, as usual, when Shen Qingqiu is actually looking for Yue Qingyuan's attention, it's elsewhere.

The grand buffoon is staring slack jawed off into the audience, being extremely unsubtle about his attempts to sneak behind his neighbours to get to-

Shen Qingqiu knows, of course, that the Old Palace Master is talking. He knows, of course, that his temporary mortality means he is breathing steadily. He knows, of course, that he is seeing a face staring back up at him in the crowd. However, his understanding of these things has simply left him. The voice is little more than fuzz in his ears and his breath has vanished completely. His vision, too, must be some kind of trick. For he's seeing the same face he styles every day. His immediate thought is that a Shame Faced Moon Ape has stolen his visage to hide out in the audience preempting a surprise attack from demonic forces. Then the face's lips thin and nose scrunch in a way his own never did and the truth spears through his chest.

He manages not to gasp, only barely, and yet that beast Luo Binghe still catches the hitch in his throat and looks over, hackles raised. Shen Qingqiu pointedly flicks his gaze elsewhere and relaxes back into a comfortable sneer of disdain. His heart, though, has never raced so wildly in his chest.

How long has he been a single pane of canvas moving around a gaping hole in the fabric? How many years has he been simply one shape in a shattered mirror? To now have a second dimension again is overwhelming. All the warmth the clothes had brought him has abruptly left. Shen Qingqiu is suddenly quite glad for the immortal binding cables. Keeping his qi locked down tight keeps the qi deviations locked away too. It forces an artificial calm over him, but that's to his advantage here. He's always been susceptible to qi deviations, and he knows his own body would yet again betray him if it could.

Shen Shi has been dead in his heart and mind for decades. It should not be possible. And yet. And yet he knows his twin well, even after all this time. Shen Shi is furious. Whether that fury is directed at Shen Qingqiu specifically or the trial as a whole is harder to parse. His brother has always been incurably stubborn, but Shen Qingqiu still sends him a sharp look that says simply get the hell out of here!

Shen Shi, the absolute idiot, just sneers back, why don't you come down here and stop me yourself?

"-only makes sense to address these accusations chronologically. Those who have been left to suffer the longest in silence away from everything should have the chance to have their pains heard first." The Old Palace Master says. Shen Qingqiu has to wrench his focus back to this farce of a trial. He locks everything outside of it away with prejudice. He can shake his dead brother down for answers to the questions burning in his throat afterwards."With that, I believe Qiu Haitang has the floor."

At her name, the woman in question stands from her seat and comes to stand directly in front of Shen Qingqiu. Ah, so they'd be addressing their complaints to him directly? She still looks uncertain in her rage, her eyes searching his face for something she keeps failing to find. Is she after compassion, even now? He supposes he'd forfeit all right to such answers a long time ago. She steels herself, and then straightens.

"I knew Shen Qingqiu first as Shen Jiu, my fiancé. While originally purchased as a slave by my family, my brother Qiu Jianluo bought his contract and granted his freedom—even making him a foster-brother. As we'd grown up together, we would often play and enjoy ourselves. Our childhood affections blossomed into a true romance, yet that wasn't enough for this, this-" her pretty lips curl away from her teeth, "beast. We gave him every luxury! A wonderful life in fine clothes with good teachings, and he threw it all away in favour of chasing after some charlatan claiming he'd teach cultivation to anyone who'd ask. When my brother protested, thinking of our family and our impending marriage, Shen Jiu went mad. He killed my brother before slaughtering his way through the entire estate, carving up his own twin in his rage, before setting it on fire and letting it burn to nothing!"

Sharp cries and whispers sprang up from the audience and it took a tremendous amount of effort from Shen Qingqiu not to roll his eyes. Testimony from decades ago reliant only on a fickle mortal memory was far from a strong start for a trial. Still, it was a sensational story, and he knew the hearts of many below him were already touched by such pain in a beauty's voice. He caught Luo Binghe looking again. The wretch had an odd expression twisting up his maw, considering. How dire, indeed, if his travesty of a disciple is the only one in the hall taking a spare second to think.

"It's a moving story, to be sure." An unfamiliar voice calls from the audience. Shen Qingqiu wishes he really had carved up Shen Shi when he had the chance. At least then it would spare him his brother's dramatics on top of Huan Hua's already over the top performance. "But that's all it is. A story, a fiction. It'd be irresponsible to leave such a thing unchallenged in this grand hall." Shen Shi stands and a ripple of yet more gasps sound off on queue. Oh, heavens. "Wouldn't you agree, Haitang-meimei?"

"Haitang-meimei, can I help you?" Shen Shi knew his smile is far thinner than it should be, but he also knew if he didn't finish cleaning the dirty plates and bowls from lunch he wouldn't be getting dinner. Whatever she wants, he desperately hopes it's quick.

Her beautiful lavender jewelled slippers look extremely out of place on the grimy old tile of the kitchens. She pouts up at him and her attending maids take the opportunity to rest against the counters. Ah, he'll light a candle in his heart for those two hard workers! Even if they glared at Shen Shi when they passed, watching over Qiu Haitang with her endless energy all day would try even the most virtuous soul.

"You promised me we'd get to play inner court today. And then you go hide away in the kitchens? I thought we were having fun yesterday, Shen Jiu..." She says, hands clenched tight in the delicate folds of her robes.

Shen Shi can feel his already thin smile completely disappear into his face. "Haitang-meimei, this one is Shen Shi."

She stares hard at his face for a few long seconds. With a bright giggle, she declares, "no, you're my Shen Jiu. I'd know you anywhere!"

Ah, was it the curse of little meimeis everywhere to be so confident they believed reality would change just because they said so? Or maybe it's just a problem for extremely spoiled and insulated little meimeis with obsessive geges! Who's to say!

Shen Shi forces his hands to release the plate he'd been gripping. He really doesn't like her, but that's no reason to get angry with her. She's so young, and it's not like anyone else is trying to treat her like a person or enforce normal boundaries. He turns fully towards her and squats to get on eye level with her. "This one is Shen Shi. You can tell because I smile much more than my grumpy Jiu-ge!"

"But you aren't smiling right now." She points out.

"Ah, you caught me..." Shen Shi leans forwards a bit like he's trading gossip, "to tell you the truth, I'm pretty tired! But I have to finish my work here so I can have more time to smile later."

Qiu Haitang scuffs her pretty slippers on the floor. "Where's Shen Jiu? He promised we'd play today." She says.

"Well, I'm not sure, but-"

"Then we have to go look for him!" Her eyes blaze with a brand new energy. "This is just like the Ballad of Xiao Ling! We need to find him before the demon curse steals away his soul!"

Little miss, your storytelling could use some work! Where did a curse come from all of a sudden? "Well, good luck on your quest, young miss. But I really need to get back to my work now."

"No! Shen Shi has to come with!" She stomps on the ground for emphasis. "In the Ballad of Xiao Ling she has three trustworthy animal guides to help her on her mission to rescue her one true love from a wicked demon! My maids can be the Tortoise and the Tiger, but who else could be the Horse?"

HORSE!? Just who was an animal companion, huh!? "Haitang-meimei..." He sighs.

She stomps again, her eyes growing misty and red as her whole chubby face flushes. "You have to come or I'll hate you for eternity!"

Shen Shi glances up at the two maids but neither of them offer him anything more than a roll of their eyes. His pile of dirty dishes hasn't magically disappeared either. Sending up a prayer that the head chef will find mercy in his heart today, he stands back up. "Alright, I can help look for a little bit."

She cheers and its like her heart has been alleviated of any and all pain it'd ever felt with the way she begins grinning and babbling about this and that and such and such. She latches on tight to his arm and shamelessly drags him out of the kitchens.

Despite saying he could only help look for a "little bit" Qiu Haitang still puts in her best efforts to spend as much time together as possible. She gets them scouring almost the entire estate. Winding through every side corridor and breezeway and garden with a practiced ease of a child with too much time on her hands. His lungs are burning by the end of it and he has to stifle his coughing into his sleeves.

It's only once they get close to Qiu Jianluo's quarters that Shen Shi hears any trace of his brother. It's a bitten off yelp, a pained sound that's burned into his memory. He'd heard it countless times, muffled, when he was helping push along Shen Jiu's healing. He stops short, suddenly certain of what awaits them further down the path.

Unfortunately, Qiu Haitang hears it too. She gasps, "Shi-ge! That's my Shen Jiu! We have to go help him! The demon's got him!"

Little miss, try not to be so unintentionally correct! "No, no, he's okay." The lie is bitter on his tongue. "But he's with your brother right now. We can't interrupt them. It would be very rude."

She frowns up at him, perfectly confused. "Jianluo-gege won't mind. He loves seeing me. Don't drag your feet!"

"Yes, your brother does like seeing you." Which is honestly an understatement. Shen Shi tries not to think about it too much. He has to worry about himself and his Jiu-ge first, he can start worrying about others later. He kneels down to her height again to try and get his point across. "Haitang-meimei is very special, not just in the estate, but in her brother's heart, mm?"

She nods, still looking confused.

"Well, even if your brother would love nothing more than to see you, I am not very special. If I interrupt, it will be very bad for me. Do you understand?" Shen Shi says.

"No, not at all." She huffs. "Because Shen Jiu and Shen Shi are mine, right? Jianluo-gege said so. He said you both belonged to me. So why would it be bad if I brought you with me to go see him?"

This child...! "It would be okay in the moment, but later when we're not together any more, I would still get in trouble."

Qiu Haitang seems to consider this seriously. Her face all wrinkled up and her fingers toying with the ends of her belt. "That's not right, though. If I was with you all the time, you wouldn't get in trouble at all, right?"

"What about when it's time for good little ones to be in bed?" Shen Shi can't resist his urges and leans over to boop the tip of her nose. "This one has his own bed to be getting back to at night after all."

If anything, this only makes her face tighten up even more. "But then you'd get in trouble at night! That's stupid." After a few more seconds of intense consideration, she blossoms into a brilliant grin. "But Jianluo-gege will fix it!"

"Wait-" he can't protest more than that one word before Qiu Haitang has her hands buried in his robes and is hauling him closer to Qiu Jianluo's quarters. He can't pull away without sending her sprawling to the ground and hurting her would be a death sentence! Something burning cold is sinking into his joints. The doors to Qiu Jianluo's study loom closer with every stumbling step he's forced to take. Closer, he can start to pick out the low sounds of voices talking, and his brother's sounds strained. "Haitang-meimei we can't interrupt!" He cries.

"I can!" She insists. Then, at the very top of her lungs, "Jianluo-gege! Tang-er wants to play with you!"

The voices behind the door stop abruptly. Shen Shi is certain in this brief moment of silence that he's just signed for his own funeral with Qiu Haitang as the notary.

The door opens and Qiu Jianluo's handsome face is suddenly there. His dark eyes appraising, landing first on Shen Shi, then on Qiu Haitang. The man smiles, and it almost looks warm. "Well, hello there, Tangtang. This is rather unexpected." The last sentence gets directed straight at Shen Shi and the boy feels all of his blood run screaming from of his face. "Jiu-er and I were in the middle of our calligraphy lessons."

"Shen Jiu promised me we could play inner court today." She says. "And Shen Shi and I were looking all over for Shen Jiu so he could play and we heard him in here!"

"Really?" Qiu Jianluo casts a look over his shoulder. Shen Shi can't see beyond him into the room proper, but he knows in a way he can't really describe that his twin is in there and it's bad.

"Yes! Shen Shi said we shouldn't interrupt but you always say how happy you are to see me, so it's okay! And since Shen Jiu and Shen Shi are mine, it's okay for them too, right? They can't get in trouble for interrupting 'cause they're mine and you like me!"

The older man laughs good naturedly, always willing to indulge in her misunderstandings. "Yes, I promise neither of them will get in trouble for this interruption." He says. Shen Shi can hear the unspoken threat of but everything else is still on the table.

Qiu Haitang cheers, tugging on Shen Shi's robes in her excitement. "Then can we go play now?"

Qiu Jianluo hums. "Alright, I believe we could do with a short break, don't you Jiu-er?" There's no audible response, but Qiu Jianluo chuckles at whatever he sees behind him. "Why don't you two come inside? Shen Jiu can prepare tea for the four of us, and we can catch up on our mornings together."

As soon as they're let inside the room, Shen Shi's eyes go straight to his twin brother. Shen Jiu's hands are bright purple, his knuckles swollen and nail beds beading with blood. He shoves his hands in his sleeves, his face whiter than a bedsheet. Before anything can be said between them, Shen Jiu is rushing to the side room to prepare tea. Shen Shi knows his brother is in no shape to be lifting a heavy tea pot! If he can make an excuse to help with the tea, maybe he could at least help get the blood to stop and reduce the swelling?

"Ah, this one will go help with the tea!" He says with a deep bow.

Qiu Jianluo smiles up at him. He's already seated at the low table in the centre of the room, Qiu Haitang perched on the luxurious pillow opposite her brother. "No need. I'm sure Jiu-er can handle it on his own. It's only tea, after all. But I want to hear how Shi-er has been getting on. Now come sit." The man pats his knee.

There's nothing more to be said, is there?

Shen Yuan has always fashioned himself an expert critic of all things fiction. He's a connoisseur of narrative! He delights in finding plot holes to sink his teeth into and absolutely shred the weave of prose into pieces just to chew them up and spit them out again. It's his number one hobby! So, when Qiu Haitang stands up on that platform and presents the holiest swiss-chees-iest tale, he can't let it stand!

He's been practicing his perfect objection stances for this moment. It is with a troublingly deep satisfaction that he jumps to his feet. "It's a moving story to be sure. But that's all it is. A story, a fiction. It'd be irresponsible to leave such a thing unchallenged in this grand hall." He snaps his pointer finger out in a pose so sharp even Phoenix Wright would cry with pride and grins. "Wouldn't you agree, Haitang-meimei?"

Gasps ring out in perfect harmony at his words. It does dangerous things to his ego.

For her part, Qiu Haitang looks genuinely shocked to see him. Her face cycles red, then white, then brilliant green as she figures out just who he is. "You-? But, how? No one could have survived the fire!"

"You did, didn't you?" He sniffs.

Her face cycles back around to red, just as splotchy as it used to be in her youth. "You-!"

"Could that really be the twin of the Xiu Ya sword?"

"No, no, Shen Qingqiu has never said anything about any family! This has to be a lie."

"A doppelgänger maybe? To set up this whole trial?"

"Or perhaps a demon in disguise!"

Shen Qingqiu sighs loudly, capturing the attention of the room once more. "Disguised demons still give off traces of demonic energy. If such a thing were to be overlooked in this hall, that would certainly be cause for alarm."

Ah, his dear Jiu-ge hasn't changed a bit! He's still the type to insult you to your face without saying the words directly. He really is a raging bitch! "I don't believe the speculations from our peers were akin to queries from disciples that require correction." Shen Yuan says. Translation: stop looking down on everyone because no one was asking you!

"All questions presented in a trial deserve an answer, no matter the source, nor the objective quality of the question." Shen Qingqiu drawls in response.

This is why you're on trial Jiu-ge!!! Shut! Up! Already!

The Old Palace Master stands with some performative effort, trying to regain control of his trial. "Now, let's all settle down. I am sure there is a reasonable explanation for all of this. Can anyone here vouch for the identity of the man in the audience?"

"I can," to Shen Yuan's surprise it's Yue Qingyuan who spoke. The man is sitting tall on his cushion and looks more serious than Shen Yuan had ever seen him be. He truly looks every bit a Sect Leader. "That man is, or was, Shen Shi. Shen Qingqiu's twin brother."

"I can vouch for that as well." Qiu Haitang says, looking much calmer with her eyes narrowed into calculating half moons.

The Old Palace Master strokes at his beard. "How surprising, indeed. It seems this trial has become a reunion of sorts. Shen Shi, do you object to Qiu Haitang's testimony of events at Qiu Manor?"

Standing tall, he says, "this one is called Shen Yuan now. And yes, I do."

"Would your own recall of the events not be tainted with bias for your own brother?" The Old Palace Master asks.

Shen Yuan spreads his hands wide. "None more than Qiu Haitang's bias towards her own, I'm sure. If we both speak on the events in the Qiu Manor, both with our own biases and perspectives, then it will only be easier for the gathered masters here to come to their own, un-biased conclusion on the matter."

"Well said," the Old Palace Master allows, looking quite unhappy about it. "Then, as the head of Huan Hua Palace, I invite the cultivator Shen Yuan up to the platform to share his side of the story."

"This Shen Yuan is humbled by your generosity and wisdom in this matter." Shen Yuan bows to the old man and flicks out his fan. As he ascends the stairs, he meets his brother's withering glare with his own vicious grin. He turns to look into Qiu Haitang's face and schools his expression back into cool neutrality. "Now, where were we?"

Chapter Text

Despite all of his protests, anyone with functional eyes could see that Shen Shi is fading. Shen Jiu most of all. How could his brother stand to wake himself up every night coughing until he pukes and still go on the next day claiming it to be some minor illness? How could he not realize that with every stumble, every near-faint and retch, he's dying?

Shen Jiu knows his brother had never truly shaken off the illness that had nearly killed him all those years ago. It has been a passive spectre, flaring only on the coldest of winter days. But with every new day of torment and humiliation, Shen Shi fades. With every private lesson, he weakens. With every late night moment where he pushes Shen Jiu's own failure of a body back into alignment, he makes his own worse. Shen Jiu is the reason his brother is dying.

He curses his own spiteful nature often. He should've let that horse run wild, damn the rest! He should've kicked up a fight when the money was trading hands. He should kill them both to spare them the indignity of this fucking hell pit even one second longer!

Sometimes...he eyes his brother's peaceful face at night. Flushed, and totally helpless. He eyes that too-thin neck. He could save his brother. He would make it quick. Wrapping his hands around Shen Shi's throat is all too easy. Even there, they slot together perfectly. Shen Jiu has felt his brother's breath push in and out, hitching on some unseen obstacle that makes the skin under his hands jump and quiver.

In the end, though, he has always redirected his hands until they are holding on to Shen Shi's own. To be alone in this hell—even in the seconds it would take to end himself after his brother—is too much to withstand. He curses his cowardice, too.

It had been an elaborate dinner for several important merchant families. Qiu Jianluo had insisted they both be at his side to serve refreshments and be ogled in their complimentary, mirrored attire. Halfway through the party, Shen Shi had asked quietly to be excused, his hands already shaking and sweat pooling at his temples. Qiu Jianluo flatly refused.

As dessert was served, Shen Shi fainted.

To save face, Qiu Jianluo had made a big show of ordering his dear Shi-er to be taken to the medical house at once and for the local doctor to be called.

Of course, the "medical house" was the old wood shed. Not that the guests would know that.

Afterwards and in private, Shen Jiu had demanded his brother receive real treatment. Didn't he see that Shen Shi was on the brink of death? Didn't Qiu Jianluo care that his perfect matched set would be ruined?

Shen Jiu was strung up for a day and beaten until he couldn't walk for his impudence. Then he was dumped into the wood shed too.

"Look, Xiao Jiu! I've found a doctor for little Shi-er. If even you can't make him healthy, then I suppose I should start preparing for a funeral. Unless, of course, you get on your knees and beg me for medicine."

Even bloody and disoriented, Shen Jiu knew it was a trap. A tantalizing carrot on a switch that would crack down on his back as soon as he tried to reach for it. So, he refused. The door had slammed in his face and then locked with a heavy clunk.

That had been hours ago.

He'd done everything he could. He'd tried to focus and feel out his brother's energy, to do for his twin what Shen Shi always did so easily for Shen Jiu. All that he felt was clammy skin burning too hot in a freezing room. He switches to piling up straw and dirt to be blankets. Carefully brushing Shen Shi's hair from his face and soothing the furrow in his brow. Shen Jiu holds his twin's hand and whispers prayer after prayer after prayer for his health.

Then Shen Shi stops breathing.

It's in snatches of seconds at a time. He comes back with a weak splutter but the gap of silence in between when he stops and when he starts keeps growing. Shen Jiu looks around but there's only dirt and straw scattered about the floor. There is nothing left in this room that could help.

Shen Jiu slams himself into the door. He scratches at the hinges and handle until pieces of his nails chip away. When one fully flies out of its bed he curses and continues to scratch. So much of his own body thrums in agony that he can ignore the brilliant flares of pain in his hands if it means getting help for his brother. The old wood should be soft with age, shouldn't it? Still, it stands firm, and all he gets are splinters and bleeding fingers.

Battering it down could work, but as soon as he struggles to his feet for leverage he's crashing right back to the ground. He tries to break it down anyways and is forced to stop when he almost passes out against it from the pain. He could try digging a way out next but—it's still early spring and the ground has yet to thaw. He stares blankly down at his ruined fingers. They twitch and bleed. He thinks they might be tingling? It's hard to tell. They'd be utterly useless at digging. He keeps staring. The thought comes to him gently.

He can't get out.

Something huge and hot cracks right next to his heart. He sinks deeper into the dirt, pressing his face to that fucking door and he gives in. "Please! Please, medicine please! Help! I'll do anything just help him please!"

His eyes are burning pits in his face and he can hardly breathe past the mucus building in his nose and falling down his throat. He wails as loud as his lungs will take him. When nothing comes of it, he starts screaming. The words that leave him don't make it to his own ears. He is begging, grovelling, swearing to anyone that will listen everything he could ever have to give.

Ah, but, is there anyone to listen?

The realization strikes him dumb. His voice dies in his throat and he can faintly hear the sounds of crickets and star gazing frogs outside. It's the dead of night. No one but the guards at the gate are awake. The house won't rise for many hours more. And who knew when Qiu Jianluo would bother coming to check on them. Was there a window of time where he had been waiting? Could Shen Jiu have saved Shen Shi if he'd given up on his pride sooner?

No, those questions are pointless. He digs his mangled fingers into the wood grain and scowls. He knows Qiu Jianluo very well. The man had probably walked away as soon as the door had shut. There was never any hope of medicine.

Shen Jiu slumps to the ground, his back pressed up against the door so he can watch Shen Shi across the room. How funny. They're both curled the same way.

Ah, Shen Shi is going to die buried under dirt and straw in an old wood shed tucked away in the far corner of an estate that belongs to a horrible man. What would they do with the body? Qiu Jianluo wouldn't bury it. He'd probably end up using it as just another carrot on the end of a switch to get Shen Jiu to bend further to his desires.

Shen Jiu knows he should ruin his brother before anyone else gets the chance. He should kill Shen Shi, mangle him so horribly no one would ever dare to look at or touch his little brother's body ever again. Spare him a future as a toy for cruelty. Free him from all humiliation, even in death. Let him be useful rather than used. Shen Jiu should fish out a bone and chew it into a key. He should. He really, really should.

He can't bring himself to move.

Minutes or hours stretch into nothing as he watches the other half of himself struggle to die. Then, faintly, a mutter.

"It has to be this one..." Someone says, muffled footsteps coming closer to the woodshed.

Shen Jiu forces himself to his knees, pressing up against the door once more to try and get a look through the keyhole. If it's one of the new guards, maybe they could be swayed. "Hello?" He calls, his voice cracking horribly.

The footsteps stop, then shuffle rapidly his way. A soft thud and the door shakes under his touch, as if someone had put their own hand to its surface. "Is that you? Xiao Jiu?" The voice is achingly familiar. That heat in his chest pulses bright blisters into the walls of his heart.

"Qi-ge?" He doesn't want to be right.

"Yes!" Qi-ge is breathless on the other side of the door. "Yes, it's me!"

Shen Jiu has already begged once tonight. He hopes he never has to do it again, but he is desperate. "You have to open the door! Right now! Get this open, please."

Silence from the other side drags on far too long and what little patience he has snaps in half. "Qi-ge you have to get this open, there's no time-!"

"I can't!" Qi-ge says. "I...I can't. Not right now."

Begging on his knees twice feels suddenly trivial in the face of having hope die a second time in Shen Jiu's chest. The cold of the room finds a home in its place. It should soothe the blisters around his heart, but all it does is chafe.

Ignorant, Yue Qi continues. "I've finally joined a sect and I've begun cultivating but I'm- I try to push it to find you faster and I get weaker instead of stronger. I can't break this door down without alerting all of the guards, and I can't fight that many people off. So...I'm scouting tonight, but- but tomorrow-!"

Shen Jiu stares at the wood grain of the door, emptied out entirely. "My legs are broken," he says. Yue Qi starts making noises again so Shen Jiu continues. "They broke both of my legs. I can't run. Shen Shi is dead." It's only a lie if Yue Qi opens the door and proves him wrong. Shen Jiu waits for his words to fan the fire, for them to push Yue Qi into unveiling his lies, but...

The voice outside the door shatters into unrecognizable pieces. "They broke Xiao Jiu's legs? Xiao Shi is...dead?" A rustle of fabric and then the sound of someone muffling their sobs into their arm. "How...how long ago...?"

Hope dies thrice that night. "Days," Shen Jiu says.

"I'm so sorry." The voice cries. "I've failed you, both of you. I should've pushed harder, I should've insisted more I- I...am so sorry, Xiao Jiu. I'm so sorry."

It's the last thing he wants to hear. "Will you open the door? Will you? Promise me."

"I- as I am I'm too weak to-" the voice chokes on something in its throat. "But, I have...an idea. I'll need a few days to make this work but once it's done I'll have all the power I could ever need to save you. Four- no, three days. I'll do it in three days. Can you- will you last that long?"

"Please," Shen Jiu says. "Please hurry. Before they kill me, too."

The voice scrambles up on the other side of the door. Soft metallic sounds, an empty scabbard in a belt, clatter along with the motion. "Yes, yes, just three days and I'll be back here. Xiao Jiu I promise. Three days. Please wait for me."

"Please," it's all Shen Jiu can say any more. The voice says some more parting words that he doesn't hear, and then it scrambles back the way it came. It's just him and Shen Shi again. As it always has been, he supposes.

He crawls across the floor to sit at his brother's side. He should reach for that throat but instead his fingers dance across his twin's forehead and gently twist flyaway hairs back into place. "Please," he whispers, "please, please, please."

He sits vigil at Shen Shi's side. In the day, he holds his hands cupped under the leaky spot in the roof and catches snowmelt there. He passes mouthfuls to Shen Shi in careful dribbles and keeps every fifth one for himself. Shen Jiu's fingers ache then go numb by the first day, but he doesn't care. He sits, silent, and waits.

He waits and waits and waits and waits and waits and waits and waits and waits and says nothing.

Five days pass and Shen Shi's eyes finally open. His breath is still stuttering in his chest, but he's breathing consistently at least. "Jiu-ge?"

Shen Jiu brushes the old sweat from his brother's face. He hums.

"I dreamed...that Qi-ge came." Shen Shi mumbles. "It sounded so real...did it happen? Did he come back?"

Shen Jiu keeps running his swollen fingers through Shen Shi's hair. It helps keep it untangled and clean and it warms him, too. He likes to be practical. "Go back to sleep." He says.

His twin closes his eyes, his nose scrunching weakly above thinned lips. "Oh," Shen Shi whispers. "Never mind, then."

It's only after he's finished saying his smug line that Shen Yuan gets one single moment of clarity. He finally looks away from his brother and locks eyes with none other than the protagonist. Ah, and what a shape the protagonist cuts! With a fine jaw and thin lips pulled into a thoughtful frown, long coils of hair spilling artfully down his back, a high, smooth brow, and beneath it eyes that put the night sky to shame with how they shine. Intelligence, power, cunning. Those eyes say it all. Luo Binghe...your key art doesn't do your incredible aura justice!

Luo Binghe who is perhaps six feet away. Luo Binghe...who is the power source for the System.

Fuck! Shen Yuan had been living the past couple decades System-free, so he'd totally forgotten! Reconnecting now would be a death sentence if there were quests or rules he was supposed to be following. Well, not that there was much he could do about it now except keep his distance from the protagonist. Something totally do-able as the dramatically revealed long lost twin brother to his scum Shizun! Surely no protagonist needs to be curious about this development! Surely he can turn those brilliant, star-like eyes another way and slip away from the hands beloved by the heavens and infamously unwilling to let anything go again! AH HAH HAH HAH. Yeah, no, Shen Yuan's totally fucked.

But, for now, he needs to focus on the trial. He can work on an exit strategy later. Maybe he'll just kill himself? Hmm...Anyway. He deploys his fan to idly waft in front of him. It keeps his hands busy so his expression can stay flat and his brain can start working through arguments ahead of time. He scans the faces around once more to get an idea of who would be saying what and in which order. Liu Mingyan, Qiu Haitang, and Shen Qingqiu are openly glaring at him. Ning Yingying looks alarmingly pale, and Luo Binghe looks alarmingly neutral. Ah, what a welcoming array of expressions.

The Old Palace Master, creepy fuck that he is, just smiles. "This assembly has already heard Qiu Haitang's overview of things. Shen Yuan should give his own, then the two of you may engage in discourse until the matter is settled. I will be nearby to maintain civility as needed." He says, demurring in a way totally unbefitting of his age.

"Of course," Shen Yuan says. "To begin, Qiu Haitang is correct when she says that Shen Qingqiu—and I, naturally—were slaves purchased by the Qiu estate and later Qiu Jianluo directly." A flurry of whispers followed this, that can't be all true, I can hardly believe the Xiu Ya sword was really…how embarrassing. Shen Yuan ignores them, continuing, "Qiu Jianluo loved his little sister very much, and kept her isolated in the estate from all evils. The evils of pain, yes, but also companionship. To her, Qiu Jianluo's slaves…what else were they than funny new playmates? This one cannot fault Qiu Haitang for her ignorance in youth—not when she was just as wrapped up in Qiu Jianluo's lies and manipulations. In turn, please do not begrudge the bitterness that grew in a slave's heart."

Qiu Haitang, for her part, does not look too outraged or embarrassed by this speech. She merely takes in a short breath, frowning delicately. "A lady would never dare begrudge one for their feelings. But she would ask for more detail to ease her own. For in her mind, were you not given every kindness? Good clothes and snacks, lessons in literature and calligraphy that would serve any young master well in their life. A home free from the chill and danger of the outside world. The life Qiu Jianluo gave you both was well beyond what you could have achieved on your own. And Shen Jiu repays him with death?"

"Getting ahead of ourselves, are we?" Shen Yuan mutters. "It's true, the lessons from Qiu Jianluo will live on in my memory for a very long time indeed. But 'free from danger'? Well, the outside world, sure, but what of dangers inside the home? From your examples, clothes! Deliberately chosen to highlight our mirrored nature for guests to admire, never for our own fulfilment. Fine enough to alienate and isolate us from the paid servants in the manor. Snacks! A method of control or punishment, since meals had to come from the chef—the chef who was none too pleased to have two lowly children seemingly above him. How convenient to provide essentials to the needy and demand praise when it is one's own actions that created the need in the first place. Even the chill became a tool to demand obedience. Haitang-meimei, do you remember the old wood shed on the north of the estate?"

"Yes, I do." She keeps her chin high. He can almost respect her for that.

"Mm, I do too. Though Shen Qingqiu may have a greater memory than either of us. I almost died there as your brother forbade me any medicine or help unless Shen Qingqiu begged for it. Even after he had, he was still forced to watch me struggle for five days, starving." Shen Yuan says.

More gasps from the crowd, but he doesn't lets his eyes stray from Qiu Haitang. Her face is paler, but her expression remains still as a spring pond. "My heart hurts for you, Shi-Gongzi. And yet I struggle to believe my brother would be so heartless. Now, I cannot refute the idea that servants, prone to jealousy, could have made your life harder in our estate. It's not hard to imagine them disobeying his orders and forcing your suffering to continue behind his back, though I hate to speak ill of them. Especially as none of them are here with us today to stand and speak their grievances." Ah, little miss, still hanging on to that classism are you? And even tacking on a guilt trip right at the end there? Truly you're not someone to be underestimated. "Yet you yourself admitted the lessons with my brother have stayed with you. I know how much he adored both you and Shen Jiu, no matter how servants may have defied his orders out of jealousy. Even if you can only see twisted schemes in it, the sheer amount of time he spent with the two of you speaks for itself."

Shen Yuan ducks his smirk behind his fan. Hah hah! Haitang-meimei, you've fallen for my trap card! "Hours and hours," he agrees loftily. "Days and nights, enduring humiliation directly under his hand." More exclamations and unsubtle whispering arise from the crowd but he doesn't have time to indulge them just yet. "Qiu Jianluo adored beating his lessons into our bones and leveraging us against each other, just to see how far he could push us until we broke. Forcing a happy facade over it to keep you in the dark and use you to create punishments. No matter one's station in life, to take out any emotion against the flesh of a child is an atrocious act—the lowest of the low! As anyone with any ounce of virtue in their soul would agree!" He takes a breath. Qiu Haitang still doesn't look truly shaken, but he has to approach this next part very carefully.

He forces his anger down until he can move past it. Slowly, like pulling candy, Shen Yuan says, "that is why, it may be of no surprise, that your brother finally pushed too far and was killed, along with many, many others. That his entire estate had to burn for his crimes. And that I was the one to do it. Haitang-meimei, you always did have trouble telling the two of us apart."

A sharp cry goes up from below. A collective shuffling follows as the gathered masters and wanderers jump to their feet in outrage. Shen Yuan keeps Qiu Haitang's eyes throughout it all. They've gone wide and suddenly nervous. All of the blood leaping from her face to pool in her knuckles as she grips tight to the hem of her robe. Is she scared? He supposes it is rather different to throw accusations and vitriol at someone bound and helpless than it is to lay them at the feet of someone with ready access to a sword.

The Old Palace Master steps between them, his calm facade broken open into something more calculating. "Patience, everyone! Peace! Cultivator Shen Yuan, are you admitting to this hall that you were responsible for the Qiu massacre?"

"Did my mouth move without me? Yes, I did it."

If anything, the hall falls into even more chaos when he says it a second time. One of the other wandering cultivators stands tall among the crowd. "A confession to such brutality! He should be arrested at once!"

Shen Yuan openly rolls his eyes. "Have the laws of the Emperor suddenly taken over the Jianghu? If a demon were to hurt your sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, wives, or husbands, would you not track them down to their village and burn that to the ground? If they've wronged you, is it not just to repay that wrong ten times over?"

"An upstanding member of society can hardly be likened to a demon." A young man dressed in pale purple robes says. "You can't hold them to the same level as humans."

"A demon will scream in pain and sorrow just as loudly as any human." Shen Yuan says through his teeth.

That same purple cultivator snorts loudly. "So does a cow! You don't see farmers weeping over their butchered livestock."

Shen Yuan opens his mouth to continue, but The Old Palace Master flicks out his sleeves, the shine of the golden thread catching the light and quieting the gathered crowds. "Esteemed masters, gentle your hearts and minds. We are here for the trial of Shen Qingqiu and that has not changed. One inflammatory piece of testimony will not overturn our systems of justice and fairness."

Taking stock of the situation, Qiu Haitang looks deathly pale, and Ning YingYing and Liu Mingyan are trading quiet words. Luo Binghe is staring intently right at Shen Yuan. Jolting, he chances a look over at Shen Qingqiu who—honestly, looks a bit lost. As soon as he sees his twin looking though, that expression is tucked right back behind a disdainful, immortal master mask. Well, two can play that game. Shen Yuan lifts his chin, looking down through his lashes at the Old Palace Master. "Do you take me for a liar?"

The old man raises his palms in supplication. "Certainly not, Cultivator Shen. However, my years have taught me to trust in the words of others while verifying their actions in turn. It would not be strange for a family member, moved by filial piety, to step in front of a sword blow meant for one of their own."

"And how would you like to verify my deeds? As Haitang-guniang has pointed out, aside from those in this room already, who could be left that remembers the event?" Unsaid, who would anyone here trust to speak the truth? With both Shen Yuan and Qiu Haitang in disagreement, could anyone willingly turn to Shen Qingqiu for answers?

Obviously not. Everyone in this room had rallied together to tear that man to shreds, they couldn't trust anything he might say. The Old Palace Master knows this, too, and makes a great show of considering Shen Yuan's question. "It seems for the fire itself, all we may have is testimony. However, if Qiu Jianluo's mistreatment of you and your brother was so severe, surely there must be some lingering evidence of it."

Shen Yuan raises a brow. "Are you asking me to disrobe, Palace Master?"

That gets a reaction from his twin brother who looks about five seconds away from strangling Shen Yuan, immortal binding cables or no. Not to mention the uproar from their onlookers below. The Old Palace Master himself pauses, taking a delicate moment to decide on how best to steer the conversation again.

Shen Qingqiu does not let him get very far. "How low can one be?" He scoffs. "Such endurance should be applauded. It's not everyday one can see another bear their decades-old shame so brazenly as to make the removal of clothes sound trivial."

"I wasn't aware truth and shame had been confused." Shen Yuan says, deliberately affecting innocence. "What a miserable life, indeed, for anyone who has mixed up the two."

"I wonder if it is more arrogance or naïveté to see no shame in a truth." Shen Qingqiu replies.

Shen Yuan snorts and closes his eyes so no one can see him roll them. Yes, it's going to be hard to meet the eyes of anyone else at the trial today. Though, Jiu-ge, have some confidence please! Shen Yuan is being very careful to keep the worst details tucked away in his sleeves! He's simply reciting the facts—he's had a lot of time to get used to them. "Perhaps it is fear that shows one only shame, no matter the truth."

The Old Palace Master coughs gently into his sleeves. "Pardon my interruption, but, to keep the dialogue on topic, there are many ways to prove an old wound aside from disrobing, Cultivator Shen. Such hardship can often be seen through any scars left in one's spiritual veins."

"This lowly one would be willing to help with the examination." Luo Binghe offers, sitting a little straighter on his cushion.

The Old Palace Master begins to chuckle out some grandfatherly words of praise but Shen Yuan cuts in, "there's no need." He says, a little too quick to be casual. He could NOT let Luo Binghe touch him, let alone mingle their qi together! Keep the electricity off while untangling dangerous wires! "Perhaps a member of the audience could be of service here. You spoke of filial piety earlier, why not let Mu Qingfang examine Shen Qingqiu's veins? I'm sure he's done so before."

On queue, almost every eye turns to where the Cang Qiong Mountain Sect masters are seated. One wiry man with small glasses perched on his nose and a very thin moustache purses his lips. That must be Mu Qingfang then. The whole atrium holds their breath as the man mulls over his answer.

"How dare you," a clear, feminine voice says.

Hiding his surprise very poorly, Shen Yuan turns and meets the level gaze of Liu Mingyan. Ah! His favourite character! Please stop looking at this panicking man like he's a worm in your fruit bowl! He likes her very much and wants to give her some time to shine, too, so Shen Yuan tilts his head and says, "hm?"

Liu Mingyan doesn't need to stand to make her presence felt in the room. Her voice demands to be heard without her having to raise it. Her back is held straight and proud, the epitome of grace and power. She lets her eyes trail away from Shen Yuan and over to Shen Qingqiu. "How dare you speak of filial piety. Shen Qingqiu has always detested his fellow sect siblings. To ask them to come to his defence now is a selfish request."

"Perhaps," Shen Yuan admits, softer. He is a self-serving person to the core, he can't deny it. Of course she would be offended by such a request on the behalf of her sect. Shen Qingqiu killed her brother, after all. Someone he was supposed to treat as his own brother. And, truly, this request is only being made so Shen Yuan can save his own flimsy skin. "Apologies, I don't mean any offence to you or Cang Qiong Mountain Sect. But I can think of no better medical cultivator under heaven than Mu Qingfang. He is a trusted and upright member of society. His diagnosis will carry weight few else could."

Liu Mingyan's eyes narrow ever so slightly. Then she closes them and dips her head in understanding.

Below, Yue Qingyuan says a few low words to Mu Qingfang before releasing the other man to ascend the central platform. Mu Qingfang looks wildly uncomfortable as he crests the stairs. His eyes keep darting between all of the assembled faces and he can't seem to decide where they should land.

The Old Palace Master, once again trying to take control of things, bows to Mu Qingfang. Once returned, the older man smiles serenely. "As the Peak Lord of Qian Cao, you have surely seen almost every member of your sect once. What do you make of Cultivator Shen's claim of childhood mistreatment?"

"To speak frankly, Qingqiu-shixiong has always been rather independent when it came to his own health and wellbeing." Mu Qingfang clears his throat. "However, I have noticed some patterns in my shixiong's spiritual veins that would align with repeated injuries. I can't say if they're from childhood or his own journey through cultivation, though. Not without deeper study." He pauses, then turns to Shen Qingqiu and holds his hand out. "May I?"

"No," Shen Qingqiu replies immediately.

So stubborn! And for what? Does he think being so uncooperative makes him look cool!? Shen Yuan sighs and offers up his own hand. "You can look at mine, if you wish."

Mu Qingfang glances over at Qiu Haitang, still pale and staring at Shen Yuan rather intently, before nodding. He picks up Shen Yuan's hand between clinical fingers and begins pushing his own qi through Shen Yuan's system. Mu Qingfang's qi is clear and smooth, like an untainted stream. It ventures through Shen Yuan's veins quickly and thoroughly. Pushing and prodding where necessary, but never overstaying its welcome. After a few minutes, Mu Qingfang steps back, standing much taller now than he had been.

"Based on the state of Shen-gongzi's meridians, I would come to the conclusion that he had endured significant injury and stress very early in life. The foundational pathways are twisted and brittle in the way I typically see in..." The man pauses, briefly looking over to Shen Yuan. Shen Yuan, touched by Mu Qingfang's kindness, nods ever so slightly. Mu Qingfang takes a deep breath, "in victims of abuse. If he began cultivating soon after, well, leaving the estate or during his time there, that would align with what I felt in the meridians."

Qiu Haitang presses a trembling hand to her mouth. Her eyes clenched tightly shut as she sinks down onto her pillow. Shen Yuan watches her muffle her cries into her palms and...ah, where is that feeling of victory? He'd proven her wrong, he'd won their verbal sparring match. This is where he would typically kick back from his keyboard, oozing satisfaction at a job well done. But watching the isolated little meimei crumble under the truth of her brother's cruelty only leaves him feeling cold; a bit lost. All she had ever done to him was be ignorant. She shouldn't have to bear the weight of her brother's crimes. Ah, but, just like back then, he had to worry about himself and Shen Jiu first. He forces himself to put all his worry for Qiu Haitang into the farthest corners of his mind.

"Many thanks for your expertise, Peak Lord Mu." The Old Palace Master says.

Mu Qingfang gives one short nod of his own before promptly beelining for the stairs once more. It's probably a good thing that a doctor has such aversion to dramatics and gossip.

Quietly, Ning Yingying leans over from where she's sat to press a small silk cloth into Qiu Haitang's hands. "Take slow, deep breaths." She whispers. Only those standing close enough to the two women could hear her—regardless of cultivation level.

Shen Yuan quickly averts his eyes. It feels much too intimate for him to be listening in on, especially when he himself is the one who made those tears fall. He gives the Old Palace Master a thin smile. "Are we still progressing chronologically? As I understand it, there are four more accusations to be addressed."

"Is Cultivator Shen staying with us?"

"Only as far as I am allowed, elder."

There's some mutterings from below, one person doesn't know how to whisper and "he should be allowed a length of chain," makes it up above the din. The Old Palace Master hums but decides its a battle he doesn't want to fight. "I see no reason not to continue in order," the elderly man says, "Liu Mingyan? You have the floor."

The woman remains sitting. She turns to address Shen Qingqiu directly and makes unflinching eye contact with her shishu. "While in seclusion in the Ling Xi caves, my brother, Liu Qingge, and Shen Qingqiu were completely alone. When my brother suffered a qi deviation, Shen Qingqiu took the opportunity to horribly impair my brother's cultivation, resulting in his near-permanent injury. Do you deny this?"

Shen Qingqiu meets her stare. "No, I do not."

The crowd of filthy gossips and head shakers make more of their noises. Shen Yuan taps his fan against his chin. Liu Qingge isn't dead? Weird...what changed in the Ling Xi caves to keep him alive? "Would it not be wise to expand on the events in the Ling Xi caves? If you do not deny the results, Peak Lord Shen, then context should be given for the sake of closure."

The Old Palace Master looks like he's seriously regretting letting Shen Yuan stay up here. Well, too bad, old man! You made the fatal mistake of inviting Shen Yuan to ask questions and failed to kick him out after the first round—he's prepared to be a shameless pedant and grasp onto every single straw of testimony dangled his way!

His twin scoffs. "What more is there to say? He flew into a qi deviation like a madman and I ruined him in return. It's rather cut and dry."

"Like a madman?" Shen Yuan repeats. "What was the altercation like in the Ling Xi caves?"

"Unimportant in the wake of its finale." Shen Qingqiu says.

"Ah, but doesn't every question in a trial deserve an answer, no matter its source nor objective quality?" Shen Yuan shoots right back.

His twin scowls fiercely at him, his jaw visibly clenching. "As any cultivator may know, qi deviations are no small matter. Those who go through them are trapped in turmoil that warps the perception of both themselves and the world around them. Liu Qingge is not so special as to be exempt from this. You can use your imagination."

Shen Yuan hums. He glances over at Liu Mingyan, but she has turned away from his twin, her hands folded neatly in her lap. She already got her answer, he supposes. Still, he's not satisfied with simply accepting the ending to a story without any of the middle. To Shen Qingqiu, "did Liu Qingge attack you?"

"We fought," Shen Qingqiu says around a sneer. Which isn't a no.

Oh, Jiu-ge. Shen Yuan's heart lurches painfully in his chest. His brother has always been private to an outrageous degree. Shen Qingqiu prefers to speak through his actions, no matter how many fancy, flowery words he'd throw in your face. Often, what he doesn't say is more important than what he does. Shen Yuan deliberately tries to catch Liu Mingyan's eye. "Miss Liu, who discovered the two peak lords in the Ling Xi caves? Do you know what the scene looked like?"

"Shang-shishu was the one to find them." She says slowly. "The state of the caves, I cannot say. And before you ask, Shang-shishu has been missing since the last Immortal Alliance conference. We cannot ask him for his testimony."

No doubt becoming the ultimate sleazy henchman to Mobei Jun, Shen Yuan muses. Though, it's still odd that Shang Qinghua would be the one to discover the state of the caves. Did the northern demon lord want to keep the Bai Zhan War God around? But why? Wouldn't Liu Qingge be a threat to Mobei Jun?

Shen Yuan shakes his wild speculation away. He'll have to pick more at that problem later. "Then it sounds like Liu Qingge went into a qi deviation and ended up getting into a fight with the only other living thing in the caves. Shen Qingqiu may very well have been defending himself."

Liu Mingyan shakes her head. "Be that as it may, as his shixiong, Shen Qingqiu had a duty to Liu Qingge. Instead of being honourable and showing his care for his sect siblings, Peak Lord Shen decided to let his petty grudge take over and horribly mangle my brother."

"You seem so certain that Shen Qingqiu didn't even try to help Liu Qingge. Are relations between them really so terrible?"

"Is it any wonder," Luo Binghe cuts in, "that no one would expect filiality from him? Qiu Haitang originally mentioned that he'd cut his own blood twin to pieces. While untrue, he's certainly been making mince of your defences with his words. It lends very well to a pattern with Shen Qingqiu—an utter lack of care for anyone deemed his brother. That's just the sort of animal he is."

Shen Yuan narrows his eyes. In the original novel, Luo Binghe had simply sat back and watched as Shen Qingqiu's lies crumbled under his feet while the scum villain tied his own noose on the stand. Yet here he'd been interrupting more and more frequently. Young Demon Lord just what are you up to? "How prescriptive. Two points make a line, not a pattern. And, honestly, this is what civil care looks like between us. Our relationship, however, is not the one relevant to our conversation. Tell me, what are things like between Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge?"

"They have a uniquely hateful dynamic." Liu Mingyan says. "It's very well known that both of them cannot stand one another."

"So," Shen Yuan flutters his fan open for emphasis, "if you were in the middle of a qi deviation and came across someone you cannot stand even when you have all of your faculties under control, would you let them get close enough to help you?"

"It is unlikely," Liu Mingyan allows. "However, if they simply fought, that is one thing. But nearly destroying all of your shidi's spiritual veins? That, in my opinion, is too far for even a claim of self defence to cover."

Oof, Shen Qingqiu what the fuck happened in those caves!? Shen Yuan fought to keep the grimace off of his face. He'd seen that kind of brutality before. Done purposefully, there is no way to come back from the attack; a slow, mortal death awaited anyone on the receiving end. You'd only do that kind of damage by forcing your qi through someone's meridians too fast for the system to- wait a second. "That is indeed a tragedy. But I have to wonder...Shen Qingqiu, were you trying to soothe Liu Qingge's meridians? Was this malice? Or an extremely unfortunate case of medicine turned to poison under duress?"

It's all too easy to picture. Liu Qingge, gone mad in the throes of a qi deviation, stumbling upon Shen Qingqiu. In the ensuing battle, Shen Qingqiu tries to get Liu Qingge's meridians under control, but was too preoccupied with not getting run through to regulate his energy correctly and...an accident. A horrible, horrible accident. Liu Mingyan's eyes widen, coming to some kind of similar conclusion, and she turns sharply to Shen Qingqiu.

The man in question still manages to look imperious even under this new scrutiny. "The intent hardly matters in the wake of the consequences. I have already confirmed things with Disciple Liu. There is no reason to draw out the matter save for some moronic desire to overturn every stone in the quarry, dreaming of finding gold."

"Shen-gongzi is the only one making an effort to speak in your favour." Luo Binghe points out. "Shouldn't Shizun be encouraging his questions?"

Ignoring his own disciple, Shen Qingqiu glares hard at his brother. "Quite frankly, your questions do little but cast more mud into already disturbed waters when you should only wait for them to clear on their own."

What arrogance! Qingqiu, don't you know that this trial would've absolutely ruined you without your stupid brother getting involved? Shen Yuan works his jaw silently behind his fan.

"Shen-shishu, is Shen-gongzi right?" Liu Mingyan asks, leaning closer. "Did you-"

That meddling old geezer butts in again. "I believe we have heard sufficient testimony on the fate of Liu Qingge."

Liu Mingyan clearly looks ready to refute this, but Shen Qingqiu ignores her, too. He sniffs delicately and picks at the hem of his robe. "Yes, onto the demon conspiracy, correct?"

"It is rather cut and dry, I'm afraid." The Old Palace Master sighs, looking for all the world like a put upon wife. "At Jin Lan City, a horde of Sowers were unleashed upon the entire town, resulting in a months' long plague and countless commoner deaths and permanent injuries. When finally cornered, mostly by my disciple Luo Binghe here, a sower begged Shen Qingqiu to remember their deal together and to spare its life."

Being the most recent event, there wasn't much surprise from the crowd. They were already quite familiar with all of the gossip surrounding Jin Lan City. That didn't stop the brave few from increasing their mutterings. "What scum," "How can he sit there so unbothered?" "I wouldn't be surprised if it turned out Shen Qingqiu was a demon himself." "Hah! Too fitting!"

Shen Yuan does his best to tune them all out, his jaw flexing. "Alright, and where is this star witness for questioning?"

"All of the sowers were promptly incinerated to prevent another plague breaking out, Cultivator Shen. You understand." The Old Palace Master demurs.

"You-" ah, a headache is quickly building, "but surely you thoroughly questioned this demon for more answers, yes?"

"And deny the tired, wronged citizens of Jin Lan City their justice for even a moment longer? No, certainly not. No matter our own imperatives, we as cultivators are meant to serve the common people. To bring them justice where they would not see it otherwise. They needed to see the arbiters of their suffering dead."

The gold shining off of every surface of the atrium paints the old man's face in an artificial ethereal light. Shen Yuan scowls fiercely, reminded viscerally of why he hates the broader Jianghu so much. "Do you have any other evidence that Shen Qingqiu was working with the demons in Jin Lan City?" He hisses.

The Old Palace Master frowns, stroking at his beard. "Certainly. He was observed sneaking about from the minute he arrived. Abandoning his sect to conduct his own 'investigation'. Hours each day where he could coordinate the final attack on the city. We tried to ask Shen Qingqiu questions directly ahead of the trial, but, ah, he remained uncooperative."

He can't help it. He really, really can't! Shen Yuan barks out a laugh. "Is that all? He investigates on his own and no one considers that he may actually be investigating? The job he was sent there to do?"

"His reputation-"

"Doesn't matter!" He cuts the old bag of wind off harshly. "This is meant to be a fair court, and yet, at every single turn all that's been provided for proof of Shen Qingqiu's misdeeds is patchwork testimony, misattributed skepticism, and wild speculation! Do you seriously hold the word of some demon on death's door above one of the top cultivators in your society?"

The Old Palace Master's frown morphs into a look of utter pity. "As a rogue cultivator, you may not be as familiar with how things work for those of us in sects. Your conduct in society does a great deal to colour-"

"Answer my question, Old Palace Master." Shen Yuan spits.

"I was getting to it. Honestly, the new generation is so impatient." The Old Palace Master sighs and his whole chest heaves. "When one is on the verge of death, that is often when one is the most honest. Anyone would want to be fully understood in their final moments."

Shen Yuan forces himself to take a breath. His fist is clenched so hard over the guard of his fan that he can hear the spines creak as he literally shakes with rage. "You cannot have it both ways." He says, cold. "Are demons less than livestock or are they people looking to be understood?"

"Is this related?"

"Yes! Because this is yet more proof of your own hypocrisy! Where avenging massacres are a matter of course if its killing demons, yet only ever a tragedy with humans. Where you condemn and look down on those beneath you from one side of your mouth then insist you only exist to help and serve them with the other!" Shen Yuan advances on the Old Palace Master with each word. He needs to know exactly where these accusations are being thrown. "Where you drag a man to trial over something as petty as a poor reputation because he happens to be a self-aggrandizing prick. Taking the absolute worst view of events simply because, ah! He's just a low beast! Of course he's the one who bit down on your hand, no matter that his teeth don't match the wound! He's a dirty slave who dared to become powerful and you just can't fucking stand it!"

The elderly man's face has cycled through red, green, black, and is now bubbling up in a brilliant purple. "Cultivator Shen-!" He hisses like he's reprimanding a child.

Shen Yuan spins on his heel to address the now-silent audience. "What's more believable? That a cultivator would conspire with demons to create a horrid plague—to what end? To eventually have Cang Qiong assigned to the case? To eventually turn on his conspirators and net points for killing them and saving the city? They're the number one sect! They don't need help finding work or prestige! Or! The much simpler idea that, shock of all shocks, someone lied to make Cang Qiong lose face! Either way we'll never know because you killed off the fucking witness!"

Now that he's going, he can't stop. "If you really cared about trying Shen Qingqiu for his crimes you'd do everything in your power to make the case as air tight as possible. Not throw some grand production with flimsy, emotional testimony so you can all pat yourselves on the back for pretending to go through the proper motions and for coming to a decision you'd already made years ago about his innocence or guilt! We've got one more accusation don't we? Well, let's take it away already! Shen Qingqiu is an irredeemable pervert and preys on his young disciples." He marches across the platform to where the youngest members of Qing Jing are sitting. "Look! We have two of them right here, so, Ning Yingying, Luo Binghe, is your Shizun a horrible lecher? Be honest! We're all listening!"

The whole atrium has lost its voice. Ning Yingying has blanched brighter than bone. Her eyes search the platform before coming to rest on Luo Binghe. The protagonist, meanwhile, has his perfect brow furrowed. His star-filled eyes burning brightly in the same was as meteors right before they strike the ground. He takes in a breath and his mouth opens, a wry, ugly smile pulling up at his lips but-

Ning Yingying places her hand feather soft over Luo Binghe's and he startles. She closes her eyes, her lips thin and bloodless with how tightly she's pressed them together. "No," she says. In the quiet of the atrium it echoes more than a shout. "No, my Shizun has only ever treated me with fatherly kindness."

The audience erupts in whispers. Their faces slack jawed and wide eyed. Shen Yuan smirks, turning to look his brother in the eyes. I'll take that thank you any day now.

It's not over yet, idiot, Shen Qingqiu glares back.

"But," Ning Yingying's soft voice still cuts through the noise as cleanly as any spiritual weapon. "But...he did not show the same kindness to my shidi and shixiongs." Luo Binghe stiffens next to her, shifting forward on his knees to stand. She pulls him right back down to her side, their hands still intertwined. "My Shizun is a harsh man. It's well known his punishments and discipline are especially gruelling. But I understand reputation and here say is fallible. For my evidence, my beloved shidi Luo Binghe is all anyone needs to see. I'm sure that's why he was willing to help with the scan earlier, his own meridians would match with Shen-gongzi's. He was assumed dead after the Immortal Alliance Conference, despite being the first in the rankings for all of the young cultivators. And then, when it turns out he's not dead, he returns to Huan Hua, not Cang Qiong.

"For a long time, I didn't want to see how my Shizun treated my shidi. I didn't want to understand it, so I didn't. I didn't want to know about the lashes, the chores, the woodshed, how much he struggled and suffered under the man I loved like a father, all of it. But..." She takes a deep breath and even though she doesn't look at Qiu Haitang, it's clear she's addressing the other woman. "I refuse to turn away from it any more. Luo Binghe left Cang Qiong because Qing Jing wasn't safe for him. It wasn't ever safe for him there."

Shen Yuan is, honestly, speechless. His rage has frozen in place and he feels bereft in its absence. The abuse itself isn't shocking, he'd read thousands upon thousands of words about it with his own eyes. But he hadn't expected it to be brought up at the trial. In the original novel, Luo Binghe's abuse hadn't been addressed anywhere public. It was only ever used in narration to justify his newest desire or in private to sympathize with a bruised flower. The protagonist himself looks even more surprised. His hand going tight around Ning Yingying's. There's something a little manic about his eyes, an panic carved deep into his heart that makes his face look a whole decade younger. Cracked open.

Shen Yuan had bared his own past willingly. For Luo Binghe, he'd been unwittingly stripped down to the core and shown around to make a point. It's a vulnerability the protagonist probably hasn't had to face in many years. Ah, Shen Yuan thinks, how like Ning Yingying. The girl digs holes no matter the yard, it seems. He can relate.

Shen Qingqiu makes an odd noise, not quite a scoff but stronger than a sigh. "What, nothing to say to that emotional testimony, Cultivator Shen?"

Jiu-ge, really, just shut up already. Shen Yuan flicks his fan open to hide the curl of his lip. "I believe I've made my stance on child abuse perfectly clear, Peak Lord Shen."

The Old Palace Master starts making noises and shuffling his sleeves around, still clinging onto some fake control of the trial he hasn't had since it began. "There, you see? It's clear to all that-"

"That's enough." A low, steady voice calls from the audience. Yue Qingyuan is standing proud among the other peak lords. He's smiling, but he still looks hollow. "This trial—this production—is over. We're done here."

Shen Shi has a plan. He may not have expected to start his plan from…here, but…it'll have to do. He peels himself away from the divan, wincing at all the ways his muscles pull under his skin. His breaths come short and he has to pause, kneeling on the floor, before he can continue.

He knows his brother is close to snapping. And, to be honest, a darker part of Shen Shi is nearing his own edge. But Shen Jiu's edge has always been sharper than Shen Shi's, he has to act before his brother does. If they had to hide from soldiers looking for a murderer it'd be a pain. It'd be better for everyone if it just appeared that they'd died. Then they'd be free to get back to Qi-ge and figure out how to live their lives on their own time. It'd have to be believable though. This is why, as Shen Shi struggles to his feet in Qiu Jianluo's side room, he eyes the hearth.

Qiu Jianluo is a man burdened by comfort. Even at the height of summer humidity, he insisted on keeping the hearths stocked with materials just in case he wanted to light a fire at night. In case he wanted to burn something or someone, more likely. Shen Shi is well acquainted with the poker.

The mansion is made primarily of lacquered wood. It wouldn't start to burn until the fire gets hot enough so he needs a good starter. Thankfully, the divan is draped in silk blankets with fine threaded detailing. He rips the offending items into long strips and spirals them around the room. Wrapping them around pieces of furniture before finally leading the head of the strand to the hearth.

Admittedly, Shen Shi is not an experienced arsonist. The fire spreads much quicker than he anticipates.

He stumbles, blind and lungs burning through the estate. "GEGE!" He shouts, straining his ears to try and listen for his twin amidst all of the panicked servants running wild. Some are trying to stop the blaze, but others are just running. Even more are bleeding, their eyes unseeing as they trail screaming from the estate.

"There he is!" Someone calls.

Shen Shi turns only once the sound of hurried feet slapping against stone is clearly coming straight for him and then there's-

He must black out a bit. He blinks back to himself laying flat on his back, the snarling face of the chef overhead while his left arm feels completely numb. There's a sword blade cutting into his shoulder. The chef's right ear is hanging from his head by a wet strip of skin. He's covered in blood, gashes running across his forearms and when his fingers clench around Shen Shi's throat he can feel a few missing.

"Shen Jiu you wretched beast! I'm not letting you get away again! Die! DIE!"

Wrong one! Wrong one! Shen Shi gasps to try and let the chef know but saliva burbles in his throat and steals away his words. He scrapes his nails against the chef's arms, trying to dig into the wounds already there. The man snarls and pushes the kid harder into the ground.

The smoke swirls harshly in the air. It makes everything look spotty, unreal. Or, maybe his vision is just going out? It's hard to tell. His lungs were already burning but now they're searing two giant holes through his chest and, heavens, it hurts. Everything's hurt since he got to this shitty world. There hasn't been even one break from the agony which—he supposes makes sense. This is Proud Immortal Demon's Way, after all.

But it hurts. It really hurts, and he doesn't like it.

Tears spill out of unseeing eyes and Shen Shi wishes he'd gotten to meet the protagonist at least. Luo Binghe would be able to go through all of this and then get up and keep going, rising to new and brighter heights. Shen Shi doesn't know if he could do that. Because Luo Binghe is the favoured son of heaven and Shen Shi is just—less. In all ways, less.

Ah, but he really wants to see Luo Binghe. He wants his Jiu-ge to pick at his hair again. He wants his Qi-ge to gently lie about waking someone else up for watch. He wants-!

Shen Shi shoves what little qi he has up and through the chef, tracing the stagnant paths inside the older man until he can find his heart and force those still streams of life energy wide open to tear it apart from the inside.

Air falls back into his throat in a rush as the chef spasms and collapses off to the side. Shen Shi coughs hard, everything burning, burning, but he's done it. He's survived. He clutches at his throat and stares at the still-twitching body of the chef. Something hot is building in his chest but he has to- there's no time to sit and cry and sob on the floor. He has to find his brother.

It takes some work, but he pries the sword free, and now he's armed.

He stumbles through the manor, calling out, and cutting down anyone who gets too close or looks too mad. Their deaths don't matter. It won't matter once he can find Shen Jiu and they can get out together and leave all of this behind. He ignores the blood overwhelming the stench of smoke and the growing trail of viscera in his wake, it doesn't matter.

He searches until the red lacquer starts melting off the wooden beams and mixing with the pools of blood soaking under mangled corpses. There's more bodies than Shen Shi thought he'd killed, but, thinking is pretty hard at the moment. He's very aware he could be missing things. Facts about smoke inhalation and fire safety flit across his mind and leave distracting sparks in their wake. He blinks hard to try and clear them away, but if anything they start shining brighter.

By the time the building begins to groan and collapse, Shen Shi is forced to abandon his search. He falls back to the surrounding forests and watches for any other shapes to come stumbling out of the blaze. He notes some maids, a few of the stable boys. But he doesn't see Shen Jiu. He keeps watching as Qiu Manor burns to the ground.

With the air clearer, his mind clears too. The blood has gone tacky where it's splashed along his body. It makes his skin feel tight whenever he shuffles a little. He's reminded of the names and faces of the people he killed slowly. A spool of thread going lax and spilling upwards. His stomach feels cold. He can't bring himself to regret it. Not when he's still breathing, out in the forest. Not when he gets to watch his own personal hell crumble into ash with his own eyes. But then, where is Shen Jiu?

When the fire has died back to almost nothing late in the next day, he goes picking through the ashes. There are plenty of bodies to look over, but none of them are his brother. He's sure there are more hidden under the heavier pieces of building that he can't get into. One of those is Qiu Jianluo's study. He tries his best, but the ash is slippery and the wood is much too heavy for him to lift. He's sure Shen Jiu is in there. Qiu Jianluo too, probably. Are they buried together?

Ah.

He sinks down into the dirt. He'd done that. Locked them together forever.

Shen Shi doesn't really remember the next few days. He knows he'd scrounged together some scorched clothes and a bit of food and water only because he has those things with him around his camp fire. He's gotten much better with controlling a blaze, at least! He doesn't have to go to bed cold anymore! He might've levelled up, then!

-

He's maybe 18 when he gets his first "disciple". Shen Shi never finds a formal master himself. But he knows roughly what cultivation is supposed to look and feel like based on all of the xianxia web novels he'd read religiously in his past life. Not to mention, he seems to have a much stronger sense of his qi and how to push and pull it to his will than the average person. Still, any of the major sects worth their salt were pits of abuse and back stabbing. He'd briefly considered going to Cang Qiong to try and run into Binghe, but that'd mean he'd have to deal with the scum villain, Shen Qingqiu, and he just- no. It's barely been two years since Qiu manor burned. He's in no hurry to jump into another one. Maybe later but...not now.

So he keeps his distance and sticks to civilian towns. He picks up work where he can. Apothecaries can earn a pretty penny, apparently! He can put his knowledge of the world and his qi manipulation to good work that way. Maybe it's because he promotes himself as a travelling apothecary rather than cultivator that he starts to attract a different kind of attention.

An older man marches right up to him and demands Shen Shi prepare a poultice for good skin. "Bao Kun here is finally making herself useful and needs to make a good impression." The man says.

It's then that Shen Shi notices a young girl at the man's side. Maybe 10, but with how thin and ragged she is she appears younger. The familiar curling shape of a slave brand peeks out from her collar. Ah.

He invites the man and Bao Kun back to his camp to create the medicine. Of course, he kills the man—he'd been too self-important to recognize the danger before it's too late. Bao Kun doesn't scream, but she eyes Shen Shi with open fear.

He gets down on his knees and smiles at her, keeping a good distance. "Do you have any family?"

She doesn't answer.

"Any friends waiting for you back in the city? I can get you back to them. I'll leave you with some money. I can't get rid of the brand, not completely, but I can make it less obvious. You deserve a chance at a real life."

Bao Kun swallows loudly. But her eyes harden. "Are you a cultivator? That's how you did it, right? How you killed him just by touching him?"

"Something like that." He says.

"What's your name?" She asks.

He usually dodges these kinds of questions where he can, just in case there really are any soldiers out looking for him, but she deserves honesty. "Shen Shi, though please call me Shen Yuan."

"Could you teach me to do that?"

He tries to persuade her against it, but she's as unmovable as a mountain, which makes sense given her name. Clearly her parents had known she'd be stubborn. This is how he gets his first disciple.

Sometimes he has one, sometimes as many as five, sometimes none. They come and go as they please and he doesn't have anything close to a true curriculum. But the kids he finds need a fire at night and he's more than ready to provide. He keeps hoping he'll run into Shen Jiu and Yue Qi doing the same thing he is. But on all of his travels he hears nothing of either. By ten years since the manor burned, they're an old ache in his chest. But his disciples need him more than their memory does.

By twenty years, he's given up the pretence and just calls himself a rogue cultivator. He may not be all that strong, but he's gotten used to the road and those that travel it. He doesn't have friends per se, but he knows people. He's warm every night. And sometimes he rids the world of polite monsters that people prefer to ignore. He wouldn't say he's lonely or anything, but his disciples tell him he gets a bit too quiet sometimes. He always snarks back that he's only thinking, something they could stand to do some more of! That usually ends the conversations.

-

After running Qiu Jianluo through once, then a few more times for good measure, Shen Jiu takes his time carving his way out of the manor. As soon as he out, he sets the old woodshed on fire and chucks burning logs through the delicate paper windows of the manor. He runs immediately, hanging off into the woods and watching for Shen Shi.

Some of the guards he hadn't managed to stab all the way through come stumbling his way so he falls back to the next town over. He lingers for three days, but he doesn't see his twin anywhere. If he doesn't leave, he'll lose his chance at cultivating. So, he sets up a small tablet on a scrap of wood and plants it at the edge of town. He prays for his brother's spirit to make it through reincarnation smoothly and that's all there is to it.

Shen Jiu follows Wu Yanze long enough to pick up what he needs and then he cuts that line as fast as he can. He's not keen on letting anyone hold power over him, especially when it's only the two of them travelling together. A sect is the next best place. There, he can amass power as he pleases, and once he's powerful enough, he'll never have to worry about being without ever again.

He gathers information on everything he can find. He makes a name for himself on Qing Jing and takes vicious satisfaction whenever that bothersome lout from Qiong Ding gets banned from the peak by the Qing Jing Peak Lord.

He knows he doesn't have Shen Shi to watch his back anymore, but he forgets more often than he would ever admit out loud. Shen Jiu throws himself into fights head first. Only realizing halfway through that he'll still have to outsmart his opponent or else trudge over to Qian Cao and submit himself to someone else's power since Shen Shi won't be able to heal his wounds afterwards. Eventually he starts reminding himself of this before the fights even begin. His strategic mind comes in handy when Yue Qingyuan makes a name for himself in the sealing of Tianlang-Jun.

Shen Qingqiu makes his own name for himself by carving away everything unnecessary until only a peerless jade of an immortal sits in his place. Shen Qingqiu does not grieve. Shen Qingqiu does not reminisce on "what could have been". Shen Qingqiu doesn't have time to be soft to spoiled prodigies dreaming only of a cushy life. Shen Qingqiu is the Peak Lord of Qing Jing and that is simply all there is to it.

Shen Jiu is dead. He's buried in a too-small hole curled up with Shen Shi and watched over by Yue Qi.

Shen Qingqiu remains. He is comfortable. He wants for nothing. He dresses in fine clothes he picks for himself and dedicates his time to mastering his own appearance. A soft voice he'll never hear again often asks him if he's happy here. He scowls and tells the voice that happiness has never been part of the equation. That's all there is to it.

Once Yue Qingyuan puts his foot down everything starts falling into place on its own. Which means it's time for Shen Yuan to get the hell out of dodge! He's done what he came here for and has no intention of being grilled any further about the Qiu's. While everyone else is busy watching the Old Palace Master and Yue Qingyuan argue very politely about the trial and volleying very obvious threats back and forth, Shen Yuan sneaks out of the atrium as casually as he can.

Just getting out of the room itself does wonders for his stress levels. He can feel all the weight of the past few hours literally melt from his shoulders with a shuddering sigh. He starts winding his way back out of the gilded maze that is Huan Hua when a cold voice pins him in place.

"Shen-gongzi, I was hoping to catch you for a minute. I'd like to talk." Luo Binghe says, standing with perfectly polite posture. His eyes curved up into little slits. Even though he's smiling so sweetly, Shen Yuan knows just how sharp the teeth are behind those lips! Fuck! Fuck fuck fuck! He should've known the protagonist would noticed him leaving!

"Young master Luo, I must admit, I didn't expect any company." Shen Yuan replies as evenly as he can manage. Hoping to throw the other off of whatever he's planning, Shen Yuan clears his throat lightly and gentles his expression. "Are you doing alright? You looked a bit ill at the end there."

Luo Binghe's smile falls ever so slightly, he looks off to the side, his long lashes brushing his cheeks. He looks...almost shy? A bit like a scorned girlfriend. Which, what!? "This one was surprised by Yingying's testimony is all. Not to mention all the things said about my old Shizun and your...rather impassioned speech. You'd agree today was very taxing."

Shen Yuan is still reeling a bit from this bashful act. He clicks his tongue and forces his mind to clear. "Yes, well, I was expecting it to get a bit heated. Apologies if I caused you any offence young master Luo."

"Please, just Luo Binghe is fine. Since today was so long, Huan Hua would be all too happy to put you up in a room for you to recover tonight." The protagonist takes a step forward.

And wake up to an arrest warrant? No thank you! "That's alright. I'm well equipped to make camp on the road." Shen Yuan says, taking one step back.

Luo Binghe looks up through his lashes at the older man and Shen Yuan nearly has a heart attack on the spot. Those starry eyes are big and dark, the kind of void that would love nothing more than to draw in everything around it. He's very tempted to fall in. "If Shen-gongzi is worried about being tried for his confessions today, please rest assured, no harm will come to you. This lowly one will make sure of it." He's shuffles forward a few more steps.

"That's- very kind of you, Luo Binghe, but, really," Shen Yuan steps back until his heel bumps into the raised edge of a pond. "I should be going."

"Are you running away from Shen Qingqiu?" Luo Binghe asks. As lightly as one might ask about the weather.

Fan! Shelter this impulsive idiot with your paper-y might! "Respectfully, that is none of your business."

Another step closer. "Ah, but, this one couldn't help but notice that my old Shizun was very surprised to see you. As I imagine you were to see him. With how thoroughly you defended him in the trial, one can't help but wonder why you'd delay your picture perfect reunion."

Shen Yuan ducks behind his fan as much as he can, his eyes narrow slightly over its edge. He draws himself up to his full height—which is, as expected, still shorter than the protagonist—and begins to channel his lofty immortal persona. "I came to Huan Hua to make the fate of Qiu manor known. That is all. I only stayed because it seemed no one else would dare to acknowledge how flimsy the whole thing was."

Luo Binghe smiles again and, honestly, it should be illegal to have a face like that. "How righteous. Would you truly defend anyone in that same way?"

Shen Yuan bites his tongue to keep his mouth shut. The protagonist is trying to spin his words around into something much more impressive than he really is. That being: Shen Yuan is simply a pedantic hater. He's only pretending to be a lofty immortal, words like "righteous" don't actually apply.

"Would you step in and speak up for the lowest of the low?" Luo Binghe moves forward, crowding into the other's space. "Scum, murderers, scoundrels, those wretched animals deemed intolerable to the heavens?"

This close, Shen Yuan can count each hair on Luo Binghe's head. His heart is going wild in his chest, they can't be allowed to touch! That'd be a deaths sentence. The reasonable thing to do would be to bat away the protagonist's questions and make a break for it. But those words strike up against Shen Yuan's sense of justice and he can't stop himself from responding. "Honestly," he huffs, "what are you even saying? I'm not so altruistic as to stop traffic to let a cricket cross the road. But that doesn't mean I think the cricket deserves to get run over. There is nothing in this world or the next intolerable to the heavens."

"That's quite a claim." Luo Binghe muses softly. "Alright, let's speak honestly as two men."

Shen Yuan frowns but nods his assent all the same.

Like flipping a switch, the smile falls off of Luo Binghe's face. His shoulders square back only a little, but he seems suddenly much more imposing. "I don't know where you came from, Shen Yuan. You've messed up my trial very efficiently. I'll admit, it was rushed. Forgive me, I left it up to my superiors here in Huan Hua just this once. But let me be clear. The only reason I have not hauled you off to the Water Prison to let off some steam is that you piqued my interest."

Oh, fuck. Shen Yuan's grip around his fan is getting concerningly tight. He has to lean back to keep from brushing chests with the other man. "Your honesty is a change of pace. Putting aside everything else, I suppose I should ask the question you want me to ask. What about me caught your eye?"

"A few things. Your insistence on the personhood of demons, for one. You should be more careful when saying things like that. Some people might get the wrong idea." Luo Binghe chuckles like he'd said something funny. "For another, you made no attempt at absolving your twin brother of his crimes against me."

"I believe I already explained my reasonings for that in the trial. It wasn't personal." It kind of was, but the young demon lord standing way way WAY too close doesn't need to know that!

"Maybe so," Luo Binghe allows, finally taking a step back. He's still much too close, but at least Shen Yuan can breathe now. "Then I suppose you won't mind when I say that I have every intention of paying back ten fold what I received on Qing Jing. You must understand my feelings well."

"It would be a lie if I said I didn't. Though, since we're speaking honestly to each other, will you listen if I tell you what I've learned from my own vengeance?"

Luo Binghe tilts his head, his eyes shining now like garnets. Bits of red bleeding into his starry skies.

Shen Yuan takes that for a yes and nods to himself. "If I could return to any point in time to relive my life, I would go back and burn down Qiu manor every time. I must stand by all of the decisions I've made, to do otherwise would mean that I want to see me, as I exist now, dead and gone. I could never shame you or tell you not to seek closure. But I have to ask, what will you do once you're done? Me, even all these years later, I can't bring myself to settle. I'm restless and adrift. My revenge has brought me closure, but not happiness. Certainly not affection."

"I am not you." Luo Binghe says slowly.

"And the world is better for it." Shen Yuan says. "Just think about it. If what you want is really to see your enemy brought low, or if you just want to stop feeling small."

Faster than he can react, Luo Binghe grabs his collar and yanks Shen Yuan forward. The young demon lord's face is no more than a sheet of ice. Pristine, and cold. "You have quite the tongue. Is that all?"

A chilly sweat beads up along Shen Yuan's hairline. He chances a look down at where the protagonist's hand is buried in the fabric of his robes. Did that count? Is this touch? Is the System booting up? "Apologies," he breathes, "you remind me of some of my disciples, is all. We talk about similar things."

Unceremoniously, Luo Binghe lets go. Shen Yuan rears back in relief but he'd already been so close to the edge of the pond that his balance is off. He can feel himself falling. He flails, "shit!" Before he can go toppling head first into the pond, a strong hand snatches his wrist and pulls him back.

[Connection to main power source <Luo Binghe> complete! Boot sequence initiating...]

More emphatically, "shit."

As if things couldn't get worse, that's when a certain self-aggrandizing prick makes his entrance. "Let him go, beast."

Luo Binghe turns and Shen Yuan gets a perfect view of Shen Qingqiu making a great impression of a lightning storm blowing their way with Yue Qingyuan trailing after him as serious as thunder.

Shen Yuan pulls his own wrist free and takes the opportunity to take several large steps off to the side, landing in the middle between disciple and master. "I'm fine." He says. Chancing a look at the bright blue System window now floating at his side he grimaces.

[System boot in progress...3%]

[...4%]

[...5%]

Shen Qingqiu finishes sweeping dramatically into the little garden they've taken over, his eyes cool as he flicks them between his brother and the protagonist. "Good. Let's go. We have a long flight ahead of us."

"And who is we?" Shen Yuan asks.

Shen Qingqiu stares at him. The are you stupid? doesn't need to be said out loud to be heard.

"The three of us, like old times." Yue Qingyuan offers. He's back to smiling and he almost looks like Qi-ge. But there's something new about him that throws it all off. Some kind of anticipation. Shen Yuan doesn't know if Yue Qingyuan is actually seeing him even as the older man looks right at him. "I for one would like to catch up somewhere more comfortable. Would you like that, Xiao Shi?"

"Don't call him that."

"Don't call me that."

The twins each take a second to glare at the other. It's been a long time since Shen Yuan has accidentally spoken at the same time as another. Clearing his throat, he tries again. "As I said, I go by Shen Yuan now. So please use that name. And while that sounds nice, I have my own life to resettle. Perhaps another time."

Shen Qingqiu sighs. "If you're going to make excuses, they could at least be good ones. This isn't something that can be handled another time. Now, let's go."

[...27%]

The arrogance...just like reading it for the first time, it's Shen Qingqiu's arrogance that pisses Shen Yuan off the most. Still, when the System finishes booting, Shen Yuan is toast. And as much as Shen Qingqiu pisses Shen Yuan off, he really doesn't want his brother to see him collapse dead on the spot. So, he stands firm. "I'm not going to Cang Qiong with you. I did what I came here to do, so now I need to go check in on everything I dropped in a hurry to get here."

Shen Qingqiu scowls fiercely so Yue Qingyuan interrupts again. "If it's already been waiting a few days, a few more can't hurt. If you need to send letters letting anyone know where you are or why you're delayed, I would be more than happy to corroborate them."

Luo Binghe decides he's been ignored and chimes in as well. "If he does not want to go with you, why force the matter?"

"Why are you still here?" Shen Qingqiu sneers. "Don't you have some powerful sect leader to ingratiate yourself to and eventually overthrow?"

"You're the one who is interrupting Shen Yuan and I's conversation, Shizun." Luo Binghe smiles back.

[...35%]

"Luo Binghe, it's fine." Shen Yuan cuts in before either of them can snipe at each other some more. "Think about what we talked about. This next conversation is private. It was nice to meet you."

The protagonist looks at him for a good few seconds. Then his smile grows and he's back to the perfect, polite Huan Hua initiate. "Of course. A pleasure to make your acquaintance Cultivator Shen."

With that, it's just Shen Yuan, Shen Qingqiu, and Yue Qingyuan in the little garden together. As soon as Luo Binghe is far enough away, Shen Qingqiu marches forward and bodily shakes his twin violently by the shoulders. "What on earth were you thinking!" He hisses. "Of all the stupid, half-baked, inane plans-!"

"Yes, yes, I get it!" Shen Yuan says, breaking away from his brother's grip. "I'll take a thank you any moment now, by the way. If I hadn't made use of my stupid, half-baked, inane plan, you'd be well on your way to the execution block by now."

[...41%]

"Oh, please. Anyone with half a brain would have thrown out those accusations."

Shen Yuan can feel his headache returning. "Are you serious? They were out for your blood! All of them! It doesn't matter if they believe or don't believe the accusations, as long as they had plausible deniability they'd be all too glad to push you into a spike pit!"

Shen Qingqiu doesn't roll his eyes, but it's a near thing. "Yes, this master is well aware of that. Had you even considered that I may also have had a plan for the trial?"

"Let me guess," he knows he's being mean, but Shen Yuan can't stop himself, "you were going to sit there looking proud and snidely condescend to everyone at every possible opportunity as if that'd magically get anyone on your side."

"If you mean uphold the image of an immortal cultivator Peak Lord instead of throwing a childish tantrum in front of the entire cultivation world, then yes." Shen Qingqiu sniffs.

"Oh for the love of-! How hard is it to say thank you!?" Shen Yuan throws his arms wide.

His twin is curled up tight, his arms crossed and chin lifted to a perfect point. "I'll consider expressing gratitude when you get over this farce and come to Qing Jing with me. We have much to catch up on, and I have no intention of letting you slip away from me again."

[...59%]

He's running out of time, he doesn't have time for this! "I'm not going back to Qing Jing with you! How could I? How could I possibly follow you there when you've turned what should be a haven for learning into another elaborate manor of lies?"

Shen Qingqiu lashes out and Shen Yuan blocks the blow with his fan. "You dare," Shen Qingqiu hisses.

"I do dare when you throw your youngest disciple in a fucking woodshed! Shen Jiu, really?"

"I may be a harsh teacher, but I am not Qiu Jianluo. I would never-" whatever he wants to say can't make its way out of his throat. Shen Qingqiu swallows hard and then pins his twin in place with his snarl. "This world is a dismal place. It would sooner kill those pathetic children than it would treat them with any amount of dignity. If they cannot find the strength to pry a place in this world and defend it, then better they learn with me than anyone else."

Shen Yuan grins and he knows it's ugly. "Ah, yes, it's for their own good. Where have I heard that one before?"

"What would you know about teaching unruly pre-teens! I'd love to see you do better."

"Plenty! I've taught a few dozen of my own without ever raising my hand against them and wouldn't you know it, they trust and like me and stay in contact after they're done learning." Shen Yuan barks out a harsh laugh. "A crazy concept, I know. That students may actually like their teacher. You might understand it if you weren't such an arrogant piece of shit!"

[...72%]

Shen Qingqiu draws back, a mottled flush along his neck the only sign that he's bothered. His face is carefully locked down into neutral disdain. Yue Qingyuan looks close to heart broken behind him. Shen Qingqiu assesses his twin cooly. "Then why defend me if you detest me so deeply?"

Shen Yuan bites down hard on his tongue until he can taste blood. Fighting with his brother hasn't gotten him any closer to being able to run off and die in peace. It's so tempting to keep trading barbs and cuts until they're both bleeding and hurt and vulnerable. But if these are his last seconds with his brothers, he doesn't want them to be fighting. So he swallows down his pride. Shen Yuan's thin face has already taken plenty of beatings today, but it doesn't make it easier to bear it again in private. Maybe the audience actually helped? That way he could play a role instead of having to face himself in all of his ugly, twisted glory.

Shen Yuan wets his lips. "I didn't want my memory of my Jiu-ge to be trampled over and handed off to someone else. That's why I came. I didn't want my gege to be forgotten in service of some idiotic intra-sect agenda. I didn't know you'd become Shen Qingqiu. And when I saw you...I had to jump in. I missed you."

He's not sure what specifically makes it through, but Shen Qingqiu's mask loosens. His brows curve together almost gently. "Then come with me. What ever happened to together or not at all?"

[...93%]

Shen Yuan feels like that old hot thing that had buried in his chest after the fire stir. It makes his skin feel tight and his nose burn. "We've been on our own for almost three decades, Jiu-ge. I'm not- I can't just slot right back into place like nothing's happened. I can't be whisked away and kept."

Shen Qingqiu openly flinches back. His lower lip sterns to keep it from betraying any more emotions most likely. "I don't understand the sentiment. But if it's only space, I can spare it."

"I think we both need some space." Shen Yuan says. "Space and time. But I need you to know, I love you Jiu-ge. I do. It's hard to like you and harder to love you but I do."

Shen Qingqiu's eyes close gently. "We will exchange letters. You will respond as soon as you can. When you come to visit, you will stay in the room I prepare." Even now, he can't say 'I love you' back, but Shen Yuan can still hear echoes of it.

"Letters I can do. I make no promises about visiting. I mean it. I have no intention of going to Qing Jing as it is now."

"Qiong Ding is always-" Yue Qingyuan tries.

"No." Shen Yuan doesn't want Yue Qingyuan giving out yet another loop hole for Shen Qingqiu. "If you want me in your life, then you have to do better." A bit misleading given he had maybe a few minutes of life left, but that's his own problem to worry about.

Shen Qingqiu looks ready to argue again, but clicks his teeth and looks sharply away. "Letters, then." He says thinly.

Something cold and bitter lodges itself in Shen Yuan's throat. So, that's how it'd be. "Letters," he agrees.

They don't say goodbye, both of them are much too awkward for that. Instead Shen Qingqiu simply nods and turns to swish back out the way he came.

Yue Qingyuan lingers behind for a brief moment, looking for all the world like he's got something to say too. In the end, though, he falls back into an empty smile and a soft, "never mind. Goodbye, Xiao Yuan."

Once they're both out of sight, Shen Yuan sinks hard into the grass.

[...99%]

The number stares back at him almost mockingly. He braces himself by falling into a meditative pose. He feels a bit bad for lying about the letters, but it's drowned out by his relief to be away from prying eyes.

[...100%]

[Initializing...]

[Welcome to System version 2.0 (,; ⩌ ;,) ! It's been a while User 002! This System will now tally up what you've been up to while it was on standby mode. Please wait while this System reviews your life and decisions ദ്ദി(˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧]

Alright, System! Do your worst! This miserable old man is ready for the big chop! He's said his piece and more so whenever you're ready!

[...]

[...]

[...]

[Most recent quest: Reject the Blood and Shame the Scum complete! +500 B-points. For your role in the Main Event <A Trial for the Ages> you've earned +3,000 B-points. You've also earned +1,000 Protagonist Satisfaction Points for ridiculing the Scum Villain <Shen Qingqiu> in <Luo Binghe>'s earshot! Wow! (,,>ヮ<,,) Keep up the good work, User 002! You'll turn this novel full of holes into a <First Rate Classic> in no time!]

Shen Yuan stares at the text but it doesn't make any more sense than when it'd first appeared in front of him. All of his fear and anger has fallen straight out of him. He's...not dead? He's being rewarded? He should be happy, shouldn't he? To still be alive, at least. To have gotten away with all his ridiculous plans and come out the other side on top.

He'd won, hadn't he?

As the System keeps counting, Shen Yuan watches his point total jump up and down as every dirty and mundane thing he's ever done in this world is tallied up and scored.

Luo Binghe was right. Today has been extremely taxing. And Shen Yuan has to continue through it into tomorrow. Into more complications and hurt and problems. Ah, his old bones can't take all of this, seriously!

Shen Yuan leaves Huan Hua without fanfare and sets up his camp as far down the road as he can be bothered with. The System is still counting, but based on how high his point totals are, he's fairly certain he's in the clear. He lays back to look up at the stars while his fire burns itself out. He's not sure this is a victory. But, he's alive. His brother is alive, both of them. He'd even met the protagonist of this world. Isn't that everything he'd wished for? He feels the spaces around him where the warmth of the fire doesn't reach all too keenly. Maybe not everything he'd wished for, but two out of three isn't bad.

He falls asleep under the stars, still feeling a chill and tries not to think of anything else. In the morning, he can go back to making light of his situation and pitching perfectly appropriate fits where necessary. But in the quiet of total solitude, Shen Yuan turns on his side, curls up tight, and dreams of fitting in next to someone else.